The water hit me like a solid force, driving the breath from my lungs and rattling the bones in my body. I couldn’t draw breath to scream before the current sucked me under. Sure hope demigod magic can resurrect me from drowning floated through my head, along with What if I get swept out to sea?
My arm struck something hard. A rock. I grabbed it, gripping as hard as possible. Both hands dug into its sharp surface, drawing blood. An excruciating pain splintered up my arm, suggesting broken bones. Dazed, shaking, I pulled myself onto the rocky protrusion as my blurred vision restored itself. Churning currents tugged at my battered body, threatening to drag me into the depths again. A cough rattled my lungs, and my numb fingers slipped on the water-slick rocks. I dragged my limp legs upright so Rachel’s boots dug into the rocks, and I jumped.
I hit the bank, the boots absorbing the impact, then my legs gave way. Come on, demon magic. I’d have died several times over if the regenerative power I’d stolen wasn’t working, but only a human could be in this much pain. A kaleidoscope of lights played out somewhere to my left—the portal. My vision blurred again, the tower not ten feet away reflecting light back at me at dizzying angles. Demonglass. So the whole tower was made of the stuff.
I half-crawled in that direction. Running away wasn’t on my plan, but from what I’d heard of the creatures that lived near the river, I’d get eaten alive if I stayed too close to the water. Surging currents lashed the bank, masking the crackle of the portal and the noises of the bat demons dive-bombing the survivors on the bridge. Rachel… Nikolas had been in the air, but if Rachel had been on the part of the bridge which had given way…
My knees hit the ground again. Consciousness flickered in and out. Not now. Move, Devi. You’re too close to the portal…
A shadowy figure melted into view.
“Stay away,” I croaked.
“The ingratitude,” he said softly. “Allow me to assist.”
An angry retort died on my tongue as blackness darker than shadows dragged me under.
I came to moments later to unexpected warmth. A fire burned in a grate while a soft rug cushioned my weary body. I sucked in a breath and coughed water all over the rug, shuddering. From the absence of pain in my arm, the broken bone had healed itself, but my whole body was soaked and freezing.
I recoiled when a shadowy hand gently pressed to the demon mark. The pain in my bones receded, and even the coldness faded as sensation came back into my limbs.
A man with golden eyes and red-tinted hair grinned down at me. Zadok. He’s giving me his magic.
I snatched my hand away. “Don’t. I’m fine.”
“You were minutes from death when I found you,” he said. “That’s how you thank me for helping?”
“I had it covered.” I coughed again, pushing to my knees. Warmth licked at my back, and I resisted the urge to lie down again. I’d had enough fire-related close calls today already.
Zadok leaned against the wall. Like his lab, the room was round, the walls dark and bare. “You needn’t pretend to be invulnerable around me, Devi. I thought the two of us had an understanding.”
I climbed to my feet. “You’re just trying to piss off your brother, and I’m done standing in the way of your feud.”
“It’s not my brother who concerns me. It’s you.”
“You’re not my type. Get over it.” I shoved a tangled lock of hair over my shoulder. “I couldn’t possibly be less interested, Zadok, so if you want to find something to fight with your brother over, you’ll have to do better than that.”
“I did say humans held no interest for me. There are consequences I’m frankly not interested in dealing with.” He tilted his head. “I assume he told you about them?”
“Nice try. I’m not pregnant with demon babies, so you can shove that mental image off a cliff.”
He gave me a dismissive look. “That’s not what I meant. I assume you’re no longer concerned with the state of your soul, so perhaps it doesn’t matter.”
I rolled my eyes. “If you don’t mind, I have yet another egotistical demigod to kill. Get rid of that portal and stop trying to overrun the castle with monsters, then we’ll talk.”
“You think I did that?” He gave me a wounded look. “You should know I’m looking out for my own interests. Destroying the castle and killing off every warlock in this realm doesn’t further my goals.”
“Please. You sent those fallen creatures to kill me the last time I was here.”
