Page 7

7

June 19, 8645 BC

L eucious had awakened to a peculiar feeling. Not one he could easily explain. Just one of deep unease. Similar to the feeling he had right before battle. That moment when the war drums became his heartbeat and the stench of sweat, fear and anticipation hung heavy in his nostrils.

Not his fear, but that of the troops who had no idea if they’d live to see another day.

Had he valued his life even a tiny iota, he might have shared their fear. But death didn’t scare him. Living was far more traumatic.

At least death would bring peace, and though he’d never known that word, he liked the sound of it.

Peace.

Yet this wasn’t a day for tranquility. He didn’t know why he believed that. It was merely a premonition he couldn’t escape. A deep sense of foreboding.

Didn’t help that Mot gloated over something the idiot god knew that he refused to disclose. That only added to his deep sense of dread. When the loquacious Mot drew silent, hell usually followed.

“Leucious?”

He paused on his way to the stream where he’d planned to take a bath while his army continued to sleep after their victory celebration the night before.

Last thing he expected to see in the woods was Jaden Al-Baraka—the demon broker. They had met years before when his father had conjured the creature in order to strike a bargain for victory.

Jaden had refused. “ You don’t need me, Your Majesty. Your army is more than capable of laying waste to your enemy without any demon interference. ”

His father had been furious.

Secretly, Leucious had laughed at Jaden’s audacity. Not many creatures said no to his father and lived. But then Jaden was stronger than most.

And Leucious had no idea why Jaden would be here in the early morning to see him when he hadn’t summoned the creature. It made no sense. “Is there a problem?”

“Not per se. But I know it’s your birthday. Your twenty-first birthday.”

He’d given that no thought. What difference did such a day make? “And?”

Jaden became somber. Silent.

Which aggravated Leucious. “Are you here to spy on my bath, or do you have a real matter to discuss?”

He snorted. “I have something to tell you.” Seconds ticked by as Jaden said nothing more.

“Still waiting.”

With a heavy sigh, Jaden glanced away. “Have you ever noticed that you’re a little different from others?”

Where was this going? “More intelligent? Taller? Better looking? Wealthier? Meaner? Yes. I’ve noticed.”

Jaden rolled his eyes. “Stronger. More resistant to bleeding.”

That sent a chill down his spine. Of course he’d noticed. Everyone commented on the fact that he’d never once been seriously hurt in battle. Even blows that should have laid him low had been deflected at the last minute. It was as if something unseen protected him. “What exactly are you saying?”

Jaden let out a tired breath. “Right now, Mot is telling Tesiah about a bargain I struck for Veru approximately twenty-one years and ten months ago … give or take a day or two.”

Leucious froze as those words sunk in. Veru was his mother. And that timeline coincided with …

“My birth.”

Jaden nodded slowly. “Your mother was terrified for her life. Tesiah had told her that if she birthed one more daughter, he’d kill her along with the baby.”

That sounded like his father. The man had bragged endlessly about killing Leucious’s sisters and threatening to do the same to him when he displeased him.

I didn’t murder four innocent babes to be stuck with a useless, mouthy whoreson! Do as you’re told, boy, or join your sisters in their graves!

How could anyone forget a tirade that had been shouted at Leucious for as long as he could remember?

“So what? My mother bargained with you for a son.” How could anyone blame her for that when she was married to a brutal lunatic who would have murdered her had she disappointed him again? “What’s the harm in that?” His father had wanted a son, and she’d given him one. If anything, his mother should be applauded for her ingenuity.

At least that was his thought until Jaden spoke again. “Tesiah isn’t your real father.”

Those words slammed into him like a fist. That changed things drastically, and not in a good way.

If Tesiah wasn’t his father …

What did that mean?

Nothing, he decided. It meant absolutely nothing because he knew the truth. Jaden was lying. “Tesiah is my father.”

Jaden shook his head. “No, Leucious. I made the bargain with your mother myself. I know exactly what happened.”

Was he saying what Leucious thought he was? “ You’re my father?”

