Heaven and Hell
Balancing Act - Part 3
by Maggie Finson
Lord Baal himself, and the Lady Mab were enjoying a leisurely snack of damned souls that were useless for much of anything else and discussing their plans for the future. I made myself very small, very insignificant, and even more invisible once I had found them in such a relaxed state.
Mab was beautiful beyond mere words. In a forbidding, chill way. Her features and form were as near perfect as anything in Hell could be, and that was without illusion. But her dark eyed beauty was the kind that anyone with a modicum of sense would run hell bent for leather to get away from. There was nothing of softness or mercy in that beauty, or of warmth. All I got from her were waves of freezing malice and a bitterly cold rage that would make the arctic seem like a child's picnic ground.
Physically, Mab was tall, lithe, and very well formed with the quintessential Sidhe beauty. Her elfin features were nothing short of breathtaking, even to one who could only get really excited by males, like I had become. But let me tell you this much. In life, I would have been her willing slave just to be granted a glimpse of her unspeakable beauty off and on. Long, thick midnight hair with highlights that looked like stars in the night sky, delilcate features that would have seemed more appropriate on a doll, and a form made to excite the libido of any male and most females pretty well describes the once goddess and ruler of the Hags.
Along with a radiated power that was cold enough to freeze even the inhabitants of the coldest, windiest part of Hell that existed. Mab was not someone to trifle with, or even cross paths with, if one could avoid it. A true Princess of Hell. And I was eavesdropping on a conversation between Her and a powerful Prince of Hell. Oh any gods but Mab and Baal, what had I managed to get myself into?
Baal was handsome as Mab was lovely. But his stocky, powerful form radiated heat and threat of actual physical harm. His Mediteranean good looks spoke of his origins in the cradle of Humanity, and called to me with a force I had to exert a lot of willpower to resist answering. If that one had been presented to my right after my transformation, I fear that I would have pledged my entire being to Him.
But the power He radiated was violence. Unending violence and destruction. Sure, I was part Hell Maid and part Succubus, neither of which were known for the gentler emotions like real love and nurturing, but this guy filled me with a sense of forboding and despair that more than outweighed any physical attraction He might have exerted on this little ol' Hell's Valkyrie.
Turthfully, once I had gained access to their private chambers, I was way too overwhelmed by the dual Presences to do much more than keep covering myself with masking spells and fight the irrational urges to throw myself at either one's feet to plead forgiveness for haveing the temerity to think I could do anything to halt thier plans. Sheesh!
Those chambers were spartan, but with enough sumptious trappings to satisfy Mab, who wasn't all that well known for her own love of luxury either. There were a lot of silk hangings, pillows, and two comfortable looking couches occupied by the pair as I listened to their conversation.
"So, all is in place?" Mab questioned idly as she delicately sucked at a screaming soul.
"Of course, my Lady," Baal replied between energetic chewing and faint screams of agony from his own snacks. "We will be the uncontested rulers of both Hell and The Human Realms once our forces have moved."
"It will be good to have that bitch Lillith on her knees in front of me, and to see her precious Lillim subjugated to me." Mab almost purred with anticipation of her coming glory. "Bringing the Lillim down is the major reason I agreed to assist you in this coup, my Lord."
"You've mentioned that several times," Baal appeared to be on the verge of letting loose with some scathing comment, but evidently thought better of it. "The alliance of your forces with my own is an important part of the overall plan, Lady. Trustworthy Allies are, at best, difficult to find in this type of endeavor."
"Just see that you hold to our bargain," Mab answered cooly, then smiled. "Home is to be Mine, with all rights and privileges of that holding. At long last, that insipid garden will be in hands that can mold it into something really worthwhile for Hell to claim as a Principality. Keep that promise my Lord Baal, and you will have a trustworthy ally at your back for all eternity."
I don't really think he believed that. I wouldn't have. Mab had made a name for herself among the old Celtic gods for treachery and double dealing. Which is probably why she did as well as she appeared to do in Hell. Got to hand it to her, the bitch was very good at what she did, and truly hated Lillith, the Lillim, and Home. Mostly because she wasn't able to suborn the first and second, or rule the last.
