by Eva Brandt
“Gone? What do you mean…? What…?”
I had trouble processing Callum’s curt explanation. Stefan helped me out. He didn’t bother shifting into his humanoid form. Instead, he turned into his secondary shape, the one that had given him so much trouble.
“I take it Yeqon let you know about Raphael’s little visit,” he said. I nodded, wondering if Yeqon had been wrong and Raphael had come back to hunt Lyssa down.
“After he left, Lyssa insisted she wanted some lessons on her particular condition. We were interrupted. It was… It happened…”
He trailed off, as if he was having trouble focusing. Shiro got up and faced me, finishing the tale. “One moment, everything was fine, and the next, she was enveloped by a dark shadow.”
“A dark shadow?” I was beginning to sound like a brainless parrot, but the panic I experienced at the idea of losing Lyssa paralyzed at least three-quarters of my brain cells.
“It was my Mikael’s mother,” TB explained. “I have no idea what made her come here, now of all times, but they just left a few minutes ago. We tried to help my Mikael and Lyssa, but Fara had aid and the symbiotes were too powerful.”
The more TB spoke, the angrier she got. “I hate her so much. How dare she ruin the family my Mikael finally built? Why couldn’t she just stay in her lair and leave us be?”
“They underestimated us,” Stefan said with a sudden growl. “They’ve bitten off more than they can chew.”
“Have they?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at him.
“I know where they’ve gone.” Stefan licked his fangs, his gaze tinged with feral insanity. “I’ll hunt that bitch down and tear her apart, symbiote or not.”
Okay, so maybe I wasn’t the only one who had significant problems with this situation. I had to keep a close eye on Stefan. His beast could be problematic on a good day and he’d come close to losing his mind before. Lyssa would be relying on me to keep him and the others safe.
Sariel and Azazel decided to intervene in our conversation. “I’m not sure that’s possible. They’ll be in The In-Between by now.”
I had some power over the creatures in the shadow realm, but not enough to actually control the more advanced demonic symbiotes like Mikael’s mother. Still, that wasn’t going to keep me from rescuing Lyssa. I’d been summoning portals to The In-Between for centuries. This would be no different.
“We’ve already tried to access the Shadow Realm through magic,” Sariel said, as if guessing my thoughts. “Something is blocking us.”
I didn’t believe him. I refused to accept such a stupid, ridiculous turn of events. Narrowing my eyes at him, I summoned my power and reached for my hold on the shadows.
For the first time in memory, my magic failed to respond. The shadows were there. I could sense them, lurking in the distance. But there was a veil between us, something keeping me from reaching them.
I tried to force my way through, but the barrier blocked me. The moment I touched it, I knew why. It wasn’t just a random power. The force was divine in nature. It was no coincidence that this had happened now, after Raphael had come to the school, trying to lure her away.
I snarled in fury and frustration. “The Celestial Realm is behind this.”
“It is as I feared then,” Azazel mused. “The Supreme Being’s command isn’t an isolated incident.”
“I couldn’t care less about the academy right now,” I snapped at him. “We need to reach Mikael and Lyssa, as soon as possible.”
“I don’t think reaching them is that difficult,” Callum said. “It’s reaching them in time that’s the problem.”
We’d taken Lyssa out of The Infernal Realm because we’d thought she’d needed more time to adjust to her unavoidable change into a demon. Lucifer’s power had protected her, for the most part, but Hell still put some unavoidable strain on a mortal.
The Shadow Realm would be far worse. It wasn’t built to have corporeal creatures inside it. Lyssa wasn’t compatible with it, at a biological level. She could dissipate into nothing.
“It’s not hopeless,” Stefan said. “I’ve anchored Mikael to me. He’ll be able to leech power from my body, to keep them both safe. But I’m not sure… I’m not sure what will happen after that.”
His words both reassured me and filled me with horror. If he was telling the truth—and he had no reason to lie—his life force would be drawn into Mikael. Normally, this wouldn’t have been a huge issue. They’d done similar things before, with the most extreme example being during the battle with Satan. But as far as I knew, every time they’d engaged in such a ritual, they’d been close together.
