by Ivy Asher
My body pauses as I filter in what he said, and then I turn to look at him again. “What?”
He sits up and dips his chin, creating more shadows over his pronounced collarbone and chest. “If you are an Annulus, and if you want my help, then close your eyes, Sable.”
He says my name quietly, like he was afraid to tag it on at the end, but somehow couldn’t resist. I lick my cracked lips, and then my eyes flutter shut.
With my vision snuffed out like a candle, the sounds around me are more pronounced. I hear every heartbeat, every breath, every crackle of the fireplace and lanterns. Past that, I hear it when Medley hisses out a quiet signal of pain, and the sound joins the clinking of Toreon’s chains.
“Good,” he says quietly, and I focus on his voice, trying to drown out the rest of the noises around me. “Now, if you’re what he thinks you are, then you can do this. And Sable, so you know, he’s never wrong.” That declaration makes chills scatter over my skin like insects fleeing from an overturned log.
“You’re an Annulus. Scythes are bound to your kind. All you have to do is let it know you have need of it, and it will come.”
I inwardly roll my eyes, because I doubt it’s quite that easy.
“Don’t fight your instincts, Sable,” Toreon chastises, like he could hear my inner doubts. “Call to it. You can do this.”
I can do this, I echo in my mind, trying to force confidence in me and hoping that will be enough to jumpstart whatever this Annulus thing means.
Keeping my eyes closed, I focus as hard as I can, but as the seconds tick by, a feather falling for each one, my frustration and anger rises. “It’s not working!” I hiss.
A voice tsks. “Such a terrible temper you have,” he says, and my anger spikes even more at the voice’s intrusion.
“Get out of my head!” I order, but unfortunately, I do it out loud.
“What?” Toreon questions, but I barely hear him over the other voice.
The presence pauses. “You’re with another male? Is this some kind of game to you, Snarls? Get me worked up and worried and, when that doesn’t pan out, go for jealousy?”
“Go away!” I snap, and this time, I make sure to keep the argument in my head.
“We’ve been over this. You’re calling to me. It’s you who needs to go away.”
“I’m trying to call my scythe, and you’re distracting me.”
He pauses. “A scythe?”
“Yes!”
Another pause. “And what will you do with this scythe?”
“Well, right now, I wish I had it so I could swing it at your damn head! Then I’d use it to pummel every stone around me and follow that up by decapitating a psychotic demon.”
Something hard and heavy smacks against my right palm, and my eyes fly open with a surprised yelp, only to land on the very real, very long scythe that has now appeared in my hand.
Holy crap, it worked.
8
My eyes trail up the wooden staff of my scythe, all the way to the curved silver blade at the top. It’s ridiculously sharp and heavier than I would’ve thought, though, for some strange reason, it feels familiar in my grip.
I open my mouth in shock, but a noise behind me makes me whirl around, and I see Medley’s eyes changing from black to gray, with an empty spot on the bottom of her left wing where a good chunk of feathers are now missing.
“You did it,” she drawls, and then she promptly slumps against the floor, her fall only cushioned by her plush wings as she rolls into unconsciousness.
“Shoot,” I exclaim, hurrying over to the bars. “Medley?” I call, but she doesn’t respond. The steady rise and fall of her chest lets me know that she’s okay, and I can only guess that with the end of the compulsion and her own darkness surging forward, her mind may have crashed.
A slow clap behind me makes me turn to look at Toreon. “Well done, Annulus,” he says in a partially mocking tone that rubs me the wrong way.
“I don’t know what Annulus even means, but thanks for your help,” I say tersely, and then I walk to the end of my cage.
Without hesitation, I pull back the scythe like a baseball bat and then hit it against the bars as hard as I can. My entire body is jarred like one of those cartoons where the animal runs into a brick wall. A flare of gray light electrifies at the spot of the cage where I hit, and I’m forced to squeeze my eyes shut from the intense glare.