"I will keep that in mind, Lady," Baal gave her a cryptic smile. "It will be good to know you are at my back." (freely translated: Good, at least I'll know where you are and what mischief you're up to.)
"Why do you put up with all these idiot Humans in your Citidel, my Lord?" The former goddess questioned as she chanced to glance out a large open space in the wall that might have been a window if it had contained glass, or even a metal lattice screen, to see a large group of those beings drilling in the courtyard below. "I would have them on the plain outside my own place of power, was it me hosting the treacherous vermin."
"Well it isn't you," Baal returned shortly, then shrugged. "They are valuable at the moment, as infiltrators, assassins, saboteurs, and agents provacateur. Those idiot Humans my dear Lady will lay the groundwork for our victory in the Human Realms. Many of them will rule there soon enough, and are foolish enough to trade eternity for material promises in life. They do and will serve a purpose, and are primed to strike in concert with our own moves against Lillith and Lucifer. With Hell and the Human Realms in our hands, Heaven will dare not make a move against us. Until it is too late for them to save themselves. In a very short time, Lady Mab, I will make you Queen of all creation, and you shall rule at my side for all time."
"A most pleasant prospect, my Lord Baal," Mab gave him a wolfish grin as she fingered, then took another of the grisly snacks. I had the distinct feeling that She intended to rule alone, but under the circumstances thought it wise not to warn Baal. The Lady reclined on one of the couches with a sigh of momentary contentment while chewing the screaming morsel, then finished it before continuing. "To Rule in Heaven, Hell, and the Human Realms. Such a bold ambition. That's why I like you Lord Baal. You don't fear to think and plan great things. Or to execute them."
"An ambition, my Lady," Baal nodded in agreement, (Hey, the guy was a god once, and ruled in another version of Heaven -- I think. So his attitude was easy enough to understand. Just hard to stomach was all.) "that is quite easily within our grasp, and will begin to fruit like a choice apple tree just waiting for us to pick what we will very soon.
"That is good," Mab purred in a velvety, frigid voice. (don't ask how velvet and frigid go together, just take my word for it -- with Mab concerned they did. "What about this snap inspection Lord Lucifer has sent to investigate Gehenna? Do you think He suspects anything?"
"Such things are routine, milady, Lucifer always suspects something." Baal replied with a small grin. "Any intact evidence has been destroyed by now, and those fool Hell Maids won't be able to see anything but my own forces at a well honed state of readiness. Their report will show Gehenna ready to continue The War if that should come, and nothing else."
"I still dislike the timing of this inspection." Mab countered while carefully selecting her next snack with the delicacy of a young girl choosing a chocolate. "It comes at a time that could be very inconvenient for our plans. I think you might arrange a training accident to catch them up in. Then send profuse apologies to Lord Lucifer while our forces are readying themselves to strike at His heart."
"Anticipated and taken care of, Lady Mab," Baal chuckled. "Those arrogant bitches won't survive to pass tales to anyone. I can promise you that. While my heartfelt apology to Lord Lucifer has already been drafted in the event that they should stumble across anything the least bit incriminating."
"I am still uneasy at the timing of their advent," Mab pressed. "You are certain no Lillim accompanied them? Even shielded from view?"
"None passed the entry gates with them, Lady, I assure you," Baal soothed. "Given the propensity of that kind for magics, more than one very subtle trap has been set to capture and neutralize any Lillim foolish enough to venture into Gehanna just now."
"Lucifer has authorized some new type of Demon," Mab answered slowly, with a barely contained rage at the thought. "One of those kept some of my oldest and most trusted Hags from obtaining a very special soul at The Gates recently. By using magic despite appearing to be a simple Hell Maid, my Lord. This one destroyed one of my favorites so completely that recovery will never be possible."
"I know," Baal answered with a wry grin before turning directly towards me. "Welcome to my Citidel, Little One. I fear you are going to regret the visit very soon."
One thing I've heard is that there is one major drawback to having the complete attention of a Demon Prince. Which is-- Having the complete attention of a Demon Prince. And I had two of them paying very close attention to me at that stage in the proceedings.
Oh shit.
