by Cece Rose
“Just keep your shit together for a few more minutes,” he whispers in my ear softly as he continues to lead me from the room. I find the modern saying strange coming from a demon, but I suppose he’s a lot more modern than the rest of them, other than Adam that is. He leads me up a set of stairs and down a corridor, then pushes open a door and directs me inside. I look around curiously, we seem to have entered a small office room. A large wooden desk takes up most of the space, and a bookcase frames the entire left wall. A huge window takes up the back wall, and the wall to my right has a large map pinned across it.
“Why did you just bring me here?” I ask, pulled from my dazed state as he shuts the door, cutting off all the noise from below.
“You looked like you were having a panic attack. I thought it best to remove you before you made a scene and started concerning people,” he answers.
“Concerning people?” I ask sceptically.
“Fine, before you convinced them you were completely unstable and thoroughly incapable of killing Alastor,” he admits, not looking at all bothered.
“Wait, are you saying you don’t think I killed X?” I question.
“I am certain that I believe that someone else could have easily manipulated the situation, whether it was you or another who pushed the sword into him, who the hell knows? But as far as I’m concerned, the story being presented to me and my fellow princes shortly, is that you killed him solely of your own volition. So that is the story I think you should be sticking to within these walls, Mona,” he says the words calmly, but I feel the threat in them. I cross the room and perch on the large wooden desk.
“Fuck, why are you frickin’ demons so confusing,” I mutter.
“I think we’re quite straightforward, albeit a little old-fashioned in our ways,” he replies, sitting up on the desk next to me.
“A little old-fashioned?” I mutter.
“You have to consider we have all been alive far longer than any beings in your world, so whereas you change with every generation born, we are still ruled by those who lived thousands of years ago. Things change a lot more slowly when the people living in the world don't,” he explains. I hate to admit it, but it does make a little sense.
“What about you then? And Adam, you two seem to keep up with the times?” I ask.
“That is because Adam and I have spent a considerable amount of time in the human realm, we kept up better because we kept living a life there. Even when we were banished here, we found ways to stay in touch with the human realm, ways to pull ourselves across,” he answers.
“You guys were banished here?” I ask.
“We once walked in your human sun, yes. Now we can only come to your world when summoned, or when we have outstanding business to complete. But only ever at night time,” he replies.
“What—”
“No, I think it is my turn to ask a question, if I may?” he questions, cutting me off.
“What do you want to know?” I ask.
“What had you freaking out back there?” he asks, his voice sounding genuinely curious.
“What does it matter?” I mutter, having already realised that the demon with orange eyes is unlikely to be my mother’s killer. How many demons must have those same glowing orange eyes?
“It matters because you were doing well at holding your shit together, surrounded by beings much more powerful than you. You are either stupid or fearless, I am unsure which. I want to know what brought you fear. What caused the terror in your eyes?” he questions.
“Eyes,” I mumble, feeling ridiculous.
“Eyes? What about your eyes?” he asks, not understanding my response.
“Not my eyes. It was Scirlin’s eyes, they were orange,” I explain.
“I’m still not following.”
“The demon that killed my mother had orange eyes,” I clarify, swallowing the lump in my throat. I would not cry right now. Fucking compartmentalise your shit, Mona!
“Your mother was killed by a demon? Being here must be hard for you,” he says, his tone even sounds comforting as he lays a hand on my shoulder.
“Seriously, what is with you demons and false fronts?” I snap, shrugging him off. I turn and glare at him, seeing the surprise on his face. “You can’t just look evil, you can’t just act evil, you have to be deceitful about what you are. You hide the monster under a nice suit, a fake smile, a charming voice. It pisses me off!” I shout while standing up to face him directly.
“Just because I am a demon doesn’t mean I am wholly anything. I am not good, far from it, but that does not make me wholly evil. I am what I am, unashamedly. I have done what you would consider to be terrible things, things that would make me a monster, but your personal moral compass doesn’t decide what is evil and what is not. Is a lion evil for eating a gazelle?” he snaps back, questioning me.
“No, it has to eat it to survive,” I answer, without a blink.
“Is a demon evil for doing what he must to survive?” he questions.
“It depends, does he really need to do what he does? Or does he just convince himself that he has to do it? A way to wipe his conscious clean, if he even has one,” I retort, feeling my anger burning through me. How dare he try and tell me demons aren’t evil. I can see what they are doing to people. What they are doing to my people, the halflings, and I’m not going to accept his defence of it.
“I’m not here to discuss ethics with you. If you’re done with your meltdown, we should return to the party,” he says firmly, ending the conversation.
“Fine,” I mutter, already storming towards the door.
“One last thing though, Mona,” he says, and I pause with my hand resting on the door handle.
“What?” I snap, without even turning around.
“Orange eyes aren’t that common among our kind. Are you certain they were orange?” he questions. I feel my stomach drop and I turn around, trying to see if I can read a lie on his face, but it’s completely blank.
“I’m sure,” I answer.
“There are only twenty-nine higher demons I know with orange eyes, and I know everyone. I don't believe Scirlin would be your mother's killer, he's more of a messenger than an executioner. So that leaves twenty-eight other names if they would interest you?” he offers.
