can’t move.
No one can.
Terror slams through me as Morax climbs to his feet and dusts himself off. He takes a step toward me, and I know I’m beyond fucked. I thought that Taz was immune, but it looks like I was wrong.
“You dare to fuck with free will...Ophidian?” Tazreel snarls, only it’s not Tazreel’s voice that shreds out of his throat. It’s Lucifer’s.
I blink, and Tazreel’s body somehow unfreezes while the rest of us are still completely stuck.
Morax’s focus snaps to the Prince of Darkness who seems to be wearing my sperm donor’s body at the moment. “Late to the party, as usual,” Morax snarks evenly, but I notice his body is stiff and his snakes writhe like they’re agitated...or nervous.
“I know what you’re doing,” Lucifer says with a head shake and disappointment in his eyes. “I thought you were smarter than that. But then again, I also thought you were dead, so go figure.”
“Oh, Bearer of Light, you’ve gotten complacent in your old age. I think it’s time for new management,” Morax declares as he steps back, careful not to let the Tazreel-wearing-Lucifer get too close.
Lucifer smiles and tsks his tongue, casually and very subtly, moving closer to me and pushing Morax further away. “I may not be able to physically set foot in the Mortal Realm to teach you the proper lesson that you deserve, but then again, I don’t have to.” The Devil himself pauses for dramatic effect. “The realm you created against the Accords—the one you thought you’d hidden and have been exiling demons to without permission—is being purged by the Angelic Legion and Hell’s army as we speak,” Lucifer explains casually.
Morax’s face goes from calm and unaffected to furious in a single millisecond. He takes a threatening step toward Satan, but then seems to think better of it. His milky-white snake eyes flash to me, and I see the realization dawn on him that Lucifer has expertly herded him too far away from me for him to make a grab and run.
Thankfully, I can sense movement returning to my limbs too, so whatever Morax did is wearing off.
“Off you go now, Ophidian. This is once again a game you simply cannot win. Run while you can, because you’re officially being hunted by the wings of Heaven and Hell...and now you have no army,” Lucifer coos at him like it’s just the saddest thing he’s ever heard. Meanwhile, his eyes scream when I find you again, you’re going to wish I never had.
“I’ll see you soon, Little One,” Morax aims at me, the look in his eyes making my blood run cold. “The Adversary isn’t always watching like you think.”
With that, Morax’s mud-colored wings rocket him up into the sky, and he quickly disappears. I can’t track where he goes, and I’m surprised that he doesn’t aim for the mausoleum portal and what remains of the demons who retreated from the fight.
“Niece!” Lucifer commands, pulling my focus back to him. “Taz is going to pass out when I give him back his shell. As soon as he wakes, tell him I need him in Nihil. And tell Nefta to stop fucking around and explain what you are,” he orders. “I’ll see you soon. Hopefully with good news.”
Lucifer winks at me, using Tazreel’s eye, and then a shudder goes through him. Just like that, Lucifer leaves Tazreel’s body, and he collapses to the ground, out cold. I stare at him on the blood-soaked ground, and then my eyes track over to Nefta who’s still lying at the base of the cracked tree. I see my Guardians making small, jerky movements, trying to fight off the last of the power that Morax used on us.
Everything around me is silent, like even the crickets and wind are reeling too much to dare make a sound. My body regains control, but I remain frozen, just standing there as I try to make sense of it all.
I can’t.
I have no idea what in the name of Hell just happened.
23
Jerif lays Tazreel’s body gently on the fainting couch, while Iceman places Nefta on a larger sofa that’s been angled toward the lit fireplace. I recognize the room we’re in from my first night in the mansion. I woke up on the very same fainting couch after Iceman paused me against my will. Yeah, maybe I was having a slight freak out about the whole demon thing, but still, it was uncouth as fuck.
I study Taz’s oddly serene face, hoping he’ll be waking