Wildfire Gospel (Habitat) (18 page)

I quickly scanned my thoughts. “I made a massive fireball outside of the banquet hall earlier. That was what I used to make it rain fire. I’d never done anything like that so quickly without using up all of my energy. Surprisingly, I wasn’t exhausted at all afterward.”

He formed his lips into a smile. “Then I
may
need to stand back before I get burned.”

I snorted. “Picture you standing behind little old me.”

The sound of the Vamps’ footsteps came closer as if they were speeding up to get on our sides. I looked forward and noticed from my peripheral that Zulu did the same. I didn’t want to alert the Vamps to that fact that I’d realized they were gaining on us, not that I figured they would attack us out here.

Or would they?

We all rounded the corner. No one existed out on the path but Zulu and I as well as the four Vamps behind us. The statue stood several feet ahead, right in front of Dante’s compound opening.

“Miss Vesta.” A tall woman with wavy brown hair walked up to my side and kept her pace. “Dante asked us to escort you and your lover to your quarters once you both were ready to leave.”

“Really? I was thinking I would stroll around your compound, so that’s not necessary.” I patted her shoulder.

She flinched. “Dante would prefer to show you around tomorrow when things are less hectic.”

“We won’t be here tomorrow.” My view lightened to sky blue. I was sure to her, my eyes flared with fire. If she was smart, she would run.

She wasn’t.

It all happened in seconds, but seemed like minutes. She reached for my wrist with extended claws. I blew a wind of ice blue flames in her face. They snaked out like liquid talons, eating at her flesh and sinking into her bones. She melted away with no warning or chance to shriek or throw up her hands to stop the fire like I’ve seen so many do with regular flames. No. The demon fire moved swiftly over the Vamp as if it was its own conscious being, eating away at all of her. At one moment she stood near me. In the next instance, her flesh oozed into bubbling liquid, her bones disintegrated into a pile of ash, and the flames swarmed back to my body and dove into my pores.

“Oh!” I moaned at the assault of pleasure and fell to my knees, closed my eyes, and groaned some more.

Fighting ensued around me. Chaos it seemed. Lots of grunts and screams within Zulu’s ear-splitting roars, and his roars were glorious to hear within the onslaught of pleasure. Because I knew the delicate subtleties of his war cries. When they sped out in high tones that made the floor vibrate and skin on my bones shiver, he was enjoying himself.

The ground trembled under me. My eyes remained shut. All I could do was ride the waves of lust. Arousal soaked my thighs and the whole time Zulu roared in victory.

MeShack

The back of my head drummed with a constant beating pain. My eyes were closed. I lay in a sitting position in some hard seat with my head back and arms hanging on my sides. The scent of blood saturated the air.

“Tom Castillo fumbles like his life depends on it,” Graham said on my left.

“Oh stop!” A deep masculine voice sounded on my right. “You’re just going to crap all over the Christian Crosses because you’re a hard core Santeria Santeros fan. I don’t know why either. They haven’t won a championship in the last five years.”

“Because they do shit for brains picks.”

“No. They’re too busy yapping to their make believe gods and asking for who to choose. Instead of actually looking at the players stats when they make trades.”

“There’s power in faith,” Graham argued.

“Not when the team is losing.” The stranger laughed.

“Fuck you, XO.”

People hollered and cheered around me. I opened my eyes. Blurry distortions greeted me. Second by second my vision cleared. The first thing I noticed was that the tracking spell no longer shot out from my chest.

How long have I been out?

I sat in a dimly lit stadium, a small one with maybe eight or so levels of long rows that formed into a circle. I was at the top, above everyone else. Supes packed the stands. They clapped their hands, jumped up in their seats, banged their fists in the air, hooted, hollered, and wagged their hands around.

In the middle of this little stadium, a massive cage stood. Twenty naked men and women battled each other inside. Dirt kicked up around their feet as they raced after each other. Blood, sweat, and dust smeared their skin. One huge man boasted green scales like the Spraggin I ate earlier tonight. He swung a massive ax with fire at the edge, but was too late to strike, due to a tiny woman half his size slamming a copper spear in his back. The weapon traveled through and came out his chest. Before he fell to the ground, the little woman caught the spear and rushed away.

Out of the twenty or so fighters, there seemed to be two dominant people working together and slaying them all. It was a guy and girl pair with full body tattoos and bald heads. Writing coated every inch of their skin. The tattoos around the face gleamed silver and moved as they did.

Enchanted tats.

