by R. K. Ryals
"The honor should go to someone else," Marcas told his mother, his gaze locked on her face. Her eyes narrowed.
"Your power is great, son. You cannot turn down a promotion."
It was a warning, and we knew it. I felt more than saw Sophia and Lucas move our way.
"And yet, I turn it down," Marcas announced.
The room filled with gasps. I didn't understand the implication of what Marcas was doing. I only knew he shouldn't accept. Demons began to bare their teeth, men and women hybrids sprouted claws and fangs.
"Get ready to leave, Day," Lucas warned in my head. I stiffened.
"What's going on?" I asked.
"Marcas is choosing to deny a promotion from Satan. It's the same thing as committing treason."
It was Sophia's voice in my head, and her words made my eyes widen, my hand tighten in Marcas'. Marcas was turning his back on Hell. Treason was a crime. Angels who disobeyed God were thrown from Heaven. They were the Fallen. What happened to a Demon who disobeyed Satan?
"He dies," Sophia answered. I knew the Angels were behind us now, and I glanced over my shoulder at Sophia. Her eyes were sad, fearful.
"And the rest of us?" I asked.
"Will be released. We are Heaven's property. If we come to harm after calling on Heaven's protection, there will be war. Hell doesn't want that. Yet."
I felt my heart grow cold. It wouldn't do for me to leave. If Marcas died, I died too. It was a realization that made me sick. Lilith was going to succeed. When I had called on the protection of both Heaven and Hell, I hadn't considered the fact that Marcas called on no one. We were bound. What happened to one happened to the other. The memory of the fire pit had me clinging to Marcas. I wouldn't be one of the Damned!
"I won't leave without you both. My pledge to your father is not complete," Lucas promised in my head. He had good intentions, but even I knew this was impossible to overcome.
Lilith held up her hand. She had stood patiently, allowing the gasps to encompass the room, giving every Demon present the time to feel anger at Marcas' refusal.
"And you stand behind this decision of yours, son?" Lilith asked, her eyes going red.
"You know I do," Marcas answered.
The room filled with screams. Demons began spitting and snarling while others cried, "Treason!"
I concentrated on Marcas, my mind desperate to connect with his. I had never attempted to communicate with him through telepathy, but I knew there was the chance it would work. I'd heard him speaking with his brother in Lodeston, and I was obviously able to communicate the same way with both Lucas and Sophia.
"They're going to kill us, Marcas!" I screamed at him.
He didn't turn my way, just squeezed my hand. It was enough to let me know he'd heard. Demons started to approach us. This was worse than the battle in Italy. Not only were the odds against us, but I could see my own death, could picture the way the Demons would drain me of blood.
Marcas pulled me to him, his arm going fully around my waist just as the vaulted ceiling above us disappeared. A windstorm poured into the ballroom, its force ripping jewels from gowns. I kicked off my glass shoes and clung to Marcas. If I was going to have to run, I wasn't doing it in heels.
"The Angels may go," Lilith roared, her teeth pointed now, her hair flying wildly around her.
She was terrifying, a real life Greek myth realized. She was Medusa without the snakes. Neither Sophia nor Lucas heeded her command.
"You promised us all liberation," Lucas called out.
He moved next to me while Sophia moved to flank Marcas.
"By calling on Heaven's protection, the Naphil has also called on the same for the Demon. They are bound. If you deny them release, you ask for war. Would you risk that?" Sophia asked.
Lilith grinned.
"You dare argue with me, Angel? My son belongs to Hell. His punishment is ours to carry out. The Naphil is an Exile with no true ties to Heaven. She may claim protection from both realms, but if she dies along with my son, there will be no need for war. They will both be removed. If you refuse to leave now, you forfeit your own protection. I have carried out my end of the bargain."
With that, the wind storm picked up, the howling drowning out all other words as the Demons began to march toward us. We were going to die.
Chapter 12
In the flesh, she is a weak creature. Most do not look beneath her human surface. This is their mistake. In spirit, she is magnificent.
