by Diem, J. C.
“Fabulous,” Brie said snarkily. “Now you have driven one of your allies away.”
“It’s a pity it wasn’t you,” I said just as spitefully. “Feel free to join him anytime.”
“I would be delighted to,” she responded and zapped herself away as well.
Slumping back in my chair, I put my hands over my face in despair. I’d never wanted to hurt Nathan and I’d just torn his heart out. He knew there could never be anything between us, yet he couldn’t stand the thought of me being with someone else. We were in a no-win situation where everyone would end up being hurt.
₪₪₪
Chapter Twenty
Nathan and Brie still hadn’t returned by the time I went to bed, which filled me with trepidation. I wasn’t concerned about Brie, of course. She could disappear forever for all I cared. I was worried that Nathan was so disgusted with me that he was never coming back.
Lying on my side facing the wall, a tear slipped out before I could stop it. I held back a sob at the thought that I’d lost my guardian forever. We might not be able to love each other like I fantasized about, but I couldn’t stand the idea of him not being in my life.
“Do not cry,” the object of my thoughts said from behind me. I tried to roll over to face Nathan, but he put a hand on my shoulder to stop me. “I have given the matter some thought and I have come to the conclusion that this is for the best.”
“What are you talking about?” I couldn’t hide the tremble in my voice. I was terrified that he had decided to leave me.
His answer was a surprise. “That you continue to date Zach.” His tone was anything but happy despite his decision. “Samuel was correct. You deserve to find some happiness in this harsh existence that you have been thrust into. If the boy brings you joy, then you should be allowed to spend time with him.” He took a breath and his hand tightened on my shoulder momentarily. “I only have one request.”
I would have given him the moon if he’d asked for it. “Name it.”
“I would ask that you do not consummate your relationship with him yet.”
I heard the pain in his voice as I tried to figure out what he meant. Then it dawned on me. “Are you asking me not to have sex with Zach?”
His hand tightened again and I felt him shudder. “Yes,” it came out sounding strained. “I know it is a lot to ask. You are human and you have wants and needs that angels cannot truly understand.” They could if they let their vessels take back some of their control. Unfortunately, when that happened, the consequences were grim. “I would just request that you postpone the consummation until after we have accomplished the task that Fate has given you.”
“What happens then?” I didn’t want him to voice the answer, but he did anyway.
“Then you will no longer need me and I will leave you in peace forever.”
I was glad I was facing away from him. I didn’t want him to see my devastation at the prospect of us never seeing each other again. “I promise I won’t sleep with Zach,” I said as my tears began to fall. He stroked his hand down my arm in thanks then disappeared from my room. “I love you, Nathan,” I whispered to the empty room then turned my face into my pillow so it could muffle my sobs.
Sometime during the night, my sobs petered out and I fell asleep. I found myself in the shadowlands of my mind. Standing in small clusters, the legion turned when they sensed my arrival.
At my curt gesture, Morax and the other Demon Lords crossed to join me. I made sure we were far enough away from the lesser demons and captains so they couldn’t hear us.
“What do you require from us?” Morax asked. They still looked spooked from the rain of holy fire that had swept through them, but they were intact. My advisor was far more cooperative than usual. He didn’t ask me what had happened. I guessed they’d already figured it out for themselves.
“What do you know about the Collectors?”
Exchanging uneasy looks, they knew I wouldn’t be satisfied with anything less than the truth. “They are tasked with hunting down angels and extracting their holy essence,” he replied.
That much I’d already known, but at least I knew Morax wasn’t lying. “Where do they take the vials that are filled with grace?”
“You have witnessed a harvest?” he asked in surprise.
“Yeah. Thirteen demons appeared and carved open a couple of angels. I saw them extract their grace. I need to know where they take it.”
“Why?”
“I want to find Sophia’s grace and give it back to her.”
Morax stared at me for a long moment with a blank face. “I do not know where the grace is taken.” I couldn’t be absolutely sure, but I had a feeling he was telling me the truth again.
“What are they doing with it?”
He shrugged his massive shoulders. “I am not privy to that information.”
“Why do I even bother to ask you guys anything?” I said in disgust. “You never have any answers for me.”
“Our new master is so secretive that we do not even know who he is,” one of the other lords informed me. “He sends his orders to us using various minions. He is not the type to divulge his plans to us. It is not our fault that we do not have the answers you seek.”
Her logical reasoning just infuriated me all the more. “You suck,” I said and she blinked in astonishment. “You all suck,” I added petulantly. I knew I was being childish, but I was unable to stop myself from venting.
“Do you feel better now?” Morax asked mockingly. “Would you perhaps like to cry on my shoulder?”
My response was grumpy. “I’d need to climb a ladder to reach your shoulder.” The thought of attempting to console myself with my demon advisor almost made me grin.
“Perhaps you should ask the scribe,” the female lord suggested and hiked her thumb over her shoulder towards the house. “He has spent more time in a palace than any of us. He may have the answers that you seek.”
“Thanks,” I said and willed myself over to the house. I was learning different tricks each time I entered the shadowlands of my mind. It seemed that I had my own form of teleportation here. I wished I could use it when I was on Earth. The only time I’d managed to shift myself was when Brie had almost stabbed me in the stomach. My inner demons had teleported me to safety then, but they hadn’t repeated the action since.