“You’d give me a list?” I ask.
“For a price,” he answers.
“What kind of price?” I question him. He opens his mouth to answer when a knock hits the door.
“What the bloody hell are you two doing in there?” Adam’s voice calls through the door sounding agitated. Asmodeus moves his fingers across his lips in a zip-it gesture, before crossing the room and nudging me out the way to let Adam in.
“Mona needed to calm down a little, the situation had begun to overwhelm her. She’s feeling much better now, aren’t you?” Asmodeus asks, giving me a pointed look.
“Much better,” I mutter, deciding to keep quiet for now.
“Well, why are we still standing in here?” Adam drawls, ushering me out of the room. To my dismay, I’m led down the stairs back towards the ballroom. Why could it not be time for my interrogation yet?
Chapter 14
As we step back into the room, I’m instantly aware the change of atmosphere. Whereas before the party had been fairly laid back, as much as a demon party could be, now it feels tense. The demons are all looking in the same direction, and I follow their eyes to where a skinny man dressed in grey lies on the floor, a woman standing over him. She’s the only female demon I’ve noticed since arriving, dressed in a ridiculous green fishtail dress. How she breathes in a dress that tight is a mystery to me, I’m struggling enough in mine.
The man on the floor stirs and she presses her finger to his temple. I don’t catch the words of her spell, but the screaming of the man beneath her tells me all that I need to know. Glancing around, I notice the demons watching on don’t look concerned, or even surprised, merely seeming to be watching for the entertainment she is prov
iding. I spot the other halfling servants around the room, too. Most are looking down, but one is watching on, a look of fury on his face. He’s larger than other halflings I’ve seen, his body looks built and toned rather than frail and weak.
The onlooking halfling steps forward, and I suck in a breath, watching him approach the demoness. He moves quickly, closing the distance and grabs her shoulder pulling her back away from the scrawny halfling on the floor. She turns and her glowing purple eyes stare daggers at him, as she lifts her hands up in his direction. Shit. I can’t just let this happen. I step forward, but a hand tightens around my wrist holding me back.
Turning, I look at Adam who’s holding onto me. He shakes his head, and I feel some of his energy push from his hand to me. I feel myself growing eerily still. I freak, pushing the energy back at him with force. He releases my hand, cursing as he clutches it. I don't stick around to listen to his scolding as I storm across the room. I freeze again, as she lets loose a glowing ball of green flames at the halfling man that grabbed her, he jumps out the way, narrowly missing her hit. She conjures up more flames, throwing them at him in quick succession. He's doing a good job of dodging them until he isn't. A ball of fire catches his left arm and he screams out in agony while clutching at it. She conjures up more fire, aiming it at him again ready to strike.
I run, closing the distance between me and the halfling. I slam into his side, and tug on my power, silently calling up my circle. A shimmering red field appears around the two of us, trapping us safely within the confines of the protective bubble. He manages to keep us both standing upright, gripping onto my arms.
“Who are you?” he demands as drops his hold on me and tries to step back. He hits the barrier of the circle, trapped in here with me. “What kind of trap is this, let me out!” he snaps angrily.
“It’s not a trap, you idiot, I’m trying to help you,” I snap back. Ungrateful much?
“I’m not fooling for your trickery, demon. Lose the human eyes and show me what you are,” he demands. I glance around, noticing that everyone in the room is watching us now, halflings and demons alike. Well, shit. There goes standing quietly and looking pretty. I step closer to him before replying and he tries to step away, but again bounces against the edge of my circle.
“These are my normal eyes, asshole. I just saved your ass from getting flamed by psycho demoness over there, maybe you could you know, just say thanks?” I whisper furiously to him, hoping that demons don't have super hearing.
“Why would you be helping me?” he asks loudly looking dumbfounded, and I cringe at the volume. He glances between me and the pissed off demon bitch dressed in green on the other side of the circle and relaxes his stance a little.
“I’m a halfling, too,” I whisper.
“That’s not possible,” he whispers back, clearly understanding to keep the volume down now.
“Well, I am. My mum was human, and clearly, my dad must have been a demon,” I reply.
“But you—”
“Yes, I have magic. It’s a fucking spectacle. I know,” I say quickly, cutting him off.
“Do the rest of us have magic? Are they blocking it?” he questions unsurely.
“I don’t think so. I’m pretty sure it’s just me, I’m a freak of nature or som—”
“Mona, love, drop the fucking circle and stop playing with the runt,” Adam’s voice drawls, clearly recovered from my shoving energy at him.
“No?” I call back, the inflexion hitting on my voice making it sound like a question, rather than the statement I intended. I cringe.
“No?” he questions back, his voice not sounding at all amused with me. As if my ‘no’ had pierced a balloon of noise, everyone starts talking. Shouts, whispers, and everything between. Not one person present in the room looks happy, least of all me.
