Chapter 9: Ice cream and the Lich

Orion took another sip from his cola with ice, in which some mortal or another had put some white powder which unfortunately did not work on him, and he stared at the waves.

They were calm, for now. The storm after Edwin's rebirth had shaken the world, but the man was a disappointment. Had he fed from the Death Banquet, as the Lich called the gift Death made them upon birth, this beach, and the entire city further inland, would have been underwater.

He snorted, took another sip, and then licked his lips. It was true that demons could not taste much, but that did not mean that they were unable to taste anything at all.

Edwin had been a corpse, and his soul still had the chain of connection hanging around its ankle. Oh, Orion had known that fact. To stoop so low as to steal a kiss from a corpse, whose soul was bound for heaven, was something Orion had gotten a dressing down for, but not lost his promised vacation over.

He had tasted, had lamented on the fact that he could have never been able to taste the man while he had been alive. Drank from his blood, felt the sweetness spreading on his tongue.

Had known what that action would bring, even before, as he strangled Edwin, watching those warm blue eyes get filled with panic, smelt the man's fear.

Orion licked his lips once more, trying to stop himself from forgetting the taste of Edwin's toothpaste. It was something so banal, he had to admit. Mint, soap, and God knew what else to whiten the man's teeth.

But it had been the first thing Orion had tasted in centuries, and he had wanted to savor every single second of it. He tried to take another sip from his drink, only for the straw to make those annoying noises which told him that if he wanted to pretend to be bored, not that he pretended much at that point, he would need to get up, and get himself another drink.

He scoffed, calculated the chances that some brat would steal his lounge chair in his head, decided he might as well buy the brat's soul if it came down to it, vacation or no, and just made his way to the bar.

Mothers were yelling at their spawns, fathers were staring at the nudists, children were trying to build sandcastles, or were outright making ruckus because their parents were unwilling to buy them a ten-gold coin tourist trap ice cream.

Oh, if he were on duty now, he would have gotten such a big bonus by the end of his little trip, that he would have gotten another vacation.

But he was not a first level demon, no. Let those pencil pushers offer lollipops to children, massages to desperate housewives, or cold beer to some man whose best years were either during collage, or worse, high school.

He sidestepped some lady who was selling sweet corn and looking at her phone, a group of people who should be sued for getting on the back of a poor donkey when it was obvious that the poor animal could not support their weight. A group of skinny women, who were speaking about diets, digging their own graves.

Everyone wanted something, God darn them, Orion thought. The only person who had not wanted anything could have proven a challenge. If it wasn't for that darn camera…

It had been a year since Orion had strangled Edwin. A year of a vacation. A vacation which was long overdue and would continue for the next millennia. Only to be followed by another eternity of peddling wishes and greed.

Leave it to Hell to make even a reward a form of torture. He knew that if he made a deal now, he won't get paid. Sure, he had enough to quit, but then what?

Get conscripted to the front lines, and have some white-feathered twink try to gut him?

Or worse, end up as some sick writer's Muse?

He shuddered as he thought about all the demons who were forced to make shit up, just so some mortal could think himself creative.

The worst were the shut-ins, Orion knew. For they were willing to force their personal demon to daydream for hours. Then, just because they had nothing better to do, instead of relaxing, they would check their sales, stats, anything that had to do with the stories the demons whispered in their ears.

God forbid, they were doing well. Man, then they were willing to write at the ungodly hour of three in the morning. Honestly, if Orion got assigned to one of those sociopaths, then he was going to strangle the little shit until…

He heard a gasp and blinked. Hm, he was pretty sure that no one knew him in this city. Which was the only reason why he had picked this seaside resort.

The taste of minty toothpaste was on his tongue, as he noted the blue eyes. The braid was longer, the face clean, not that it could grow a beard anymore. Death liked his sons pretty.

Orion grinned, made a couple of steps towards the man he had killed. Perfectly willing to get a few laughs in.

The game had ended with Edwin's death. Now, Orion did not have to play by any rules but his own.

"Hello, there," Orion said, as he made a stop in front of a stunned Edwin, who was blinking like a fish. "Nice to see you, my lady."

If Orion had expected Edwin to reveal what he was surrounded by so many people, then he was left disappointed. Not that it was the first time Edwin disappointed him. It was almost so, as if the man drew air with only that purpose in mind.

Orion sighed. What to do? The stench of fear was strong in the air, not that the mortals could smell it. Pity that. Oh, the wars which could have been started if only the mortals could be more like wolves.

Or lions.

 Lions would not kill their prey once it gave up on fighting. No, they would eat it alive, licking its wounds every time it came to. So, as if they were thanking it for being such a lovely, and easy, meal.

