The Morning Star

by Debra Dunbar

  “Thank you for letting me know that.”

  My revelation didn’t seem to get the reaction I’d expected. Gregory continued to rub along my spirit-self, hugging me against his side.

  “You might want to prepare something in case this is true,” I insisted.

  “I’ve already put some safeguards in place. With that energy signature on the dead enforcers, I felt this could possibly be just the top of the ice cube.”

  “Tip of the iceberg,” I corrected. “I’m going to take care of this myself, in my own way. These demons are my responsibility. I can’t rely on you or the other angels for help. If I’m going to do this, I have to do it on my own. I wanted you to know so you could protect the gates, but I’ll handle the rest of it as the Iblis.”

  “I know you will, but please know that you can still talk to me and share the burden. You can still use me as a sounding board and ask for my input. I have seen things in a new light after talking them over with you. I’d hoped that you would continue to do the same with me.”

  Shit. I couldn’t tell him about Samael, about the note, about the other things that Caramort had said, about what Doriel said. Not yet. Not now. Hopefully not ever. And as for my other issue… I looked over at the mirror and frowned. Shit. Shit. I didn’t want him to know about the message from Remiel. If he thought Lux was at all in danger, or that someone might take the young angel away from him, Gregory would drop everything to protect the child. Matters were at a turning point right now. We were at a crucial period when he needed to concentrate on stabilizing things here. Remiel was in Hel. He was an Ancient. He was my responsibility.

  “All I can say right now is that there’s an Ancient behind the enforcer killings, and I am close to figuring out who and stopping him and the demons following him. I’m trying to gather support in Hel, to get control so we can share this world as equals. I know you think that’s a long time in the future, but it needs to happen now. If we’re ever going to come together and have peace, we need to be on a level playing field. We can no longer be the Fallen, the banished. We can no longer be some lesser, unevolved beings that get smacked back across the gates into Hel, or killed. There needs to be a mutual respect, and that can only happen if I control Hel and those in it.” I looked up to see him still watching me, his face serious. “You don’t believe I can do that. I know you love and respect me, and all that other stuff, but you don’t see me as being a leader. That’s okay. I don’t see myself as being a leader either, but I need to be. So that’s what I’m going to become.

  “I can’t discuss these things with you, or seek your advice in part because you won’t have any to give me. Or the advice you do give me won’t work. Where I’m going is somewhere you can’t see me ever journeying, that’s why I can’t discuss these things with you right now. Later, once I’m there, then I’ll go back to talking with you about my troubles and problems. Until then, this is a solo trip.” I reached out to touch his face. “I don’t want that to hurt you. I love you. I value your experience and wisdom. But right now, at this time, I know you won’t have the experience or wisdom to give me.”

  He took my hand and brought my palm to his mouth to kiss, then lowered it, gripping my fingers with his own. “I understand.”

  “Then let’s have sex,” I said with a grin.

  “I must warn you that Lux is upstairs in your bed. I thought Nyalla and Gabriel could use some alone time without a young wide-eyed angel watching them.”

  Ugh. I was a total free spirit when it came to sex, but the idea of screwing with a sleeping angel next to me wasn’t really a turn on. “The stables? There’s fresh hay.”

  “Your demon-horse watches us. I feel as if he is judging me,” Gregory confessed. “By the way, Lux is quite concerned about the horses. We had to go out several times this evening to check on their well-being. He told me that there was a bad man in a movie who cut off a horse’s head and placed it in someone’s bed while they slept. What sort of movies are you showing him?”

  “Just cartoons with happy unicorns and shows about sharing and kindness,” I lied. “How about the sofa? It’s a big sofa. It’s comfy. And if we’re really quick, we might finish off before some Low wanders in to raid the fridge and disturbs us.”

  He leaned over and kissed me, and I pressed against him, my spirit-self caressing his as my hand snuck up under his polo shirt to run along the warm skin of his stomach. I heard the click of half a dozen doors locking at once, and the slide of windows being bolted.

