61
Assyria was tossed forward onto the platform with the type of care I would expect from a fucking Angel. A growl rumbled in my chest, and the Parancsok with me tensed.
But then, our eyes collided, and our bond flooded with emotion.
“Assyria!”
I shouted down it.
“Oh, Fates, Rokath, can you hear me?”
“Yes, Assyria, I am so sorry.”
“They knocked me out with some sort of drug that prevented me from contacting you. It must have finally worn off completely.”
The male Angel stepped forward, and a flash of recognition swept over me. My eyes narrowed on his forehead. Through the wisps of hair, I saw the raised H in his forehead.
The fucking irony.
But then, a realization settled over me. Kiira’s vision had been wrong. Unless I planned on carting Zaph’s head from Lutsk to Sivy, I wouldn’t carry it through the streets, proclaiming my victory.
If I killed him now, would we lose?
The thought tightened my throat, making it even harder to breathe. I forced my attention to Assyria, my beautiful, bold mate. “I am so sorry, Assyria. I should have protected you better.”
“They want to sacrifice me for the Goddess.”
The way her voice broke told me just how terrified she was. Anguish tore through me, and I wanted nothing more than to capture her in my arms and tell her it would all be okay.
But I couldn’t make that promise, not when this insane male had my mate locked in his grip.
Zaph yanked a blade from a sheath at his side.
I flicked my attention to the Angels standing with triumphant grins behind Assyria. Then, I turned my head ever so slightly to the side and dropped my voice low so only the Parancsok beside me could hear. “They plan on making a spectacle of her sacrifice. If they should succeed, you know what to do to end them. I will help however I can.”
“Aye,”
he whispered back, and I was grateful we had donned our full-face masks that covered our mouths. Not like the Angels could hear or understand us if we spoke Demonic. Only a few spoke the language of the other, given our intense hatred. The common tongue was the usual choice for any diplomatic communication.
Not like this encounter was one of those.
No, this was a confrontation with a singular purpose: revenge.
“What are you going to do?”
she asked, a hint of hope leaking into her voice.
“Halálhívó,”
Zaph said, lifting his dagger higher and letting it glint in the sunlight. “It appears you can follow instructions after all.”
“I don’t see why that was ever in question,”
I growled, crossing my arms over my broad chest to emphasize my physical prowess. “If I remember correctly, during our last altercation I told you to fly away and tell the Koron you started a war. It appears you too can follow instructions. Now can we get on with this or do I need to give you another lesson? Perhaps a nice H on your cock?”
His triumphant grin slid into a hateful jeer. “I have the upper hand here.”
I cocked my head to the side. “Do you?”
Turquoise was not the most powerful eye color in the Angel Realm, and the male still only held the equivalent rank of a Százados, given the armor he wore. I nearly huffed a laugh. Not only was this plot one borne of revenge, but also one to show himself off to his superiors, no doubt to atone for his past mistake of starting the war in the first place.
His face reddened at my nonchalant attitude, and he swept the dagger to Assyria’s throat.
“Trust me,”
I quickly told her down our bond.
She closed her eyes briefly like she was steeling herself to do just that.
“Do you want her to die?”
he hissed. “Because I will kill her right now. Sacrifice her to the Goddess and thank Her for the gifts she bestowed upon us to help win this war and exterminate the Demons.”
“I have no doubt you think you will. But where would that leave you? Her blood wouldn’t even hit the ground before our forces would overwhelm yours. You are outnumbered two to one at the very least,”
I pointed out, turning slowly to face the horde of Demons at my back and sweeping a hand over their expanse. They bared their teeth in turn, flashing thousands of pointed canines in the sun.
“You came unarmed,”
he retorted, sticking his nose in the air.
“So? Our magical prowess far exceeds yours. And besides, I am the Halálhívó. The moment there are bodies on the ground, they become mine to wield as I please.”
I rolled my neck and sighed, acting like the conversation was boring me.
“You make a fair point. Which is why I am offering you a parlay,”
the male said, his tone filling with something that gave me pause.
This was why I had come, and finally, we were getting to the heart of what he wanted.
“Your mate’s life, or the lives of all your soldiers here. Choose.”
Ice shattered through my veins as my blood went cold. Assyria too, blanched, those big burgundy eyes immediately brimming with tears.
His trade was not what I expected it to be in the slightest, and I had no idea how to proceed.
Giving my life for hers, sure, I could have gotten myself out of that handily. Readily, with chains on my wrists too. That was what I expected of the Angels. Slice off the head of the snake to win.
This wasn’t it. Not even close.
