Lords of Destruction by James Silke, Frank Frazetta Read Free Book Online

glanced down at Gath and sidled toward him,
deliberately stopping in front of the fire so that it cast a red-orange halo
around her hair and shoulders, and her shadow over his body.
    The helmet’s eye slits glowed hot and menacing in the darkness. “What are you
waiting for?” he snarled. “You’ve had what you asked for.”
    “Yes,” she said evenly, “and I am strong now. But first, I want to say
something. I can help you, Gath of Baal, help you in ways that no one else can.
And I will take risks for you… risks that you can’t even conceive of.” She
moved beside him and slowly sat down, straddling his thighs. Sensual. In
control. His hands took hold of her hip and armpit, drawing her close, and she
came willingly. Her hands slid along his arms to his shoulders, caressing them
as if she had sculpted them herself, and her voice purred heatedly. “You see,
even now I am tempted to risk making love to you before removing the helmet, if
that is your desire?”
    Flames spit from the eye slits, singeing her hair, and she ducked, but did
not pull away.
    “Don’t hate me because you need me,” she whispered. “It’s not my fault…
and I won’t betray you. It will be our secret.”
    The helmet’s flames licked her throat, and she flinched with pain, but still
did not pull away. “Yes,” she murmured, her voice breathless, “I’d take that
risk, and cherish it. But I can give you more than momentary pleasure, Gath of
Baal. I can find the Lord of Death’s most powerful demon spawn for you, and my
sorcery can help you conquer their kingdoms, take their wealth and power for
yourself.” She hesitated, then her fingers and words stroked him. “Let me help
you Gath, and you can build an empire… one that will rival the underworld
itself.” His fingers bit into her flesh. “You’d use me to rebuild your kingdom,
is that it?”
    “No,” she protested firmly. “I want nothing for myself… except to serve
you and enjoy the game of death, the pleasures of victory.” She leaned forward
within his grasp, daring the helmet’s flames. “I hunger for them, just as you
do.”
    “Remove it.” A flat command.
    She nodded and took hold of the horns. Flames spit from the helmet, but she
held on and called out in a howling hiss to the Master of Darkness. She dropped
forward onto her knees and her back arched, throwing her head back. Her eyes
closed, and she pulled. Pebbles bit painfully into her kneecaps. Perspiration
moistened her palms, and she tightened her grip, knuckles turning white.
    The helmet abruptly inched up, exposing his neck, and Gath heaved beneath
her, sensing impending relief. She strained against the horns, pushing now, and
the helmet rose higher, the stubble of beard on his chin appearing. Suddenly a
flash of fiery pain went through her neck, and the horns seemed to grow within
her grasp. She tried to hold on, but her body suddenly emptied of strength, and
her arms dropped away lifelessly. The helmet sank back in place, and she fell
against his chest, sobbing.
    “I can’t… I can’t do it.”
    “Yes you can.” he growled, and pushed her erect, drawing her hands back to
the horns. “I’ll help you.”
    His fingers crushed her hands against the horns and pushed, but she felt
nothing, no pain, no strength, only numbness from fingertip to elbow.
    “Push!” he grunted.
    “It’s no use, I… I haven’t the strength anymore. I… I’m empty.”
    He dropped her hands and stared at her. The glow had fled from his eyes. They
were white and cold with shock behind the eye slits, and she could see why. Her
eyes, reflected on the helmet’s shimmering metallic surface, glittered wetly
with tears that were all too human.
    “You’ve lost your powers.” An accusation.
    She nodded. “I’m sorry, I… I…” She stopped, not knowing what to
say. Her nerves and emotions were jangled, and she suddenly had no appetite for
blood, no hunger for the triumph of the clandestine