Losifer growled to himself as the meeting dawned. Yuriel's life force had vanished without a trace; no doubt vanquished by those damn witches. But the power had not returned to Losifer. Why!? Was there a flaw in his contract? No, couldn't be. His power to absorb the powers of those he contracted with was perfect. Unless...
"Damn it!" Losifer screeched in anger. He had realized it now. If they had found and used the absorption Athame that they had gifted Silas to resurrect Jeremy with, the power would instead go to the attacker.
Losifer felt his body grow tense. He couldn't stand to Mike Hell now. Mike was insisting on a duel of sorts, an open challenge. Losifer had refused, but now he had no choice. No... Wait! Perhaps he could use this to his advantage!
"Master Losifer," Gabbriel shimmered in first.
Losifer grinned, thankful that someone knew their place, "Early as always. I am proud to work with someone agreeable."
A laugh echoed, "Someone weak-willed like you, rather," Mike Hell shimmered in, pointing at the other two, "Weaklings, you both are. Always scheming in the shadows like dogs!" Mike had a white coat on top of his suit, hanging loosely on his shoulders.
Gabbriel countered the outsider, "Flaunting our powers gets us vanquished. Yuriel disagreed with us as well, and has fallen."
Mike shook his head, "He had some potential, mind. Not enough, it seems. Losing to small time beginner witches? Laughable."
"And what have you accomplished of late?" Gabbriel spoke back, annoyed with his comrade's constantly vicious attitude.
"Not destroying you. Explain to me why I don't put you down like dogs and handle this myself." Mike grinned.
Gabbriel smugly answered, "You need us."
Mike laughed uproariously, "What!? Need you!? A glorified mailman and the weakest demon I've ever met!? Why did the Master even take you on, Losifer? After you failed before with that last family? Did you offer to advertise for them?"
Losifer felt his anger build, "Don't cross me. You would suffer to do so."
"Bluffs have no effect on me," Mike deadpanned.
"If you eliminated us, how would you contact the Master?" Losifer taunted.
Mike felt a single bead of sweat form on the back of his neck, "Oh?"
Losifer added on, "A betrayal of us is a betrayal of them, is it not? They would certainly
strike you down where you stood for such... blatant disregard of her wishes."
"Your command has led to the deaths of one of our comrades already," Mike shot back, "You're not fit to-"
"A renegade demon was killed in the streets. Yuriel was of no use to Master alone. He proved that with his disloyalty. Shall you do the same?" Losifer flaunted his knowledge of the mastermind behind their actions, "They don't need you. There are other, stronger demons they could utilize to finish the job Jeremy started."
Mike recoiled for a brief moment, but calmed himself, "If I kill you both and do them in myself, they won't have any complaints."
Losifer tilted his head, "Perhaps. But are you willing to risk fighting three witches, one maybe amplified by Yuriel? Or maybe a stranger found it..."
Raviel stepped into the room behind them, a blunt in his hand, "I watched it go down..."
"You what!?" Losifer and Mike shouted bellowed simultaneously.
"Went to tell him not to fight strangers again. He ran in, got killed. Some young teen, walked from the witch house. Could smell the magic on him. Guess he's a demon-powered human now."
Losifer began to calculate possibilities, "Do you know why?"
Raviel puffed once more, "Stole the Athame. A regular breaking and entering."
"How did you find their house!? When did you find their house!?" Losifer yelled in anticipation.
"Yuriel found it first, actually," Raviel explained, "Was lurking nearby to punish the thieves. The guys mentioned being friends to the youngest, a boy named Geiney." Pulling out a business card, Raviel threw it to Mike, "The workplaces of the older ones. If you send Gabbriel, you can lure them into a trap like you want."
"My, my..." Mike smiled triumphantly, "Messenger boy, if you tell them about that old metal shop, I can duel them there. Agreed?"
Gabbriel recoiled, "Of course not! We have said time and time again to cooperate with-"
Losifer smirked, "Do it, Gabbriel. Let's give Mike his time to shine."
"But Master-" Gabbriel started to argue, "...No. If you agree, I shall, Reluctantly, I remind."
"Raviel?" Losifer ignored Gabbriel's complaints, "Did you follow the power absorber?"
Raviel laughed, "Yeah. Want to attack him?"
