Chapter Seven
Atlas
This was amazing!
Watching a group of about twenty or so demons working on hand-to-hand combat was not something that Atlas had ever imagined would even be possible.
Asmos handed him a glass of iced lemonade although his gaze was still locked on the show in front of them.
“We really should be inside working,” Ari said while straightening his little bow tie and blushing. His mate had just picked up a seven-foot demon and slammed him into the ground, making it shake under them. Impressive.
“You just want your mate to take you into the back of the archives and show you how—”
Ari slammed his palm over Adam’s mouth before Adam could finish his sentence. “Shh! They’ll hear us!”
Atlas, Asmos, and Seb all snickered.
In Atlas’s opinion, Ari had to be the cutest demon that he’d ever seen.
With a monster of a mate. Not that Atlas was thinking of monsters the same way as he’d done a few days ago.
The word had a whole new meaning to him now.
These warriors could be considered monsters but they were training to protect mates like him, Adam, Seb, and others.
They weren’t the only ones sitting on a large blanket under a tree admiring the training session. Demons and other paranormal creatures were scattered around the yard as well.
And shocking Atlas most of all, above his new friends, the demon warrior, was the hellhound that was lying against Atlas’s legs.
An actual hellhound.
Seb had claimed that Jasmine was a puppy but the hellhound was bigger than any dog that Atlas had seen in the human realm. She was also the sweetest. Even if Atlas was a little worried about the flames that appeared and disappeared around his legs. Apparently, Jasmin was growing into her power.
With his free hand, Atlas petted one of Jasmin’s floppy ears. Such a good giant puppy. At least with Jasmin as a full hellhound Atlas could enjoy being around her without the worry of any flickers.
Atlas had to avoid looking at Adam and any paranormal that had dual natures. Or that was what Seb had suggested might be the real issue that Atlas was faced with. Not a glamour problem. His new friends had been busy before Atlas had even arrived.
Seb had explained that if shifters were mostly the issue, then they might not be able to count on magic being the answer. Glamour relied on magic but shifters could transform naturally. He was still looking for a better answer. At least until Bel had gone into the human realm.
Bel had been hesitant to leave Atlas. With the mage Dean unable to come to him, Bel was transporting to the pack.
And since the pack was full of shifters, it was better for Atlas to stay in hell with demons who didn’t cause his flickers.
Atlas didn’t mind. It gave him time to get to know Seb, Ari, Asmos, and Adam better.
Along with some of the minions that Adam had claimed as his own.
The minions were all demons. Some big and some small. Different colors, body types, and personalities. Atlas liked them already. And they obviously adored Adam.
“Oh!” Asmos bounced. “It’s time for the sword practice.”
Swords. Long gleaming blades of black and silver flashed in the sunlight.
Seb sighed. “My mate could take on all these warriors.”
“Not mine,” Ari argued, his gaze locked on his own mate. “My mate is the strongest.”
“Uh, guys,” Adam said with a laugh. “Mated to the master of punishment and a duke.”
Seb and Ari groaned good-naturedly.
Atlas cleared his throat. “Demon prince.”
Asmos squealed so loudly that everyone in the area turned to look at them.
“Shh!” Seb smacked at Asmos’s arm.
Ari ducked his head, nearly hiding behind Asmos’s bigger body.
Adam grinned and laughed.
“You’re going to mate!” Asmos screamed.
“Inside,” Seb ordered. “Everyone inside now!”
Ari jumped up and scurried off without waiting for them. Asmos hopped up, somehow managing to get Atlas in his arms. Atlas didn’t have much of a choice with being carried as Asmos raced toward the doors. Adam and Seb and Jasmine followed at a slower pace, obviously amused by Asmos.
“I promise I can walk, buddy,” Atlas said, patting Asmos’s shoulder.
“Not fast enough,” Asmos argued. “I need all the details. All of them. I’ll tell Cary, don’t worry!”
“So you just want the gossip first,” Atlas teased.
Asmos bounced him like he was a toddler. Not that it was his fault that Atlas was a normal human size surrounded by giants. Okay, he was small for a human too. It was just being surrounded by demons Atlas had no chance of ever getting the upper hand.
“Yes! I am so glad that you understand. I knew we were going to be great friends.” Asmos carried him up the steps to the archive building.
“Asmos is going to have all the friends,” Adam declared behind them.
“I am!” Asmos agreed happily.
“I would be proud to be your friend,” Atlas told him.
And he meant the words with his whole heart.
