“I don’t care, just trust me. Forest, as soon as the flames die, trap Lucifer with some vines.” Foreststar nodded his agreement. He didn’t know what plan inferno meant, but at this point there wasn't really time for arguments.
I gave Dark another odd glance before kneeling to the floor with both hands pressed against the stone. I started muttering a highly complex incantation that the Fire Master had taught me when I had turned thirteen. If I did the spell properly, I’d be unconscious for weeks. For now, I’d have to rely on Forest and Dark to keep me safe.
WATERSTAR
“Crap! Crap! Crap! CRAP!” I was banging my fists against the wall of this stupid camber that I was stuck in. If they did plan inferno, Fire would be screwed! That spell could kill him!
I sat down in the middle of the room; I needed to clear my thoughts just like Arctic had taught me. If I could get Vlad here, we might have a chance. He was our only hope, traitor or not. Fire may say he was evil, but I was going to chance it. Let’s just hope I suddenly developed a telepathic ability.
DARKSTAR
I took another hit to my stomach. Protecting Firestar while he casted the spell was a lot harder than I had thought. This guy could hit like nothing you would believe.
Another punch came flying at my head except this time I managed to duck before head butting him in return. “Forest!” I shouted as Lucifer was had to take a step back due to my step.
Thin vines started crawling out of the ground. They attached themselves onto Lucifer’s legs while thicker vines followed.
When he was fully anchored to the ground, I tilted his head so that he was looking me in the eye. I ignored the snarl that he cast at me.
“Lucifer, you will not reach for your fire power, nor any other power.” If he burned Forest’s vines again, we’d be in trouble.
I watched as his eyes glazed over and his shoulders relaxed a fraction. “Good, now you will stay standing here, you won’t move an inch, not even when fire surrounds you, got it?” After he nodded his head I backed away. I could already see flames licking around the ground. I could feel the god-like man fighting against my power though, and I wasn’t sure how much longer I could keep my hold on him. I was fairly surprised that it had even worked this much.
Once I had left the immediate area around our foe, the flames started to grow rapidly. At ten feet tall, they curved in to form a dome over Lucifer’s head. “We’re ready when you are, Ice,” I said while looking at the mechanic
A mischievous smile spread across his lips as he held up a silver ball thing. “Get all the Animals in a corner; I’ll put an ice barrier around them, but we’re going to have to stay out here. I think our presence agitates them.” Forest and I nodded our confirmation before cornering the Mystic Animals. It helped that they were still all hiding behind the massive dragon. Ice handed me the bomb before creating the protective barrier around them.
“Alrighty then, if you could just toss that into the fire, we’d be all set. The explosion will make us pass out though.” I had already thrown the bomb by the time Ice had said the last part.
I barely managed to look at Ice in astonishment before my vision was blinded by a pure white light.
VLADIMIR
I was pacing around my room, worrying about Waterstar. She was the first person I had contact with from the outside world, and one of the only people who had ever shown sympathy for me. It was kind of hard for a guy to forget something like that, or ignore it. An area in my peripheral vision darkened and Kuro appeared. I ran over to my cat and started questioning her. “Is Waterstar okay? Is she alive? Have they reached Lucifer yet? What happened with Cerberus?”
“Vlad, calm down,” Kuro kept staring at me until I took a deep breath. “Waterstar is alive, but unconscious.” She glared at me when I was about to interrupt. “They’re fighting Lucifer as we speak. Vladimir, it is time to kill your father.”
Chapter 11: Fight Hellfire With Hellfire
VLADIMIR
I tightened my grip on Kuro’s collar as I felt the tug of the portal. I fell to my knees as we landed in the Mystic Animals’ room.
“I never did enjoy that way of transportation,” I muttered while trying my hardest not to vomit.
As I finally managed to get to my feet, I was impressed with the destruction that Star Rebellion was able to wreck. There were little flames dying everywhere, and scorch marks silhouetting the walls. Charred plants covered the floor and there was a large puddle in one corner. I sprinted toward it, hoping that Waterstar would be near.
When I reached it, I realized that the magic that formed the water was not hers, but she was lying to the edge of the water. Along with her, there were the four guys that had been in my room earlier, though I only remembered Darkstar’s name. All five of them were unconscious, and I noticed that the other girl was missing.
After making sure they were all mostly fine, I went to where Kuro was in the center of the room, standing a bit away from my father. “They were able to knock him out?” I asked, truly amazed.
“No, he’s conscious, but paralyzed. Vladimir, your father wants to speak to you.”
I nodded my head and knelt next to him. It was obvious that he had taken quite a beating, almost as bad as when he had Fallen. Lucifer took my hand in his and a pained expression filled his features as he tried to turn and look at me.
“Vladimir, my son, my heir. I need you to kill them. All five of them. It was good of you to have Kuro lead them here, but I thought that they would be weaker. It seems like we were both mistaken. They have inherited the powers of Calsh quite well, these humans. We cannot afford such a risk. Kill them, Vladimir, and then organize the demons. They will listen to you. Organize the demons, and then go to both surface worlds. Humans will remember never to question my reign after this day. They will never try to steal from me again.”
