Drummer Boy - Back Into Hell Ch. 06

"Okay, great," Jason sent. "How does that help us?"

"We shall see," Granny sent. Jason felt a smirk enter her thoughts. "They know you quite intimately, you know. Their familiarity, with both your desires, as well as your productive capabilities, has made them very eager to ... how shall I put it? ... engage with you."

Jason felt himself blush. "Dear lord," he sent, "a whole flock of busty demons, eager to get me off, however I wanna get off..."

"They are well aware of the manner you prefer to 'get off'," Granny sent. "Each of them is quite willing to apply their abundant endowments towards servicing you in that regard."

"What are you doing, Granny?" Jason sent. "Are you trying to get me all hot and bothered?"

"Merely reminding you of what is at stake," Granny sent. "There are others who would be effusive in their gratitude as well, should we succeed."

"Oh, no," Jason sent. "It starts out all 'just jizz on these' and 'slide your dick in here', and ends up with stuff breaking and folks dying. So, pass." Jason considered. "Maybe after we get Pearl back." He considered more. "If she's okay with it."

"Now who is the prude?" Granny sent. "In truth, we are very near our destination. Apply what you have learned while linked, and we shall arrive within the hour."

Jason felt Granny's thoughts kind of taper away, and then it was silent in his head again. Only now, it felt small and lonely in there. And, oddly enough, he felt kind of jittery. He really wanted a cigarette, but that was practically impossible while flying. Even if he did somehow manage to get his smokes out of his little backpack, he'd never get one lit, much less maintain a cherry for any length of time.

So instead, Jason hunkered down, and tried his level best to keep up with the flock. At least they were almost done with this shit. After that ... maybe a future of Camel Lights and boob-banging wasn't too far off, after all.

* * *

"She was right about pullin' you out, y'know," Leanne said. "Any more an' it coulda gone bad for ya."

"Real talk?" Jason said. "It felt fucking amazing while I was doing it."

"Yeah," Leanne said. "Even among our kind, mindlinking is pretty intense. All that unity and oneness ... it's kinda addictive. Some of us go looking for any excuse to get linked up, to the point where they're only fighting Spines so they can get another hit. For humans, well, it can be worse."

"How bad is worse?" Jason said.

"For an untrained schlub like you?" Leanne said. "Best case scenario: aneurysm. Too much brain activity, you pop a blood vessel. Poof, dead."

"That's the best case?!" Jason said.

"Oh sure," Leanne said. "You could get swallowed up by the gestalt instead. Total identity loss. Turns you into a drooling zombie for the rest of your life. So if one of your demon friends offers you a mindlink, you need to Nancy Reagan that shit."

"What?" Jason said.

"What are they teaching kids these days?" Leanne said. "'Just say no.'" She shook her head. "Anyway," she said, and rolled her hand in a "get on with it" motion.

* * *

In fact, it wasn't long at all before Jason noticed some additions to their traveling party. Sometime within the last few minutes, more Wings had appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, flying amongst them.

These new ones weren't wearing flight skirts, so they had to have come from nearby. And their armor was strange. More elaborate, for starters, with incomprehensible symbols, buckles, spikes and straps. Hell, some of them even had fringe, and one gal even sported a fur lining which looked suspiciously like demon hair. While most didn't wear headgear, the choice of the few that did was a tight leather hood, with rough holes cut out for their eyes and mouth. They had a real post-apocalyptic S&M vibe going on that, even after all he'd seen, Jason found unsettling.

Concerned, he tried to mentally get Granny's attention again. But she didn't hit him back, so Jason just stayed the course.

By this time, color of the sky had shifted dramatically. It was now almost completely at the deep violet end of the redderblue spectrum. And against this sky there was a vertical line of pure blackness. It began at the horizon and beamed straight up, seemingly right into space.

The group entire group slowed down significantly, and then came to a stop. The Wings then broke formation, and spread out around Granny and Jason in a big sphere.

"We have arrived," Granny sent, the now-familiar static absent. "Bright Lady be praised."

"So what are we waiting for?" Jason sent.

"First," Granny sent, "drop your skirt."

This confused Jason, until he said that Granny, as well as the rest of the Wings from Pinnacle's Peak, were unfastening their flight skirts and simply letting them fall. Far below them, tiny darting specks caught the flight skirts, collecting them mid-air, before speeding away again.

