Celestial Ashes: The Celestial Marked Series: Book Three

by Adams, Emma L.

  Two minutes later, we’d crowded into the living room again. Fiona and Rachel on the sofa, me in an armchair, and Nikolas kneeling over the pentagram, a book open at his side. I watched, oddly mesmerised by the swirling patterns inside the pentagram. And I had one eye on Fiona in case a certain demigod made a reappearance. Hope he can’t see everything we’re doing. It was too late to hide our plans, anyway. The inspector wouldn’t be able to resist when I called him, demon mark or none.

  Anticipation burned inside me. You can’t resist the demon’s call. The notion of using the arch-demons’ own methods against them… I couldn’t deny it was appealing. The inspector’s whole game hinged on him being in control. Summoning him in front of his own army would remove that control and put him at the mercy of the people he’d ordered to torment vampires on command. As for them, having to kill their idol would be punishment enough.

  If they all survived the conflict.

  I, meanwhile, had a few potions to brew of my own. Aura vision, for a start. And a couple of minor traps in case my own allies attacked me. It seemed dangerously suicidal to think of the Grade Four celestials of anything other than a loose cannon, and heaven knew I wanted to put Farrell in his place—possibly with a full-body blister attack. But I wouldn’t resort to outright attacking them until I had no choice. No matter how much demon power I had, a dozen high-ranked celestials could fry me. And if it turned out I could burn them with my divine fire, I’d be weakening our realm against the demons. Hell, the one who marked me might even have planned this. Ultimately, I’d be set against my own people. Win or lose, the demons would be the victors in the end. Unless I outsmarted and overtook them.

  I downed the aura vision potion, concealed various traps on me, and met Rachel in the living room so she could transfer some of her power over to me. Then I turned to Fiona.

  “Call Clover,” I said to her. “I’ll give you her number. She might not be able to stop the demon but she can at least stop you hurting anyone if you-know-who takes over again.”

  I think.

  “That’s not reassuring,” she said. “If he takes over again—I shouldn’t be anywhere near the battle. I don’t want to hurt anyone.”

  And I don’t want to accidentally kill you. Azurial… damn. I didn’t know how to go about detaching someone’s soul from a person, but I’d add that to the ever-expanding list of questions to ask when I finally got hold of someone who knew what the hell was going on.

  “Are you sure the three of us will be enough?” asked Rachel. “If the best case scenario happens and the celestials take down the inspector, I’ll bet there’s someone else at the guild ready to act in his place.”

  “Damian,” I said, nodding. “That’s why I think we should head to the guild immediately afterwards. With an army.”

  She frowned. “Who?”

  “The other celestials?” Nikolas asked.

  “Yep,” I said. “One of Javos’s demonglass fragment collections is two roads down from the academy where the celestials are based now. I can walk there in person. They can’t see my aura, so you guys don’t have to be there. But if you can bring the minibus, we can take it straight to the Grade Fours. If I can’t persuade anyone to come with me, at least I tried.”

  “I don’t like this,” said Rachel. “We’re exposing ourselves to people who might turn us in.”

  “That’s why I’m going in alone,” I said. “To the academy, anyway. I’m on their wanted list. I’ll warn you if anything goes wrong, okay?”

  Nikolas stood rigid, his jaw tightening. Then he drew me into his arms. My mouth parted in surprise beneath his, briefly, then he brushed his lips over mine and took a step back.

  “We’ll be there,” he said, releasing me.

  Rachel raised an eyebrow at us. “Yeah, we will. But if you two decide to screw one another on the bus, I’m driving.”

  Fiona choked on a laugh. I grinned at Nikolas, drew back, and leapt through the demonglass fragments. Despite the world-bending sensation, I managed to land on my feet this time, on the edge of the roof I’d nearly fallen off the first time. Inching towards the gutter, I climbed over and carefully lowered myself to the ground.

  My boots pounded on the pavement, carrying me towards the academy. Before I reached the door, I activated Rachel’s power and turned into Inspector Deacon.