“Simply to demonstrate the lies your lover hides beneath those walls, Devi,” he said. “Those once divine beings… the fallen… they’re his greatest shame. But I have a real army, and I have the impression you need one. Your realm is in quite a lot of trouble.”
Major understatement. “The last thing my realm needs is another portal into an unstable realm.”
“Not a portal,” he said. “A bridge. I’ve studied the ways of the arch-demons, Devi… I know what they plan to do.”
“A bridge?” I’d heard the term… a bridge was effectively a giant portal, merging two realms into one. Was that what they planned to do to Earth? I’d say yes. Specifically, Haven City. My home.
“No,” I said loudly. “You don’t get it, do you? The whole point of this is to stop the arch-demons screwing with my realm. Not invite more of them in. And for the record, Nikolas did tell me what the fallen are.”
“He did?” He smiled. “And he told you that he’s personally responsible for their imprisonment, did he? He didn’t have to lock them down in the dark. He was too afraid to defy his father.”
“I wouldn’t want those monsters running around either. You can’t turn me on him. Nobody can do that.”
“Not even the one who marked you? He’ll call your name…”
“And I’ll tell him to go fuck himself. I’m a bit more concerned with the arch-demon who’s trying to take over my realm, not the one loaning me his power. Besides, if I technically belong to another arch-demon, it makes us enemies, and if I ended up having to fight for him, I’d be as likely to kill you as anyone else.”
“No,” he said. “Like all arch-demons, it makes us potential allies or rivals. That is all. You might even have allied yourself with the ones who took that inspector of yours under their wing. Did he offer you the choice?”
Damian did. “His minion tried. But I’m opposed to people who try to take over my city and kill my friends. You’ve harmed my friends yourself. You tried to throw Rachel out the window and nearly killed Nikolas several times.”
“The monster girl?”
“She’s your sister, you complete prick.”
“Not my choice,” he said. “My brother always had an inexplicable soft spot for outcasts. I suspect that’s why you get along so well.”
“You’ll have to try harder than that if you want to insult me.”
“You’re healing fast,” he commented. “Do I get a thank you this time?”
“Thank you,” I said. “I owe you nothing. And now I want to return to the battlefield before Nikolas roasts you alive.”
“He won’t.” He smiled. “He knows better than to try. We’re equals, separated by chance. And we’re not so different.”
“No, you aren’t. He told me. I’m sorry your mother didn’t love you enough to raise you on Earth, but it’s nobody else’s problem. Nikolas’s included.”
“That’s not what happened.” Rage ignited, his aura darkening into wing-like shapes. Just like his brother’s. “He told you what he needed you to believe in order to think me the enemy.”
“How many times do I have to tell you that your own actions are what makes you my enemy? You as good as declared yourself against me the second we met. You can’t twist history. Let me out of this room. There’s a war going on outside. Aren’t you concerned they’ll break in?”
“I have my own defences.” He shrugged, his wings disappearing as quickly as they’d sprung into being. “Aren’t you the slightest bit interested in whoever opened that portal?�
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“Yeah, but I think I already know. The demigod I have to kill.”
A smile danced on his mouth. “For a portal to open, there needs to be an equally powerful portal set up on this side. I wonder who did it?”
Nikolas had said there might be a traitor. But I owed this guy too much already, unfortunately.
“Don’t we all. I think I have more chance of finding answers outside this tower, so… let me out.”
“You’re welcome.”
Shadows folded back, revealing a door that opened out onto the bridge… or what was left of it. But the portal’s lights had entirely disappeared. As I walked out, a winged figure passed into view, etched in shadow. Nikolas. Thank the Divinities—he was alive.
“Devi!” He flew to me, carrying Rachel. She was in her demon form, covered in blood, but not her own. “Did he—”
“He’s not involved,” I said quickly.
“He might as well be.” His teeth bared in a snarl. The door behind me had already closed. Damn. “Whoever did it lives on this realm.”
