Corrine reaches for the tattered remains of her dress. I piece it back together the best I can, and fasten it with a knot around her neck. Fortunately it didn’t rip all the way, so even though the sides are still partially open, at least she’s mostly covered. Better than nothing.
The surge of adrenaline, or whatever it was, has considerably weakened my body, and I’m exhausted. I can’t believe I just killed a living creature. A horrible monster, to be sure— one that wanted to rape my friend to death. And I have zero regrets. But just the idea that I, Liora, exerted my will and domination over another creature so much bigger and stronger than me—it’s practically incomprehensible. I know Lucky has killed plenty of demons in her day, but not me. I’ve never killed anything. But in reality, it didn’t even seem like I was the one doing it. Yes, I wanted to destroy them, but it was almost like some strange force had taken over and turned my thoughts into action. All of a sudden, my will seemed to manifest itself into a power I’ve never felt before. Ever.
What’s happening to me? First warming up in the snow when I was freezing to death. Then bringing Corrine back to life. And now this. Is Lucky somehow breaking through to me? Or is it something else? Could it be what Anastasia said, that being pregnant with the demon twins might possibly have some side-effects? Is that what’s happening? Instead of morning sickness and food cravings, do I have the gift of necromancy and the sword-fighting skills of a supernatural ninja?
I glance at Corrine. She’s obviously traumatized, but holding up okay… at least on the outside. Her hands are trembling, and her eyes reflect the horror she’s just been through. But all things considered, she’s keeping it together surprisingly well.
All we can do now is sit and wait. At one point I get up to see if I can find the door the demons came through, but I don’t see anything. Just solid earth. Maybe it can only be opened from the outside.
The decapitated heads stare at us, almost mockingly. I wonder why they haven’t turned to ash the way the bodies did. For some reason I can’t bring myself to get up and move them, so I just close my eyes and let the minutes and hours pass. Sometimes Corrine and I make small talk. But mostly we just sit in silence.
Finally, I feel my time drawing to an end. Now, more than ever before, I truly doubt I’ll wake up in the morning.
“I have to go soon,” I whisper to Corrine. “Stay strong. You and Lucky will get out of this somehow. I just know it.”
She’s quiet for several long moments, and I know she can hear the false confidence in my voice. “What do you think will happen to us?” she finally whispers.
I take a deep breath and shake my head as the first fiery tingles come over me. “I honestly have no idea.”
She takes my hand and gives it a gentle squeeze. Side-by-side, we sit against the wall and await our fate.
Chapter 26. Lucky
I open my eyes and see Corrine staring at me. Her face looks like it had met the front side of a speeding bus. I glance around and moan.
“Sweet hell, what now?!” It’s dark and smelly here, and I can feel the overwhelming stench of evil in the air. Obviously we’ve left the snow prison, and I know already this new place is worse… much worse.
“Do you want the long version, or do you want the short version?”
I sigh. I’m too exhausted to feel annoyed. “The short version.”
“Some horrible demons took us to a new prison. We’re underground somewhere, and I think they’re waiting for you to arrive before they come back to kill us.”
Great. So demons beat the Light-angels for the honor of killing me. Yay?
“What the hell is that?” I point to the corner.
Corrine bites her lip and glances away. “Liora flew through the air and chopped off his head. And then I did that one over there.” She motions to the other wall. “They were trying to rape me.”
Slowly, I turn and look at her. “Okay. Maybe I need the long version.”
She shrugs and plays with her hair. “It all happened so fast. They had me pinned… Liora was sort of stuck in stasis over there, like she couldn’t really move. Then just when things were about to get really bad, all of a sudden she’s over here and has the guy’s sword and his head is flying off. Then she nailed the other guy, but I finished him off.”
“Are you really trying to tell me that you guys killed two Belith demons by yourselves?” I ask, as I recognize the tell-tale oversized features and yellow eyes.