  “Hey!” I shouted. “Let me in, immediately.”

  “Inspector!” said an alarmed-sounding voice on the other side. “Come in right away. It’s him!”

  The doors opened. I slipped inside, and then switched on the miniature sleeping potion I’d brought. The security guard slumped in a heap without a word. Then I channelled Rachel’s magic and transformed back into Devi. Much better. I was running a risk coming here as me, but hopefully enough of them had been keeping up with DivinityWatch that they’d believe my story. And if not, I’d deal with the Grade Fours one way or another.

  Thumping footsteps drew me into the main corridor, where all the celestials were in the middle of running into the hall. Like novices assembling for a surprise announcement. Old habits died hard. They didn’t even notice me until I slipped into the hall ahead of them.

  “It’s her—Devi!” someone shouted.

  “What the hell?”

  “She sneaked in?”

  “Hey!” I waved my hands to capture their attention. “I need to talk to you and it was the quickest way in.”

  “You used demon magic,” said one of them accusingly.

  “Listen,” I said. “The Grade Four celestial soldiers are planning to ambush a bunch of innocent warlocks with the intention of blaming them for the events of the last week. But those orders didn’t come from Inspector Deacon. An arch-demon has marked him. The people you’re taking orders from are no longer trying to win the war against demons. They’re trying to ignite a war of their own in which nobody will come out alive.”

  Shouts and accusations rang out. I let them all wash over me. I hadn’t come here to be praised or exalted. I’d come here to find an army.

  “You’re talking nonsense,” said a novice. “The inspector can’t be a demon.”

  “And you’ve seen him recently? You’ve seen proof he’s repaired the damage to the west tower and closed the demon portal?”

  I held up my phone and showed a photograph someone had uploaded online of the celestial guild from the back. The ruin of the tower reflected light that plainly wasn’t from a celestial. Whoever posted on DivinityWatch was thorough, I’d give them that.

  “Why leave the portal open if they’re not working with the netherworld?” I asked of the stunned crowd. “Have any of you even been back there since the battle? Of course, I guess the inspector asked you not to. You’d have seen the truth pretty quickly if you’d disobeyed.”

  “Of course they have netherworld allies,” said the same novice as before. “That’s their job. Spy on what’s happening over there. The portal’s controlled, right? Nothing can get out.”

  “It will,” I said. “And it already did. There’s an arch-demon in this city, and I think you know there’s been something wrong at the guild ever since Damian Greenwood blew up the tower. There’s a portal in there, and it’s a direct link into the demon realms for the purpose of aiding them in their quest to take this realm.”

  “Damian?” asked a couple of voices.

  “Yeah, he faked being a victim so nobody would notice his demon aura,” I said. “Then he came back from the dead—possibly—and tricked the inspector into letting hell put a mark on him.”

  Sceptical expressions mingled with shock and horror.

  “You’ve been there.” A shout rang clearly. “You’ve been into a demon realm yourself.”

  “Obviously.” Impatience burned within me. “Look, you can choose whether to follow me or not, but I’m about to prove to the Grade Four celestials that the inspector is really a demon. If you want to come with me to see the fallout of that, not to mention help me fight whatever’s behind that portal, then c
ome with us. I get the impression some of you are getting bored with being shoved aside. They’re not telling you a thing.”

  “You’re luring us to our deaths,” said an accusing tone.

  “I can’t deny there might be fighting,” I said. “I don’t know how many Grade Fours might have been compromised, either. But if we stop them attacking the warlocks, we stop a war. How is this any different to stopping them from massacring innocent vampires?”

  Some people amongst this crowd had helped save them at the risk of their own safety. I saw a couple of subtle looks exchanged. They weren’t all blindly following orders. They had their own agenda, too. The inspector hadn’t taken away their free will.

  “Okay,” I said. “Tell you what, imagine nobody was giving you orders. What choice would you make then?”