My masking spells fell apart as if they had never existed and I felt the beginnings of some very powerful binding spells picking thier way into the deepest reaches of my being as Mab started, then glared at me, then began to smile. (When Mab smiles it isn't a good thing, in case you aren't up on your Celtic mythology.) I was caught, and could find no way to run. All I could do was hope the information that I'd already passed along would be enough, and that Syl and my other sisters would get out of this debacle.
The magical power exerted on me was not only overwhelming, it was a blanket that prevented any use of magic on my part. Running physically was more or less out of the question, too. There was a very massive steel door that had been locked so thoroughly that not even the most proficient lock pick or locksmith could crack it, between me and any slight chance of freedom. Then there was the mob of Myrmidons and Hags outside that door. I wouldn't last five seconds in either case, and knew it with a certainty that bordered on a par with knowing God himself was opposed to Hell.
Those binding spells hadn't locked into place, fortunately, when I spasmodically released my ace in the hole, while drawing the TOW from my pack. I hoped it was loaded, but under the circumstances think I can be forgiven for forgetting whether it was ready to go or not. It was just the first thing that came to hand and I was kind of desperate at the time.
My, oh my! Faint booms, tremors in the chamber we occupied, more booms that were less faint... Need I go on? Oh, let's not forget the creaking and snapping of overstressed metal in with all that. Binding spells, Protections, magical blocks, traps, and a lot of other nasty things fell into a confusion of disarray and let it not be said that this little lady didn't sieze the opportunity when it offered itself.
The tower room we were in starting taking on a very distinct list as I pointed the Tow in the genreral direction of Baal, and a furious Mab, then fired it . The thing was loaded. It didn't really damage that pair, but did distract them long enough for yours truly to port out of the place with all those very ugly binding spells still looking for someone to tie up happily left behind.
A spared glance showed me that getting out of Gehenna and avoiding further visits in the future was probably a very good idea. The Citidel was busily collapsing in on itself with a gratifying accompaniment of screams, more explosions, and creaks of collapsing metal. Did I mention that some of the charges I had set were thermite? Silly me. Steel can and does burn under the correct circumstances. Count carefully placed thermite charges going off as one of those instances.
Needless to say, I didn't hang around to watch the chaos I had caused. Centering on the trace of Syl I had, I immediately ported to where she and the group of Hell Maids were currently giving grief to a harried and very angry Myrmidon in company with a seething group of Night Fiends.
"Hey everybody!" I shouted while giving the Night Fiends something besides casting webs, spells or fighting to worry about. "Time to beat feet. Let's get out of here!"
One look at my smoke stained apearance and the emptied TOW launcher still in my hands was enough for Syl and the others. They all immediately pulled weapons from their very own personal arsenals and began firing at random. I never did see what kind of facility or emplacement they were inspecting at the time. Burning Night Fiends, One gutted Myrmidon (courtesy of an overly exhuberant Syl) and innumerable explosions, shots, richochets, and clangs of bladed weapons hitting armor kind of distracted me. Of course, the burning Night Fiends were my fault. And they were pissed off over it.
"Everyone gather round me!" I shouted over the uproar. "Now!"
Most of the Hell Maids had already done that, smart enough to understand that even with the ordance they all carried and were using with such gleeful abandon, I was still their heavy artillery. Syl grabbed a preoccupied sister from the smoldering clutches of several worse for wear Night Fiends as I began the spell that would get us back to Home without letting outsiders tag along.
The portal opened up with gratifying speed, and all of us dove through it like all the fiends of Hell were on our tails. Come to think of it, they might have been by then. We all passed the crackling defensive lattice that covered the interior of the Portal without harm, but for the one and only time in my existence, I actually felt sorry for the Night Fiends who tried following. They gated to somewhere else, too, only their destination was one of the more noxious sulphur pits in Hell. With even more physical and psychic damage than they had already sustained.
Somehow, I didn't think I'd be a willing visitor in Gehenna anytime soon.