Losifer shook his head, "Recruit him, more like. We don't have an Athame anymore, and if he has Yuriel's powers and the witch's trust, we have a plan B."
Silas stepped into the room, adjusting his clothes, "I was plan B before, wasn't I?"
"You let us down," Losifer scoffed, "Do what you will for now, Silas. I'm going to have Gabbriel and Mike move in. Raviel, see if you can approach and recruit the young lad."
Raviel dropped his blunt, "Wait... you're trusting... me?"
Losifer sighed, "Yuriel's dead, Gabbriel and Mike are focusing on the older sisters, and I can't let them know I or Silas exist. You're the only one I can send."
Mike whispers to Gabbriel, "He's totally dead next."
Gabbriel rolled his eyes and ignored his unfortunate ally.
Raviel nodded, triumphant orchestral music playing in his head, "I can... I will do this, Losifer! I won't fail you... Uh... Master?"
Losifer cringed visibly, "Just Losifer. It sounds weird when you say Master."
"Whatever, dude." Raviel shimmered out, hoping that he wasn't heading to the weed store again.
Gabbriel took out a notepad, "I'll begin compiling the letter. Wait, I'll just meet them face to face. They won't kill me for sending a warning, right?"
"As long as the message gets across, there won't be any major loss," Mike rhymed, walking out in style with his white coat hanging over his shoulders flowing in the breeze weaving through the cavern from above.
Silas wondered to himself what these witches must be like. Why kill them? At one time, demons and witches did work together in some ways. Perhaps he should meet them before he made final calls on their lives.
Losifer left the room, laughing to himself, "Yes, this is..." Soon he would win. Raviel would die or live and be absorbed later. The new arrival he would betray for Yuriel's power or maybe if he killed the witches, theirs too! It was all coming together. He just had to bank on Mike being slain. But either way, he would have his happy ending!
"Ladies and Gentlemen, please enjoy this work of art for the HealthyLife company." Sara grinned at the top heads of the company. She was standing next to the large LCD screen they used to play their works in progress. Sitting opposite of the screen was the Company's president, Jack McAllister, and next to him was his assistant, Abby. To the right of Jack sat Patrick, the vice president and his secretary, Katie. To the right of the group was the head of the cinematography branch, Troy Brooks. And finally, next to them sat Rachel, the Vice President's wife and accountant to the company.
Sara clicked play and everyone watched attentively as the screen counted down from five. Soft music began to play and the screen panned out of its black screen and unto the model. The model in a fetal position stood up, showing off her white greek tonga with gold laces and trims. She wore a green leaf crown and her golden hair in a knitted braid. The scenery around her was of a river and a short distance away was a pedestal with a beauty product. She stepped closer to the product, looking rather curious. She picked up the product from behind and examined the product closer.
A female announcer began narrating, "HealthyLife's newest beauty cream, for all the ladies who want to keep their skin rejuvenated and glowing. The best moisturizing cream and lotion ever, created by the gods. This is Vigor Vitality. Our scientists at HealthyLife have developed this cream to fulfill a lifelong dream of someday creating an Elixir to aging. With Vitamin A and Vitamin B5, your skin will look bright and soft. Forget other lotions; Vigor Vitality has PABA-free sunscreen with an SPF 20 rating. This will keep your skin protected from the harmful rays of the sun."
The model was shown massaging the cream into her arms, a small smile on her rose petal lips. Once the cream was applied, a soft glow emanated from her flesh. She gave a smile that showed her perfect white teeth. She was cut to shown her arms crossed across her chest with the glow growing brighter until it enveloped the screen and cut to a different model.
"Vigor Vitality helps skin stay young and reduces skin problems like dryness, irritation and acne. Our moisturizer is so much more than just a plain store-brand product. It is a sunscreen, cleanser and a lotion all included into one bottle by your most trusted company, HealthyLife. We believe beauty is for everyone." The screen cut off to three models all wearing similar outfits. Sara remembered editing and had fallen in love with the glow and twinkle effect she had used on the shot. The models did seem to be glowing and at a certain angle, their bodies twinkled as if a crystal was being looked at under the light.
The screen cut to four male models, all bare chested with only the Greek undergarments on. They all held the Vigor Vitalis product in their hands. "Now, for men too. It is proven men were meant to carry the workload. So why not care for their skin as well? Vigor Vitalis for men will not only do everything the moisturizer does, except hardening the skin instead and relaxing the muscles."