She shrugs again. “I don’t know what kind of demons they are, but yeah, we killed them. At least, I really hope so. That one over there keeps staring at me…”
I glance back at the dismembered head in the corner, and gather a ball of fire in my hand to disintegrate the loathsome sight. But I’m almost completely sapped of strength, and the fire quickly dies away. I haven’t replenished in days, and whatever Liora did took a real toll on us.
Belith demons. Of all the demons to be captured by, it had to be the Belith—by far the darkest, most hostile, evil, violent-for-the-sake-of-violence demons around. Their tribe is notorious for stirring up trouble, causing mayhem, and constantly pushing the Legionare’s limits. With Thiberoux and the Legionare in such a state of flux, if the Belith are running unchecked, then we’re in a world of trouble.
“They really are bad, aren’t they?” Corrine whispers.
I look at her. “Who?”
She nods toward the corner. “These demons. I mean, it didn’t seem real before. The only demons I knew were you and Kieron, and then Vincent and Demetri. And you guys are all so cool, so, well, good… it made me forget that demons can be like this.”
I give her a scathing look. “You think I’m good? How hard were you hit?”
“I don’t think you’re bad… evil.”
“That just depends on your perception. Trust me, to many people I’m the worst, most evil thing they’ll ever know.” I fondly recall implementing my powers as a Justice Demon, torturing humans who’d broken Natural Law to punish them for their crimes. A job I loved with my whole heart. Nothing comes close. I’ve missed being able to do it lately, and I hope I can get back to it someday soon.
Corrine rests her chin on her hands. “Yeah, but Liora explained it to me—you only punish and torture people who’ve committed horrible crimes and were getting away with it, like murderers and child molesters and rapists and stuff.”
I narrow my eyes. “So?”
“So she also told me how you would hunt down and kill other demons… mostly for fun, but also to keep her safe. That’s not evil, that’s good.”
“That’s me being selfish, you idiot. That’s me making sure my weak human vessel doesn’t get herself killed when she has possession of my body.”
“But you were here earlier. That was you, right? I mean, wasn’t it your powers that helped her do this?”
I shake my head slowly. “No. I had no part in that at all. In fact, I feel so drained, I couldn’t even heal your face right now if I wanted to. Which I don’t.”
She shrugs and looks away. “It’s okay. You don’t have to do anything more for me. You’ve already helped me enough. Liora saved my life tonight. I don’t know how she did it, but she did. And I’ll be forever grateful, no matter what. And you helped. Even if you don’t remember, you helped. I know it. So thanks.”
Ugh.
I let out an exasperated sigh. “Here— look at me.”
She does, and I slowly raise my warm palm to her cheek. I close my eyes and focus. It literally takes the last of my strength, but a few seconds later her face is healed. The swelling and bruising has faded, and the nasty gash above her eye has closed. My arm falls back limply to my side.
“Thank you. You didn’t have to do that. But thank you,” she whispers.
I look away and quietly lie down. I haven’t even got the energy to respond.
********
I must’ve fallen asleep, because the next thing I know Corrine is shaking me. “Lucky, Lucky wake up… something is happening.
”
It takes all my strength just to open my eyes. There must be some sort of enchantment over the cell that’s keeping me weak, like at that witch Anastasia’s house. But even her place wasn’t as bad as it is here. The Belith are both powerful and smart—at least usually. I’m sure they’re taking no chances. But what I can’t fathom is what the hell they want with me? Are they after Abbaton’s bounty? Had they gotten wind of Liora’s possible use to the Light-angels? If so, why am I still alive?
“What’s going on?” I mumble.
She pauses and shakes her head. “I heard weird noises and voices. It sounded like they were getting closer.”
I sit up straighter and rub my eyes. I barely have the strength to hold my head up, let alone fight any demons who may be after me. Without Source Energy to replenish, I don’t know how much longer I can last. Although at this point, I highly doubt that lack of Source will be the reason for my demise.
We sit quietly for a moment without hearing anything, and then—
“Okay, the coast is clear.”
