Chapter 63
Vivian’s Point of View
Rule sixty-three: Don’t scream.
Silence stretches across the battlefield as every soldier takes in what I’ve just done. But there’s no air of victory on our side. Need’s army still overwhelmingly outnumbers us, and from the speed at which her expression recovers, she damned well knows it.
“Attack!” She yells, her voice carrying throughout the field.
Like a well-oiled machine, soldiers from three realms advance.
Sin takes my hand again and apparates us closer to our army. A heartbeat later, Rosie flashes in beside us. I’m still wobbling from the sudden shift when the air behind us shudders.
I whirl around, only to find Arianna standing there, panting a bit. She gives me a slightly panicked smile. “Sorry I’m late!”
“Where have you been?” I exclaim, even as a wave of relief washes over me.
She gives a shaky laugh before winking at me. “To Hell and back.”
Varian jogs up to us. “They’re going to try and flank us. I recommend we meet their front lines. Send the largest shifters first. We can disrupt their formations.”
Fear floods me as I realize he’s waiting for me to give the command – for me to order our soldiers to their deaths.
No more running, I remind myself.
But just as I open my mouth to give the order, the ground beneath our feet begins to tremble.
My initial thought is that there’s an earthquake, until I remember the whole ‘world-ending destructive powers’ thing and spin to look for Leon and Irena.
“It isn’t them,” Sin says, tension lining his features.
“Then who–” I start, wondering if maybe there are fae who can control the elements.
Before I have a chance to ask, a chasm splits across the center of the field. There’s a deafening crack as the fissure grows, widening until it’s a gaping wound in the earth. Inky black shadows crawl from its depths, looking sentient as they twine and search.
I glance at Arianna, since the shadows look just like hers, only to find her looking ghostly pale. Her panicked, wide eyes are locked on the center of the chasm, and though I don’t hear it, I’m pretty sure she just whispered ‘oh, fuck.’
I figure out why a second later.
Soldiers begin streaming out of the smoky darkness. Each of them glows faintly silver as they raise their weapons and charge into the field.
They’re charging Need’s armies.
“Kitten,” Sin whispers, “I think that’s the Forsaken army.”
Awe thrums through the bond, as ghostly soldiers clash with fae soldiers, and sure enough, the ghosts cut through the living with ease.
Only these aren’t the twisted, terrifying creatures I freed in the Shadow Realm.
These souls are whole again.
“But how?” I ask.
I did the math (sort of). We needed hundreds of thousands of souls to free Hades.
There’s no way the last ten thousand were enough.
I’ve only just remembered that I’m not the only Reaper when a more solid figure emerges from the chasm.
His black hair looks messy under his obsidian crown, and like Sin, he’s wearing black fighting leathers. He turns toward us, and his icy blue eyes are sharp as ever.
Hades.
Holy fuck, it worked.
Something like hope sparks in my chest.
The God of the Underworld stares at us for a moment, and then lifts a brow as if to ask, ‘are you coming?’
He turns back to face Need’s army, and already, shadows are crawling out from him. They extend toward the living soldiers, twining around them before diving down their throats. They die moments later with panicked, soundless screams.
His attack is met by the piercing rage of hundreds of angels, as they take to the skies, trying to take out the spirits from above. They attack in flurries of motion, only for shadows to occasionally snap out at them and drag them to their death.
“That’s our cue,” I murmur. “Think we might win now?” I ask Sin, taking in the thousands upon thousands of ghostly soldiers that continue to stream from the chasm.
He squeezes my hand a little tighter, his hard gaze fixed on something ahead of us. I follow his stare and watch as Irena’s power diffuses Hades’ shadows. Leon joins her, and together, they start taking out large swaths of the ghostly army.
“It’s not looking great,” Sin answers, before kissing me soundly. It only lasts a second when he pulls back to whisper, “I love you, kitten.” Then, he lets me go, apparating over to the other side.
The field becomes a riot of color as the three Destroyers start to fight.
Panic claws at my chest, and I finally yell, “Attack!”
Our small army charges.
Shifters explode into their animal forms, and the Angelic Realm soldiers are quickly met by dragons, hawks, and other winged creatures that take to the skies.
Soldiers from our army apparate over, diving into the fray.
