Chapter 2 Cinder
CINDER
For a split second, I thought my plea would go unanswered.
Pain threatened to blot out my vision, and stars danced behind my eyes.
But then, like the distant rumble of thunder before a summer storm, I felt Discord surge along our bond, a wild, chaotic energy weaving through my veins.
My body tingled, warmth blooming where his power met mine, and I could almost hear his voice, a low snarl of defiance echoing in the back of my mind, promising that he was coming.
Would he get here in time to save me from the basilisk’s maw? Doubtful, but I had to give him credit for trying.
“Enough!” Lucifer’s voice boomed through the arena, bouncing off the walls and resonating in my bones.
The basilisk froze and jerked his head toward the platform where the devil sat, leaning forward, his hands gripping the skulls on the arms of his throne. Unfortunately, the beastie did not loosen his grip. I wheezed, trying with everything I had to stay conscious.
“You fool.” Lucifer glowered at Seraphine. “Do you think I want a simple beast as my right hand?”
“But…” She flicked her gaze between Luci and me. “I will be by your side, sire. The basilisk is here by my command. He will take off her head because I demand it.”
“And what have you done besides drop her into the pit? If the beast takes off her head, he has won the game.”
Fear flashed in her widened eyes. “You never said I had to kill her myself.”
“I am saying it now.” His voice sounded sinister, deep, and gravelly. He slid his gaze toward me before cutting to the basilisk and fisting his hand.
The beastie’s neck snapped at a right angle, his eyes glazing as he toppled to the floor, his claws still clutching me tightly.
I struggled against the pressure, working my hands high enough to grip one toe and shove it with all my might.
With my lower abdomen free, I worked on the next toe, wiggling and writhing until I finally slipped from the dead basilisk’s grasp.
Lucifer narrowed his eyes at Seraphine. “You’ve had the opportunity to kill her twice. Both times, you have failed. The third will either be the charm that saves your life or the curse that obliterates your soul.”
He flicked his wrist, and the air witch tumbled into the pit.
She caught herself on a puff of wind, and her feet softly hit the floor. Her jaw was tight, the tendons in her neck protruding, her nostrils flaring as she glared at me.
I straightened my spine, rising to my full height as a surge of Discord’s healing magic washed through me.
Inhaling deeply, I focused on the warming sensation, allowing it to spread and heal my broken ribs.
How he healed me from afar, I had no clue, but with the amount of power he just spent and the rate at which his vim waned lately, he’d have nothing left by the time he got here.
If he got here at all.
“I need you in person,” I whispered under my breath. “Stop healing me and get your ass into this arena.”
“If you have something to say, you need to speak up.” Seraphine reached a hand toward me and made a fist, drawing the air from my lungs.
Frigid panic flushed my veins. I couldn’t inhale, had nothing left to exhale, and pinpricks of light sparkled in my tunneling vision as I dropped to my knees.
Air witches were seriously the worst.
Before I could black out, I lifted a finger toward her and shot a stream of fire at the hem of her trench coat. The fabric went up in flames instantly, and she screamed, jerking the coat off and stomping on the fire.
The distraction worked. She released her vacuum hold, and I raked in a breath, sprinting toward the basilisk’s corpse and ducking behind the tail.
Seraphine’s scream turned into a feral growl as she stamped out the last of the flames on her coat. She didn’t bother putting it back on. Instead, she tossed the charred fabric aside and raised both hands, palms facing me. The air in the arena shifted, growing heavy and electric.
“Hiding behind a dead bird won’t save you,” she said, her voice full of rage and disdain.
A gust of wind slammed into the basilisk’s carcass, shoving the massive body aside as if it were hollow. I scrambled backward, my boots skidding on the stone floor, but she was already on me, closing the distance between us in a blur of wind and speed.
She clamped her hand around my throat and slammed me into the arena wall. My head cracked against the stone, and for a second, the world went dark. When my vision cleared, her face was inches from mine, her eyes burning with hatred.
“I could kill you in half a second, but don’t worry,” she said. “I’ll make sure your death is slow enough for Lucifer to enjoy.”