I catch my breath at the sound of his voice. A second later, Vincent and Demetri are standing in front of us.
Corrine gasps and covers her mouth. But all I can do is stare at Vincent. I’m almost afraid to allow myself to believe he’s really here— that I’m not just imagining it.
“Lucky.” He quickly kneels down beside me. I lower my head onto his shoulder and close my eyes, relishing his nearness, his touch, his scent. But even that isn’t enough to ease me out of my lethargy.
I feel something press against my mouth. “Here… drink,” he whispers urgently.
Immediately I know what it is, and I eagerly chug down the fortified elixir as if it were the sweetest of all life-replenishing nectars. Because it is.
A few seconds later I’ve finished the whole bottle. “More!” I gasp. Already I can feel my life force returning—my muscles awakening.
He gently brushes my hair back from my face. “It’s enough for now. We need to conserve—”
“Hey, are you all right? What happened?” I suppress a groan at Corrine’s puppy dog eyes, as Demetri kneels by her side.
“Liora and I were attacked earlier, but we’re fine,” she says.
“Your dress is all shredded,” he observes. She squirms, trying to pull the torn sides together. Sapies have so much shame about their bodies, it’s pathetic.
“Here—” With one swift movement Demetri clutches the back of his t-shirt, pulls it off over his head, and hands it to her. She just stares at him, dumbfounded, and for once I can’t blame her. There’s nothing quite like a male demion in the flesh, with his smooth skin stretched over perfectly shaped muscles. The delicious sight never gets old, even for me. I can only imagine that Corrine’s ovaries must be singing ‘Hallelujah’ right about now.
“Thanks,” she mumbles and pulls the shirt on over her head.
“You sure you’re okay?” Demetri asks again.
She nods. “Better now. I’ve been sitting here praying you’d find us.” She looks up at him and beams.
“Excuse me, but why are we still here?” I snap impatiently. “Port us out already!”
Vincent takes my hand. “Can’t. This was a one-way-ticket ride for us. This place is naturally fortified against any escape, and even our powers are greatly weakened within these confines.”
“We knew we couldn’t get you out right away,” Demetri adds, “but we both agreed that at least we can be here for you, so you don’t have to be alone. And we wanted to be able to fill you in on what’s going on.”
“Plus, I knew you’d be fading fast without Source Energy.” Vincent gives my hand a little squeeze.
I shake my head. “Well, thanks for that… I was just this side of dead. But now what? We just wait for them to come kill us? And then what’re you going to do… just sit and watch?”
“Of course not. But it’ll be tricky, and we’ll have to be fast. I can’t port you out of this prison, but I can once you’re outside. When they come get you, that’s when we’ll take off.”
“What if they don’t plan on taking us somewhere else?” I interrupt, eyeing the decapitated skulls against the walls. “What if they plan on doing their torturing and killing right here?”
Demetri shakes his head. “This is just a holding cell. You know the Belith…They’re already preparing for a public spectacle.”
“But I don’t understand. What do they want with me anyway? I’m just a lowly demion, nothing special. I mean, even if I have killed a few of their demons before, so what? What’s the big deal? They kill and get killed all the time. They break the laws and treaties like it’s nothing.”
They both remain silent, and Vincent stares at the ground.
“What… what is it?”
He sighs. “Before we ported in here, we overheard something. From what we can tell, it’s some other demons who put a mark on you, and the Belith are just the intermediaries. They want you alive until the others can get here.”
“What about the Light-angels… do these other demons know how they want to use me and Liora to get into Thiberoux? Is that why they want to kill me?” I ask.
Demetri shakes his head. “Don’t think so. You’re lucky that demons aren’t exactly known for their communication skills one-on-one, let alone with other tribes. If word was to spread that Light-angels wanted to use you as a key… and that it might work… the clan would be fighting each other for the privilege of killing you personally.”
