Defying Destiny (Afterword Academy #3) - Katie May Page 0,50

it even has a chance to fight back.

This is not good.

Fear builds within me, restricting my breathing, making my limbs tremble uncontrollably.

“Get it together, Pres,” Braxton snaps. “We need you now more than ever. Hadley needs you.”

Part of me feels like she’d be better off without me. What does she need me for, anyway? To bring her down? To constantly need her assurance?

No. Women don’t want that, especially one of her caliber.

“Preston.” Caius’s voice rings out, pulling me from the drowning thoughts in my head. “I need you to open the cage. Hadley needs you. Your brothers can’t do it alone.”

“Wh-What do you mean?” I ask as Administer tears through another group of horrifying monsters with black fur and horns.

“The quad, the four of you…you hold a specific type of magic, a power that only works when you’re together. I’ve seen you do it before, and I know you can do it again. Please, fight for Hadley, and fight for them.”

Administer starts howling, falling to his knees. “Lilith! Fuck you! Come and fucking get me! How dare you steal my Lucifer from me! He was mine. Mine! And you stole him! I’ll kill you for this!”

“What’s he going on about?” Karston asks, unsure what to do. His dagger is raised, and he’s rocking back and forth on his feet as if he doesn’t know whether to retreat or charge.

“They were lovers…” Caius admits, voice trailing off. Then he gasps. “They were lovers! That’s it!” His smoke billows around him, something I noticed happens whenever he feels a strong emotion. “I’ll distract him, and you guys go open the cage.”

“But you’re just smog,” Brax utters dryly.

“And this time, you’ll have to trust in the smog monster,” Caius counters, and I think if I could see his face, he’d be grinning.

Before any of us can object, Caius floats down the hill towards Administer, who’s crying into his hands. “I found Lucifer, Abram. He’s down here. Let me bring you to him.”

“Luci?” he sniffs, pulling his hands down. “You’ve found Luci here?”

“Mmhmm,” Caius responds. “Lilith has been hiding him down here. Hiding him from you. She knows Lucifer loves you more, so she’s kept him from you. Follow me. I’ll take you to him.”

“Luci…” Administer says, awe in his voice. He stands and takes a tentative step towards Caius, who’s leading the rogue Fate off to the right, away from the stone cage.

“Let’s go,” Auston whispers when Administer’s back is finally turned our way. Hustling, a pep in my step I’ve not felt before, we hurry down, trying to be as quiet as possible.

They need me.

Hadley needs me.

It’s like a switch turned on in my head, and the fear dissipates. All that matters is getting to her, freeing her. Out of breath, we finally reach the stone prison, which looks like nothing more than a lump of rock, save for the tiny hole carved into it.

I glance to the right and see a new abomination crawling towards Caius and Administer. It’s insect-like but at least thirty feet tall. The head is humongous and black, with dozens of huge, gleaming yellow eyes that seem to work independently. Antennae twitch on the top of its head, and massive pincers snap off its jaw. Three bulbous sections of body lead down to a centipede-like lower half with millions of skittering legs. Just the sight of it has bile rising in my throat.

I want to call out and warn Caius, but Karston shakes his head and places a finger on his lips. Then he turns and rests his eye on the hole in the cage, peering inside. “He’s in there! The essences! They are too! I see them!”

His excitement resounds, and we all turn to look at Administer, who slowly turns back to look at us. “No!” he shouts, raising his Fate dagger just as Caius melds into the looming monster, taking control of its body. The monster shudders, then rears back and lunges at Administer, knocking the Fate dagger from his clutches.

The two wrestle, giving us the distraction we need to open the cage. We all know Fates can only be killed by Fate daggers, but at least we’ve got a few minutes to open this.

“Put your hands on it, all of you,” I order, taking charge for once. “Now close your eyes,” I say once they’ve all rested their palms on the rock, “and look deep inside yourselves. Find that piece of magic that makes you a Demon, Ghost, and Angel, and pull it forward.