But I couldn’t falter, not now. “Are you serious? That’s it? I am the greatest general in the history of Ravasz, and I pity your commander for having to lead such an idiot. I’ll give you another chance to come up with a better offer, since this was so pitiful.”
“If it’s so awful, why don’t you take advantage of it?” he asked.
I gritted my teeth. He had to know more than he let on.
“Banand and Zurronar are alive. They were being held where I was, and they said that others had been captured too. That’s how they knew about me in the first place. I assume those males told them about your conscription plans too,”
Assyria said in a rush. She must have been reading my thoughts.
Shock raced through me. Yet another twist to add to the events of the day. “Of course that’s what happened,”
I grumbled, trying desperately to think of a solution, a way out of this. If the knife wasn’t pressed against Assyria’s neck…
She was too far away for me to use my shadows to free her, and with the line of Angels between us, and the desperation of this group, I didn’t trust that knocking Zaph away would truly save her life. The zealots would each leap at an opportunity to slice into her and deliver a killing blow.
“You realize if I choose my mate, and these fifty thousand males die, I will raise them all and slaughter you anyway?”
I forced a condescending laugh.
Zaph offered me one in return. “I am not that stupid.”
With his free hand, he produced two silver stakes from his pocket and waved them around. Cackles rose from the Angels around him. “Once you agree to the bargain, I will force you to your knees and hammer these through your hands.”
He yanked Assyria flush against his chest as if he were anticipating my immediate retaliation for the addition to his bargain. Yet instead of fury, calm acceptance settled across my shoulders.
Kiira’s vision would come to pass; Zaph’s time to die wasn’t today.
But he would die. Slowly. Painfully. I’d carve my name and Assyria’s into his flesh before I peeled it from his bones. Then, I’d snatch those out too, one by one, until he was as spineless as he had always acted. His heart would give out long before I stopped slaking my thirst for blood on his body.
Assyria’s burgundy eyes met mine, shining and sad.“I know how much these soldiers mean to you, Rokath. How much they mean to the safety of all the Demons. You never wanted me to begin with. You only tolerated me because I wore you down. You can recover and fight soon enough after they kill me. Just please get it over with. And if you can, make it quick. Burn my body so I can be with my sister in another life. Find love in another life.”
The sorrow and defeat in her voice ripped my soul in two. What she didn’t know, because I’d been unable to tell her, was that the moment I realized she was missing was the moment I realized exactly how much I wanted her. Needed her. Craved her. Loved her. How I felt when I tried to tell her before was nothing compared to the depth of my devotion to her now.
“I will not let you die,”
I growled in her mind.
“I’m not worth fifty thousand males, Rokath. I know how much is at stake.”
Those words gutted me.
“Little imposter, you are worth a hundred thousand, a million, lives to me. There is no number big enough for me to trade for your life. You are mine, to claim, to hold, to protect. To love. Because, Assyria, I fucking love you. Love that you smell like a garden even after days without bathing. Love how you care for Grem and Zeec. Love the way you scream my name, my real name, as you shatter. Love how you push back on my horseshit, burn me with all the fire you have to offer. I should have been better to you before. Should have been good to you all along. Because you deserve it. The Fates knew what they were doing when they brought us together. You are perfect for me in every way. I’m sorry I didn’t force you to listen to me when I wanted to tell you before.”
Tears cascaded down her cheeks, and her lower lip trembled.
“I want you. I need you. I love you. You will not die today.”
A storm of emotions swept through her and down our bond. She believed she was cursed by the Reaper to have everyone she loved killed in some way. So when she said those four words I’d been dying to hear, they struck me like a bolt of lightning. “I love you too, Rokath.”
These fifty thousand males had fought well, and I knew there was no way to save them both. I’d done everything I could to wind Zaph up in hopes he’d make a mistake. Ten years was a long time to think a plan like this through, and he had, in fact, thought of everything. That understanding didn’t slake the guilt settling in my gut.
Swallowing down all the emotion that had worked its way up my throat, I said, “I choose her.”
An audible gasp ripped from the throats of the Parancsok. Zaph cackled like he’d been suddenly named Zahal of the Angel army. “The deal is done. Step forward, Halálhívó.”
I didn’t look at my officers as I left them. I couldn’t, not when I needed to ensure our victory came to pass. I had to trust Kiira’s vision; I had to trust the Weaver’s path. Besides Assyria, it was all I had left.
The Angels jumped them immediately, pinning them to the ground while I ascended the stage. Zaph threw Assyria away, and I wanted to leap out and catch her, but two Angels snatched her before I could. They held knives to her before I could blink.