The screen cut to a close up of the main model's divine face where she lathered the pearl-colored cream heartily. She massaged her face, eyes closed in ecstasy. The scene cut to the model, showing off her bare shoulders and looking rather sensual. She gave a small wink to the camera as the camera moved to show her bare back. "HealthyLife—bringing ourselves one step closer to immortality, because beauty is eternal."
"Thank you, HealthyLife." spoke the three models holding each other as if taking a group picture, each one with a pleasant smile on their face. Sara deeply admired the models. She really did see the beauty in these women. She almost envied the women, but then remembered what it took to even get these three in the same room; a small pleasant memory of what reality was like.
The screen cut to black and Sara stood up to address everyone; "Well? What do you guys think?"
Troy stood up, his hand flimsily pointed out in emphasis, "You know I wouldn't have brought everyone here if I didn't think it deserved to be viewed." Troy said, his excitement clearly showing.
"Jack? Patrick? Rachel?" He addressed the superior's in the room.
"All of your work, Troy, is simply amazing. I vote to invite the HealthyLife president over and show him." Rachel flicked her hands towards the LCD screen.
"I think it's great. Except you should cut the men out of the picture." Jack glared at Patrick.
"Now is not the time to joke around," Jack turned to Troy, "You are a valuable asset to this company, Troy. I agree with Rachel, we showcase the commercial to HealthyLife."
Troy giddily clapped his hands together, "What would you guys do without me?" He prided himself.
"Now," Jack stood up, "the next step, since we're all in agreement, is to plan the banquet and showcasing. We need a date, time, and banquet food. But above all, we need to make sure all goes well for HealthyLife. It is their first time working with us so we need to go above and beyond to ensure we have their full support for future projects."
"If we can kick this off, HealthyLife will be a good enough income for the company. Which means more pay for you all. This also means that we may have more commercials from HealthyLife so we'll be staying busy with their company. If they really take a shining to us, they may even recommend us to connected companies." He reminded everyone.
"You know us, Jack. We'll give them a good time and your fiancé, Alicia and my wife, Rachel provide the company." Patrick said as he brought his arm out, as if he was blocking an attack and Jack slapped his arm with his own, their own friendship handshake of sorts. Sara only ever saw that exchange when they were to tackle a project or when they had their own game plan for their clients. It always made her laugh how her bosses acted like small boys at times.
"Oh, then that means me and Alicia will get to be the generous, gracious hosts again." Rachel smiled. Alicia, Jack's fiancé, doesn't work for the Abstraks company, but she was often invited and helped host banquets, dinners and private showings for Jack and his company. While she had no experience working with a commercial and film company, she had plenty of experience with people and customer relations and she always had Jack alongside her. She was confident in her ways of speaking, handling people, and Jack's confidence. Whenever a client didn't particularly like a shot or scene, she would be the first to diffuse the situation and arrange things to be fixed.
Alicia and Rachel had hit it off as best friends. Whenever Alicia was mentioned as a guest invite, Rachel was ecstatic. She absolutely loved working with her on any project and the two were often seen hanging out outside of work.
"Oh my god! I cannot wait to see my two favorite hosts." Troy laughed, "Oh, but if you two need a dress, darling, please give me a call. I have this really cute idea that will make all the boys jealous. So then, I will provide the food, the video entertainment, the invitations, and the dress ware.
"Oh, no!" Abby cried, she began frantically tapping on the screen of her phone.
"Is something wrong, Abby?" Jack asked, concerned. Whenever Abby panicked was when something was very wrong.
"The decorative company we assigned to help us out cancelled. It seems they had a fire break out and damaged the materials. They sent us an apology notice." She slapped her phone on the table, "What do we do now?"
The room suddenly shifted feelings. "Okay, nobody panic. We have Troy here to decorate the banquet room." Jack gestured with an arm to Troy, who leaned his weight on one leg.
Troy clucked his tongue, "No no no, my darling. I have too much to do already. Don't forget that even if I were to finish all I need to do today, which is impossible mind you, I still need to make my personal thank you speech and write yours as well." He crossed his arms over her chest.
"Hey, how about Sara." Patrick suggested.