I sat there for a while, thinking over what he just said. Of course I wasn’t going to consent to it. After meeting Waterstar, I had a change of heart, if I even possessed one. It was time that I joined my mother’s people, and left the darkness of Hell.
“No.” The word was barely a whisper, but it seemed to echo throughout the entire chamber.
“What?” my father rasped out.
“I won’t. I will not damn the humans.”
Lucifer started laughing maniacally, blood dribbling down his lips. “I should’ve known you would’ve been too weak. It’s that damned human’s blood in you. Fine, be that way. The humans will die either way. I will not let them continue to prosper. Vladimir, my son, I disown you and take away all your rights as my heir. From this moment onward, there is no one to take my place in the Underworld.”
I felt something shiver down my spine, but I didn’t pay any attention to it right then, though I knew what happened. I walked back over to Kuro and asked, “If we leave him here in this state, will he live?”
“More than likely.”
“How do I kill him then?”
“Vladimir, are you sure about this? Those who kill angels-”
“I know Kuro. Those who kill the ones who once resided in the Divine won’t go either to the Divine or Hell. They remain in eternal darkness alone forever after death. How do I kill him?”
Kuro nodded her head once. “Your Hellfire will work well enough.”
I consented and returned to my father. He was still laughing like a lunatic, and the blood loss from his lungs still didn’t seem to be affecting him in any way. “Kill me and humans die, let me live and they die,” he kept repeating this phrase as he watched me stand over him.
“At least I’ll be taking out the vilest thing in this existence for the next population.” I pressed my hands against his chest and released almost all of my energy into him, leaving just enough to stay conscious and get the rebels out of here.
Lucifer died laughing, but as his breath ceased, he started crumbling to ash, starting with his fanged teeth, ending with his dead heart.
Chapter 12: The Surface
A tv was on in the background as a mother, Kate, closed the door to a cupboard. She had just finished emptying the dishwasher after putting her son to bed. He was eighteen months, and she was delighted that he had actually fallen asleep quickly this time.
Kate collapsed on her sofa and flipped to the news channel. It was just after eleven, so the broadcast should have already gotten to some of Kate’s opinion, and wasn’t the regular newscaster for this time. Kate furrowed her brows as she watched the ending of the report on an outbreak of salmonella.
“Next, we have a feature on strange happenings going on throughout the world,” the woman began the next report. “Apparently, major first world countries across the planet are saying that there is a high chance of demons invading. You heard that, demons. Two years ago, the president had said that the people of Calsh would be doing a mission sometime in the future to help the pollution on their planet, and he had accidentally revealed that demons may surface from it. No one took it seriously then, and it doesn’t seem much different now. We want your opinion though, so go onto our Facebook or Twitter and just send a little message if you think these demons are really coming.”
The newscaster ended with a quirk of her eyebrow and Kate rolled her eyes. As if demons were real, they were just a bedtime story to scare little kids. Recently, it had probably only been to get publicity for D.C after all the mistakes they had been making with health care. Some things just never changed.
Kate was turning the tv off as a pound echoed on the front door. Her breath came in gasps and she edged toward the staircase, thinking of her son tucked into bed upstairs. Hopefully this wasn’t James, her ex-husband. The divorce had been bad, and it didn’t seem like he would ever get over it.
As Kate got closer to the staircase, she passed where one of the home phone receivers were. She picked up, prepared to call 911 just in case.
Another pound on the door and Kate started to dial the emergency number. The wood flew from the doorframe and a hulking figure was silhouetted by the moonlight. That wasn’t James, she instantly knew. He wasn’t that tall.
Something lumbered through the doorway and Kate caught a glimpse of red eyes. She screamed in panic, and soon the wails of her son echoed her.
ARCTIC
Arctic still sat at the head of the table in the conference room, reviewing some papers that the architects had brought him. All of the leaders had left except for Vatican, who was still writing on his notepad.
After a few more minutes, Vatican finally stood and approached Arctic. “Commander Arctic, I had not planned on doing this until later, but certain circumstances have made it important for this to happen sooner. I request to stay here on Calsh to help with what is going to happen. I believe I will be an important player in what is coming, and though I can’t tell you everything right now, I ask for your trust in the matter.”
“What’s with this all of the sudden?” Arctic asked while standing up. Arctic was by no means short, but the pope seemed to dwarf him.
“I did not feel like it could be said with the others here.” Vatican was showing no signs of nervousness, like he had everything under control. This made Arctic hesitant; people who seethed with power had a history of being dangerous.
“What about your share of the work on Earth? Who will guide the southern part of Europe?” Arctic crossed his arms and unconsciously raised an eyebrow.
“I have here written a statement to Rome, explaining everything that he will need to know.” Vatican waved the notepad.
Arctic motioned to see the notepad; he wanted to make sure that everything was as he had said, that the pope hadn’t added anything extra that was false.
After quickly scanning the statement, Arctic was satisfied that there wasn’t anything that could be incorrect. “Though I do not trust Rome to be able to handle such a situation, it is your choice. I will have Snowstar deliver this immediately.” He pressed a finger to his earpiece and called for the intern ambassador. After she had come and gone, Arctic returned to where the Vatican had stayed waiting.
