Lucifer blinked. “You're right.” He paused. “Shit.”
The Demons gasped. Even Az and I gaped at his dad. Luke didn't swear. He wasn't as creative as my men and I were with his cursing, but he didn't have to be. He used old-school cuss words employed by little girls with ribbons in their hair. Things like sugar and shoots. Never the S-word, and I think all of creation might come undone if he ever said the F-word.
“I've used that thing a lot,” Luke went on. “We have to get it back.”
“Along with the Tablets and Aaron's rod,” Jesus said.
“What about the manna?” Brahma asked.
“I think the manna has been eaten by now,” Az said.
“Manna can be replaced,” Jesus said. “The rest cannot.”
“But they're not dangerous, right?” Finn asked. “It was only when they were together, part of a spell, that they were a weapon.”
“The Tablets hold a touch of magic,” Jesus said. “But unless you know how to harness that magic, no, they're not dangerous. But the rod . . . in the wrong hands, it could be as deadly as the Devil's pitchfork.”
“It's Aaron's rod, not Moses's, right?” I asked.
“Yes,” Az said.
“So, it didn't part the sea or anything. What did it do?”
Jesus squished up his face. “I don't remember. I think my dad gave Aaron a couple of miracles through it. That was back when he was really establishing himself. You know, becoming the Man.”
“Oh, yes. I remember his campaigns,” the Devil drawled. “But we're wasting time. Where is the map you mentioned?”
Odin handed Luke the map as the Demons, all in their demonic forms, shifted restlessly on hooves and claws, leathery wings rustling. Lucifer doesn't get riled easily or often, but when he does, all of Hell is affected. The territory is empowered by him after all. Well, it's empowered by all the sacrifices Luke receives, but those sacrifices fuel him, and then he fuels Hell. Unlike other gods, the Devil's worship never waned. Because Luke is smart. When he got demonized, he went with it, and he made it very general. Who do you blame when evil rears its ugly head? Satan. The Devil made me do it. He's the source of evil. And so evilreturns to him. The blood of sinners flows into Hell, but not directly to Luke. That might infect him with evil. Instead, it gets purified first by the—
“Volcano,” Luke said. “This map leads to the Blood Volcano.”
I blinked, startled by the way my thoughts crossed with his words.
“Not good,” Teharon muttered.
I looked at the God of Healing and frowned. He'd been unsettled since Jesus's sex room, and that was to be expected. We were all unsettled. But Teharon seemed especially uneasy now. Maybe it was because we were in Hell, and one of his titles was “He who holds Heaven in his hands.” But then again, his light was tempered by his twin brother's darkness. Literally. I had given him Tawiskaron's Winter and Darkness magic after he died.
“We fly!” Lucifer roared, lifting his fist to the burnt sky.
His Demons roared back.
“Um, Dad, not all of us have wings or can shift into a winged form,” Azrael said.
Luke sighed, his wings slumped, and he glanced around at the God Squad. “Who can't fly? Step forward, please.”
The gods who couldn't fly warily stepped forward.
“We're taking passengers, people,” Luke said to his Demons. “Now, we fly!”
Wings whooshed open and some of us, including myself, shifted. I went with a partial shift, producing just my dragonwings, so I wouldn't ruin all of my clothes. As it was, my top got torn up. But at least it held. I launched into the air, then swooped down with a flock of Demons and snatched up Trevor. Trevor grinned wolfishly at me as he locked his arm around my waist. Azrael took Kirill, Odin followed my lead and formed some dragon wings so he could carry Re, and Viper got a lift from the King of Hell himself.
Then we were off, wings thundering in the cold, dry air, and the Devil's manor appeared on our right. It looked like something out of a horror flick—a Gothic manor painted black, with stained glass windows featuring bloody, biblical scenes of torture. Iron spikes and living gargoyles topped the roof, the latter baring their teeth at us as we passed by. But beyond the border of that sprawling building was a picturesque valley that extended into some of the most beautiful landscapes I'd ever seen. It was a replication of Atlantis, an ode to Luke's homeland.
We veered left, away from the Atlantis replica. We didn't head toward the Ice Blocks and so we also circumvented the Mountains of Madness. That was a relief. Instead, we flew over the Durbs—the Demon suburbs, where the landscape of Hell changed dramatically. Even the sky shifted from burned orange to a bright blue, matching the sky above Luke's backyard. Everything was cheery and lush. Fancy homes with green lawns and apple trees, English gardens, miniature forests, or whatever the Demons wanted lay below us. I saw Greek-style homes and stately Victorians standing beside modern mansions. The Devil was generous with his territory magic.
Those who happened to be outside stopped and stared up at us, but no one waved. It was obvious that this wasn't a pleasure flight.
Lucifer led us over the Durbs and swung around, bringing us back into Hell's, well, hellish landscape. The sky returned to its burnt color, and the ground became sand soaked in blood. From that rich soil sprouted trees made of bones and the rock formations were the same, held together by bloody sinew. And, great Gatsby it was cold! I had to turn up my body heat. Trevor sighed and snuggled closer.