The color faded from Jaden’s cheeks. “What? No. No! What would make you think …?” He paused as if running his words through his head, then nodded. “Let me rephrase what I said. I made the bargain with your mother for her to have a son for your father. The son she was desperate for.”

This was getting tedious, and it was making him furious. “Who’s my father, Jaden?”

He hesitated a moment before he answered. “Noir is.”

Leucious stood there unsure of how to react.

Noir. The darkest god of them all. The one who’d cursed Mot and that Mot had talked about with utter contempt and hatred.

His mind reeled at the implications and the horror. Noir … His father.

“How’s that even possible?”

Noir was condemned to a hell realm. Locked there. He couldn’t leave it to impregnate his mother. It made no sense. Even for a god, how would that be possible?

“I don’t think you want the gory details since we are talking about your mother. Suffice to say, he used the demon Paimon as a surrogate. I arranged the bargain. Paimon fulfilled it.”

Curling his lip, Leucious let that seep into his soul. A demon had impregnated his mother. A demon. Everything he’d thought about himself was a lie. Everything. “Why are you telling me this now ?”

“Because as soon as Tesiah is told the truth, he will lead his army out to destroy the bastard he didn’t father. That means you. He will want your head over the lie he’s been told all these years.”

Of course, he would. Leucious knew that better than anyone. His father would never allow the son of someone else to sit upon his throne. He’d rather leave it vacant and let the others fight it out rather than see Leucious take it now.

The worst part? His mother was already dead. She would have been Tesiah’s first victim after the news. And hers would not have been an easy or merciful killing.

That made him sick to his stomach.

But there was nothing he could do to save her.

No wonder he’d been anxious all morning. Leucious turned and headed back toward his men in the camp. He needed to sober them up and be ready to route his … Tesiah. He had no idea what to call him anymore since he was no longer his father.

Although in all honesty, he’d never really been a father to him. Just someone who scowled and cursed at whatever weakness he perceived.

The heavy fist that beat the weakness out of him.

Still …

It’d been all Leucious had known.

And if Tesiah wasn’t his father, he definitely wasn’t his king.

Where did that leave them?

Enemies. What else? And Tesiah had taught him that all enemies must be dealt with and eliminated with extreme and bloody prejudice.

He started for his camp.

Jaden caught his arm. “Wait, Leucious. You need to understand why Noir fathered you.”

“I don’t care.”

“You will. Noir wants an army and a conqueror. In you, he has both. It’s why he agreed to your mother’s request when he normally turns such things away.”

Just like Tesiah. No one had ever wanted him . They only wanted his sword arm.

And Leucious had never been keen on being used. Not by anyone, and especially not by a creature who’d never had the decency to tell him he existed. That he was Leucious’s real father.

Instead, Noir had played a game with him and that he resented all the more. Because unlike Tesiah, Noir had plenty of human and demonic lives to play with. Plenty of other demons and warriors he could use.

“Why does he need me when he already has the Malachai?”

“The Malachai doesn’t serve Noir, and he doesn’t trust him. Noir wants someone whose loyalty he can believe in.”

That definitely wasn’t Leucious. Tesiah had only taught him betrayal. How to hold power by making everyone fear him.

All that mattered was power and control. It was one of the reasons why Tesiah had kept him on the road with his army.

Leucious was less likely to betray and attack Tesiah for his throne if he wasn’t at home to take it.

Now …

“I have to rouse my army.”

Jaden smirked. “Trust me, Noir isn’t going to let him hurt you.”

Leucious scoffed. “I’m not afraid.”

“I know. But the question is, which side are you going to land on?”

Leucious stood alone on the hill, overlooking the bodies of allies and enemies. This was the part about battle that he’d always hated most. When the fight was over, and the grieving began.

Yes, there was celebration over the fact that he’d won. That he was still standing. That most of his army was still alive.

But that couldn’t compensate for the horrors of watching others die. For knowing that his own life had been bought at the price of theirs. It was a steep price, especially given the fact that he didn’t really value his own existence.

