The Antithesis- The Complete Pentalogy

by Terra Whiteman

  I stood with the Archdemons, watching the black smoke pool into the sky, darkening the already dingy horizon.

  The ruins of Golheim were silhouetted, and I thought of Sanctum. The smoke, the sky, the shadows. It smelled the same here.

  “Yahweh’ll be at the command station in a few,” I informed them. “Might want to make an appearance, in case another battle plan comes to surface.”

  Belial smirked. “Glad to know he’s feeling better.”

  He knew the truth, but was also the least likely to say anything.

  My eyes settled on Belial’s face. The sinister perma-grin on his lips; the way his jade-green eyes were ringed with crimson, just like Ara’s.

  Did Vakkar even know my blood ran through his veins?

  Of course the demons knew they carried Nehelian genes, but how many of them knew those genes had been mine exclusively?

  At least one.

  I started off toward the command station, driven by that thought.

  “Where are you going?” called Naberius.

  I didn’t respond, and he didn’t ask again.

  III

  ADMONISHMENTS OF AN ARCH-ENEMY

  Lucifer Raith—;

  THE LOOK OF SURPRISE ON AVARICE’S FACE WAS PRICELESS.

  I was the first thing Ava saw as she woke, glaring at me like I was the one who had killed her.

  Stupidity had killed her. Impatience, carelessness; all the things I’d never known Ava to be.

  “No,” she whispered, curling her knees and holding her head. “No, this is wrong. I felt myself die.”

  “Welcome back,” I said, rising from my seat.

  She looked at me, bewildered. “How?”

  “A miracle,” I said with a smile. “And now you can’t say I’ve never done anything for you.”

  Avarice winced. “Lucifer, tell me how I’m alive.”

  “There are more important things to discuss,” I said, the whimsy of my tone fading away. “You disobeyed my order. You made revenge your top priority. You’re right, you died. You were dead for almost ten hours, all because you didn’t take my advice.”

  She stared ahead, the dazed look melting into one of grave concern. And then guilt. “I’m sorry, sir.”

  “Are you?”

  “Did we lose?”

  “No, not really. But Commander Telei was not captured like I’d requested.”

  “I couldn’t contain the situation. Justice Koseling was too strong, even with the tranq. Commander Telei attacked me and I defended myself. I never meant to kill him.”

  “… I beg your pardon?”

  Ava looked as confused as me. “Your son is dead. Has no one told you? How else could we have won?”

  “Yahweh isn’t dead.”

  “He was thrown through a wall of glass. I saw shards penetrate his body. If he’s not dead, he’s gravely injured.”

  “The angels have not announced their Commander’s death, and one of our ambassadors reported that he saw Commander Telei aboard Ezekiel, fine as ever.”

  The Praetor glanced away, stunned. Without her armor she was a tiny thing, and in her state she seemed frail; child-like, almost. “That’s impossible.”

  “There are a lot of impossible things happening, it seems,” I said, no more than a mutter under my breath. “Like how the Justice Commander was still capable of defending herself after being shot with two tranquilizers.”

  Ava’s eyes slowly rose to mine. She hugged her knees. “I only used one.”

  I tilted my head, feigning confusion.

  There was a long pause from Praetor Delvori. I had an inkling of what was coming, as news of a dead scholar aboard the Ezekiel had traveled quickly here.

  “I shot a scholar,” she confessed. “It was a mistake. He looked so much like Yahweh; I thought it was him.”

  Panic hit my chest, sharp like an icy dagger. She’d killed Ixiah Telei. At this information, I was unable to conceal my distress.

  “He would have killed me,” Ava explained, misinterpreting my expression. “I had no choice.”

  I turned, breaking our gaze. “You need your rest. It shouldn’t be more than a few days before you’re well enough to lead another team. I’m confident you’ll be more careful this time.”

  Ava watched me leave, desperation in her eyes. She thought she’d done us harm, me harm, but that had yet to be determined. In fact, Ixiah’s murder might bring me some luck.