We landed right in the middle of Lillith's admin area with varied clangs, crashes, and thuds of bodies hitting others and the incidental piece of furniture. Syl and several others immediatley booked, to find the portal leading to The Barracks, and Lord Lucifer's Demense to spread the warning of imminent attack to those precincts. I found myself sitting on the lap of a rather dumbfounded clerk who had been typing some kind of report, who managed to splutter out an indignant. "What's the idea?"
"Can it," I answered, reaching over her still immobile form to toggle the Pan Home and Allies Alarm switch that I knew was situated right at that particular desk and that one only. And here you thought I'd missed my target when setting up the portal from Gehenna, didn't you? "We Have bigger problems than a messed up office just now. Where's The Lady at?"
"Right here, daughter," Lillith emerged from her admittedly plush office to survey the shambles her outer office had become in such a short time. "I trust there is a good explanation for this spectacular entrance into my offices?"
"Baal and Mab are plotting to take over Hell, with Home as one of their major targets." my answer came out with what I thought was commendable calm and succinctness. So what if was shouting? "And I'm pretty well sure that Lord Baal and Lady Mab are launching the attack right now. Provided they've gotten out from under the rubble of The Citidel. If they haven't managed to dig themselves out yet they will soon, and man are they pissed off!"
"What did you do?" Lillith questioned while sending out more alarms, with her own seal attached. "Dig themselves out?"
"Well, I kind of blew up The Citidel," my answer came but it sounded a bit lame even to me. "No, make that, I'm sure, really sure that I ruined Lord Baal's home and that I don't think I should go anywhere near Gehenna for at least a few thousand years."
"Oh," Lillith nodded with a quizzical look for me. "I think this story is going to be worth the time to hear. But later. For now, get to one of the borders and get ready for the trouble you've uncovered."
"Yes, Mother!" I immediately charged out of the broken up office, even remembering to let go of the still befuddled clerk at the door, to the gate leading to the part of Home I called home. Then followed by the remaining Hell Maids in the group, dove through it to literally land at the feet of a very surprised, but loaded for bear Lorilei.
The little darling managed to pull her spell back before it blasted us, then favored me with a frowning look. "All right, Angie, would you mind telling me what you've done this time?"
"Made one very bad enemy, and reinforced the enmity of another one," I replied as I hurriedly donned my armor, Hell's Defense and began rooting around in my pack for something that would hurt demons at a distance. "Tell you later, Lor, for now just get ready for a really nasty reaction to what I did, okay?"
"ONLY BLOWN LORD BAAL'S CITIDEL INTO SO MUCH SCRAP METAL," Mama's voice entered the conversation. "WITH HIM AND THE LADY MAB IN IT."
"Really?" Lor seemed impressed, a first since we had met.
"What SHE said," I responded, peering into the distance for any sign of attack or anything else that was amiss. "And let's just say that those two are more than just a bit annoyed with me."
I still don't know what Lorilei's reply to that was, because about then the proverbial excrement impacted the equally proverbial device built to move air. And spread the shit very liberally around.
The first little hint that anything might be wrong... (Hah! That happened even before I went to ugly uptown Gehenna.) Okay, let me rephrase that one. The first sign that we were really under attack was really pretty innocuous. Every Acacia tree near us started shaking and waving as if in a high wind, but there wasn't even a breeze at the time.
"Uh, oh," looking up and around, I tried to sense anything hostile nearby. (Nice thought, but in Hell, just about everything can be hostile at one time or another.) "I have a really bad feeling about this. Do these trees shake like that often?"
"No," Lor surveyed our surroundings uneasily. "Surely Baal and Mab couldn't have launched their attack already?"
"Don't kid yourself, sis," I answered, starting to remove weapons from my backpack. "They had everything just about ready to move on us as it was, and my blowing the plot wide open probably caused them to jump the timetable up."
A nonplussed Victoria stroked the handle of her axe in a manner that was almost sexually obscene as she observed my unpacking. "How do you do that?"
"I'll explain later, kiddo," still rummaging through the pack I came up with what I had been hunting with a triumphantly satisfied, "Ah! I knew I'd packed this thing!"
"Ok, so what is it?" Lor questioned as I held out the compact little cylinder for examination.
"A hand held, reusable SAM launcher," Victoria supplied with a halfway amused look as I unfolded the weapon and carefully loaded it. "Does the enemy fly?"