Vincent clears his throat. “But it won’t come to that. Like he said, demons don’t talk much. So even if a few do find out your weakness, chances are the information won’t get too far.”
“So the Belith are acting as the muscle for a third party? Someone who wants me alive, so they can kill me themselves?”
Vincent shrugs. “Something like that. But that’s not going to happen. Once we get out of here, we’re gone.”
I slump back against the wall. “Yeah… and then what?”
“You’ll be out, free.”
I shake my head. “But I won’t be safe. I’ll never be safe as long as Liora is around. Don’t you see? She’s the reason this is all happening. As long as she lives, I’m in jeopardy. We both are. The Light-angels will continue to hunt her, and any demons who wish me harm only have to go through her to get to me—”
“Liora’s not so weak,” Corrine protests.
I glare at her. “Oh yeah? Whose stupidity got us captured by the Sovereign in the first place?”
Her face twists into a scowl. “Okay, maybe she was tricked, but she’s not weak! Or stupid! She killed those two demons single-handedly.” She points to the decapitated heads against the walls, unnoticed by Vincent and Demetri before now.
Vincent’s eyes widen. “What?!”
“Well, I helped some but she really didn’t need it.”
“Liora did that?” Vincent seems stunned, and Corrine nods.
“She saved me.”
“Forget that.” I wave my hand dismissively. “So she had some freaky GI Jane moment. She’s still a weak link. A liability.”
“Well, there’s nothing we can really do about that right now, is there.” Corrine snaps. “So instead of always ragging on Liora, why don’t you try to accept the fact that she’s just as amazing and important as you are! She risked her life to save me, and she got some crazy strength from somewhere and took out two evil beasts over twice her size.”
I glare at her. How dare this Sapie talk to me this way!
“…And do you know what she told me when we were in the snow prison?” Corrine goes on. “She said she was ready to die. To sacrifice herself and everything she’s ever known, all for the good of y’all.”
“What?” Vincent frowns. “What did she mean by that?”
Corrine shakes her head. “Dunno, didn’t get the details. Only that there’s this spell she’s going to do and then she’ll be gone forever and Lucky’ll be here permanently.”
Wow, Lior
a was thinking about doing that? I had no idea. “Well, it sure would solve a lot of problems around here.” Vincent and Corrine both shoot me a dirty look. “What? You know I’m right.”
“There has to be another way,” Vincent says. “We can’t lose Liora. It wouldn’t be fair to either of you.”
“Fair? You want to know what’s not fair? Having half my life stripped away from me. Watching my best friends be murdered, and then losing the love of my life… on her watch I might add. Not knowing if I’ll even wake up each night because my human vessel is so damn vulnerable, and there’s nothing I can do about it! What I am, and what I have to do, puts her in danger every single day, and she has no way of defending herself. And now she’s more of a target than ever!”
“I told you, she’s not as weak as you might think,” Corrine whispers.
I glance at her and roll my eyes. “What are you even doing here anyways? What could the Belith possibly want with you?”
She sighs. “I’m not sure. I guess I’m just along for the ride.”
I see Vincent staring at me, as if trying to read me somehow. “And you…” I begin. “How did you find us here? Especially since this place is so fortified. How did you know where we were exactly?”
Suddenly he looks at Demetri. “We should probably get ready.” He glances at Corrine and me. “They’re coming soon, but we’re not going anywhere.” Then he places his hand on Demetri’s shoulder and they disappear. Even though I know they are both sitting right there, I wish I could still see him.
“Wait a minute, how do you know they’re coming?” I whisper, flustered.
“They were gathering the guards and making final preparations,” Demetri says, his voice low. “We came right here since we had to time our arrival carefully.”
“Why?” Corrine asks.
“Because these bodies aren’t meant to exist in this world,” Vincent’s disembodied voice answers, “and we can’t hold them for very long. In this world, we are Hellhounds. That is our natural state here.”
“You’re going to turn into a Hellhound?” Corrine whispers, her voice shaking.