When the light dies away and my brain stops rattling in my skull, I peek through slitted lids and see that the cage...is completely untouched. No damage whatsoever, not even a nick in the metal bars.
“Bastard!” I grit out, and right then, that pain I’m getting way too used to shoots down my spine, and in the next moment, my wings disappear. And so does my scythe.
“Dammit!” My foot shoots out to kick at the bars in frustration, but that’s a really stupid thing to do when you’re barefoot. I howl in pain as I hop on one foot, collapsing onto the ground in agonized frustration.
I run a hand over my face, suddenly feeling bone-tired as I hold my throbbing toe in my lap.
“You seem to have a tough time of things,” Toreon quips.
I let out a humorless laugh. “You have no idea,” I grumble.
Just then, the door at the end of the room creaks open, and Toreon and I both stiffen. Morax is back already. He probably knows I called my scythe, or he’s checking to see if Medley is still plucking herself like a dead chicken.
But it’s not Morax’s silhouette who comes into the room. It’s the same guard that came before—the one who told Morax he was needed. I only know this because the guy is huge, filling up the doorway with his bulk, and the shape of his angular wings are recognizable even in the shadows. I stiffen as I watch him slink inside, and I scoot myself back into the corner, waiting with wary alertness.
The guard is massive. Even more than I realized before. Unlike Medley, Morax, and myself, his wings have no feathers. They’re bat-like, and as soon as he steps into the room, they flare out once before he pulls them tight against his back, the skin so thin that I can see veins running through them. He casts a look over the room, and for a moment, I worry that he’s escorting Morax back inside, but then he quietly shuts the door behind him.
Worry walks up the length of my spine. He better not even think about coming near Medley while she’s asleep. My eyes land on the only thing within reach in my cell—the pitcher and empty plate from earlier—and I snatch them both up soundlessly. It’s not much, but if he comes near her, I’ll try to chuck it at his head and hope that I can do enough damage or make enough noise that he can’t get away with anything.
His red eyes follow my movement, but to my surprise, he doesn’t bark orders at me or come stalking threateningly over. Instead, his eerie gaze falls onto Toreon.
The hulking guard walks over to his cell, quieter than he should be able to move considering his size. As he comes closer, I notice that he has dark gray skin with strange armor plates around his shoulders and chest area, almost like a rhino. He has scars running down his arms, hidden only by the leather cuffs he wears that match the rest of his guard’s uniform. There’s a sword hanging at his hip, and he’s wearing thick black pants and a vest that’s open at the top, showing off impressive chest muscles. His face is severe and serious, thick black brows hanging over red eyes. This guy looks like the epitome of a demon from Hell.
He stops in front of the bars and kneels down in front of where Toreon is sitting, his knees popping slightly at the move, but I realize it’s from the armored plating shifting over his kneecaps, rather than the sound of aging bones. “Toreon.”
I blink at the grumbled voice as he beckons to my green-skinned neighbor. My attention moves to Toreon, but he’s staring at the guard with his mouth hanging open, like he can’t believe his eyes.
They don’t say anything for a second, and my eyes hop back and forth between them, my hands still clutching the dishes as I wait to see what the hell is going on.
“
Vudu?” Toreon says warily, and I realize that this word—voo doo—is the hulking giant’s name, because he nods.
“How?” Toreon gapes, like he doesn’t quite believe his eyes.
“I failed you, Toreon,” the giant says, his dark head bowing until his scalp presses against the bars. “I let him get you.”
“Is your mind your own?” Toreon asks, still not moving toward the bars.
Vudu slowly raises his head back up, just to nod at him. “Yes. I allowed myself to be recruited. That’s why it has taken me many months to get to you. It was the only way. I had to infiltrate his guards. But for all he and the others know, I am just another follower to his cause. I’m here to break you out.”
I’m not sure who’s more stunned, me or Toreon.
A bark of laughter leaves Toreon, so loud that the giant demon tenses immediately. Vudu looks over his shoulder at the door, as if he expects another guard to come busting through any moment. After several seconds of nothing happening, he turns his head back. “Toreon, you must be quiet,” he grunts.