"Nope, but they have things that do, pretty nasty things. Trust me, I've seen them up close and uncomfortable." lining up the sights, I peered through the rangefinder, selected the Fire and forget option to go with the smart missile I'd loaded, then handed it to Vicki. "Here, kid, when the shit starts really flying, just point this at anything in the air that looks like it wants to eat you, and shoot."
Vicki looked as she was going to argue, then shut her mouth as a tremor ran through the ground under us. "Got any more missiles for it?"
"ALARM! ALARM!" MAMA's voice roared in our minds. "HOME IS UNDER ATTACK AND THE PERIMETER HAS BEEN BREACHED!"
"I knew it," grinning with a humor I really didn't feel, I pulled a small crate out of my backpack and handed it to Victoria. "Here you go. Got twenty of the little beauties in there. Don't waste them."
"Mother!"
I winced at that, being a female was still something kind of new to me. Being called mother, by another newly made female was just not something I was prepared to deal with then. Come to think of it, it still isn't, but I suppose I'll get used to it one of these centuries. At that moment, there were more pressing matters holding my attention.
"Heads up all, incoming!" Syl, how had she gotten back so fast? I wondered, shouted in warning as a blue tinted sphere arced towards us from a distant wavering line on the horizon.
"Damn!" I watched the wavering line resolve into a mass of fast moving Night Fiends and other even less savory creatures. They flopped, flapped, staggered, bounced, leaped, or just plain ran. Lor took care of the nasty looking sphere by simply firing off a Hell bolt into its center. The resulting explosion and shower of ice shards nearly knocked us off our feet.
My own spells were pretty well depleted, and I really hadn't had time to recharge since my return. I had enough in reserve for a real emergency, but looking at the rapidly advancing horde, I got the sinking feeling that this wasn't one of those. Yet.
Hell's Defense growled, Heaven's Bane hummed a happy little tune, and I knew we were in deep trouble there. And gathered enough of my madly scrambling wits to shout out, "Distance Weapons, NOW!"
Either everyone had listened to me and acted very quickly, or most of us were thinking along the same lines. As I grabbed up a nasty little rapid fire grenade launcher, I heard a variety of thumps, foompfs, booms, zzzztts, cracks, and bangs from the people around me.
"You gonna use that thing, or just admire it?" Syl questioned acidly while I fumbled with the barely familiar mechanism. Hell Maids do have an affinity for weapons, it happens to be our reason for existence, but come on now. I wasn't a full Hell Maid, and had been a minion of Hell for a very short time in spite of all the trouble I'd managed to get into so far.
"How's it work?"
"Point that end," Syl helpfully tapped the blunt muzzle, then the trigger mechanism in the middle of the thing, "squeeze that, and brace yourself!"
I did. Hoo boy! The rapid series of thumps from my weapon of desperate choice knocked me clear back to the rear of our group and landed me on my butt too.
An exasperated Syl helped me to stand by the simple expedient of grabbing my arm, yanking, and setting me on my feet. "I said to brace!"
"Yehaaah!" whoosh! Boom! Click, snap, click, click, snap. Whoosh! Boom! Victoria was joyfully finding nasty looking flying things, then picking them off with the SAM launcher. "Allll Riiight!"
Well, she had been the one who shot Lor when Lor was a Human male. Groaning, I loaded another rack of grenades into my own little monster, and fired away again. At least that time I didn't land on my butt. I flipped over and used my head instead. Literally.
Half dazed, and seeing real stars again, (painfully familiar after my training sessions with Syl) I felt a hand take the grenade launcher from me and replace it with something both lighter and smaller. "Here, try this, little sister."
Brekke grinned down at me as I examined what she had handed me. An AK47 with a bunch of banana clips to go with it, as she hefted the grenade launcher. "Less kick, and you don't have the body mass for this damned thing."
"I'd just figured that out," was my grated response, but I did manage a weak grin in return. "Thanks." "Have fun, little sister," the Hell Maid clapped me on the back and nearly sent me sprawling on my face again before moving off to make use of her newly acquired ordnance.
