The air smelled of mold, rust, and rotting meat, a theme surrounding witches it would seem. It tickled the nose and stuck in the back of the throat, making you want to gag. If bile did rise, you swallowed it down knowing that if you did puke, it would just make things worse. Grace was fortunate that there was nothing in her stomach to purge, not that her gag reflex worked. It made her eyes tear up, it made her want to run, but it could not make her vomit. A fact that made her strangely proud.
Her demon companion was faring just as well as she. Even better. His sense of smell was not as keen as hers, though even those with the dullest nose would be having issues in the old warehouse. The smell of decay was not something anyone could just idly walk by as if by a bed of roses. But that was exactly what Tony did, making Grace wonder if demons had a sense of smell at all. It also made her grateful. Having to stop every several moments so her partner could puke was not an ideal situation.
Another thing she was grateful for was he could see in the dark almost as well as she could. Not having someone dependent on her eyes made traversing the maze of broken machinery a breeze. It gave her time to think about the task at hand as well. Where was Lucifer and how was she going to kill the witch? If the smell of rotting meat wasn’t so prominent, she would sniff out the fallen angel. After three months of contact with him, she had memorized his scent. Though wherever he was in the building, the witch would be close by. That she was sure of. It was just a matter of finding him.
That only left killing the witch. It would have been wise to ask Iblis how to kill it, but the thought had not crossed her mind at the time. Lack of foresight was something she was really going to have to work on. Make a conscientious effort to think ahead. A possible New Year Resolution? But possibly something she should work on sooner.
She paused, looking to her companion. “Tony,” she said just above a whisper, “how do you kill a witch?”
Tony didn’t bother stopping nor lower the volume of his voice. “Just like any other animal. They’re still mortal.” That was a relief to hear. “They are, however, much stronger than humans.” Then he added as an afterthought, “And quicker. Much quicker.”
Wonderful. Just wonderful. It was true that Grace was just the same, but that didn’t necessarily mean she was on the same level as the witches. With any luck, her and the hounds would be enough to take care of it. She didn’t want to have to rely on Tony to help her out. It was the whole reason why he had come, but she can’t keep depending on him. There will be a time when he would not be there, and Lucifer might become disappointed with her. He had tried to train her for such things. The thought of disappointing him pained her more than she would have liked.
A noise to the left caught Grace’s attention. It sounded like the padding of bare feet against a floor, only there were too many feet to be human, accompanied by a strong whiff of rot. Must be the witch, she thought, the hounds confirming. Collectively they all growled in anticipation, and Tony shivered.
“I’ll go look for Lucifer,” he said, his voice taut with fear. If Grace listened close enough, she could hear his racing heart. But that was not what she needed to focus on. There was an enemy close by and the demon was not it.
Grinning from ear to ear, she turned to her friend. “Good. This is going to get messy.” Tony liked to use his hell flame, but had a distaste for blood and guts. He would deal with them if he had to, but preferred not to. Grace, on the other hand, didn’t mind getting messy. It went with the game. If she had a problem with getting blood on her, she would have starved long ago.
As the demon headed deeper into the warehouse, hazel eyes peered into the darkness searching for any sign of the witch. Not even a hint of movement. There was just too much in the way. Rusted machinery, large pillars, darkened rooms, plenty of places to hide. And the witch knew them all. This was her territory, her home. Grace was at a serious disadvantage, but hoped having the hounds on her side more than made up for it. Their sight and sense of smell should even it out just a bit.
The further Tony got away from her, the more Grace put herself between him and where she believed the witch was, the direction she had last heard it move. If it was anything like an animal, it would be waiting for the pair to separate so it could prey on the weakest, Tony. The demon had shown fear, though not for the reason the witch believed. No matter. Grace wasn’t going to let her only friend become witch food.
Grace’s attention was drawn to the hounds. They were still as statues, their muscles tight and shaking with anticipation. One word from her, and they would go on a frenzy searching for the witch. A single word from her, and they would tear anything in their way to pieces. A dog was a dog no matter the size or intelligence, it would seem. A smile played on her lips. “Find it,” she commanded, and the hounds took off. Bounded and leaped through the building as if there was nothing in the way, tongue lolling. She couldn’t help but smile like a proud mother. It was like watching Chase run around in a playground, playing with the other children. Though her son never hunted down a creature with the sole purpose of killing it.
