Page 73 of Dark Souls Academy: The Sacrifice

The fact he could come and go as he pleased set me on edge. I had been working on protecting our building and apartment during the fight since I had so much time to kill, but it was a shaky spell. My concentration wasn’t there toward the end, which was how Alaric’s father kept popping in. He was invited, so the magic wouldn’t keep him out, but that meant only one person had to invite Lucifer in for him to gain access.

Now, I needed to figure out how to unlink us from our communicators, so Lucifer couldn’t just zap lightning into our veins whenever he wanted. I might like the rush, but the other fighters probably wouldn’t appreciate it as much.

Trigger, you okay? I can sense the stress and anxiety rolling off of you. You blocked me like you said I couldn’t do, by theway, so you better have a good explanation.My Dreamgirls’ presence in my mind was soothing.

I just had a lovely little chat with my sperm donor,I explained.

My head exploded with their questions. I closed my eyes to focus and force the instant headache away.

Where are you?Kain’s voice quieted the others. That was a gift I was envious of.

I was meeting with our contacts, but I’m coming to you. I’ll tell you everything.I wouldn’t leave anything out either. They needed to be as angry as me because we were going to need it for the fight to come. The Devil was not getting what he wanted this time. No matter how bat shit crazy he got.

It was time to stop playing around and get things done.I think it’s time we tried the magic unlocking spell.

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

“I’ll be the first to try the spell,” Kain declared as he sat on the couch next to me. “I won’t let my brothers put themselves in danger.” Trigger told us what happened with Lucifer, and it set Kain’s protectiveness off. His shadows were roaming around, pacing, ready to strike.

Alaric cleared his throat from his nook by the window and put his book down in front of him.We’d rearranged the furniture to be closer to him for his comfort.

“With all due respect to everyone in this room, I’m not sure losing you would help us. You have more offensive power than both your brothers.”

“And it’ll be even greater when it’s unleashed,” Kain argued. He had a stubborn glint to his baby blues, so I knew no one was going to change his mind. Yet, my gut told me Alaric was right.

Bones sat down near his brother. “Kain, they have a point. Losing Trigger and you would hurt us in a fight. I’m good, but you guys have the extra power we need,” Bones said. His tone was gentle, understanding his brother.

Trigger nodded. “Anyway, if Bones unlocks his powers, he’d be able to portal jump as much as he wants, killing twice as many people.”

Kain growled. “No. That’s the end of it. This could also just as easily kill us, and you two aren’t doing it.”

Bones stood. “We don’t want you fucking dying either.” He snapped out.

His stomps were loud as he moved around, loud enough that the soul building took notice and rattled the pictures on the wall in protest. When his feet didn’t stop, the souls opened and shut the window in warning, slamming them to get his attention. Bones didn’t care. He paced around the room, sending Kain deadly glares.

When I could feel the rage inside of him rising. I lifted my arms inviting him to sit, so I could play with his hair. He needed someone to anchor him. His abandonment issues gripped him like a leash, choking all the reasoning out of him. Dex moved to pet the wall closest to him, whispering soothing words to get it to stop.

Kain lifted his chin. “I won’t die, but this is the end of the discussion.”

Trigger threw a knife at Kain’s head, but one of his shadow beasts caught it before it landed. “You stubborn bastard. Those shadows are the only thing that Lucifer is scared of. He won’t hesitate to kill us if you die.” His words might have sounded uncaring, but his tone was full of the fear of losing his brother. My chest hurt from their fear seeping into the bond.

Kain stubbornly crossed his arms, lifting his chin high. “And think how scared he’d be if I had full access to my shadows.” It was the final word. We all knew it, but we spent another thirty minutes arguing. I didn’t want to lose any of my mates, but it didn’t make sense to get rid of our most powerful weapon. My demon magic wouldn’t work on the Devil while he wore his amulet, and my Fae side wasn’t strong enough to take him on.

He didn’t care. Before long, the stubborn bastard laid on the bed, with some sort of gunk all over him. Trigger hovered over his prone body assessing his work.

“You ready?” Trigger asked as he lifted his hands. Kain’s only answer was hard glare. He was done with our shit.

“No one else move or breathe. I’m trying to not barf at this shit all over him.” Trigger gagged. For a guy that didn’t mind blood and guts during a hunt, he sure had a weak stomach for anything else.

He took a few deep breaths. The air around him crackled and his hair lifted into the air. His eyes grew brighter almost turning from the red color of his demon to a bright white. Trigger put his hand over Kain’s closed eyes, before he spoke. “Aperi mentem et spiritum.”

His hands glowed with power. Slowly, the light escaped into the air and disappeared until only the tips of his fingers glowed. Light shot from Triggers fingers into Kain’s chest where his heart would be. Kain jolted each time, making me jerk with him. Eight fingers left, seven, six, five, four, and all three of the last fingers flashed, going dark.

A sharp intake of breath held me in its grip as if someone had me by the throat. More time passed without Kain moving. I licked my lips and stepped closer. A gasp escaped me, at the same time tears stung the back of my eyes. My throat closed up, and my mouth went dry.

His chest wasn’t moving.

“Come on. Come on,” I whispered to myself, hoping the Gods heard me.

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