"Me?" Sara was taken aback.
"That's not a bad idea. She is usually the one that works with the decorative company." Jack agreed.
"But I don't have the materials nor the experience to do it. Besides, wouldn't it be better for a certified company to do it for you?"
"That's okay, Sara," Rachel began, "I'll handle the bills and the accounts. You tackle the banquet room. I have complete faith in your artistic ability to decorate just one room. I will give you access to a temporary banking account that only you are authorized on. I think five thousand dollars on the account will be more than enough."
Sara nodded, feeling slightly overwhelmed with the trust her superiors had in her. Never before has she had to do this type of job for her bosses. It gave her a warm feeling to know that all of her bosses had such a high regard for her.
Troy stepped up, "Remember darling, we need to buy the food, the drinks, the color theme, a live orchestra and plenty of decorations like ice sculptures and such. I'll give you a list of food I think we should order. I need to get in touch with the director."
"Hold up, Mr. Prodigal!" Jack raised his voice rather dramatically, "We don't need," He stressed, "A live orchestra nor decorations like ice sculptures. What are we going to do do? Order a naked Troy Ice sculpture?"
"Why, yes. I think that would be a terrific idea. No censorship though," He looked at his fingernails letting some sass out, "I hear I'm pretty blessed for my size."
Patrick gagged while the women looked away from Troy, embarrassed at his words.
"It takes a special kind of person to say something like that." Sara whispered to the other women in the room who nodded their heads in agreement.
"At any rate," Jack turned back to Sara, "No orchestras or ice sculptures. That's an order!" His hiss was more to Troy than to her.
"I do have to agree with Rachel. I think Sara is more than capable of handling the decoration for the banquet room." Jack nodded.
"Thank you, Jack. But I won't be able to handle such a big room by myself. I need a crew."
Jack nodded, "Take as many as you need. Are you thinking about bringing people from the outside?" He asked a bit unsure of what he wanted the answer to be.
"Nope. Abstraks has the only crew I need."
"Excellent. Then take whoever you want to help you out. Let me know within an hour who they will be so they are excused from their divisions."
Sara nodded, "Thank you, Jack."
"This meeting is adjourned. Everyone knows their jobs. Let's get started."
The meeting broke up and Sara went straight for her office. She knew exactly the people to call too. Once she arrived, she flung the door closed and ran for her desk. She dialed the first phone number.
"This is Daisy at Customer Relations. How may I help you?"
"Daisy, it's Sara. Code Gold in the meeting room, five minutes."
"On my way!" affirmed Daisy.
Code Gold was one of many codes given to their little gossiping group. Code Yellow meant an emergency meeting and was usually for personal topics. Code Pink was for the group to be cautious around work for one reason or another. Code Silver meant that a member needed to hide or smuggle something inside or outside Abstraks, usually their children when they didn't have a babysitter. Code Gold meant an opportunity to advance inside the workplace. This code was never turned down and everyone pitched in to help each other out.
Sara dialed the next phone number on her list; the only one left she needed. The phone rang until a machine picked up and when prompted Sara dialed the extension. The phone rang twice before her friend's voice answered.
"Roseanne, security personnel speaking. How may I direct your call?"
"Roseanne, this is Sara. Code Gold for all in the meeting room at the presidency. Five minutes."
"I'll be right there!" She hung up and Sara got her things ready to head down to the meeting room.
When Sara arrived, Daisy, Laura, and Brooke were sitting down next to each other on one side of the table.
"Sara. What is our golden opportunity?" Daisy asked.
"I'll tell everyone once Roseanne arrives. But this little project will earn us some brownie points with the big bosses."
The girls let their minds wander.
The door opened and in walked Roseanne.
"What's all this about a golden opportunity?" She spoke as she sat next to Sara.
"Okay, so here's the story. The decorative company we usually hire to decorate the banquet room had a fire break out recently. This fire damaged most of their buildings and equipment which means we don't have outside help. So I've been tasked to do it instead. And that means I need a crew." She sang the last part and the girls looked at one another completely excited for what their new project would be.
"And Jack allowed this?" Laura asked.
"Yeah, he was desperate. He was going to ask Troy, but he's busy with other things. Since I'm the one who oversees the decorative projects anyways, they asked me to do it. Of course, you all know the size of the banquet room and one girl is not enough to tackle a room of that size."
