that I even attempted such a thing.
With that came a whole lot of clarity. This is what Ember had said, and not until this moment, did I remember her words. “He’ll try and tempt you. You have to fight him hard. Trust me when I tell you, it’s not any easy task.”
Well, luckily for me, he fucked up and said the wrong thing because she was right. I was this close to giving in. Now seeing this for what it was, it was really almost comical. How could I have even believed my family was in Hell? They were the essence of what was good. God would have taken and protected them. I believed that.
I began backing away from them, and they all started to sob and scream for me to help them. Oh yeah, the Devil laid it on thick.
“Please Nexi, I love you. Save me,” Gloria cried out.
Tyrianna’s face streaked with tears. “I need to know you. I have missed you, my sweet baby.”
Now, I was getting pissed. Fuck the Devil. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and covered my ears. I couldn’t do this any other way. Sure, they weren’t real, but their pain still felt like it was.
With all that existed within me, all the power that I learned I had, I screamed. “Quondam patefacio, iam propinquus!”
Roars of rage came around me, and I was blasted with power, which sent me flying across blackness. I never hit a wall or slowed down, just continued through a dark tunnel of horror.
A loud bang rattled into my soul, and with it came the awareness that it wasn’t only the Devil with me now. They were all here. All seven Demon Lords locked within this darkness. The rage among them sucked my breath away, but just as it became too much to bear, something touched me. It wasn’t dark, not in any way.
This was salvation.
It pulled at me as if it grabbed my soul from the inside out, then I was dragged from the darkness into a bright white light. It swirled around me, tossed me head over heels. Nausea sank in as I felt like I’d become a sock in a dryer.
Blessedly, as quick as it started, it stopped. I clasped my stomach, forced the barf to stay where it belonged. Within seconds, the dizziness settled. I opened my eyes to a white space that was everything Heaven should be—love, peace and eternal happiness.
I blinked slowly and gasped as the love around me grew. A love that was all too familiar. My family. They weren’t here in physical form. There was nothing in front of me or around me, but I could still sense them here, feel them all around me. Touching me.
Tears filled my eyes. “I’ve found you—you are here.”
I closed my eyes and relished how close their love and happiness surrounded me and touched everything.
But just as the euphoria within me peaked, I was blasted from below, pulled down hard enough that my breath immediately sucked back into my body. I entered a never-ending portal again. Moving fast through time, but also suspended. Moving, but not really. Bizarre couldn’t even explain it.
I hit the ground, hard. When I opened my eyes, everyone circled around Aaliya and me, the rune still glowed. In fact, it appeared to be brighter and even a little larger.
Kyden was close. His warmth and protection engulfed me. I glanced over my shoulder, and his smile filled me with so much love. I glanced around to see everyone else was around me too, safe. They were all here. Face after face of those who I’d come to love and consider family stood victorious and proud.
Those of the Underworld all bowed to the ground. Obviously, with the demise of the Demon Lords they weren’t feeling all that confident anymore.
Cowards!
Aaliya squeezed my hands, drew my gaze back to hers. “You know what to do.”
I nodded softly and focused on the power that this rune held, the magic that was born within it and what it represented. “You’ve guided this journey, haven’t you?” I shouted to the skies above. “Your big ole masterful plan. Well aren’t you lucky that it actually worked. I could have made a real mess of things.”
Laughter spread around me.
I returned my gaze to Aaliya just as she said, “Remember what I told you.”
“I’d never forget. I will never forget any of it or anyone.” I closed my eyes and began to invoke power from the magic that I not