With the Sin Eater alone, the witch decided to show itself. It made a beeline for her from behind a wide pillar. A scream bubbled Grace’s throat and she swallowed it down. Never, even in her greatest of nightmares could she have conjured such a creature. Taller than Grace, it stood with eight legs, all moving quickly toward her, knees breaking skin each time they bent causing blood to gush and exposing bone. Its skinny arms stretched toward her, trying to scratch her with its fang-like nails, dripping with venom. Eight black eyes, two big the rest small, focused on nothing but her. Its noiseless mouth hung agape, jaw unhinged and swayed with each step it took. Chunks of dark, greasy hair were missing from her unkempt head.
Once, this creature had been human. A woman from the small, withered breasts protruding from its chest. In her search for power she had given up her humanity and became a monster. Grace couldn’t help feel a slight kinship to the creature attempting to kill her. It wasn’t long ago she was in a similar situation, though trying to save her son’s life. She had given up her soul for that goal and became a monster herself. Maybe not to the extent that this woman had, but a monster nonetheless.
But that kinship was not going to stop Grace from killing the witch. This was a she-or-it situation, and she would be damned if she was going to let some spider-bitch kill her. She readied herself for a fight, calming her heart with a deep breath. Her first since Lucifer had started to train her. And it would go terribly. It had to, with how many times Lucifer had kicked her ass. Fighting took practice, and she hadn’t had much of it.
The witch raised its left hand and swiped out at Grace. Grace ducked underneath it, barely dodged it, and moved to the right, away from the venomous claws. She kicked at the left front leg, hoping to knock the witch off balance and gain the advantage. The bone gave so easily she fell into the witch feeling its slimy, hairy flesh against her face. She let out a cry of disgust and pushed off of the witch, putting as much distance as possible between them.
The witch tried to close the distance, but the broken leg was making it difficult for it to keep up. You would have thought having eight legs it could afford to lose one. That was not the case. It was having such a hard time Grace almost felt bad for it. But it gave her an idea of how she was going to take care of it. Immobilize it and then jam something into its heart. It was just finding something to use as a weapon, a task the hounds were glad to take up. Now, all she had to do was focus on breaking the witch’s seven other legs without getting scratched.
Again Grace allowed the witch to get close to her, to swipe at her, and again she dodged. This time she broke the front right leg, knocking the witch completely off balance. It braced itself with its hands, its jaw nearly falling off from the force. Grace kicked out again, in hopes of breaking another leg, but the witch dodge, moving faster than it had previously. It turned to face its attacker, all eight black eyes on Grace. Fresh blood ran from the tears on both cheeks.
“Finally realize that I’m serious?” Grace taunted the monster, not totally sure if it could understand her. “A little late, don’t you think?” She watched it, trying to see where it would attack from, because it would attack her again. It may have once been human, but that intelligence was no longer there.
For several more seconds it stared at Grace before charging at full speed. Again, Grace barely dodge, though this one was closer; she felt the nails scrape against her shirt. This time, it didn’t wait to attack her again. It kept charging and swiping. Each time the Sin Eater dodged, but it was getting closer and closer. The last one caught on her shirt, ripping it.
A little help, she pleaded with the hounds. She really didn’t want to put them in danger, but she needed them. One-on-one with the witch just was not working in her favor. All she could do was dodge and hope one of the hounds came to her rescue in time. There was still a chance that the witch’s venom would not affect her, but it was not one she was willing to take. She had no idea how Iblis had cured himself and he was not going to pass the information along to her.
When Grace’s back hit something hard, she knew she was fucked. “Shitshitshitshitshit.” It was just a pillar so diving to the side was possible, but the witch was fast. The only reason why she had been able to dodge the deadly claws so far was because she could back up. The witch was fast, but her reach left something to be desired and her forward movements were cut short because of the broken front legs. Now, she would have to chance a side dive and hope it went well. If not, Lucifer was going to have to look for a new Sin Eater.
Grace readied herself to take the dive, waiting to see which direction the witch’s attack would come from. It leaned heavily on its right arm and swung the left arm up, aiming for her stomach. She bunched the muscles in her legs, ready to jump to the side, hoping that the thick clear nails wouldn’t scrape the flesh of her legs. But the attack never came. The witch was jerked back violently, and it let out a frustrated gurgle at being denied its prey. Grace chanced a look and saw Sister dragging the beast away, and couldn’t be any more grateful.
