by Beth Hendrix
“It is good to see you awake little mouse. You are so much prettier than the last demon I had down here.” He said to me as if oblivious to the fact that I was tied down to the bed and not there of my own free will.
“What do you want?” I spit at him. He may be in denial that I wanted to be here, but I wasn't. There was no way in hell I was gonna sit here and have a conversation with this monster.
“I want you little mouse. I am going to make you my queen.” He said so nonchalantly as he rubbed his hand up my arm. I had to fight to keep myself from throwing up on him.
“I will never be yours.” I said with as much venom as I could muster. He moved down closer to me, close enough I could smell his sulfur-filled breath.
“You have no choice.” He said as he put both of his hands on the side of my head and started to chant. The pain hit a few seconds later. I only hoped that my men would find me before I broke. I screamed in agony as he smiled, and I knew that by the end of this I was gonna wish I was dead.
17
Barrett
Sometimes being the leader sucked, especially at times like this when I wanted to fall apart. Why hadn’t I opened up more to her? Why hadn’t I kissed her before I left? Those were just some of the more prominent questions floating around in my head. I just wanted her back before something happened and she was changed forever.
Trying to focus, I tuned into what Canio was explaining to us about Bael. “Bael’s house is where he will have her. It will be extremely hard to get into, but I still know some of his lords. So I am hoping that we will be able to slip in. He has had her for a few hours so most likely they will be moving to his courtyard. Bael likes to publicly break people. He will probably make some kind of celebration out of it.” Canio explained while moving his hand over the map he had drawn up of the demon’s home.
“Will you be able to teleport us all there Alyanna?” Ethane asked quietly. He looked distracted, like he was forming some kind of plan in his head.
“As long as you are all touching me, I can teleport us. It will drain me more, but with just five extras it shouldn’t be that bad.” She looked like she was in deep thought about what she was saying. I could see how everyone would think she was beautiful, but to me she did not hold a candle to Gwen. I saw more than Gwen’s outer beauty. I loved the person that she was on the inside. Wait? Love? Did I love her already or was it just lust?
Lost in thought, I was a bit startled when Donovan touched my arm. “I think we need to gear up and get to this courtyard. If we wear cloaks that cover our faces we might can get around unseen. No matter what happens, Alyanna you get Gwen out of there.” He ordered while pinning her with his stare.
“I will get her out no matter what. Now I must go get ready for battle.” With those parting words, she swept out of the room. It was time to go get our girl back.
Gwen:
My voice was hoarse from screaming. Bael was finally in my head. I had resisted for so long, but the things that he had done to me in my subconscious had finally subdued me. I had no more will to fight. I just wanted the pain to stop. He had successfully broken in and taken control. I was utterly disgusted with myself for not being strong enough to keep him out.
“I told you that you would be mine little mouse.” Bael chuckled at me from the other side of the bed. My hatred for him grew the more I looked at him.
I glared at him with all the hatred that I could muster. I didn't care what it took, but I would kill him with my own hands. I could feel my body start to warm and then flicker out. What had he done to my brain so that I couldn't use my powers? I let it sink in for a minute that I was completely under his control.
I am with you Gwen. He broke most of your subconscious, but what he does not know was that I tucked a piece of you away from his touch. I will release it when the time is right and we can seek our vengeance on him. Vita whispered in my mind. I could sense her anger over what had been done to me and I know it was weird, but I was so glad that I wasn’t alone. I missed my guys. I hated that there was a big possibility that I may not see them again.
“I am taking you to the courtyard little mouse. We are gonna make you a full-blooded Demon. I have a treat for you. Louisa, get her ready for the arena.” He sounded so proud of himself as he made his way over to the other side of the room and started to change. He snapped his fingers and a beautiful dark-headed woman came running into the room. Once she was closer I could tell that something was wrong with her. Her eyes were glazed over. I would bet money that Bael had complete control of her because if you watched her closely you could see that her movements were jerky and robotic. I promised myself then and there that she would be leaving here with me. She never spoke to me as she laid out what looked like strips of what used to be clothing.
Once my hands were free, I attempted to rub my wrists only to discover that my body wouldn’t work right. L, which is what I dubbed her in my head, lifted my head up, slipped off the cami I had on, and tied the leather strings around my neck and back. It honestly looked like a leather triangle bikini top. She untied my legs and went about changing me into the small leather mini skirt. I looked like a hooker, at least she had left my red thong alone. That would have been way too invasive and I was attempting to not freak out. I needed to conserve my strength for my big breakout that I wasn't sure how I was going to accomplish yet. It was going to happen though! I had to believe that or I would fall apart because of the despair I felt inside. She slid my feet into some thigh high leather boots. Yup. Definitely a hooker. I would fit in perfectly on a street corner somewhere.
