by Con Template
She broadened her smile and finally stopped in front of me. Her hand reached out and played with the curls of my hair. Her actions were gentle, but her words were sharper than knives.
“It is said that you will be a powerful Demon if converted.” She smirked once more, finding humor in all the expectations that surrounded me. No doubt she didn’t harbor the same reverence for me as the majority. “But to be honest, I see nothing special about you. If anything, I think it is likely you’ll die before you even get converted. I don’t see why Eclipse left the cushion of his throne for someone like you.”
I squared my shoulders once she mentioned Eclipse. She knows him. Why didn’t I piece it together before? Whoever she was, she had to be a very high-level Demon to be able to penetrate a veil that was powerful enough to keep Eclipse out—even he had to get help in order to penetrate it.
I regarded her carefully, my mind churning about the possible relationship she could have with Eclipse. The most plausible possibility I came up with was that she had a romantic history with him. I considered this and found myself detesting the idea of it. I really didn’t want to be part of some screwed up love triangle, and to be frank, I didn’t want Eclipse to have any romantic ties with her. I may not have loved him, but I felt territorial nonetheless. The thought of him being with anyone else infuriated me.
“Are you—?”
“Eclipse’s lover?” she interrupted knowingly. She grimaced to illustrate how ridiculous she thought that notion was. “Oh no. Definitely not.”
The relief I felt from her answer evolved into uncontrollable curiosity. The only other Demon I had met was Sloth. I didn’t learn much about Eclipse’s love life from him, so now that I was in the presence of another Demon, I felt compelled to get some dirt from her.
“Did he have a lot of—?”
“No,” she interjected snootily, already knowing the information I wanted. “Eclipse is an elitist in every sense of the word. He would flirt, but he never held enough interest in any of the slut Demons who threw themselves at him. If you ask me, I think Eclipse is too selective for his own good. It makes sense that he would go after the ‘famous’ murderer and it makes even more sense that he’d go after a Source.” She laughed derisively as she eyed me up and down. Her judgmental eyes made me feel more insignificant than I was already feeling. “Like I said, I see nothing special about you. You lack a certain ‘worthy’ quality to be converted from a Source into a full-powered Demon. To be blunt, you seem like a waste of time.”
“And what was the ‘worthy’ quality about my brother that made you fall for him?” a familiar male voice interrupted, bringing a stream of warmth back to me.
Eclipse.
From behind me in the ghostly fog, Eclipse emerged out of the darkness like a mirage. The maze that was once overpowered by the mysterious Demon woman changed hands. Suddenly, the entire vicinity was at the mercy of Eclipse’s presence. The haze of fog swam out of his path—as if kneeling before him in the utmost respect—as he advanced towards me.
“Do not bring him up,” the woman gritted. Animosity throbbed in her voice. Whoever this brother was, he and this Demon woman had a very tumultuous past. No woman, human or otherwise, would have had such a hostile reaction unless there was a history of betrayal—or heartbreak.
“You overstepped your boundaries when you appeared before her,” Eclipse stated unapologetically, still walking towards me.
The woman tightened her jaw. Clear annoyance for Eclipse and his arrogant attitude displayed on her taut face.
“I was asked to help watch over you, remember?” she prompted tightly, evidently using all her willpower to keep her composure with him. She didn’t appear afraid of him, but she did appear tolerant of him.
Eclipse’s focus traveled to the kids once he reached us. The heat from his powerful body jumped around mine once his towering frame stood protectively beside me. “And since when did watching over me consist of you appearing before her and the kids?”
The woman waved a dismissive hand. “Please. The children are under a sleeping spell. Only Grace can see me.”
“Hi Teacup,” Eclipse gently greeted, favoring me with a heart-stopping smile. His tone of voice changed drastically from the woman to me. With her, he spoke with careless arrogance. With me, he spoke with humble charm.