  Our small success in Golheim had brought back some spirit. The Argentian army may have thought they’d won that round, but the goal never was to take down Ezekiel. It was to stab them in places that hurt. Perhaps the wounds wouldn’t kill them, but it would definitely slow them down. With a judge and upper-command officer gone, Yahweh and his court would certainly feel the impact.

  I’d have patted myself on the back, but the thought of what that tiny victory had cost was nauseating.

  And each time I gazed at Golheim, blown off the face of Hell’s map, I pictured the look on Samnaea’s face when I’d executed the order.

  Samnaea was a patriot, true and true. No one loved and supported the Obsidian Court more than her—not even me. Every mistake, every crime, every murder had all been for Hell. At least, in her mind they were for Hell. I was disappointed to realize she believed that we could save everyone. Samnaea over all demons should have known the stakes of war. She’d barely survived two of them.

  Fifty percent of the decisions I’d made as Commander I didn’t agree with, but you had to think of the bigger picture. Leaving Golheim standing was a waste of resources. Over half of the capital had defected and their rebellion would have placed a strain on our army, giving Argentia a twice-fold advantage over us.

  It had to be done. There’d been no other choice. One day, Samnaea would forgive me. Until then I had our freedom to defend.

  *

  It was late in the evening and Judas thrived with shadows of the night-watch. Announcements and automated messages echoed across the deck, some even floating down from the guard tower. Samnaea was in central headquarters discussing tactics with the primers and Archdemons until early next morning. Ezekiel’s journey would conclude in Tehlor; this council would see to it.

  The navigation room was barren, many of its operators having already headed in for the night. A blinking green light on the incoming communications panel caught my attention. Caelis sat beside it, a finger against his headset. He seemed tired and out of sorts.

  “I was about to call you,” he said, eyeing the pulsing light. “The telecom request is from Ezekiel’s central command.”

  Yahweh wanted to speak to me? That seemed unlike him. Or, maybe not. Maybe he would try to negotiate terms. “Put it through.”

  The person on the holo-screen was not Yahweh. As he flickered into clear view, Caelis froze, mid-objection.

  I relaxed. “Oh, it’s you.”

  Qaira grinned, all teeth and thorny eyes. “Let’s chat.”

  *

  “You got my message. I was worried the bots wouldn’t pick it up.”

  I’d sent Caelis out of the room, not entirely sure what Qaira was going to say. “Yes, I got it.”

  I’d looked at Alezair Czynri numerous times since he’d joined the Celestial Court, but I’d never seen Qaira gazing back until now. The gleam in his eyes had returned—the tiny flicker of wickedness that always kept you on guard.

  “Just wanted to say that it’s great to be back.” His holo-eyes trailed over my image, and he smirked. “I like your new look.”

  “If there’s nothing important that you wish to tell me, Qaira, then I’m terribly busy.”

  “Hats off to you. You smacked us one good,” he said. “Even managed to kill Zhevraine and Ixiah. Calenus is here right now speaking to Leid. I’m sure she’s letting him know exactly how they died, and by whose hand.”

  “Surely he knows that the real reason Ixiah’s dead is all due to Leid and her guardians inserting themselves into a war they have no business being in.”

>   “Oh, but it’s all my business,” said Qaira. “You stole this world from me; now you’re warring on it.”

  “I didn’t steal The Atrium from you. You forfeited your world by committing genocide and crossing the Court of Enigmus.”

  “Details, details. I’m here to give you one more chance to surrender. Yahweh’s willing to offer a truce, even. So long as you agree to his terms.”

  I lifted a brow, amused. “That’s quite a bold proposal, considering the recent turn of events.”

  “You may think you’ve gained the upper-hand, but you haven’t. A truce would be the wisest route. You’ll never win this war, Raith.”

  Something was different about Qaira. He seemed a little more collected, a little more patient. Nine hundred years ago he would have been belligerent as ever, spitting insults and profanity. He had the same look, the same aggression in his voice, but… not as much heart. “As frightening as that sounds, I think I’ll take my chances.”

  His expression grew dark. “Leid is expiring.”