~Bezaliel~
I would have screamed if I thought it would help, but the wind would have carried it away and made me seem even more a coward than I really was. So I clung to Marcas and waited.
"Do you trust me?" Marcas' voice asked me suddenly in my head.
It was a corny Titanic moment, and I would have laughed if I wasn't so terrified. I fought not to look up at him. He was asking me this now? Whether I trusted him or not, it was sort of beside the point at the moment.
"Do you trust me?" he asked again.
I nodded, mainly because I wasn't sure I could speak, even in my head. A Demon flew at us from the side of the room, and Marcas lifted his hand. The Demon fell. These creatures were fighting a man with the power to sit on the right hand of Satan. They had to expect a fight, but even with his power, we were seriously outnumbered. It didn't help that the uber-powerful Lilith was fighting us as well.
After dispatching the Demon, Marcas wrapped both his arms around my waist.
"I need you to surround us with your light, Blainey. All of us. Like you did in Italy."
I froze. I knew he was talking about the time I'd used too much power, the time I'd surrounded us in a force field so strong, the Demon Luther had been unable to touch it. But it had been a mistake. And it had hurt, first Marcas and then me.
"I don't know how."
"Pull, Blainey. And pull hard!"
I grabbed for my light as Lucas attacked a Demon beside me. I didn't turn his way to see what he did, but I heard the noises and it was enough. Bile rose up in my throat.
"You don't know what you're asking her to do!" I heard Sophia shout at Marcas from inside my head.
Lucas moved to stand at my back. It seemed we were being closed in from behind as well.
"I know what I'm asking, Soph. She's done it before," Marcas said.
"He's right. I saw it in her head," Lucas added.
I spotted four Demons coming at us fast, and I cried out. I didn't care what any of them thought I could or couldn't do, I pulled at the light and I pulled hard. It came to me without any resistance, pouring out of my body like liquid fire. The overwhelming feeling of love and peace I'd felt in Italy consumed me three times stronger than it had when I'd been surrounded by it in Alessandro's backyard. And I let myself go, giving myself to the light as it expanded around us. I heard Sophia gasp.
"That's impossible!"
I could barely hear her. I was too drunk on my own power, on the addictive feeling of security. I felt no fear, and when I looked up at Marcas, I saw his jaw was clenched. The light was hurting him, but it wasn't the pain I saw in his eyes that scared me, it was the knowledge—the knowledge that the power could control me if I gave myself over to it.
"Your job is to control it, Blainey," Marcas said.
I felt tears pour down my cheeks. I didn't want to control it. I just wanted it to comfort me. Why had he asked this of me?
"Remember the light is an extension of you. And only an extension," Lucas said from behind me.
I felt Lucas place his hand on my shoulder, and I looked up to discover he was inside the light along with Sophia. The Demons on the outside of our bubble were frozen, fear on their faces. Lilith approached us cautiously.
"You've been holding out on me, son," she sneered.
Her voice sounded distant, as if I were underwater. Marcas' arms tightened, and I felt the tension in his limbs. Being bound kept my light from killing him, but it didn't make him immune. I tried to tell the light to quit hurting him, but it wouldn
't listen. I cried harder.
"It's okay," Marcas said. "The pain is bearable."
He turned to his mother as Lucas moved closer while motioning for Sophia to join him. They were Angels. They could help me understand the light better than Marcas could. The light welcomed them. But it was Marcas my human side wanted. It was Marcas I wanted the help from. Concentrating on the Angels took everything I had.
"Let them help you," Marcas said.
He turned to Lilith.
"Let us go, Mother,"
Lilith growled and her entourage of Demons followed suit. The wind in the room grew as forceful as a category five hurricane and yet it didn't touch us. It couldn't.
"The light is yours to use," Lucas said in my head, distracting me from the verbal battle Marcas fought with his mother.
"Make it a shield. Give it a job, give it a reason to exist with you now. Don't give it your life, only your essence," Sophia lectured.
Lucas squeezed my shoulder, his mouth moving to my ear.