More times than not, he wished himself dead and out of this misery called life. Why should he want to live? He had no reason to. And yet those men below had given their lives for an ungrateful ass.

Suddenly, someone touched his hand.

Leucious curled his lip until he turned to see Simi standing beside him with a frown on her adorable little face.

Tenderness flooded him and wiped away his anger.

“You got hurts in your heart, akri-Leucious. Why you so sad?”

He brushed his hand over her soft cheek. “I killed the man I thought was my father today, Simi.”

Tears welled in her eyes. “Oh, the Simi’s sorry. Did you want to eat him? Was he good tasting?”

Leucious scowled at her. “What?”

She clasped his pinkie in her tiny hand. “Is that not why you kill things? To eat them when you’s hungry?”

God, how he loved her innocence. She couldn’t conceive of all the horrible things people killed for. To her, you killed for survival and no other reason because nothing else was worth killing for.

“No, Simi. Sometimes people kill to protect themselves.”

“Like the Simi’s matera who died protecting Acheron.”

He picked her up and held her to his side. “I’m sorry you lost your mom. No child should be motherless.” And he should know. He’d rarely seen his after she’d birthed him. His “father” had forbidden her to cuddle him or act as a mother in anyway. As soon as he’d been weaned, his war training had begun.

And he’d made good use of that today.

“That made you even sadder, akri-Leucious. Did you know Simi’s matera?”

Sighing, he rubbed her back. “No. I lost my mother today, too.” He wasn’t quite sure why it hurt so much. Tesiah had made sure that he spent very little time with Veru for fear of it making him soft. Womanly.

You’re a warrior, boy. Not a nursemaid.

And today, Tesiah had reaped the full harvest that came from making Leucious as harsh and unfeeling as Tesiah had been. For killing the heart that beat inside him. It was nothing more than a cold organ that had no feeling for anyone.

Especially not the man he’d thought was his father.

And he would never forget the shock in Tesiah’s eyes as he killed him. Or the lack of satisfaction he’d felt afterward.

Truthfully, he was numb over that part. What hurt inside him was the needless lives that had been lost over all this. And for what? Because his mother had been so terrified of one monster that she’d made a horrible bargain with evil to birth another.

In truth, he hated her, too, for giving him this existence that he wished to the gods he wasn’t forced to endure.

“Life is so unfair, Simi.”

“That’s what akri says. That and that life is hard and unforgiving.”

Leucious agreed.

“But akri says that’s why we have hearts … so that we can love good-quality people who’s there to help when it hurts. Their hugs makes it all betterer.”

Placing her arms around his neck, she gave him a big hug that actually made him feel a lot better or betterer. “Thank you, Simi.”

She ruffled his sweaty hair. “You’re very welcome, akri-Leucious.”

And as Leucious held her, he wondered something. “Why are you here alone, Simi?”

She pulled back to stare up at him. “The Simi felt your sadness. It said, ‘Hey Simi, I needs help ’cause I’s having a bad, bad day.’ The Simi don’t want akri-Leucious to have them bad days. You should have happy ones.”

“You keep an eye on me?” He wasn’t sure how he felt about that. Not until she smiled.

“’Course. You’re Simi’s friend and friends always stay together. Watches each other’s backs and fronts. The Simi will always be here when you needs her.”

In spite of the horror of this day and the nausea he felt inside, he truly appreciated her company.

She was magick. Stronger than anything he’d ever known.

But the problem with magick was that it, like everything else, never lasted.

And friends were only an illusion. Because the one thing he’d learned in his twenty-one years was that friends eventually turned into enemies.

If Simi ever became his enemy, so would Acheron. While Leucious knew he had never been defeated in battle, he had never gone up against a god as powerful.

Honestly, he never wanted to, either.

And the last thing he wanted was to lose the only friend he had.

An adorable Charonte demon who had no concept of the evil that had birthed him. Or, more to the point, the evil that had fathered him because it wanted to destroy the world Simi loved so much.