Chapter 1
Lucifer is here.
Olivia’s words bounced around inside my head as I struggled to pull myself from the dregs of sleep.
Not just any sleep, I reminded myself. I’d been trapped in a dream realm with Cole inside a prison of his own making. One where I was the intended victim.
Some Virtue the rage demon was turning out to be.
“Lying bastard,” I cursed as I threw off the sheets. My Uni-hare squeaked and bounced up my shoulder, curling under my feathers and refusing to come out.
We were supposed to have five more days.
The rumbling boom that split through my eardrums assured me that our time was most definitely up.
A shockwave flung me from my mattress, Uni securely digging into my wings, before sending Olivia’s body slamming into mine.
I wrapped my arms around her as my wings flailed like the useless appendages they were.
As far as I was concerned, they were a good perch for my uni-hare, not much else.
I didn’t know how to use my wings, or any part of my angelic abilities for that matter—not yet.
I had a feeling that the angelic part of myself would require training from specific types of mentors.
Two new Virtues waited for me in the remnants of Purgatory, that pocket realm now nothing more than a billowing tower of light that had crashed deep into Lucifer’s territory.
And he was here to make sure my new Virtues never saw the light of day.
Olivia shrieked as glass sprayed around us, Yuri springing into action with fangs flashing. “Nobody interrupts a vampire’s beauty sleep!” she growled, her eyes literally glowing red with murder.
Note to self. Don’t prematurely wake up Yuri—ever.
The vampire hissed when another shockwave hit, then she sprinted to the window and flung herself into the night.
“She’s so cool,” I muttered before I released Olivia.
My best friend laughed as she snatched up a pair of shoes and threw them at me. “I think ‘crazy’ is the word you’re looking for.”
“Crazy cool,” I amended as I slipped on the sneakers. I didn’t really need shoes. I could heal from most injuries at an incredible speed, however slicing up my feet even if they’d heal didn’t appeal to me.
I swapped out my pajamas for a halter top and a skirt while I was at it.
Another shockwave rocked the foundation of our building. I took note of the pattern, a new burst sweeping across the Academy grounds every thirty to sixty seconds.
It would be enough time for me and Olivia to take the stairs like normal people. As much as I wanted to catapult myself out into the night like Yuri, my wings were sadly just for show until I learned how to use them.
Entering onto the foggy streets, I held up one hand in preparation for the expected shockwave. It hit hard, but I had been ready for it and I straightened once it swept past us.
“How did you know that was coming?” Olivia asked me, her eyes wide.
“It’s coming in waves,” I told her, although we both suspected the source.
Lucifer’s weapon.
Each shockwave did a number on the Academy grounds, ripping rock from the ancient gothic towers and cracking the molten streets.
“He’s trying to break it apart,” I marveled. It was one way to get rid of us. The realms were already merging in on one another and if he couldn’t get past the barrier, sinking Fortune Academy Underworld deeper so we hit his territory would effectively allow his Demonspawn to overrun it entirely.
Smart. Effective.
And horrifying.
“We have to stop it,” Olivia said, a statement I fully agreed with.
We struggled to peer through the hellish cast of fire and shadow—a dead giveaway that the devil himself had arrived. Screams echoed in the distance and a glowing figure approached us through the mist that left moisture on my lips. I snatched up Olivia’s hand and prepared to fight.
The fog stirred and a silent wind blew it around my feet, revealing Orion as he waved at us with one hand.
This way, little star, his voice said in my mind. I couldn’t hear him out loud, not when something seemed to suction the very sound from the air.
I located the source of the disturbance a moment later just as a stream of water blasted through the fog, releasing more steam as it hit a wall of raging fire.
Trevor.
Olivia relaxed at my side when she spotted her boyfriend.
The demigod blew her a kiss, his features gorgeous just like all of the Demis.
A crown of water flowed around his head and glinting scales scattered across his skin.
He glowed with an unearthly light as he worked entire streams through the air.
I gaped in amazement, because this was still the Underworld.
