Chapter 8 Sye
CHAPTER EIGHT
SYE
One of them snaps their hand, and the penthouse that was immaculately decorated with their pretty little mama in mind all but disappears, and Slater, Yamir, and Enzo move through the rooms with a focused energy.
The things they leave in the space include Melanie’s favorite white couch, the Christmas tree, and all the presents they’d spent the day meticulously wrapping, as well as a few books and smaller objects.
“You have tape on you.” Yamir chuckles, snatching the tape off Enzo’s back, causing him to flinch.
“You did that on purpose,” Enzo growls, and Yamir points the middle finger at him.
“So,” he raises a brow, and Enzo goes to tackle him, but Slater steps in the way.
“We don’t have time for this right now. Now that we have Mama taken care of, we need to make sure the Hellfire is secured. Have you reached out to the other Cerberuses in the other Hells?” he asks his brothers, and Yamir nods.
“A few of them said they’ll help and smuggle some out, but some haven’t responded. Apparently, the Hells are busy preparing for the turn of the Demon kings.” Yamir shoves his hair out of his face, sighing, and Enzo rubs the back of his neck, tired.
“What are they so up in arms about? Last we heard, the Demon Kings have barely manifested their powers… only Lust has manifested a fraction of his powers, and they haven’t even confronted their reincarnations. We have time, why are they rushing?” He grits.
“Well, from what I heard, they are hoping this can get more of them to manifest and confront their reincarnations sooner. If we’re lucky, we can get some in all the chaos, but it won’t be nearly enough for Hellhounds who were born in the fire closest to the Demon Emperor…
” Yamir speaks, and they all go quiet, a heavy feeling falling over them.
“Hey, why are we acting so depressed when we have Mama to care for? Whatever we can get our hands on, we will make it work for her. If we can’t get Hellfire, we can just go to places with miasma.” Enzo, the optimist of the group, tries to bring their spirits higher, but Slater growls.
“You know that’s easier said than done. You know the Miasma on Earth is lacking…
in order for us to get even close enough, we will have to go to places of war and famine…
There are only a handful of countries that come to mind that will sustain us, and we would need such large amounts we would have to—”
“Kill innocents.” Yamir finishes Slater's sentence, and they go quiet, feeling somber, the weight of their decision heavy on their hearts.
They are hellhounds… tens of thousands of years old.
Death means nothing to them. The number of times they have invaded Earth with the sins when the world was ending soon after all the calamities gathered are too many to count.
They have ended so many humans and other creatures that they have lost count.
Yet now… the thought of killing innocents makes them feel sick to their stomachs.
Not because they have suddenly developed morals, no…
it’s all because of her. Their Everything.
Their pretty one. Their mate. They are sure that if she found out their true nature, she would leave, and the mere thought…
they flare their noses and their heart rates escalate as their murderous intent invades the space, and it takes them everything to reign it in.
“Look, thinking about the worst-case scenario is pointless right now. I say we try to sneak into Hell and get as much Hellfire as we can, then worry about the rest later,” Enzo implores as he goes over to stand by the window, watching the city lights as if he’s trying to spot Melanie.
But when he can’t, he looks a bit faded, the usual spark in his eyes dimming as he hungers for her.
“I hate to admit it, but Enzo is right,” Yamir points out. “Once the portals close, we’ll do our best to scrape by however we can. We might slowly starve, but we won’t die, and none of that matters as long as we have her.”
Slater pauses near the bookshelf, his large hands resting on Melanie’s favorite novels.
“I know the risk,” he growls. “And I agree. We might get weaker, and our bodies won’t heal as fast, and eventually, we might not even be able to shift at all.
But life on the run while starved with her is better than an eternity of prosperity without her.
We have to make it work,” he grumbles, and they nod.
That’s when the air in the room goes completely stale, and a pang unlike anything the Hellhounds who have fought gods in the past have ever felt courses through their bodies.
