An Eternity of Dead Sun (An Eternity of Eclipse Novel Book 2)

  The room exploded with whispers and murmurings of disbelief. From behind me, I could even hear Phix and Demon Girl gasp.

  “The six-year-old murderer?” Demon Girl whispered shockingly. “B-but I thought there was a veil over her to prevent Demons from finding her?”

  No one answered her question because it was irrelevant now. All that mattered was that I was in their possession. A voracious grin outlined each of their faces. They had hit the jackpot. My veil may have prevented Demons from finding me if they were to seek me out, but it did not prevent me from stumbling onto them by mistake.

  “Every Demon is looking for you, but cannot find you because of the veil,” San began in an excited and pleased voice, “and yet you voluntarily walk into our midst instead. This is our lucky day.” He laughed, leaning in so that his face was inches from mine. “Has your soul already been claimed, Grace Hwang?”

  Bam!

  Two huge oak doors blasted open, causing everyone in the room to jump, including myself. All eyes landed on the door to see what powerful creature dared to make such an entrance. When I saw who it was, I wanted to scream out in joy.

  Stepping in completely shirtless and wearing white pajama pants that hung low on his hips, Eclipse looked like a Fallen Angel standing in the midst of Demons. His hair was wet, indicative of him just waking up from his bathtub nap. Much like his presence with Lyna in the corn maze, the room that was once overpowered by Demons was now filled with him and his powerful presence.

  With a white towel still in his hand, Eclipse advanced into the room, stepping on the spilled puddle of holy water and salt-covered tiles. He surveyed the room, his eyes traveling over the crowd that was staring at him in bewildered silence. Then, as the anticipation in the room grew high—as if everyone was waiting on what Eclipse was going to say—he finally parted his lips and spoke his immortal words to them . . .

  “Uh, hi. Have you guys seen my girlfriend? She’s really short and cute. You can’t miss her.”

  “Are you serious?” I uttered, outraged that his “immortal” opening line was not intimidating nor life-changing. There he stood with a warrior-like body that would make Greek Gods jealous and he was politely asking my kidnappers if they had seen me? And then he proceeded to describe me as “really short and cute”? What was wrong with this picture?

  “Hurry up and save me!” I shrieked in disbelief.

  “Ah, there you are, Teacup,” he replied upon hearing my voice. His tone of voice was relaxed, but as soon as he caught sight of me bounded to the chair, looking like I had been tossed around like a rag doll, his features subtly hardened.

  Jaw clenching in discontent, he made a move to come to me.

  Thunk.

  He barely moved an inch before he was stopped by an invisible force field. Dawning realization ignited in his brown eyes as he lifted his right hand up. He smoothed his fingers over the invisible force field like he was touching glass. While he walked in a slow curve around it, his hands still testing the boundaries, I belatedly realized that these Demons must’ve erected a force field in this room to prevent me from escaping—and to prevent anyone from running in to save me.

  I caught them off guard once. They were not going to let it happen again.

  Still stuck outside the force field, Eclipse’s eyes appraised me in my beaten-up state once more. Ice formed over his once easygoing eyes. He turned back to the Demons with a dark look on his face. I knew then why he was acting like a dumb human boy. His intention was to throw them off so that they would not be privy to his true identity. However, now that there was a protective barrier preventing him from getting to me, Eclipse no longer deemed it necessary to be polite and cordial.

  “You all have some nerve touching her like that,” he stated simply, his composed voice throbbing with rage.

  “We would’ve gone to get you, pretty boy,” San loftily said to Eclipse. He was still under the misguided notion that he was talking to some lowly human as opposed to one of the Princes of Hell. “You didn’t have to come here looking for us.”

  “Oh, come on, man,” Phix suddenly complained. From the corner of my eye, I could see that he was getting annoyed because Demon Girl, with her normally glaring eyes, was actually drooling over Eclipse’s impressive body. Come to think of it, nearly all the female Demons in the room were lusting after him—even if they didn’t want to admit it. “Is it really necessary to walk around with your shirt off?”

  Although Eclipse smirked, amusement did not reach his eyes.