He’d considerably grown in power to be able to conjure enough moisture out of the air to combat Hellfire.
“Watch out!” Olivia warned just as a red circle of blood pooled at my feet. I recognized the Demonspawn portal, but this one worked faster than I anticipated and a clawed hand shot out, sending claws digging into my ankle.
I screamed and ripped it away, losing a chunk of my calf with the motion as I fell to one knee. Another creature burst from a portal a few feet away, heading straight for me when a bolt of lightning blasted him into ash just before the next shockwave hit.
I shot my gaze up to find Zero recovering from the latest blast. He gave me a steady nod before returning to the fight.
The son of Zeus joined Ally, daughter of Athena, and the two made short work of a burst of Demonspawn that rose from the streets.
Lightning streaked from Zero’s hand, taking out a wave of creatures as a metallic scent of burnt ozone flooded my senses.
“They’ve got this section,” I whispered, a bit rattled by the level of power we were witnessing. Lucifer’s secret weapon was no joke.
Olivia covered my hand with hers. “Let’s find him.”
I nodded in complete agreement. Lucifer needed to be stopped.
After another shockwave tore across the ground, Zero abruptly shot up into the air, leaving Ally alone. The female Demi pulled blades from their sheaths, one in each fist as she strode forward, slicing down Demonspawn in her wake.
Movement in the smoky darkness had me smothering a cry of panic. We’d never find Lucifer at this rate. “Fuck... more of them, Lily! We have to warn them—wait.” A pair of silver horns crested the fog, followed by a sway of hips that I’d recognize anywhere. “Jess? Is that you?”
The friendly Demonspawn wearing a human form broke through the mist. She boasted horns that glowed with a brilliant silver light that took on a red hue beneath the bask of Hellfire.
“Would you stop gawking like a newbie?” she asked after my jaw dropped.
A horde of humanoid creatures with silver horns filtered out behind her, taking out Lucifer’s minions in their wake.
“I brought out the Academy’s Demonspawn for this fight,” she informed me with a measure of irritation in her voice.
“We were supposed to be going on an expedition to find the weapon.” She held up one arm and curled her tail around a pike sticking from the ground as another shockwave hit.
She frowned in the direction of the disturbance.
“Looks like the weapon came to us.” She moved with incredible speed, taking down a new wave of enemy Demonspawn.
Black blood splattered across her uniform, making her look like a total badass.
“Hurry up and find Lucifer before the whole place comes down!” she shouted back at me.
Another shockwave hit, this one a bit premature and taking me off guard and I buckled my knees. “How will I know which Demonspawn are ours?” I asked.
Jess pointed at her horns. “Ours glow silver with the Dean’s magic. Now go!”
Heat slammed into me at her words as the sky blazed red with Hellfire. Embers rained down, followed by massive fireballs that crashed to the streets all around us. Olivia screamed as I fended off one of the orbs with my arm, hissing as my flesh sizzled under the impact.
Fire engulfed us, spreading all around me in a molten cocoon.
I was the Princess of Hell. Lucifer thought he could fuck with me?
He could think again.
I screamed as I shoved the heat away, fanning out my feathers in a blast of power that came straight from my core. I commanded the fire just as Lucifer did and it lurched away from me, cowering like a beaten dog.
The Demis didn’t fare as well. Orion roared under the wave of heat, his golden brilliance flaring as Trevor sent a surge of water to his aid. My Virtue could handle himself, but my heart still jumped when Orion fell to one knee.
Trevor’s water magic twined around them in an unending flow. Zero came flying down from the skies just as Ally emerged from the shadows, her face set in grim determination. All of them boasted burns and blisters. I hid my own wounds before they saw the black blood seeping from my skin.
I was a Princess of Hell—which meant I was part Demonspawn. While the Academy’s Demonspawn were tolerated, I wasn’t sure how students would react to that part of my nature. I was a freak enough as it was.
Another fireball came flying toward them and both Trevor and Zero spun, flinging up their hands and sending their power into the massive, fiery orb. The ground shuddered as the Demis regrouped, coming together with their backs to one another.