With jaws that could bend steel around it, the witch’s leg didn’t stand a chance. It snapped like a toothpick. Before releasing the creature, Sister gave her head a strong violent shake. She jumped back just in time to dodge the witch’s attack. It left an opening for Brother to pull the same maneuver. When Brother jumped out of the way of the witch’s claws, Sister tried to attack again, but the creature had wised up to them already. Grace’s heart stopped when the witch’s nails brushed against the fur just under Sister’s left eye. That was too close for comfort and made her question her estimation of the witch. Maybe there was something intelligent remaining after all.
The duo took turns nipping at the witch, getting it further and further away from their Alpha. Grace took this reprieve to search for a weapon of any kind. There were plenty of things to use, empty bottles, buckets, empty cigarette packs, but nothing deadly enough. She needed something that would take down the witch in several hits, not shank her a few times and hope she dies from blood loss. It needed to be blunt and it needed to be strong.
I found something, Father claimed. Grace paused in her search and crouched down, hands touching the ground. Taking a deep breath and closer her eyes, she concentrated on Father, attempting to block out all other distractions. A shiver of pleasure coursed through her body when her mind brushed against Father’s and entered it. She opened her eyes and saw what he saw. Not even a foot in front of him sat a two-foot long piece of rebar.
A smile crossed her face. It was perfect. Bring it, she commanded, pulling herself out of Father’s mind. It was disorienting, which was why she had gotten into the position she was in. She had less of a chance of falling on her face. Not where she wanted to be during a fight.
Getting to her feet, Grace turned her attention back to the witch. Mother had joined in on distracting it. The three made a great team. They took their turns lunging at the monster, keeping it occupied while the other escaped, only for another to come in as a distraction. And they were relentless, never allowing for a reprieve. It wore them out, but their opponent more so. Its strikes were slowing down, as were its movements, the broken legs finally taking their toll on it.
Soft, thick fur brushed against Grace’s hand, and she held it out. Father dropped the piece of rebar into it. It was a little slimy from his saliva, but nothing she couldn’t wipe off with her shirt. Then, she felt it. That pull. The anticipation of receiving an order she was about to give. It put a teeth baring grin on her face. “Cripple it.”
The hounds made short work of the witch’s legs, breaking the rest in quick succession. With the four working together, the witch had not stood a chance. The most dangerous part of it, its arms, were still in fine working order, but that didn’t stop Grace from moving toward it. She stood just out of its reach, not even bothering to dodge the nails as they came centimeters from her face. It hissed and gurgled at her, as she stood there and watched it. Grace couldn’t help but almost feel sorry for it. It wanted to live, just as she did, and was fighting to do so. Unfortunately for it, Grace wanted to live more and she had help.
Grace allowed the witch one last swing before she hit it in the head with the rebar. Over and over again she hit it. Bones crunched and blood gushed from the wounds. One hit knocked the jaw completely off and it bounced against the ground with a fleshy plop. When the creature stilled Grace stopped her assault, tossing the piece of metal onto the ground. The clang echoed across the empty room.
“Alright,” she started, glancing at the hounds, “let’s catch up with Tony.” She turned and headed deeper into the building, hoping that her friend hadn’t gotten himself into trouble.
~~~~~~
A/N: This is technically late, so sorry about that. It’s been a little busy in the Mohr household. I’ve actually been writing a novel, and just finished the edits last night. Nothing spectacular. Just a 52k word romance novel. It should be coming out later this year though. I’m hoping in a few months. If you are interested in it, I’ll try to keep you updated in comments and author notes such as this.
I’ve also been thinking about a few things as far as Sin Eater goes. I have been thinking since I’m eventually going to turn this story into e-books, severely edited, that I should just get rid of my donation buttons and Patreon page. And if you guys want to support me, you could just buy a book. I’ll still be offering the edited version for free on this site, as well. That is not going to change. I would like to see what you guys think of that. The Patreon page is going away no matter what. I just need one less thing to deal with.
And last things last, I’ll be adding another page to the site. This one will have links to all my works, my Facebook page, and website whenever I get that one running. I just don’t want to clutter the sidebar with a bunch of links. Depending on responses, the “Support the Author” page might go down.
Thank you for your time and reading this,
Emma Morh
Sin Eater 