  “Warlocks are higher levelled than most of us,” said the male celestial at the front. “And even if they weren’t, the Grade Fours—they could execute us.”

  “What if I said I can stop them? I can hand over damning evidence that proves their boss isn’t what he seems. But remember—you’re likely to have to fight some of your former allies when this comes out. Fair warning. If you want to fight them now, come with me.”

  I stepped down off the stage and left the hall. Footsteps came from behind me as two celestials I knew from my own year group followed. Then others. By the time I reached the reception area, a good fifteen celestials stood behind me.

  I didn’t blame the others for staying. If the Grade Fours were compromised, the only people with the strength to fight them were other Grade Four celestials. Or warlocks, technically. But there weren’t a huge amount of arch-demons’ children. The Grade Fours… they could easily put the city under siege without the need for demonic involvement. And while nobody liked Inspector Deacon, the notion of the demons infiltrating our highest order undermined everything we’d been taught to believe.

  I just had to hope that the group of us would be enough to make the Grade Fours pause and listen before attacking—and that they’d leap on the most likely target when I called the inspector.

  I stopped outside, seeing the minibus approaching. “That’s our van.”

  “There’s a warlock driving!” someone shouted.

  “They’re our allies,” I hissed. “If you have an issue with that, go inside, but don’t draw attention.”

  “You’ve been hiding out with him?” a celestial asked accusingly.

  “Clearly, we’re not hiding,” I said. “That’s Rachel.”

  “I saw her bite someone’s neck, but she didn’t look like that.”

  “Look, are you going to get in the bloody van or not?”

  This was why I hated supervising novices. But despite grumblings, apparently the desire to see me summon the inspector won out. At least we hadn’t brought the vampires, though now the sun was setting, they’d be waking up soon.

  We drove for a short while, halting outside the hotel whose address Rachel had found. Apparently the Grade Fours were living it up in luxury. Only the best for the guild’s elite soldiers. Glass windows reflected the fountains splashing in front, while expensive cars were parked nearby.

  I picked up the pentagram, nodded to Nikolas, and led the way to the doors.

  Farrell was the one to meet me. Because of course he was. Several others followed behind him. I scanned them, using my aura vision to search for any demonic taint. All their auras were pure white. As though the Divinities themselves stood before me. What a lie.

  “So you’ve come to hand yourself in here instead of at the guild?” Farrell asked loudly.

  “Nope,” I said. “I have someone else who you might like to meet, though.”

  “The warlock.” His lip curled. “You both deserve to be arrested for giving us the slip.”

  “Thought it was for hiding illegal vampires. I’m losing track of all my supposed crimes, to be honest.”

  “You never did have any respect for authority.”

  “Authority never did have any respect for me.” I pulled out the pentagram. “And we’re here to prove to you that the person whose orders you’re following is a demon in disguise. Did you ever stop to question why the inspector never ordered you back to the guild, or fixed the damage to the tower? There’s an open, active portal right there, and an arch-demon got through it.”

  “What are you babbling about?” He reached out a hand for the pentagram and I threw it at his feet.

  I looked up at him. “I summon you, Inspector Deacon.”

  Chapter 16

  For a moment, everyone stared at the pentagram. It flickered with fiery light, perhaps confused by the command to summon someone within this dimension. Nikolas had bound it so that nothing in any other realm could be summoned that way.

  I really hoped it worked.

  Light gleamed, reflected in the glass. Then he appeared, wreathed in fire and shadow, a hulking figure materialising in the middle of the pentagram. His aura swam with darkness, masking the light entirely.

  “What is the meaning of this?” he shouted.

  Go on. Show them who you really are. “Just thought I’d demonstrate why you’re no longer fit to lead the celestial soldiers. They can see your aura, Deacon. And it’s dark as the deepest shadows of hell.”