I know that most people in my situation would be flipping the hell out, but it was either laugh or cry. So I would make as many jokes as I could in my head because honestly I wasn't sure how much more I could take before I had a full blown meltdown. I know for damn sure that doing that would get me nowhere fast. I would be damned if he saw me cry again. L helped me up and handed me off to Bael. My body rebelled at the thought of him touching me. I wanted to move away from him so bad that my body started to shake. If I could just get enough power to teleport away, I would be fine. However, it wasn’t looking good for me.
“Off to the arena little mouse.” He teleported us to what I could only describe as a knockoff colosseum. It looked like something the old time gladiators would fight in. I could see L standing in what looked like the main box with that same blank stare on her face. Looking as far as I could to the right and left, the seats were full of what I could only assume were demons. This definitely did not make me feel any better about the situation. I kept trying and failing to move my fingertips. I had to get out of this because nothing good was gonna come from me being down in this place.
Bael snapped his fingers, and a young guy was brought out towards us in the middle of the arena. He couldn't have been older than twenty and looked as terrified as I felt.
“Today is the day fellow demons! We have a new female who is not yet whole! We are gonna make her fulfill her purpose! You all get to bare witness to the birth of my queen!” He yelled to the crowd like a bad WWE announcer. The young man who had been brought out seemed frightened by the situation. It was hard to tell through the sound of the people in the stands going crazy, but he looked like he was asking for help. I knew exactly what I was gonna be made to do, and the thought made my entire body go cold. He was gonna make me kill him.
18
Donovan
We had made it to the underworld unnoticed, which had shocked me at first. Then I noticed there were hundreds of people all gathered here for something. They were all dressed similarly to us. Thankfully we had Alyanna, who had picked us up some clothes to keep us from sticking out. We had to be in the right place. There was a slight musty smell that tickled my nose with every breath. I am not even gonna lie - this place gave me the major creeps and set me on edge. It was like an old time arena for gladiators, which I would usually make a joke about, but I just didn't have it in me. My main goal was to get Gwen out of here.
“Now we need to wait. Bael will bring her here before doing anything too terrible to her. I have to warn you, she may not be the same Gwen anymore,” Canio whispered to us. The thought that my Gwen could be gone left my entire body cold. There was so much that I wish I could have said to her. I knew without a doubt that if we didn't save her, I would never be the same. I looked down to wallow in self pity.
I heard the crowd start to go wild and I looked up. Now standing in the middle of the arena was Bael holding a limp Gwen. What in the fuck had he done to her? It took everything in my being to not rush to her. I glanced at my brothers beside me and they looked like they were having the same problem. Bael moved one of his hands from Gwen and snapped. Appearing out of nowhere was a petrified young guy. He must be the one to be sacrificed for Gwen to attain her full powers.
Bael started to yell dramatically to the crowd, “Today is the day fellow demons! We have a new female, who is not yet whole! We are gonna make her fulfill her purpose! You all get to bare witness to the birth of my queen!”
Gwen's face went ashen as if she just realized what Bael had planned for her. As I was looking at her, I noticed a small misshapen form which could have been a man, carrying out swords of different sizes and laying them down in front of Bael and Gwen. Bael bent and picked one up, thrusting it into Gwen's hand. He kissed her on the forehead, then whispered something that I couldn't hear into her ear that caused her already ashen face to lose even more color. I knew without a doubt that if we didn't get her out soon that she would never be the same.
Gwen:
“Little mouse, your time has come. Once you’re fully demon and we know what kind you are gonna be, you will be mine. Oh, the wonderful children we will have. Then we can overthrow the king.” Bael whispered in my ear after kissing my forehead, causing me to dry heave. He thrust a sword into my hand before dropping me to the ground and teleporting beside L. I proceeded to fall to the ground like a sack of potatoes still clutching the sword, even though I wanted to do nothing more than throw it as far from me as I possibly could. I really don't care what I looked like. At this moment, I was just trying to keep myself from vomiting everywhere. The thought of what he was gonna make me do, and what he wanted to do with me afterwards, was just too much. I didn't have much in my stomach, but now I had nothing there since I lost the fight to keep the contents inside.
Vita help me. I pleaded into my mind, I had nothing else left. I could feel my body getting up on its own without my help. I was like a puppet and he was the puppet master. It was one of the worst feelings I had ever felt. I could think for myself, but no matter what I did my body moved forward. Just as I was halfway to the young man, who looked like he was frozen in fear, I felt a slither of strength slowly slide into my body and I was able to resist the next steps. It was the hardest thing I had ever done in my life. I turned in Bael’s direction and shot him a look of pure hatred.
“I will never be your queen.” I screamed out my frustration and my determination in that one, small sentence. I could feel him trying to take back control, but I resisted till I could feel the sweat start to pour down my face. If something didn’t give soon I was gonna run out of energy that I couldn't afford to run out of. Closing my eyes to try and concentrate, I felt my resistance slip for one second. That was all it took for my entire life to change once again in the amount of a few days. I felt my body fly forward and I heard the sickening sound of my sword sliding through something like butter. I was terrified to open my eyes, but I did it anyway. In that one small slip, Bael had managed to teleport me forward and impale the young man with my sword. I could hear a commotion behind me, but all I could think of was - What had I done? I felt myself once again gain control as I pulled out the sword and fell to the ground with the man clutched to me.
