Blood Reigns

A mate.

A mate.

Almost a hundred years as the son of the devil and he mentions me having a mate now. Apparently, it was decided a long time ago. Oh, that's great isn't it? I slammed my head down on the table in the room my father and I had just had our "meeting" in. He clapped my shoulder, "Don't take it so hard, son. At least I had the foresight to make your eternal mate male."

I shot him a look, smirking when he removed his hand hastily. Yes, he was Satan but I towered over him and outweighed him by far too much. Not to mention, I'd once overheard him call me the most powerful heir . . .ever. After a moment, I conceded with a small nod, "Well, there is that. When do I meet him?"

"You and Synyster will go visit Jimmy tonight. He'll lead you to Johnny." He motioned behind me.

Johnny? What is he, a kid? I turned to see Synyster Gates behind me. He was, as his name implied, the gate-keeper to hell. He read the supposed crimes against God that each damned soul committed. If I had any friends here in the underworld, it would be him and his partner Zacky Vengeance. Zacky's job was exacting the punishment my father or I deemed suitable. The kid took exceptional delight in it. Sadistic fuck had been the same as a mortal.
Synyster grinned at me, "Are you ready, Shadows?"

I practically growled when I answered no. Honestly, this had been sprung on me unexpectedly. I needed to get ready to go to the surface. I headed toward my chambers, Synyster in tow, but my father stopped me.

"Shadows, be sure that you appear as you, not as Matthew Sanders when you meet Johnny. He must see the real you if this is to work."

"So I shouldn't-?"

"No go as Matt until Jimmy tells you you're close to where Johnny is at. Then you can change." He dismissed me with a wave of his hand.

I dunked into my room, cursing him quietly. Synyster laughed, "One of these days he's going to turn hell over to you and you're going to obliviate him aren't you?"

"You know what? I wasn't actually planning on it, but now that you mentioned it-after this stunt, I just might." I looked in the mirror in my room and sighed. To blend in up there, I had to let my horns sink in, my teeth shrink, the ink coloring my skin to sink in, and take my lip piercing out. The last part was the least painful. I hoped this Johnny guy was worth it.
Synyster was lucky. His look was in and his horns were little and black, basically blending in with his hair and coverable by his black leather fedora. To hear Zacky tell it, anyone who saw him on earth would recognize him or who he was before he died-Brian Elwin Haner, Jr.-by that hat. He shook his head, "You should keep your piercing and tattoo. We're just going to Jimmy's. Trust me, you'll still blend in."

I shrugged, "Father would kill me if that were possible. Or worse, mate me with a female."

Synyster laughed again, "Too true. Let's go. I think I'm more excited than you."

"Probably. In all of my one hundred years, I've never dreaded anything as much. I guess you're right, let's go." I pulled on my boots and grabbed my leather coat that I'd need on the surface. No matter that it was a warm season where Jimmy was at, it would still feel cold to me.

The entrance to Jimmy's "office" was a toolshed on a back-water farm. A monitor situated there would show him we'd arrived. In a flash he'd be there. He arrived with a clatter, dressed in his black suit and collar. I had to grin at the sight. Jimmy was my father's favorite minion and his Earth "recruiter." Meaning as the Reverend Tholomew Plague, he preached false words to innocent souls and lead them astray. His real name was Jimmy Sullivan, a cunning lawyer in his previous life. He and Syn greeted each other warmly, smacking chests like long-lost brothers before he turned to me. He grinned, "So you're here for Christ?"

"Christ?!" My eyes widened and he chuckled.

"Just a little joke, Shad-er, Matt. I feel like I should explain-"

"Don't bother, the kid has to get to know me and I have to do the same to him. He can explain. Where is he?" I fidgeted. Okay, I really was kind of anxious.

"No, seriously-"

Synyster cut Jimmy off, "Come on, just tell him where this dude's at so we can get back home." He always worried what exactly Zacky was getting in to when he wasn't there, though he wouldn't admit it.

"Alright, he's at my bar. He's been bartending for me while I was here recruiting. Should we drive, walk, or blink?"

"Blinking would be fastest." i shrugged.

"As long as we blink into the storeroom." Jimmy shrugged. Synyster grabbed his skinny arm. Unlike him, Jimmy was a mere minion and had no demonic powers. Traveling at a speed too fast for human eyes to catch was what we'd termed blinking and Jimmy could only do it with help.