"Give it the emotion you feel the most at the moment. Not the emotions you want to feel," he said aloud, his breath fanning my neck. It didn't make me tremble the same way I did when Marcas spoke. It was actually a relief.
I focused on the Angels' words, concentrating on the light as it flowed around us. I fought to stay inside my head, to not give in to the wonderful feeling of sanctuary the light gave me. Instead, I gave it my fears. And the most remarkable thing happened.
The light exploded.
Screams filled the room as Demons were knocked back by the blast's force, and the violent winds quieted. Only Lilith was left standing. Demons squirmed on the ballroom floor. The light retracted and surrounded only our small group once again. Lilith moved toward us.
"Impressive, Naphil," she breathed.
Her words were for me; her eyes were on her son.
"That power, such power . . . it would be an asset to Hell," she told Marcas. He growled.
"She will have a choice."
"Demons don't give choices, son."
"I do."
Lilith howled, the sound more disturbing than an entire pack of wolves and so powerful it had the weak Demons rising from the floor, their power returning as she fed them strength. It was an awe-inspiring sight. Lilith was an ancient Demon, a queen over many beings.
She was powerful. Very powerful. Her snide remarks, her ridiculous penchant for outrageous clothes, her almost insane laugh may have made her seem less formidable, but it was an act. She was a potent Demon, and it wouldn't do for us to forget it.
"Let us go, Mother," Marcas commanded.
Lilith shook her head, moving so close to the light bubble surrounding us that it crackled and popped. It almost seemed to snarl at her. My bubble was an amazing sight, even to me. It had been awesome in the pits, a shield protecting only me from the fire, but this time was different. I hadn't given it full reign in the pits, just called on it to protect me. In Italy and here in the ballroom, I had released it. Took every ounce of power I had and pulled it all out of me. And it was feeding off my two main emotions: anger and fear.
"I can't let you go now. Not after seeing this. To let this much power out of Hell would be irresponsible of me," Lilith crooned.
She reached a hand out, and I cringed. Her palm touched my light, but instead of throwing her away, the light allowed her entry. Lilith laughed.
"You are of my blood, son. My blood, your blood, now runs through the Naphil's veins. She is as bound to this realm as she is to Heaven through my bloodline. I will have you both," she promised.
Fear consumed me, and I fed it to the light. It lashed out at Lilith, and she cringed but didn't falter. She was right. If the light couldn't kill Marcas, how could it kill her? She was his mother. Her blood ran through us both. I would NOT belong to Hell!
"Let us go," I demanded, the words slipping past my lips before I had time to consider what I was doing.
Lilith turned on me, her eyes blackening completely, her smile pointed. I could feel the anger coming off of her as it traveled through my light, and I took a deep breath. Breathing hurt.
"You are mine, Naphil! You are in my domain. You carry my blood. Do not mistake my hospitality as anything more than a respite from death. You can stay in the pits. See how long it takes for your power to tire. And my son won't be able to protect you. I allowed him that much before. Not this time."
My whole body went numb with terror. I wouldn't go back to the pits! I wouldn't!
I dug a hand into Marcas' shirt. She couldn't do this!
"She can," Lucas said sadly in my head.
I bit back a sob just as Lilith's hand, now clawed, suddenly grabbed a handful of my hair. She jerked me backwards, and I went weak as power flowed down into me. Whatever she did made Marcas let go, and he went down on one knee. Lucas and Sophia went still, both of them suddenly frozen, their faces a mask of pain. Lilith licked her lips as she lowered her head to my neck.
"You will suffer in the pits, Naphil. And my son will watch you suffer. And it will feed his anger. Being angry is good for a Demon."
Lilith bit me. It was a small bite, but I felt the poison she released into my veins, and my eyes widened as I realized her kiss was as venomous as the minion she'd sent to bite me in Italy.
My light went wild, some of it running down into my neck while some of it attacked Lilith and still more continued to surround us in a wild attempt to protect us from Lilith's approaching Demons. Lilith barely flinched.
"It weakens you, my venom. You cling to my son. But are you even aware of what he's capable of, the people from whom he has stolen life, the sins he has committed?"