  “There,” Gregory whispered against my mouth. “If I’ve learned anything about your Lows, it’s that they can’t manage to open a locked door.”

  I laughed, then pushed him down, scooting forward to lay on top of him. Then I lost myself to his touch, to the fire of him against and inside me. So lost, that I momentarily forgot about the blinking light on my mirror.

  Chapter 14

  When I woke up there were two messages on my machine. I tried not to stare at the blinking cabochons as Nyalla and I made breakfast for the three angels. Normally I would have insisted the guys cook while my girl and I relaxed with some coffee, but I’d sampled food that had been prepared by an angel before, and I didn’t want to repeat the experience. Neither did Nyalla. If Gabe was in charge of breakfast, we would have had kale and beet smoothies or some shit like that.

  Instead we had omelets, with extra bacon for Lux who was a huge fan of the stuff. Taking after me, obviously. Nyalla had seen me eyeing the blinking mirror off and on all morning, and as soon as the dishes were done, she dragged Gabe out to take Lux to the park and introduce him to the human joys of swing sets and monkey bars. No sooner had they left than Gregory turned to me.

  “You going to listen to that?”

  Obviously the archangel had seen me eyeing it as well.

  “No. I know what it is. I need to go to Hel, and I might be a while.” So much for some alone time. Although last night had been amazing. After couch sex, we’d both curled up in my bed with Lux and slept. Well, Lux and I slept, while Gregory stared at us like some winged creeper.

  He pulled me to him and wrapped me in a tight hug. “I have things I need to attend to as well. Tomorrow?”

  “Let me text you.” I might be recovering from a massive smackdown from Remiel. I could be dead. Or I could be hot on a lead to put my sword through the Ancient calling himself Samael.

  He kissed me and left. I raced over to the mirror and punched the blue stone, my stomach threatening to eject the omelet I’d just eaten.

  There was the expected message from Remiel, with a bit of coolness and irritation to his politely worded missive. I really couldn’t put this off any longer or I’d risk alienating him completely. I needed Remiel. And I really didn’t want him pissed off and tearing through my homes in Hel searching for Lux.

  The second message was from Doriel, letting me know that she’d contacted the Ancient calling himself Samael, and needed to speak with me at my earliest convenience.

  I’d been looking for an excuse to put off seeing Remiel and this was it. Doriel was the priority, and if she knew where I could find Samael, then Remiel would need to wait. Plus what Caramort had said about Samael’s eventual plan to include the Ancients worried me. If he was really that convincing a fraud, or if he really was Samael, there was a chance I’d be left with only a bunch of Lows and stray demons to back me up against the former Iblis and all the heavy hitters of Hel. If that happened, I’d end up doing nothing but supporting the archangels in what would be the great war all over again. I didn’t want that. I wanted to be the one to handle Samael, or whoever the fuck he was. And in order to do that, I needed as many Ancients on my side as possible.

  Tasma. Maybe Doriel. Maybe Remiel. If I could get Doriel and Remiel on my side, then Samael wouldn’t stand a chance. But that was a big “if.”

  I left a note for my Lows and Nyalla, then placed a quick call through the mirror to Doriel’s steward, asking to have the Ancient meet me at my home in Dis. When I got the
re, I immediately got to work, setting any Lows I saw into cleaning up broken furniture and making the place look as if a demon of significant power and influence lived there. It wasn’t a quick task, but thankfully the dried blood on the floor gave the place a nice touch, as did all of Ahriman’s creepy furnishings—well, the furnishings my household hadn’t smashed anyway.

  Doriel swooped in, her form this time the golden-haired one she’d used the first time I’d met her. She was regal and stately, with her tattered wings outstretched and an entourage of demons that she waved to remain at the doorway.

  I led her to the cleanest of the front rooms, and motioned her toward a somewhat dusty chair. Then I held my breath and offered the Ancient a bowl of pickled bitey fish, not sure whether I wanted her to confirm or deny my suspicions—and fears. She’d left early last night, which could only mean her household had been able to locate Samael. Was it truly him? And if so, was she abandoning me for the other side?