At my knock, the curtain on the door was pulled aside. Heather’s face lit up and she opened the door. “Hi,” she said and pulled me into a hug. “I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.”
“Me neither,” I admitted. I had no control over when I ended up in this place. Dire need could sometimes bring me here, which seemed to be the case this time. “Were you hurt when the angels punished me?”
She paled slightly and shuddered. “No, thank God. We could hear the demons screaming and the entire house lit up with this blinding white light. Sy and I didn’t feel a thing, though. The house shielded us from whatever it was that they did to you.” The rest of my mental hitchhikers hadn’t been so lucky.
“That’s a relief. I was worried you might have been caught up in it, too.” I looked around and couldn’t see her companion. “Is Sy here?”
She pointed at the living room, but I didn’t see him sitting on the couch. “He’s in there,” she said and led the way into the room.
Moving closer to the couch, I saw him sitting on the floor. He was hunched over a sketchpad, carefully drawing a rune. His forked tongue was poking out slightly in fierce concentration.
“What are you up to, Sy?” I asked.
His head jerked up in surprise and alarm. He relaxed when he saw it was just me. “I am working on creating a new rune.”
“What does it do?” I was fascinated at his ability to come up with new spells.
“I do not know yet,” he confessed. “I will probably never get to find out.” He was forlorn that the symbols he worked so hard to create might never be used.
“Can’t you try them out to see what effect the
y’ll have?”
He shook his head dismally. “I do not have blood in my veins when I am in my spirit form.” He was practically just a ghost now, as were all of the residents that were squatting in my head. Runes required blood and flesh to be able to be activated. The legion might look solid, but it was just an illusion.
“What if I use my blood?”
Hope filled his scarlet eyes at my proposal. “You would be willing to test it?”
“Sure. What harm can it do? But I have a question first.” At his enquiring look, I elaborated. “Do you know why the Collectors gather angel grace and what they’re doing with it?”
He shook his head. “I do not know much. The Collectors are former scribes,” he explained. “They were chosen by the Hellmaster and were given the task of finding holy essence. I do not know where they take the grace, or what their plans for them are. That knowledge is reserved for those in a far loftier position than the one I held. I was basically just an apprentice. The Head Scribe would most likely be able to answer your questions.”
He watched my face anxiously and I was pretty sure he was telling me the truth. I’d seen him attempt to be untruthful before. For a demon, he was a terrible liar. “Who is he and where can I find him?”
“His name is Dantanian.” He scowled as he said the name. It was obvious that he didn’t like his boss. “He resides in the Scriptorium in the capital city in the first realm.”
“What is a Scriptorium?” I pictured an ancient building with columns and dusty bookshelves.
“It is the building where the records of all runes that have ever been created are kept.”
“If this demon is in the first realm, then I won’t be able to ask him about the stolen grace,” I said dourly. I hadn’t even been to the seventh realm yet. It would be weeks or possibly even months before I’d find the entrance to the innermost realm. That was if the toxin that was spreading inside me didn’t kill me first.
“May I choose a rune to test now?” he asked.
“Yeah. Go ahead.” I waved at him to commence his experiment and he flipped through his sketchpad. Settling on one of the symbols, he looked around, searching for a place where he could paint it. Most of the walls were covered in paintings that I’d conjured up. None of the walls were blank. With a thought, I cleared a wall for him to use as a canvas. Then I made a paintbrush appear in Sy’s hand.
We walked over to the wall and I called my dagger into being. It sliced into my palm and blood welled. Sy dipped his brush into the cut and I willed the pain away so I didn’t feel it when the bristles entered the wound. Heather made a face, but hovered behind me to watch as the rune came to life on the wall. He dabbed the brush on the symbol a few more times then stepped back. “There. It is complete.” He sounded both proud and satisfied.
“Let’s see what it does,” I said and placed my palm in the center of the rune to activate it.
Bright scarlet light flared and a circle about a foot wide opened on the wall. It was so deep and dark that I couldn’t see where it ended. From Sy’s startled expression, he hadn’t expected a pit of nothingness like this.
“It’s just a hole,” Heather said, sounding profoundly disappointed. “Does it do anything?”
Sy was about to answer, but he didn’t get a chance to speak. Wind sprang to life so suddenly that we reeled backwards from the blast. It began to spin in a circle and instead of pushing me away, I felt it tugging at my clothes as it tried to draw me towards it.
The wind picked up and the sketchpads that Sy had worked so hard to fill with runes were sucked up off the floor. His pencils joined the sketchpads and spun around and around in a dizzying circle. Books flew off the bookcase to the left of the strange hole. The pages fluttered madly and some were torn out completely.
Increasing in intensity, the vortex was inexorably drawing the furniture towards it now. Heather let out an alarmed screech when her feet left the ground. Our hair was tossed around and our clothes flapped loudly. Sy was smart enough to dive behind me to use me as a shield.
Willing myself to be anchored to the ground, I grabbed hold of Heather before she could be swept into the mixture. I watched with my mouth gaping open as a pencil disappeared into the hole.
