“I made her with you in mind, Lucifer. Not Adam. He was only meant to be another human companion. After you fulfilled your duty of protecting her, I was going to allow you to take her as your wife. But seeing as you couldn’t wait, you will serve as an example to all others lacking in willpower and patience. All you must do is defeat the devil king, take his crown, make your way up through the layers to the surface and marry your mate. Only then will you have your redemption.”
“He’s wrong. Eve is not our mate. Not our true mate. We don’t resonate with her.”
I couldn’t spare the time or the strength it would take to argue with my beast. Currently, I needed him on my side because at that moment, an archangel named Azraella came out of nowhere with a flaming claymore clutched in her hands.
The Flaming Sword of Justice.
It was said to be one of the few things that could kill an angel. Why Father would keep such an evil accouterment had been a wonder to me... Until now.
I stood my ground, a cocky smirk on my lips, letting her know I wasn’t afraid of her. I was much stronger than her. She swung the sword toward me, and thanks to my celestial eyes, I saw her move. I dodged.
Unfortunately, she had the exact same power. She moved with me, making a counter strike almost the same moment I dodged. “What, I don’t get a weapon?” I sneered up at my father as we fought, who looked down on me over his nose, appearing thoroughly unamused.
“This isn’t a negotiation, my boy. The sooner you concede, the sooner you can start upon your task.”
“Concede? Never! I’d rather you take my cock before you take my wings.”
“Oh please, Father,” I heard Michael whine over the hiss and sizzle of the sword as it came dangerously close to one of my wings, lopping a few black feathers off. “Let him make that trade.”
“Shut up, Michael!” all my siblings now chided in.
The fight with Azrealla was more of a dance. We were perfectly matched on speed. If only I had a sword engulfed in flames, this would be over in seconds.
“Give up,” she snarled at me, a thin layer of sweat beginning to pebble on her brow. “Go claim your crown, King of Sins. Lord of Darkness and Depravity.”
“These names are getting good.” I let out a laugh, unphased by her taunts.
“My Lord, I won’t be able to keep this up much longer,” Azrealla admitted as I stepped past another slash of the sword. The almighty signaled to the cluster of guards that had been standing by the gate. Six of them rushed forward, drawing regular swords.
Their attempts were pathetic. They were fast, but their abilities were lacking stacked up next to mine. Even unarmed, I managed to disarm them. Delivering a kick to the chest of the last standing guard, he slammed into the wall, and his sword clattered to the ground.
I picked it up, pointing it at Azrealla. “I’m sorry for this.” Lunging forward, I stabbed the sword tip into one of her beast’s eyes on her arm. A shrill scream filled the air, and she stumbled back. And dropped the flaming sword. I lunged for it. But another set of hands beat me to it. Jerking my gaze up, my blood turned as hot as the flames that rolled off the deadly weapon when I saw my own face staring back at me.
“Michael! Let go!”
A tendon ticked in his jaw as he struggled to wrestle the blade from me. “Brothers, sister! Help me!”
For a long beat, nobody moved. Our siblings stayed rooted to their seats. I could see the conflict raging behind their eyes, like an unnavigable storm. They had all voted me guilty, but that didn’t mean they thought I should be ripped away from my wings and thrown into a chaotic realm filled with death and danger.
But Father’s booming “help Michael” was all that was needed to sway them to pick sides.
Betrayal made my body burn as Raziel, Amenadiel, and Uriel threw themselves at me. Against all three, it was easy for them to wrestle me to the ground.
“Put him face down, wings up. Here, give me the sword Azrealla. I want to do it.” Michael’s unkind command slashed through my lungs, robbing me of all air.
I could shift back into my human form. I could draw this out. But I knew that in the end, I would not be finishing out this day with my wings.
“I’m sorry,”I told my beast internally.“You’ll be locked inside me forever.”
“Fuck that. I will not be trapped in you forever. You heard your father. Become the new devil king. Tame the chaos within your new realm. Then marry your true mate. After that, we’ll get our wings back.”
I swallowed down the bile that burned in my throat. The spirit inside me always had been an optimist. But I couldn’t seem to channel his optimism. Not right now, not with everyone I’d ever loved piled on top of me, holding me down so they could rob me of the thing that made me a celestial.
Footsteps sounded by my ear, and on the next breath, my twin crouched down so that he was now within my vision, the flaming blade in his hand.
“I’m going to enjoy this, Brother,” he whispered into my ear in a voice too low for anyone else to hear. “But know this. I don’t believe Eve is your true mate. I think if she was, you would have already fucked her by now. Since marrying her is the final step to get back the wings, I promise you this. I’ll find your true mate, whoever she is, and I’ll take her life.”
“Why?” I managed to choke out, unable to breathe beneath the weight of my siblings’ hands.