He glanced at the kids again, and without warning, he extended his hands out. Muscles bunched underneath the fabric of his shirt as he reached for Kimmi. He gingerly took a sleeping Kimmi from me and held her against his chest. From how easily he held her, he made it appear as though she didn’t weigh more than a feather.
Kimmi stirred faintly from the exchange. Yet, as if Eclipse’s body was more comfortable to sleep against than mine, Kimmi simply murmured something, readjusted her soft pink cheek on his sculpted shoulder, and continued to sleep in his arms.
Briefly ignoring the mysterious woman—and briefly ignoring the warm energy that gushed within me at the sight of Eclipse looking so domesticated with Kimmi in his arms—I distractedly asked, “Who’s watching the rest of the kids?”
If Eclipse was here, then it meant that the rest of the kids were alone. Being stalked by another mysterious Demon aside, I was still responsible for those kids. I couldn’t bear the thought of the others fending for themselves outside of the maze.
“OinkOink is with them,” Eclipse said in a reassuring voice.
While he said this, he also reached out for Sony. I quickly moved away from his reach, still holding Sony close to me. I frowned at his nonchalant answer. I couldn’t believe how careless he was. How was that big ball of white fluff going to take care of the kids if shit actually went down?
At the sight of my disapproval, Eclipse smiled in mild amusement.
“They’re all in daycare napping,” he explained pleasantly. “When I came out of the bathroom, I realized these two little baby midgets were missing. I went looking for you to see if they were with you. It didn’t take me long to deduce that they were. I dropped the rest of the kids off at the daycare center and came looking for you right away. I figured the longer you’re without me, the faster you’d attract trouble. As it would appear”—he took a quick look around at the maze to make his point—“my instincts were right.”
“Interesting,” the woman interrupted brusquely, observing us with a mixture of boredom and irony. “A Dark Majesty leaves the cushion of his throne to come to the human world and play house with his new toy. If the world down under could see you right now, they’d throw a riot.”
Eclipse shot the woman an un-amused stare. “Are you here for a reason or are you just trying to piss me off? This is really not the time. I’ve been surrounded by screaming baby midgets all day. My eardrums hurt and I’m exhausted. I have a lot of pent-up frustration. I’m sure you wouldn’t want to be the outlet for all that aggravation.”
I had to admit that it was a downright sexy sight to see Eclipse holding Kimmi with such care while sprouting such harsh words to this mysterious Demon woman. He looked like a hot domesticated husband that every woman dreamt about. All I could do was stare at their exchange in awe.
The woman rolled her eyes at his words.
“I came to give you a warning,” she finally revealed to him.
Any potentially hostile remark died on Eclipse’s lips. He visibly tensed, growing quiet when her words hit him.
Encouraged by his attentive silence, she went on. “There are rumblings in Heaven and Hell right now about the ‘inception’ of a Source. After her little birthright event last night, it is safe to say that the majority now knows of Grace’s presence. Though they do not know specifically that Grace is a Source, they do know that a Source exists. Once the veil lifts, there are many things coming your way and many things that will attempt to find her. It will only be a matter of time before the Source’s identity is revealed.” She leveled a hard stare on Eclipse. “Fortunately for you, it is not known that there is a Demon trying to convert the Source. In that same to
ken, unfortunately for you, there are others who are currently looking for you as well.”
Eclipse gazed at her in surprise. Amusement began to fill his stunned eyes. “There are others looking for me as well?”
“Assassination of a Prince,” she added sternly, ignoring the humor Eclipse was injecting into this new development. “The only perfect time to do it would be when the Prince becomes a Dimmed Demon—an idiotic and suicidal move that none of your brothers would ever partake in.”
Eclipse’s lips curved in pride. He did not take any offense to her words.
“Fortune favors the bold,” he stated proudly.
“But it doesn’t protect them from death,” she corrected in a sharp voice.
