The Third Throne: Angel of Darkness

by Tabitha Barret

  Hades had a few ways to snap him out of it, but figured it was a rhetorical question. He had to find a way to cease this caterwauling. The angel that paced in front of him like a simpering child was not the Angel of Darkness that he both feared and admired, he was an angel ruined by a woman, the worst kind of angel. Hades swore he would never fall in love with someone who could destroy him like that. He would rather die than sit around pining over a woman.

  Katarina would have his balls in a vice if he cried over her, or for any reason other than having his balls in a vice. She was his kind of woman, cold, cruel, calculating, and amazing in bed. Lucifer needed to find someone more like her. Of course, whenever he did, the woman would slowly lose her mind until she became uncontrollable. It was doubtful that Lucifer would cry about a woman like that. That gave him a few more ideas.

  “Perhaps you need to go to the surface for a while and have sex with lots of different women and forget about your mistress. Go, clear your head. I’m sure it will do you good,” Hades shrugged.

  It had better, he growled to himself.

  “Don’t you think I have pondered that and every other option? I have thought about leaving, about finding someone else. I thought about leaving her alone until I am strong enough to resist her. I am ashamed to say that I even considered killing her,” Lucifer’s voice was quiet as he stopped pacing and turned to stare at the fire again.

  Hades liked where this was headed. “Perhaps that would be for the best. As I said, you have a tendency to ravage their minds and turn them into female versions of you, but with boobs and a serious need for blood and revenge,” Hades said matter-of-factly. He leaned against the bookcase opposite the fire and pretended to look at the books.

  “That will never happen! No matter what she does to me, and no matter how much I suffer, I will not allow her to be harmed! I hate myself for even thinking it. If anyone were to harm her, I would set every one of his bones on fire. I would crush his skull in my hands. He would know pain like no other before them. Eternal damnation would only be the beginning,” Lucifer roared as he turned on Hades like a panther set on feeding.

  Hades moved quickly, hoping that Lucifer wouldn’t lunge at him; otherwise, he would be missing an arm or two, which would put a serious kink in his plans with Katarina.

  “Of course not, my Lord, no one will touch the girl,” Hades straightened up and bowed. The formality rose up in him quickly as a defense mechanism. At least Lucifer was back to wanting to kill. He just hoped that Lucifer wasn’t going to start with him.

  “Good. Make sure of it. As my second-in-command, I expect you to take care of things. She is included in that. You will see to her wellbeing,” Lucifer panted.

  “Of course, my Lord, I will see to it. I just want you to reconsider the idea of finding another,” Oh, he would see to her, that he swore. He would make sure that she was killed or deranged enough to be killed.

  “Hades, you don’t understand. When she entered the Throne Room, I could feel her from the Realm of Nightmares. I was afraid that she would never come. I had called to her for so long, I’d almost given up hope that I would obtain her. I was running out of time and becoming desperate. You saw how insane I was. I knew I had to do something. Then a miracle happened, he made a mistake. Creeper was able to find him and ultimately found her. I knew where she was and I reached out to her. For the first time in countless millennia, I could hear her. I was positive that she could hear me. The bond between us was stronger than ever. It allowed me greater access into her mind and I tricked her. She had no idea what she was doing. I wasn’t sure that she would comply, so I waited. I was shocked when I won. Hades, I finally won.

  “When I saw her lying there in that horrible pink outfit, I wanted to laugh, really laugh for the first time since falling from Heaven. I was overjoyed that I had finally gotten her. It was more about the victory than about her. I had accomplished something her father swore I would never be able to do. I realized it was more about my obsession to best him than about caring for her. That’s when I looked into her face and remembered all the feelings I had when I first saw her. Even though she looked very different, she had the same effect on me. I wanted nothing more than to steal her away, lock her in the lowest, darkest place here, and covet her. My obsession stopped being about winning and more about hoarding her. How can I find another when I feel this way?” Lucifer groaned and curled up on his bed.

