by Riley London
“What did you see?” It was the first thing I thought to ask. “When you touched the amulet?”
“I didn’t see anything,” Trinity replied, as she slid down toward the floor.
“Liar.” I called her out, before I began to feel woozy myself. “Just tell me what you saw.”
“It’s not going to make any sense to you.” Trinity waved a hand, as if she was dismissing my entire existence. “I’m not sure anything I tell you is going to make any sense to you.”
“Just tell me.”
“I saw Hell.” Trinity’s eyes narrowed, as she looked over at me. “I saw the end of the world. The beginning of a new one. I saw what happens to them all, Abaddon, our parents—”
“Our parents?” I tried to play it off like it was the first time I’d ever heard about it.
“Don’t play dumb.” Trinity sighed. “You know who I am. You know what we are. I could see it in your eyes, the first time you saw me here. You didn’t know whether you wanted to hug me or kill me, which I’ve heard is pretty common when it comes to sisterly relationships.”
Trinity then let out another groan, as she winced. “Has the amulet always done that when you touched it? Thrown you into another existence?”
“Yeah,” I admitted, as I spotted the amulet on the floor. I reached down and scooped it up, placing it into my back pocket. “But coming back isn’t usually so rough.”
“I’ve never experienced anything like that,” Trinity replied. “Our mother must’ve blessed it with her magic. Or cursed it. It’s amazing how hard it can be to tell the difference.”
“I think she wanted me to have her memories, at least some of them. So, whenever I found the amulet, I’d be able to know who I really was.”
“Good. It’s good you know who you really are, Celeste,” Trinity continued. “But I’m not sure if you know how important you are.”
“I think I got it. I’m the Princess of Hell. If something happens to our parents, I’m next in line, right?”
“That’s a short-sighted way of looking at things,” Trinity scoffed. “You should be considering the bigger picture.”
“And what’s the bigger picture?”
“You have a right to claim a throne that rivals God’s. The only throne to ever do so,” Trinity explained. “Don’t you see what that means for us, big sister?”
“Not really. No,” I admitted. “And I’m not sure I’m even interested in—”
“The Princes of Hell are going to win, Celeste. This time, there is no Michael on the angels’ side.” Trinity took in a shaky breath. “And we, you and I, are going to be what remains of our parents’ legacy. We have a chance to rule, if we’re able to make the princes respect us.”
“I thought they were pissed off because we existed in the first place? Because we messed up the natural order of things, by having a right to the throne, at all?”
“Yes, but they can forget our parents’ betrayal for the right price.” Trinity nodded. “And once we command the Princes of Hell, then we’ll command Heaven and Earth, too. We’re going to inherit everything, Celeste. Everything is going to be ours. We were born for it.”
“Not interested.”
“What?”
“I’m not interested. In any of it,” I continued. “If the angels lose, then I lose too. I’m not going to suddenly become some ultra-ruler of the universe. That’s just not my style.”
“What do you mean it’s not your style?” Trinity hissed. “It’s in our lineage. Power is our birthright.”
“Yeah, I’m still not interested,” I answered. “Thanks for the invite, though. I hope everything works out for you.”
“You don’t understand,” Trinity replied. “It doesn’t matter if you’re interested or not. The Princes of Hell still have a target on your back. They’ll still come after the things you love, the people you love, all in the name of revenge. You have to show them that you’re—”
“I’m not going to show them anything, besides the bottom of my boot.” I interrupted Trinity’s rant. “If anyone comes after me, or the people I care about, I’ll handle it. But I’m not getting involved any deeper than that. I already have one of the princes on my back, I don’t need to get on anyone else’s bad side.”
“We need to show a united front—”
“Hey! What are you girls talking about?” Zachary entered the room, with a huge grin on his face. “Are you talking about boys?”
