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Chapter 17: Spirited away
Taylor spent the rest of the morning sparring with Vaggie using different weapons they practiced summoning. They quickly learned they needed to improve the durability of their summons, as Vaggie was able to shatter the weapons after a few serious strikes. The two demonesses bonded over sparring tactics and the thrill of a good tussle. By the time they stopped for lunch, Taylor was wiped out while Vaggie had barely broke a sweat. 'Wow, if only I had that much energy as a baseline' Taylor admired.
After a shower and change of clothes into a gray fitted vest, a black knee-length skirt, and white sneakers, they went down for lunch. Charlie had made grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup for the staff, and Taylor tucked in while they chatted with the hotel manager about future group exercises. Sir Pentious seemed preoccupied, muttering and giggling to himself the whole time as he swallowed the sandwiches whole. With Angel and Alastor still out at work or broadcasting, Husk seemed to be in better spirits, even conversing with Taylor about getting back to experimenting with new mixed drinks, to which Taylor agreed to be the taste tester.
Once lunch was done, Taylor sat in the parlor and began looking through their list of dealmaker networks their clients had provided. Now that they could annul multiple contracts at once, they were eager to aim higher and make more of an impact. They set their papers down on the table and sat back, exasperated. 'Where am I supposed to start? stakeouts and casing their haunts is an option, but that takes time. Then again, if I'm not careful, they could take me out before I get a chance to get to them. I'm only one person.' They debated.
The heard a noise and looked down to see one of Pentious's Egg Boiz casually gazing at Taylor's papers, and they panicked.
"Hey! Get away from that!" they said forcefully to the Egg Boi. It jumped at the scolding, grabbed the papers, and sprinted away with surprising speed. "Get back here! Those aren't yours!" Taylor yelled as they chased the Egg Boi up the stairs.
Taylor ran through hallways and stairwells, every so often picking up a dropped sheet, but never losing sight of the egg. When Taylor finally caught the Egg Boi and shook the last sheet of paper from its grasp, they heard a loud metallic clang behind them. Stuffing the papers in their pocket, they turned and saw that the walls were now metallic and purple with inlays of red and gold all around. Steam pipes traveled across the room, causing a perpetual hum that echoed annoyingly in their ears. The ground seemed to lightly undulate from under them, like they were floating. They also heard distant explosions and shots being fired. 'Where did I end up?' they wondered. They went back to the door and tried to pry it open, but it felt like it was sealed shut. The Egg Boi scrambled from the room with a wail, and Taylor quickly followed, seeing as their exit was blocked.
As their footsteps clanged softly on the metal, they heard the sound of boisterous laughter and the warbling, goofy voices of many Egg Boiz nearby. They continued and arrived in a large open space. There was a large window in front that gave a 180-degree view of Pentagram City. They also saw many Egg Boiz fiddling with panels or goofing off. Their eyes traveled up a snake-themed staircase to an upper level with a control station. Frenziedly manning the levers, Sir Pentious was crowing of his plans to take over Pentagram City, among other things. 'Oh brother, I ended up on the war machine. Just perfect.' they groaned.
"What are you doing here?" they heard Sir Pentious yelp. The fire demon quickly took the stairs up to the upper level and shrugged.
"One of your Egg Boiz stole something of mine, and by the time I caught him, I was here and the door was locked."
Sir Pentious stared suspiciously at Taylor for a moment before waving them off.
"Very well. Go man the cannonssss on the ssssub level and keep usss aloft. I expect to have conquered the city by daybreak. Now begone!"
"Uh, no. Drop me off on top of a building somewhere and I'll make my way back to the hotel."
The war machine lurched as they felt an impact. Sir Pentious yelped in surprise but began pressing buttons and pulling levels furiously. The window crashed and a small pink ball rolled toward them. Taylor looked closer and saw a black skull and a lit fuse, before they realized it was a bomb. They quickly grabbed the explosive and threw it out the window, where it exploded in a cloud of red smoke. Sir Pentious sighed in relief before standing resolute again.
"Excellent work, soldier! Get to the window and keep those infernal explosives away from the ship!"
Not wanting to be shot out of the sky, Taylor complied and looked down on the damaged city scape below. Soon a wave of bombs flew up from below and Taylor shot as many as they could, causing a smoke cloud to obscure their view. The ones they missed hit the ship and caused it to sway hard to the side. Taylor was knocked off their feet and hit the wall hard as they could feel the zeppelin lose altitude. They looked around and saw some Egg Boiz and Sir Pentious nearby freaking out about the situation. They got up with shaky legs and ran to the cobra demon, dragged him upright.
"We got to get out of here, come on!" They yelled over the blaring warning alarms.
"Why ssshould I trussst you, fire sssstarter?"
"Ugh, because it's what good people do, they help each other. Now let's go!" Taylor grabbed the snake and pulled him to the window. "Hold on, I'll show us down with my fire!" Before he could answer, Taylor wrapped one arm around his waist and threw them both out the window. Sir Pentious screamed and wrapped around Taylor as they watched the ground get closer. When they thought the time was right, they shot concentrated fire from their hands, slowing their descent. They felt the snake constrict their chest hard as he tensed, causing Taylor to see stars. "Pentious, you're choking me!" They rasped. The fire sputtered out and they hit the ground in a heap. They felt a weight on top of them before the world went black as they groaned in pain.
