The large demon with six arms opened the door and set a plate of food on the floor. “Eat. Clean. You will meet the Queen soon. Try not to stink like a human.” He slammed the door.
Hand to her temple, Becca swore, trying to still the ringing in her head. Crawling across the floor she found fruit of some kind on the plate. At least it wasn’t something that used to be alive, she thought. Biting into it, a flood of unique flavor filled her mouth. The closest thing she could compare it to would be a pear with a hint of citrus. She devoured the plate of fruit and licked her fingers clean, the ache in her stomach still not satisfied. Rolling over onto her back, she closed her eyes.
The demon returned shortly and reached down to grab her. Lifting a hand, she sat up. “Please let me get up myself. Otherwise the pain in my head may prevent me from forming a coherent sentence.”
His oversized eyes narrowed at her. “Get up.”
“Okay.” She slowly stood, testing out her legs. They worked but she wouldn’t be running away anytime soon. Every step jarred her head, and she closed her eyes for a moment to clear her mind. If anyone ever told her she would have closed her eyes in the presence of a demon, she wouldn’t have believed them. But she had no fight left right now, and her magic or fighting skills wouldn’t help her here.
They walked through several halls. Lights hung on the walls, a ball of fire hanging in the air, burning like witchlight would. She wondered if demons’ powers mirrored magicians in her own dimension. Behind her, the demon huffed with impatience, and she focused on the path ahead. They stopped outside large double doors, the demon stepped around and opened the door for Becca to enter.
In the morning light, Becca saw the beauty of the hall. It had an intricate design with some marble laid out in the floor. Long windows outlined in stone opened to the world beyond. Becca tried to look outside, but the pain in her head from the light made her retreat.
The demon nudged her towards the Queen at the front of the room, just as dark and majestic as Becca remembered. She approached and bent forward slowly to keep her mind from spinning. She didn’t speak first, waiting.
“I think we can work together.”
Hiding her surprise at the unexpected greeting, Becca managed, “Thank you, Your Majesty.”
The Demon Queen stood and approached Becca who struggled to not retreat. The demon stood over seven feet tall and made Becca tilt her head back to take her in. Not sure if she missed it yesterday, Becca could feel the magic wafting from her. It set every hair on end and the flavor of it reminded her of Bael, the demon that inhabited her sister, which felt like eons ago.
Looking down at her, the Queen’s words not only seemed to be spoken aloud but penetrated her mind, much like how her sister spoke to her. “I will inhabit your body, and you will take me to this Lazaro, where I can kill all those who call on my people to steal our power.”
The desire to agree with her almost overwhelmed Becca. She tasted blood in her mouth and realized the only reason she didn’t tell her yes was her teeth biting into her tongue. Her powers didn’t measure up to the Queen’s, but it didn’t seem the demon was forcing the issue. Resolution rolled in her stomach as she considered the Queen’s request.
“What would stop you from killing everyone in my world? I am a witch, so is my sister, but we mean yours no harm. We have no demons tied to us. Many others who fight Lazaro only use demons when they have to, to protect those they love.” Becca felt like falling in a puddle at the Queen’s feet, and it took all she had to disagree with her. That’s what made such an arrangement so hard. Was Becca even thinking straight? “I’d die here before destroying those I love.”
With a swish of her long robes, the Queen returned to her throne and slowly curved her arm around the end of a bone. A sick smile graced her mouth. “I can do it without your permission, but I couldn’t leave the temple grounds, only snacking on whatever scraps I may find around. You claim to want to end this. Do you?”
“Yes.” Becca struggled to piece together this puzzle. “What happened with Lazaro? If he opened the portal, why can’t we close it?”
The Queen let out a dismissive sigh. “He never opened the portal. Portals aren’t doors that can be opened or closed. They are small tears in the fabric of our universe. Who knows how long it has been open? Dark-skinned people of yours found it first. Harmless ones that sacrificed to us in exchange for healing powers. But that white witch, he stole from us. Torturing those weaker to learn our real names. Dragging us from our homes and locking us into cages.” She grew in her anger, now taller than the throne. “He needs to be the one in a cage, slowly fed from, day after day, until he rots and with his last breath, I’ll give him to the others to feast on.”
Becca let out a jagged breath she didn’t realize she was holding. “As much as I want him dead, I can’t give up my whole Earth because of one man.”
Her long nails slowly clicked on her throne as her gaze remained calculating. Then she slapped her palm down, the smacking sound echoing in the hall. “Then we will make what you call a blood covenant. If either party forfeits, they die. Is that,” she paused as if loathing to say the word, “reasonable?”
Rubbing her temple, Becca wasn’t sure if she had her wits about her enough to make such an agreement. Would she be saving mankind or dooming it to a lifetime of servitude? Thinking of Darion, Caleb, Andre and the others fighting an impossible fight by themselves, she decided she would do what she had to in hopes for everyone’s survival.
“Okay.” She prayed it was the right choice. “If you have coffee here, I’d love a cup before I sign.”
“Coffee?” The Queen tilted her head in confusion.
This must be hell. She pinched the bridge of her nose, it would take all she had to not screw this up.
