Darina Grotto - Unlimited

He had no hair. All his body was just skin, rough and mortally malodorous. As Obliterator fed on raw and fresh human flesh who had a deal with anyone, the process of digestion and purification came up inside of the spirit. Everything that fell into Obliterator’s body, passed into nothingness. Every chemist and physical scientist would envy him as the demon’s body was capable of digesting even quantum particles. So, while he was digesting, and it took him about a week, Obliterator sent malodour which human would hardly be able to bear. Even Kharon, having a meeting with Obliterator, wrinkled his nose at the smell. Taking into account the fact the spirit fed all the time there was no break between his malodour.

Once Kharon met Obliterator at one place, being stricken unbelievable malodour, asked Lucifer why he made the spirit to be so malodorous? In his turn Lucifer with his usual smile asked to be more respectful of Obliterator as it was, he who cleaned all the screw-ups left by other demons. And who ever heard of such a thing that scavenger and cleaners smelled like a chamomiles and thyme? Moreover, fortunately for those who met this spirit he was untalkative. He preferred to keep silence. But if he started speaking then even his co-brothers-demons couldn’t help wrinkling their nose at the smell. The most nauseating, impossible, vomit-inducing, disgusting smell that could ever happen in the world, came out of Obliterator’s mouth. Maybe that’s why the spirit was so taciturn not to harm anyone with his malodour. He was also uncomfortable because of it. This demon was lonely that made him have sad thoughts.

He killed in two ways. The first one was when he appeared usually at night and because of his big entrance people fainted and never came back. The second way was a game when a human had iron nerves and he could bear the demon’s appearance. It was Obliterator’s malodour. There was nothing left to breathe with as frequent and hoarse breath of Obliterator foully infected the air with spores of poison that venomed the human body.

After the human was dead Obliterator came into the body while it was warm and ate away inside.

Those who agreed for a deal with a demon had no chance to survive. Except two persons: it was Victoria who had paid for having Kharon with her soul and… Vasilisa.

Lucifer, Kharon and Obliterator had a very long conversation when the incubus asked Lucifer for the permission not to pay off Vasilisa and not to involve Obliterator as Kharon regarded the girl as always available energy source at hand and if he needed, he could make her come with the help of his thought power.

Lucifer had listened to the demon’s arguments for a long time and after he decided to let Vasilisa live at no charge… for a while. The fact that the girl had signed her own death-warrant was well-known for everyone expect her friend and herself, that was obviously.

Lucifer perfectly understood that his friend had a difficult game part and the incubus tried to think it out. If the witch got into a wax and decided to draw teeth Kharon he had to have a stand-by energy scarce.

None of the girls guessed which performance they both took parts in… fortunately for them. To play so easily with human lives and people didn’t know about was a favourite hobby in hell. While people were sure that they played indeed they were played.

Kharon met with Vasilisa once in a week, warming up interest in her, devouring her energy. Bit by bit he realized that women were different not only in bed but in life.

Victoria always cooked delicious dinners, had time to bake fabulous pies and cookies. She prepared juices and coffee with some syrups. She was at the oven with no tiredness and every time outdid herself in culinary art. The demon didn’t refuse that all that Victoria did was really delicious and whetted his appetites every time.

Vasilisa preferred to go to cafés and restaurants, tasting the most expensive dishes in the menu. She had no hesitation to say to Kharon that she was ready for dinner at his own expense.

Victoria guarded the house clean. Despite her personality of a designer even her table was left clean. Kharon very seldom could see her expensive pencils lying over the table. In the contrary they were put in a big box, sorted by their colour, gently coming from one into another colour.

Vasilisa had nothing to make a mess of. Having been in her room not once Kharon couldn’t understand if the girl had any hobbies. Her room was too empty but all the same there was a mess. Vasilisa’s ambiguity reflected firmly on her personality and behaviour.

Victoria constantly said him pleasant words of love which Kharon used to listen to and considered them to be a normal state of things. Vic never forgot mentioning about her love for the man and every time thanked someone for the fact that things went in their own way she liked.

Vasilisa never told anything like that. She felt nothing like that. In thoughts she wouldn’t be against if Kharon fell in love with her. To be with such a man was a rarity. Sometimes their relationships made the demon be shocked with the way the girl thought. Without stopping she made up reasons why Kharon was with her. She chose only one – Kharon was, of course, in love with her! Feeling the make-believe love of the man who was actually incapable of loving anyone, Vasilisa tried to turn him around her finger and didn’t understand why none of her tricks worked.

Victoria ironed his shirts and trousers and Vasilisa rumbled them. Vic looked in his eyes and said how much she loved him. Vasilisa looked in his eyes and asked to love her.

Every time when Kharon stayed with Victoria’s friend, the witch saw the bedroom scenes between a man a woman without faces. She got used to see them as she did about the spirits which talked to her, about visions of the past and intuitive predictions of future.

