by Amanda Jones
Satan moved out of Luc’s field of vision, the sound of shuffling was all that denoted his location. Luc dragged in a rattling breath. He was fairly certain most of his ribs were broken and suspected that one of his lungs was punctured and filling with blood; he was starting to feel as though he were drowning on dry land. Wouldn’t that be a fitting way for him to leave this existence — to drown in his own traitorous blood, the blood that ran through the veins of a man that had caused the deaths of so many of his own kind, the man who had failed to protect his lover.
The torture had stopped long enough for Luc to at last take note of his surroundings as he sat waiting for death to finally claim him. Realizing he was in a modernized section of Halja with glass windows and a sliding glass door that were totally at odds with the gothic stone building, Luc craned his neck to the left and peered out into the courtyard. What he saw made his heart stutter in his chest. It was happening again. Whipping his head back around, he searched the room furtively with his eyes, trying to seek out the Devourers that must be hiding within, feeding him these images straight out of his own personal hell. Luc squeezed his eyes shut and willed his breathing to slow down. It must have been a hallucination. No way were there angels battling in the central courtyard of Halja, it wasn’t physically possible for them to be here. As the buzzing in his head from the blow Satan had delivered faded out, the sounds of battle began to creep in. Swords clashed steel on steel. Shouts and screams of pain split the air. It all seemed so real. Prying his eyes open once again, Luc looked back to the courtyard. He narrowed his eyes, trying to focus through the blood that dripped down from a gash in his forehead and obscured his field of vision. Bright flashes of light popped in and out as the angels moved around the courtyard at dizzying speeds with grayish-black puffs of smoke following closely behind denoting demons in their wake. The lethal dance continued like a choreographed ballet. The angels moved too quickly for Luc to tell if anyone he knew was among them, but he did notice two of his fallen brothers, Bataryal and Yetarel, as they faced off with a pair of demonic attackers. They fought back-to-back as they had always done in the heavens, moving in complete synchronicity as though no time had passed since they’d last battled in the name of the Deity. With swords flying they cut a swath through the demon horde that continued to flow through the gates of the courtyard. It seemed as though every demon tied to Satan had been summoned to this battle. B and Yetarel disappeared from view, leaving Luc straining to catch a glimpse of any of his other brothers.
“They’ll all be dead soon,” Satan’s voice cut through the confused haze in Luc’s brain as he continued trying to make sense of what he was seeing in the courtyard. Luc turned his head back around to look Satan in the eye.
“It’s real? How?” Luc asked.
Satan laughed and shook his head. “A loophole I hadn’t accounted for. The balance shifted, but it’s no matter. I have the Chimera and she’ll complete the binding in a last ditch effort to save your sorry ass. She’s here with that waste-of-feathers father of hers. Bellerophon was always a disappointment. Going from being a warrior angel to a desk-jockey scholar. That’s just pathetic.”
Luc’s chest seized up in panic. Katia had been the bait for him and he was the bait for her…Satan was just dangling them in front of each other like carrots to get what he wanted. Luc knew Katia loved him, and he knew deep down that she was the kind of woman who would sacrifice anything to save those she loved. She had already proven that by coming to the depths of Sheol to set her brother free. The weight of the choice she would have to make was enormous. If she saved him, she would condemn the world; if she let him die, it would be a black stain on her very soul. All Luc could do now was pray that Bellerophon would get her and her brother out of here before she realized that he was being held and tortured. It would be easier if she didn’t know what had been done to him, if she found out after the fact that he had been killed. That way, it wouldn’t rest on her conscience. Satan’s laugh rang out once again throughout the room. Luc could hear the malevolence leaking out with each ringing note that cut through the air. “I know what you’re hoping. You’re hoping that she’s gotten out already and that she won’t see you. No such luck, my totally fucked friend. You see, once I realized the angels had gotten in, I set up some wards around the castle that will stop Bellerophon from poofing out of here with your girl from anywhere in the castle but the courtyard. You’ll be front and center when the little bitch makes her appearance, and we’re going to put on one Sheolfuck of a show.”
Luc felt like his heart was shredding in his chest. Katia would have to make a choice between saving someone she loved and the fate of the human and heavenly realm. The cost of that choice could very well break her. The chair he was tied to was suddenly tilted back and being dragged roughly across the flagstone floor towards the glass doors. Every bump jolted Luc’s body painfully, the wire cutting more deeply into his skin, his broken bones and open wounds grinding and pulling. He clenched his teeth to avoid crying out, no way was he giving Satan the satisfaction of breaking his spirit at the end. Satan hummed a happy little tune that made Luc want to vomit. As they approached the glass doors, he heard Satan mutter something under his breath and suddenly the glass shattered outward into the courtyard with a noise like a sonic boom. Luc could hear the shrieks and cries of those that had been in the path of the flying glass as pieces became embedded in their skin.
