Chapter 1
CHAPTER ONE
Seraphina
My feet smashed into the ground heavily, and my knees buckled.
The weight of what I’d done to save my princes, my sister, all of them, started to creep beneath my skin.
Laszlo’s influence over me was a writhing, toxic thing.
But that wasn’t the only power thrumming through my blood.
The foreign air around me suddenly sucked in on itself, as if it were alive, sensing me, and in the next second, raw power erupted in my veins.
I gasped, unable to keep the feeling of it to myself.
Laszlo’s influence faded, and for a few blessed seconds, I was myself.
And fuck if I wasn’t going to use those seconds to cause absolute fucking carnage.
“Seraphina—” Laszlo started, but I was already moving.
The blade strapped to his ankle was in my hand, and I shoved off the marble floor, leaping onto Samuel.
I brought the blade down swiftly. Stab. Stab.
Stab. He screamed, and the high notes were music to my ears.
Stab. Stab. Stab. My biceps burned with the constant movement.
Blood splattered my face, dripped down my neck, and soaked my clothing. Stab. Stab. Stab.
“Stop this!” Laszlo shouted, his voice booming in the empty room.
His command was dulled beneath my bloodlust and the power humming in my veins. I grinned down at the King dying beneath me. Stab. Stab. Stab.
“Belial,” Laszlo snarled, his voice shaking with anger. “Stop her. Now.”
Belial’s deep laughter seeped through the haze of red. “Oh, you humans do spoil all the fun, dying so easily.”
Strong arms wrapped around my middle and ripped me away from my enemy. I scratched and clawed at him, to no avail. Belial was easily twice my size in his full daemon form. He dropped me to the floor in a heap, and I heaved several breaths, glaring at him.
He cocked his head. The movement reminded me of Phen. The three daemon princes—Belial, Morax, and Phenex—shared similar features. They all had tanned olive skin, midnight black hair, and strong jaws. They were each muscular, having spent years training for battle and growing up under a tyrant.
That’s where the similarities ended. Morax was stoic, reserving his outward emotions for only my sister, Michaela.
And Phenex, my wild man, he was chaos embodied.
He made me feel alive. Belial, well, this brother was harder to read.
His face betrayed little emotion, and his eyes were dark and clouded with a sadistic edge. He would not be so easily manipulated.
“Seraphina, hold out your arms. Now.” Laszlo’s command sank beneath my skin, and my arms lifted obediently. He smiled, satisfied, and snapped cuffs around my wrists.
I hissed in pain the instant the metal touched my skin.
Laszlo’s eyes heated at my discomfort. “Stellatium. Quite uncomfortable for your kind. Mutes your powers as well.”
Samuel groaned, interrupting what I am sure was a speech I didn’t want to hear. Laszlo stomped toward the man, spitting orders at anyone within shouting distance. Daemons and lumens rushed to his aid, taking the Obscuritas King away.
He would likely survive. The Kings were filled with power, stolen power, and aided by traitorous daemons and lumens loyal to Belial.
And somehow, Belial had gained more power than any other daemon had access to.
The eldest brother was wicked strong, and I’d need more than my stellar skills with knives to defeat him.
He was watching me, the oldest son of Corson Ormaenus. I could feel his eyes scrutinizing every inch of body.
“A true hybrid,” he mused, red eyes glowing with power. “There hasn’t been one in ages. And they rarely lived long enough to attend their Vis-El Ceremony.”
The ceremony he mentioned was something every daemon and lumen went through upon reaching maturity, and it awakened the true potential of their powers.
“Score one for me, then. And I never had a fancy ceremony.” My words were clipped and sassy. I needed to get a rise out of him, find his weaknesses.
Belial nodded, stalking to a chair near a massive fireplace.
Since we arrived, I’d been more focused on stabbing and less on my surroundings.
We were definitely inside some Beauty and the Beast type castle.
Not the nice one after the beastie fell in love, the creepy one when he was still all grumpy and growly.
Personally, I would’ve preferred the Beast. He was like a cuddly, deadly teddy bear, and I would always choose the bear.
A fire roared within the stone fireplace, creating shadows around the room. The ceilings were hundreds of feet tall, with windows covering the walls on the far side of the room. Outside, a full moon glowed high in the dark sky.
“It is curious that you should feel so connected to your power without an awakening.” Belial crossed his legs, scratching his chin as if he gave a damn about anything.
“Maybe I’m just that talented,” I taunted, hiding the bite of pain from the cuffs every time I moved.
“Unlikely.” He spoke without enthusiasm, but there was a hint of something in his eyes. “Perhaps if we put you through it, something new would emerge.”
“Something like…The Sight?” I smirked, seeing my words finally affect him.
Nuri told us of Belial’s obsession with Lailah and her power to see the future, to affect the very fabric of time. She never mastered it, but with effort, someone with this power could do great or very terrible things.
Belial snarled, standing abruptly from his chair and charging toward me. He snatched my neck between his massive clawed hands and lifted me off my feet. I didn’t move. Didn’t speak. Waiting to see what the beast would do when provoked.
“You know nothing of real power,” he purred, eyes glowing red. “But you could. I could show you, train you. That oath could be broken.”
Suddenly, it was me becoming affected by his words. I would give fucking anything to break the oath I made with Laszlo. Belial’s eyes glittered with triumph as he read that very thought on my face. Fuck, I needed to work on my poker face.
His hand squeezed around my neck, cutting off my air supply and holding me aloft as if I weighed nothing. Black spots started to appear at the corners of my eyes.
“When you’ve had enough of that false king’s hold over you, come to me. I will make you a queen with powers beyond your wildest imagination.” His voice was low and so close to soothing, attempting to draw me in.
“Belial,” I murmured, and his eyes lit with something akin to hope, but for evil monsters. He leaned in, enticed by my tone, and I whispered against his lips. “Eat shit.”
I kicked out, managing a swift hit to his balls, and the daemon dropped me with a roar of fury.
“Enjoy your torment, then, hybrid. I will not offer this again.” He spat the words, stalking out of the room just as Laszlo returned from his aiding Samuel.
“Seraphina, my new toy. Come along,” Laszlo snipped, turning on his heel.
There was nothing I could do now but follow.