I clawed at her arm, my nails digging into her skin, but she didn’t flinch. I tried to call on my fire, but once again, I could barely breathe. A spark flickered at my fingertips and died.
“Pathetic.” She sneered and raised her other hand, a swirling vortex of air forming around her fist, sharpening into a translucent blade. “Say goodbye, fire witch.”
I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing for the end.
BOOM.
The heavy metal doors of the arena burst open with a sound like thunder, the impact shaking the ground beneath us. Seraphine snapped her head toward the noise, her grip loosening just enough for me to rake in a breath.
Discord stood in the doorway, his chest heaving, his eyes glowing a vibrant, furious green. “Get away from her,” he roared, his voice layered with demonic resonance.
Seraphine laughed, though it sounded forced. “Or what? You’ll bleed on me? You have no power left, fallen prince.”
“I have enough for you.” He charged.
Seraphine threw me aside like a rag doll and turned toward him, sending a blast of wind his way. He didn’t slow his pace. Instead, he leaned into the gale, muscles straining, and plowed through it, tackling her to the ground.
They rolled across the stone floor, a tangle of limbs and dark magic.
Seraphine shrieked, summoning a tornado that lifted them both into the air before slamming them back down.
Discord grunted but didn’t let go. He landed a punch to her jaw that echoed through the cavernous room.
She retaliated with a burst of air that sent him skidding backward, but he shot to his feet in an instant.
I pushed myself up, my head spinning. I couldn’t just sit there and watch, so I looked around for a weapon…for anything that could stop her. My gaze landed on the basilisk’s tail, specifically the wicked, armored spike at the tip.
I grabbed it with both hands, the heavy scale rough against my skin, and braced my foot against the carcass.
I pulled and strained, working it back and forth.
My bloodied palms screamed with pain, every muscle in my body aching, but I ignored the agony and focused all my strength into the spike, shoving and pulling until it snapped off.
Seraphine pinned my demon to the floor, her hands pressed against his chest, an invisible weight crushing him into the stone. He snarled, gripping her wrists, fighting to keep the intense air pressure from collapsing his ribcage.
“Discord!” I shouted.
He looked at me, his eyes widening as he saw what I held. He understood the assignment. With a roar of effort, he bucked his hips, throwing Seraphine off balance just as I swung the tail spike.
It caught her in the side, the heavy armor tearing through her shirt and skin. She screamed and stumbled back, clutching the wound, blood welling between her fingers.
Before she had the chance to recover, Discord grabbed her by the throat and slammed her against the wall, lifting her feet off the ground.
“You,” he growled, his face inches from hers, “have been a thorn in my side since the moment we met. You hunted us. You poisoned us. You tried to kill my witch.”
“Please.” Seraphine clawed at his hands, her eyes bulging, her air magic sputtering against his grip.
Discord looked back at me, his expression fierce and questioning. “She owes a debt. A life for the misery her mother has caused you and your bloodline. Do you grant me this?”
I looked at Seraphine, at the malice still lingering in her eyes even as she begged. She was Isabel’s daughter. She had perpetuated a curse that had haunted my family for generations. She had murdered the seer, tried to kill me…and the man I loved.
“Do it,” I said, my voice steadier than I expected.
Discord didn’t hesitate. He tightened his grip, and with a sickening crunch, he crushed her neck. Seraphine went limp in his hands. He held her for a moment longer, tightening his hold even more before letting her drop to the floor in a heap.
She crumbled into ashes, obliterated, and silence fell over the arena, heavy and suffocating.
Then, a slow, sarcastic clap echoed from above.
I looked up to see Lucifer standing at the edge of his platform, looking down at us with a mixture of amusement and cold fury.
“Bravo,” he said, his voice dripping with disdain. “A touching display of teamwork. But you seem to have forgotten something.”
He vaulted over the railing, landing on the arena floor with the grace of a cat. The ground cracked beneath his boots as he straightened, his eyes glowing with hellfire.
“There’s a price on your heads, and it’s time to pay.”