Orion hummed. Should he thank Edwin for the vacation? Sure, the brunette had done nothing with his afterlife so far, or at least, nothing of note, but surely Orion should be nicer to him?

Lick his wounds, thank him for being easy.

"Sorry about that, Edwin. It was uncalled-for," Orion said, as he moved so, as if he was about to pass by the stunned Lich. "It must be hard for you. How have you been holding up?"

Modern society romanticizes demons. It made the entire soul buying business easy as breathing. Some women did not want anything but a demon baby growing in their belly.

And then, as said creature tore them from the inside out during the birth, they finally knew the truth of it all.

Not that anyone could notice. Demon babies took the appearance of a human baby as soon as they came out. No claws in sight, no horns.

But the mother knew. Oh, she always knew.

Good thing that the fever kept most of them silent until the early grave. The ones who did tell anyone that they had felt claws tearing at their intestines were simply drugged up to the gills, told they were sick, and died anyway.

But, hey, such was life.

Orion knew that it was biologically impossible to get Edwin pregnant. Yet, that could not stop him from infecting the Lich with a parasite or laying a curse on him.

For shit and giggles.

And, heck, who knew? Maybe this time he would get to taste something better than toothpaste? Edwin was dead, after all. A Lich.

It was perfectly possible.

Edwin twitched, took in a breath. Orion raised an eyebrow, waiting for a reaction. He waited, and waited, but Edwin simply stood there, twitching occasionally, and not doing much more.

Orion decided that this man was worse than a brick. He was the clay from which the brick was made. Stuck in some remote location, and useless to just about everyone.

"I can't believe they gave me a vacation for turning you into a Lich," Orion said, finally being honest. "No, they were not trying to reward me. Turning you into a Lich is like being a football player who scored a goal in his own goal."

Orion shook his head, and just went back to walking towards the bar. He could regard Edwin like a plant. A plant that was all dried out, but had still held some meaning for him, at one point in his life.

0000

Edwin twitched once more, as his nails tried to extend. An entire year. An entire year of visiting graveyards and sipping water to collect souls. A year of self-control and taking odd jobs here and there. Always moving, always staying at cheap motels.

But, darn, during that entire year, he had never smelt anything as delicious as Orion.

He wanted to chase the demon down, sink his claws into his flesh, and tear his soul out. Not caring that there were witnesses. Not caring that he would kill for the first time.

Would it even be a crime? Could he try to dress it up as delayed self-defense?

Oh, the judge was going to laugh his ass off, before shipping him to the nearest reactor.

Edwin balled his fists and followed Orion with his eyes. The demon was halfway to the bar, an empty glass in hand.

The bastard had gotten a vacation for killing him. Edwin wanted to get even, oh, he wanted that more than for his heart to start beating even without the rune turned on.

But his heart did not beat these days, and as soon as the rune was off, for Edwin did need to let it recharge, Edwin turned into his real self.

Ghostly, his body rotting, no matter how many souls he ate. And Orion was to blame.

What if, Edwin asked himself, as he took a step in Orion's direction, Orion was the solution to all his troubles?

If souls could be compared to food, and Edwin felt sick for even thinking it, then animals were like fast food. Would get your stomach to stop making noises which upset the nearby humans, but not much else.

And in two hours, you were hungry once more.

Humans, on the other hand, were something like a light meal. If one was like the island elves, and could be satisfied with getting only 80% full, then, sure, one could be happy with eating just human souls.

Some were bitter, some were sweet. Most of the ones Edwin ate were old and had precious knowledge, which Edwin used to keep on moving and buying clothes.

Some were the lowest of scum, and Edwin wished he could just barf them out, rather than be forced to see the world through the lens of someone who killed for fun.

But even those had their uses. 

Edwin was a learner. He was not a fast learner, but he learned. At that moment, as he let the experience of people who stalked human beings like prey flood his mind, he started to plan.

Life was a bitch. There was no reason why he should confront Orion and try to make him say he was sorry for killing him. The man was a demon. He probably did not know the meaning of the word.

But that tasty smell that came off him, the slight spiciness of depravity, the sharpness of narcissism and the glorious promise of a ruined life that came with showing someone who thought themselves above mere mortals that, yes, they could be brought low, would marinate Orion's soul to perfection.

Orion was a snowstorm; Edwin was an inferno.

And he was going to get himself some fried ice cream. Not out of a sense of justice, but because he was hungry. The year as a Lich had taught him to survive.

 And survive, he did.

Like an animal, he had to admit to himself with a frown.

But even the existence as an animal was better than him just giving up and rolling over. To be placed in a reactor, and to be drained from his mana and self.

And, heck, it was not like he could gain weight anymore, right? Why should he not treat himself to something which promised to be sinfully delicious?