He’d always been the odd kid. Having flickers and keeping that secret meant that Atlas stood out to the kids that he’d gone to school with.
At least Atlas didn’t have to worry about fitting in with his new friends.
They just accepted his differences and made plans on how to work around them.
Asmos smacked a loud wet kiss on his cheek. “I’m so glad Bel found you!”
“I found him,” Atlas clarified. “I get all the credit for this.”
“I get credit too!” Asmos declared, pushing out his bottom lip.
Ari held the door open for them as Asmos continued to pout.
Entering the cool interior of the archives was a drastic change from the hot outside. Even in the shade the heat had been hard to ignore. And according to Adam, this was one of the cooler planes. Adam lived at the core, which was the hottest and it was where the pits of hell were located.
“You can put him down,” Seb said once they reached the space that had a long table covered in books and paper.
“I want to know everything,” Asmos claimed.
“Not going anywhere,” Atlas assured him.
It appeared Asmos only set him on his feet with deep regret. He didn’t let Atlas go far, throwing a heavy arm over Atlas’s shoulder.
Atlas turned to lean against the table as Seb and Ari sat in chairs. Adam hopped up to sit cross-legged on the tabletop as Asmos rocked back in forth in front of him.
“So…” Asmos said. “How did he tell you?”
“You were there,” Atlas pointed out.
Asmos waved his hand. “After that.”
“Wait!” Adam whined. “Tell it from the beginning.”
Atlas rolled his eyes but complied. “I overheard Bel talking to Asmos and Mammon this morning about us being mates.”
“Aww,” Adam said. “That sucks.”
“I kind of already suspected,” Atlas admitted with a shrug. “Mates is big talk around here.”
“That’s true,” Ari agreed. “It’s all anyone talks about anymore.”
“There are so many requests to go into other realms,” Adam shared.
Seb nodded. “I know. And requests from other realms to visit here. It’s become this whole thing. No matter where Ash goes, the talk is all about mates.”
“But back up. How did you get here exactly?” Seb asked. “I feel like I’m still missing some essential information. Lucifer didn’t give me a lot of details. I think he wanted to protect your privacy.”
Atlas grinned. “I appreciate that too. I’ll be honest with you all. Hell is nothing like I thought it was. And the demons are wonderful. I can’t believe that I thought Bel was a monster when I saw him through the flickers.”
“Yes! Start there!” Asmos ordered. “When you first saw the handsome demon that would become your mate.”
“My demon,” Atlas corrected quickly. He didn’t care how long Bel and Asmos had been friends. No one should think of his mate as handsome.
Asmos grinned. “Of course. That’s what I meant.”
Adam snickered. “I like the possessiveness coming through. That’s true mate stuff.”
“Is it?” Atlas asked. He would happily share his story if it meant that he could learn more about this whole mating thing. By people that had been through it before.
“Story time! Story time!” Asmos clapped and chanted.
His new friends were on the edge of their seats as Atlas started from when Bel stepped up to order his popcorn to telling them about the mating gift.
“A hellstone?” Asmos was positively beaming. “That is so old-fashioned and perfectly Bel.”
Slipping his hand in his pocket to rub his fingers over the stone hidden inside, Atlas nodded. “I thought the same thing.”
“So the two of you are dating,” Seb said. “That is so romantic.”
“It really is,” Ari added.
“I’m glad you all think so. Because I need your help,” Atlas told them.
Seb looked down at the laptop in front of him. “I’ll try to find the demon line you come from but I don’t know how long it will take. And I’m not sure that will fix your flickers.”
Atlas shook his head. “I do want to know that. For no other reason than to ask the demon some questions. But I need your help with something else.”
“Is it a secret?” Asmos asked with excitement.
“A secret mission maybe?” Adam’s eyes shone.
“Woah!” Atlas held up his hands. Bel had been right to warn him. Asmos and Adam together was a little scary. There was no telling the trouble the two of them would drag Atlas into. Which was fine after Atlas got what he wanted.
“Don’t be boring like Seb and Ari,” Adam complained.
“Hey!” Seb threw a pen at Adam.
“I might be boring but my mate likes me just the way I am,” Ari said with a dignified sniff.
“Because you are absolutely adorable,” Adam said as he leaned forward to kiss the tip of Ari’s nose.
“Stop.” Ari wiggled around.
“You are kind of adorable,” Atlas said.
“See!” Asmos pointed a finger at Ari. “I told you!”
“Back to Atlas,” Ari told them. “Focus on him.”