"Then, when one girl isn't enough, five girls are!" Brooke pointed out.
"Exactly! So will you guys be able to help? Jack is willing to excuse you from your divisions. We all know that the banquets are the most important events here at Abstraks and are to be taken seriously and with the highest priority." She sounded exactly like Jack, and she wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.
"Don't worry, Sara. I'm all in! Let's show our higher ups we're more than just employees. We are assets to this company!" Brooke spoke with her chest out, sounding dramatically.
The girls agreed and when the excitement calmed down a bit, Sara continued. "So Troy will be handling the food choice. But we still need a color theme, mild decorations, the banquet room setup, and drinks. We also need a dedicated station because HealthyLife will be giving away free products for the showcase of their commercial. We also need to borrow the sound and video equipment from fifth floor and set that up."
The door opened unexpectedly and everyone whipped their heads to look at the intruder.
"My, my, my. What are all of you ugly hags doing here? Get back to work! This is a meeting room, not a place to socialize. Go on! Everyone shoo!" Eva waved her hands in front of her as if she were trying to move a dog.
"Eva Scott. Why am I not surprised?" Sara sighed.
"What are you hags doing here anyway? Not that I care, but it looks to me like none of you are working." She flicked her hair, showing that she didn't care she was interrupting the group.
"We are working, Eva, if you must know." Daisy spoke with her familiar British accent.
"On what? Gossip?" Eva replied staring at her blood red colored fingernails. Eva felt like she was slowly cornering the group, or rather it was an illusion of hers.
"Listen here, you… peasant!" Eva gasped at the insult, "We are working on an important project for Abstraks. We are setting up the banquet room for HealthyLife. So if you excuse us, we need to leave." Brooke stood up, trying to intimidate Eva which didn't work.
Eva stamped her foot, "Only executives and companies are allowed in the banquet room. You bunch of hags don't have the right to be in, much less touch, the banquet room."
"I dare you to try to stop us." Brooke inched closer, Sara tried to keep her in place but surprisingly Brooke was stronger than her.
"I will! I'll make sure Rachel knows what's going on." She left the meeting room calling out for Jack and Rachel.
"Should we be concerned?" Daisy asked looking up towards Sara from where she sat.
"Nope," Sara grinned, "It was Rachel's idea to begin with."
"Alright, sugar," Laura spoke up, "I'll take the decorations job."
"I'll take the color theme." Daisy said.
"Brooke and I can handle the set-up." Roseanne said, Brooke nodding in agreement.
"Then I will look for drinks and grab the equipment we need from Productions. I'll oversee the entire project. Everyone send me what you guys can find since I'm the one with an authorized bank account. Send me what you guys have and I'll put in the order."
Everyone nodded and Sara adjourned the meeting. Everyone immediately went to their desks, ready to help out their friend. Sara needed to fax a copy of the document she received for the banquet room. Upon passing Rachel's office she heard what sounded like verbal commotion from the office. No doubt Rachel putting Eva in her place for meddling in her affairs. After she finished her fax she knew she needed to get in contact with Jack and letting him know her crew. Time to figure out her next plan of action.
"Doctor," Luz opened the door to Doctor Danson's office, "You have a priority one walk-in. Do you have a minute to see him?"
Doctor Danson wrapped his stethoscope around his neck.
"I guess. I'm supposed to meet with Mr. Jude Lloyd on his X-rays for his broken arm. But I can make time for Priority One. What's their story?"
Luz gave him an awkward smile, "Do I have to?"
The doctor raised his eyebrow, "What's his story?"
"The fire challenge?" She shrugged, her awkward smile only getting bigger and much more awkward.
"What the hell is the fire challenge?" He asked not amused.
"Someone covers themselves in an alcoholic product such as sanitizer and lights themselves on fire while under the stream of a shower."
The doctor gave a long audible exhale, "I'm going to see Mr. Lloyd."
"Doctor," Luz gently pleaded, "Fine. But we're billing his insurance double."
The doctor stormed out of his office already dreading the stupidity of the situation.
"He's in room three, doctor. I'm sure you're more than capable of handling him on your own." Luz winked, letting the doctor seethe in his own rage.
"A fitting punishment for a dumb teenager." Luz whispered to herself.