Mikael was in an entirely different realm. Considering the nature of The In-Between, the power leakage would be extreme. He’d know how to pace himself and not push Stefan too much, but would it be enough?
“Right. It’s clear then that we’re running out of time. We’ll have to force our way through the shield. Sariel, Azazel, can I count on your assistance?”
“Of course, Mephistopheles,” Sariel replied.
“This is our fault too,” Azazel added. “If we’d been more careful, she would’ve never been taken.”
“Count me in,” Kasdaye piped up from behind them. “I’m great with portals.”
He was. He’d always excelled at transportation magic, which was why he’d been in charge of the transport point when he’d been cursed. I hoped he’d be just as useful now.
“Wonderful. Here’s what we going to do.”
As they listened to me, several Watchers shared sharp grins. I knew what they were thinking. It was madness, and not unlike some of the crazier operations we’d pulled off with Lucifer as a general. And maybe we should’ve all been hesitant to brave The In-Between, where anything could happen. But the alternative was leaving Lyssa in Fara’s clutches, and that was just unacceptable.
Besides, we’d faced the forces of Satan for Lyssa’s sake. Together, we’d defeated death itself. Surely, this wouldn’t be so difficult.
Callum’s Courage
I’d traveled through the spatial anomalies at the academy countless times in the past. I wasn’t as good at shadow magic as Mephistopheles, but I was no slouch, and I had a good grasp of what waited for us in The In-Between.
Still, when Mephistopheles revealed what he had in mind, I had to admit I deemed it risky. I was concerned about the possibility that we might be relying on the wrong people. It just seemed so unlikely that Sariel and the others would’ve missed the approach of so many demonic symbiotes.
When I pulled Mephistopheles aside and confessed my doubts, his eyes glowed with a silent rage. “Every demon has a hidden agenda. You know that as well as I do, Callum. I wouldn’t be surprised if The Watchers have some kind of plan of their own. But I don’t think they’d deliberately spite Lucifer. They know better.”
“Do they, Mephistopheles? What if they know and don’t care? They’ve been showing an awful lot of interest in Lyssa.”
As I explained the incident with the question in the Demonology test, Mephistopheles hummed thoughtfully. “You’re right. That is suspicious. I’ll see what I can do.”
Mephistopheles kept his promise. His ritual kept The Watchers from intervening directly in our affairs. They would help anchor the magic, but wouldn’t come with us in The In-Between.
Lucifer showed up just as Mephistopheles finished the preparations. We’d already relocated to the transport point grove, so he appeared right in front of us. He must have been informed about what had happened, because he was furious.
“I’m going to The Shadow Realm at once and getting her out of there. This is outrageous.”
Now that he was here, it would be much safer for us to travel to The In-Between. Relieved, I stepped into the ritualistic circle, with Stefan and Lucifer by my side. Shiro wanted to come with us, but in the end, we needed someone to stay behind, to watch Mephistopheles’s back. It wasn’t ideal, since we could’ve used his aid to find Lyssa, but we didn’t have time to get
Leviathan or other demons up here. TB would join us in Shiro’s stead.
“Good luck and be careful,” Mephistopheles said. “I don’t think I have to tell you how dangerous The In-Between, even for beings as powerful as you.”
He was talking to Lucifer, but our official leader wasn’t listening. His eyes had glazed over, as if he was looking at something in the distance or listening to a message only he could hear. I’d have been alarmed, but his strange reaction didn’t last long. He blinked and he was back with us.
“I know, Mephistopheles. Trust me a little, okay? I might be reckless, but I’m not a complete idiot.”
“We’d never think that, Morning Star,” Sariel answered in Mephistopheles’s stead. “But the circumstances aren’t very conducive to you being rational.”
“I still think you should let some of us come along,” Azazel insisted.
“That won’t be necessary,” Lucifer replied. “I’m perfectly capable of handling this.”