  “Yes, I know. She already told me.”

  “She is determined to see this war to its end. She grows sicker each day. If she expires here… well, you’ve seen what could happen.”

  “And like last time, the Court of Enigmus will contain her.”

  “It isn’t that simple. Not this time.”

  I tilted my head, curious.

  Qaira wasn’t here to threaten me. He and the angels were in more danger than us. When Leid went mad, Ezekiel would be the first to see her wrath. “If you’re so concerned for her life and my wellbeing, you should convince the Argentia fleet to surrender.”

  The anger returned. “I’m throwing you a fucking bone here. A truce is better than a surrender for either side. You whites love to talk; figure out a way to negotiate.”

  “Sorry, Qaira, but I must attend to other matters. We’re violating the terms of war by speaking to each other privately, and I have much more at stake here than you.”

  He looked right, as if something in the room had surprised him. The holo-screen faltered momentarily, leaving fuzzy lines across his image. I could have sworn I’d heard an explosion, screams.

  The surprise on Qaira’s face turned to fear.

  I opened my mouth to inquire, but he cut the transmission and the screen faded to black.

  I sat there, perplexed.

  After a minute or so I moved to the internal communications board and pinged security. A guard stepped into the room not a moment later. “Fetch General Soran and escort her to the sky conference room.”

  “Sir.” And away he went.

  On the way out I ran into Caelis, thumbing a port-Aeon outside the navigation room. His back was against the wall, a foot propped up. “I’m done in there.”

  “Have a good night if I don’t see you again,” he murmured, shuffling into the room.

  I began in the direction of my private quarters. “You as well.”

  IV

  LIAR, LIAR

  Qaira Eltruan—;

  IT FELT LIKE A SMACK ACROSS THE FACE.

  Danger.

  My noble was terrified. I’d never felt Leid so afraid.

  I cut the transmission, leaving Lucifer hanging. I’d try again later.

  Vel’Haru behavior was strange and frightening. It was almost entirely driven on instinct. I ran for her, knowing good and well that if she died, I would die. That was the feeling instilled into guardians. Protect their nobles, at any cost.

  I whirred on-deck, seeing smoke plume out from the top floor of central headquarters. Adrial was somewhere up there but he wasn’t answering our private line. The nobles were still jamming it.

  Alarms had sounded; angels were running over the bow and gearing up in the hangar. They thought this was an enemy attack. Not quite.

  Crowds moved aside as my wings unleashed, stalling for a fraction of a second as I bent my knees and prepared for flight.

  Adrial descended in a blur and I barely had time to evade. He hit the deck and slid on his side, crashing through a crane motor station. He’d been flung from the smoking guard tower and now all angel activity had ceased. They realized this wasn’t the demons, and cast their frightened gazes upward.

  Adrial got to his feet, wincing in pain.

  “Something’s wrong,” he rasped. “I can’t feel Leid anymore, can you?”

  I couldn’t either. But she wasn’t dead; it certainly didn’t feel like last time, on Atlas Arcantia.

  A group of silhouettes loomed over the top floor of the watch tower. Among them, Jii and Zira. Calenus hadn’t come here to talk, but we’d all known that.

  “Do we fight?” I said, the question more or less rhetorical.

  Before Adrial could respond, another feeling struck. Cold, sharp, like the terror Leid had felt seconds before.

  There was something else, too. Power. Fury. A bitter, metallic taste formed at the back of my tongue. Someone sang in my head.

  I flinched and tried to shake these feelings loose. When I looked up again, the scholars were gone. Adrial had recoiled, eyes wide with shock.

  “No,” he whispered.

  “What is it?” I called, substantially worried.

  Adrial didn’t even look at me. “No, no, no.”

  He whirred back into action, running for the tower again. I choked on his dust cloud.

  Belial was on the lift, staring at me. The look he gave me was one I’d never seen on him: a small grin that only lifted one side of his mouth. His eyes gleamed mean. It all felt very familiar, if only for a second.

  Yahweh emerged from the residence sector, battling with his coat.

