The Fallen Queen of Eden Ch. 20

"I don't need the details, just please tell me she was as good as I think she was."

"It was... intense," he answered. He really didn't know any other way to describe it. That night he had experienced something that went beyond sex and went deeper than making love. It was as if somehow their souls had joined and even now he wasn't certain that they were separated. It wasn't anything he could put his finger on, just a feeling, like when he saw the owl at the cemetery. Somehow he just knew he needed to turn and look at that empty tomb. Perhaps that was why it was so hard for him to move on.

"I never really got to know her very well, but she seemed like quite a woman." Wynne remarked, taking a drink of his soda pop.

"She was certainly that."

Leaving the restaurant and walking up the street the two were deep in discussion about where they should go next. Wynne was dying to go on one of the walking ghost tours while Elijah wanted to take a cruise on one of the large paddle wheel steamboats. The pair were just in sight of their motorcycles when Eli suddenly stopped and stared up at a street lamp a few yards away. Sitting there watching him was that strange owl, its eyes bright as ever. He walked over to the large bird, certain that somehow this creature was Lili. He wanted to call out to her and tell her to get her ass on that motorcycle and come home with him, but the words didn't come. His heart ached so deeply for her, but how can you love a demon? It was impossible. This had to end, right? Surely she understood that.

"Stay away," he finally said, softly.

Instantly the owl opened its large wings and flew off leaving two men standing there. Eli sighed for a moment then went back to where Wynne was standing. He could see his friend was confused about what had happened. Unable to explain, Elijah simply laughed and said that he must be the 'owl whisperer'. After that their conversation returned to their next New Orleans adventure. For now things were like old times, just two friends hanging out and having fun, forgetful of Heaven and Hell. Unfortunately in the underworld memories are long and the devil was blessed with a perfect recollection.

Sitting alone in the silence of his bedchamber, the Lord of Hell's melancholy blue eyes stared at a large painting displayed on his wall. Normally he kept it hidden behind a tapestry, but for the moment he was drawn to it. Before him on the large canvas, painted in vivid oils, was the image of Lilith. Her sensuous body with its warm naturally caramel skin was entirely bare except for a long length of purple cloth that draped over her and covered her most intimate places.

Her likeness was perfect. The artist not only captured each and every detail from the exact shade of jade in her eyes to her graceful hands. He also seemed to have imbued it with a drop of her spirit. The devil almost expected her to leap from the painting, but of course she never did. In truth, the fallen angel would have been surprised if his court artist had not been so exacting. Leonard was a demon like no other. He had no stomach for torture and had too much heart for stealing souls. His niche was art and whether he used marble, clay, paints, or even crayons, what he created was beauty and life in a world dominated by ugliness and death.

Looking into the exquisite face of Lili he contemplated their last conversation. She had said nothing to make him think her loyalty had waned and he knew she never lied, but he was also aware that she was very clever and very shrewd. The devil thought about that cheap keyring hanging from Lilith's belt and he didn't like it. He didn't believe that Eli Asher was nothing more to her than a means to an end. No, the devil had sensed a shift in the demoness and he couldn't allow it.

The Archangel Samael, nee Lucifer was Lord of all Hell with a massive army of demons whose numbers rivalled any military that existed on Earth. It wasn't enough. Lilith was the Queen of the Lilim and equal to him in supernatural power. Her children were a potent force and he wanted to be sure they served and fought for him. In order to do that he needed to be sure of her loyalty and for the first time he wasn't. What he needed was for her to come home and take her place at his side. Lili was beautiful and worthy as a consort for a God, not an insignificant insect like Elijah Asher.

Unfortunately, bringing her home would not be easy. The demoness was fiercely independent and would instinctively do the opposite of whatever she was told to do. The devil rather respected this about her, but not when it affected him. For her to willingly return to Hell, she would have to be made to see the wisdom of the choice. There was no greater bargaining chip than her human pet, Eli. If she cared about him as much as the devil believed, then there was nothing she wouldn't do to protect him. Of course, the devil was not about to get his own hands dirty. It was far more advantageous to let someone else be the bad guy, leaving him free to comfort her.

The devil had four mistresses with three residing in his harem. One was Agrat bat Mahlat. She was a member of the Lilim and a powerful sorceress in her own right, although her mother was still stronger. Physically she was stunning, but could not hide the rams horns protruding through her pale blue hair. Another of his lovers was Eisheth Zenunim. Dark and enticing, she always took great pleasure in either torturing or devouring souls that had been damned. Also residing in his harem was Naamah. Outworldly she was enchanting, but when it came to humanity, her icy touch brought plague and death.

The first and favorite of Lucifer's mistresses was Lilith. The other three were cut-throats beneath their demon glamour, leaving the Queen of the Lilim as the only one he trusted. He had even forced each of the three to bow before him and pledge their loyalty before Hell's royal court. He had never demanded or asked such a thing of Lili. Unfortunately, the devil also knew that it was because of these three lovers that she had begun finding pleasure in the arms of various demons and eventually leaving hell to spend time on Earth.

Yes, Lilith was the jewel of Lucifer's crown and he was determined to bring her back to the underworld where she belonged. Descending the stairs to the bottom of the well, he followed the tunnel that led into the chamber that held the obsidian wall. His shoulder length golden hair fluttered slightly with each step he took and the natural aura that emanated from his celestial body gave a soft glow to the surrounding dark cave. His long leather coat was open revealing a bright crimson silken brocade waistcoat, the only color in this God forsaken den. He pushed back the edge of his coat and his right hand came to rest on his hip as he looked over the shelf of scrolls. Besides Lilith, he was the only other person in Hell who knew the secret of these manuscripts. They weren't the documents that they appeared to be, but prisons.

Lucifer didn't know what demons or souls were sealed inside the various rolls of papyrus, nor did he care, except for one. There was at least one prisoner he knew would be only too willing to help him plot against Lilith and remove that infernal human, Elijah. The devil began to look through the scrolls, each one was sealed with wax and bore the imprint of Lili's sigil as well as the name of its captive in Cuneiform. Lucifer rejected each one he saw until he came upon one with the name 'Ahriman' written in gold. This was the one he had been looking for. The use of gold was testament to the fact that this person held some importance to the demoness.

Carefully he broke the seal with his fingers and unrolled the papyrus. The first thing he saw was a simple line frame that had a rough drawn image of a man in it. The figure's body knelt with his arms outstretched and his hands were curled into fists. The head was tipped back with wide dark eyes and his mouth was open in a scream. This was a soul clearly in anguish and reading the crimes that had brought him to this end only brought a cruel smile to Lucifer's lips. Yes, this was the man for the job.

The devil's gentle voice read the incantation scrawled in Cuneiform at the bottom of the scroll. Instantly the drawing came to life, the lines stretching and pulling away from the papyrus until they had broken free and the man appeared. The silence of the cavern was broken as the cry of anger and torment that he had begun when Lilith had imprisoned him. The man's hair was overgrown with long tangled curls and his body was covered in dirt and sweat. On his back were two large scars where wings had once been. Around his wrists and ankles were thick heavy chains, no doubt they were put there by the demoness herself. His large black doe eyes peered out through his unruly hair at the Lord of Hell, with a look of hate and contempt.

"So you are Ahriman," the devil commented, looking him over. "How would you like to earn your freedom and perhaps even your wings back?" At the devil's offer a dark smile curled demon's lips.

"What do I have to do?"

The End