  “You know, I was really looking forward to having a nice and relaxing night,” he shared with a hint of annoyance. “I was planning on seducing my girlfriend right after my shower and I was looking forward to having some fun fooling around with her.” Anger threaded his voice as he continued to move his hand over the protective barrier. “It goes without saying that I am very pissed that my ass had to walk around in the freezing cold to look for her.” His furious eyes fastened onto every Demon in the room. The next words out of his mouth were spoken with pure fury. “If you know what’s good for you, then you bottom-feeding parasites better let her go before I turn you all into ashes.”

  All around the room, the Demons’ eyes grew curious. The last thing they expected was this unusual threat from a human. Even though they didn’t know who he was, it was clear that many of the Demons were starting to fear Eclipse. The power that radiated from him—even from behind a protective force field—was undeniable.

  “Turn us all into ashes?” parroted San, assessing Eclipse under a brand new light. He was the only one in the group who did not look terrified of Eclipse and the only one who was able to deduce that Eclipse was not who he appeared to be.

  “He’s not human,” San finally shared with a curt laugh. His face illumed with amusement. He cordially inclined his head at Eclipse, impressed that he was able to conceal his true nature for so long. “A fellow Demon.”

  “That’s not possible,” said the Demon who had been sniffing my hair. “If he’s a Demon, then we would know.”

  “Not unless he’s a Dimmed Demon,” San said softly, knowingly. “A Demon who has had his powers stripped.” He eyed Eclipse, his amused smile still trained on him. “One cannot detect a Dimmed Demon, and vice versa, a Dimmed Demon cannot detect his fellow Demons, which is how this one must’ve gotten lost in our midst without any of us—or himself—being the wiser.”

  The red-haired Demon woman widened her eyes in shock. Her face paled exponentially. “Only an exceptionally powerful Demon would need to dim himself in order to walk around in the human world.”

  “Once powerful,” San corrected indifferently. He continued to stare at Eclipse with an entertained gaze. Behind him, the rest of his fellow Demons watched Eclipse with growing trepidation. “Now he’s merely a Demon who is teetering on being human.” San smirked before turning to me and then looking at Eclipse again. “Is she your own personal project?”

  “Let her go, you stupid cockroach,” Eclipse growled, his eyes becoming firmer. The steel in his voice was unbelievably intimidating. “I am not someone to fuck with.”

  “No wonder she wasn’t fazed by us Demons,” San went on with an air of nonchalance. “She has already been claimed.” He laughed at Eclipse, the amused smile morphing into a polite and civil one. San did not find Eclipse to be intimidating as the rest of his Demons did, but he did respect the aura that Eclipse radiated. He would rather have Eclipse on his side than against him. “I’m sure we can come to an arrangement, brother,” he appeased. “I do not want to fight you, especially when you seem like such a capable Demon. Join us, share her soul, and we’ll all benefit. Everyone can go home happy.”

  “I don’t share,” Eclipse dismissed without hesitancy.

  San smirked curtly, finally showing his distaste. Eclipse’s dismissal of his offer for peace was the last straw. “Then you get nothing.”

  “Seriously, why does she smell so good?” asked the strange Demon who was still sniffing my hair. “San, get
a whiff of her. She smells different from other humans.”

  I didn’t know what he was talking about until I realized that the side of my mouth was cut.

  Shit.

  My blood.

  It wasn’t my hair that smelled good to the Demon. It was my blood.

  Annoyed with the Demon and clearly wanting to shut him up, San came beside me. He grabbed the strands of hair that had touched the bloodied cut from my mouth, closed his eyes, and inhaled it. I could see Eclipse hold his breath when San did this. Even from a distance, he could see that my blood had transferred onto the tendril of my hair.

  Several heartbeats of silence filled the room before San opened his eyes. If it was possible, the fires in his eyes burned even brighter. I thought he was excited when he found out I was the six-year-old murderer, but it was nothing compared to the excitement pouring out of him now.

  “A Source,” he breathed out in amazement.

  As soon as he voiced this, a paralyzing silence swam over the Demons before cheers of excitement spread like wildfire throughout the room.