  “Qaira, what’s happening?” he screamed over the blaring alarms.

  I was already waving him back. “Find General Trede and get to shelter!”

  But I knew he wouldn’t. Yahweh was being pulled, like me.

  Before he could object I took off from the deck, soaring toward the watch tower. My wings hit the air, clapping like thunder. Adrial had vanished, but that song was still looping in my head.

  By now I’d figured everything out; it wasn’t Leid who I was trying to save. Not anymore.

  I landed on the tower rail in a crouch, taking a quick survey of the area. The party had moved inside central command. I heard a lot of shouting. The metal entrance door was dented and ripped off the frame, strewn against the bridge rail. No body of a celestial could make a dent like that without decorating the bridge in a gooey mess.

  Damnit, not here. Even if I survived this, I would be in a shit ton of other trouble.

  First thing’s first: survive, and make sure Leid survives. Everything else was hypothetical.

  Thinking and fighting at the same time was a difficult feat, especially when you moved as quickly as me. As I whirred inside, I barely had time to assess the situation—a fraction of a second, really—before I needed to act.

  Calenus was recovering from what appeared to be a heavy blow, sagging over the crackling central command board. Zira had taken the reigns and he and Leid were in a vicious struggle in the middle of the room. Jii had Adrial near the navigation bridge entrance, keeping him from protecting our noble.

  I intercepted Calenus’ as he returned to the fray, knocking him off balance. We both were flung into the wall; a communication panel crunched against my shoulder.

  After that the surprise wore out—his fist cracked the side of my face before I’d even seen it move.

  I staggered to my feet again to keep him from advancing on Leid.

  Calenus studied me with an empty expression, but his gaze betrayed the collected demeanor he was going for. There was a storm brewing in his eyes, generated by a sense of betrayal. Now he understood that I had never truly made peace with him. There was no friendship between us. No amnesty at all.

  “You knew,” he breathed.

  “I did.”

  “And you still protect her? She destroyed your world, Qaira!”

  “No,” I said, my lips curling into a snarl.
“You did. You destroyed my world.”

  Before we could share any more words, Zira lost the fight against Leid and ducked away from her sweeping scythe. He seemed scared, and had good reason to be. After all, Leid was no longer Leid.

  Zira didn’t even get a chance to stand before she phased behind him, hooking a tiny arm around his neck, the serrated edge of her scythe pressing against the soft flesh beneath his chin. Calenus started, but Leid shook her head, tsking.

  “No, no,” she said, her sable eyes glittering with malice. “I wouldn’t do that, lest you desire another guardian slain.”

  “… How?” he asked, conceding. “Leid destroyed the statue. She promised me that she’d destroyed it.”

  Neither of us volunteered to explain, although now Adrial was staring daggers at me. He and Jii stood motionless. No one dared to call the Scarlet Queen’s bluff.

  “I want you gone,” she said. “I’ll release your guardian once you and the others have left this world. And don’t try to trick me; I can feel your resonance all the way from the other side of our galaxy.”

  Calenus’s eyes narrowed. He didn’t move. Neither did anyone else.

  Oraniquitis laughed. She threw her head back and howled, as if someone had just told her a hilarious joke. “You’d rather have it out? Here, on this world? Think of all the lives we’d grind to dust under our heels, Calenus. If that doesn’t upset you, then you’ve changed.”

  Zira was listless, eyeing his noble. He seemed remarkably calm being the Scarlet Queen’s hostage. The entire room was in varying degrees of disarray; half the scholars were stunned, the others having gotten past the shock and were now working through the horrible reality that Oraniquitis Loren was alive and well, Adrial among them.

  Calenus was the only one standing sentry, confident. He was also the only one that stood any chance against Leid’s darker half.

  But Oran had a point: at what cost?

  He’d weighed that decision, too. Without another word Calenus turned and retreated to the deck. The other scholars followed suit, until we were all alone with Zira. After another moment, Oran let him go as promised. He followed his kin, now already off The Atrium, looking back once before retreating on deck.