All three of them freeze. A sharp, sickening pull at their chest makes their knees weak, and their hearts feel like they will explode.
“Melanie!” they gasp in unison and waste no time talking. They combine their strength and force a hole through the apartment’s floor, tearing a jagged rift through space and leaping through, landing on a freezing, slush-covered highway.
However, what drives the brothers’ knees to weaken and breaths to nearly stop in their chest is the sight of their love…
their everything, Melanie’s little body flat on the asphalt next to her crumpled car that is lying in a wreck against a guardrail, smoke pouring from the engine.
A group of armed men stands around the wreckage, and they see a highborn demon glaring down at them like he is enjoying himself.
Without a moment’s hesitation, the brothers crash into the crowd with unstoppable force, overwhelming their enemies in a violent surge.
Enzo, get to Mama. Yamir and I will hold them back. Slater urgently shouts to his brother telepathically while he and Yamir run off.
Got it! They rush to their love, heart pounding, praying to The Source it’s not too late.
Yamir’s form blurs as he barrels into a pack of armed men, tackling three before they can even draw their weapons. His jaws snap shut on whatever comes close, each bone-crunching bite driven by untamed fury.
Slater charges through a wall of fire, ignoring the few shots that ring out as bullets bounce off him, scattering across the highway.
He seizes the nearest assailant by the skull, lifting him effortlessly, and then drives him into the asphalt with relentless force.
The ground shudders, leaving a jagged crater beneath the limp body.
Enzo moves like a liquid shadow, weaving around the chaos.
His claws flash as he tears through the men, each swipe sending them flying and scattering weapons across the icy pavement.
The highborn demon steps back, sneering, but Enzo’s eyes lock on him with murderous intent.
The three brothers, snarling and covered in blood, press forward until the last of the attackers falls.
Their focus snaps to the twisted wreck where Melanie lies, pale and barely moving. The brothers close in, forming a wall around her. Enzo drops to his knees beside her, trembling, while Slater and Yamir circle protectively, eyes wild and desperate.
“You dared to touch what is ours,” Slater’s voice is a tectonic rumble, vibrating through the demon’s bones.
“Enzo, how is she? Tell us now!” Yamir pleads desperately, his mind still on her pale face and how she was barely breathing when they came through the portal.
With shaking hands, Enzo presses his ear to her lips, desperate for any sign she’s still with them.
His brothers close in around them, forming a shield and growling a warning that they refuse to let anyone close.
Nothing else matters except keeping her safe.
When he hears the faint sign of life, his heart skips, and tears pool in his eyes.
She’s alive. He tells them, and they all blink back tears while staring at the fucker who did this to her.
Thank The Source! Now wake her! Slater demands, but no matter how hard Enzo shakes her, she won’t wake up.
What the hell is going on? Why do I feel her life-force slipping? Yamir panics.
“MAMA! W-WAKE UP!” Enzo roars, his voice thick with terror. The icy air hangs heavy with the aftermath of violence, but all he can focus on is the fragile hope flickering in her eyes.
Anger overcomes them when a loud cackle resounds around them, and their eyes go back to the highborn Demon.
“Look at you! Seventh Hell’s Cerberus done in by a mere human!
” he laughs. “Have you no shame?!” he grits out, making them growl, bearing fangs.
“You can growl and kill as many of us as you want. I can guarantee you will not survive this!” he screeches.
“They will just send more even if you kill me!”
“Then let them send as many as they want!” Yamir growls, pounding the earth, causing the demon to quiver.
“Yes, let them. They will die just like you,” Slater snarls as he lunges for the demon’s neck.
“SHE IS INFECTED WITH BANESROOT!” the demon shouts, his false bravado crumbling when he feels his life will end, and that causes all of them to pause.
“Say that again,” Enzo sneers, his heart hammering in his chest. Banesroot… no… by The Source, please let it be a lie! That is one of the four heavenly flowers with no cure.