Toreon claps a hand over his mouth, shaking his head with a chuckle that ebbs away. “Sorry. It’s just...Vudu, you can’t honestly believe you can get me out of here.”
A scowl crosses over the giant’s face. “I can and I will.”
“No, friend. You can’t,” Toreon says quietly, and desperate sadness sneaks through his voice, showing me a crack in Toreon’s facade.
I suddenly feel like I’m stealing into a moment that doesn’t belong to me at all, only I can’t help but watch the two of them interact with rapt attention, soaking up every word.
They stare at each other for a long moment until Vudu slowly gets to his feet. His eyes travel to the wall of torture tools hanging up. “I’d slip you one of those, but they’re all warded,” he says before his hand slips into his pocket. He pulls out something that looks like a nail file, except it’s made of obsidian stone. “That’s all I could bring you without raising suspicion,” he says, sounding guilty.
“I don’t want you getting yourself caught,” Toreon replies as he comes forward to take it.
Vudu’s eyes skim over all the chains wrapped around Toreon, and his lips press together in a hard line. “That bastard,” he growls.
“Easy,” Toreon says with a smirk, like he’s trying to keep the big guy calm. “It’s not as bad as it seems.”
“Don’t fucking lie, Toreon,” Vudu snaps, his shoulders bunching with tension. “He took you. Used you to make a fucking portal. Nearly got you killed when it was destroyed. I thought you were dead.”
“Not me. Just the others,” Toreon mumbles, his eyes downcast as he turns the small stone file around in his hands. “I should have died.”
“Don’t say that shit,” Vudu growls, his large hands coming up to wrap around the bars. “You survived that because you’re strong.”
The black hair hanging around Toreon’s face shifts as he shakes his head. “Look at me, V. I’m not strong. Not anymore. I’m barely holding on here.”
“Well, hold on some more,” Vudu orders, his voice brooking no argument. “I need a bit longer. The Ophidian is gone. Got called away to strike up more unrest in the Outer Rings, with his followers. I just need more time.”
Toreon slips the weapon into his tattered pants pocket. “V, he’s only biding his time with me. Waiting until I get back to full strength. As soon as he deems I’m ready, he’s going to force me to use my power again.”
A crease forms between my eyebrows as I frown, barely understanding anything of what they’re saying.
Vudu blanches, his gray knuckles nearly going opaque as he grips the bars tight. “Already? He’ll fucking kill you if he does it again so soon.”
Toreon shrugs, like it’s a done deal, and I suddenly feel bad for him. He’s been here for months. I think I’ve only been here for days, maybe weeks. I can only imagine what Morax has done to him. No wonder he told us there’s no use hoping to escape or survive. “Like I said, I should have died.”
“I will get you out before he tries to use you again.”
Toreon tips his chin up, his eyes flashing with a new determination that wasn’t there before. “If you don’t—”
“I will,” Vudu cuts him off.
Toreon looks at him blandly. “If you can’t, then I want you to kill me.”
The giant’s wings flare behind him almost involuntarily, and the big guy takes a staggering step back, like Toreon’s words singed the air between them. “Toreon…”
“I mean it, V,” Toreon replies, his voice vehement. “Don’t let Morax use me. If he gets his chance, I don’t think Lucifer will be able to stop him this time. Don’t let me be the reason for our downfall.”
I watch the two of them stare at each other, both as determined as the other, but on completely different sides. I don’t even know these two, and I can feel the tension, the distress between them.
“I have to go,” Vudu finally says, either to escape Toreon and his plea, or because he really does need to go. “Work on your chains,” he finishes with a gravelly remark before he turns and walks away, pulling open the creaky door and shutting it as quietly as the hinges will allow.
As soon as he’s gone, Toreon’s shoulders slump, and I see his hands fist at his sides. I’m suddenly burning with curiosity about him. My mind is busy cataloging all the things they said to one another, making as many connections as I can. For the longest time, Toreon just stands there, and I can almost hear the gears turning in his head and feel the anxiety dripping off him.
