A Little Piece Of Heaven

It was a fitting confrontation.
The ruined farmhouse lay all around them in pieces although it no longer smouldered and smoked. They had come out of the early morning mist to find they faced a row of corpses still in uniform ranged around a tall young man in German army uniform and a pale bruised Stephanie who was sitting in the mud at his feet, seemingly unable to move. Johnny’s eyes met hers and a silent promise of rescue passed between them as Matt dropped Arin to the floor and stared at the man. They all noted that Lilith was missing.
Jimmy remained cordial although there was no smile, merely the recognition of a powerful being and a desire to get what he had come for and leave. There was a moment of silence before the other man smiled.
“It’s good to finally meet you all. I trust you are here to discuss the terms of your surrender.”
Syn growled, only Zacky’s grip on his sleeve prevented him from lunging at the man as Jimmy let the ghost of a smirk drift across his features.
“First you let Stefanie walk over here and you can have your piece of shit back.”
“He doesn’t matter to me, kill him if you want.”
Arin gaped at the pleasant smile Mikey sent him, the betrayal made worse by the sudden realisation that he had been bound to his Master by magic and it was now dropping away. He stayed still and desperately tried to process this as Jimmy shrugged.
“Our pleasure but you will give Stefanie back before we discuss terms. We know you’re trying to raise a god Mikey, you obviously need us to help and that is our one condition before we even start to agree a deal here.”
Mikey smiled to acknowledge that they knew who he was and presumably what he was after and there was a pause, both sides contemplating the other’s strengths and weaknesses. Claire had never seen a zombie army before, she recognised at least seven or eight of the men they had killed along with more shredded ghouls that seemed to be missing limbs or gaping with bullet holes. The undead outnumbered them significantly despite her and Dani’s powers. The boys and Raven would make a fight of it but there was no guarantee they could overpower the creatures long enough to reach Stefanie.
Mikey, for his part, was more intrigued. He had expected to wipe out the reapers and just use the two women in his possession to release his god and then kill them too. Now though he wished to keep Lilith, magic would be required to bind her to him for now but her mind fascinated him and there was no doubt in his mind that once Patollo was raised she would join him of her own free will enticed by wealth and power. That her friends would even discuss terms surprised him.
“Very well.”
Mikey waved his hand and Stefanie found that she could move, scrambling to her feet and running the few yards into Johnny’s arms before anything could be done to change it. His grip on her tightened, his eyes glowing with rage at the bruises and tear stains on her face. Grudgingly Arin was pushed towards Mikey, his logical mind almost making him stay with the reapers until he realised that Mikey would still win. Jimmy checked Stefanie over, feeling Syn’s eyes burning a hole in his back before he faced Mikey again.
“And Lilith ?”
“Safe and well as long as you cooperate. She has agreed to help me.”
“Fucking bullshit.”
Mikey’s poker face didn’t change as Syn advanced on him, the zombie army shuffling forward as the temperature around them seemed to drop. Matt and Zacky were at his shoulder, neither of them wanting Syn’s temper to spark a war but understanding his rage. Jimmy watched the standoff, feeling Claire and Dani envelop them all with more magical protection before waving a hand at his adversary.
“Must have been a good deal. Explain it to us.”
Mikey paced, he knew they were blocking him or the magic would have had them all kneeling to him by now. Clearly the other witches were powerful in their own rights and more than ever he had decided on a change of plan. If indeed they could be persuaded he would be invincible among the various realities of the universe. Clearly Jimmy would need more than just simple threats over Lilith’s head to agree. Shame, Syn would have been easier to manipulate.
“You know the gist of it already I presume. I need a machine to raise Patollo and magic to raise him. Johnny and Stefanie can help provide the first, Lilith and her sisters the second. You all join me and your boys will march at my side and you James, you will be my right hand. We will remove the human cattle and take all the riches this universe has to offer.”
Syn allowed himself to think about the chaos that could bring and how much he would enjoy it before staring down the man in front of him. They were toe to toe, the Major looked physically outmatched but perception meant nothing. One of the zombies shuffled up and looked about to lash out. The angry reaper stood his ground.
“I don’t care. You took Lilith, I want her back.”
“Then join me and you can have her back. If that’s what you both want.”
There was a nasty smirk on Mikey’s face and Claire swallowed, all of her senses on high alert to propel the zombies back or explode their brains if they touched Syn. Zacky and Matt were tensed to follow their boy into the fray, only Jimmy holding back, his face pensive.
“We are reapers. We keep the balance and a loose god would interfere. Who’s to say he will obey you once he’s free ?”
“That is the deal we made.”
Dani mentally connected with Claire, her voice clear in her sister’s head.
“He’s a channel for the god’s power, can you feel it ?”
Claire nodded unperceptively as she concentrated. The man was indeed mortal although she doubted he remembered that or realised that he was being used. It didn’t make him any less dangerous but it was useful to know for the future.
Jimmy had walked forward, a reassuring hand on Syn’s shoulder. The zombie hissed and drooled until Mikey motioned it away. The air seemed to clear a little and the groups continued to maintain the stand off. It was tense, the rain starting to fall again around them as Jimmy considered his options.