Well, between the weaponry, spells, and whatever else we could throw at them in the few minutes before the enemy closed, we had managed to blow some pretty respectable holes in thier advancing ranks. I'd emptied all my banana clips, scooped up some more from a Hell Maid who would never use them again, or anything else for that matter, and emptied those. Then I was faced with a choice. I could either use the light, rapid fire weapon for a club, or resort to drawing Heaven's Bane. Go ahead, you guess which option I took.
Evidently both sides had expended their ammunition, at least near us. The clatter of weapons hitting the ground accompanied by the soft hiss of blades, axes, and maces being pulled out hinted that we were sure out of the point and go boom stuff. Happily, it became clear that the bad guys were too. But Sweet Nineteen Million Names of Hell, there were still a lot of them.
I looked around to see how many of us were left, and felt even more discouraged. Syl, Brekke, Lorilei, Victioria, a pair of badly singed Lillim, and me. That was it, out of almost fifty of us to begin with. The Hell Maid with the Howitzer, whose name I had forgotten, to my shame, had been the one who provided me with the extra clips for the AK47.
"MOVE BACK!" MAMA's voice warned us. "RIGHT NOW!"
We didn't need to be told twice. All of us hightailed it in the clearest direction away from the advance of Baal and Mab's forces.
"FAR ENOUGH, GET READY NOW."
We watched in near dumbfounded amazement as the land itself folded over at least half the enemy troops headed our way. Then started rubbing the folded sections together with the nasties in between. It was an awful lot like watcing an apparently solid board turn into a cloth napkin, fold itself in two, then begin to industriously rub the outside parts of the folded napkin as if trying to squash a particularly noisome insect you didn't want to touch, but sure wanted dead.
And the damned fools kept coming anyway. Some of those were grabbed by suddenly animated acacia trees, shrubs, and even some of the longer grass. Seeing a damned tree lean over to first snatch a Night Fiend with unnaturally limber branches, then use those tentacle-like, unnervingly prehensile branches to pull the thing into a lot of little pieces before reaching for another victim was really something. I made a quick mental note to never, ever get MAMA really angry with me.
Lawn-like grass had suddenly grown to nearly seven foot lengths or even longer and developed very serpentine characteristics. I watched in mute amazement as several blades(?) snaked around the legs of a Myrmidon then proceeded to drag him into the ground. Literally. The grass simply pulled the Demonic champion down like a ravenous sea monster dragging a sweet morsel underwater to eat it at leisure there. We weren't getting nailed by as many distance weapons or spells as we might have been simply because the invaders had to make use of them to fight off the suddenly active, and hostile flora.
But gods, there were still a lot of them advancing on us with intent to commit major mayhem on our bodies. Flying boulders, nasty tempered trees, and hungry grass notwithstanding, all of us watching in total awe as MAMA went into FULL DEFENSE MODE knew we would still be outnumbered, hard pressed, and very, very busy within a few minutes.
At least all the lesser nasties and beasties were gone. Now we faced Night Fiends, Hags, and a few units of Myrmidons. Lucky us. I idly noted that the Acacias around us had started to flex their own branches, while the grass everywhere but the spot we occupied was growing and becoming thicker, growing armor-like scales, and waving in anticipation of getting their own share of fertilizer very soon.
"Now what?" Vicki glanced from one of us to the other while stroking the handleof her axe again and sparing the odd, nervous glance for the suddenly active plants around us..
"Well," Lor grimly answered. "There isn't any place to run. MAMA has told me that Home is pretty well overrun all around except for the center. I say that's where we head, pick up whatever stragglers we can, then make our stand."
"Like we have a choice," nodding my agreement, I staved off a potential explosion of temper from the little Succubus with a wave and grin. "I sure don't have a better plan. Anyone?"
No answer.
"So I would suggest that we get theHell out of here right now!" Lor finished, then pointed back to where our first battle had happened. The land was seething with gleefully dancing Night Fiends, grimly smug Hags, and stolid Myrmidons. All headed our way. At least the ones not fighting either the landscape or flora were. Which was still an awful lot of bad guys for our diminished group to face head on.
"Sounds good to me," I hastily agreed.
