Chapter Five
LILY
One second, I was choking on black smoke.
And the next, my eyes were open, and I was lying flat on my back in the dirt, lungs burning and throat raw.
I stared up at the sky, which was, well, still as fiery and apocalyptic as ever.
Actually, it was kind of comforting, in a messed-up sort of way.
At least I wasn’t staring at an endless forest that was home to a demonic entity who believed suffocating someone was the best way to make friends.
Strong arms held me—a little too tightly—and a voice barked my name. Another told everyone to back off and give me some space, while a third asked if I needed water. I certainly wouldn’t say no to a drink. Anything to soothe my raw throat.
“Lily…” Rathiel said, my name like a prayer on his lips. “You’re okay. You’re safe.”
Well, that was debatable. Something dark and disturbingly disgusting had just forced its way down my throat, pervading my entire essence. Definitely not my idea of a good time. But he was right—I did appear to be safe at the moment.
I lifted a hand and touched my throat, feeling around for any inky tendrils still wrapped around me. But all I felt was my smooth throat, unharmed. And luckily for me, I could breathe just fine too.
Okay, I was safe. Good.
I lowered my hand and finally took in the unfolding scene.
My friends all hovered nearby—my own secret service.
Eight sets of eyes stared at me, and I just knew they were about to ask a million questions.
The thought of answering them all pre-emptively exhausted me.
Especially when I didn’t have any answers for them.
I shifted my weight, trying to ease the ache in my ribs and the burning in my lungs, but Rathiel’s arms locked around me like a damn vise.
Sighing, I turned my whole focus onto him.
I opened my mouth, about to ask him to let me go, when I caught his worried expression—one he quickly masked when he noticed me noticing him.
I rested my hand against his chest and offered him a gentle smile.
Then I gave a slight push. “Let me up.”
He hesitated. Of course he did. The guy was overprotective when it came to me. He could face down a battalion of brimlords without so much as flinching, but when it came to me, he tended to break.
I didn’t blame him though.
We’d been through some shit. More than the average couple.
Thankfully, after a heartbeat, his arms loosened, and I slowly sat up, blinking while stretching my neck and rolling out my shoulders.
The others instantly crowded in, and if they hadn’t all looked so worried, I might have laughed.
Gorr immediately consumed the space to my right, his tail thumping the ground in slow, worried beats.
Mephisar encircled me from behind, his loud huffs ruffling my hair as he scented me.
Sable sniffed at my chest, her slitted golden eyes never leaving mine.
That didn’t leave much room for anyone else, but Eliza and Levi forced their way into the inner circle, hovering next to Rathiel.
Calyx was the only one to stand apart, the only one to give me space.
He didn’t do it out of politeness, though.
Rather, because he wasn’t part of the inner crew.
He knew that. We knew that. He was only here out of necessity.
If he hadn’t wanted his freedom, I would bet every Earth dollar I had that he wouldn’t be here right now, fighting on our side.
I dragged in a breath that didn’t quite fill my lungs.
“Did someone mention water?” I asked, my voice raspy.
Eliza immediately grabbed a bottle of purified water from her pack, cracked the lid, and handed it over.
I took a sip and closed my eyes, revelling in the cool wetness.
I wanted to drain the entire bottle, but I paced myself.
Celestials didn’t need water, nor would we die from dehydration, but that didn’t make the experience fun.
Thanks to the “training sessions” I’d suffered through when younger, I’d experienced long bouts without water.
My father’s fallen had believed it was the only way to toughen me up.
All I’d learned was I liked water and never wanted to go without.
Once we ran out, we would have to rely on the filtration straws or nothing at all, seeing as how nothing in Hell was potable. Not unless one fancied a little bit of organ failure.
Of course, that would all change once we took the palace.
Lucifer didn’t drink from filtration straws.
He had his “distillery,” as he called it.
A sprawling monstrosity buried beneath the palace.