Once the doctor reached the door to room three he grabbed the folder and flipped it open to see what he was dealing with. The child was Garrett Barber, age 15. It seemed he was the unfortunate victim of a "fire accident" after playing the fire challenge. Luz wrote in that the burns looked like first degree, not permanently scarring but still needing to be looked at.
The door opened and in walked the doctor.
"Mr. Garrett Barber?" Doctor Danson asked.
"Yeah, that's me." Garrett had half of his shirt off on one side. He had his entire arm out of the collar of the shirt, making him look like an ancient warrior. The doctor noticed the visible reddened skin from his arm to his chest. He had his arm stiffly out as if it were in an imaginary cast, floating in the air awkward and limp.
"I'm Doctor Danson and I will be treating you for the burns."
The doctor, out of habit, went straight for the gloves that were on a shelf next to the door. He put on a pair of medium sized latex gloves.
"So how did you get burned?" Doctor asked, trying to make conversation.
"I was doing the fire challenge and something went wrong." He gave a slight chuckle as if finding the situation humorous.
"And how did you do the fire challenge?" He asked gritting his teeth.
"I put sanitizer on myself and lit it on fire. But I guess something went wrong cuz it burned."
Doctor Danson smiled thinking his answer quaint, if not idiotic. Doctor grabbed his arm and pulled it closer to him in one motion, making Garrett gasp.
"Watch it, Doc!" Garrett felt his arm burn again.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Was that too rough? Maybe you'll think about that the next time you wanna do something stupid. Now hold still."
Doctor Danson examined the injury closely. The burns didn't penetrate the inner layer of skin, only the outside. There were some signs of infection already starting as there was some oozing of the skin. There was some severely red skin where the arm and wrist was, if the doctor had to guess where Garrett lit himself on fire.
"Where did you start the fire?"
"Here." The doctor smiled on the inside as he had been correct. Garrett lit himself starting at the wrist.
"You're very lucky. This could've been worse. How old are you, again?"
"Fifteen."
"Where are your parents? Didn't they ever tell you not to play with matches? Obviously not if you're here."
"It was a lighter." He corrected.
"And that makes it better?" He reprimanded Garrett angrily. "How dumb do you have to be to not understand that fire burns? And even worse you lit," he stressed, "yourself on fire! What did you think, that nothing would happen to you? That you would come out like a magician unscathed?" The doctor walked over to one of the cabinets and pulled out a bottle labeled, "Burn-away gel". He shook the contents of the bottle, continuing with his rant. "What could possibly make you think that what you did was such a brilliant idea you had to light yourself on fire? What did you gain out of it?"
Garrett shrugged, smiling as if the rant didn't affect him.
"It was gonna be uploaded to Youtube."
Doctor Danson rolled his eyes. He was familiar with the website.
"Yeah, kids these days have to light themselves on fire to gain attention."
"It wasn't for attention, doc. It was to prove that I can do it. "
"And did you prove it?"
"No, I got burned." Doctor Danson rolled his eyes.
"Besides Youtube gives you money if you reach a certain amount of views."
"Oh yeah? What amount could they possibly give you to make you want to do this."
"Five dollars for every ten thousand views!" Garrett said with pride.
Doctor Danson felt his brain hemorrhage and decided to ignore the child. No, this dumb adult. Because a child would be smarter than this dumbass. He took a couple deep breaths, willing himself to calm down before proceeding to the cleansing procedure. After he cleaned the wound, albeit slightly rough on Garrett on purpose, he dried the wound, enjoying Garrett's whimpers.
The doctor squirted some of the cool gel unto Garrett's arm. He massaged the gel unto the teenager's arm, much to Garrett's ultimate discomfort. The doctor worked his way upward and finally finished at Garrett's chest. Garrett hissed in discomfort and pain.
"Does it hurt?"
"Yeah!" whined Garrett.
"Good. It means you're alive." The doctor threw the gloves away. "That stunt you pulled was beyond stupid!"
"It wasn't stupid. Everyone's doing it." He gestured with his arms the world.
"And what happens?"
Garret shrugged.
