Chapter 16
The dining room’s main doors slammed open, sending servants scrambling as Balthazar made his entrance.
My magic was already barely hanging on and I hadn’t been fully lying that Balthazar was tied to my current state. The influx of his power made my illusion waver until I lost control over it.
It slipped away from me like water rushing through my fingers, making the air around me shimmer until I knew it was gone.
A cold pit formed in my chest, solidifying my fear that I had failed.
Lucifer leaped to his feet, eyes wide as he took in my true form.
“Champion,” he hissed as if the title was a curse. His wings snapped to their full length, sending chairs flying across the room and servants screaming.
Asher pulled a dagger from his belt and Logan’s bones crunched beneath the table, informing me that he was shifting into his wolf form.
I barely knew Asher. I didn’t understand why he would defend me, but perhaps that had been my father’s orders to him.
He had said that Asher had been assigned as my escort and protector.
And given Logan’s permission of his… attentions, perhaps there was more there than I realized.
Lucifer’s eyes flashed with Hellfire as he launched himself into the air, breaking a few chandeliers as he flew toward me.
Logan burst from under the table, blocking him with his hulking wolf’s body. A flash of steel glinted as Asher joined Logan on the table to fend Lucifer off.
Derek was running across the table toward us. Perhaps he had been willing to hand me over to Lucifer, but catching Calamity by surprise seemed to have pissed it off.
Lucifer’s tail lashed out, sending blood splattering on the walls as Asher roared with pain.
Logan snapped, taking the demon’s tail into his powerful jaws as he immobilized it.
I had never seen Derek fight, nor had I ever seen an incubus utilize his power as a weapon, but his cheeks hollowed out and dark pits formed under his eyes as he externalized his power.
It shimmered all around him like a red energy field, making the air hum and rush against my ears.
“Run,” he ordered. The word eerily echoed through the room. It had only been a whisper, but it roared inside my skull like a lion’s growl.
It was an order I would not be following.
Balthazar and I had a deal. He’d brought a Death Lotus—although, why he’d also made sure Lucifer was here for the exchange, I wasn’t sure.
Maybe he wanted to see the showdown for himself.
Who knew, but I knew the second I took that Death Lotus from him, I would regain my power.
With Logan and Asher keeping Lucifer momentarily at bay, I walked around the lashing spiral of arms and legs and teeth.
Derek was blocked off from me by the battle, leaving me a straight shot to Balthazar.
The demon smiled at me as his tail twitched around his ankles. He held out the dark flowers, giving me a moment to appreciate it.
“As promised,” he said.
When I reached out for it, he playfully drew it back. “Nah, ah, ah.” He held up a finger. “You get this when you give me what I want.”
I had already promised him anything, so I braced myself for his request. “And what is it that you want, Balthazar?”
His eyes glittered. “You will fulfill your full potential the moment you take this. You will be able to save your mother and return her to the Hell Realm. You will be able to find Hendrik and help him remember how to use his gifts to solidify the portal that has opened to the Netherworld. Seth is there, too, with Cole. He’s a Necromancer from the other side of the portal.
He’ll help you bring Dante and Hendrik back.
And when all that is done, you will give your power to me. ”
Give… my power to Balthazar.
I glanced at Lucifer. Asher was a lot stronger than he had let on. Blood crusted across his chest, but he made no sign of discomfort or pain as he rushed the demon, suggesting he’d already healed.
He was single-handedly holding Lucifer off while Logan kept his jaw leveraged on the demon’s tail.
Even my father couldn’t get to me. He cursed and shouted orders at servants, instead.
I imagined he was using up too much of his power. He had already been starving, so he wasn’t going to be able to keep this up for long.
So, why wasn’t Asher starving, then?
Whatever the reason, I was grateful for it, because Asher was giving me a chance to think.
I looked back at Balthazar. My power didn’t define me. I cared nothing for it if I could save my mates. But there was one glaring problem with his request.
“What about Calamity?” I asked. “If you take my power, then I can’t fight it. My other mates are still trapped in Lucifer’s stronghold behind an entire army of fallen angels.”
He shrugged. “You’ll still be the Champion.
I’m sure you’ll find a way.” He waved to Lucifer.
“That’s why I brought your nemesis here.
You can imprison him in this room yourself.
After you take this Death Lotus, you’ll be at your peak power for a few moments before it fades.
A prison made by the Champion won’t last forever, but it should last long enough to figure it out. ”
I narrowed my eyes at him.
It was a risky plan.
Although, I knew it was a good one. Calamity had been imprisoned by the unicorns. That’s how it had been dealt with in the past.
I wanted to break the pattern. Imprisoning Lucifer meant that it was only a matter of time before he got out.
But right now… what other choice did I have? My mates were scattered across the realms and two of them were between life and death.
First, I had to get them all in one place.
Balthazar was right about one thing. I was still the Champion. Even if I didn’t have powers—my mates would.
Together, perhaps it would be enough.
Logan’s wolf howled with warning as Lucifer threw his full strength at Asher.
To my surprise, the incubus held him off as a ring of fire exploded between them, sending Lucifer pinging off of an invisible shield that shimmered with blood-red magic.
Lucifer’s wings slashed through the air, yanking down another chandelier and sending it crashing as he roared with frustration.
Most of the servants had fled the room by now, but Derek’s army and shadow wolves were moving in. Derek himself was holding off the rear and forming an impressive army.
“Lucifer! Calm down!” Derek shouted.
“Trickery!” Lucifer snarled, clearly at the complete mercy of Calamity’s influence.
He knew he’d been set up.
No, Calamity knew it had been set up.
Lucifer wasn’t going to be reasoned with right now.
Derek growled and signaled for his army to attack. Shadow wolves burst into the air and a roar of his men echoed against the walls.
Lucifer turned on them and beat them down in waves. I watched as a hundred deaths filled the air with screams and the tang of spilled blood.
I had to act.
Kaito would likely have heard the commotion and be on his way, too.
The longer I hesitated, the more likely it was that someone I cared about was going to be injured, or worse.
Making up my mind, I held out my hand. “Very well,” I told Balthazar. “You have a deal.”