  “If it helps, I’m certain she will never care for you. She has even said so aloud. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I don’t think you made a very good first impression. She seemed to be displeased with your, well, the way you touched her,” Hades chimed in. Even if they didn’t have sex, it was obvious that something had gone on between them. He had a 50/50 shot that Lucifer was too aggressive when it came to touching her.

  “I know I failed her. I probably scared the hell out of her. I wasn’t exactly gentle. In my defense, I wasn’t prepared for the feelings that overwhelm me when I am near her. I hadn’t experienced a sensation like that since before we fell. It’s how I used to feel in Heaven. My heart was pounding and my hands twitched, begging me to touch her. I felt like the breath had been knocked out of me. After all this time waiting for her, she was finally within my grasp. All the things I had planned to do melted away. I only thought about pleasing myself. Once she was done pleasing me, I was confused by all the emotions breaking through to the surface. I didn’t know how to handle it. I actually cried in front of her. I was so ashamed that I ran,” Lucifer sighed.

  Hades was taken aback by Lucifer’s confession. Lucifer had never admitted anything like this to him, ever. They always spoke of hatred, punishments, and beatings. They never spoke of caring, or crying. It was unheard of. They certainly spoke about sex, but as a conquering act, not a beautiful and tender experience to cherish. This was uncharted waters for them and Hades felt very uncomfortable. He needed his Master back in control of himself and his domain.

  “What happened to making her your servant? You told her that she would do your bidding. Have you changed your mind?” Hades had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

  Lucifer had always ranted about how he would make the girl submit to him. He would strip her of her identity, force his will upon her, and make her crawl to him like a lowly pitiful creature. She would have no dignity left. Lucifer had bragged that she meant little to him, except as a showpiece. Hades had a feeling that the girl had moved from mistress status to the girl you take home to meet mom. He felt nauseated at the thought. It was one thing for Lucifer to want to keep the girl locked away in his room and do whatever he wanted to her, but it was a completely different thing to actually love her and want to treat her like a person, not a sex slave.

  “I had envisioned making her wait on me hand and foot. I wanted to watch her humiliation as I forced her to do things she would never do on her own. I wanted to hurt her and make her beg me to stop. The darkness had twisted my soul so much that I actually thought about hurting her. What kind of monster have I become? The first time I saw her I only thought about keeping her safe and keeping her by my side. I wanted to love her and have her love me. Now I think about conquering her and hurting her,” Lucifer was on the verge of sobbing again.

  “I think the only way she will submit to you is if you force her to. I don’t think you’re a monster. I think you’re confused. Give it time and you will see that the two of you weren’t meant to be together,” Hades shook his head as if he pitied Lucifer.

  He was going to keep pushing Lucifer toward the “break her of her will” plan of action, which would lead to killing her for her own good. The girl needed to be unhinged so that Lucifer would see that she was nothing special. If Lucifer ruined her, then everything could go back to the way it should be.

  “No. I’m not confused. For the first time I understand. I know what it means to feel something other than hate and disdain for someone. When I touched her, that’s when it all fell apart. It goes beyond lust, it’s p
leasure. Pure pleasure pours through me and cracks through the ice inside. It feels like molten lava coursing through me. I actually burn for her. Her body causes my mind to split apart until there is nothing left in the world but her. You saw me after she touched me. I was almost returned to my former angelic glory. I’m reduced to a pathetic love struck child and yet I still want to be with her,” Lucifer wanted her even then.

  “I assure you she doesn’t reciprocate your feelings,” Hades sighed. He pulled a random book from the shelf and pretended to take an interest in it. He was surprised to find that it was “Alice in Wonderland.”

  “It is the only thing that has kept me here, alone and suffering. I want her to be happy, and I know that I can’t make her happy,” Lucifer sighed.

  Hades flinched when he heard the word happy. He wanted to make her happy? It was far worse that he thought. He needed to work fast. “Then release her from her bonds and send her back to the Mortal Realm. It would be best for everyone. I guess it’s a good thing she doesn’t want to be with you. You can let her go and get back to the way things were,” Hades shrugged like it was an easy solution, and it would be an easy solution if Lucifer could get his head out of the clouds, or perhaps the sheets. Hades decided to throw the idea out there, hoping that Lucifer would agree to it.