Doctor Danson pointed at Garrett's wrist, "This could have been worse. You have no idea how lucky you are. Then again, I think you're a bit slow to understand it. If everyone's doing it, then go jump off a bridge. However, if you think something is stupid then maybe it's because it is. You need to think before you act." Doctor Danson put his materials away, "Little piece of advice, young man. The next time you decide to do something stupid, remember this," He tapped Garrett on the arm causing him to flinch. "First degree burns."
"Can I get some pain killers?" Doctor Danson looked unamused.
"No. Go to your pharmacy and buy something called Burn-Heal+. That will help you."
"Will the pain go away?"
"Nope. That pain will be there for the next two weeks." Doctor Danson smiled, "Have a nice day."
Garrett clicked his tongue, "Lazy old man." Doctor Danson shook the insult away, feeling slightly better now. He wrote a quick report on Garrett's chart and finished it off with the word, 'Idiot'. Now, onto the next patient.
Luz opened the door to the house and walked in. As she walked passed the table with a large blue ceramic bowl she threw her keys into the bowl. "Anyone home?" She called out. She stepped into the living room and threw her sweater unto the couch. She took a few moments to sit down on the couch and when she had enough of her repose, she stood up and went up the stairs to her bedroom.
Gabbriel stood outside some distance away. He smirked when he saw Luz enter. He had just gotten there when he saw her car exit her car and enter the house. He doubted anyone else was inside but how bad could three little witches be?
He shimmered inside the atrium of the house and examined his surroundings. The smell of some blooming roses inside made his nose hurt. He hated the smell of roses. They reminded him too much of the good in the world. The symbol of the roses was infamous in the underworld ever since She, His mother, gave her children a rose whenever they needed help and guidance.
He saw a large cabriole couch meant for four people. Right next to it sat a pot with African violets in bloom. On the other side of the couch was an air plant. Hanging on the roof just above the couch was a small pot with a single peace lily dangling by a hook and wire. There were some paintings scattered around the room. There was plenty of room here; a smirk played at his lips.
He heard commotion upstairs and decided to follow the noise. Luz ended up walking into the attic and groaned.
"Ailyn…" She moaned as she saw a mess in the attic, no doubt training with Geiney. "No doubt he used his powers too. At least pick up your mess." She groaned as she began putting things in their place. A book shelf was toppled over. She tried to push it upright but it wouldn't budge as it was too heavy for her comparatively diminutive body. She took a step back and with her powers, waved her hand, and the bookshelf moved itself upright.
"How long have you been a witch?" Gabbriel walked in, seeing Luz right the toppled bookshelf.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Ah, hell. Such a wonderful place. You must visit, witch. You'd have a blast."
"Why are you here?" She demanded to know.
"I'm here to give you a little warning. You have killed one of my companions. Or maybe it was another? Who knows? You see, even messengers get the message wrong sometimes." He toyed with her.
"Yeah, we killed Jeremy."
"No, not him. Couldn't care less about him. Another companion of mine. Maybe you've seen him. Or maybe you haven't? Maybe someone else saw him, an innocent perhaps. Well, not so innocent now, actually." He chuckled at the cryptic message he portrayed.
"How did Jeremy escape? We vanquished him once already."
Gabbriel shrugged, laughing. "Beats me, but now that I have you here alone. I'm going to tell you a little secret. There are more of us; we have been watching you. My name is Gabbriel, and I'm the messenger of the underworld. But before this goes any further, I have one more message. I believe you and him were lovers at one point. How's your boyfriend?"
Luz froze, her face contorted into anger. Unconsciously, she reached out and grabbed the Book of Shadows from its pedestal, preparing to vanquish him if needed.
"Oh, does that hit a nerve?" He taunted, "Maybe this rings a bell?" He chuckled at his own joke, "A church bell!" He laughed as he took something out of his pocket. Luz didn't react; the demon had her full attention.
He threw the ring under hand. Using her powers, Luz caught it midair and brought it into her outstretched hand. The object was a gold ring with a flat diamond as its centerpiece. It had two stones on opposite sides of the band. She recognized the stones as the birthstones of her family including Ailyn's. She ran her thumb over the diamond… was this his proposal ring?
"Cat got your tongue, witch?" He snickered, "The fool had an engagement ring for you! Yeah, something about proposing yada, yada, yada. The point is I was there when it happened." He taunted. If only he could see auras; Luz shed one lonely tear, silence overcoming her and stifling any words on her tongue; but inside she screamed in agony. She unknowingly placed one hand on the Book of Shadows, and took a deep breath.