“Y-you know Banesroot affects those like us… those with power and sinister origin. A human like her would be unaffected by such a thing… that is until you were bonded to her. Now, your sins are hers to bare. Her frail body can’t withstand its poison…” the demon reveals, and Slater dashes for him.
“WE HAVE A CURE!” the highborn demon shrieks and holds out a small glass bottle as if it were a shield. “I… I know w-what you’re th-th-thinking, but we have a c-cure!”
“LIES!” Slater barks, ready to tear him apart as the being shakes in fear.
“Truly! We have discovered an elixir exists after the events of the Hunt. King Murdoch himself has been cured of his madness. We don’t know how, but his Kingdom has developed a cure for the poison, though it is hard for the realms close to the Demon Kings to acquire it.
The supplier has forbidden the sale to any demons associated with the Kings, so we have to procure it in a special way! ”
“YOU DARE LIE IN OUR FACE?!” Yamir snaps, foaming at the mouth with anger.
“You come here to poison our mate and lie to us?” Enzo howls, losing his mind, holding their love.
Slater steps up to him, his shadow looming over the demon as he shifts and reaches out to wrap a hand around his throat, lifting him off his feet. Yamir and Enzo growl in the background, their bodies still tense and ready to kill.
The highborn demon gasps for air, clawing at Slater’s hands, but even when his hands are ripped to bloody bones, Slater holds on tight.
“P-PROOF!” the demon croaks as he drops the vial, and it rolls to Melanie’s side.
Quickly, Enzo snatches the bottle up and uncorks it, smelling it and tasting it.
When he senses it’s not poison, he looks to his brothers, and they, with a desperation they have never before felt, nod.
Enzo tips the vial, pressing the bottle against her lips.
The beautiful green liquid sparkles like emeralds on a sunny day as soon as it touches her lips, and the demon gasps.
“S-see?! I-it’s a s-sign th-that the antidote i-is working!” he chokes out incoherently.
The brothers stare in disbelief, but a few seconds later, Melanie coughs and her eyes flutter open. She looks up at them, confused and weak.
“S-Sye… I… I.. k-knew y-you would c-come,” she pants, and Yamir immediately takes her in his arms, holding her tight while Slater steps to the side to shield her from the bodies scattered across the highway before he looks back at the highborn demon one last time, ready to snap his neck.
“She w-won’t s-survive!” he gasps the second he feels their bloodlust. “Th-the antid-dote o-only wo-orks for a sh-short p-period… sh-she w-w-will need r-regular d-doses … and th-the o-only way t-to g-get that is H-Hell!” he laughs.
“Y-you w-want to r-run? W-well go ahead. W-what w-will you d-do wh-when your m-mate l-loses h-her m-mind and d-dies?!” he cackles, and the world falls silent. All you can hear is the snow falling.
Slater grits and the high demon smiles, but the brothers feel a presence akin to the Demon Kings, but lesser.
“WHAT DO WE HAVE TO DO?!” Yamir howls to the being that’s taken over the body of the highborn demon.
“COME TO HELL! WE WILL SUPPLY YOU AS MUCH OF THE ANTIDOTE AS YOU NEED. ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS KEEP LUST FROM ESCAPING… BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY.” He smirks, and the brothers look from the demon to their mate. They take no time to deliberate.
“Fine, but she comes, too,” Enzo voices, and the demon howls out a laugh.
“A human in hell? Interesting. Fine, do what you want. Just keep Lust from escaping, and your human will live,” the being says, and the body goes limp and lifeless. Slater tosses it aside and runs over to Melanie, holding her.
“We must go. Even if it goes against our values to fight against our king. For her, we will become the villains.”
“You mean we’ll die… there’s no way we’ll survive Lord Lust.” Enzo frowns, and Yamir nods.
“But we must. For her… for our mate, we will endure any pain,” he states, picking her up.
They sling Lionel over their shoulder before dropping him into a rift that will lead him home, and with one final roar that echoes off the hills, the brothers step through the rift, taking Melanie with them into the darkness to save her life.