  “A Source!”

  “We have a Source!”

  They celebrated like they had found the elixir of life. Considering how powerful my blood and heart would make them, I didn’t doubt that they had every right to cheer like this.

  “No wonder the Dimmed Demon doesn’t want to share,” a Demon from the crowd voiced as they turned to Eclipse, their eyes mocking. “Storing your own personal Source?”

  By now, Eclipse had lost all his patience. “You worthless pieces of shit,” he growled, his voice thundering past the field and spilling over all of us. “If you knew who I am, then you wouldn’t even dare to breathe in my presence.”

  Phix stiffened up beside me. Completely struck by Eclipse’s words, he hesitantly asked, “Who are you?”

  Eclipse smirked darkly. “What other Demon would have no use for a Source’s heart or blood?”

  I not only felt Phix stiffen up further, but I could also hear Demon Girl gasp in disbelief. The two of them had the “oh shit” reaction while the rest simply laughed mockingly.

  “A Dark Majesty?” the other Demons questioned in between laughs. They didn't believe him. With too much enjoyment, one of the Demons in the back jeered, “Why the hell would a Dark Majesty drive around in that piece of shit car?”

  A flush of embarrassment colored Eclipse’s face. He briefly quelled his furious expression at the reminder of the Rav4.

  “That’s a good point,” he murmured, obviously agreeing with this assessment. He hated my car, and life or death situations or not, he wasn’t going to back down from that belief. “Whatever the case,” he prompted, reverting back to the important matter at hand, “lower this force field and get the hell away from her now.”

  “I don’t think so,” San dismissed, already motioning for several Demons to come forward. “A Source is a rare commodity. She’s staying with us and she’s staying with us for a very long time.”

  “Get away from me!” I screamed when two Demons produced knives from their pockets and began to inch towards me. Panic burned through me with the strength of an inferno. I helplessly struggled against the bonds that held me, desperate to get away from my attackers. “Get away from me!”

  At the sight of me crying out in fear, Eclipse started to go crazy behind the invisible wall.

  “Get the fuck away from her!” he roared above my screams. He began to punch and kick at the force field, using all his strength to break it so he could save me.

  While Eclipse attacked the barrier from the outside, I could feel the blades breathe beside my neck, ready to cut into my skin. The sharp knives were millimeters from my neck when I suddenly felt my chair tilt backwards.

  It all played out so quickly. One moment, I was sitting on the chair, and the next, I was falling backwards and being caught by Phix and Demon Girl. To my surprise, they began to cut me free with their own knives.

  “Come on, little human,” Phix whispered, helping me stand up from the chair.

  They were able to save my neck from being slashed apart, but they couldn’t save my arm. Just as I felt them pull me away from the stampede of Demons charging for me, a blade suddenly cut through the flesh of my left arm.

  “Ahhh!”

  An agonized scream poured from my mouth as I fell back to the floor with Demon Girl acting as my cushion. Without any hesitation, she protectively wrapped her arms around me and pulled me to the corner of the room. We hid behind a large pillar while Phix crouched in front of us. He had a knife held out, pointing directly at the mob of Demons surrounding us. I didn’t understand what had gotten into Phix and Demon Girl. Why were they saving me all of a sudden?

  “Ugh.”

  I pressed my head against the pillar as blood continued to drip from the wound on my arm. I did not have the energy to wonder about their motivations behind saving me when I was surrounded by Demons who wanted to kill me. As I applied pressure to my wound, I looked up at my assailant.

  It was none other than San.

  There was a ravenous look on his face that terrified my very being. With my blood dripping freely from his knife, San tipped his head back and allowed the blood to trickle into his mouth. The results were instantaneous. As soon as he ingested my blood, his eyes glowed with the most powerful hue of red I had ever seen. Even with just a small taste of my blood, I knew that his powers had grown exponentially.

  Phix, Demon Girl, and I gulped uneasily.

  We were in danger before when these Demons had us cornered, but now, with their leader becoming more powerful from my blood, we were definitely in for a taste of Hell.