Arianna apparates into a tangle of fae soldiers, her black shadows joining Hades’. Cerberus bounds from our line, easily clearing the chasm to chase after her. His tail wags as he tears through armor, dismembering every soldier he comes across.
Further down, I spot two identical pink-haired fairies fighting – Lilanthara and Rosie.
“Try not to blow us up,” Morgana warns me, and then she’s gone too.
She doesn’t even bother to lift a weapon as she apparates into the center of the Otherworld army. Instead, every soldier within reach of her gaze screams in raw terror.
The sounds they make are almost animalistic as they start clawing at their own eyes, as if they’re trying to scrape out whatever horror she’s unleashed onto them.
I swallow. I’ve never asked if Morgana had powers, and now I’m not sure if I want to know what they are.
From the corner of my eye, I spot a familiar flash of red hair, and turn to see my half-sister surrounded by angels. Silver threads coil around her as she swings a familiar-looking scythe.
Only, instead of making contact with the soldiers, she uses the blade to tear their souls from their bodies.
Okay, maybe the scythe was hers all along.
Above us, a massive black dragon lets out a roar that rattles through the air as he dives toward the angels.
“We need a way to get across the chasm!” Magnus yells as he runs over to my side.
Right – crap. Most of our army can’t apparate.
I mentally slap myself out of my shock.
I’m not powerless anymore. I can help.
Golden light pulses from my skin, and I focus on the chasm, picturing the earth knitting itself back together.
I have no idea if I’m doing it right, and my focus breaks when massive wolves, bears, and large cats run past us. They sprint across a newly formed bridge.
My momentary joy is interrupted by a blast up ahead, and my eyes immediately find Sin, still holding off two Destroyers.
I can feel his strain through the bond and pull out my swords as I run to help him. Soldiers block my path, and I cut them down.
I glance his way again, only to find he’s fighting off Need, while Irena continues to throw blasts his way.
Leon is gone.
Blue light streaks over the ground, and it’s the only warning I have before the earth falls away, a new chasm forming.
I manage to jump away in time, but soldiers from both sides fall in, screaming as they fall into the abyss. Looking up, I find Leon watching me with a sadistic smile, but I barely spare him a glance before golden light pours from my palms.
I try to fix the damage he’s doing before any more of our army can disappear. At the same time, I risk another glance at Sin, relieved to find that Hades is fighting beside him. But my relief is short-lived when Leon starts toward me at a leisurely pace.
His tattoos flare, and more cracks open in the earth. Molten magma spills out of them, burning soldiers alive.
Frantically, I try to knit the ground back together, trying to save as many of our people as I can.
‘He has you on the defensive, stop letting him!’ Cassandra’s memory hisses, and I want to scream from frustration.
Leon isn’t letting up on his assault, and if I stop defending, my friends might die.
He continues to toy with me, and I ignore his amused grin as I spot something behind him.
The Fae Queen is facing off against a massive silver wolf – Ragna. And while the Queen looks untouched, Ragna’s coat is slashed and slick with blood. Still, she doesn’t back down.
But that isn’t what caught my attention. Two pink-haired fairies stand behind the Queen – Lilanthara and Rosie. Both look like they’re in terrible shape, and the only way I can tell them apart is from Lilanthara’s three-inch nails.
The sisters have stopped fighting, and Lilanthara holds something out to Rosie. Rosie glances over to where Sin and Irena are fighting, before turning back to her sister and taking the item.
It’s a dagger. And from the color, I’m guessing it’s iron.
“Do it!” Lilanthara mouths at Rosie.
Just as Rosie lifts the dagger, Leon lets out an irritated growl and apparates in front of me.
At the same time, more fissures erupt over the battlefield, only now, there are hundreds, splintering through the ground like broken glass.
My heart skips a beat when I spot Varian swoop down and shove Magnus away from a fissure. He doesn’t slow as he takes to the skies once more, only to be swarmed by angels.
“You know, you really are pathetically bad at this,” Leon notes with a condescending tone.
Heat licks at my heels as he says the words, and I glance over my shoulder just in time to see a river of lava edging closer. I jump, only barely managing to avoid being burned.
“I’m not even trying, and look at you, you’re scrambling. It’s almost funny, making you dance,” Leon continues, looking self-satisfied.
Instead of responding, I run forward, even if it means getting closer to him. Every minute I keep him busy is a minute that Hades and Sin can find a way to stop Irena. My steps waver, though, when the earth below my feet starts to shift.
