I frown and stare at the floor. “Ready?” Lucifer asks as he nods to the two guards standing on either side of the doors.
“Wait.” I square my shoulders and slide my arms out from the gods at my side.
Archan’s brow dips as I glance at him. “A queen does not lead by leaning on the arms of men. She walks through Hell alone, stares the fire in the eyes, and smiles. Strength lies in the courage to stand in the storm, lay down your sword and dance in the rain. I love you. I am yours and you are mine. But right now I need you to let me dance.”
He stares at me for a long moment, then nods and takes a subtle step back. Lucifer follows. The doors swing open and the gazes of more than a hundred demons zero in on me. Some are dressed like gladiators, others like they are attending a black-tie event. Cigar smoke clouds the air, the scent crawling up my nostrils. Their eyes judge, assess, and determine my strength before I’ve even taken my first step. When a few gazes shift to the gods at my back, I know I have played this correctly and stride into the hall like I own the castle. A few idiots let out wolf whistles.
“Don’t murder anyone,”I tell Archan.
“At least not until we know if they are going to fight with us,”Lucifer adds.
“No promises,”Archan says.
“This is what, a hundred demons? How many monsters do we have to contain?”
“These are a hundred of the most powerful warlords. Together they command hundreds of thousands of demons.”
“If you told them to fight, wouldn’t they just do it?”I wonder.
“I could order them to fight. But an army who fights for a cause they believe in is far more powerful than a forced one. You win the warlord, you win the army.”
I stalk through the warlords with my head held high. Bernard and Goliath give me reassuring nods as the crowd parts like the Red Sea, allowing me to reach the raised stage at the front of the room. I climb the four steps, each one solidifying my resolve. I spin to face the crowd as the gang climbs onto the stage and fan out at my sides.
I clear my throat to silence the rumble of chatter. They ignore me. I put my fingers to my mouth and wolf whistle. The demon warlords turn to face me, their silence deafening in the great hall.
“You have been gathered here, at the heart of Hell, the gates of Tartarus, to defend your homes from monsters which threaten your existence.”
A giant demon with long dark hair and a beard to match steps forward. His armor rattles as he lifts his arms. He’s like Hell’s version of Hagrid. “Zeus has guaranteed safe harbor to those who join him. Why should we risk slaughter for the sake of a little girl?”
“He is the ringleader. Gain his approval and the rest will follow,”Lucifer advises.
I tilt my head. “You trust the god who initiated the downfall of mankind? The one who hid behind one of your princes? Does he sound like a man in charge? Those monsters are coming for him as much as they are coming for me and you.”
The giant squints at me. “What makes you think you can win against them?”
“I am one woman. I cannot win against them—alone. But I have primordial gods who don’t fight because I tell them to, they fight for a cause greater than myself or you. They fight for love, for family, for freedom.” I smirk at my Braveheart reference.
Murmurs drift around the room. “Do you know what he is planning?” someone shouts.
“Zeus wants to rule both Hell and Earth. He won’t stop until he dominates the dimensions. He may promise you a position in his army, maybe even at his side; but he’s a liar with no integrity. He will sling his arm around you all while slipping a knife into your back.”
I stroll across the stage. “I believe you have a fair and honest ruler in Lucifer. His hold on Hell is no accident. Fear and tyranny will only get you so far. To lead, you must deliver on your promises, be a diplomat, a lethal force when required. You set boundaries and rules so everyone knows the rewards and consequences. Now imagine not knowing what is expected of you. An act one day is rewarded, the next, punished. Zeus has been in Tartarus for thousands of years. He’s a few screws short of a bookcase.”
“He has promised me the Prince position in Greed,” another man shouts.
I glance at Duncan, whose jaw ticks. He was going to receive threats like this for an eternity, and it was all my fault.
“I can promise you that will not be happening,” I state as I come back to the center of the stage. “I am not asking you to have my back or to fight for me. I need you by my side, fighting for yourselves, for the fair life Lucifer has carved out for you.”
The giant scoffs. “You’ll be on the battlefield with us?”
A smile spreads across my lips. “I am Pandora, the original sin. Me, more than anyone, owes a death debt to Zeus. Karma is a bitch named Natia, who will lead you on the battlefield. I have already given my life for this war. I have everything to live for; love, friendship, family. I will fight until my sword is blunt, until my knuckles are bloodied. I will not stop until I stand upon the ruins of Zeus’s body.”
“Pretty words, flower, but what power do you have?” The giant demon asks.
I resist the urge to roll my eyes. Males, no matter the species, are visual creatures, whether it be sex or power. I jerk my hand out. The elements tremble as does my immortality, as I pull on the fire that lights the candles dotted around the room. I spin them into a twelve foot fireball and send it hurtling towards me down the center of the hall. Demons yelp and jump out of the way as the fire engulfs me from head to toe. I reach into the dimension we call home and pull out my ace card, the trident. I hammer it onto the stage. A huge bang echoes around the hall as water hammers on the massive wooden doors which creak under the pressure. I hammer the trident again. The doors fling open and a wave rushes towards me, halting inches from the fire. The ten-foot high sheet of water separates the warlords. Pointing the trident down, the wave splits in two, curving to the left and the right, arcing over the open-mouthed demons.
“This is my battle. The gods cannot stop me, the universe cannot break me, and the evil cannot shake me. I am giving you the opportunity to walk by my side, to lay witness to the destruction of a god. When they write my story, do you want to know how I roared like thunder or hear about it from others because you were too much of a coward?”
