Of Gods and Vampires Ch. 02

Eve snorted rudely.

Lucifer chuckled. "Why else would I have my own brother possessed so that he could lead astray three other angels and create the demi-gods?" Lucifer watched her face. "Why else would I sacrifice him on the alter of betrayal allowing him to be led astray if not for another purpose? Why else would I put Gabriel through this?"

"Gabriel?" Eve whispered.

"Yes Gabriel. My only brother. I tricked him into a position to send a demon to posses him and lead the other three astray. Tricked them into consuming Garo a demon king. Had the demon use Gabriel to fornicate with human woman and spread his seed to begin the vampire race with his brethren and then left him with his guilt to form purpose for them. Unpossessed Gabriel did great things and formed the vampire houses. So I freed him from the bondage they put him in and brought him here."

"Gabriel is here?" Eve looked at Lucifer then turned as the door opened.

"I am." Gabriel strode into the room.

Eve ran for him only to be brushed aside by Gabriel. Eve's pain filled eyes followed Gabriel as he went to stand behind his brother.

"And I know what has occurred in my absence." Gabriel looked at Eve with condemnation in his eyes.

"Gabriel I..."

"Don't bother." Gabriel shook his head.

"Touching." Lucifer smiled. "Things are almost back to where they must be. Gabriel I promised to restore what I stole from you with my schemes."

"Yes you did." Gabriel stood quietly as Lucifer got to his feet.

"So be it." Lucifer smiled.

Lucifer grasped Gabriel by the hair and tore his head to one side. Eve saw the longest fangs she had ever seen push forward from Lucifer's mouth and without another thought he sank them into Gabriel's neck. Lucifer drank deeply of his brothers' blood sucking in down in fast greedy gulps.

Gabriel's eyes fluttered closed and his body went loose he slumped as he lost consciousness and was supported only by Lucifer's arms around him. Lucifer pulled the life out of Gabriel and dropped him.

"No." Eve whispered. "No! What have you done?"

Lucifer turned and looked at Eve and spat at her. He stepped away from his brother and wiped the blood from his mouth. Eve stared with horror and pain at the body laying on the floor.

Gabriel's body shifted very slightly. Then there was a great gasp and he bolted up from the floor clutching his neck. It was a horrible macabre dance as he twisted in pain and torn his shirt from his back.

The skin on his back twisted and peeled off, it split down the shoulder blades and broke open. It was like watching a horrible bug molting as Gabriel's skin blistered then cracked and the flesh tore from bone along his spine.

The first protrusions to emerge were the long bony appendages, six that pushed out like great antenna sticking up through the holes in what had been Gabriel's back. The grew and pushed apart until they had fully split the body in half and out of that ragged piece of flesh stood the true Gabriel.

He was covered in blood which began to absorb into his pearlescent skin. The six protrusions on his back sprouted their shafts and then burst forth with pearly white-blue feathers which thickened, lengthened and filled out the wings that sat perfectly one over the other to work together as a single unit. Gabriel flexed those great wings and beat them once with great force as he stood there returned to his angelic perfection.

"As I promised brother." Lucifer smiled.

"As did I." Gabriel nodded and tore a rift in the universe and vanished.

"Gabriel." Eve whispered.

"He's gone Eve. He has a God to love and his honor restored he has no use of you." Lucifer saw her alone with her torment. He picked up the Blade of Destiny and left.

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Baal picked Eve up carefully and took her back to her room after she had cried herself to sleep. He deposited her on her bed and turned slowly to leave.

"Baal." Eve whispered.

"Yes?" Baal looked at Eve.

"What is happening?" She looked at him.

Baal slipped out of his demon form and slid easily into a human guise complete with clothes for once. "It's complicated."

"It was you wasn't it? In Gabriel?"

Baal nodded. "I possessed the angel Gabriel at Lucifer's request. That is why Gabriel hates me so much."

"I don't understand."

"You aren't meant to understand it all. Do what is in your best interest and fulfill your own potential."

Eve looked at him. "Was fucking me part of the deal?"

"Sometimes ones work has it's perks." Baal smiled.

"I need to get out of here."

"There is only one way to do that." Baal sighed. "Only the Blade of Destiny can cut through the realms like a demon does, it's imbued with the soul of a former demon king. The problem is the blade rejected you once already it nearly killed you.

"The Blade is said to only have on true master who it waits for and will only acknowledge that one. It's deadly enough without belonging to someone but when it acknowledges it's true owner then it will bond with that one and all it's powers become that person's. And Destiny calls to Time. To be the master of both is something that the universe waits for and cringes from."

"What does that mean?" Eve stood and pulled on her clothes.

"That I don't have the answer to. I do know that the Blade of Destiny will consider each man, woman, demon and God based on who they are when they pick it up. If you are no longer the same woman you were the last time you picked it up it may reconsider you."

"And what do you want out of all this Baal?" Eve looked at the demon.

"The right to continue to live as I know how if the veil between the worlds fails then heaven, hell and earth will be at full out war."

"Fair enough."

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Eve looked down at the Blade of Destiny. She considered the dagger carefully and smiled. What more would it take she questioned silently. What would you ask of me in order to make me worthy for you? If I offered you a lifetime of service would you take me?

Eve reached out and wrapped her fingers around the Blade. The metal was cool and smooth in her hand comforting instead of horrifying. The Blade glowed briefly and melted slowly vanishing into her skin.

Eve blinked and stared at her now empty hand. She curled her fingers and felt her nails dig into her palm. She turned and faced the wall of the chamber. Eve smiled and closed her eyes.

"Come forth." She whispered.

The Blade of Destiny appeared in a flash of red light in her hand and her wings burst forth from her back. The wings were changed layered one atop the other instead of in tandem with the top set of wings being jet blue-black and the under pair of wings were crystalline white. Eve smirked and flicked her wrist across the space in front of her tearing a hole straight into heaven.

"Time to play." Eve grinned.