Chapter 24
An audience with the prince
Drew got up from the pallet and paced over to the bars, watching as Leila busily preened under her wing. She finished, sneezed, shook her head, then yawned. He made eye contact with her and asked, “Are you okay?”
Bok.
Leila went back to preening. Drew turned and walked back to the pallet, then spun and walked back, drumming his fingers on his thigh as he went.
He was so bored. There was nothing to do, and they’d been here for ages already.
Couldn’t they have been left a book or a crossword puzzle or something?
He was itching for his phone so he could while away the time scrolling through his socials.
Why didn’t he bring it? He wouldn’t have reception, but a few of his games he could play offline.
It would kill his battery, but at least until it died on him he’d not be dying of boredom himself.
Sighing dramatically, Drew pivoted once more to make another circuit of the cell. Andras was lounging on the pallet, arms behind his head, and his pale grey eyes closed. They cracked open, and he pulled a face at Drew. “Would you stop that? It’s very annoying.”
“What else am I supposed to do?” Drew demanded.
“Sit down and relax?” Andras suggested.
“How long do you think we’ll be stuck here? The waiting is torture!”
“It’s been literally twenty minutes since Orias left,” Andras observed. “You can’t be bored already.”
Drew gaped at him. “Twenty minutes! That can’t be right. It feels like we’ve been here for hours already!”
The demon rolled his eyes. “You Gen Zs really need to learn how to embrace boredom.”
“How do you even know what a Gen Z is?” Drew demanded.
“How long have you known Zachariel? I thought he would have told you we keep pretty up-to-date with trends and news from Earth?”
“Well, yeah, he did,” Drew admitted. “But that still seems a pretty specific bit of Earth culture to know. I mean, most Boomers don’t even know who falls under the Gen Z banner.”
Andras narrowed his eyes. “Did you just call me a Boomer?”
“Aren’t you a little old to be a Boomer?” Drew countered.
“I’m too cool to be a Boomer,” Andras told him loftily.
“Whatever, dude,” Drew huffed, and threw himself down on the end of the pallet, half crushing Andras’s foot as he did so.
“You’re a bit of a brat when you’re pissy, aren’t you?” Andras observed with a smirk, as he withdrew his foot from under Drew’s butt. “You must keep Zachariel on his toes.”
“’M not a brat,” he whined, crossing his arms.
Andras laughed, loud and joyful. “Yes you are. But you’re adorable, so you get away with it.”
Deciding to take the high ground and not fire a retort back, Drew changed the subject instead. “Do you think we should try to escape now?”
“Who do you think you are?” Andras asked. “Andy Dufresne? Have you got a rock hammer hidden up your shirt?”
Drew glowered at him. “There’s no need to be rude. I’m just trying to figure out how we’re going to get out of here.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “I can see if I can get my magic to work, despite the bracelet.”
Andras waved towards the bars. “This isn’t some shoddily designed prison, Drew.
We’d need to break through the lock on the cell door, then get through the main door, somehow get past the two guard demons, then make it all the way through the palace without being seen, cross the grounds where there are even more guards, and then get far enough away without being seen or recaptured.
It’s not something I think we’re capable of, even if you can somehow access your magic. ”
“Fine, when you put it like that.” Drew slumped down against the wall. “So, what? We just have to wait and see what Lucifer has in store for us?”
“That’s about the sum of it. At some point, we might find ourselves in a different part of the palace where a couple of those obstacles are removed. You can try your magic then, but for now, we wait.”
“Joy.”
Drew didn’t have long to wallow, as the outside door to the cell block opened and one of the demon guards entered. “You,” he said, pointing at him. “With me.”
“Me?” Drew asked, pointing at his chest. It wasn’t that he wanted Andras to be dragged off and tortured, but he didn’t know why they would want to take him instead.
Lucifer hadn’t looked twice at him. Were they hoping to use Drew as leverage against Andras?
He didn’t think it would work but maybe they wanted to try and see?
“Yes, you,” the guard said. “Come on. You don’t want to keep the prince waiting.”
Drew threw Andras a terrified look, but then the cell door was being opened and he was being beckoned out.
