Page 84 of Dark Souls Academy: The Sacrifice

The blade arced its way toward my heart. The exhaustion from using too much magic wouldn’t let me fight back. That last attempt depleted me. I said my prayer one more time and closed my eyes. Time to meet my maker. Death didn’t scare me. Leaving the people behind did like my brother. His face popped into my mind. I had just gotten him back.

The only comforting thought was that I might meet some of my family on the other side. For demons, we didn’t truly know where we went when we died. I just hoped this dark soul could find some peace for once.

I’m sorry that I wasn’t enough.

The air whistled around the blade intended to kill me. I didn’t have the strength to even lift my arms, even if magic wasn’t restraining me. Time slowed. My eyes were closed but I could still sense everything. Panic made everything feel like the air had turned to water. I was drowning.

The burn of the blade piercing my chest stopped abruptly. A deep cry of pain that wasn’t mine had my eyes snapping open. For a second, I feared that it was one of my mates. They would do something stupid like get in front of a blade for me.

Demarcus still hovered over my body. None of my mates were anywhere to be seen. I sighed in relief. Demarcus's skin rippled with different colors, even bright Nati Demon shades. What really caught the air in my lungs was the blade sticking out of his chest, and the stain of red on his lips.

My vision widened to Lilah behind him. Tears seeped from her sad eyes. My brain didn’t register the hilt of the blade in between her white knuckles for a few seconds. Not until she twisted the blade, causing Demarcus to scrunch his face, falling to this side away from me.

“Lilah? Why?” her lover whispered out through the blood in his throat. He choked on his own blood. My heart broke as she cried and fell to her knees next to him. She dropped the dagger and gripped his hand, kissing his cheek before answering.

“You asked me to choose, but even with all the love I have for you, I can’t let you hurt my family.” Her sobs turned into loud wails as the life drained from his eyes. She grabbed his head and rocked.

I didn’t know what to do. She had just killed one of the loves of her life for me. Would she even want me to comfort her?

Several minutes passed as we just sat there. I was thankful no one tried to attack us because I needed the time to heal. I put my hand out to at least try, but a man running toward us had me pausing.

Good, Brandon found her. He dropped down beside her and her frantic pleads for him not to be mad at her broke a piece of me I wasn’t even aware of still existed. So much love and heartache. I felt dirty just being near them.

“It's okay, my sweet dove. I'm so sorry I wasn’t here for you. He locked me in a curse. I wasn’t released until his death.” Brandon explained as he ran his fingers over her face.

He rocked her in his arms, running his hands through her hair. “Please, don’t cry. You know what your tears do to me.”

I glanced around the wreckage to give them privacy. The love and loss there was so strong it radiated off of them. I was glad I did because Lucifer stepped out of his huddle, healed enough to fight again. Shit.

“Get her out of here. Run,” I frantically whispered to Brandon. He didn’t hesitate, to lift her petite body in his arms and taking off. I got up on shaky legs to give Lucifer something to focus on. He didn’t realize the trump card Lilah was for me. Even after everything, she had always been a weak spot. I had to keep it that way.

“Well, I'm sad to still see you alive,” I grunted out.

Pain and exhaustion made me woozy, so my tone didn’t hold as much snark as I wanted. My demon healed me, so the small aches and pains weren’t too bad, and I didn’t make a noise as I got up. I still looked like a person who had one too many at the bar, though. I lifted my chin anyway. I refrained from flipping him off. Only because it would take too much energy.

“I've had enough out of you. Queen or not, I don’t take getting stabbed lightly.” The growl in his voice reminded me of Kain, and it made my heart ache for him even more.

I licked my lips before speaking. “So, no blood play then?” Taunting the bastard gave me a rush. I seriously had a death wish but dying was better than becoming his.

He growled. “We'll see.”

If that statement had come from one of his sons, I would have thought it sexy. From him it just made bile rise up in my throat. Nasty.

“You better just kill me now, because I'll never give in.” My venomous tone wasn’t as effective as I swayed on my feet, but standing became difficult. Who needed to stand anyway? Let's have a crawling fight? I doubted he'd go for it, so I kept that thought to myself.

“So, fucking feisty just like your mother is.”

I stiffened at his use of present tense. I really hoped it was just a slip of the tongue.

“Oh, now I have your attention. You were the only reason I didn’t kill your parents.”

His face flashed into that of the beast I've seen him become when he was really upset. The pretty boy looks disappeared. His cheekbones sharpened into deep points at the end. His clothes stretched and ripped as his body grew in size. Sharp claws and fangs extended at the same time his skin turned black as night with vivid red markings. The final features to change were his nose and forehead. Most of the cartilage from his nostrils was gone. His forehead scrunched together, creating ridges.

“I saved them for you, my Queen. Now, we get to watch them die together. Kind of romantic, don’t you think?” This phychotic dude was completely serious. Everything seemed to move too fast.

A shuffle on the stage caught my eye.

I sucked in a rancid lung full of air as a bone-thin woman with pink eyes got pushed onto her hands and knees. Her naked body was black and blue with fresh blood tainting her skin. The way my soul crumbled to the floor and turned into ash couldn’t be hidden. The five men that came out next were in even worse states. I fell to my knees at the sight of them all.

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