They felt their breathing become easier as they came to. As they tried sitting up, their whole body ached, but when they tried to use their arm, it shot back in stabbing pain. 'Shit, that hurts! Did I break it on impact? Just perfect.' they winced. Sitting up carefully, they cradled their arm as they looked around. They landed on some rooftop but couldn't see the Hotel or Sir Pentious anywhere. 'Did the coward leave me here? Wait till Charlie hears about this.' they fumed. Still lost in thought, they heard an accented voice behind them.
"Well, well, look what we got here. Did the old man finally get more firepower to help him with his tinker toy?"
Taylor turned and saw a slim but curvy cyclops demon with an X for a pupil, a wide grin with sharp yellow teeth, a pink half ponytail, and several red tattoos on their white skin. They wore a pink crop top over a one-shouldered black bra with a pink mini skirt. Their black leggings were torn all over and they wore a mismatched red boot and heel combo. They were tossing one of the pink bombs they saw on the ship in their hand menacingly. Taylor laughed awkwardly as they tried to diffuse the situation.
"Hell no! All I did was keep his hide from becoming a pancake and he ditched me!"
"Well, ain't that a bloody shame. But you're trespassing on my turf, and I don't take kindly to intruders."
Taylor raised their hand in defense.
"Fine! I'll leave! Just point me in the direction of the Hotel, and I'll be out of your hair!"
"The Hotel? You talking 'bout that place the bloody Princess is running to make Sinners into fucking buzzkills and prudes?"
Taylor frowned at the comment, but kept their voice level.
"Look, we aren't a bunch of killjoys over there. Things are never dull over there, especially with Angel keeping everyone on their toes."
"You know Angie?" The cyclops asked, interested.
"Yeah, he's a good friend. Calls me Fuoco."
The cyclops regarded them for a moment before speaking. "Prove it."
"What?"
"Everyone knows who bloody Angie is, he's the most famous porn star in this city. Prove that you aren't just lying through your teeth to save your sorry hide."
"Fine, I'll give him a call and-" they felt around their pocket and groaned. They had left their phone in their room when they changed for lunch. "Well, shit. I don't have my phone on me. But if you call him, he'll vouch for me."
The cyclops narrowed their eye suspiciously, but took out their phone and made a call. The two waited as it rang, and the cyclops sighed as they left a voice mail.
"Yo, Ange, it's Cherri. I have a little bush telly here that says they know you. Name's Foko or something- "
"It's Taylor." they interjected.
Cherri rolled her eye. "Fine, Taylor here says they're buddies with you. Call me when you can. Later, bitch." They hung up and sauntered over. "Get up. You're coming to my base while we sort out if you're a liar or not. And don't try running, you're on my turf and I can hunt you down in a jiffy."
Taylor wanted to protest, but the fiendish look Cherri gave made them get up and follow the cyclops demon down off the roof. When they got to the ground, Cherri handed them a cloth.
"Put this on. Can't have you seeing where my base of operations is." Taylor stood awkwardly.
"I don't think I can do it myself. I broke my arm when I fell and can't move it right now."
The cyclops huffed in annoyance but moved behind them and tied it tightly around Taylor's eyes. They felt a punch to their good arm and flinched in response.
"Ace! Now march, I'll be behind you and give you directions." Taylor nodded and moved forward.
The two walked for several blocks, turning so many times Taylor couldn't keep their bearings straight. Cherri stopped them and guided them up some stairs and they heard a door open and they were pushed in. They felt a hand on their good shoulder as they were led forward through some hallways. Taylor could hear muffled voices nearby and a few screams, but Cherri just moved them along forcefully. Eventually, Cherri stopped and opened another door, shoving them inside before snagging the cloth from their eyes.
"Now you be a good girl and wait here until your story checks out." The door slammed shut and they saw a sparse room with only a dusty bed and a chair. Sighing, they gently sat on the bed with their back to the wall and waited, nursing their arm painfully. 'I hope Angel's shoots don't run long tonight.' They thought miserably.
Taylor had just started to doze off when they heard the door open and Cherri stalked in grinning.
"Well looks like it's your lucky day, bitch! Angie sounded right worried when he heard I scooped ya, so I'm gonna do you him a solid and give you a ride back to that hotel you're both shacking up at!"
Taylor sighed in relief at not needing to hoof it and got up gingerly. "Thanks Cherri, I appreciate it." The two exited the room and passed through a myriad of hallways. When they walked by a certain closed room, Taylor heard groans from the other side. Scared to ask, Taylor questioned, "Cherri, what do you do here anyway?"
"Oh, that? That's just some dipstick we sprung trying to make deals on my turf without giving me my dues. Turns out he's some mid-level whacker that works for that shithead Valentino, so he's here for some reeducation, if you get my meaning." Cherri said with a devious grin.
Taylor perked up at the news, and had an idea.
"Can I have a whack at him? I promise to keep him mostly intact for you."