I stumble.
Leon’s grin widens, and he advances on me, now only a few feet away. “I wonder, how quickly do you think Sin will die, when he’s distracted by the sound of your screams?” He adjusts himself as he asks it, his steps growing faster.
But before he can take another step, his smug expression is swallowed by thick shadows that stuff themselves down his throat.
“Don’t you touch her!” Arianna yells as she apparates only a few dozen feet away.
Her attack only lasts a few seconds, though, when Leon’s powers glow brighter, negating her shadows.
“Whore,” he growls, looking in her direction.
I see my window. Before I’ve even fully stood back up, electricity crackles over my skin, and I send a bolt firing at Leon.
At the same time, Arianna sends more shadows his way, only to let out a scream when Rydon apparates directly before her.
His fist collides with her face, and a surge of rage washes over me as he tries to shove something onto her hands – black cuffs.
“No!” I scream.
But before I have a chance to help, Hades apparates beside Arianna. Shadows and murder radiate from him in waves as he slams a dagger into the guard’s neck.
I let out a breath, only to realize I’ve forgotten to keep an eye on Leon.
His hand grips my throat before I even have a chance to face him. There’s another pulse from his tattoos, and the ground behind me falls away.
My feet dangle over the precipice, and I lash out with more of my power, even as my gasp is lodged inside my throat.
His grip is punishingly tight, and his power sears against mine, nullifying it.
“Do you remember, Vivian, what I told you the first time I held your life in my hands?” His fingers dig into my flesh, his nails piercing my skin. “I told you that I own your very breath, and I meant it. You’ll breathe for me, or you won’t breathe at all.”
More of my power surges forward as I try to find the right amount that it will take to hurt him, but not blow up a realm. It’s taking more time, and it almost feels like trying to scream through a straw.
I need to keep him talking, just a little longer.
It shouldn’t be a problem, Leon loves the sound of his own voice.
He grins as he continues to nullify my power. “Such a shame you never learned to apparate,” he muses. He tilts his head before adding, “Don’t forget to scream, pet.”
And then he drops me.
My hands flail out, desperate for purchase, and I bite my lips to stop myself from screaming.
I will not distract Sin.
I manage to catch myself on a jutting rock after only falling a few feet.
“I’m okay!” I scream in my mind, hoping it’s enough.
Leon backs up a few steps and looks over in the direction Sin is still fighting.
I only have a second to catch his irritated expression before Morgana apparates in front of me, cutting off my view. She hits the ground hard as she scrambles to the edge and holds out an arm to me.
“Hurry!” She yells.
I reach for her without hesitation, stretching as high as I can to meet her. But just as our fingers make contact, her eyes go wide.
My brow pinches, and I only have a second of confusion before I spot Leon standing above her.
There’s a triumphant grin on his face as he pulls his immortal-killing sword free from her chest.
Blood spills over the ground, and warm droplets splatter against my face. Morgana’s arm goes limp, and after a shuddering inhale, her eyes shut.
No. Oh god, no.
Desperately, I shove Creator power into her, trying to heal the damage, but nothing happens.
She doesn’t move.
I don’t have time to mourn her before Sin apparates a few feet away from Leon.
But there’s something wrong.
He doesn’t attack or run to help.
He just stands there, swaying a bit, his face crumpled in devastation.
The bond lurches in a way I’ve never felt before, and I think he’s frozen in grief over the loss of his Keeper.
Until I feel it.
Pain slams through the bond, followed by a cold emptiness that leaves me terrified.
My fingers dig into the stone as a new wave of panic rushes over me. “Sin,” I gasp, as I try to pull myself higher.
His eyes find mine, but they’re unfocused, like he’s struggling to see me.
And then I see her.
Need steps out from behind him, clutching a bloody dagger. There’s a green gem in the hilt.
It’s Irena’s blade.
Horror crashes into me as I realize what’s just happened.
Sin staggers forward a step, like he’s still trying to reach me.
No.
“Kitten,” he calls in my mind, his voice coming faintly.
The sound is unlike anything I’ve ever heard from him. It’s thin, fraying, and so completely wrong.
The bond flickers violently, and his presence on the other side begins to dim.
“NO!” I scream, just as Leon steps in front of him, and plunges his sword into Sin’s heart.