I’d heard from a friend that getting enchantments in the skin hurt worse than a person cutting their name into their flesh. Nevertheless, the pair had a bunch on their face, neck, and certain areas of their arms. Muscles wrapped around every part of their body, even the girl’s body projected a bulkiness that I’d never seen in any species. I checked their forehead brands and the others in the ring. All of them wore X’s. The more I hung around La La and Zulu, the more I learned that X’s could be deceptively deceiving. So many of the fighters fell to their death, so many that the dirt within the ring transformed to muddy sludge that glimmered crimson red. The couple trudged around the muddy ring going after whoever was left. They slashed at people with their claws. The guy would keep them busy. The girl would sneak up behind them and go in for the kill.

Where am I?

I strained and turned my head to the left. Graham smiled. “There we go. That’s my boy. You’re finally awake.”

I opened my mouth, but no words rushed out.

“I knocked you out good. Sorry about that, but you lost control and wouldn’t stop eating that Fairy. They’re good aren’t they?” Graham asked.

“What?” I finally screeched.

“Fairies taste good, right?”

I don’t even want to go there right now.

“I used to eat them all the time. That was before I met Lily of course. She changed my diet.”

“And took away your Demon balls too. Welcome to the family.” The stranger on my right patted my back.

I turned to see some big guy wearing a white suit with a pink and white polka dot bow tie. Dark black skin covered his fat frame. It didn’t even seem like a normal pigmentation. It was just solid black like the crayon or licorice. A silver X brand decorated his forehead. His big pupils glowed red with very little white surrounding it. He had a gray goatee and long, thick gray hair that hung down to his shoulders. He widened his mouth into a big smile and displayed unusual teeth. They were clear with sharp and pointed tips at the end. Steam drifted from between his lips.

“My name is XO. Graham says they call you MeShack.”

I nodded and did my best to look away from those teeth, but something about them caught my attention. “What species are you?”

“I’m an Umbutu like you, except I have no master. I’m the master of my life.”

“I have no master either.”

Chuckling, XO tilted forward and stared at Graham who sat behind me. “Is that true?”

“Pretty much,” Graham replied. “I’m going to teach him how to survive and make sure he can make it through. Granted, he is expected to watch over my little girl whenever he can, but I doubt that will be a hard sell, being that he’s in love with her.”

“How is Lanore by the way?” XO asked.

“In trouble as usual.”

“Anything she can’t handle on her own?”

“Not sure. Which is why we need to hurry this up. Help us find this guy.”

“Not until I get a shake from MeShack.” XO directed his crimson gaze back to me. “We have a problem, young one. Those Spraggins cost me a lot of money. There’s not many of them left on Earth. I bred those. It took me years to get the right strain and even more years to raise them. Then in one hour you manage to put me in debt. A small battle would let them regenerate back to a child and grow up again as they heal. You bit off everything.”

I shook my head. “I-I didn’t—”

“Graham and you owe me. It’s as simple as that. I want my money back too, but I’ve known Graham since Dramonia. I’ll give you both time.”

“Dramonia?”

“The fields of fire.”

I scrunched my face in confusion. “I’m sorry, but I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“In essence, I know him from a place in our realm. Graham may never be a rich man here, but he always takes care of his debts. You both owe me money, so you both will fight for me, under my card. Graham said you just turned Umbutu today and don’t even have your permanent skin. That’s fine. I’m not a mean bastard. I understand. You’ve got seven days to get it together and then you return, train here, learn the ways of the ring, and fight for me. You’ll win too. Your earnings will be my earnings. Once you pay me back, you’ll get the choice of leaving or staying.”

I glanced over my shoulder at Graham and then turned back to XO. “I’m sorry, but are you serious?”

He nodded and returned to watching the battle in front of us. “You have seven days to return.”

“I’m in college, pre-med. I have a band and—”

“My fighters have lives outside of here too, but when it’s midnight they fight and they don’t stop until their enemies’ guts are bathing the floor.”

“I don’t know how to fight like this.” I gestured to the arena.

“You will.”

In that instant, the crowd roared. I checked the ring. The couple stacked dead bodies on top of each other. It was such an odd thing to do, that I just sat there watching in awe. Once they piled them up high, they helped each other climb to the top. In the air, a chain hung. The girl climbed on top of the guy’s shoulders, sat there, and reached for the chain. She screamed as she pulled it down.

Horns blared. Many jumped to their feet. XO and Graham did too and clapped. The girl hopped off of the guy’s shoulders. They kissed, oozing black grime and wounds all over their bodies. Yet, that display of passion hit at my chest. La La’s face rushed into my head.

We have to make sure she’s okay.

Graham figured he had a physical connection to her and could sense when she was in danger. I wasn’t so sure. Either way I knew that I had to get my situation together as soon as I could and then go search for her.

XO looked down and gestured for me to rise. “Do we have a deal?”

“Are there other alternatives?”