"Just a second," Vicki held our headlong retreat up briefly while muttering something that sounded obscene even in Hell, then made several throwing gestures with both hands. The crackling waves of energy that came from her to snake and circle among the celebrating enemy was a fairly simple spell, but almost terrifying in its pure power. What do I mean almost? It was, and remember, I'd been hanging out with the precocious Lorilei for most of my time in Hell.
As crisped Night Fiends, Hags, and some very badly scorched Myrmidons fell writhing to the ground, Lor and I exchanged quick glances, then shrugs, then grinned like maniacs. "That's our baby!" We shouted in unison.
"Okay," Vicki brushed soot from her hands then gave us all a pointed look. "We can run now."
We did.
"MAMA channeled some of her power through me," Vicki was explaining as we rushed headlong away from the still overwhelming numbers of the enemy. "SHE told me everyone else who could do it was so exhausted, the overload might kill them."
"I'm starting to think that would have only been a bit earlier than otherwise," I panted in response.
"But we'll leave this existence in glorious style!" Syl grinned nastily. "And be taking a whole shitload of Baal and Mab's finest along for the ride."
"Well, this looks like the spot." Brekke waved our ragged group to halt on the top of a deceptively gentle appearing rise and turned to critically survey the landscape we had just crossed. Remember, I had mentioned panting? Well, MAMA had altered the terrain of Home from the verdant parkland into a convoluted series of dead end ravines, steep rises, sudden drops and choked the whole thing with thick, prehinsile looking vines just for spice. It had been hard work getting up to where we were, let me tell you.
"Good as any I've seen so far," I admitted grateful for the respite.
"Won't be much better inwards," Vicki noted with a look at the still park-like stretch of ground only one very steep gully behind us.
"You and the other little ones recharged yet?" Syl questioned Lorilei while looking at the troop of about forty Lillim we had picked up on the way.
"As well as can be expected," Lor returned, giving the other thirty battered Hell Maids who had joined us a long look of both respect and a little doubt. "Can you and yours still fight effectively?"
"So long as we stand, we can fight, Lady," one of the Hell Maids avowed with a wicked grin while brandishing a nicked sword. "and We're always effective in a brawl."
"What about you two?" the little Succubus looked at me and Vicki.
"Ready to go, little sister, I answered.
"Got enough left to show those things some tricks they might not have seen yet." Vicki grinned. I fenced, and was a black belt third degree in Tai - kwando when I was Human."
Sheesh, we'd spawned a crazy female ninja or something, I thought to myself while watching her demonstrate some very nasty little moves to all of us.
"I still like your foot in their heads move, myself," Syl grinned down at me. "Nothing fancy, just good old fashioned beat 'em till they drop style."
"Kind of messy, though," I pointed out half seriously. And getting my foot out of their damned heads is real bitch."
"But it sure shakes up the opposition, little sister," the Hell maid responded with a throaty laugh.
"Not to mention me," I grumbled. "I have to get airborne to use the stunt at all."
"Here they come!" One of the Hell Maids announced rather matter of factly I thought for someone looking their own end of existence down the throat. I inanely wondered what happened to Demons when they died. Was there another version of Hell waiting for us?
We just natrually fell into a formation most effective for the conditions. The Hell Maids, me, and Vicki moved to the front while the Lillim, fearsome hand to hand fighters in their own right, fell to the rear so they could cast what spells they had with a minimum of hindrance. Then we put up with each others sick jokes while we waited.
MAMA had been pretty accomodating to us in choices of ground. To get any farther along with the invasion, our enemies had to negotiate a single valley leading to the simple looking rise that we stood at the end of. That would funnel their numbers into a fairly confined space, making it difficult for them to bring their superior numbers to bear in an overwhelming attack. But it also meant that we would be facing a very steady battering from enemy after enemy. And they had to take the rise we had chosen or the invasion would stop then and there. At least from this direction.
Well, in a battle or even everyday existence, one takes the little favors granted and makes the best of them. But a few thousand fresh troops for reinforcements on our side would have been nice. Like I said, 'ya pays yer money and takes yer chances,' Especially in Hell.
Read Part 1 or Part 2 or Part 4
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