Elizabeth traveled with Doc and Brianna for a couple of days, making steady progress towards their rendezvous with the others. They rode in a large vehicle that held other patients and supplies. Brianna had proven extremely useful in the sick bay with her magic, and Doc had appreciated having them both around.
Unloading at the end of the day went smoothly, but it was exhausting. Elizabeth was asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. Unfortunately, her rest felt short lived as visions flooded her dreams.
Bolted upright in the dark, she fought the hysterical cries erupting out of her. Doc and Brianna were the first at her side. Catching her breath, Elizabeth forced herself to review the images again. The more she could tell the others, the safer they would be.
“They will attack Caleb and Nikki while they sleep.” Tears streamed down her face. “Guns and explosions will light up the dawn. Lazaro will strike first.”
Doc swore and sprinted out of the tent.
“We have to help them.” Elizabeth looked to Brianna.
“You already did. They will get a warning.”
Elizabeth shook her head, her vision blurry from her tears. “It’ll be too late. It’s already too late. What can we do?”
Brianna took a deep breath. “You can keep looking to the future. Give them the help we need.”
Chapter One Hundred Fourteen
Caleb slept better than he had for months with Nikki wrapped in his arms. Last night went farther than either one of them expected. He didn’t regret it. He only regretted it didn’t happen sooner.
Daylight would hit camp soon, waking the others to begin the day. For a few minutes, he just wanted to memorize her face and enjoy the moment, for there would never be another just like this.
After a moment, her brow creased as if uncomfortable. He went to move his arm for her, and she flinched.
“What is it?” he asked.
She grabbed her temple. “Someone is trying to reach me. Something’s wrong.”
Then something sounded overhead, and an explosion hit nearby. The sound rang in his ears as he jumped out of the cot and reached for his pants. He dressed in seconds and checked his weapon.
“I need to get to Patrick.” Nikki started fo
r the door, panic rising in her voice.
“He knows there’s an attack.” Caleb grabbed Nikki by the arms. “Take a deep breath.”
He waited for her to do it. “Now get on your shoes, your weapons, and then we run.”
Her breath picked up again, but she retained better control. “Okay.”
He let her go and finished collecting his gear. Another explosion hit nearby, and the screams that followed meant it hit its mark. Akio got to Lazaro, and he found them sooner than they wanted. If someone was trying to contact Nikki though, the others already knew. Elizabeth. She would have warned everyone. It would take longer for Andre and the others to get to them, but they weren’t helpless.
They would fight and survive until the others came. Caleb picked up the bow and arrow he recently got from Patrick. They had weapons and power. They could hold out.
Racing outside with Nikki, he kept low cover. Patrick’s men had a front line already started with the huge trucks. One was already in flames, but they kept the line intact.
Caleb turned to Nikki. “I’m going for a high position. The longer you can protect me, the more I can take out.”
“How about that truck?” She motioned to a nearby vehicle.
He would have preferred a tree or something with more camouflage, but there weren’t a lot of options. “Okay. Just promise me, when we find us, you’ll run.”
“I will. But it won’t be far from you. You need someone to watch your Mundane ass.”
It took hours to negotiate the covenant with the Demon Queen. Becca wanted to make sure the Queen wouldn’t abuse the bond with Elizabeth and Darion. Even after talking out the specifics, Becca worried about the consequences. The only solace was that the Queen couldn’t leave the ruins without Becca’s consent. That gave Becca a chance to test out this agreement on Earth.
This blood bond was similar to combining powers like Darion and Becca had done, but even stronger. They needed to control each other to be able to limit each other. Becca had fought against this connection with demons her whole life, and now her stomach rolled with the thought of it.
“If you think I’m any happier about this arrangement, don’t be deceived. I find your stench repulsive. But if this is what it takes to end the attack on mine, I will do it.”
“How will we undo this?”
“We will return here. I will not let myself free in your world. We will both die before that happens.”
“Then I can leave?”
“I will not prevent it.” She opened her mind to prove her truthfulness.
Becca doubted the Queen was being completely honest though. Demons, like humans, could be deceiving. And with her power, the Queen could show Becca whatever she wanted to.
Standing in the throne room, the Queen’s servant came forward with two bowls and two knives. She learned the demon with six arms was named Bregg. At first, he disagreed with the Queen’s decision to bond with a human and volunteered to take her place. The Queen’s heir was already in place though, and she only trusted her own strength in the human world. Becca assumed there was more to the story of Lazaro than she let on. Becca recognized that guilt and desire to right a wrong, even if it was from a demon.
Though this time, hearing the pain and anger in her voice, Becca couldn’t help but wonder what life in this world meant. Never once had she ever thought where a demon came from. Beasts dragged from their world to be prisoners and servants. Yes, they savored human flesh, but humans ate the flesh of other animals, those considered beasts or less than. What lay outside this building? A world full of beasts that could think, and fight, maybe even love?
This Queen had demonstrated a love for her people, or at least a hatred towards Lazaro for hurting them. Maybe she had more in common with Becca than originally thought. That didn’t mean doing this blood bond was any less dangerous.
