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“Relax,” I told him, opening my shiny new phone app. “I’m not going to blow up anything that doesn’t need blowing up.”

“That would be a welcome change of pace,” retorted Colonel Fireswift.

I tapped my phone screen. Across the room, one of the mega-demon’s armor leg plates clicked open and hit the floor. I tapped the screen, and both of his arm plates fell off.

Colonel Fireswift frowned at me. “How did you do that?” He looked more suspicious than impressed.

“Just a little toy my sister Bella made for me. It overrides armor locks. Neat, huh?”

“Indeed,” Colonel Fireswift replied, a calculating glimmer in his eyes. “I’d like to have a look at that ‘toy’.”

“It’s just a prototype,” I told him as Bella’s invention knocked off another armor plate.

“I could make more.”

“You’ll have to ask my sister,” I said as the mega-demon lost his chest armor.

Hmm, he was a lot smaller without all that armor. In fact, he looked more like a she.

“I’m sure your sister and I could come to a mutually profitable arrangement,” Colonel Fireswift said. “If you could arrange an introduction.”

The demon’s back plate hit the floor.

“Only if you promise to be nice to Bella,” I said.

“I promise.” Colonel Fireswift looked very eager, but not evil.

“Ok, sure,” I told him. “I guess I could introduce you two.”

“Excellent.”

The final click relieved the demon of its helmet.

“Oh, gods,” I gasped.

“What is it?” Fireswift said, reaching for his sword.

I pointed at the unmasked demon. “That is my sister. That’s Bella.”

17

DEMON'S MARK

Even stripped of her armor, Bella continued to attack the gods. A sinister light shone in her eyes. She looked like a woman possessed. She looked like her mind wasn’t here at all. Like she wasn’t in control at all.

Damiel had managed to steal the sword from her, but it didn’t matter. Venom, thick and dark and powerful, pulsed under her pale skin, building up. Singing. Ringing. Thumping. Just like her armor had resonated before.

And that’s when I realized the armor wasn’t the weapon. Bella was. And the armor hadn’t killed those gods. Bella had.

And a lot more people were going to die if I didn’t find a way to snap her out of this…whatever this was. If anyone could get through to Bella, I could. I rose up, running toward her. But my legs didn’t want to work.

Nero caught me as I fell. “Take it easy.”

“I can’t take it easy,” I growled. I was mad, but not at him. At myself. Why couldn’t my stupid body finish healing itself already?

Nero obviously sensed my frustration. “You were hit with an immortal weapon, Leda,” he told me. “You’re lucky to be alive.”

Bella blasted Cadence and Damiel away, then stalked toward the gods.