“Did you see the demigod I was fighting?” I asked. “It was Azurial’s sister.”
His eyes flared. “Emarial. I met her once. We need to get back to the castle. There’s a traitor in our midst, and I intend to root them out.”
Chapter 14
Warlocks milled about inside the entrance hall. Some lay on the ground while others bound up their injuries with bandages. A sombre air covered the place. I stood with Rachel, knowing I was lucky to be alive myself.
“The enemy’s in here?” I asked quietly. “They sure don’t look like traitors.”
“Maybe, but I don’t trust them,” said Rachel. “What did Zadok want?”
“To recruit me. Same old. He’s hinting that he holds all the secrets, et cetera. Don’t worry, I’m not listening to him.”
“Good,” she said. “It’s not good that he’s fixed his attention on you. I think he’s looking for allies. He’s lonely.”
“He shuts himself up in the tower and attacks anyone who goes near. It’s his fault.” I shook my head. “I’d say he has a crush on me, but I don’t think it’s that. He seems to think his brother’s corrupting my mortal soul.”
“Only if you believe in such a thing.” She shrugged. “Mine’s damned anyway. So are all of ours. But we’re less doomed than those poor souls under the castle.”
“He claimed to know secrets about them, too,” I said. “He said Nikolas imprisoned them on his father’s orders and has no intention of letting them out.”
“Now he’s talking crap,” she said. “Sure, it’s true that they locked the fallen underground because the shadow demon said so, but they’re also corrupt, immortal, and attack everything they meet. They’d be just as dangerous outside. Here, they have some measure of protection. But they didn’t do this. They wouldn’t have the strength to open a portal even if they could.”
“Do they still have celestial magic, or…?”
She shook her head. “No. Not like you do, anyway. I don’t know much about them. I found out because they attacked me the first time I came here, probably on Zadok’s orders. He hates that Niko pretty much adopted me as a sister without his permission.”
“I thought it was something like that. No excuse to throw you out a window, though.”
“I sometimes think Zadok assumes everyone’s as invincible as he is.”
I frowned. “He doesn’t act like it, hiding in his tower all the time. You’d think he’d have come and helped. I mean, this is his realm, and they were right outside his tower.”
“Hmm. Maybe he’s scared of fire demons. Or demigods. He has no trouble trying to smite Nikolas on a daily basis.”
Good point. Not only had he sat out two battles, he’d stopped trying to kill me after my encounter with Themedes had caused me to take on his power. Might his weakness be fire? Not that I was scared of the guy anyway, but that was knowledge that I might put to good use.
“No wonder he helped me right after I figured out how to use divine fire,” I said. “He was probably hiding from Emarial. But she disappeared. And she can’t be pulling the strings. Someone sent her to kill me.”
And she’d almost succeeded. I cast another look around at the warlocks, wishing I could see auras which might give away who’d betrayed us to the enemy and set up a portal here. Of course, that was assuming it hadn’t been Zadok. But destroying his own tower didn’t sound like him, and nor did sitting out of the action. Then again, he hadn’t directly participated in the fight with the vampires’ king either. Hiding in the shadows… from the fire.
Sure would help to know Azurial’s sister’s weakness, though. Not to mention the arch-demon behind the curtain. Themedes had had a weakness, so arch-demons weren’t completely invulnerable. But who had let them into this realm? Had someone from here been responsible for the arch-demon getting to Earth, too?
Nikolas finally joined Rachel and me. His clothes were torn, bearing the obvious marks of regeneration. But none of his army had those same abilities. Some would die.
“Any luck?” I asked.
“Nobody in this room has the resources to set up a portal,” he said in a low voice. “That makes it Zadok by default, unless someone got through from Pandemonium before, during the attack. It’s certainly possible.”
“Damn.” And the portal had gone, taking all proof with it. “I don’t think it was Zadok, though. He wouldn’t have wanted to destroy his own realm.”
The obvious solution was to go into Pandemonium to see who’d launched the attack. But we were exhausted, injured, and needed to make sure everyone at home was safe.