“You’re such an idiot sometimes, I swear to God.” I chuckled, even though deep down I knew this was no time for laughter. It just felt good to release a bit of tension. “And no. Trinity was just stopping by to ask if she could borrow my notes from class. And she was just leaving.”
“Yes. I was just leaving.” Trinity began to head for the door, before she turned back around towards me. “We’ll talk more, at a later time.”
“Sure,” I coolly replied, as I closed the door behind her.
“We’ve got it!” Charlie burst into the library, running through the aisles. “We did it! Holy shit! We did it!”
He was greeted by the sound of various students shushing him. He whispered an apology, as he continued to head straight for my study table.
“Celeste!” Charlie’s tone was excited, although he was now keeping it down. “Celeste! We figured it out! We really fucking did it!”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I murmured. “But good for you. You seem really happy about it.”
“Come on. You need to check this out.”
“Oh, I was kind of in the middle of memorizing the Latin phrases for—”
“That doesn’t matter! None of that matters!” Charlie gave me a wild grin. “Nothing is ever going to matter more than what I’m about to show you right now!”
“Fine! Fine.” I closed my notebook, before stuffing it into my backpack. “Let’s go, then. Show me what’s so important that it’s going to cause me to fail Mr. Toorin’s quiz in the morning.”
“Ah, you can always make up a Toorin quiz. This is something that you’re only going to see once, because I’m definitely not putting myself through it without just cause.”
“Putting yourself through it? Charlie, what are you—”
“Let’s go!” Charlie grabbed me by the hand, before he proceeded to pull me across the library floor.
Chapter 12
“Celeste, so happy you could join us.” Benjamin smiled at me, as he stood in the center of the quad. It was pitch black outside, and I would’ve been freezing if it wasn’t for my jacket.
“What are you guys doing out here—Oh.” I changed my tune, spotting Trinity standing beside Benjamin. “Hey, Trinity.”
“Hey, Celeste,” Trinity replied. She and I hadn’t spoken since that afternoon in my dorm room a few weeks ago. I couldn’t tell if she’d just been avoiding me, or if I’d just been so caught up in studying for midterms that I didn’t notice what the hell was going on around me. Either way, this made for an awkward reunion.
“There are knowns and there are unknowns,” Benjamin explained. “The known is that Charlie is immortal, at least until something happens to Celeste. The other known is that any angel who attempts to pass through to Hell shall surely die, unless given such an exemption by a demon or a Prince of Hell.”
“I did not know that,” I replied. “Oh my God. Why is there so much to know? Why can’t everything just be in one, little book?”
“Yeah, it’s annoying as hell,” Zachary answered, suddenly appearing at my side. “Yo, Benjie! Why did you text me to meet you out here? It’s cold and I’m bored.”
“You literally just got here,” Benjamin said.
“Yeah, and I’m cold and bored. Wrap it up already,” Zachary scoffed. “Some of us have some studying to do.”
“All of us have studying to do,” I said, looking back at Benjamin. “But it must be important, if Benjie wanted us to set time aside for it.”
“It is important! Now, if you’ll just let me finish...
” Benjamin made a motion with his hand, and Charlie seemed to follow said motion, until he was standing in front of Benjamin.
Benjamin began to chant something so quiet that I couldn’t make out the words. Even though I didn’t understand a word Benjamin said, I was soon taken aback by the way the grass appeared to glow red under Charlie’s feet. Benjamin continued on with his chant, maybe even his prayer, and the grass around Charlie not only glowed, but I could feel its heat begin to prick at my skin.
It was hot.
It was so, so very hot.
“Benjie, what are you doing?” My hand instinctively reached for the hilt of my weapon, as I looked back and forth between Charlie and Benjamin. “Stop. Right now.”
“Just a moment...” Benjamin held up a finger, as if signaling that he needed just a little more time. “And...any second now...”
“Benjie! Stop!” I cried out, now unsheathing my weapon from my side. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
I dropped my weapon towardsthe ground, as the red glow became too bright and burning. It felt like my eyes were ablaze, and I screamed out at the pain. Thankfully, the pain came to a sudden stop and I was able to use my eyes once again.
