Chapter Nine #2
“Listen.” I hadn’t heard this serious tone from him in a long time. It silenced me immediately. “A god is created in the hearts of mortals. Their faith, their belief, their worship, and their sacrifice—these are what give a god their power. It’s what lifts them up into immortality.
“It’s also why a god is the one thing no one can be by magic, force, or curse. You can’t make mortals believe in you. You can’t force them to worship you with a true and devoted heart, so that’s why the gods there are, are the gods there will always be.
“Unless you have the power of the All Hallows,” Radu dropped. “What the All Hallows is—in the direct and simplest terms—is the recipe for how to create a god.”
My brows ran up my forehead. “Recipe for how to create a god? You mean the way to skip all the worshipping, faith, and temples, and go straight to the limitless power and immortality? That’s what Lucifer wants?”
“More than anything,” he said. “You know the story of Lucifer Lightbringer, Charlotte. Everyone knows his story. He led a rebellion against God and was cast out into hell. Ever since... he’s hated your kind more than anything.”
“My kind?” I cried. “You mean humans? Why?”
“Imagine it. Imagine your father—the father you love, the father you worship—began to favor creatures you saw as lower than worms. Imagine he chose those worms over you. Punished you and tossed you away to protect those worms.”
I really wasn’t loving being compared to a worm.
“Wouldn’t your love for your father curdle to hate?
And wouldn’t that hate take seed and grow into an endless thirst for vengeance?
” His voice was spellbinding. “That is why Lucifer refuses to leave the human race alone. He tempts you all to wickedness with his lies and twisted deals because every mortal soul he snatches from heaven’s grip is a victory against his father. At least in his eyes.”
I nodded slowly. That made a horrible and sad kind of sense.
“But as powerful as Lucifer is... he’s not a god.
” I heard shuffling and thuds from his end of the phone.
“As I told you, everyone knows his story. They know he’s a fallen angel, not a god.
They know their faith and belief in their god can defeat him, and even though Lucifer has tried to deify himself in the eyes of mortals—”
“—you can’t force someone to worship you with a true heart,” I finished. “No matter how many tantrums you throw against Daddy.”
“Precisely.” More thudding came through the phone. “Charlotte, I’m telling you this because I’m going to answer you. I know where you can find the answers you’re looking for.”
I ground to a halt. “Wait, you do?”
“I do,” he said firmly. “But when you find those answers, you must promise me that you will, under no circumstances, hand the power of the All Hallows over to Lucifer.”
“But my sister—!”
“I understand Adora’s plight. I know you’ll do anything to save her, but if Lucifer can use the All Hallows to get her soul back, so can you.”
I shook my head. “I’ve thought of that. Of course I have.
But this is the devil we’re talking about.
Do you want to wager everything on the hopes that one twenty-two-year-old woman can outwit the father of lies on his own turf?
Because I don’t.” I scoffed. “You know what? He probably wants me to try. He wants me to turn on him, so that when he overpowers me and takes what he wants, he can abandon both me and Dora in hell—saying that it’s my own fault for breaking our deal first.”
“That’s exactly what he wants,” Radu replied without hesitation.
“He can’t break a deal, but if you blow it up all on your own, he’s no longer beholden to you or his promises.
But all the same, Charlotte, this is one wager he cannot win.
If Lucifer Lightbringer becomes a god, he will lay waste to all realms. The mortal realm he despises, the demon realm that pulled him off his throne of blood, and the heavenly realm that threw him out and slammed the gates.
“He’s the lord of pride for a reason, and it’s because he holds a grudge like a bitter bitch. In his eyes, mortals, demons, supernaturals, angels, and gods have all wronged him... and we’ll all pay.”
“But—”
“No buts,” he hissed, urgency lowering his baritone.
“You want to save your sister? You want her to have her soul, her life, and her future back? Well, what kind of future will that be when Lucifer takes his prize, and then hands you yours—the grand return to the apocalyptic wasteland that used to be earth.”
I swallowed through a strangled throat. “Okay, I understand. I’ll find a way. I don’t know how yet, but I’ll figure it out. A devil like that has no business becoming a god.”
“All right. Good.” The fervor faded from his side of the call.
“With that out of the way, I’ll tell you that the ones with the answers you’re looking for aren’t the vampires.
You’re looking for beings that have been around a lot longer than the undead.
