“What plans?” Hunter asked, but as Jesper showed him, he blanched. “That’s an ancient text. I can’t read it, but I know who might be able to.”
“Who?” Jesper asked.
“Nebula,” Pandora whispered as I let her go. She pulled him out of her bag, and he manifested.
“Take me to the text,” he hissed.
Pandora walked over, and they showed Nebula the text. “Oh,no.”
“What?” she asked, worry evident in her tone.
“Sybil’s plans are much, much worse than I ever knew,” he said, his disembodied voice echoing around us. “She wants to use the demons as a gateway to bring dark magic from the Veil and into Kalista. She plans to make demons the chosen species and will become the Veil’s mistress.”
Hunter translated for Nebula to Jesper, who had a horrified expression that matched everyone in this fucking tower.
“There is an altar in the Temple of the Veil,” Nebula hissed.
Hunter repeated this.
One of the agents said in shock, “That’s blasphemy! The only temple in Kalista is the Temple of the Fates!”
“It’s supposed to be,” Reed muttered.
“The temple will send dark magic lightning around the Demon Capital the same way it did in Demon Reform Academy when they shattered the protective wards. Once all demons in the Demon Capital are infected, she plans to rule over this territory as its mistress,” Nebula read. “Fates, she plans for this to happen on the twenty-fourth of next month during the new moon.”
Hunter relayed this to Jesper, who ran both hands through his hair in frustration. “We’re on a time limit. We need to tell Sabine.”
“The location for the Temple of the Veil is marked,” Nebula hissed.
“We will, but there's more. The location for the temple is in here,” Pandora murmured.
“Our spy couldn’t find that location.” Jesper ran a hand down his face. “Where is it?”
“It’s only known by Sybil and her inner circle,” Nebula stated with a hum. “It’s below the capital of the Demon Capital, but it’s been sealed away. She must have recently unsealed it. No wonder she’s been trying to conduct these rituals to regain power.”
Hunter explained that to Jesper, and his face paled.
Pandora’s power swirled through our bond before retching out of her in a plume of black smoke. It billowed forth, covering the altar that lacked dark magic—but must not have lacked souls.
It was as if her body had been submerged in ice sludge the moment her power touched the altar, and I couldn’t help but shiver from the feeling. Our matebonds with her gave us a glimpse of exactly what she felt, and it made my bones ache.
Reed gasped out, clutching his chest as he stumbled toward her. “Pandora!”
Hunter caught her just as she fell back, convulsing in his arms as her power parted her lips and maintained the large clouds covering the altar. “I got you.”
“What’s happening?” Jesper called out, worry bleeding into his tone.
My shadows crept around her power, but there was nothing I could do to calm it. I ate the pain she put off, but there wasso fucking much of it.
I’d never beengoodat eating pain, and I fucking hated that for her. She’d been through so much shit, and I’d never been able to ease her of enough of it.
“That damned altar is doing this!” I hollered.
Agonystemmed off her in waves. My mind was going insane without being able to soothe her pain.
“How?” Skel asked, his power coursing through us as he calmed the fear seizing our mate.
Her eyes rolled back, and her face was screwed up in pure torment that reflected more than the fraction we felt.