"Why's that?"
Taylor's expression turned serious.
"I have it out for Valentino for what he does to Angel without consequence. Or anyone who takes advantage of others who don't deserve it. I just want to knock those fuckers down a few pegs so they get a taste of what they do to their victims." They clenched their fists in frustration.
Cherri's smile grew wide as she laughed, "Ha ha, we fancy ourselves an anarchist, do ya? Sticking it to the man, I can respect that. Sure, I'll give you a fair go at 'em! And if I catch anymore dinguses, I'll let you know and you can let loose!"
Taylor grinned, ecstatic that their plan worked better than expected.
"Can you blindfold him? I can't have him seeing my face and sending trouble to the hotel."
Producing the blindfold they had used earlier, they smiled. "Too right! Just a minute."
Taylor wiped their face with their good hand. 'How lucky can I get? A new source for dealmakers that I don't have to scout out? I guess it was worth falling a few stories and breaking my arm.' they cheered internally.
"Yo, Foko, get in here!" Cherri called out.
Taylor walked into the room and a blindfolded alligator demon in a trench coat was tied to a chair, struggling violently to get loose. Cherri patted the gator's head as she finished up. "Have fun! Just shut the door and head down the hall when you're done." She walked out, swaying her hips as she went and closed the door, leaving the two demons alone.
"You piece of shit! Let me loose so I can tear your fucking face off! My boss Val is gonna rip you some new holes when he finds you!" the demon swore. Taylor observed that they already looked roughed up, with a swollen lip and bruises on their neck. Sighing in anticipation, Taylor got to work.
Moving behind the demon, they focused their attention to their arm. A moment later, the faint shimmer of forest green formed into a manacle on one wrist. They followed the glow until they saw the several small chains extending outward into nothing.
"One, two, three…" Taylor counted quietly.
"Ooh, the silent treatment? You think keeping your voice down is gonna keep me from finding you, shit face?"
"Fifteen, sixteen, seventeen…" Taylor continued, tuning out the gator demon.
"You fucker! You think your muttering scares me? This some kind of psychological torture tactic?"
"Thirty-one. New record for me." they said to themselves. 'I hope I can do this with one arm.' they considered. With a determined huff, they gathered all the chains in one hand and put a foot on the back of the chair for support. They took a deep breath, squeezed the chains, and heaved the chains back hard. The alligator demon screamed at their wrist being pulled back painfully. The chains clanged together as Taylor winced at the flying images they were seeing. They tried to focus on a few, and saw flashes of terrified faces and intertwined bodies, making Taylor sick to their stomach. Taylor grunted with exertion, zoning out the shrieks of the alligator demon as and kept thinking of the silver flames to help melt the chains. With a whoosh, they heard the flames ignite and grinned ear to ear. They pulled harder as they felt the taut chains start to stretch and rattle loudly. With a final tug and a shrill screech, the chains fractured with a resonant clank, followed by sonorous clattering as the pieces fell to the ground. The chair had been knocked forward, throwing the alligator demon to the ground with a crash and a grunt.
"Fuck! That the best you got? Breaking my wrist? You just wait till I get my hands on- wait a minute. Something's off. What did you just do?"
Taylor blocked everything out, watching eagerly as the mass of dark green smoke swirled into a churning orb. After a few agonizing minutes, the sphere was complete and hovered gently. Taylor crouched down and fervidly snatched it up. They felt a jolt so strong; it left them breathless. They were tingling all over and felt so light they could take flight. They hissed sharply in pain and then sighed in relief as their arm crackled into place, and their aching subsided, the pain gone. Tilting their head back, they began to laugh at the euphoria they were feeling. They reveled in the ephemeral lightness until reality started to come back into focus, and they glanced down. The alligator demon had turned to lay on their side and continued their obscenity filled rant. Taylor giggled as they vibrated with energy to burn. Having had enough of the shouting, Taylor moved and kicked the alligator in the head hard, causing them to grunt in pain before passing out.
"That's quite enough of that, scumbag." They said in a flippant tone, too zippy to take on a serious tone. They moved to the wall and took a moment to process.
'Okay, settle down. I'm too energized right now. Breathe, think, calm down.' they meditated. After a few more minutes of deep breathing and bouncing on their toes to dispel some of the energy, they took one last deep breath before cradling their now fixed arm. 'Can't let Cherri catch on,' reminded of Alastor's observations of their overly convenient fast healing. They left the room, closing the door behind them as instructed, and headed down the hall with a spring in their step.
Cherri was lounging on a sofa, popping some gum, and reading a magazine as they looked up at the fire demon's approach. Their eyebrows quirked up playfully.
"Looks like you had a rip snorter of a time, judging by that flushed look! I could hear that dingus whinging from here, good onya!"
Taylor's face turned red as they panicked that they hadn't calmed down convincingly enough.
"Oh, um, yeah. I definitely let off some steam." They sputtered.
Cherri chuckled as she got up, twirling some keys on their finger.
"Let's get ya back with your posse. Oh, but give me your digits so if I snag another bogie, I'll throw them your way!"
Taylor thanked Cherri for the ride as the two demons walked out together.