I blinked as I glanced around the quad, noticing that Charlie was no longer anywhere to be found. “Benjie, what the hell did you just do?”
“I sent Charlie to Hell,” Benjamin beamed.
“...What?” I asked, perplexed by the entire situation. “What the fuck? Why? How? Why?”
I knew that some of my questions were repeats of each other, but I couldn’t stop myself from asking them.
“Because Charlie can’t die. Not without you,” Benjamin explained. “Which means that he doesn’t need permission from anyone to get into Hell. He can go whenever he wants. He’s a walking, talking portal.”
“Did you know about this?” I directed my question towards Trinity. “Did you know that they were trying to find a way to Hell?”
“Yes.” Trinity nodded. “I thought that it’d be useful, especially in the instance of a war or something of the like breaking out on the surface. While Charlie may not be our most knowledgeable ambassador, he’d be perfect for the role as he cannot be harmed by the hellfire.”
“He’s not a fucking ambassador,” I said through clenched teeth. “And he’s not a fucking science experiment. Benjie, bring him back. Right now.”
“All right.” Benjamin nodded, before he began to chant, yet again. The same red started to glow against the grass, and the same heat filled the night air. Soon enough, that same bright, blinding light took over my eyesight.
When I regained the ability to see, Charlie was back in place, standing right where he’d been before. “Pretty cool, right?”
“What was Hell like?” Zachary asked. “A bunch of souls crying? Skeletons dancing?”
“Nah. It was mainly just way too hot. Kind of dark,” Charlie replied. “Honestly, I think it’ll take me going on a few trips down there before I have the place memorized.”
“And no one stopped you? Asked you for your papers?” Zachary followed up on his previous questions. “Doesn’t Hell have some type of security?”
“I don’t think they care.” Charlie shrugged. “They probably figured that I’m not an angel, so it’s not like they have a reason to be afraid of me or want to kill me. They probably just think I’m there on some kind of...business.”
“What kind of business could a guy like you have in Hell?” Zachary continued with his questions.
“No business at all,” I answered on Charlie’s behalf, before I walked up to him. “Charlie, what the fuck? Why would you even agree to something like this? You could’ve died!”
“You know that’s not true.” Charlie’s reply was flat. “Besides, you already know why I’m doing it. It’s the same reason I do anything anymore. It’s for you, Celeste.”
“You can’t say this is for me. I never would’ve asked you to—”
“It doesn’t matter what you would’ve asked me to do. You’re not in control of me, even if we’re soul-bonded or whatever. I can still make choices on my own.”
“Yeah? Then, you should make better ones.” My words were lined with venom. “I swear to God, Charlie, if you’d just stop for a moment and think this shit through, instead of being some kind of hero, when I never asked you for it—”
“Who else is supposed to look after you?” Charlie raised his voice. “You’re the one who runs into apartment buildings, without telling anyone else where you’re going. You’ve always been the one to run toward anything that’s on fire.”
Charlie took a moment before he continued. “I know my role with you, Celeste. I’m the guy who’s supposed to be left holding the bag, until you come back. And I’m sorry, but the deeper we get into this angel stuff, the more I realize that I can’t just sit on the sidelines anymore. You can’t be mad at me for wanting to help.”
“No, but I can be mad at you for risking your life to do it,” I replied. “And if this is how you’ve decided that you’re going to contribute to my life, then I’d rather not have you involved.”
“What are you saying, Celeste?”
“I’m saying that the next time you try out your little science experiment, don’t pretend that you’re doing it for me,” I went on. “You have no idea what it’s like to watch you go through something like that—”
“Yeah, that. That helpless feeling in your chest? That’s how you make me feel every day,” Charlie scoffed. “But I guess you’ve never had to take a dose of your own medicine before, have you?”