Jason undid his own straps, letting his own flight skirt go, and sent, "Okay, now what?"

"Now," Granny sent, "we say hello."

A lone Wing approached them, coming from the direction they were headed. Even at a distance there was no denying that this gal was big. Her wings alone were easily twice the span of Jason's.

The sphere of Wings parted to let her in, and closed up again once she was inside. She came within about a hundred feet of Granny and Jason and stopped, hovering silently.

Jason's initial assessment was correct: this Wing was big. Easily nine feet of trouble, and bulging with muscles, and her hair was shaved in a buzz cut. If not for her wings, she could have passed for a Spine. She wore leather armor, but unlike the other newcomers, it was of the regular variety.

While Jason was checking her out, she checked them out too. She folded her arms underneath her nonetheless stupendous rack, and gave Granny a judicious once-over. She shot an aggressive smile at Granny, revealing teeth sharpened to points that gave off a faint blue glow.

"Am I supposed to be intimidated?" Jason said. "And, follow-up, can you let her know it's working? I would, but I'm really afraid of her."

"Fret not," Granny said. "This is merely a formality."

Then Granny gave a few big flaps, putting herself closer to the big Wing.

"Greetings, traveler," the big one said, in a voice that was even more growly than your standard Wing-speak. "I am Berel, Captain of the Guard of the Darkling Antipode. What business brings you to the very heart of darkness?"

"Greetings, sister," Granny said. "I am Garanetta, Grand Wing Mother of the Aerie Fist-of-Dark, and I seek an audience with Great Electra."

"Ah," Berel said. "Then it is with regret that I must inform you that your journey ends here. The Regent will not see you." Berel waved a dismissive hand in Granny's direction and said, "Begone."

"Perhaps you misunderstand," Granny said, her voice icy but level. "I did not come to banter with a mere Captain. You will allow my passage, for time is short and I am expected."

Berel chuckled, setting off menacing ripples of laughter amongst the other newcomers, displaying even more sharpened teeth.

"A Grand Wing Mother is expected, aye," Berel said. "But where is she? A Grand Wing Mother must command an Aerie, and Fist-of-Dark has fallen. I behold naught before me but a withered crone and her terrified imbecile. You reek of shame, sister. Shame and regret and faded glory. Perhaps you should go, and find me a true Grand Wing Mother. When one arrives, she may pass."

Jason's temper got the better of him then, and his mouth was off and running before his brain could stop it.

"Hey, dipshit!" Jason yelled. "'Roids rot your brain? You heard her. We don't have time for this fuckery!"

Berel raised her eyebrows in surprise, and then chortled.

"Excellent show, imbecile!" she said, still laughing. "Such passion! Perhaps you be the true Grand Wing Mother! If so," she drew her spear from the holster on her back, and leveled its tip at Jason, "come, and let us taste of each other's fire!"

Jason's brain caught up right quick then, and, threatened at spear-point by this monster Wing, he clammed up. Luckily Granny came to the rescue, interposing herself between him and Berel.

"I think I understand the problem," Granny said. "It is merely a question of vision. Your eyes simply cannot comprehend the greatness before you. Allow me to solve this problem for you, by removing those troublesome orbs."

Granny drew Fuck-Bringer from the sheath on her back, and held it before her. Berel's smile faded into a grimace.

"I would advise you to sheathe your blade, hag," Berel growled, "lest I sheathe it for you. In your skull."

"You shall do no such thing," Granny said breezily, "and you will let us pass."

The glared at each other wordlessly for a few seconds, and then it was on. Both women simultaneously launched towards each other, closing the distance between them in no time flat. Jason backed the fuck up in a hurry, joining the rest of the Wings in the sphere.

Their paths crossed, and Granny swung at Berel's neck. Berel anticipated this, and brought her spear up just in time, deflecting Granny's blow with the tip.

They sped past each other, got some distance between them, then wheeled around and dove towards each other again. This time Berel stabbed at Granny, aiming to puncture one of her wings. Granny brought her sword down, and sort of hopped over the thrust.

The pair repeated this a few more times: dive, strike, pivot, with neither side getting a solid hit in. Jason got the feeling that they were feeling each other out.

