Callie woke up in a cold cell. She was still dressed in her gown and her shoes were gone. Barefoot, she got up and looked around. The cell was narrow with no windows. The only light came from the steel door that was locked shut.
She recognized the sigils carved into the metal. It burned her when she tried to touch the door. Anti-demon wards. There were sigils covered into the stone walls of the cell.The room was empty save for the thin cot on the floor. She sat down as she tried to figure out a way to escape. Her magic wouldn’t work because of the wards. She was trapped.She didn’t know how long she waited in that cold cell. She huddled into herself for warmth and she was starving. She wanted water. It could’ve been days before the metal door finally opened and Head Warlock Castillo walked in carrying a tray.He closed the door behind him and placed the tray in front of her. She didn’t hesitate to grab the bowl of oatmeal and spooned it iCallie decided that laying on that thin cot and starving to death was the way to go. It wasn’t like anyone was going to miss her. She had no family. She kept her friends at arm’s length so it would make it easier for them to forget about her.There she was alone and waiting for death. It would be better than going with the master grand plan of the universe for her. She would rather just die and suffer in whatever circle of Hell they wanted to send her to than be some piece in the apocalypse. She was on the second day of her hunger strike when Police Chief Oliveira entered her cell and brought her a bowl of soup.He placed the tray beside the cot but didn’t leave. He took a seat on the ground and waited. She stared at the wall and ignored the gnawing in her belly. She was dizzy and weak and she just wanted to close her eyes and block out the world."You need to eat," Oliveira said. "They told me you haven’t had anything in days."She didn&r
Callie knew there was no calming Nicholas down so she leaned back against her chair and asked, "How much do you know?""Enough. My dad told me you’d been lying all this time about who you were and that you used me." He leaned forward, inches from the barrier, and demanded, "Why did you do any of it?"Aubrey looked conflicted, her brown eyes moving between Callie and Nicholas. She tugged at the ends of her lavender hair. She beseeched, "We just want to know the truth, Callie."Callie shook her head. "It’s not a nice story."Nicholas scoffed, "Nice stories don’t end with somebody going to prison and people dying. Give us the truth and no more lies. I’ll know.""The details don’t matter," she retorted. "Your father was right. I lied, I stole, and I killed so I could get revenge on my own father. I sent him to Hell. And I used you because you were easy to manipulate."He should hate her. It was what he needed so she was giving
It was impossible to outrun a Hellhound for long let alone a whole pack of them but Callie was going to try. There weren’t any buildings nearby, just red sand stretching for miles. Her best bet was the Forest of Torment as she had a chance of hiding from the Hounds there. She looked over her shoulder and saw four horsemen riding down a sandy hill. The Lords of Hell had come for her. Mammon on his red horse charged forward past the Hounds. She started running faster, kicking sand out of her way. Her lungs ached even as she tried to push forward. She could hear horse hooves on the sand getting closer and she refused to give up. She could see the forest and the distinct wails from inside. She pushed her legs to move faster, the adrenaline keeping her going despite the ache in her abdomen and her thighs. She just had to get to the forest. It was the only shot she had of surviving. Her feet were inches from the dark earth of the forest before a golden net knocked
Callie had been thrown from one prison to another. While she had been in a windowless cell in the mortal realm, she had books and sweets from Oliveira to keep her occupied. The Lords of Hell only cared that she was breathing and kept her fed and locked up in her bedroom. She wondered if it was even possible to die of boredom.She couldn’t leave her room without the Hounds stalking her and making sure she didn’t try to make a run for it. There were minor demons around the castle who seemed excited about the breaking of the seals and Lucifer’s upcoming return. Word had spread through all the circles of Hell that the Great War was upon them. The Lords were busy with the remaining seals and making sure the castle was presentable for the King of Hell.She was just relieved not to have the Lords around and talking to her about conception and her damned purpose in the cosmos. Beelzebub relished in making her uncomfortable the most. She had nothing else to do but
Callie had never flown before and her landing was less than grateful. She stumbled onto the forest floor. Transforming back to her human force was an odd experience. She felt herself grow, her torso lengthening and expanding, her feathers disappearing into skin, her wings into arms. Her bones became denser and her hair grew back as a cloud of pale blonde around her head. She reacquainted herself with her old limbs before sitting up. She stared up into the canopy of trees above her and tried to map out where in the forest she was. The Forest of Torment was given its name for it gave illusions to those miserable enough to get lost inside. The forest could see deep into someone’s soul and find their worst fears and torture them with it until they either died or went insane. Most demons didn’t like to be in the forest for too long. The last time Callie had been in there she had been rushing to get to the gate and chose the forest as the best place to hide Lucifer
Beelzebub’s children flew above them like a cloud of darkness and their combined buzzing made it feel like the sky was vibrating. Callie stopped as Beelzebub flew down and landed in front of her. He smiled at her mockingly as he pulled out a knife from his boot. She stepped back as he moved closer, twirling his knife playfully.She kept walking backwards until she collided with somebody. She turned and saw it was Nicholas. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and glared at Beelzebub, his other hand gripping a spear. She hadn’t given much notice to the weapon earlier as she’d been too surprised at seeing him and the others."Did you invite all your friends here, princess?" Beelzebub questioned. "You could’ve just told us you were lonely. We could’ve arranged a play date.""I doubt that," she returned.He didn’t correct her and his smile dropped when he saw the spear Nicholas was holding. He demanded, "Where did you get that?"
