Chapter 36
Rion
The meeting in the throne room passed by in a blur. Contingencies were put in place. Plan A was followed by plans B and C. They’d prepared for so many eventualities that this should have felt like a piece of cake, except… it didn’t.
There can never be such complacence when it comes to Leviathan. My father is too shrewd, too calculated, and always does the unexpected. We have backed ourselves into a corner, with everything to lose.
They’d all headed for bed at dawn, hoping to recharge.
Sleep had come in fits and starts. Rion’s mind would not rest, conjuring up every worst case scenario that could eventuate.
When at last he awoke in the master suite of the Manhattan penthouse, most of the day was gone, and so was his beloved.
He threw on a robe and strode from room to room in search of her.
Lori stood on the balcony, gazing out over the city as though she were soaking up the rays of the late afternoon sun. Rion knew better. She was trying to absorb the view, the city, and the life she’d made with him. Trying to hold on to every detail… in case this didn’t end well.
He wanted to offer reassurance, but he could not summon it. So instead, he stepped outside and molded his body around hers, both arms wrapped around her waist, cheek to cheek over her shoulder.
“Hello love,” she whispered. “Pretty, isn’t it?”
“It is,” he replied softly.
“You smell wonderful.”
“I certainly do not,” he chuckled.
She turned in his embrace, and rested her head against the bare chest peeking out of the top of his robe. “You do. You smell warm and safe, and sexy.”
“None of those things bear a scent, little one.”
“You smell like mine.”
“Oh, I see. I rather like the sound of that.”
“I thought you might.”
He tilted her face up to his, and kissed her softly. “You have always been my greatest treasure, and I love you more than I possess the words to express.”
“Ditto, Mr. Smiles.”
Her fingertips danced across his cheek as if she had forgotten how to caress a lover, before she threw both arms around his neck and hugged him so tight he could barely draw breath.
“Do not fret so,” he said gently. “This will all be over soon. Then, forever can begin.”
“As long as it includes you, sign me up.”
“Of course,” he lied. Nobody could promise such a thing, yet here he was.
“Shall we shower together? I need to be yours a little longer before you go.”
With a mischievous grin, he flashed them both to the bathroom, and turned on the shower.
They spent the next fifteen minutes washing each other amidst a flurry of passionate kisses.
No lovemaking this time. They couldn’t afford for his power to corrupt the kingdom they were connected to.
That, they would save for after the victory.
When they returned to the Penthouse’s great room, most of the circular couch and surrounding chairs were occupied. Tobias’ mortal servants had assembled, accompanied by the angel Kyriel, with two of her brethren. They would keep watch over the servants during the battle.
With a parting kiss, Lori took a seat beside Vixen and the pair clasped hands. Kyriel hugged Rion and addressed him in the ancient language, professing her love and pride in him. She wished him luck, and bowed before him.
“No,” he said quietly. “This is not your place. Hold your head high and know you are loved. As you were, as you are, and whatever else may come. For all you have given me, I thank you.”
Her eyes grew glassy but she nodded and stepped back. With one last glance at Lori, Rion steeled his jaw and dematerialized.
“You took your time,” Tobias quipped, when Rion appeared beside him.
“Cease this attitude, I am here now.”
Strangely, as he stood beside Tobias on Central Park’s Great Lawn, alluding to confidence and power he could not be certain they possessed, Rion realized something. Fear was not present. Why am I not afraid?
After two millennia of abuse; physical, emotional, psychological, this was a chance to end it all. Whatever the outcome, he would never fear his father ever again. Freedom was worth fucking fighting for. He would fight for it with his dying breath.
The need to end this chapter came with another realization. He did not fear a True-Death. Comprehending this brought an overwhelming sense of relief. Burdens Rion had carried his entire life, slipped away one by one.
Never again would he have to withhold part of who he was.
Nor would he be bound to enact someone else’s whim.
Whether in death or in victory, he would finally be free.
There was such a colossal difference between divorcing himself of the eighth realm, and severing the biological tie to his father.
No matter what promises Leviathan had made, Rion knew in his soul, true freedom could only exist if his father did not.
He thought about Lori, safely hidden at the penthouse. She would survive his death, but she would not survive Tobias’. Rion knew he would sacrifice himself if necessary, in order for Tobias to survive. So many others were also tied to the outcome of this fight. Tobias had to walk away from this.
Behind the trinity, the army of the In-Between was grouped behind each commander. Will stood in command of the angels with Uriel and Aniel at each side, solemn-faced and uncharacteristically silent. Behind them, Kitty, Ramiel, and sixty others waited to defend the kingdom the trinity had created.
O’Brien led the New York Kiss, with Althea and her entourage assuming the next space. Beyond that, Westergaard, Marquez, Yamamoto, and Ngdugu stood with their people.
Hidden in the center of the army, Oriax had been waiting for Rion’s arrival.
As soon as Tobias gave the word, Rion located him and waited for the glamour to be cast. Once their outward appearances had been switched, Oriax took his place with Tobias and Will.
Rion remained in hiding until their adversaries began to assemble.
Almost half a mile away, near Turtle Pond, the fabric of reality tore open and Hell’s worst nightmares began to pour out.
A lead weight settled in the pit of his stomach.
He’d expected a demon presence, but an entourage of hell-beasts was far from ideal.
For a moment, the location of the gateway perplexed him.
Why would Leviathan leave such a vast space between the two sides?
His unspoken question was answered in three parts.
The first was not on the lawn itself, but Turtle Lake beyond.
Through the plethora of creatures arriving, a ripple could be seen beyond.
A second gateway opened for a fraction of a second before it was filled with enormous black tentacles larger than tree trunks.
Bile rose up Rion’s throat as the behemoth forced its way through. Leviathan’s treasured pet, and one of the most formidable beings in all of the lower realms. Any delusions of the magnitude of this fight were extinguished at once.
There was no time to process this unprecedented arrival, nor take stock of the volume of winged creatures still pouring through the first gate. In the foreground, Leviathan materialized, and an army of demonic warriors began to assemble behind him, including seven more heirs to the eighth throne.
“Breathe, Le Roux,” Tobias instructed.
Rion inhaled deeply, alarmed at how his body seemed to want to repel the oxygen it needed to function.
He flashed to a spot near the gate, wearing Oriax’s form and carrying the male’s axe, to assume position at Leviathan’s side. The eighth lord gave Rion a curt nod of approval, proving that the glamour held strong. Rion returned the gesture and watched as other demons continued to appear.
“Fear not my son,” Leviathan said, his voice resonating like tires on loose gravel. “They are fools to believe they have a chance of victory.”
“Indeed,” Rion responded, pouring a large measure of malice into his expression. “Mother will regret hiding your unborn from us.”
“I agree. Do not disappoint me, Oriax.”
Silently, Rion nodded. Oriax was a male of few words, so he would endeavor to speak only when necessary to perfect the facade. So far it seemed to be working.