  From outside, I could hear Eclipse going crazy, still fighting to get to me. He was unaware that I had been injured until he caught sight of the blood pouring from my arm. Wrath filled his typically cool eyes.

  And then . . . he lost it.

  The world seemed to have stopped breathing.

  A cold draft entered the room, washing over the air like an ocean and acting as the harbinger of death. A light bulb above us began to flicker menacingly while the cold breeze became cooler. Akin to everyone sensing Eclipse’s power, a foreboding hush presided over us. Then, when Eclipse’s brown eyes morphed into the most beautiful aquamarine hue I had ever seen, the once peaceful setting changed dramatically.

  Boom!

  The light bulbs in the room simultaneously burst apart, sending shards of glass to rain over the room. Not even the ceiling was spared from Eclipse’s fury. As though being pulled at by a hurricane, the roof tore open, releasing a stream of violent wind to terrorize the room. An onslaught of panic struck the room as this maelstrom of destruction took place.

  The only one who remained calm and in control was Eclipse. With rage embedded in his aquamarine eyes, he slowly extended his right hand and raised it above him.

  “Ahhhhh!”

  Screams penetrated the room when fifty Demons were lifted up in the air like puppets on an invisible string. They became nothing but wall fixtures pressed against the force field, which appeared to be in the shape of a dome. The only ones left on the ground floor were Phix, Demon Girl, San, and myself.

  San’s eyes were still glowing red after ingesting my blood. He looked pompous and unafraid of the power Eclipse displayed.

  I could feel my anger towards him start to cultivate. It infuriated me that he dared to drink my blood. I didn’t want him to gain any powers from it. I wanted him to be punished for what he did to me—just like everyone else.

  Return my blood, a cold voice inside my head ordered.

  A surge of energy seemed to have rummaged through San’s body, but then, just as quickly, his face twisted in anguish. Unable to withstand the pain, his knees buckled beneath him. I wondered what was happening to him, and I knew he had the same question in his head. My blood was supposed to strengthen him, not weaken him.

  “Even with a drop of a Source’s blood,” Eclipse said evenly, answering our unspoken questions, “yo
u are not strong enough to overpower me.”

  San smirked while the rest of his Demons bellowed in agony at the torture Eclipse was bestowing upon them. To San, there was no longer any doubt that Eclipse was indeed a Dark Majesty.

  “Even if you kill me,” San started, announcing something that set us both on edge, “do you think you can stop what’s happening?”

  Eclipse lifted a brow in feigned interest. He looked bored with San, but entertained him anyway. “And what exactly is happening?”

  “There is a new royalty in town, your former Dark Majesty,” San managed to say before he cradled his stomach and gasped for air. He collapsed face-first to the ground and began to writhe on the floor as though someone was ripping his insides apart. Though he was moments from death, he never once shut up. A manic laugh escaped from him while he continued with excitement. “Your monarchy—your father’s monarchy—is breaking and breaking fast. And when it’s all over, a new dynasty will come into power.” Blood started to gush from his smirking mouth. “Go ahead and kill me. It is already an honor to serve the new regime. It is also an honor to see Lucifer’s son act all high and mighty for the last time—right before his Kingdom gets taken away from him.”

  An icy smirk appeared on Eclipse’s lips. Unaffected by San’s words, Eclipse merely tilted his head and asked something that caused San and the rest of the Demons to freeze in horror.

  “Do you even know which Prince I am?”

  Foreboding silence collapsed over San, and Eclipse chose that moment to finally enlighten him.

  “Lust,” Eclipse revealed simply.

  An all-consuming gasp rocketed throughout the room.

  San turned a shade paler.

  “That’s right,” Eclipse taunted, already knowing the effect this information would have on these Demons. “The one born under the eclipse.”

  Still thunderstruck, San shakily said, “But the youngest Prince is said to have never walked the earth.”

  “He walks now,” Eclipse replied darkly. “Your God walks the earth and he is full of rage. You may have never met me, but I’m sure you’ve heard of my reputation. You know the powers I am able to wield and the wrath I am capable of bestowing on those who have angered me.”