The Damned and The Pure Series: Books 1-4 (The Damned and The Pure Series Box Set)

by J. D. Stonebridge

  I won’t let you win this.

  Chapter Seventeen: Bound No More

  Such silence was usually a comfort to the Angel of Death, yet the lack of voices made her uneasy. Azrael had her head hung low, her hands chained behind her. She thought about Michael’s sudden appearance, how her claims had forced him out of his recluse. Michael had ordered her imprisonment until the day Heaven chose her replacement to govern the souls of the living and the dead. Azrael found it laughable how Michael simply claimed the authority to strip her of the duty God had given her. It did not bother the Angel of Death, knowing what she had done was right. And with the last message she’d given to the demon she trusted, Azrael had faith that things would go according to her plans.

  She closed her eyes and attempted to communicate with the reapers she led. The thousands of reapers on Earth may have been confused since her absence, but she knew they would carry out their duties as she instructed them. But being in a separate world, she found it difficult to send her message through. But she wished not to give up, for the consequences would be grave.

  Her eyes flew open at the sudden cold stab in her chest. Something was wrong, and it was disrupting the worlds below. Azrael focused on the source of energy that had erupted, and as soon as she located it, she felt a surge of panic.

  Mikaela paced the floor back and forth, failing in her attempt to shake away the worry in her. Jenny and David followed the witch’s progress as she paced, keeping their silence as she muttered to herself.

  “It’s my fault… I made a mistake…” Mikaela bit her nails. To see the usually stoic witch displaying her emotions so openly bothered David, and he fought the urge to comfort her for fear of crossing the line. “I can’t believe this. Maybe- maybe there’s still a way we can warn him!” Mikaela turned to rush towards the archives again, but a hand stopped her, curling on the crook of her arm.

  “Mikaela, relax,” David pleaded with her. “You told us what you did for him, let’s just place our bet on that—“

  “But what if it doesn’t work?” Mikaela’s eyes were bewildered. “I- I don’t even know if it will...”

  “Hey, it will,” David assured her. “We worked on that together, and you’re a talented witch. I have faith in you, and so does your father.”

  “Faith, really?” Jenny rolled her eyes.

  David turned to his sister and warned her. “Hey, if you’re not—” David paused as a shudder shook the house. Both David and Jenny ducked their heads under their hands in fear of an earthquake. They crouched down beside the sofa, but David noticed that Mikaela hadn’t moved a muscle.

  “Mikaela, get down!” he yelled at her, but the look on her face suggested that she had other things to be concerned about instead of the earthquake.

  Her green eyes had tears in the corner, wide in shock and horror. “Oh, no.”

  The cries and pleas of the souls had turned into shrieks of pain that echoed all across the land of Hell and reached the mortal world through the gateways. Humans heard the eerie songs that haunted their hearts and made them feel their terror. The souls of Hell screamed in panic. Strong energies escaped into the worlds, overwhelming all that witnessed it with power.

  Azazel moved to one of the windows of his tower, watching the flames from the pit grow higher and higher, with the tortured ones’ screams reaching a crescendo. He had waited for this moment for centuries; it had been worth all the trouble in the demon lord’s eyes. Though he would be sacrificing a great amount of energy that was stored in his kingdom, the rewards would be greater.

  “The time has finally arrived.” He smiled at the event unfolding before them, waiting for the angel’s rise.

  Ariel tugged on her chains, frantically trying to free herself before Lucifer could finish. She understood the spell he spoke, and she knew what he was attempting to do. I cannot let you do this… Ariel swore in her mind. “Lucifer! Stop this now!” she screamed, but her voice was drowned out by the tortured souls and the whizzing energy that circled them like a tornado.

  Her hair flew in all directions, and her eyes stung from the surging force. Ariel tried to break her chains again, wishing her weapons hadn’t been taken from her. But it was no use. She was chained while the cage God created for Lucifer was about to be broken.

  “Ariel!” Caelum shouted from her left side. Ariel turned to see him running towards her, the black shadows chasing him. Caelum extended his hand to her, and she reached out hers. When their hands met, Ariel gripped tight to pull Caelum back, making him circle around her. The shadows went past them.