Callie explained to her friends about the forest and how it caused hallucinations. Everybody agreed they needed to get to the Tree of Ignorance and get out of there quickly. Callie tried her best to guide them to the Tree. The Forest of Torment did like to play tricks on people and could make them run around in circles for days if it wanted.It didn’t get its name for nothing.Nicholas walked with Callie at the front of the group, keeping the Holy Lance in hand. Beelzebub’s blood had stained the wood black and she tried to ignore it. She didn’t know how the Horseman’s blood would affect the spear. Would it twist it from being divine to damned?Or was the Messiah’s blood still more powerful? She didn’t know and it bothered her. Until they could get to Lucifer’s Grace, it was their best weapon against any demon they might come across. "Why are you so important?" Nicholas asked."What do you mean?""Beelzebub said
They were quiet after they left Beelzebub sitting by the Tree of Ignorance. They held him down and forced the fruit into his mouth, his teeth biting into the red skin of the apple. He stopped fighting after the first bite. He ate the rest on his own and he stared unseeingly up at the sky as they walked away.Nicholas broke the silence by asking Callie, "How many are there like him?""There are four Lords of Hell," Callie explained. "As for demons, there are too many to count.""And these Lords are what exactly?""The Lords are Lucifer’s most favored. They have the most power in Hell and it’s six territories."Matthias questioned, "How big is Hell exactly?""About the size of a continent," Callie answered. "We’re at the western territory which was previously under Lilith’s control."Now that Lilith was dead, the whole western territory belonged to the Lords. Callie never was allowed to leave and see the other territories. All
Lucifer’s Cage was located in the deepest part of Hell where there was only darkness and the cold. The cage was a solid metal box wrapped in chains that no one could see in. The Four Horsemen visited him whenever they could. They informed him about all that occurred in the realms. While he could hear them, they could not hear him through the cage. It was part of his punishment. To never be seen or heard. It had been a very long time since anyone had seen Lucifer’s face.Asmodeus tried to remember Lucifer’s face but wasn’t sure if he was confusing him with another’s. Even a demon’s memory wasn’t infallible. He remembered when he was first met the Morningstar. He had taken a human form to mock God’s newest creation, Adam.He had been the most brilliant thing Asmodeus had ever seen. Like the Pied Piper, he led his fellow angelic brethren to fall from Heaven. They were banished to Hell where they would start building their
Callie didn’t know what would happen to her once they left Hell. She expected to be thrown back into prison or she would have to disappear into the world and never return. She hadn’t counted on Frederick Wood to be her protector. The uncle she’d never known defended her against the Council and the police. She had been a minor arrested and acquitted without trial. They never contacted her legal guardian which should’ve been him. All her actions were made under duress after years of abuse and trauma. It was a case the Magical World had never seen before and it would’ve become bigger than what it was if Head Warlock Castillo didn’t want to keep things quiet.He had a lifetime of secrets he did not want to get out to the public. Frederick did not hesitate to use this leverage to his advantage. Callie could admit she was lucky she got off on probation and half a year in house arrest. Maybe all those years of terrible luck were finally turnin
The dust clouds dissipated. Callie couldn’t look away from the pile of ashes that used to be Finnegan. It was difficult to process that he was truly gone and she could never have him back. It was a new kind of pain she hadn’t felt before. It threatened to overwhelm her.Nicholas touched her shoulder gently and asked, "Are you going to be okay?"She wanted to scream from the cocktail of emotions running through her. The loudest was anger. It beat like war drums in her mind, wanting to be unleashed. She felt restless."His death wasn’t your fault.""Don’t lie to me," she snapped. "He wouldn’t have been here if it wasn’t for me.""He made a choice and he knew the risks. We all did."She shook her head. "I’m not worth the risks. None of you should’ve come here.""You don’t get to decide that," he countered. "Only we can and we all decided that saving you is worth any danger.""You really believ
Mammon towered over Callie at nearly seven feet tall. He was muscled and strong and he swung his sword like a hammer. Callie was lighter and faster and had to dodge his blows as they came right after another. He gave chase like an angry dog trying to take a big bite out of her.She wasn’t fast enough to dodge one blow and his golden sword sliced her in the side. She ignored the sting and the blood wetting her dress and dodged another blow. His next blow nearly got her in the head. He growled in frustration."Fight me properly!" he roared. "Stop dancing around!""Make me!"He growled and lunged at her and she sidestepped a blow that would’ve sliced her throat. He elbowed her in the side where she was wounded and the pain made her stop. It was a mistake as he swung at her and she had to twist away to avoid getting hit. She tripped and landed on the sand, the air knocked out of her.She tried to get to her feet quickly but Mammon kicked her and forc