“You’re gonna be okay. It will be fine. I will get you patched up.” I repeated over and over as I tried to stop the blood from pouring out of his wound that I had inflicted. I knew that there was nothing I could have done differently, but that didn't stop the waves of guilt threatening to pull me under. I looked into the boy’s eyes as the life faded from them and screamed so loud that the entire stadium went quiet.
The burning started in my toes and made its way to my head. I felt like I was on fire. I screamed out the guilt and pain I was feeling. I started to levitate into the air, becoming engulfed in flames the higher I went. My eyes locked on Bael, who was currently fighting against Barrett, or at least what I assumed was Barrett. It was a giant brown bear, who was holding his own against the demon lord.
Still engulfed in flames, I lowered to the ground. I felt the powers flowing in my brain. It was as if I had been seeing the world through a blurred lens and now everything was so vivid and sharp. I could see Ethane staring at me in awe. I had a moment of hope that he would still want to be with me, before looking back in Bael’s direction. I could hear the grunts from him trying to stave off Barrett’s attacks. I felt something hit my foot, looking down I saw that it was a katana. I leaned down and picked it up knowing it was gonna come in handy when I called Bael. As soon as my hands touched it, the sword was surrounded by flames. Everyone in the stadium stilling in shock.
“Bael!” I yelled and before I knew it, he was standing in front of me. I felt myself slip into his head and hold him in place like a statue. Feeling all his vile thoughts and the things that he planned to do, not only to me, but the entire world. I knew without a doubt that he had to die.
“You should not be able to do that. What are you?” Bael asked, looking as if he was terrified of the answer. His inner thoughts betrayed him, and I could see that even in this moment when all the cards were in my hands that he still wanted the world to burn. I knew what I had to do, and even though I was a demon, I hoped that it wouldn’t haunt me.
“I am what you made me!” I screamed while pulling back the sword and cutting off his head in one clean swoop. Following the severed head with my eyes until it hit the ground, I had no remorse for his death. However, I turned my head and glanced at the unknown man laying there dead. I would not be getting over that ever. The sight of his lifeless body would haunt me for the rest of my immortal life.
I fell to my knees in that moment, the flames and all the energy that I had went away in an instant. I felt like I had been running a marathon, and my body started to go numb. Ethane rushed over to me. “I’ve got you Gwen, we will keep you safe.” He rubbed my hair while yelling at the guys. I wasn't sure what he had said. My brain couldn’t hold the information.
“Save the woman that was in the booth with Bael.” Those were the hardest words to say as I could see the black in my vision starting to get bigger. Using the last of my strength, I reached up to cup Ethane’s face. “I am sorry” and just like that the blackness won and I went limp.
Ethane:
As soon as Bael started to control Gwen, we jumped into action. Alyanna teleported me to the arena to stop Gwen, while she and the others went to take on Bael and who knows who else. I had to act fast because Gwen was progressing on the man with robotic movements.
I made my way towards her as quickly as I could when she turned and screamed at Bael with so much menace that it went straight to my heart. What the fuck had he done to her? I could see her trembling to keep control of her body.
When I got close enough to her, I reached out to touch her arm. As soon as I made contact, she was gone and the next thing I knew she had stabbed the young guy through the stomach. You could tell the exact moment that she got control back, because you could hear her wailing at the man that he was going to be okay.
Falling to my knees, I was swallowed by guilt. I had been too late to save her. I had failed Gwen and she would never be the same. Never taking my eyes off of her, I moved closer. I knew that the man had died from the earth shatt
ering screams that she let out. I stumbled as I tried to stand and make my way over to her.
I couldn't believe my eyes. She was like a goddess, starting to float in the air. The higher she went the more she became engulfed by flames. I could hear fighting, but other than that, everything was silent. It was as if they were waiting to see what she would do next. All I could hope was that she wouldn't blame me for failing her.
I stood up as she started to float down. I had never seen anything so beautiful and deadly at the same time. She made it to the ground, spearing me with a longing look before picking up a sword off the ground. Looking back in Bael’s direction, I heard her scream his name, and not even a second later he was standing in front of her with almost the same robotic look that she had worn when she was under his control.
“You should not be able to do that. What are you?” Bael trembled as he uttered those words. Gwen looked like a avenging angel as she took him in and looked him over.
“I am what you made me.” I heard her scream as her face transformed into a look of pure and utter hatred as she cut his head off then fell to her knees.
I rushed over to her as the flames extinguished and pulled her into my arms. “I’ve got you, Gwen. We will keep you safe.” I promised her as I moved the hair that was in front of her face. I felt a tremendous amount of relief at the fact that she would let me hold her this way.