She couldn’t even think that her friend, the only one, bedded with her beloved man. Honestly Victoria almost forgot about Vasilisa. She didn’t call and text her as she was consumed with Kharon. Vasilisa was scared with only one thought that Victoria would call her and ask to meet as it had been before. Vasya couldn’t imagine in what way she was supposed to look in her friend’s eyes and smiling to tell different nonsense not to make her be suspicious.

Indeed, Victoria was blind totally! Because of love. She didn’t want to believe and see anything. She loved and yearned for being love trying to awake and cultivate the feeling in the demonic creature.

Victoria took Kharon at Hamlet performance in the theatre. That was the place where people rose in applause after Hamlet’s monolog and Kharon smiled listening to people and actors’ minds: so, few of them thought about what they had just seen, others thought of intermission and champagne. Victoria proved that theatrical art was very complicated. Kharon smiled again: people found things difficult which chemical composition consisted of only two molecules in fact. People didn’t like when things were simple. Kharon was surprised with the miracle feature of humans to have eternal tendency to complicate the primitive processes and their lives. The shining example of a person who just didn’t want to live without complicating everything, was Victoria.

The girl took Kharon to orchestral and opera performances. Kharon was silent there, frowned and Vic couldn’t understand neither a single thought nor his mood he could be in. Kharon didn’t get what his hair stood on and small round bubbles so-called goosebumps could mean.

They always went to the cinema but only the Titanic was kept in the demon’s mind. The incubus perceived modern films in a bad way, not trusting actors as far as he could throw them. He was sure he would have been able to play better and more convincing. Despite it he liked going to the cinema more than to theatres.

They walked more seldom as it was getting colder. The ground was being covered with snow.

Victoria looked at the falling snowflakes thoughtfully, Kharon looked at her pupils and eyelashes surreptitiously, where the snow was reflected. It’d been a long since he heard her inner voice last time! At those moments when Victoria immersed into her thoughts, silently and sadly pierced with the eyes into something, he could hear a weak whisper, counting down time.

He understood that he had to feel something about her, something that would grip his heart in a vice and tear well up. That was what people called a mercy. But no. He didn’t move a muscle. The girl had been warned that the union of an earth woman and a demon was doomed to fail! Sometimes you should trust a speaker.

Kharon liked so much her eyes changing its colour when they looked at snow. They beamed. They lived and rose up half alive hope from its knees, reanimating it again.

The demon often embraced the girl when they were both at the window and looked at falling snow. He nuzzled her red hair, closed the eyes and holding her tighter, realizing that it was great to be loved.

Every day Victoria came closer to know herself. The seed of suspicion and doubt rooted deep. “What’s wrong with me?” wasn’t on the table anymore but “What exactly wrong?” consumed her mind almost totally. The girl annoyed her blessed with question answers for which he didn’t want to say.

Why he needed to say that Abkhor was a demon of fear and horror who was in witches service and worked like a curse. A witch put a curse to pester the life out of someone, called for Abkhor to help. The demon did his job great. He harked after him or her, frightened them in the darkness, put self-destroying thoughts in their minds that leaded to commit of a suicide. If a witch cursed someone with the help of Abkhor then there was nothing in the world that could help to ward off the demon from the poor. Abkhor would be harking the victim until he or she was dead. Within several generations the demon would be holding the relatives and posterity of the victim.

What way would Kharon explain it in to Vitoria? Moreover, he would be forced to explain why Abkhor proffered his services to Victoria without even opening his mouth. And she understood him silent!

Of course, Kharon lied. How could he know who Abkhor was? Why was he supposed to know him? Besides, it seemed to her and that’s all. She shouldn’t think of it, certainly. Victoria trusted him. Kharon laughed in his heart. An amazing human feature was to believe everything else. Without question. The main point was to speak conclusively while you were lying. Especially when it was about women who believed everything they heard. Especially when it was about the ones who were in love. It was not necessary to speak anything to a woman who was in love. You could just bend your head, gave her a charming gaze, showing her in every way your own superiority simultaneously with that fact that she was so beautiful. You could say couple of nice words. Preferably unusual ones. A woman had to understand that she was dealing with a cocky man not just a usual street trash but a charming, intelligent man with a sense of humour, mixed with cynicism and light sarcasm! Delicacy and mannerism were always welcome.

Victoria worked. She loved her job, but she was tired of her boss’s pressure. She was too used to him and he didn’t seem to her to be so repulsive and meticulous. But she didn’t still have any feelings for him. Only one thought that he would touch her as her lover made her sick. Vic never considered her flirting with Gregory. Yes, he was so nice merry fellow and humourist. He knew what to sympathize meant and always tried to help. He knew no refusal and always smiled. His doors were always opened. He liked chattering and he was a great listener. He was a perfect man…friend. Victoria was preoccupied with a fact that he was a perfect man full of excellent qualities only for her. He could come only into her office being sure that he was waited and wanted to speak. He wore masks for others. Victoria had already seen his wardrobe of masks. To put it mildly colleagues weren’t very fond of Victoria. She was given so many privileges and honours and it’d been done for 4 working months! There were people in the company who had been working for many years and they deserved only a quick, estranged smile in their directions.