As the dash-and-clash routine continued, the Wings sphered around them got into it. They shouted and cheered like they were at a Cowboys game. And since Jason understood as little about football as he did about aerial combat, he was just as lost.

Then the duel went three-dimensional. Now Granny and Berel streaked at each other horizontally, vertically, and various flavors of diagonally, whipping their winged spectators into even greater heights of fervor.

Eventually, Jason was able to figure out what was going on, strategy-wise. Granny, for her part, was playing the aggressor. She was always the first to turn and the first to strike, and did the majority of the flying around. She went hard and fast at Berel, keeping her on her toes, trying to catch her off balance.

Keeping up with Granny was no easy feat, but Berel was certainly up to the task. By letting Granny do most of the work, Jason suspected she was hoping Granny would wear herself down. Once Granny made a mistake, it'd be off with her head. Even so, there seemed to be no clear winner in sight.

Then things suddenly came to a head. During one pass, Granny swung low to high. Berel blunted this with a downward swing of her spear. But instead of darting away again afterward, Granny rolled with the impact, somersaulting over Berel. At the completion of her flip, she spun her whole body around, and swung her sword at Berel's midsection, ready to cleave her in half.

But before Granny could connect, Berel thrust the butt end of her spear right behind her, striking Granny hard in the sternum. Granny got the wind knocked out of her, and her killing blow went wide.

The two backed off from each other for a bit then, while they regained their bearings. Granny dropped a couple dozen feet, while the captain held her ground, but both women kept their eyes locked on the other.

Granny still had her regal calm thing going on, but Jason knew from experience that she was probably pretty pissed, as much at herself as her opponent. Berel, on the other hand, didn't bother hiding her anger. She flared at Granny, looking ready to spit fire.

Then, Granny smiled. She flapped her way upward, getting level with Berel again. She was real casual about it, too, almost an aerial saunter. The captain sneered and readied her spear.

Granny hovered closer to Berel, and then stopped. She was, Jason could see, right outside the striking range of the captain's spear. Berel was rock-steady, silently daring Granny to make a move.

Then, still smiling, Granny waltzed right at her.

The captain immediately stabbed her spear at Granny. The blow was so quick that Jason almost didn't see it happen. He did see the result: Granny's somehow managed to dash sideways, avoiding the blow. Then she did it twice more, sideways dodging the captain's follow-up strikes, and somehow ending up behind Berel.

The captain, however, correctly predicted where Granny would end up, and, reversing her grip on the spear, swung it around in a no-look stab directly behind her.

Her aim was perfect, set to turn Granny's face into ground chuck. But Granny proved quicker. She brought her sword up in the nick of time, catching the shaft of Berel's spear in Fuck-Bringer's guard.

Granny capitalized on this by grabbing the shaft of the spear with her free hand. Using this as leverage, she spun the captain around to face her. Berel tried for a head-butt, but Granny did kind of a lean-to-the-side thing, while simultaneously bringing her knee up into the captain's stomach.

This caught Berel off-guard. Her arms and legs flung out, and she let go of her spear. Granny also let go of the spear, using that hand to grab the back of Berel's head. She pushed down hard, at the same time ramming her other knee straight up, right into the captain's face.

Berel went limp, and started to drop. Before she had time to fall more than a couple of feet, though, Granny dipped down and grabbed her by the bony part of one gigantic wing. Then, holding her like that, she raised Fuck-Bringer up high, and stabbed downward.

Jason looked away, not anxious to see yet another lady get chopped in half. There was an audible gasp from the spectators. In the silence that followed, Jason dared to look.

He was surprised to find that Berel was still in one piece. Granny still held her by one wing, and she still had all the parts she had, presumably, been born with.

She was, however, naked. Granny's blow had sliced precisely between Berel's breasts, and also the waist of her skirt. Looking down, Jason saw the remains of her ruined biker garments, flapping aimlessly in the wind as they fell to the surface.

A moment later, Berel jerked to sudden awareness. Granny let her go, and the captain began flapping her wings again.

Going back into hover mode, Berel faced Granny. Her face was a mess: huge, nearly black bruises around both eyes, dark blood running from a nose that was smashed way out of place, and several of her spiky teeth were missing. Even so, she didn't look angry anymore. Surly as hell, but not hateful.