  Caelum drove the dagger between the links of Ariel’s chains and thrust it down. The blade made scratches on the chain, but it was not enough. He tried again and again until something flung him up, his back hitting the ceiling.

  Caelum opened his eyes and realized he was not falling to the ground. He looked behind him and saw ghastly figures grabbing his arms. Their hollow faces cried to him, begging him to pull them out. Caelum tried to shake them off, punching and kicking at their horrid faces until they finally released him and he plummeted to the ground.

  He rolled in midair and landed on his feet. His eyes found the dagger still stuck between Ariel’s chains and yelled, “Ariel, grab the blade!”

  Ariel reached for it, but shadows wrapped around her neck and pulled her up.

  “Ariel!” Caelum rushed towards her, but another shadow pushed him back.

  Lilith laughed as she took the dagger with another shadow. “What is up with you, Caelum? You’re so desperate to steal this from me. You thinking of adding this to your collection or something?”

  Caelum steadied himself after hitting the wall. He glared at Lilith, then smiled. “Something more than that, actually.”

  “What do you mean?” Lilith asked.

  “That’s for me to know, and for you to find out,” Caelum said, running towards the shadow whip that held the dagger. Lilith sent three of the shadows towards him, but Caelum jumped on them and used them as bridges. He jumped on the second one and sank inside it. Using his powers, he changed his location and appeared near the tip of the shadow that held the dagger.

  He reached for it, but the shadow began to sway from side to side, attempting to throw him off. Caelum held onto the shadow, his arms slicing on its edge as he embraced it. Then, Lilith threw the shadow back against a wall, hitting Caelum on the side of his head.

  Partially disoriented, Caelum fell off the shadow with a thud. He pushed himself from the ground and stood up, scanning the area. Lucifer hadn’t moved despite the chaos all around him. Ariel was crouched on the ground, thankfully released by Lilith when her focus was keeping Caelum away from the dagger. The female demon watched him with morbid glee on her eyes.

  “What’s the matter? Give up?” Lilith taunted him.

  “Not a chance,” Caelum said, rushing towards her. Lilith directed her shadows towards him and Caelum dodged them all. He reached her and swung a punch against her jaw. Lilith staggered back, her face crossed with anger. She twisted her fist and sent it towards him, but Caelum evaded it and grabbed her arm. He lifted her over his shoulder and threw her back on the ground.

  Lilith grunted, kicking her feet to jump back up. She retracted her shadows and grinned at him. “Alright, you want some one on one, eh?” Lilith reached for the dagger when the shadow that held it neared her. “Let’s see what you got, honey.”

  Caelum swung his leg at her, but Lilith ducked and sliced the dagger in his direction. Caelum crouched to avoid it and elbowed her in her stomach. Lilith gritted her teeth and drove the dagger down on him. Caelum reached up and grabbed her wrist before the blade touched his skin, but it left him open for Lilith to punch him in the gut with her free hand. Caelum gripped her wrist tight, twisting it, but she did not yield. Lilith jumped and kicked him in the face, throwing Caelum off her and back to the ground.

  Caelum rolled back to his feet and charged at Lilith again. She swung the blade across him as he neared, and Caelum ducked. Lilith s
wung it again but Caelum avoided it over and over. Frustration mixed in her face and she wheeled around to land a kick. Caelum caught her foot and tossed her. Lilith pivoted her body to land on her feet, but it took effort for her to regain her balance. She tripped on herself and fell to the ground. Caelum rushed towards her, but Lilith released her shadows again, throwing him back.

  Caelum landed near Ariel, who screamed for him. He looked back to her and the chains that bound her. An idea came to him and he faced Lilith again. “I thought we were fighting fist to fist!”

  “Oh, don’t worry. I’m not cheating,” Lilith said as the shadows crawled out from beneath her feet. “They’re still a part of me, so technically I can still use them.”

  The shadows shot towards Caelum. He jumped and ducked as they reached for him. Turning on his heels, he ran away from them, dodging as he did so.

  “Oh, don’t run now! I’m just starting to have fun!” Lilith called to him, giggling as she did.