It collected steam from the volcanic vents and compressed it through layers of runes, magically wringing it out until it became drinkable.
It was the closest thing to water one would find in this realm.
Assuming one didn’t mind the faint taste of brimstone and existential crises.
After another sip, I handed the bottle back to Eliza.
When no one spoke, I sighed and pushed my hair back from my sweaty brow. “I’m fine.”
Rathiel hadn’t moved even after I sat up, and he still knelt next to me, his cerulean eyes narrowed with a particular kind of scrutiny I knew all too well.
I grabbed his hand and squeezed it. “I really am fine.”
“You screamed,” he said quietly. “You sounded like something was tearing you apart.”
“Sadly, nothing you haven’t heard before,” I said, trying to make light of the situation.
His expression hardened, my humour completely wasted on him.
He didn’t say anything, likely because he had heard me scream like that before—when my father tore my wings off.
Unfortunately, there was a good chance he would hear me scream like that again.
This was Hell. And we were at war. That kind of life didn’t exactly give off rainbow and puppy-dog vibes. It was hard, bloody, and full of death.
As though tired of me giving Rathiel all my attention, Gorr nudged me with his snout.
I chuckled and patted his lumpy head. Okay, maybe Gorr gave off puppy-dog vibes.
But he was a ravager. A hellspawn bred to eviscerate and massacre.
He was about the cutest thing Hell had, and even he was a monster.
With a final pat, I gently pushed Gorr aside and climbed to my feet, brushing the soot and grit from my perpetually dusty pants. The cracked ground caught my attention, and I stared at the starburst pattern. It began under my feet, then spread outward.
My gaze followed the countless cracks until I saw them. All of them. Rows upon rows of bodies that stood motionless and lifeless, as silent as death, but they were perfect. And they belonged to me.
My army.
Pride swelled within me before I could stop it, and I took a few steps toward my soldiers.
They stood in perfect formation, their abhorrent features carved from ash and ember.
They almost looked like they were waiting for someone to wake them.
And that someone was me. I knew that without a doubt.
Because I’d done this. I’d built them out of Hell’s raw materials, sculpted them straight out of my memory.
I’d created them out of rock and flame and air, and they were flawless.
Victory hummed in my veins as I studied each and every face. I hadn’t successfully resurrected them yet—that part had eluded me thanks to the demonic shadow thing—so their bodies were merely empty vessels. But I had built them. And I knew without a doubt I could do it again.
A quiet step beside me broke the moment.
I turned, expecting to find Rathiel, but instead found Levi. He strode up beside me, his gaze also on my army. I felt that—it was hard to tear your eyes off them.
“So, what happened?” Levi asked.
I swear, the other seven collectively took a step closer, eager to hear my answer.
“I did it,” I said triumphantly. A massive grin spread across my face. “I did it.”
“Not entirely,” Levi corrected me. “You haven’t resurrected their souls yet. But that’s not what I was asking. I mean, what made you scream? What kept you from finishing the resurrection?”
I knew what he’d meant. I just didn’t have any answers.
What was I supposed to tell them? That some strange, shadowy creature attacked me?
What would they think if I told them it had slithered down my throat like living poison?
Would they think I’d gone insane? Or maybe that I was weak?
They needed to believe that I could do this, that I could lead them.
Why distress them over something I, myself, didn’t understand?
I was here, and I was perfectly fine. I felt perfectly fine.
So, I waved a dismissive hand.
“Just a slight hiccup during the resurrection process,” I said. “I must have done something wrong. Maybe I used a little too much magic. It’s really not a big deal. In fact, I’m ready to try again. And believe me, this time I won’t fail.”
Silence settled across the group, but I didn’t turn away from the sight of my army to see what was bothering them.
“How about we try again tomorrow instead?” Levi finally said. “You should probably rest. You used a lot of magic, and whatever happened—”
“I said I’m fine,” I cut in, my tone a little sharper than I’d intended.
I wasn’t angry. I was just…getting a little tired of their overprotectiveness.