  She waved away the bitey fish. Figures. I was the only one who seemed to actually enjoy eating the things.

  “So you met with…him?” I asked, getting right to the point.

  “Yes, I met with Samael.”

  Well, that was direct. She’d just confirmed Gregory’s youngest brother was alive. And I was terrified what this might mean for him—for us all.

  “You’re sure it’s him?” I pressed. “It’s definitely Samael?”

  “He knew things that no demon would know, that only one or two Ancients would know and those Ancients are dead. He greeted me in the corporeal form he frequently used when I knew him—a limbless dragon. Then he assumed a human form that was always associated with Samael.”

  “But three million years ago, the humans were pretty much apes,” I countered. “How could you have recognized this human form everyone talks about if you haven’t seen him since the fall?”

  She gave me a patient smile. “The humans were given the gifts of Aaru. Angels of Order aren’t all that creative when it comes to guided evolution. The elves? The humans? All bipedal creatures that share a lot of physical characteristics. When it comes to corporeal forms, Angels of Order tend to reuse the same shape over and over again. The angels, the archangels, we Ancients, and even Samael had humanoid forms long before the humans had them.”

  Huh. Learn something new every fucking day.

  “So walks like a duck, quacks like a duck? How about his energy signature?” I prodded, hoping that there was some doubt in her mind about this.

  Doriel grimaced. “It’s degraded. It’s a twisted mockery of its former self, but I recognize the key elements.”

  “So spirit-self wise, the guy kinda looks like Samael, but might not be?” I had to be sure. I had to be absolutely sure.

  “I didn’t join with him or anything, but I can’t imagine anyone being able to replicate those key elements to that degree,” she said defensively. “And I could see that his spirit-being held the horrible scars of that final battle.”

  I’d imagined Samael’s scars to be rather distinctive. He’d almost been cut in half by his brother’s sword. Now granted, there were a lot of demons who’d suffered similar devastating injuries—especially Lows that tended to be everyone’s punching bags—but the scars combined with the similarity in energy signature, plus the corporeal forms, plus the knowledge of things that Doriel said Samael was the only living Ancient who would know…

  I still doubted.

  “What did you discover about his plans?” I asked. “What does Samael intend?”

  “He intends to kill the archangels and any angel that supports them. Then he plans to take the human world, to lay waste to it and decimate the human population. He wants to destroy the pet project of the Angels of Order. After that he will hunt down any remaining angels, who will either be enslaved or killed.”

  This was bad. There didn’t seem to be any room for negotiation in Samael’s scorched-earth program. And there was a fervor in Doriel’s voice that I didn’t exactly like. “Did you convey my message? Tell him what I have planned for the future? Ask him to hold back until I could negotiate some mutually agreeable sharing of the human world?”

  “Yes, I delivered your message. Samael says no. He cares not for the humans and their world, he only cares for revenge. He will proceed as he has planned.”

  That was no surprise. “Then you delivered my second message?”

  She nodded. “I told him that as the Iblis, you commanded him to hold his invasion and await further instructions from you.”

  I’m sure his response to that wouldn’t be a surprise either. “And?”

  “He said to go fuck yourself. He’s the Iblis, not you.” Doriel eyed me with sympathy. “You’re too young to know the pain we’ve gone through. This is a matter of sacred revenge, a family matter between him and his brothers. It would be best that you not interfere.”

  I noticed she was no longer addressing me as the Iblis.

  “And you? What do you intend to do, Doriel?”

  Could I count on her to back me up? Could I count on any of the other Ancients to back me up, or would they return to Samael’s side, to support him. Was I just an imp with a sword, or was I truly the Iblis in their eyes?

  “I will be sad to see the playground of the human world laid to waste.” Doriel took a breath and looked me straight in the eyes. “But Samael will always be my Iblis. If he is bent on this revenge, then so am I.”