“I will keep that in mind,” Eclipse replied courteously, giving her a respectful nod. “Your inappropriate scheme of scaring Gracie aside, I do appreciate you taking the time to come here to let me know what’s going on with the rest of the world. I suspected that there were things happening already, but I had no idea that things were happening this fast or that I’m a target as well. Like I said, thanks for coming.”
“Just stay the hell out of trouble so I don’t have to come here again,” she told him stiffly. It was clear that all she wanted to do was see me for herself and give Eclipse that warning. Her work was done, and she wasn’t planning on staying in this maze any longer.
She made a move to leave, but abruptly stopped when she remembered something. “Oh, and Eclipse?”
“Yes?”
“Do not attempt to find the missing part of her soul yet.”
My eyes nearly fell out of their sockets when I registered that she not only knew I was a Source, but that she also knew about the missing part of my soul. How on earth did this Demon woman know so much about me?
Eclipse appeared unfazed by her knowledge of all this “secrecy” as she continued to speak.
“Wait for the hype to die down. There are Demons scouring the globe right now looking for the Source. It is best for you to stay here for the time being.”
“She has a veil,” Eclipse responded coolly, unworried about her warning. “It will protect her from any Demon or Angel who seeks her.”
“Her veil has been weakened,” the woman stated, causing Eclipse and I to freeze in our positions.
“How?” Eclipse asked disbelievingly.
“Perhaps it is because of her birthright event last night.” The line of her mouth hardened and she fixed Eclipse with a scrutinizing stare. “Perhaps it is because you disturbed the veil by having it momentarily lifted to find her. Whatever the reason, her veil is no longer as powerful. The veil’s power is strongest here because this is where she resides. If you leave this city, then the veil will get thinner. Demons who seek her will not be able to find her, but it does not prevent them from being able to ‘stumble’ upon her if she happens to be in close proximity. At that point, even if they are not seeking her, they will be able to see her. If they can see her, then it stands to reason that they will be able to detect if she’s a Source or not. If they find out that she’s a Source, then”—she smirked lethally—“we all know what happens then.”
I swallowed uneasily at the thought of “stumbling” into Demons and them finding out that I was a Source. The mere thought paralyzed my entire being. One of the only things keeping me sane was the fact that I had a veil to protect me. Now that even my veil was becoming weaker, I had never feared the outside world more.
“Stay in Seoul for now,” the Demon woman finished, “I’ll let you know when it’s safe to venture out.”
“Great,” Eclipse remarked dryly, finally showing some distaste when it was announced that our plans to search for my soul had been postponed, “there are Angels and Demons looking to kill the two of us. We are quite the hotshot couple, aren’t we?”
“Did you think converting a Source would be a piece of cake?” the Demon woman mocked lightly. Her cold eyes assessed the notes that were sticking out of my pant pocket. “Though judging by how often this girl sneaks in studying between her life and death situations, it seems that the two of you truly think that it’s a piece of cake.”
“She’s a goody two-shoes.” Eclipse came to my defense at once, not realizing that he had hurtled a dig at me in the process. “She can’t help it.”
Before I could even begin to defend myself against these judgmental Demons, the Demon woman decided to interrupt me for the last time tonight.
“Let’s hope for Eclipse’s sake that you live longer than I believe you will.” She smirked mockingly and inclined her head at me. “Good luck, Source.”
Then within the blink of an eye, she disappeared. In the seconds to follow, the thick fog that came with her began to dissolve as well.
“Who is she?” I asked turning back to Eclipse when nothing but man-made fog surrounded us. Everything was clearer now and I felt more at peace. I held onto Sony, who was beginning to stir in his sleep. I tried to play it cool when I asked my next question. Although the Demon woman had already given me her answer, I wanted to hear his. “Is she your love interest or something?”
Eclipse nearly choked on his own laughter. He regarded me in amusement, clearly loving my envious behavior. “Why? Are you jealous, Teacup?”