Longer than mortals. Longer than demons.
Even before the birth of most of the gods. ”
“Who could that be?” I whispered—instinctively lowering my voice. “Beings older than gods? Would they even talk to me? Would they help me?”
“They would if your friend made the introduction.”
“My friend—?” The answer knocked me over the head.
“You mean Nik? You mean the dryads!” I cried, jumping up and down.
“The trees! The trees have watched over earth long before humans learned to walk upright. They’ve seen everything, experienced everything, and shared their secrets with all the newborn saplings. They must know what the hallows are.”
“And even if they don’t, they can narrow down the options,” Radu said. “Without a doubt, the dryads are your best option.”
This news cheered me up immensely. Who knew a single phone call with my bloodsucking stalker would be all it took to turn my day around?
I sighed. “But, hold on, I have to ask. If you know the dryads are my best bet, why doesn’t Lucifer know that too? He’s been searching for thousands of years longer than I have.”
“If you had a real teacher for History of Hell who was interested in filling your heads with knowledge instead of propaganda, you’d know that Lucifer cannot go anywhere near the dryads. They’re under the protection of the Greek gods, and the Greek gods hold no love for Lucifer Lightbringer.”
“They don’t? Why?”
“Remember I told you Lucifer has tried to become a god in the eyes of man before. It just so happens that he made one such attempt by appearing before mortals disguised as the god Hades. Lucifer seemed to believe that tricking them into worshiping him under guise of another was close enough. And since the Greek gods aren’t as powerful as they once were, he figured Hades couldn’t do anything about it. ”
I gasped. “Is he nuts? Even I know that’s a terrible idea.”
“That red-eyed angel is a megalomaniac. He doesn’t think he has terrible ideas,” Radu replied wryly.
“Anyway, the result was Hades tracked him down and dealt him a defeat so brutal, Lucifer needed decades to recover, and in that time, Zariel, Mammon, and Leviathan led a revolt that overthrew his subjugation of hell.
“Lucifer hasn’t gone near a Greek god or their descendants or servants since.”
My low whistle cut through the silent hallway. “Now I am wishing I had a real history teacher. All of this is fascinating.”
“No, honey, you’re fascinating. Is there anything sexier than your love of knowledge? It makes me want to fuck you on a bed of books.”
“Annnd you’re back.” My voice was dry as I pulled up to the mess hall doors. “Thanks for the tip, Prof. I’ve got to go.”
“Goodbye, honey. Send me naked pictures of yourself.”
“Like hell I will!”
“Oh, yes, you’re right. Belphe might find them on your phone. Don’t worry, I’ll just take a few tonight when I’m watching you in the bath.”
“Don’t you dare—!”
Click.
“Bastard!”
Sucking in a deep, steadying breath—or five deep and steadying breaths—I pushed all the creepy nonsense Radu said out of my mind, and focused on the bit that was actually helpful. Nik and his dryad mothers could point me in the right direction of the hallows.
The part of how I’d get their collective power and keep it out of Lucifer’s hands was also something I was hoping they could help me with, because I still had no explanation for why everyone was so certain I was a powerful Avos witch, when I’d never performed a drop of magic in my life.
Is it because I wasn’t trained? I mused as I stepped inside and cast a glance around the half-packed mess hall.
There were demons lounging at and on the tables.
There were demons carrying food out of the kitchen.
There were demons posted up on the walls, messing around on their phones.
There were demons flirting it up and making out hardcore everywhere the eye could see. But none of those demons were Nik.
Maybe it’s like reading. I was born with the capacity to read, but I couldn’t actually do it until someone taught me. No one taught me how to use magic, but once I start practicing, I’ll learn how to control it and protect it, so that Lucifer can’t take it from me.
Or maybe it’s a goddess thing. My thoughts were churning as I made for the kitchens, and helped myself to two plates of spinach quiches, some fruit, and a couple of apple cider donuts.
I’d never had an apple cider donut before but I was seriously looking forward to it.
If magic is a gift from a goddess, maybe the giver of blood magic is a bit peeved that I’ve been ignoring her for over two decades.
She could be denying me the gift because I’ve never bothered to ask for it.
So many theories, but no answers. If I wanted to know the secret to harnessing my blood magic... I’d have to ask the mother who murdered my sister right in front of my eyes.