A demon I don't recognise steps up, pressing his hands against my circle. I feel his magic pushing against it, trying to take it for himself, to bring it tumbling down. I stare at the demon, meeting his glowing red eyes as he concentrates. I press my own hands against my circle and push more of my own energy in, refusing to let it fall. After a few minutes of this, he steps back looking baffled at my circle. Clearly, he was expecting it to be easy.
“Are you trying to say you can’t even take a damn abomination of a halfling’s circle, Thoth?” Asmodeus says, his rich tone filled with humour. I turn in his direction and he shoots a smile at me. “No offence meant, of course. Those are just the words he used to describe you moments ago,” he adds, and I roll my eyes. Sure, like I care what a demon thinks anyway.
“Why don’t you try then?” I challenge, and everyone in the room abruptly shuts up. Adam gives me a look of complete disgust, or is it disdain? Either way, I’m pretty sure that I am screwed the second I drop this circle, so I have no intentions of letting it fall. Asmodeus laughs, it’s a deep roaring laughter that fills the cavernous space.
“You are just the most peculiar thing. I vote we let you live just for the pure amusement you provide. It’s a wonder you’ve made it this far alive,” he replies, ignoring my challenge. I cringe, the amount of people who tell me that must say a lot about me.
“If we’re already voting, I vote we kill her,” a high-pitched voice calls. I turn to see that a male demon, surprisingly, is the owner of the voice.
“Wait, there’s a vote on whether or not to kill me? I thought I was just here to confess to killing X, so you didn’t execute Adam,” I say quickly with my eyes widening. I am going to kill that bastard.
“You’re here for that, too, don’t fret,” Asmodeus answers dismissively, waving a hand.
“Maybe we should take this discussion somewhere more private, like the damn room this questioning was meant to be happening in?” another demon adds. His hair is shoulder-length and a stunning platinum blond. His bright, glowing, azure-coloured eyes are striking. Adam steps closer, coming right up to the barrier of my circle.
“Love, drop the circle,” he says in a low voice.
“I can’t, they’re planning on killing me. There’s not a damn chance that am I dropping this circle,” I answer.
“You can’t hold it forever, dove. The sooner you drop it, the less likely they’ll kill you the second it does fall,” he replies.
“I’ll figure something out,” I mutter.
“Figure what out? You're out of options, Firefly. Trust me,” he insists.
“I’ll figure out how to jump home or something. If you and Nick can do it, it must be possible for me to learn,” I say, grasping at the idea. Needing to try something, anything.
“I don’t think that’s the best idea, it takes years to perfect jumping within one world, let alone jumping between two,” he explains.
“Nick learnt as a damn child!” I whine, refusing to believe it’s impossible.
“Adramelech, are you going to get your halfling bitch under control, or are we going to have to take her circle by force?” the high-pitched man speaks again.
“Shut up, Fleruty,” Adam snaps, a pained look taking over his face the second the words have left his lips. His distaste for him is clear, but it also looks like he was trying not to show it.
“How do I jump?” I ask Adam, desperate.
“You can’t, it’s impossible for you to do,” he insists.
“Don’t tell me it’s not possible, just tell me the damn theory!” I snap quietly.
“Love, you can’t even have someone else jump you without passing out, I really don’t think—”
“I don’t care. Just tell me,” I insist. I feel several pairs of hands press against my circle and look around. Five demons have their hands up against my circle, none look pleased. The halfling man in the circle with me has moved into a fighting stance. Who the hell is this weird halfling? He’s not starving like the rest I’ve seen, and he’s clearly willing to fight.
“I can’t, you’d just kill yourself trying, and I’m not letting you do that,” he says, stepping back. “She won’t liste
n, take the damn circle,” he says loudly.
I press my hands back up against the circle, preparing for them to push. They begin to push their energy all at once, and my mind flashes back to my training with Kaden and Mason.
“What’s your name?” I ask him quietly.
“Darius,” he replies.
“Darius, this circle is gonna drop any minute and I think you should be ready to run,” I advise.
“There’s nowhere to run,” he mutters darkly. I turn my head in his direction, meeting his eyes. His eyes are soulful, a deep brown that screams innocence lost.
“You've got to try,” I say, and then cringe feeling the pressure they're putting on my circle intensify. I push the magical energy back at them, pushing through the circle itself as I did before with Kaden, shoving everything they're pushing at me right back into them. They fall like dominos. One by one crashing back away from the circle, launched across the room the way Kaden was. Exhausted, I wobble a little on my feet, still managing to keep the circle up, the glimmering red is pulsing with my magic. The intensity of the magic is stronger than last time, I can feel it burning through my veins.
“How the fuck did she do that?”
“What trickery is this?”
“What game are you playing, Adramelech?”
I hear questions and shouts coming from everywhere, and I start feeling dizzy. Hands catch me from behind, stopping me from completely falling.
“How did you manage that? What truly are you?” Darius asks quietly.
“I don’t know,” I mutter, feeling the clouds fogging my vision.
“Your circle is dropping,” he says in a frantic tone. I try to push more strength into it to stop it falling, but the act of doing so draws the last of my energy from my body. Falling back against Darius, I feel my eyes slip closed, as the room slips away from me.