“No,” I said quickly, flushing a little bit. Eager to save face, I promptly added, “I just can’t imagine what else she’d be. She not only knew I was a Source, but she also knew that a part of my soul is missing.” My eyes morphed into accusing slits. “It must mean that you confided in her and told her all of my secrets.”
“No,” he corrected at once, derailing my train of accusations. “It means that there is only one other Demon who knows you’re a Source and that you’re missing a part of your soul.”
“Sloth told her?” I uttered once I shadowed after his thoughts. Confusion twisted the features of my face. “Why would he tell her?”
“Because he knows that she was once asked to watch over me. Since his lazy ass is too lazy to do it, he relinquished the duty to someone else.”
“Who is she?”
“Her name is Lyna. She’s like my older sister. She and my older brother were close. He once asked her to help watch over me.”
My curiosity was piqued. “Which older brother was she close to exactly?”
“Pride,” Eclipse thoughtlessly answered as we began to navigate around the maze, trying to find our way out. Now that the corn maze was clear of Lyna’s magical fog, I was confident that we would find the exit soon.
“Was she his lover or something?”
Eclipse provided an evasive shrug. “Or something.”
I wrinkled my nose in bitterness. “You’re not going to tell me, are you?”
“I don’t see the point in wasting our time talking about the complexities of someone else’s relationship,” he said unenthusiastically. “If you want to know their history, then I suggest you ask her yourself.”
“I’m good,” I replied, remembering how much I disliked her. I could stomach asking Eclipse for dirt, but I would never go up to that woman and ask her about her personal life. She terrified me too much.
Pushing my curiosity about someone else’s love life aside, I went back to a more important topic. “Are we going to listen to her? Are we going to stay in Seoul until she gives us the green light?”
“Like I said, Lyna is like my older sister and she keeps her word. If she has agreed to help watch over me, then she will do it to the best of her abilities. If she tells us it is not a good time to seek the missing part of your soul, then it is not a good time. She would never waste our time unless something big is brewing and our lives are truly in danger. We have to be smart about this, Gracie.”
I sighed, nodding my acceptance. I did not like the idea of postponing the mission to find the missing piece of my soul, but I also understood that we had to be strategic. We were going against powerful entities who would stop at nothing to find me—and kill me. If there was another Demon watching out for me, then I
would gladly accept her help.
The last thing I needed was to die before finding the rest of my soul.
"And when he is done, the dead sun will rise and the Ra’viiikv will ascend."
34: Fallen Demon
I was very agitated for the next several days.
With Lyna having yet to give us the green light to leave Seoul, I found myself at a stalemate in terms of how to sort out my priorities. Since solving the mysteries of my life was out of the question for the time being, my main priority shifted to something more tangible and practical. At that moment, preparing for my upcoming speech was the most prominent thing on my mind. I know. How much of a goody two-shoes nerd could I be, right?
“You look too stiff. Can you be less socially awkward when you’re standing up there?”
I peered at Eclipse from my notecard, blushing at his critique after completing my informative speech about Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy for my public speaking class.
“Am I really that stiff?” I asked self-consciously, taking his criticism to heart. I was desperate to perfect this speech. Since I had an outspoken Demon by my side, I decided to take advantage of his presence.
Dressed in a warm white jacket and blue jeans that were tucked into my boots, I blinked at him while I stood uncomfortably in the library study room.
“You are a bit stiff,” Eclipse confirmed before flashing me a smile, “but you’re getting better every time. I’m very impressed, Gracie.”
My face brightened. This was the first praise he had given me about my public speaking skills. I was shocked and absolutely pleased. “Really? You don’t think I seem too nervous?”
“I really mean it, Gracie. I think you’re doing well.” As an even wider smile was about to take over my face, he slyly added, “Now let’s take a break.”
My smile waned slightly. I let out a disbelieving breath. Was this why he was suddenly complimenting me? Because he wanted to take a break from listening to my speech?