  “No,” Lucifer growled and was standing in front of Hades before he could blink. “I will never let her go, Hades, and I will destroy anyone who suggests it. Are we clear?” Lucifer’s eyes were glowing red and he was bearing his teeth, which looked more like fangs when they were mere inches from his throat.

  Hades cleared his throat and took a step back. He casually put the book down and bowed. “Of course not, my Lord, no one will suggest that she leave,” Hades lowered his head. The Prince of Darkness was back or at least in the vicinity. This was so much better than crying.

  Lucifer stepped back and paced.

  Hades hated to bring up the issue, but the question needed to be asked. “What if the Predznak find out she is here? They will wage war with you to either take her or kill her. You know it’s true. Do we let them have her, especially since she doesn’t seem to know the truth?” Hades was more than willing to hunt every one of those assholes down and give them a personal handwritten invitation back into Hell if they did either. In fact, he might send his servant Jared on a mission to find them. That would certainly be worth courtside seats.

  Hades paused when he thought about the Predznak and decided it was probably best to keep them out of his plans. They could easily turn on everyone in Hell and destroy it just for a good laugh.

  “No one will take her from me! Let them come and I will butcher them all. They will never get to her and she will never know of their existence. I will protect her with my life, if needed. I don’t know why she is naïve about this world, but I intend on keeping it that way. Give the order that she is not to be harmed or touched in any way, nor will be she told the truth. I swear if anyone disobeys me, I will mount them on my wall while they are still alive,” Lucifer growled and paced about the room.

  “Of course not, my Lord, we will not allow her to be taken. What about the agreement? You haven’t exactly held up your end of the deal,” Hades decided to steer him away from the subject of mounting people to the wall, since he would be the first one in line.

  “I don’t have to honor the agreement. It’s null and void. I won, so I don’t have to abide by it. He thought he was so clever. I wish I could have seen the look on his face when he realized that he’d lost. She is mine to deal with as I see fit. The deal was broken the second she arrived here of her own free will,” Lucifer sneered like the wolf he was. He knew he’d won and didn’t need to abide by the contract.

  “How will you keep her from finding out?” Hades asked in his most innocent voice. He might be able to work this angle, if his first plan failed.

  “She will stay here. She will never be allowed to return to the Mortal Realm. I will find a way to make her happy, but she will continue to be my servant. I will try to deal with her sway over me. I will prepare myself better for our next encounter,” Lucifer was already telling himself not to touch her, look at her, or picture what he wanted to do to her. He needed to find a way to desensitize himself; maybe a negative reaction would be best. He could injure himself whenever he thought about touching her. That could work.

  “As you wish, my Lord. I will make sure that she never finds out who she is,” Hades smiled at the thought. There were so many ways to keep that promise. He was giddy with all the options available to him. “But right now I have to meet with Azazel. There are problems that need resolving. Souls keep escaping from the Realm of Nightmares since you’ve been on hiatus. We wouldn’t want the worst of the worst off terrorizing the locals, now would we? The Höllenhund has been busy. Vaughn has been chasing after the escapees as quickly as he can. Thankfully, I can rely on him to do his job,” Hades feared a mass riot in the Realm of Nightmares. It would take months to undo the damage. He needed to remind Lucifer of what was at stake if he couldn’t break himself of this melancholy.

  “The prisoners in the Realm of Nightmares must be secured. I have faith that Vaughn will keep everything under control,” Lucifer sighed. He thought about the havoc they would create, if the prisoners orchestrated a large-scale escape from the realm.

  “We really need you back. Azazel can’t keep watch over the Fallen, and the Realm of Nightmares. We need you at the helm, ASAP. I know you are lovelorn over this girl, but you need to get your head back into the game or someone will remove it for you. There are plenty of people vying for your position. The fools think that ruling Hell would be fun. Wait till they see all the paperwork and learn about the unending hours,” Hades chuckled.