“I run a prostitution business too. Got a couple of males on my team, but they usually do guys. You interested in men?”

“Let’s stick to the fighting then.” I stood, surprisingly with no throbbing ache in my legs or chest. It must’ve been the spell causing it all. “You think you can help me find my killer?”

“Graham says it was a Fairy with an X brand that is good with a sword, and that the tracking spell led you to my warehouse. I make it a point of knowing the people who come in and out of my doors. I know three Fairies that fit that description. I’ll take you to all three, once we shake.” XO he extended his hand to me. “However, one of them will put you more in debt with me.”

I held my hand to my side. “What do you mean?”

“One of the three that fit the description fights for me. I don’t mind you killing him. He’s an evil little bastard and the only reason why I keep him around is because he keeps me rich, but if it’s him, then you’ll owe me.”

“How much?”

“Not money.” He adjusted his jacket on his shoulders. “I want a new skin.”

I frowned. “I’m not in the skin business.”

XO centered his gaze on Graham. “Would you help him get the skin and form it for me?”

“Of course,” Graham said through clenched teeth. “But with your frame and size, plus your disposition of burning the mess out of skins after several years, I believe the skin should carve off some of his debt with the Spraggins.”

“Fine. If his killer is my fighter, I’ll take off twenty-five percent of the debt.”

Graham snarled. “Make it thirty-five. You’ve gotten fat in your old age. We’ll have to mend several skins together to even fit you.”

“I’m losing weight.”

“Yet somehow the fat keeps running back to you.”

I waved my hand. “Wait a minute. So let me get this straight. If I kill your fighter, I owe you skin that Graham is going to help me get?”

“That’s the deal. Now can we shake on it?”

“Yes.” I gave my hand to XO. As soon as our skin connected, our flesh blistered near our palms. I tried to yank my hand back. He shook his head and tightened his hold. “Relax. It’s the seal doing its work.”

“Seal?”

“We’re an ancient magic, you and I. We don’t do blood promises like others. We have no blood to shed, just fire. When we pledge something to another, the oath burns into us, to the very depths of our enflamed souls. It stays on our hand as a reminder of the task needed to be completed. After a while it may itch, the longer you take to finish whatever you agreed, the more you suffer the itching. I’ve seen some seals fester and pus. Once the wound opens well then you have to make good on that promise within twenty four hours.”

“What happens after those twenty-four hours?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never seen anyone stupid enough to see. Either way, we won’t have that problem with you right?”

“No.” I gritted my teeth. The heat swelled between our hands.

“Once the seal’s contract is finalized, it disappears.” XO released my hand and showed me his palm. A star showed back to me, one made from a groove of tiny, puffed up scars. I glimpsed my own hand. My palm boasted the same scarred star.

“Let’s start with my fighter first and get all of this out of the way.” XO signaled for us to walk down the row. We passed others. A few nodded at XO. Most didn’t acknowledge him at all, which told me two things, either he was hated by a lot or scared the shit out of many. I figured on both.

“Do you remember exactly what this killer looks like?” XO pushed open a metal door.

“Yes. I can picture his face in my head.”

“Good. Then this all should be pretty quick.”

As soon as we all walked through the door slammed behind us. All of the noise from the arena left. We stood in a dark stairwell with only one red light hanging from the ceiling. It cast a crimson glow on our skin. I followed him down the steps as Graham trailed behind us. Graham never liked people walking behind him. He always had to be last in line. It fed into his paranoia of humans coming to get him.

We arrived at the bottom of the stairs. Three doors stood before us, one wooden, another gray metal one, and then an iron door decorated in black and white stripes. XO turned to me. “If it is my fighter, I won’t help you kill him.”

“I understand.”

“I’ll remain by the door and out of the way. It will be up to you to defeat him. Graham can’t interfere, either.”

Graham growled. “And why not? This is my son after all, by the rules of our realm I have every right to step in and—”

“We’re not in the fields of fire. We’re on Earth. If you jump in, then it will be an easy win. If he wants my fighter’s skin, then he’ll have to get it himself.”

A grumble boomed from Graham’s chest. “Careful, XO. I don’t enjoy being limited.”

XO remained quiet. He stopped in front of a black and white door, pulled a key from his inside jacket pocket, and opened the door. “The training quarters are just behind here.”

The whole area was a long corridor of black walls and gray metal doors. Names hung on each. Pictures dangled on many of the walls. Huge trophies sat under those few photos. The trophies were gold sculptures of bodies that were piled up in mountains with one glass muscular man standing on top. Musty odors intermingled with sweat soared to my nostrils. I sniffed through the fragrance and sensed an array of herbal fragrances, lovely ones that caused saliva to fill my mouth and my stomach to growl. Graham laughed.