The sky to the west illuminated hot and red and Orion broke into a run. His panic flooded into our mate bond, putting me on edge.
“Something’s wrong,” I whispered to Olivia as Orion made way for the Academy’s barrier. It seemed like it was still holding up, but something big was coming.
Something none of us were prepared to handle.
Yuri emerged from the mist, flinging black blood from her fingertips. Her eyes went wide as her focus zeroed in past my shoulder. “Lily, look out!”
My ears popped as heat exploded across my skin.
A rush of power launched us into the air. Sizzling heat covered my skin, digging deep into my sensitive feathers with fresh agony that ripped a scream from my throat. Hellfire shouldn’t have burned, but this was something new.
Olivia’s magic encased us in a massive, pearlescent orb.
“Olivia, don’t!” I begged, because it was too much power for her to handle.
My best friend couldn’t keep using her magic like this.
She’d devour her own soul if she did. But even through the protection of her spell, I felt the heat crawl inside the shield and rake its claws down my back.
“Hold on,” she said, gritting her teeth.
The support under my feet disappeared, then we fell. It only lasted a few seconds before we hit the ground hard.
Olivia’s hand went limp in mine and I dropped to my knees. “Olivia?”
Yuri joined us, her glowing red eyes wide with panic. She loved Olivia as much as I did. “Oli?” she asked, her voice going up a pitch.
Olivia’s eyelids fluttered open, the brilliant glow of magic fading from her irises.
No…
A huge, earth-shattering racket ripped the air around us, almost drowning out Yuri’s voice. “Look!”
With dread, I glanced at the barrier, following Yuri’s gaze.
A huge crack raced from the bottom, zinging out across the softly glowing surface.
Orion raised one hand, a golden beam releasing from his fingertips in an attempt to stop the spread, but the crack fractured into several, spidering out faster than Orion could mend it.
“It’s going to fall,” Olivia whispered, her voice weak as she watched with horror.
Setting my jaw, I allowed Yuri to take Olivia from me. Even if I wasn’t ready for Lucifer, there wasn’t a choice. I had to face him before he ripped the entire Academy apart trying to get to me and killed all my friends in the process.
Straightening, I curled my fingers into fists and faced the buckling barrier as a massive crack ran up its center.
The presence of my Virtues warmed my chest, steadying me and reminding me that I wasn’t doing this alone.
Orion backed away until he stood at my side. He rested a claiming touch on my neck, making me relax as his warmth flooded into me.
Hendrik slipped from the mist, his eerily dark gaze one of complete confidence in me—in us.
We’d grown since our early days at Fortune Academy when I was just a dud—a pawn in his master plan to bring power to his clan. The Dark Mages spanned out behind him, their trust in their leader and therefore, in me.
It was a strange feeling to be revered and valued.
My Hunter, Dante, came up behind him, a silent shadow that contained coiled, caged energy that would strike fear in any who opposed him.
While I’d broken the worst of Cole’s hold on him, he’d still fractured underneath the strain, and the trust in his gaze said that I was the only one who could put him back together again.
Logan, my wolf, broke through the mist in his primal form, transitioning in a splintering crack of bones. He’d mastered his shift in ways I never would have thought possible since our bond, and since his growth as Alpha while I had been gone.
Kaito came up from behind him, my mentor and protector giving me a nod. The silver streak in his hair blazed with tufts of blue flame, the silver ring around his irises glimmering with magic born of the deepest layers of Hell.
All of my Virtues completed me, except a void remained where Cole’s presence should have been.
It pained me he was locked in a prison designed to draw out suffering—but he had asked for it, hadn’t he?
After a year spent tormenting my mates, trying to either strengthen them to some ideal he believed they should meet, or break them so he could have me all to himself, was unacceptable.
The void seemed to have grown since I’d awakened my angelic traits, a distant part of myself reaching out as if I’d left my body entirely, searching for two halves of one soul that would bring my heavenly powers to light.
Something Lucifer wanted to make sure would never happen.
All around us, chaos reigned.