As chaos unfolding behind me, I knelt at the feet of Zaph, the fucking insect continuing to buzz around my life, and flattened my palms on the wood. Glee shone in his eyes as he bent down, the first stake poised over the tendons in my hand. I gritted my teeth and braced for the pain, trying to shove up a barrier around my mind to save Assyria from it.
“Don’t you fucking dare,”
she snapped in my mind. “Look at me.”
I lifted my head, our gazes colliding with the force of an earthquake.
“We’re in this together. Let me share the pain,”
she pleaded, a line forming between her brows.
Her words speared straight to a soft part of me that I’d hidden so deep I wasn’t sure it would ever see the light again. “You have no idea what that means to me.”
“After this is over, you’ll tell me,”
she said, conviction threading her tone.
Agony ripped up my arm as the stake drove into my hand. I clenched my jaw, refusing to show him a single flicker of change in my being. Zaph sniggered, then pinned the other one without so much as letting me suck in another breath. The shadow swirling in my chest leeched of color and halted all their movement.
Still, I kept my attention on Assyria’s devious burgundy eyes. I could endure this for her.
I’d do anything for her.
Including giving up what I’d worked so hard to build.
The screams started then as the Angels moved on the Demons. Zaph hadn’t even given me the decency of watching my brave soldiers die for my decision. It was the least I could do.
“I will watch for you,”
Assyria said, and then, I was looking through her eyes.
Not like any of them would ever know.
The officers were slaughtered in quick succession. An Angel slashed each of their throats from behind, sending blood spraying over the salt flats. The Demons yelled at once another to move, to flee, but it was too late. From the rear, more Angels floated over the ridge, and with grim acceptance, I realized the healers and wounded were likely already dead.
Surrounded from all sides and weaponless, the Demons used their magic to defend themselves, exploding bits of rock here, using their blood however they could, rendering nightmares to the oncoming Angels.
It was useless when they had blades and Amplifiers.
A blinding white light burst from a group in the sky, and combined with the sun, most were forced to shield their eyes. Arrows showered them like acid rain, killing in droves.
Nausea churned in Assyria’s gut, and still, she watched for me.
I sliced a glare in Zaph’s direction, a sadistic smile playing over his face. Like the death of fifty thousand of us was amusing to him. The Angels were sick fuckers, and his attitude, the way he seemed to vibrate with triumphant energy, made me want to redouble my efforts once this was all over.
At least we’d sent the more powerful ones off for further training.
It was the only solace I took in losing what I’d worked so hard to gain.
By the time the screams died, along with the last of my soldiers, my knees ached from where they pressed into the wood, and the blood spurting from my wounds had dried on my skin. I didn’t dare shift, not wanting to risk permanently injuring my hands. I’d have some wicked fucking scars there regardless. But the muscles, the tendons, the bones? I needed those to wield a blade and slice Zaph’s head clean from his shoulders.
The male turned to me as Angels streamed past into their camp and made quick work of tearing it down. “I could kill you right now, you know.”
I scoffed and rolled my eyes, though I doubted it was visible through the slits of my helmet. “No, you couldn’t. You’d have to get close enough to remove my armor, and then I’d yank these stakes out of the wood and stab them through your heart. Then, I’d twist them so they shredded it to pieces as you bled out from the injury. It would be extremely painful, and after what you just did to my battalion, there is nothing I would enjoy more.”
Zaph blanched as I painted the brutal picture for him. “Well, I could. But I won’t because we need to rejoin the rest of the Angel army and inform them of our great victory here today. The infamous Halálhívó on his knees for me.”
Assyria jerked against the males holding her, offering Zaph a feral growl. He whipped around and stalked toward her, grabbing her face in his hand and pinching her jaw. “Do. Not. Touch. Her,”
I snarled, shoulders flexing as I prepared for the pain that would come with following through on my earlier threat.
He laughed and threw her head to the side. “Tie her to that pole.”
He jerked his head to one at the rear corner of the platform, out of reach from me. Silver bangles still adorned her wrists as the two secured her to it, hands behind her back.
Clearly, they planned on being some distance away by the time we managed to free ourselves from our predicament. The Angels walked away, laughing at their exploit. Already, the far reaches of their camp had moved out, and the rest weren’t far behind.
Assyria and I locked eyes, and the sheer love I saw in them made me even weaker at the knees. I wanted nothing more than to hold her against my chest, feel her skin against mine, and inhale the garden-like scent that called me home.
Emotion hadn’t been part of my life for centuries. Yet this bold, brilliant female smashed my walls to pieces and forced me to feel again. I knew why the Weaver had laid this path and why the Giver had blessed us with a mating bond.
Because I needed to change, and all of the Demon Realm did too.