  I felt as if my world were crashing down around me. All I’d worked for was falling apart. All the progress I’d made with Infernal Mates, the pairing of angels and demons, the future I’d imagined where we’d all slowly make amends for the past, where we’d reunite and have our happily ever after—it was all crumbling before my eyes.

  Then I thought of my beloved angel, of Dar and Asta, of Rafi and Ahia, of Gabe and Nyalla, of Snip and Beatrix. Of Lux. No. I wouldn’t let this go. Not without a fight.

  I wasn’t just an imp with a sword. I was the Iblis. And I was going to defend everything I loved with my last breath. But first I needed to see which side Remiel would be on, make sure he wasn’t going to try to take his kid back, and try to survive the meeting with him.

  Chapter 15

  “I appreciate your prompt response to my request.”

  I winced at the cool sarcasm in Remiel’s tone. Yeah, it had only been a few days, but for an Ancient like Remiel who was used to being immediately obeyed, that was a few days too many.

  “Been a bit busy the other side of the gates lately, but I’m happy to adjust my schedule to accommodate you, Remiel.” There. Flattering, but not making it seem as though I felt the need to drop everything and rush to his side.

  The Ancient lowered his massive, red-skinned body into a chair barely sized for the purpose and blew a puff of smoke out of his bovine nostrils. “I can imagine you are busy. I was approached last night by an Ancient claiming to be Samael, who delivered a quite intriguing proposal.”

  Fuck. Was Remiel going over to the dark side as well? If I lost him, I pretty much lost the war. I tried to remain calm and shrugged as if I really didn’t care.

  “Yes, evidently he’s been making the rounds. Interesting how someone claiming to be the former Iblis needs to campaign for support.”

  Remiel smirked. “Isn’t that what you’re doing? Campaigning for support? I don’t flatter myself that the imp who holds the Iblis sword, is here for anything other than what I may be able to do for her.” He shifted in the tiny chair, which squawked alarmingly. “And I can do something for you, if you agree to return something I want.”

  I felt sick. Give up Lux, and Remiel would support me. Hel would be mine. Countless angel, demon, and human lives would be saved. Just one little angel. It’s not like Gregory and I couldn’t make one of our own. It’s what a demon would do, but I wasn’t really a demon anymore.

  “So tell me about Samael’s proposal,” I urged. “Tell me what he wants you to do, and what he is planning.”

  Tell me what’s at
stake, so I know how backed into a corner I am when you ask for Lux back.

  “Upon his signal, he wants us to go through an assigned gateway into the human world with our strongest demons, then kill the angels protecting the gates. After that, we are to lead our respective households through and join his as an army. It will be just as it was before—us against the angels. Only this time, we’ll win.”

  Just what Caramort had said. I hesitated, wondering how I could prevent this war, how I could stop the whole thing before it started. If only I could just fucking kill Samael….

  “But I’m not thrilled at the prospect of another war, this time for revenge and the pleasure of holding the human world.” He reached up and rubbed a long, glistening horn thoughtfully. “There was a time when revenge weighed heavily upon my mind, but even then all I really wanted was Aaru. Foremost, I wished to return to the bosom of my homeland, and retire from a corporeal form for the rest of all eternity. If I needed to fight to achieve that, I was willing to fight. I’m not so sure I’m willing to fight for a world of humans.”

  “But Samael…” My voice was husky, and I cleared my throat to try for a more authoritative tone. “Do you truly believe this is Samael, or some imposter?”

  He shrugged. “It truly doesn’t matter what I believe. If this is Samael, then he clearly isn’t the Iblis he once was. Other Ancients believe it is he. Other Ancients will follow him and join his army.”

  “But you?” I held my breath.

  “As I said, I have no interest in ruling the human world. And my thirst for revenge has lessened with the possession of Aaru, which remains surprisingly vacant of angels.” He shot me a perceptive, narrowed glance.

  “So you do not plan to join Samael?”

  “No, I would rather live here and in Aaru. Although, there are a few things that might cause me to change my mind.”