  Caelum ignored her taunts. He rushed towards Ariel and met her eyes, trying to convey a message to her. She nodded to him and held her head low. Caelum turned to face Lilith’s shadow speeding towards him. He waited for it to near and then jumped out of the way. A loud clinking told him that his plan had worked. Caelum turned to see the shadow slicing against the four chains that bound Ariel, destroying them completely.

  “Dammit!” Lilith stared in disbelief.

  Ariel moved away from the chains, though her hands were still bound by the cuffs. It was enough. Caelum stood beside her, grinning at Lilith. “Well, then. Shall we continue?”

  Lilith screamed in fury, sending more of the shadows towards them. Ariel leapt up, taking flight as she swerved to avoid the shadows. She had no weapon, but she had her wings. Her eyes spotted Lucifer, calmly ending his spell. She cursed under her breath and flew towards him. Before she neared the archangel, a shadow knocked her off course. She spun in the air and fell on the ground.

  “Don’t you dare touch him, you bitch,” Lilith told Ariel.

  The angel glared at her. Ariel stood up to rush Lilith, but Caelum was behind the demon first. He took Lilith’s arms and drove his knee against her back. Lilith gasped at the pain and coordinated a shadow to hit Caelum.

  Caelum noticed the shadow and waited for the right moment to evade it. Caelum ducked just as it neared, letting it slice Lilith’s shoulder instead. Lilith doubled over from the contact, and wheeled around to elbow Caelum in the face. But as she turned, he had disappeared from her sight. She turned back to see Ariel speeding towards her. The angel and the demon crashed against each other; Ariel took flight, carrying Lilith with her. She twisted around and slammed Lilith against the wall.

  Lilith gasped as her back hit the wall. She fell to the ground and searched for her opponents. Ariel was above her, looking down on her with sapphire eyes. Lilith gritted her teeth. “Don’t you dare look down on me, you winged bitch!” Lilith screamed, sending shadows to stab Ariel. The angel dodged the shadows as she inched towards Lilith.

  Caelum appeared behind Lilith and grabbed her chin and shoulder. With a twist, Caelum snapped Lilith’s neck, hearing the loud crack before the demon’s body fell to the ground with a thud. The shadows all around them fell limp, and slowly crept back to Lilith’s body. Caelum heaved a breath, looking at the dagger that was lying in Lilith’s open palm.

  “Is she…?” Ariel began, slowly lowering herself to Caelum’s side.

  Caelum reached for the dagger in Lilith’s hand, but a stabbing pain suddenly shot through his shoulder. Caelum found a shadow blade piercing his shoulder. His eyes widened as he turned back to Lilith, whose lips suddenly stretched into a smile. “You think it’s that easy?” Her eyes moved to him.

  “No!” Ariel screamed, speeding towards them.

  Caelum reached behind him and pulled the shadow off of him just as he jumped for the dagger before Lilith could recover completely. His hand curled on the hilt just as Ariel pushed him off the female demon. Caelum was thrown back, his hand gripping the dagger tightly.

  “Ariel!” he shouted for her, his eyes looking for the angel. He spotted her flying away from Lilith, who caught her with her shadows and pulled her down to the ground. “Ariel!”

  “You think I will die that easily?” Lilith laughed. “I was the first! I was the most powerful!” She lifted her shadows and threw Ariel like a doll. “And soon, I will get back what was supposed to be mine!” She laughed maniacally.

  Caelum rushed to Ariel’s aid. More shadows came towards him and he leapt over them and sliced them using the dagger he held. Pain burned the muscles in his shoulder at every movement, but he gritted his teeth. He reached Ariel's side, slicing off the shadows that threatened to near her. She lay limp on the ground, clearly drained from being trapped for so long. Caelum cradled her in his arms, her head rolling slightly as her eyes fluttered open.

  She's too weak to fight, Caelum thought. He looked to Lilith again, who seemed to be enjoying the show too much. Her eyes were staring at the two, her smile was murderous. I have to end this now.

  He looked at Lucifer, who had his back to them.

  "Ariel," he whispered to the angel's ears. "Escape while I have her attention."

  "W-what?" Ariel looked at him with doubt, but before she could say anything further, Caelum was running towards Lilith. "Caelum!"