“Time to join the party,” Satan said with a joyous lilt to his voice as he dragged Luc out into the burnt-orange light of the Halja sky. The gargoyles perched on every parapet let out their unholy screech as Satan emerged, crying out in welcome to their master. Before Satan, the demons pushed their angelic quarry out of the way, parting like the sea. Luc could see the anguished looks upon the faces of the angels being held at bay on either side of him. Desperation to save him was apparent in their eyes, but they were unable to break the hold of their demonic captors. They were losing this fight. They were on Satan’s home turf. It appeared that only a small contingent of angels remained. Likely, many had been taken unaware upon their arrival, their heads removed, their souls trapped forever in this place to be tormented by the evil spirits. That was soon to be Luc’s fate — forever tied to this horrid place; his soul one of millions trapped in the bowels of Sheol. To die here was to remain here with no chance of reprieve.
One angel burst forward, nearly escaping the line of demons that had created a united front on either side of their lord. The angel caught Luc’s eye. It was Michael; to his right was Leila. They struggled against the hold of the demons in a vain attempt to reach him. An arrow whizzed through the air embedding in Michael’s throat and he was thrown backwards. Leila reached for him and they both went down, falling out of Luc’s view.
Tears rose in his eyes as he realized the risk they were all taking to assist him and Katia. They could all die here; no worse fate existed for an angel than to die in Sheol. To go from ultimate purity and goodness to the oily stain of evil was unimaginable. The sea of demons closed in behind Luc as he was tossed bodily, chair and all, up onto a dais. The battle re-commenced as though it had never halted. He watched in pain as his fallen brothers moved in and out of view, their swords and knives glinting in the Sheolic fire-light. Turning his head to the sky in order to send up what was likely a futile prayer, Luc caught sight of what was sitting next to him on the dais. His blood froze in his veins. An enormous inverted wooden cross, etched in demonic languages burnt into the wood, ensuring that the souls who perished upon it would be reincarnated intact, and would burn eternally in the pits of the Sheolic abyss as they were tortured by the spirits trapped within. Luc closed his eyes and took in a rattling breath. He was totally fucked.
Chapter Thirty Four
Katia
Katia pounded through the hallways of Halja, hot on the heels of her father and brother. Their exit strategy had fallen apart faster than the speed of light. Bellerophon had tried to spirit them out of the dungeon level to no avail and th
ey had tried vainly on almost every level of the castle since. Something was stopping them from leaving and that was not a good sign. Bellerophon guessed that Satan knew his keep had been infiltrated and had most likely put up magical wards to keep the angels inside. The only level they hadn’t yet tried was the courtyard level. That left them vulnerable to attack if they weren’t able to leave. In front of her, Keir and Bellerophon slowed their pace as they neared the hallway that would take them outside. Katia stopped beside them, still marvelling at how fast and far she could now run without being out of breath. The more time she spent in this world, the more abilities she seemed to absorb including, it seemed, her father’s endless supply of stamina.
“Something’s happening in the courtyard,” Bellerophon said with a worried look on his face. “I can feel the distress of the other angels. There have been deaths; the energy level in the castle has decreased.”
Katia and Keir turned to look at each other. “What does that mean for us?” Keir asked as they returned their mirrored gazes to their father.
Bellerophon closed his eyes briefly as though in pain. “Satan may have overcome the angelic forces that accompanied me here. He may attempt to coerce you into a binding.”
Katia shook her head forcefully. “Nothing he can say or do will make us bind ourselves to him. The cost is too high and you said he needed both of us. So even if one of us is willing, the other can object. You said it had to be of our own free will, right?”
Bellerophon took a big breath and grasped Katia’s right hand and Keir’s left in his. “There is something you don’t know. Yes, he does need both of you to complete the binding, but it is not two of you that would be bound, it is only one.”
Keir frowned. “But how would that work? You said we share a soul. In order to bind to one of our kind, he needs to bind a soul to his. In that case he would need a complete soul, and therefore, two of us.”
“That is where you differ,” Bellerophon replied quietly. “There have never been twins before – never a shared soul. One of you would have to give up half of your shared soul to the other in order for one to bind to the being of their choice.”
Katia shook her head. “That can’t be right. How can you live without a soul?”
Absolute sadness and despair radiated from Bellerophon as he gave them the answer they needed. “You can’t. In order to complete a binding, one of you must die.”
Katia gave a strangled cry as her father’s words sank in. She spun to face her brother whose face was a mask of shock. On impulse, she reached out and threw her arms around her brother’s neck, burying her face in his hair. Great sobs wrenched out of her as she clung to him for what seemed like dear life. This couldn’t be happening. She’d only just found her brother and now she might be destined to lose him forever. How was this fair? How was this just? They were part of each other and they were being asked to choose which one of them should live and which one should die. Katia pulled her face out of Keir’s tangled black locks and glared at her father angrily. “I won’t let anyone hurt him. He hasn’t had a chance to live yet.” She felt her brother’s hand run soothingly up her spine, shaking as it moved.
“I won’t consign you to death either, sister, so it appears we are at an impasse,” her brother whispered softly, comfortingly.