His voice was level and calm, but I sensed an air of hostility inside him. He couldn’t have missed the fact that The Watchers had failed to protect Lyssa. Maybe they realized this too, because they didn’t push him again.
I personally felt Lucifer was taking this better than I’d expected, better than Mephistopheles and Stefan, at least. I feared for Stefan’s sanity. He seemed to flit from grief and anger to amusement so quickly my head had started to spin. That was never a good sign.
I was relieved when Mephistopheles’s ritual circle lit up around us. Power vibrated through my body, familiar, yet not.
Once upon a time, when Lyssa had been furious with us, she’d spurned her connection to Mikael and passed it onto me. I’d carried the familiar bond ever since, bound through a ritual cast by our dean.
That had been before Lyssa’s death, before everything had gone so wrong and so right. But the connection was still there, just as powerful as it had always been.
The Watchers didn’t attempt any mischief. Fed by their power, a portal opened in front of us. We all stepped through, with Stefan carrying TB around his neck so she wouldn’t get lost. Almost instantly, we ran into a veil of divine magic that threatened to keep us away from Lyssa.
Lucifer’s wings flashed. He didn’t bother pulling out his sword. He bodily launched himself at the shield—once, twice, three times. Under his attack, the veil dissipated, just like the wards around the school had.
Very few things could stand in Lucifer’s way when he was angry, and this shield was no different.
Unfortunately, Lucifer’s outburst had a surprising side-effect. The aftershocks echoed all throughout The In-Between, knocking us off our path.
The ritualistic magic that had guided us into the portal became undone. As we fell deeper into The Shadow Realm, I lost sight of TB, Stefan and Lucifer. It should have been impossible, considering the light Lucifer emitted. But The In-Between didn’t follow our rules, so I was stuck, alone and lost.
I tried very hard not to panic and used my incubus powers to track down the first distinct source of emotion nearby.
Symbiotes had feelings, but their auras were different from those of humans, demons, or angels. In theory, my lovers should’ve stood out like a beacon. In practice, it wasn’t so easy.
I could sense the familiar feel of their emotions, but it was so distant they might have very well been in an entirely different realm. There was another person nearby, one I recognized and would’ve liked to avoid.
I didn’t. It was no coincidence that Lilith had popped up at the academy just a little while ago. Her accomplice had to make his appearance as well.
I didn’t let that deter me. I followed the surge of emotion, floating through the darkness in his general direction. It took me a while to figure out how I could efficiently do this, but my powers didn’t fail me and my affinity for shadow magic endured. Before long, the mystical currents of The In-Between had carried me to my destination—to Cain.
I hadn’t seen my ancestor since the battle with Satan. He’d gone missing at one point during the fight, and no one knew what had happened to him.
“What are you doing here? Are you behind all this?”
“Contrary to popular belief, I’m not the mastermind of every single thing in the world. The In-Between just happens to be a convenient place to take refuge in.”
“Convenient?” I repeated. “How did you manage to sneak into this realm in the first place?”
“Don’t ask foolish questions, child,” he said, his eyes glinting sharply in the darkness. “You know that my great sin had side-effects, some more useful than others. I have a certain degree of affinity for demonic symbiotes. Much like your boyfriend, Mikael.
“You should’ve never come here, you know. There’s a reason why Alyssa Michaelis was brought to The In-Between. The Vessel of Hope can’t belong to one of The Three Realms. It would just be a recipe for disaster.”
“And yet, you were trying to claim it for yourself. Isn’t that a little hypocritical?”
“I never claimed I wasn’t hypocritical and selfish.” Cain laughed. “I wanted to help my mother. But that’s no longer an option.”
“And you expect me to believe both you and Lilith have given up on Eve, after all this time and everything you’ve done?”
Cain shrugged. “I don’t know what will happen. It might be centuries before she reforms again, if she ever does. Don’t get me wrong. I still want her back. She deserves better. But I do think that for that to happen, the Vessel of Hope must remain isolated.”