“Charlie...” My words trailed off, as I stared up at him. “What’s happening to you?”
“I’m not the one who’s changing,” Charlie answered, before walking away from the conversation. Trinity followed in tow, her feet keeping up with his every step.
“Celeste. I’m sorry. I—” Benjamin tried to speak to me, but I shook my head in the middle of his thoughts.
“Don’t worry about it.” It was all I had left to say, as I wandered away from the quad myself.
It’d been a week since the incident with Charlie in the quad. I hadn’t spoken much to anyone since then, not Benjamin, Charlie or Zachary. I’d been purposely keeping to myself, surrounding myself with overdue library books and the occasional old-timey journal written long ago. I was trying to find my own route to Hell, curious to see if there was a way for me to venture there without the use of the amulet, without putting Charlie’s life on the line. Besides, the amulet didn’t seem to be too interested in placing me in Hell during the present, apparently only working to show me memories of the past and images of a potential future.
If Benjamin had figured out a way to travel down below using Charlie, then there had to be something on the books about half-demons using some kind of secret passageway. I wasn’t a full angel, but I didn’t want to find out the hard way about visiting Hell when the half of me that was angelic ended up with a permanent scar. I assumed that any trip to Hell would have me relying more on my demonic side, although I had no idea how to bring that shit to the surface.
Hmm.
I thought back to Benjamin’s words.
Any angel who attempts to pass through to Hell shall surely die, unless given such an exemption by a demon or a Prince of Hell.
I knew that I didn’t have any favors on the books with any of the princes, so I considered the other part of Benjamin’s statement.
An exemption by a demon.
My mom?
If Lilith had gone through the trouble of enchanting an amulet for me, maybe she’d also assured a safe passageway for me to return home. Unfortunately, there was only one way to find out, and I wasn’t in any place to ask Benjamin to try to send me straight to Hell.
As I wondered about my avenues for Hell travel, there was a loud knocking at my door. I moved away from my bed to answer it, as I hastily pulled it open. “Hello?”
“Hello.” Benjamin offered me a wide smile. “May I com
e in?”
“Of course.” I returned Benjamin’s expression. “Always.”
“I just wanted to check in with you. I know that you were upset about Charlie—”
“It’s okay, Benjie. We don’t have to talk about that—”
“Yes, we do.” Benjamin nodded, before taking a seat on my bed. “It’s my fault. I was so concerned about whether or not Charlie could safely travel to Hell, that I never stopped to ask myself if he should ever have the ability to travel safely to Hell.”
“I can understand how it could be useful. I just don’t like the idea of getting Charlie further involved with this shit.” I took a seat beside Benjamin. “Honestly, if there was a way for me to wave a magic wand and take him out of the equation, completely, I would.”
“Me too.” Benjamin sighed. “Charlie isn’t like the rest of us. He wasn’t born into angel society. He shouldn’t have to suffer like this.”
“You think he’s suffering?”
“I think the knowledge of the angel world is overwhelming to someone who otherwise feels powerless,” Benjamin continued. “He just wants to be useful Celeste, but it’s going to be much harder for him to achieve that goal when up against demons and demonic princes.”
“I know. I shouldn’t have been so upset with him,” I admitted. “I know he just wanted to help me.”
“We all just want to help you.” Benjamin playfully nudged me in the arm. “What have you been up to, anyway? All holed up in your room. I’ve missed you.”
“You missed me?”
“Yes. Very much.” Benjamin smiled. “You are one of the few parts of my day at the academy that I’ve come to genuinely look forward to.”
“Benjie. That’s really sweet.” I shifted a bit closer to his side. “I missed you, too.”
There wasn’t another word exchanged between us, as Benjamin bent his head down towards mine, pressing his lips against my mouth. I returned the silent kiss, happy to be in the moment with Benjamin. I tried to suppress the urge to moan, even as Benjamin’s tongue met mine, even as he rested a hand on my upper thigh.