His feet felt like lead as he followed the guard, and he looked back over his shoulder to see Andras looking worried.
Strangely enough, Leila didn’t seem too concerned at all, and Drew tried to take a little comfort from that.
They followed the same route they’d come in by, but once they got to the main hallway, they passed through another door and entered a much more elaborate area.
Drew tried not to gawk as they traversed the hallways and chambers of the palace.
There were intricate tapestries, statues that looked to have been carved from black volcanic rock, and detailed paintings of Hellish landscapes lining the walls.
Demons in crisp uniforms were attending to the palace, cleaning and polishing, and completely ignoring Drew and the guard.
They soon arrived outside a door, and the guard knocked. A voice from beyond called, “Enter,” and Drew was led inside a . . . cozy office? Huh.
Lucifer sat behind a large desk, the surface of which was wooden.
That seemed odd to Drew, since he’d seen hardly any trees since he’d been here, so he wasn’t sure where they would get timber from?
Books and scrolls were spread across the top, which were also made from paper, so maybe there were areas that could sustain a plantation?
Though that one scroll looked like some kind of leather.
Ew, maybe it was human skin? Oh god, did they have human farms too?
Drew tried to keep his wandering thoughts and fears off his face as he was shuffled in front of the desk.
Lucifer was sitting in a high-backed armchair that had been upholstered in a crimson fabric.
He nodded at the guard when they saluted and then dismissed them with a wave of his hand.
Drew tried not to flinch as the door clicked shut as they left.
Lucifer stared at Drew, and he stood awkwardly, trying to decide what was appropriate here. Did he bow? Should he maintain eye contact or not? Was he supposed to throw himself on the floor and beg for mercy? He kind of wished they’d had etiquette classes in high school for moments like these.
Before he could decide what to do, Lucifer broke the silence. “In all the commotion, I never caught your name.” His presence was still almost suffocating, but his voice was calm, even curious.
“Oh, sorry. Um, it’s Drew, sir. Uh, Drew Phillips.
” Drew ducked his head in a little bow but found his body trying to curtsey and he ended up stumbling forward.
His feet tangled together, and he pitched over, his forehead smacking against the desk before he landed in a heap on the ground.
The carpet beneath his feet was thick and plush, but that didn’t help his head at all.
“Ow,” he moaned, clutching at his temple.
A throat cleared and Drew looked up to see Lucifer peering down at him from above the desk. “Are you okay?”
Knowing his face was beet red with embarrassment, Drew scrambled to his feet and nodded. “Sorry. I’m fine!”
Lucifer gestured at his head. “Are you certain? That’s quite the bump.”
“Yes, I’m fine. I swear. Sorry. I’m kind of clumsy.”
“You also apologize a lot.”
“Yes, sorry,” Drew agreed. “Um, I’m Canadian.”
“Ah.” Lucifer nodded in understanding. “So, Drew Phillips, clumsy Canadian—what’s your story and why exactly are you in my domain?”
Drew winced. “It’s kind of a long story.”
“I have time.” He gestured to the chair behind Drew. “Have a seat.”
Sinking into the chair, Drew wondered exactly how he should start.
“Uh, so, I was cooking, and I don’t have much luck with cooking, and I accidentally opened a portal to here in my kitchen and my boyfriend and I were sucked through it.
We travelled to the Borderlands, and I got us home, but I lost something, so I came back for it.
” He said it all in a rush, like ripping off a Band-Aid.
Lucifer just stared at him. “That doesn’t explain the situation as much as you may think. Let’s back up a little bit, shall we?”
Drew nodded. “Oh, sure. Of course.”
“I’m getting the feeling that, despite your obvious power, you’re quite inexperienced at using your magic?” Lucifer said it quite kindly, and that simply made Drew more nervous.
“I only discovered I could do magic a year ago,” he admitted. “Apparently it runs in my family, and my Grammy was quite good at it, but I didn’t know it was something I could do. I’ve been having lessons each week but I’m also doing my MBA, so it’s tricky to find the time.”
Lucifer looked at him blankly. “MBA?”
“Oh, sorry. Master of Business Administration. I go to Vancouver Island University, but not for too much longer. I’m almost finished my degree.”