Bregg completed the ceremony in English, the words simple yet binding. They both drew blood, mixed it together and drank from the cup. She had seen something like it in Ryma’s coven, when her sister was bound to a demon. But Becca and the Queen weren’t becoming servant and master, they were entering into a blood covenant that made them more like coven members.
They pricked the inside of their wrists then grasped hands, mixing the blood on their wrists. Soon a dark red band of magic wrapped around their clasped hands. It sizzled with electricity, and once it completed the circle, it extinguished just as it appeared.
A jolt of magic traveled up Becca’s arm, moving through her limbs and settling in the back of her neck. She rubbed the old scar there, still sensitive. Then, where she used to feel Elizabeth’s presence in the back of her mind, the Queen now resided. Her presence overwhelmed Becca, and she staggered back several steps. It felt like when she gathered her magic and needed to release it. Yet, this magic was now part of her, constantly flowing through her limbs.
Looking at the deadly demon in front of her, Becca realized just how much power she had. “Why are we still separate beings? I thought we’d be in one body like Soultorns are, Your Majesty.”
The Queen shivered and unraveled her large wings. They were the same color as her purple skin, yet more translucent with darker veins traveling through them. After a moment, she tucked them carefully behind her. “That is one way of doing it. But I think the less we spend in each other’s skin, the better, don’t you?”
“How can I limit…” Becca struggled for the right word. She needed to know for sure that if she helped the Queen leave the pentagram that she wouldn’t kill everything and everyone in sight.
The Demon Queen rushed Becca, but this time she saw the Queen’s movements faster than a blink of an eye. With a quick flip of her wings, the Queen picked her up and rose ten feet above the floor, almost hitting the ceiling.
Instead of panic and fear, Becca’s thoughts were clear and precise. She saw a million different choices and pathways, and weighed each one out, while the Queen’s wings beat two times. With an abundance of magic at her fingertips, Becca had no limits. Stop, she commanded the Queen. Put me down.
Glaring at Becca, the Queen slowly dropped to the floor. “As I explained, we share magic and a will that can control each other if desired. If we really want to stop each other, we can kill each other. But in doing so, will end both of us. We live together or die together. We both have expressed that we have no fear of death, and in time we’ll see how true that is.”
“I don’t fear death, Your Majesty. I only fear for those I love.”
“I know who you talk of,” she said.
“How—”
“I’ve been in your mind, remember? And our thoughts and memories are easily accessible to one another if you don’t protect them.”
Becca gritted her teeth, not wanting to lose herself to this demon. She put up mental walls around her cherished memories. She needed to keep them safe to remember who she was.
“Let us go then.” With a sharp smile, the Queen stepped towards a door near the rear of the room.
Becca followed the Queen, staying close. The Queen grasped Becca’s arm, her nails digging into Becca’s skin. “Humans don’t do well coming through the tears in the universe. You share my powers so you will be fine, but since you don’t know what you’re doing, I will drag you along. When we get there, I’ll handle the dogs inside the pentagram, while you find your companions.”
“What does handle mean?” Becca asked, then hurried to add, “Your Majesty.”
“Your companions will stay safe. As for the rest of the zealots summoning us like pets… they will taste my power.”
Before Becca could reply, her world darkened. Nothing to see, nothing to hear. How could this demon navigate through such utter emptiness?
Becca’s head pounded with a pressure she had never felt. After some time, the pressure lessened, and Becca could sense the void around her. Sense being such an empty word and nothing close to what she felt. But words weren’t enough. It wasn’t a noise, a light, or even a smell, but an inner sense, m
aybe magical, that something lay ahead. The spirits of hundreds—no, millions—were there in the darkness and as they approached a small light appeared. Sky.
With the sun falling, the sky shimmered in various shades. She never realized how much she loved the sky of her world. The Queen tightened her hold, then they were falling. Slowing as they approached the ground, they both landed on their feet.
A couple shouted from the far side of the field, a follower. Yes, these people were sad, lonely, desperate, and maybe insane, but they didn’t deserve to die. She turned to the Queen and tried one more time to limit the damage.
“These humans are non-magical Mundanes that can’t hurt you, Your Majesty. Please don’t hurt them. They worship you and your kind. They’re willing to die for your kind.”
She whipped towards Becca, rage in her eyes and teeth bared. “Then who is responsible?”
“They call themselves the Holy Ones. They wear robes and write histories down. I will destroy the histories to make sure no one ever remembers. Please don’t kill the innocent.”
Rising in the air, the Queen focused on the row of priests emerging from the pyramid. “We will see who really is innocent.”
Guilt crept into Becca’s consciousness, but she knew this wasn’t her fight. The Queen’s anger was justified. Days ago, Becca would have killed these men herself for stealing Navina.
Navina. Remembering her true purpose, she hurried to the pyramid the priests had exited. She ran into one of the men dressed in dark robes.
“You!” he cried out, obviously recognizing Becca from before. “How did you—”
She struck out at the man, kicking him in the chest. He flew over five feet through the air before crumbling to the ground. Her power, even without the use of spells, was so much more. Not wanting to waste time, she dove into the man’s consciousness. Where are the pyromancer and the girl kept?
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