"I trust," Granny said, "that there is no longer any doubt as to my provenance."

"Nay, sister," Berel said, her growl now augmented by a prominent lisp. "Welcome, Garanetta, Grand Wing Mother of Fist-of-Dark, to the Darkling Antipode."

"My thanks, Captain," Granny said.

One of the captain's gang flew up next to Granny, carrying Berel's discarded spear. She held it out to Granny, who gave it a quick visual once over before nodding toward Berel. The Wing then presented the spear to Berel, who took it from her and snapped it back into place on her back.

Then the whole group took off, heading for the column of darkness in the distance. They were still sphered up, with Granny and Jason in the middle, but going slow enough that Jason didn't have any trouble keeping up.

Flying side-by-side next to Granny, he noticed she didn't look that much worse for the wear. Though her expression was impassive, Jason caught the tiniest trace of a smile on her lips.

"I see that," Jason said. "Feeling pretty good about yourself, huh?"

The smile vanished. "I take no pleasure in victory over my sisters," she said.

"Bullshit," Jason said. "You knew you had it in the bag, didn't you?"

"Berel is Captain of the Guard, and among our most highly accomplished warriors," Granny said. "Nonetheless, I am a Grand Wing Mother, and that fact required demonstration."

"Why the song and dance, though?" Jason said. "Couldn't you mind meld or something?"

"Aye," Granny said, "but, as I said, it is a formality among our kind. A tedious one, but it is our way."

"Would she really have killed you?" Jason asked.

"Without hesitation," Granny said. "As the last line of defense for the Darkling Antipode, it is her duty to deter those unworthy of the Regent's attention."

"But you didn't kill her," Jason said.

"As the victor, her life was mine, to extinguish or spare as I saw fit," Granny said. "My point proved, I saw no purpose in her death. Also," she added, "I like her. The warrior's heart beats true within her breast."

"You're making friends left and right," Jason said. "Hey, do I see a three-way your future? That Berel's kinda rough trade, but I bet Breakfast Wench would be super into it."

"Hush, imbecile," Granny said.

As the group got closer to the line of blackness, Jason could make out specks suspended in the air. At first he thought they were other demons, but it quickly became apparent that they were something else.

It turned out that they were not demons, but some kind of floating islands. And on those islands there were structures: houses, workshops, stores. Some of them even had those weird trees growing on them. He was gazing at a hovering, distributed city.

They were now passing through the outskirts of that city: sparse, house-sized stone huts. Individual Wings, darting between them on some errand or another, gave them a wide berth as they passed by, many of them pausing to stare in awe.

"So, we're kind of a big deal, huh?" Jason said to Granny.

"Naturally," Granny said. "I suppose having this much attention paid to you must be novel."

"You're a jerk, Granny," Jason said. "You're right, but you're still a jerk."

The floating structures became larger the closer they got to the black column. They seemed to top out at the size of the courtyards around Pinnacle's Peak, save for one obvious exception.

This baby was the largest of the floating structures. It was easily the size and shape of the Roman Colosseum. It was also the building closest to where the black column emerged from the ground.

Jason tried to look at the origin of the black column, but when he did, it made his eyes feel funny. It didn't hurt, exactly, but it did make him supremely uncomfortable, as well as triggering his blink response. Eventually he had to look away, unable to keep his gaze on it for more than a few seconds.

"I may be going out on a limb, here," Jason said to Granny, "but I'm guessing that's Electra's crib."

"The Great Hall, aye," Granny said.

Then the group changed course, angling sharply downward.

"Uh, Granny?" Jason said. "I think we took the wrong exit."

"There is one last formality," Granny said.

"Another formality?!" Jason said. "Who do you have to fight this time?"

"Not combat," Granny said. "Before our audience with the Regent, we must be anointed."

"Anointed?" Jason said, confused. "That's like baptized, right? Where they splash oil on-"

Jason smacked himself on the forehead.

"Granny," Jason said, "is some dude gonna cum on me?"

"Aye," Granny said. "I am afraid this custom is unavoidable."

Jason considered. "Well, that's not so bad, I guess," he said. "Hell, wouldn't even be the first time. This one gal I knew wanted to have a three-way with her boyfriend, and ... well, YOLO, right?"