  “I will be ready in a few days. You’re right. There are entirely too many who would take over control, again. I will find the strength to resist her and do my duty. Hold down the fort as best you can and I will take over shortly,” Lucifer threw back his shoulders and looked at himself in the mirror. He did look terrible. He needed to get it together. He knew he had to become the merciless scoundrel of old and reign as he was meant to.

  Hades bowed and left the room. He walked past Dorian and Vincent, Lucifer’s suicide servants and flipped them off. The losers were very loyal to Lucifer and useless to him. He left Lucifer’s tower, walked over the covered bridge, made a right in the rotunda, and entered the Hall of Misery, his personal tower, and home away from Heaven.

  Azazel was waiting for him in front of the dais. At least he was on time today.

  He noticed that Azazel’s leather shirt was ripped in multiple places and his brown hair was tousled about. The prisoners must have attacked him again. Luckily, Azazel was a natural at subduing an angry mob, which was why he oversaw all the realms. His chiseled expression and fierce gaze was often all he needed to make a prisoner back down and return to their realm. He could scare the shit out of just about anyone. The angel never smiled, unless he was breaking someone’s will.

  “How fares it, brother?” Azazel asked as he bowed. Azazel hated bowing, but he hated bleeding even more.

  “I’m in a mood. Be warned. Lucifer is still away doing something that I will inevitably have to clean up. I’m afraid you will have to continue terrorizing the inmates in the Realm of Nightmares, and yes, I’m well aware of how much you loathe your duties. It can’t be helped so deal with it,” Hades threw himself into his throne and rubbed his temples. He was going to have to remember all the lies he’d told so that they didn’t come back to bite him in the ass, or get him mounted on a wall.

  “Of course, my Lord. I will continue punishing the VIP prisoners, as requested. Do you have any idea how much longer Lord Lucifer will be away? Vaughn’s attention has been diverted to helping me in Nightmares and he is having difficulties pursing the escapees from the other realms, though thankfully there haven’t been many,” Azazel would rather cut out his own tongue than deal with the Realm of Nightmares. He could handle the general pop
ulace. Those realms were straightforward. The Realm of Nightmares was unique and difficult to maintain. It created a lot more work for him. He had no idea how Lucifer ran the place without losing his mind. Of course, it was pretty much all he did all day, if Hades was to be believed, though he never believed Hades completely.

  “It won’t be much longer. Just do the best you can. I will speak to Vaughn. Lucifer can fix things when he returns. It will serve him right for taking off and letting his minions do his dirty work. No offense. As much as we all believe that we are the scariest angels in Hell, no one can top Lucifer when it comes to torturing. Now, how is our little guest doing?” Hades perked up, waiting to hear the answer.

  “Lucifer’s mistress is in the Realm of Poison. I have to admit she is stronger than I expected. The suiciders are always weak and pathetic. They cry out the loudest and beg for mercy more than anyone else. They normally give up the second they feel pain, but she is different. She has an inner strength that I haven’t often seen. While she screams out in pain, she doesn’t allow the torture to truly defeat her. Be warned, she is a fighter. Are you sure that we won’t accidentally release her power? Everyone is afraid she will blow the place up. Is it safe to continue in this manner?” Azazel had fantasies of Hell blowing up, which wouldn’t be the worst thing to imagine, but he didn’t want to be caught in the fireball.

  “As long as the ring stays on it will be fine. Don’t worry about such things, you’ll go gray,” Hades rolled his eyes and brushed away Azazel’s concerns.

  Azazel wasn’t the only one worried about her power slipping out. Hades had held his breath when she was tossed into the first realm. He watched nervously from the windows in his tower as she was hurled into the thorns and started to bleed. Mercifully, her power had remained in check and he was able to let go of his worries, at least that worry. Technically, he was supposed to start her off in the Realm of Fire, but reconsidered when he imagined the fire adding to her power. He didn’t need Hell burnt to the ground.