“No!” Sy shouted in anguish when his sketchpads flew towards the magical opening next.
Finally regaining the ability to think, I pushed Heather and Sy away where they’d be out of danger. Then I leaped forward and scraped my dagger over the edge of the rune. Only a thin sliver of the symbol showed, but it was enough to nullify the spell. The wind immediately died, but a second pencil became lodged in the wall. If the scribe had made the rune any larger, the consequences could have been catastrophic.
Heather’s hair was a mess and her eyes were wide with fright at how close she’d come to being sucked into the hole. It was too small for her to fit through, but she might have been hurt. “Maybe you’d better not practice that one again,” she suggested shakily.
“Did you see it?” Sy crowed in delight. His fear had been replaced with pride at his accomplishment. “I wish the other scribes had been here to witness that.”
“Congratulations,” I said and clapped him on the back. “You just created a mini black hole.” I had no idea where the pencil that had been sucked into the hole had disappeared to. It was probably in another recess of my mind.
“It is just as well that I did not create that rune while I was still in the clutches of the Head Scribe,” Sy confessed. “If the Hellmaster and Princes had this sort of power at their hands, they would wreak havoc on Earth.”
Demons constantly vied for power and were never content with what they had. They rose through the ranks as high as they could go and dreamed of deposing their masters so they could take their place. One of them had somehow overthrown Satan, hence the reason why he was no longer in charge. Where he’d gone to was a mystery to everyone except the being who had defeated him. I was pretty sure it was one of the princes, but no one in the legion could confirm it. Their new boss was an enigma to them as well.
₪₪₪
Chapter Twenty-One
Brie had returned to our base sometime during the night. I entered the front room and froze in mid-yawn when I saw her sitting at the table. “Oh. You’re back,” I said with as much distaste as I could muster. I was beyond the ability to pretend to like her now.
Sophia nudged me out of the way with a disapproving frown. She carried my breakfast on a tray. The heavenly scent of waffles drew me in her wake. “If we are all going to continue to live and work together, then I insist on everyone acting in a civil manner,” she said.
“I don’t think ‘civil’ is in Brie’s vocabulary,” I replied as I plonked down on my seat. Sam and Leo exchanged a quick smile that dropped away when Sophia glared at them.
“I am surprised you even know the word ‘vocabulary’,” Brie retorted just as nastily.
Nathan held up a hand to silence us. His expression was eerily serene. He could control his emotions far better than I was able to. “Sophia is right. It is time to put our animosities behind us. We are all working towards the same goal. We are here to support Violet in her cause.”
“Which cause is that?” Brie said sulkily. “Getting into her boyfriend’s pants?”
“Ouch,” Leo said with a wince. “That was catty even for you.”
“You’re really becoming one with your vessel,” I said in mock admiration. “You sound exactly like a bratty little girl.”
Horrified by my accusation, Brie turned a stricken look on Sophia. “Can that be true? Have I been in this vessel for so long that I am already becoming more human?” She said it as if it was the worst thing that could possibly happen. To her, it probably was.
“No,” Sophia said and flicked a brief glance at Nathan. “It takes centuries for that to happen.”
“Unless my evil influence is speeding up the process,” I mentioned nonchalantly. “All that rot inside me could be spreading out to infect you guys as
well.” I gave an inward chuckle when Brie inched her chair away from mine. Only Nathan and I knew there was supposedly a cure for my affliction. It seemed he hadn’t mentioned it to them yet. Until we discovered how to rid myself of the poison, there wasn’t much point in getting their hopes up.
“You are not evil,” Sam declared. “I would sense it if you were.”
Pulling my plate closer, I cut my waffle into sections. Sophia had smothered it in syrup, the way I liked it best. “Can’t you feel the evil that the Wraith Warrior’s injected into me?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Not anymore. I could when it first happened, though. Perhaps your legion is healing you?” It came out sounding hopeful.
“Maybe,” I replied then stuffed some waffle into my mouth. I knew the torture that Hag and Orifice had doled out to me had diminished the toxin. I also suspected that the effect wouldn’t last long. Once it wore off, the rot would begin to spread again.
I’d almost finished my breakfast when Leo spoke. His usual cheery smile was gone and he was uncharacteristically serious. “Nathan and Sophia are right. We need to stop squabbling and focus on our task. We have to find the next portal.”
“It isn’t like we aren’t trying to find it,” I said with a sigh. “Apart from searching the city during our patrols, I don’t know what else we can do.”
“Speaking of patrols,” Brie said. “It is my turn to escort you today.”
My response was swift and emphatic. “Hell no!”
“You do not trust me,” she said flatly.
“Is that a joke?” I searched her face and didn’t see a smile anywhere. “You tattled on me like a five-year-old and your buddies zapped me with holy fire. So no, I absolutely in no way shape or form trust you. I will never trust you now.”
Pushing away from the table, I abandoned what was left of my breakfast and stomped towards the door. I grabbed my boots, but I didn’t bother with my coat. I was careful not to slam the door behind me as I escaped into the cool air outside. Sophia didn’t deserve to have a broken door just because I was in a bad mood.