“Now what is this of being an important player in the war to come?”
“I have a… history of warfare, along with a large knowledge about demons and the Underworld, even more than what you have in this packet of yours, though it is quite detailed,” the man added the last part quickly so then it was known that he wasn’t trying to criticize the Commander.
Arctic considered what he said. The pope didn’t look older than himself, which wasn’t much. That, however, didn’t mean that he wasn’t experienced, he’d just have started a lot earlier in life than most people.
“Since we’re shorthanded as it is, and if you really do have that much knowledge about the Underworld, then this is an offer that I cannot pass up, but you must understand that I will not give you my full trust immediately. There is too much on the line to risk all at once.” Arctic eyed down Vatican, wondering how the man would react. If how he was taking this conversation could say anything about him, he could be a powerful ally or a deadly enemy. Arctic didn’t feel the normal tense clenching of his gut that he would experience when someone was ill equipped to handle a cause. His gut feeling was telling him this man was valuable.
“I wouldn’t expect anything more from someone in such a high position. If you had given me your full trust upfront, I would be worried about where this organization was going.” Vatican smiled and Arctic started to like the man more; if nothing else, he was a more reliable and stronger person than the previous pope. All he did was spout about how with God’s will it didn’t matter if the world imploded on itself.
WATERSTAR
I vaguely felt someone pick me up, though I couldn’t really concentrate on what was happening in the outside world. Every inch of my skin felt like it was on fire, like it had been melted and then dried over again.
Some type of thick liquid started dripping onto my face. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly, even though they were already closed, but I still felt like the liquid was penetrating my skin, soaking through it and into my bloodstream.
I finally became aware of someone speaking over my body. “Damn it, Waterstar. You can’t freaking die, not now! Not ever! We're supposed to save the world,” the voice ended in a whispered cry as the speaker hit my arm.
Slowly and painfully, I cracked an eye open. It felt like layers of dust that would’ve built up over years were gluing the lids together, and I felt the stuff crumble away. I swiped at my eye with the back of my hand, though my muscles were extremely sore. The stuff that had covered my eyes was ash.
“Waterstar?”
I looked up to the person who had been speaking over me to see tears falling from Firestar’s golden eyes.
“What happened?” The memories slowly came back to me as I looked around. We were back in Vladimir’s cavern… wait! “What happened?” I said again, but this time I was scared. “You guys did plan Inferno, and then I completely blacked out…. Did Vladimir show up? I thought you said he was evil. How’s everyone else?” My throat was really dry, but my onslaught of questions just kept coming out despite the physical pain.
Firestar pulled his shirt to his eyes to wipe off his tears. It kind of surprised me that Fire, who acted all macho and stuff, had been crying. Guess it shows just how much he cared for his friends. “We completely smoked him! I paralyzed Lucifer with plan Inferno, though apparently we all blacked out. Kuro says that Vladimir showed up to finish off his father, but we did most of it. I will admit, I guess, that it wasn't a trap. Not that I can see. Vladimir saved our lives.” Firestar tacked on the last part grudgingly, and I smiled. If he was even starting to feel a little more benevolent to Vlad, I would be ecstatic.
I tried to peer around Firestar. “And everyone else?” I hesitantly whispered.
“Safe. Like I said, everyone was knocked out. Kuro and Vladimir brought us back here, though he’s passed out on some couch that he conjured up. What kind of magic is that? Icestar was the first to wa
ke up, Forest is betting it has something to do with constantly being around explosions. Kuro showed him this liquid stuff that would help revive everyone else. That stuff worked like magic; nearly everyone woke up pretty fast, except you, that is. Move your shoulder around, too, the one you hit when Lucifer threw you.” Before I even had time to do as he said, Firestar continued. “That weird liquid stuff heals wounds too. You should be as good as new.”
I rotated my shoulder and noticed that he was correct. I knew it had been dislocated after Lucifer had thrown me at the wall. “How long have I been out of it?”
“Forever! I thought I was supposed to be the lazy one.” Fire mockingly punched my arm. Someone was in a good mood. I guess the thing about beating Lucifer was making him even more arrogant than usual. That's just what we needed. “But really though. Only about half an hour longer than the rest of us.”
I nodded my head and laid back on the floor, which wasn’t that uncomfortable. “What now?” I asked after a few moments of silence. I could hear the other rebels moving around the room, though it didn’t seem like anything major was going on.
“Ice is trying to wire up a system to connect us to Arctic for them to send us some back up to get out. We don’t have any provisions, and without Vladimir awake, I don’t think we could get out of here, especially in the condition we’re all in.”
I nodded my head and looked around the room again. It looked almost exactly like when we had been here a few hours previously, except for the black couch that was kind of scary with the curving patterns in the metal; I think it was showing different ways to torture someone.
“Arctic will be pissed.”
Firestar chuckled and looked me from the corner of his eye. “I think that we can handle that. I’m sure the rescue of the Animals will help gain us his favor.”
I nodded and looked at the makeshift coral that had sectioned off a fourth of the room. All five of them seemed content with staying inside the confines of their pen, though I’m sure the dragon could just as easily step out of the short fencing.
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