Another long stare. Drew fidgeted under the scrutiny. “You are fascinating, Drew Phillips,” Lucifer finally said.
“I am?”
“I honestly cannot say I’ve ever met anyone like you.”
Drew frowned at that. “Really?”
Lucifer clasped his hands together and leaned his elbows on the desk.
“Really. You have one of the most powerful magical auras I’ve ever encountered.
You practically glow with the magic you’re leaking.
Then there’s the fact you have a familiar.
And yet you’re studying something as banal as business administration. ” He looked bewildered. “Why?”
Drew looked down at his hands and picked at a hangnail.
He shrugged. “I don’t even know if doing magic pays the bills.
And there was no guarantee I’d be any good at it.
What if I failed at being a witch and had dropped out of uni before getting my degree?
” He looked up, but didn’t meet Lucifer’s gaze, instead looking over his shoulder at a tapestry on the wall.
“I worked hard to get the scholarships I needed to go to uni. My aunt and I didn’t have much, and before I accidentally summoned Zach, I was missing more meals than I ate.
I’m not going to risk giving away my future livelihood on a whim. ”
“Wait. Did you say you summoned someone called Zach?”
“Yeah. He’s my boyfriend,” Drew said.
“Do you mean Zachariel?”
“He said he’d never met you. How do you know about him?”
“I am the Prince of Hell, Drew Phillips. Do you honestly believe an angel could fall here with his wings intact without me knowing about it? I kept a close eye on Zachariel during his time here.”
“You knew? So you knew he’d been sent here by accident and you did nothing about it?” Drew was aghast.
Lucifer’s presence suddenly got a lot more overpowering, and Drew felt like it was wrapping around him, slowly crushing him.
An image of a boa constrictor flashed through his mind, and he gasped for breath, suddenly terrified.
It was getting harder to breathe; the weight of the surrounding air was so very heavy.
It was all he could concentrate on, so it took Drew a long moment to realize his mistake.
He’d made Lucifer angry.
“Are you implying you know how to run my realm better than I?” Lucifer asked in a deadly voice.
Drew shook his head, and it felt sluggish and slow.
He fought to drag in enough air so he could speak, and it came out in a hoarse whisper.
“No! No, of course I wouldn’t do that.” The pressure on his lungs eased a little, and he gave a nervous laugh.
“I’m sure that would be an instant trip to see your torture chamber. ”
“Do not test me, Drew Phillips,” Lucifer warned. “I do not forgive easily.”
He nodded, eyes earnest. “Message received. Sorry.” He ducked his head in submission, waiting to see what would happen next.
Finally, the tension in the room eased the rest of the way. Lucifer’s presence was still noticeable, but not as dangerous now. “You were telling me about how you met Zachariel,” he prompted amiably.
Drew took a deep breath before expelling it, mentally chastising himself for dropping his guard.
Lucifer had been so polite and courteous up until now that Drew had gotten way too comfortable with the conversation.
He needed to watch his step. “So, yeah. I was making dinner one night and instead of soup, I ended up with Zach in my kitchen instead. Turns out, my Grammy’s cookbook was actually a spellbook in disguise, and I had no idea. ”
“Interesting,” Lucifer said, but didn’t elaborate.
“Uh, anyway, Zach was the one who told me I could do magic. We found a local wizard who said he could help me find the spell to send Zach back. By the time Oberon turned up—” He paused, and Lucifer nodded to show he was well aware of who Oberon was.
“By then we’d developed feelings for one another, and I’d told Zach I’d do what I could to help break his bonds to Oberon.
There was a big fight, but I managed to free Zach, and then some angels turned up and took Oberon away. ”
Lucifer narrowed his eyes. “You broke the bond Oberon held over Zachariel?”
“Yes?” Drew said, wondering if he was close to being thrown into the viper pit again.
“With hardly any magical experience? You broke such a powerful spell by a higher angel?”
“Well, it’s not like I knew what I was doing,” Drew admitted. “He’d used a gem of some sort, and I kind of . . . overloaded it with magic?” To this day, Drew still wasn’t entirely sure how he’d managed it without killing Zach in the process.
Lucifer shook his head in amazement. “Absolutely fascinating.”