Page 40 of The Misfit Mage and His Devilish Desires

“I could.” She examined Corson’s muscular arms, channeling essence to coat her blue skin, creating deadly blades from the pooled tar. “But what good would such a weak form do me?”

She shook her arms, waving away the weapons she’d manifested with Corson’s essence.

“How are you controlling him without sharing your essence?” I asked. “I mean, your essence is here, but it’s not.”

It was bizarre, like I could see her very being coiled around Corson’s body, but not in a tangible sense. Still, it held a very tangible grip over the demon’s will. She wouldn’t share her essence because, according to Bez, no devil did such a thing. That was what made my existence such a rarity. Even demons with devil essence—such as Bez previously—were few and far apart.

“He is created by the grace of my willpower. I birthed his existence as I have with all the Diabolics of this dimension.” Lilith circled me, black eyes studying every part of my being. It took all I had not to tremble, to ooze with weakness, to collapse from terror in her presence. “I’m more intrigued by how you control your beast.”

Beast? She meant Tony. My familiar. “Do you mean because of the distance?”

“In part. But also, my connection is through creation. Everything I’ve created is mine by extension if and when I so choose to repurpose it to my desires.” Lilith stared at the translucent thread of my essence stretched infinitely far to link my sight to Tony’s. “You have not created this beast or given it your essence.”

“Well, I am sharing it in a sense.” I ran my fingers through the back of my hair, scratching my head nervously and trying to find the most simplified answer possible. Wordy rambles might bore or offend Lilith, and I didn’t want to chance it. “We have a familiar bond. Or we did before I gained the essence. My current theory is that it allows Tony access to my Diabolic abilities.”

“You share your power with this beast?” Corson’s expression fell into confusion. Correction, Lilith’s expression, since she currently possessed him. “Equally?”

“I don’t share it exactly. I mean, I do. Um, it’s still all my power, but I allow him access.” I struggled to find the words to express how Tony had access without possessing essence.The familiar bond offered this almost phantom’s touch on my abilities and gave Tony a link.

The only real example that popped in my head was how banks held money and Tony was the bank in this scenario but that didn’t make sense because money would’ve represented essence which would still technically reside inside me not inside the bank and now my head hurt trying to make the terrible example fit.

Suddenly, the perfect example struck, one connected to Lilith herself. “It’s like your key. It’s your power, your way to and from Hell, but you let me and Bez borrow it. We only have access—”

“Because I allow it.” Lilith nodded knowingly, then crinkled her brow with another questioning expression. “And even though my essence isn’t in the flames, my power is.”

“Exactly,” I said.

“I’m more surprised you’re capable of threading your sight beyond the dimensional walls.”

“Because your Hell realm is locked?”

“No.” Lilith waved away the question. “You still hold the key I’ve offered.”

I did? I focused my essence inward, searching on a cellular level. Deep within me, deep within Bez, lay tiny flames meant to offer passage to and from Lilith’s dimension.

“What’s perplexing is the way you’ve reached out and found such easy unity with this creature of yours,” Lilith said as if it were actually easy when I felt like my head was about to pop off. “I have reigned since the beginning of existence, and even I must make laborious efforts to gaze through the eyes of my children who step outside my realm.”

“It’s probably due to my familiar bond,” I said, extrapolating the very limited data I had in an effort to teach the devil something neither of us had much insight into. “Since that’s the only variable I can think of. I mean, there’s a lot of variables.My essence belongs to a different devil—unless all devils are identical in power and ability. There’s also the fact that I’m human. A mage, too. Magic is involved. Yeah, lots of variables, but really, I think it’s the familiar bond because…”

I swallowed the next string of words bouncing in my head, worried I’d upset Lilith based on the glazed expression.

“Do continue.” Intrigue filled Corson’s face, and I shook away the self-doubt.

If I could offer knowledge to Lilith, perhaps she’d offer life and freedom and peace to me.

“You see, mages can share a magical connection with animals, offering them access to their magic. This sort of makes us joined—spiritually, emotionally—and that unity might extend beyond dimensions. It’s only a working theory, but it’d make for an interesting case study.”

“Are you suggesting your familiar bond is stronger than the connection I share with my children?” Lilith asked. The veins on Corson’s body bulged and spread like a necrotic rot of Lilith’s essence overtaking him entirely.

“I, um, well…” No. I needed to say no. Why was that suddenly the hardest word to utter? Any word. All words. I’d already blundered, offended Lilith. Offended a devil! She was going to kill me.

“Fascinating.” Lilith cackled, her light voice bellowed alongside Corson’s, and the two created a melody of chaotic entertainment with a dark undertone reverberating between the beats of their laughter. “Perhaps I, too, should get a pet for bonding. I keep Diabolic pets but have never once considered enslaving lower beings. Seems so wasteful. What could a creature so simplistic offer me?”

“Um, Tony’s not my—”

“But I suppose even the lowest grain of dirt offers solid ground when gathered with the masses,” Lilith said, no longeracknowledging my presence as she strutted in circles, adding a sway to Corson’s hips. “I should like to learn this method of sharing essence without offering essence. Then, I will claim a million beasts from lesser realms and send them to scout worlds. Explore these pathetic realities without enduring the stink and filth of them. There must be something fascinating about those lowly realms. So many of my children crave the glitz and glimmer of these tragic dwellings.”

I kept my opinions to myself. The fact she’d have to actually step foot into those lowly worlds to establish a familiar bond. The fact she was a devil and how the ability to link spiritually with an animal wasn’t exactly a Diabolic skillset. The fact she’d need to possess a mage or witch or something beneath her stature to harness this power. Honestly, her whim seemed shortsighted and poorly planned. But then again, I overthought everything, so maybe Lilith had more ideas she simply didn’t share when conceptualizing this plan.

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