  Caelum sped towards Lilith, dagger in hand. He sliced through all her shadows as he neared his goal, and before the female demon could react, his hand swung around and the dagger slipped between his fingers

  "What!" Lilith watched as the dark blade flew across the room, past her. Her eyes widened at the realization of his target. Before she could stop it, the dagger plunged into Lucifer's back, halting him from completing the spell.

  "Lucifer!" Lilith dropped her shadows and went to the aid the angel. Lucifer was hunched over, the dagger deep in his back.

  Caelum watched the blue flames slowly die down as Lucifer crouched forward with the pain. The demon turned and went back to Ariel, who was standing still in shock.

  "I told you to go," Caelum said, grabbing her arm and pulling her away.

  "I- I can't-"Ariel stuttered, her eyes still focused on Lucifer. She turned to Caelum and said, "The seal remains unbroken, I can't escape yet."

  Caelum stopped and looked down on the sigil engraved on the ground. Despite all the battle that had happened, it remained intact, not a single line broken. "Damn."

  "What did you do, Caelum? How-"Ariel asked.

  "Blade of an archangel. Azrael told me that it has the potential to harm another archangel," Caelum revealed. "She also already told me about Lilith and I assumed—"

  "So that's why you've been eager to steal my dagger?" Lilith interrupted him. She began to laugh, catching their attention. "I knew telling you a made-up story about that blade would be so entertaining!"

  Caelum watched in terror as Lucifer rose from his kneeling position and reached for the dagger that pierced his back. His long fingers curled around the hilt and pulled out the weapon like it was nothing.

  "No..." Caelum mouthed. "That dagger should have—"

  "Killed him? Is that what you thought?" Lilith laughed again. "That's why it was so easy to lure you here, Caelum. You were so sure that you had a plan, and look how it blew up in your face."

  "What?" Caelum asked, his eyes were narrow with rage.

  "Oh, don't be so pissy. Everything up until now was all set up for you—"

  "Enough," Lucifer commanded, silencing the demon beside him. "We are wasting time. We shall proceed to fulfill the next requirement."

  Ariel clutched Caelum's shoulder as they watched the blue flames lower, revealing a magnificent sword with a pure white blade and hilt "Shall we play once more, Ignis?" he said to the sword. The archangel reached for the sword and pulled it out of the flames.

  Caelum's heart felt as though it was caught in his throat. His plan had failed, a complete disaster. Only then did he realize the convenience of the ev
ents that had transpired after Azrael's story about Lilith and the blade. How Lilith had come to rescue him and even gave him the blade Azrael told him would harm Lucifer. Had he only made a mistake that the dagger was the blade, or was he merely being played for a fool by the Angel of Death herself?

  The voice of Azrael echoed throughout the marble floors of her prison. The angels who reported to him about her actions could do little to silence the Angel of Death. Daniel took it upon himself to discover what had made the Lady of Death anxious. He turned a corner and heard her cries. When he saw her, Daniel was shocked at the sight of Azrael on her knees, clutching herself.

  Azrael muffled her cries, but it reached him anyway. Daniel neared the angel, feeling sorrow for the broken angel.

  "Azrael," Daniel called her, though she did not lift her face to him. “What is the meaning of this?"

  "I-"Azrael huffed her breath. "I can feel them."

  "What do you mean?" Daniel asked.

  "The souls. Something is wrong with the flow," Azrael said. Then, her eyes snapped up to meet Daniel's. "You have to warn them. Something is coming, and the balance between the worlds is in danger!"

  Daniel was confused. A mix of anger and panic had him frozen in Azrael's eyes. "What are you—"

  He stopped. Both angels had their eyes widened as something passed by them like a breeze. A cold feeling of power suddenly reached Heaven; all angels looked at each other, alarmed. The words that came from Azrael's lips hung in the air like an omen.

  "We are too late."

  Chapter Eighteen: The Caged Soul

  The dagger clattered to the ground as Lucifer flung it aside. The sword he held gleamed against the blue light when he brandished it in front of them. Caelum felt a surge of fear as he stared at the pure white weapon. It looked similar to the Zound, only it was larger and exuded immense power.

  Ariel gripped his shoulder, making him turn to her. He saw his own fear mirrored in her face. "Caelum..."