They found a sack to put Belphegor’s head in from one of the rooms and they left it in alley on the opposite end of Fallen’s Nest. The more time the Demon Lord had to put himself back together the better it was for them. They had to rush back to get their friends. The ravens all circled over the Duke’s Mansion, slamming into the windows to get in and help their master. Ravens flew down and tried to peck and scratch at them. Nadia knocked a few back with her defensive magic, blasting the birds several feet into the air. They burned the more determined ones. The ravens did not relent the whole way back to Witch Village.They found Aubrey outside the house with three camels and helping Matthias unto one. He still looked pale and sickly but was at least conscious. Enoch was sitting on the steps of the house and talking to Helena. Aubrey ran to them and hugged them each, relieved they were okay. Morgan walked over and demanded, "Is he dead?""Yes,"
Callie was surprised that Morgan didn’t throw them out into the street empty(-)handed. The Great demon weighed the odds of them actually defeating Allocen and decided to assist with the bare minimum. The only weapon she had in the house was an old battle axe Baba Yaga stole from the time of the Vikings. Nicholas didn’t complain and picked up the axe which looked heavier than it actually was."Don’t fail," Morgan reminded, glancing to where Aubrey was fussing over Matthias. "The consequences could be dire."Callie didn’t miss the less than subtle threat and glared at her. "It could be dire for all of us."Morgan gave Nadia one of the knives from her collection. The blade was dipped in a potent poison of Morgan’s own recipe. She handed them a few more potions that might be useful for the fight before declaring them ready. Aubrey gave them hugs and wished them luck.Enoch didn’t get up from where he was seated on the couch. Helena
Demons used Hellhound venom for torture. While it couldn’t kill a demon, it took a while to heal and it was painful. Callie had firsthand experience and Matthias hadn't said a word despite being in excruciating pain. She didn’t know if it was a guy thing or a human thing to be that proud or stupid.Nicholas, Aubrey, and Nadia carried the unconscious Matthias into Morgan’s house. It looked like a Victorian style home with ivy growing on the walls outside. Callie had always thought Morgan purposely tried to make her house more appealing as if to hide the terrors from within. The house looked the same since the last time she’d been there except for the overwhelming powerful cloaking spell around it.As formidable as Morgan was, wards and invisibility spells weren’t her expertise. The answer came when Callie saw Batibat was sitting by the fireplace wearing a plain black dress and her dark hair in a severe bun. The Great demon followed them as they
Much to Callie’s relief, her friends followed her advice and stayed on the Blood Road. They didn’t run into more lost souls or demons as they continued on their journey. Their only concern were the ravens that followed them, circling above like an omen. Callie kept Lucifer’s Grace in hand lest one of the birds swooped down and tried to peck at them.The ravens flew away when they reached the edge of the city. Paradise was a small city with a population of more than fifty-thousand demons. It was the oldest city in Hell and was created by the Fallen when they were banished from Heaven. It started off as a small village and expanded over the years as more demons populated the realm.Callie could have gone unnoticed if she had been alone. She had enough demon blood for the city residents not to bother with her. Her human companions would be like fresh blood to a shiver of sharks. They would sniff them out within minutes.Callie borrowed the small knife A
The Blood Road wasn’t really a road. There was no pavement or stone. It was a trail of dried black blood that stained the ground. It was made from the blood of Lucifer after God had ripped his wings from him and he had been forced to walk through Hell to his cage. It had not faded over time. The black blood was still stark as the day Lucifer staggered then crawled through the realm. Demons had been known to kneel and pray to the Devil on the blood road. Lilith and the witches would light black candles on Samhain and walk on the blood road, following the path Lucifer had walked.They walked closely together in case of an attack. Nicholas tried to hide how vulnerable he felt without the Holy Lance but Callie could see through him. He still had the use of holy fire but the spear had been an ace that was difficult to lose. They only had one weapon to fight with and Lucifer’s Grace would attract more attention than they wanted.Callie clutched the blade closer