  The inspector shrugged, stepping out of the pentagram so there was no mistaking the dark aura swirling around him. Not like shadows, more like blotted ink clinging to his body. Then he waved a hand, and all the Grade Four celestials turned to me instead. “Look at her aura!” one of them shouted.

  Oh hell. “Maybe look at him first? He’s the one whose orders you’ve been following for—”

  One of the soldiers ran to me, conjuring his celestial blade. I reached for my own by instinct, raising it to deflect his. If I used my demonic power, I’d win—but the other dozen Grade Fours would smite me on the spot. I didn’t want to find out if twelve handfuls of celestial light were enough to dissolve me like a regular demon—and more to the point, the inspector had begun to run away.

  Nikolas got there first. Demonic lightning sparked from his hands, blocking his path. But no celestials moved to his side to help. You bastards.

  I pushed against the celestial soldier’s blade, his light swamping mine. When a celestial soldier ascended to Grade Four, they gained abilities beyond the rest of us. I might have been close to that level myself once, but I hadn’t gone through the final stage of the process. For all the divine magic I possessed, it was still one grade below them.

  “Attack him,” I snapped. “For the Divinity’s sake, don’t tell me you don’t even know the basic rules. You can summon any demon by calling their name. That’s exactly what I just did.”

  “Might the demon have assumed his name and form for their own purposes?” asked another of the celestials. “That’s what they do.”

  Damn. Of course. I should have figured they’d come up with a reasonable explanation. Anything to avoid facing the truth.

  I grabbed a smoke bomb spell and threw it into the air. Fog descended in a cloud and I ran past the celestial, aiming for the inspector. Nikolas’s lightning had slowed him, but not enough. He reached me first, tackling me to the ground. Muscular arms pinned me down, cutting off sensation in my limbs. I brought my knee up into his groin and he snarled, moving enough for me to shove him off me. Light spun from my hand and I blasted him with it. He barely staggered.

  If he wouldn’t expose his demon power, I’d drain it out of him.

  My demon mark glowed, and I willed his power to rush towards me the same way I’d done to the others. But no answering tingle came from my demon mark, nor any flood of magic.

  What? Can I not take his power?

  The celestials surrounded Nikolas and Rachel. My heart sank. Even our allies weren’t enough to stop the Grade Fours. I’d been so sure they’d accept the evidence before them, however loyal they were. It was like my words meant nothing.

  Celestial light blazed from my hand, and demonic power su
rged from my right. Screw being careful. I was a wanted woman one way or another, so the best I could do was use the power I had to bring the enemy down with me.

  The inspector laughed and… changed. He shrank to child-sized, then grew, turning into… Javos.

  He was a shapechanger? That was his power? No wonder it wouldn’t work for me.

  Two could play at that game.

  I transformed into Rachel, using my smaller form to wriggle out from underneath him. Then I brought out my blade again. He dodged, smirking. Damn. I’d never faced a full-grown shapeshifter before—the super-powered version of Rachel. The demon mark was just a ploy. He must have come through the portal in person and taken the inspector’s place.

  “Take on your true form, demon,” I growled.

  My hands glowed, one white, one red. I brought them together in a clash of power which sent him staggering back. He screamed, the flesh burning off his bones. Divine light consumed him, turning his body to ashes.

  And a dozen celestial blades pointed at me.

  I raised my hands slowly. “Whether he was actually the inspector or not, he’s the one whose orders you’ve been taking. The warlocks are innocent, and so are most of the bite victims you were sent to slaughter. If you really want to do your divine duty to protect this realm, then come to the celestial guild and get rid of the portal this madman opened.”

  None of them moved. “Come with us, Devina,” Farrell finally said. “If you use that power again, you’re dead.”

  His voice wavered. I’d never seen him afraid of anything. But they were all scared of my power. Divine and infernal fire. Even Grade Fours would never have seen anything like it before. And their instinct would be to destroy what they didn’t understand, just like the inspector.

  “Come on, Devina,” said Farrell.

  “Good luck running a trial when your master’s dead,” I said to them.