"Gabbriel, I have a message for you. I will send you to hell myself!" She gathered up power, feeling her entire being filled with energy. She unknowingly called upon the power of the Diamond by placing her hand on the Book.
"You can try!" He howled excitedly as he created a fireball and drew power to it. Wind whipped around him as the fireball grew bigger. When he finished, his fireball was the size of five basketballs. He held it above his head to throw it.
"By the powers of the Diamond I call upon Astarte to bring down the Lion of War to vanquish this demon…" she murmured, her words seem to echo throughout the room.
Gabbriel lobbed the fireball just as Luz let out a loud scream that held her feelings; pain and anger mixing with the love she held for her lost love. She aimed her hand towards the fireball and released all of her pain. The fireball disintegrated and the whole house shook as if it were in an earthquake. The fireball consumed Gabbriel in a wave of heat and smoke, his screams of agony slowly dying down until silence returned to that small attic. The heat was so intense it rocketed through the door, shattering it and pushing through the cracks and open windows of the house into the sky. He disintegrated into black powder and the whole room suddenly grew very warm. A loud hiss was heard as the fire died down, and when the smoke cleared away, she saw only a shadow of where he used to stand on the wall surrounded in charred wood and drywall. Gabbriel's last action was of him holding his hands up as if trying to evade his fate.
Sara finished her fax when all of a sudden she gasped; she felt a familiar power,and a love she thought had died. She clutched her chest, not knowing what that was all about. She looked to the skies, anticipating something, but nothing ever came. "What was that?" She asked herself.
Geiney was walking home from school; he took the long route home, wanting time to think. He took the back alleys as he kicked the gravel roads. He felt a large wave of emotions fill him and he fell to his knees giving off a cry, breathing hard, practically sealed to the ground. His eyes watered at the feeling of it; something so sad but also warm and loving. When the wave stopped, he stood up and wiped his eyes, "What?" He looked around and decided to walk faster to his house.
Ailyn had her knees crossed and her fingers in the lotus position; she hovered above the ground in meditation. She felt a small gust of wind caress her face and felt at peace, something she hadn't felt in a long time since she stopped meditating, a bad habit to get into especially as a whitelighter. All of a sudden she fell hard to the floor as the unexpected wave of sadness hit her. She saw Luz in her mind and momentarily she panicked. She fell on her back, disoriented. She knew that voice calling out, to anyone and everyone. "Luz…" Something was happening and she wasn't sure if it was good or bad. Nevertheless, she decided she needed to check it out.
"Die!" She didn't even know she screamed that, but she suddenly felt weak that she collapsed to her knees. She looked at the ring clutched tightly in her hands, "Brandon..." She whispered. Tears started to fall but of happiness, "Thank you." He was going to propose. The whole thought saddened her but she suddenly felt warm, as if someone had embraced her from behind. She looked behind her but no one was there. She let her barrier fall and she cried. She cried until she could no longer cry tears and when she stood up, she felt herself at peace, if only in the moment. She looked up to the heavens. "I love you." She said. For a split second, she heard a small jingle, as if responding to her. She chalked it up to a noise outside.
Losifer had just seen Mike and Gabbriel off and walked the small distance to his own quarters. The cavern was actually quite comfortable. It only took him a few minutes to reach his luxurious quarters and created a barrier leading to the outside. He liked his privacy; something even in his lifetime as a human so many centuries ago he treasured. He heaved a sigh.
"I wonder how long it'll take for Gabbriel to get the message across. Gabbriel does like to keep—" He was suddenly slammed violently into the wall like a magnet attracting a nail. He felt Gabbriel's power slam his entire body so fast, as if forced to drink water beyond the point of survival. He choked and sputtered and gasped for air. He was so disoriented that he swore he heard demonic chants in his head.
He stood on shaky legs as he continued to gag and cough.
"Oh damned demons of hell!" He coughed, "What in the damned hell was that!? Gabbriel's power poured into me way too quickly!" He breathed in repeatedly, deeply, almost wildly. "What the bloody hell did Gabbriel do?" He questioned as his hand reached for his throat. He was relieved he got his power from his contract ability, but why the hell was it slammed into his body like that? It almost felt as if Gabbriel had been erased from existence…