We landed in the back of Jimmy's store room and I had to reach out to keep them both from falling.

Almost before he was steady on his feet, Jimmy advised me to change. I'd only just slipped my lipring back in when a voice called, "Rev, is that you?"

"Yeah, J.C., it's me. Come on back here, man."

How cute Jimmy had become attached to the guy enough to give him a nickname. A moment later, a mohawk appeared in my line of vision-barely. I glanced down to see a cherub face topped with make-up and that hair staring up at me. I stared back.

Please don't be who I think you are. This guy was so innocent looking. Okay, I admit looks can be deceiving, but rarely are they that deceiving.

Jimmy cleared his throat, "Shadows, this is Jonathan Seward. Johnny Christ. Whichever you prefer."

For fuck sakes. I held back a sigh and rubbed my neck in frustration before muttering a cool hello. He simply nodded, staring up at me. That was getting a little weird for me so I cleared my throat, "Um, Jimmy, is there anyway we can get a drink?"

"Yeah, crack open whatever you want. I'm going up front. Come on, Syn." Jimmy pushed Synyster lightly toward the front.

I reached onto a shelf where a drink I'd only had a few times was at. Jack Daniels. I opened the bottle and took a hearty swig of it. I'd heard some in Jimmy's bar when I'd been in here before say it burned but of course I didn't feel it. I held the bottle out to the kid Johnny. He eyed it, "What does it taste like?"

I shrugged, "I like it. It's practically all Zacky drinks up here. If you've never had it you should probably not-"

Before I could finish he took a large gulp out of the bottle. Promptly he chocked and his eyes watered. I didn't offer a hand because I had tried to warn him. After a minute, he caught his breath and coughed, "No thanks."

I smirked, "Maybe . . ." I turned back to the shelf and handed him a plain, ordinary beer. He cracked it open and coughed after a couple of sips. I raised my eyebrows but just turned the other bottle up to my lips. He'd get the hang of it after a couple of beers and maybe he'd talk to me, since I didn't have much to say. That was, of course, if he was human or some other creature capable of becoming inebirated. I wasn't.

He sighed, "So . . .how'd you get stuck with me?"

"My father. Apparently, it was prearranged a long time ago."

He frowned like he didn't understand and then shrugged, "Do you bite people?"

I frowned and realized why he asked. My fangs, "Oh . . no. I've never had to. Any person I've ever bit has been in bed."

He snickered but he couldn't hide the fact that he was completely red. See, innocent. After a moment, he set the beer bottle to the side, "I suppose you'd like to know stuff about me."

"Yeah. Being as we're stuck together for the rest of enternity it'd be nice." I nodded.

"Well, I'm Jonathan Seward, but you already know that. Um, I got termed Johnny Christ somehow. I use to be a druggie but only for a short while." He shrugged and scratched his arm, probably out of habit from mentioning his drug use, "Uh . . . there's probably something really important I should tell you."

"What's that?" I saw from his sober expression that it really was important. He sat up and cleared his throat but Synyster interrupted us

"We have to go now. Your father's about to punish Zacky."

"For what?" I stood up and reached down to pull Johnny up. I had no clue if he could blink but I wasn't going to waste the time finding out. We were back at Jimmy's toolshed to drop through the entrance when Synyster spoke up again.

"Disobediance. I can hear him screaming, Shads."

I looked at him sympathetically and pulled Johnny's small arm to drop into the hole after me. We landed, conveniently enough, in Father's chambers. He had Zacky tied to a wall, a nine tail whip in hand. I grabbed it, "Father."

"Back off, Shadows, this is needed. I told Zacky what he had to do, and he didn't." Father pulled on the whip. I kept my grip around it. His eyes blazed and I'm sure mine mirrored the look.

Untie him. I silently urged Synyster. He obeyed without thought, going to his lover and pulling him off the wall. Hastily they escaped to their own chambers but not before motioning for Johnny to follow them. I let the whip go and wasn't surprised when it was immediately swung around to smack my back. I growled and pushed Father away from me. He blinked so that he was behind me and whipped me again. I let out a howl, turning to grab him and throw him. I was grabbed before I could latch my fingers onto him. Father's eyes held mine, knowing that under his captive gaze, and he under mine we were both powerless. The two minions holding my arms weren't and they carried me to the straps where Zacky had been tied. As soon as I was secure, Father proceeded to give me all the whip-licks he'd been reserving for Zacky. I blacked out before he was finished.