Katia stood there staring at her brother with a great pain twisting inside her heart. That deep down feeling of certainty that she would be with Luc again felt like it was crashing and burning up inside of her. If what her father sensed out in the courtyard was true, there was no way they were all going to escape this alive. Katia squeezed her brother hard and took in a shuddering breath as she turned back to Bellerophon with a look of new resolve on her face. If she was going to go down, she was going to do it swinging and planned to take out as many of Satan’s minions as she could.
“So, what’s our next move?” Katia said with a level of steel in her voice that took even her by surprise.
Bellerophon swallowed hard before he replied, his voice rough with emotion. “We have only one move. We fight our way out.”
“And if we’re captured?” Keir asked quietly.
“If you’re captured, you can refuse the binding. But be warned, if Satan has both of you, he will use torture of the most heinous sort to ensure the cooperation of at least one of you,” said Bellerophon with a catch in his voice. “You must remember what’s at stake should he gain access to the human and heavenly realms.”
Katia nodded solemnly. “So we have two possible outcomes – escape or suicide. And suicide in Sheol is the gift that keeps on giving, right?”
“What do you mean?” Keir asked.
Turning to her brother and marvelling once again at how perfectly they mirrored one another, Katia replied, “You die in Sheol and your soul is stuck here eternally in a deep abyss with millions of other trapped souls with no hope of release.”
Katia watched as her brother sucked in a breath and held it for a moment before expelling it loudly.
“Yeah, not exactly the outcome either of us wants, so let’s hope we can get our asses out of here in one piece.” Katia smiled wryly at her brother. “Welcome to the family.”
Bellerophon gave a dry laugh as he reached out to rest a hand on each of his children’s shoulders. “Let’s hope this doesn’t become our type of regular family bonding activity.”
“No shit,” Katia muttered.
“Once we enter the courtyard, you two stick together.” Bellerophon said pointedly. “Whatever happened in the dungeon when you joined hands could prove to be just the distraction we need to get out of here. I’ll provide as much cover as possible for both of you.”
“Sounds reasonable,” Katia nodded in agreement.
“Daughter, you absorbed abilities from the Jinn. I can sense it. You may want to pass some of those abilities on to your brother along with weapons.”
Katia took in a deep breath. She turned towards her brother and thought back to what Amir had done to help her focus. Katia reached out and placed her fingertips on Keir’s temples as Amir had done to her. “Okay, Keir, I need you to relax and clear your mind. Once you feel a connection, just try to zero in on battle tactics and weapons. You’ll know what I mean once it happens, all right?”
Keir nodded, his face a mask of apprehension as he tried to visibly slow his breathing and remain calm. Katia stared into her brother’s eyes and felt an unnatural pull like they were magnets being drawn inexorably closer. She felt as though she was falling into a mirror that would shatter upon impact. A split second before she was certain she would break apart, Katia felt a buzzing power run through her body. The cresting panic began to subside as the warm electric current ran from her heart, up her chest, and down her arms. As the current reached her fingers that were pressed lightly to her brother’s head, a bright flash lit up the dim hallway. Keir’s head snapped backwards but his eyes remained locked on hers. The falling sensation returned, but this time Katia felt like she was falling directly into Keir’s eyes. The green and blue coming closer and closer until they swallowed her whole. And then it happened. They were connected.
Katia could sense her brother’s thoughts and feelings. The loneliness and sadness that lived within him almost brought her to her knees. Behind that was a bright flare of hope that made her want to smile. The world inside of him was changing and shifting, she could feel the positive emotions running through him, gathering momentum and cresting like a great wave. As it washed over her she was overcome with a feeling of love, belonging, and peace.
This was so different from when she had merged with Amir. The first time she had remained separate, had seen flickering images and fuzzy sensations from Amir’s life, this time she felt as though she was a part of Keir. Katia could feel her own memories flowing through a separate part of her mind like sand through an hourglass as they trickled through her into her brother. Their joined soul was becoming one, merging their experiences and feelings together to create one whole being. Katia wonde
red what Keir was feeling as he stood witness to her life and emotions. Like a flipbook, the story of her brother’s life played out in front of her, sound, sensation, and feeling bombarded her. With Amir, the memories had gone from him to her like a one-way street. With Keir, she knew that they had completed some kind of circuit.
She had no idea how long they remained locked together downloading their separate experiences into a mutual understanding of each other, but suddenly the images stopped, frozen like a DVD put on pause. A blur of information flickered in her mind’s eye. Keir had found the information and was siphoning the abilities he needed. Familiar scenes of fighting and schematics flicked through her head as she felt the slight twitching of her brother’s body through her fingers that rested lightly on his head. Energy like a gathering storm began to brew deep inside her, Katia knew what was coming and mentally braced herself as the flash of power and light ripped her and her brother apart, flinging them both into opposing walls where they struck with a thud. Katia shook her head in a vain attempt to end the ringing in her ears as she blinked to refocus her eyes after the blinding flash. As her vision cleared, her brother came into focus, his face full of wonder as he stared back at her.