My eyes rolled back into my head, and my tongue grew thick. I fought the dizziness, fought the cotton feel in my mouth as I forced myself to look Lilith in the eye.
"If you're trying to convince me he is evil, you failed. Everyone has the capacity for evil. But evil doesn't have the capacity to be merciful."
I looked toward Marcas, my face a mask of pain, my tears leaving streaks along flushed skin, my eyes and mouth swollen from the venom, and I pleaded with him.
"Take my soul," I whispered. It was all I could manage.
Lucas screamed. It was a loud, almost eerie, yet beautiful sound, an Angel's anger. He was going to fail my father. He fought the invisible cords Lilith had wrapped around both him and Sophia, but he was unable to break away from her control. I concentrated on Marcas.
"Take it!"
Marcas was unreadable, his gaze searching mine. I couldn't tell what he was thinking, and it frustrated me. He looked from his mother to me. Lilith was smiling, her glee at my sacrifice obvious. But I wouldn't let Marcas die because of me. And I wouldn't let Lilith keep the Angels. Only God could take the life of an Angel. But they could be wounded, and I could see Lilith torturing them for as long as she could keep them in her domain. If I forfeited my soul, Marcas could choose to do with it what he wanted. Just as Lilith chose to keep guard souls in her antechamber. It was better than the fire pits. And it would end this. I wasn't giving up. I was trying to save their lives.
"You are asking for war, Mother," Marcas said as he pushed himself upward. "You have attacked an Exile who claimed protection, and you have attacked an Angel who claimed the same. Even if I took the Naphil's soul now, you will have started a war between us all."
Lilith licked my blood from her lips.
"And we will win, son. You could help rule the Earth."
Sophia and Lucas both protested and were instantly sent to their knees. I tried reaching for them, but I was weak. My power was pushing at the venom, moving it out of my body, but it couldn't keep me safe from Lilith. I battled for control as Marcas moved toward us. He stared at his mother as he reached out and grasped my hand. I couldn't grip it back.
"Feed the light, sweetheart," Marcas said in my head, and I tried to give my light everything I had left in me. It lit up.
"You will obey me now, son, or I will see her in the pits. Take her s
oul and take your rightful place beside Satan."
Marcas grinned, and I noticed his teeth were pointed. For the first time, I wasn't grossed out by his Demon attributes. I was awed by his audacity, his lack of fear. His hand tightened on mine.
"You forget, Mother, that my power has grown well beyond your control. It is why you chose to seek out Lucifer, to petition for my promotion. And I refuse his behest. Because of my brother, your son, I am now bound to an Angel. My blood is her blood, her blood is mine."
Lilith frowned as Marcas stalked her, moving so close my body was squeezed between them. He snarled, his hand crackling with red energy and Lilith let go of me, her eyes wide.
"And because our blood runs together, so does our power. For this, you can thank your other son."
And with those words, Marcas leaned over me, used a claw to open up his arm before forcing his blood into my mouth.
I screamed.
His blood had always been painful for me, both healing and yet like molten lava. It burned me, seared me down to the soul, and while I writhed with the discomfort, Marcas called on his power and on mine, and it listened. It listened.
The room was suddenly full of light, both red and white, swirling together into a storm, circling around us so viciously it took my breath away. Our powers fought and then clung to each other, searing into one, and with one massive move, Marcas pulled at the power and shoved every bit of it into my chest.
I screamed.
I screamed louder than I have ever screamed, and I couldn't stop. If I thought the pits of Hell were scary, if I thought Marcas' blood was painful, then the combination of Marcas' blood and both our powers overruled both. Marcas' arms tightened.
"Hang on, love."
It burned, and I screamed. And every Demon in the room howled in answer. Maybe they believed Marcas was ripping out my soul, maybe they believed he was killing me. But Lilith's expression was the reason I knew I would live. It was priceless. She was scared.
"A little longer," Marcas whispered, and I bucked in his arms, nausea sweeping me as I clung to Marcas' shirt with such force several buttons popped open.
