Page 46 of An Unexpected Ascension (A War Between Worlds #1)

The Angel

“That’s it! Again!”

“Fuck!”

I scream, panting and desperate to catch my breath.

Sweat trickles down the back of my neck. I wipe it away before spinning on my heels to face the Devil once more. I crouch, sword raised and ready.

Lucifer slicks his damp hair back, mirroring my position. Slowly, we dance, waiting for the other to fold and make the first move. He lunges and immediately, I block his advance. It doesn’t stop him from nearly tripping me, but with a focused mind, the muscle memory I built as a dancer saves me.

It’s a fair round, seeing as we’ve done nothing but spar the last sixth months.

Six long months.

That’s how long Lynx has been gone. That’s how long I’ve sat here and done nothing but learn to fight, trading my daggers for a sword.

Six months since I watched that man run a blade straight through my demon and take him away.

Memories of Lynx doused in blood flash before me as I strike over and over again. I try to keep my footing balanced, and my movements controlled. But the pain from his loss bellows out of my chest and into the open air of the training room. I can see the pity in Lucifer’s eyes, which only spurs the fury inside of me.

“Take control, Briar. Let go of your emotions, they’ll only get in the way.”

As if to prove his point, he tangles his leg around mine bringing me to the ground. He crouches over me, the tip of his blade against my neck. My chest heaves as I try to catch my breath when a wave of tears prick my eyes.

I don’t bother stopping them, it’s not the first time the Devil’s seen me cry over his Second.

He drops his weapon, letting it clatter to the ground.

“I’m sorry. We are going to save him.”

“If there’s anything left to save.”

I choke out.

“He’s leverage to get to me. He’s not gone. That would be a waste on the Gods’ part.”

He offers me a hand and pulls me to my feet.

“Come now, let’s go get you a new sword. I’ll have Garrick escort you through the city.”

I look down to the rusted old thing that Lynx once used and a pang burrows deep in my chest. A part of me wants to keep it forever, to use this sword if only because it was his.

Lucifer must see the thoughts reeling inside my mind.

“Perhaps another day, then.”

“No.”

I sigh.

“I can barely ward you off in a sparring session, I very well can’t show up to war aiming to strike with this dull blade.”

He nods, offering a small smile.

“I’m glad someone can keep their logic amidst drowning in their emotions.”

“Hey! I’m hardly emotional!”

I wipe the tears from my face with the leathers covering my forearm.

Lucifer chuckles, grabbing the back of my neck and walking us toward the stairs.

“Maybe take Ada with you? She seems... stifled in this manor.”

That she is. The woman roams these halls like a ghost: quiet, pale, and unearthly. Her very presence is haunting and watching her wither away in Hell has left me with permanent chills.

“Sure. I’ll drag her along.”

If Hell was solemn before, it’s even more so now.

After the massacre that Lynx’s father left in the Great Hall, our demons have been on high alert. They’re twitchy and anxious, always looking over their shoulder and I don’t blame them.

Lucifer spent the first month repairing all the guests that attended the party that night; stuffing organs and sewing wounds. The amount of power he needed to help everyone left him entirely drained day and night. It took another month after that just for him to recoup the lost energy.

Those first couple months were the hardest.

When I thought I couldn’t be more broken, losing Lynx had proven me so, so wrong. As much as I wanted to deny it, he was beginning to rebuild the pieces inside of me.

Apart from that, the rest of Hell was preparing for the worst. With our Devil lacking power to protect this city, we were nearly defenseless against the Gods. Except for our unholy weapon but pulling that card too soon could be catastrophic in this war. So, we took cover, stayed low and alert.

As time passed us by, we realized that they were waiting for us to make the next move. The demons slowly resumed their normal existence: running their businesses, mingling with friends, finding new enemies, the usual things most people do.

Only I couldn’t move on. I can’t move on. I’m still stuck on that day six months ago, watching Lynx gutted in front of me with his pleading eyes on mine. They said help me, they said stay with me, they said don’t fucking let me go... and I did.

I let him go and I never got to tell him those three little words he longed to hear from me. I wanted to tell him so badly in that hallway and not just because in my gut I knew it was goodbye, but because... I love him.

But as we sit in wait for the next devastation the Gods will bestow, we know they carry the same weight. Which is why time is our next best weapon. The longer we delay retaliation, the more comfortable they’ll feel in their own home again.

And just when those Gods sit on their thrones condemning those that do not deserve it, we’ll be there with our blades in their bellies and the Mortifier at their throats. They will perish and painfully so.

My mind is pulled back to the present as a small set of fingers thread through mine, unfurling the fist I hadn’t noticed I was making.

“You seem tense,”

Ada says, looking over at me as we walk through the city streets.

I physically force my shoulders to relax, shaking said tension from my arms.

“Sorry. I just... I hate sitting here doing nothing. Especially, now that I know what those Gods are capable of.”

Ada's hazel gaze averts mine, a fog of trauma clouding her and as her hand drops, so does my heart.

She doesn’t like talking about it much, but from time to time, she’s shared enough to turn my burning hatred into an inferno of absolute loathing.

After many long silent heartbeats, she finally whispers.

“I hate it here.”

“I can imagine.”

“It’s not like I enjoyed Primordialis, but at least the light was pure, and the gardens were lush. Here... it’s just rot and decay everywhere you look. The sun isn’t even sunny. It’s like my soul has been sucked straight from my body and I’m a walking shell of a woman.”

It’s an odd thing to feel so opposed to the things she claims. Yes, objectively Heaven and Primordialis are by far prettier, but Hell... is everything Heaven stole from me.

Hate.

Agony.

Passion.

Love.

It’s all so easily accessible, sitting right under the surface ready to break free any chance it gets.

I don’t even mind the blood sun, the way its crimson rays shadow you just enough to let you think you’re hiding your true self. As for the rot and decay, well, that’s just a mirror of my own heart. I think I’d feel rather out of place back in Heaven.

I don’t say any of this to Ada as we continue towards Jeremy’s shop.

Instead, I tell her.

“Would you go back if you could? If we slay the Gods?”

She nibbles her bottom lip, or rather chews it aggressively, as she thinks it over.

“I’ll never step foot in any other realm where my husband is not. However, should he be willing to follow and despite all the horrible memories, I would.”

I smile widely at her.

“What are you grinning at, Briar?”

I stop just short of the weaponry shop, my hand wrapped around the door handle.

“Well, my Goddess, I’m thinking of which throne in Primordialis suits you best. The one weaved in gold?”

Fear flashes like lightening in her eyes. I don’t miss the way her chest inflates and the pulse in her neck thrums. She’s considering the picture I’ve painted her. Mulling it around in her mind, tasting it, liking it...

I only smirk, tugging the door open and heading straight for the counter.