They were all hovering as if I would shatter at any moment.
I said I could do it again, and I meant it.
I was actually eager to try again. I wanted to explore the limitations of my power—if there even were any.
I was desperate to see if I could actually resurrect my soldiers without using Rathiel and Calyx’s essences.
Imagine what my father would say if I succeeded?
Oh, I could just picture his face now.
He’d always used his fallen’s essences. But had he done it out of necessity or cowardice? Lucifer never offered his own power when he could use others. It was his gift in life: to use anything and everything available to him. Why deplete and weaken himself if he didn’t have to?
But I wasn’t so close-minded. I didn’t mind using my power to see what I could accomplish. I’d tasted how it felt to shape reality. To build something from nothing. To bend Hell itself to my will. No one could take that away from me.
I stared at my army, and my blood began to pump. Soon, they wouldn’t be standing silent and lifeless. Soon, they would be standing at my side, and they would help me conquer this realm. Soon, we would be unstoppable.
That word echoed in my head—but not in a bad way.
I liked the sound of it. Unstoppable. It filled me with strength and confidence.
Suddenly, I believed I could accomplish anything I set my mind to.
And deep inside me, something stirred in agreement.
I liked the taste of this power and wanted more.
Power was a good thing. It meant strength and protection. It meant I could win this war.
Before I could summon my magic and prove I was, in fact, ready to try again, a different set of boots crunched over the ashy dirt. Eliza stepped up beside me, arms crossed, and said lightly, “Hell of a first attempt.”
I tilted my head just enough to glance at her, my first earnest smile coming to my lips. She always knew how to diffuse a situation. “Thanks.”
She studied the rows of soldiers standing in front of us. “Guess it’s time we start calling you Supreme Overlord, huh?”
I burst out laughing, a sound that seemed to loosen her tight shoulders.
Amusement touched her lips, and her tone softened when she said, “Seriously, though, Lil. What happened to you?”
I sighed. They just wouldn’t give up, would they? “Like I said. It was just a hiccup—”
“Nuh-uh,” she said. “We need more than that.”
“Like what?” I asked. “Do you want to hear all the gory details? About what I saw, felt—”
“Yes,” she said blatantly. “That’s exactly what I want.”
I sighed, then glanced behind her to see the others had fanned out, their expectant gazes all on me.
And just like that, my mood soured. “Why are you all acting like this?”
“Us?” Eliza asked. “Why are you acting like this? Just tell us what happened.”
Rathiel’s eyes narrowed, like he was trying to peer right into my soul. And I didn’t like that, not one bit.
I lifted my chin. “We accomplished most of what we set out to do, didn’t we? You all stood here and watched me build my soldiers. Isn’t that good enough?”
“No one is saying it isn’t,” Eliza said gently. “It’s just…you’re being quite secretive about what happened. What hurt you? Everything was going so well, until it wasn’t anymore. You scared the hell out of us.”
I shrugged. “It’s Hell. Everyone should be a little scared.”
“Stop being evasive.”
My jaw tightened. “What do you want me to say? That it hurt? It did. It hurt like hell. It took more out of me than expected. But I’m still standing here.
And we’re farther ahead now than we’ve ever been.
So, maybe instead of hovering around me like vultures, you could all try being a little more optimistic. ”
The silence that followed was thick and uncomfortable.
Eliza stared at me for a long moment, eyes searching. I just didn’t know what she hoped to find.
“I’m fine,” I told them again. “I promise.”
She studied me another beat, then finally nodded. “Okay. If you say so.”
I turned back to my army, jaw tight. I refused to let them ruin this moment. Because I was fine. Better than fine. I’d accomplished something extraordinary today. Reached into the bones of this realm and created something from practically nothing.
That was something only one other being in all of Hell had ever managed to do.
My father.
He would’ve recognized what this meant. The scale of what I’d accomplished. The power I’d held in my hands.
It was just too bad he wasn’t here to see it.