“We can’t stand against a god and live, both sides know this. I still say that you need us more than we need you and I really wouldn’t trust Lilith and her promises. Even Syn ain’t that stupid.”
“Then you wish to die ?”
Stefanie pushed through her friends, her eyes never leaving Mikey as she pulled on Jimmy’s arm until he retreated with her a few steps. His anger was renewed at the fear in her eyes and he listened to her breathy words before looking back at Mikey. This was one situation that needed careful consideration but new information from this meeting was giving him the formation of a plan. He looked reassuringly at Stefanie and then turned back to Mikey.
“Say we help you, what’s to stop you double crossing us ?”
“In Patollo’s world you would considerably more powerful, I don’t particularly want you turning on me now do I ? I’m not your enemy, I merely wished to get your attention.”
Jimmy nodded slowly.
“I want to see Lilith, then we will go and talk about this. Can’t make a decision without speaking it over.”
Syn growled, even Zacky looked slightly disbelieving at what Jimmy had said. None of them had seriously considered going along with this clearly insane lunatic. The old ones could never be trusted, they were too powerful for any demon to take on singularly or together. Matt kept his face passive and felt the anger roll of the girls behind him. Jimmy better know what he’s doing.
Mikey tipped his head slightly and then smiled.
“Well if you’re sure.”
The air shimmered and shifted around them, ozone and pressure dropping as the time slip reversed itself and the farmhouse appeared around them. Claire knew immediately what it was and yelled into her friend’s heads as they all adjusted to the pressure. Syn recognised the room piecing themselves together around him and frantically searched the area for his woman. He was pissed at Jimmy, himself, Mikey and the whole fucking universe and wouldn’t feel right again until he found Lilith.
“Time lock. Clever, no wonder we couldn’t find them.”
Mikey settled on the sofa as the room finished materialising. Stefanie blanched at the recurring memory and found that she too was looking for Lilith. Raven stuck next to Matt, knowing Jimmy needed to be free to think and finding Dani’s reassurance the most comforting. Claire and Zacky remained alert and watchful.
“Well ?”
There was steel now in Jimmy’s voice, Mikey felt the power radiating of the man and smiled. This increasingly looked like going his way. He raised a hand and beckoned, footsteps quickly following down the stairs and Lilith appeared in the doorway. She barely glanced at her friends, Syn puzzled at the lack of recognition on her face as she slowly entered the room. Claire was frowning too, Lilith was still closed off to her and she knew this had bad magic written all over it. Lilith was too pale, too compliant and all of them were bewildered as she knelt at Mikey’s feet, her head resting against his knee.
“Lilith ? It’s me, Brian. Baby, what the hell ?”
Mikey allowed himself to enjoy the pain in Syn’s voice, his hand gently stroking her hair as she stared blankly at the man she had loved for over half a century. Lilith didn’t know who these people were and it didn’t matter, the Master was pleased with her and all was well. She didn’t acknowledge Claire either as her sister reached out to touch her arm.
“What have you done to her ?”
“Done ? Nothing permenant….as long as I get what I want.”
Syn had seen enough and launched himself at Mikey, the house disappearing from around them all again and the mocking voice ringing in his head as he landed hard on the floor. They all heard it, Zacky the only one brave enough to pull Syn up and risk taking a punch.
“You have one hour or I take Stefanie back.”
The farmhouse ruins echoed the emptiness as the reapers stared at each other and assessed the implications of losing Lilith to Mikey. They all knew that only Claire rivalled her in power and combined with a god, well shit was not looking good. Zacky found that there was no punch forthcoming just Syn burying himself in his arms. There was not much any of them could say, only Johnny determined to take control of the situation.
“Let’s get the fuck back to the cellar where we can discuss this without being overheard.”
Claire and Dani joined hands, the mud and damp folding away from them as the teleport moved them back to where the shielding was strong enough to withstand a god trying to peek in. Zacky remained comforting Syn, his friend nearly catatonic with grief as Jimmy started to pace. Claire took a look at Stefanie and began healing spells as Raven and Dani folded out the maps of the area and the possible roads in and out of Germany. Matt leant back against the wall and considered the options.
“We can’t go along with this, were you serious about considering it ?”
Jimmy shook his head.
“No, he’s a mortal in way over his head. His ego won’t let him think that we wouldn’t be interested. It gives us an angle in.”
“What angle ? He’s fucking got my girl as a lapdog and a god in his head.”
Syn went back to rocking, the mix of rage and grief clouding his judgement as Jimmy knelt down, his fingers gently lifting Syn’s chin and caressing his cheek. For a moment Syn resisted before looking into Jimmy’s eyes.
“We will get Lilith back. She’s still yours, just fucking cursed right now.”
“Well that’s comforting….”
Matt resisted the urge to laugh and nodded slowly. He could see the others were figuring it out too and wondered if this was indeed the opening that they needed. Stefanie looked pale and still terrified, she had felt what being on the receiving end was like and although she knew what was coming, she knew it wouldn’t be as easy as they thought.
“We use him, agree to this and then destroy him and Patollo.”

Notes