“Family or boyfriend?” I ask, setting the dishes down.
He jerks around like he forgot I was there, his eyes flaring as they settle on me. “What?”
I tip my head in the direction of the door. “That guy. Is he family or a boyfriend?” I ask curiously.
He blinks at me in confusion. “You think we’re related? Did you even look at him?”
I shrug.
“No to family. We’re both Nihil, but not related in any way. And no, he isn’t my damn lover either. I prefer pussy to cock,” he says with a roll of his eyes. He sits back down on the ground, scooting back until his shoulder blades hit the stone wall behind him. I don’t think he’s going to divulge any information, but when he rests his head back, he surprises me by adding, “Vudu is my sworn protector.”
My brows rise in surprise. “What does that mean?”
“Exactly what I said,” he snaps. “Now why don’t you go back to not wanting me to talk to you.”
I sigh and sweep my bangs to the side. “I’m sorry, okay? I’m strung a little tight right now with everything that’s happening, and your constant pessimism is too much.”
He snorts in reply, and I look over to check on Medley, but she’s still out like a light. I hesitate for a moment, and then I move over to be closer to him, until I’m right up against the bars that separate us. “So...you’re important.”
It’s not a question, but Toreon looks over, cocking his brow. “What makes you say that?”
My eyes trail over his sage-green face. “You have a sworn protector,” I point out with a small smile. “I’m pretty sure only important people—demons—would have that. And Morax locked you up in here. Which means he wants something from you that he can’t get from someone else.”
Toreon twirls the file that Vudu gave him in his hands, his arms braced over his bent knees in front of him. “You’re not wrong,” he says simply.
“Are you an Annulus too?” I ask curiously. “Is Morax collecting us or something?”
“As far as I knew, there were no Annuli left,” Toreon replies, looking at me like he’s studying me. “You must be the last of your line. Hidden away in hopes that someone like the Ophidian wouldn’t find you.”
“That worked out great,” I say dryly.
He lets out a surprised chuckle. “Tell me about it,” he murmurs. “Did you really live in the Mortal Realm?”
“Until I was tossed in this dungeon.”
“Nope. All my life, since I was a little girl, I...saw things. Monsters,” I say a little shyly, embarrassment at my own ignorance. “I would look at someone and they’d be perfectly normal. And then I would blink, and they’d have horns or terrifying teeth or slime trickling out of their eyeballs.” I give an involuntary shudder at all the memories. “I don’t remember my adoptive parents, but they gave me up when I was three. I was abnormal. Had delusions. Did something questionable to the family cat because a monster told me to,” I say with bitterness. “Nurses and doctors and treatments, that was my childhood.”
Toreon’s eyes soften. “Sounds like you were dealt a bad hand.”
I glance over at Medley’s sleeping form again, just to avoid his gaze. I wonder what her childhood was like. Did she see things too? Was she thrown away like I was? Heat prickles my eyes at the thought, and Toreon’s words sit heavy in my chest. “It wasn’t awesome.”
“Humans are an ignorant species. But now you know you weren’t crazy. You were just seeing what they couldn’t.”
“Yeah. Turns out the fake monsters were real demons.” Lucky me. If only Dr. Gupta could see me now.
9
“So you have two mates and Delta has four?” I ask with surprise, ignoring the little squeak that sneaks into my voice. “Is that a demon thing or an Annuli thing?” I add as I wrap the end of my black hair around my finger and listen to Medley fill in all the blanks for me with what she knows.
My shoulder blades are pressed against the cold stone of the wall behind me, and my thigh is up against the bars at my right. Medley’s sitting the same way, and the small contact we have between the bars is warming in a way I haven’t felt since I woke up down here. I’ve gotten so used to being in nothing but my underwear by now that it doesn’t even faze me. I’ve also gotten used to only being able to wash myself with slow trickles of water from my sad excuse for a sink, which basically does nothing but smear the grime around.