“How’d this realm end up cut off in the first place?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” Nikolas said. “Nobody does. My brother claims to, but he claims a lot of things. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s because the vast majority of higher level demons died out here. With them gone, so is the ability to make portals.”
“Until Zadok did it.” I bit my lip. “He did it to catch Azurial and the vampire king, supposedly. I think he was looking for an excuse to. And I was that excuse.”
“He’d have schemed the same whether you found him or not. He wanted…”
“An easy target? Everyone seems to think that.”
“No. Not at all. No humans are made to stand up to the gods, but you… I think if anyone can, it’s you.”
I gave a shaky laugh. “After that? I don’t think the gods particularly care if I’m still in one piece when they throw me out onto the battlefield.”
He scowled. “Then maybe the gods need to face up to the fact that they’re not the only players in this game, and their pawns have a life of their own.” A shadow passed over his gaze. His wings weren’t visible anymore, but his shadowy aura was ever-present. Nobody in their right mind would make him into a pawn.
Maybe he saw the same when he looked at me. After all, I’d held the power of the gods in my hands.
“Who are you and what have you done with Nikolas?” I asked teasingly. “First you defy Javos, now this. Next you’ll be carrying illegal demonglass to transport us around the city.”
“Technically, I do have some of that,” he said. “Speaking of which—I think you and Rachel should head back to my house. I have a few things I need to sort out here.”
“Okay, but come tell me if the portal comes back.”
“Deal. It’s that way to the hall with the pillars.” He pointed through an open door on the hall’s right side. “It’s best not to linger here.”
“No kidding.” I approached the door, with Rachel. Her human disguise came back as quickly as it’d vanished, bright pink hair clashing with the bloodstains on her clothes.
“You’re getting good at arguing with him,” Rachel said.
I glanced back over my shoulder at him. “He wanted us out of harm’s way. But I need to check on Fiona. And the vampires. I don’t believe for a minute that demigod is finished with us. Or whoever’s behind this.�
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We reached the pillared corridor, and I nodded to Rachel before stepping through the glass with her at my side.
Fiona slammed into me, so fast and unexpected that I lost my balance, stumbling into the wall. My elbows scraped against plaster, and she smiled a smile utterly unlike Fiona. Dread gripped my heart, freezing my nerve endings even as flames danced from her palms, scorching the walls on either side of me. The heat told me I wasn’t immune—and her eyes blazed with a familiar fire.
“Hello, Devi,” purred Azurial’s voice.
“What… the fuck?” I massaged my throat. My elbows stung, and my head rang with pain. Not enough for a concussion, or anything that might hint at this being a mistake. The fire warmed my arms, singeing the already-torn sleeves of my coat.
“Surprised to see me again? Your friend is an interesting host.”
Bile crawled up my throat. “What the hell are you doing, possessing her?” It’s not possible. Especially when he was dead. I’d seen him die, torn apart in my own divine fire.
He gave a terrible laugh, driving his fist towards me.
Even in shock and faced with my best friend, my instincts switched on. Pivoting out of the way, I pulled out my celestial hand, punching him back. Fiona’s head snapped back and I hesitated, not wanting to hurt her. There was no way he could actually be here in person, and he wasn’t a shapeshifter, so it was definitely Fiona’s body he was using.
Rachel launched herself forward. Fiona spun around with incredible speed, far more like a demigod or vampire than a human. Shit. It’s the transformation. But turning into a vampire was a world away from a fire demon speaking to me through her mouth.
He smiled. “You can’t burn me out, celestial. Not without burning her, too.”
“Get out,” I snarled. “Whoever you are, get out of her head, now.”
He laughed again, fire dancing from Fiona’s hands. Then the light went out of her eyes and she collapsed onto her front.
“Fiona. Fiona.” I shook her. She groaned a little, her voice unmistakably hers.
“What… happened?”
Celestial Ashes: The Celestial Marked Series: Book Three Page 12