“It’s a shame it’s not up to you,” I said with a snarl. “Now tell me. What in Satan’s name did you do with Lyssa?”
“I didn’t do anything with her. I’m just as spectator. And that’s exactly what you’re going to be, if you’re brave enough.”
“What craziness are you spouting?”
“It’s quite simple. This is a battle she has to fight on her own. If she loses, everything you’ve done so far will be for nothing. But none of us can interfere.”
“I beg to differ.”
Without another word, I turned away from him. I’d grown tired of this conversation. He wasn’t going to tell me anything. I could have tried to force the information out of him, but it would take too long and I wasn’t willing to waste my skills in a battle with him unless I absolutely had to.
Cain didn’t try to stop me, not by force, at least. “Don’t you trust her, Callum?” he asked me.
“It’s not a matter of trust, Cain. She just deserves better. We made her a promise and we’ll keep it, no matter what.”
“Liar. This isn’t about the promise you made. You’re just not brave enough to let her stand on her own two feet.”
I threw a look toward him and chuckled. “You know what? You’re not wrong. I am afraid. But I don’t think that’s a bad thing. Lyssa is my fear and my courage, and that’s something I treasure. But you’ll never be able to understand how I feel, because the only person you’ve ever truly loved is yourself.”
It was a low blow and maybe not completely accurate. I didn’t know much about his private life, but everyone in our clan was aware that his wife—who’d also been his sister—had been important to him. He loved his mother so much he’d joined Satan’s forces in an attempt to save her. But I didn’t really care about that. He’d been the one to challenge me and get in my way.
I half-expected him to lunge at me. He didn’t. Instead, he watched me with inscrutable, dark eyes, and murmured, “You’ll regret this, Callum. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
His figure vanished, but I knew better than to think this was over. As soon as he was gone, the shadows of The In-Between started crowding around me.
Voices drifted into my head, ghostly, distant, and yet, so very loud.
“Intruder.”
“Oh, an incubus.”
“He doesn’t belong here.”
“Kill him, kill him.”
They weren’t wrong. I didn’t belong in The In-Between
any more than Lyssa did. My skills were strongly attuned to the physical form, which made me stand out in The Shadow Realm just as strongly as my lovers did. But that was all right, because as far as I was concerned, the symbiotes were the ones who’d intruded first. They’d taken what belonged to me, and for that, they needed to pay.
The vicious fire of my anger exploded out of me, my elemental abilities fueled by my emotions. The shadows screeched in distress, but didn’t give up—not that I expected them to. Dark tentacles zeroed in on me, the edges sharper than any blade. I ducked, but I was much slower than usual. The attack grazed my side, sending an unexpectedly powerful jolt of pain through me.
I gritted my teeth and ignored it. I hadn’t let Cain get to me with his words. I hadn’t allowed the previous Satan—Jax Masters—to defeat us. I certainly wouldn’t lose to inferior creatures like symbiotes.
With an angry cry, I reached into myself and unleashed the full extent of my power. Overwhelmed, the symbiotes recoiled. The same thing that protected them from a regular incubus attack made them vulnerable to induced emotions. They didn’t have the ability to experience such things on a regular basis, so they didn’t know how to handle it.
While the creatures were distracted, I finished them off with a blast of fire magic. The darkness started to dissipate and my focus returned.
With the symbiotes gone, I finally landed on something that felt like solid ground. This area of The In-Between looked like a barren field, with no sign of civilization or people anywhere nearby.
I didn’t panic. Instead, I extended my senses once again, reaching for my lovers. I was in luck—sort of. I couldn’t find Lucifer, Mikael, and Lyssa, but Stefan was nearby.
Stefan must’ve sensed me too, because we found one another. He was in his werewolf form, with TB flying next to him, watchful and hostile.
I rushed to them, not bothering to hide my relief. “Stefan. Thank Satan. Are you all right?”
“Fine,” he answered, licking his fangs. “I ran into some opposition, but it was nothing I couldn’t handle. What about you?”