Page 24 of Another Underworld

The next phase of the plan was for me to speak to my people and get them to move to the back of the camp. I could protect them if they were together. Abaddon was going to fly over the camp and fire bomb it with Cher after Pandora made her grand entrance. It was a surprise to no one but me that he could fly. I made a mental note to ask him to share all of his talents with me at a later date. Simultaneously, Fifi would throw a few grenades to cover herself while she was disabling the fence. I was tasked with double fire-swording it and lopping off heads with Pandora.

According to Robert Burn, even the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry. We couldn’t let those words become our fate. If a curve ball came at us, I was determined to hit that sucker out of the park.

“My Liege Bitch Goddess Cecily,” Fifi whispered as Pandora gave us a wave. “It’s time to warn your people of what is to come.”

I nodded and took a deep breath.“Demons, it’s Bitch Goddess Cecily speaking to you. I’m here. Do not react to my words. Go about what you are doing.”I saw many of their bodies shift and a few glanced around in alarm.“I beg of you, do not give my presence away. We’re here to break you out.”A few of the women grabbed each other’s hands. It was fine. The guards noticed nothing.“Go to the back of the camp. When the attack begins, I’ll drop a ward around you for protection. You must—and I stress must—huddle together. Make sure to bring the injured with you. No Demon who is loyal to me can be left behind. If you can hear me, answer me.”

The chorus of a thousand murmured yeses was a glorious sound.

“When Pandora approaches the guards, you move. Am I clear?”

The chorus of yesses turned into frantic shouts. Their hatred of Pandora made them fearful and furious.

“STOP,”I shouted.“You will trust me. I am your Bitch Goddess Cecily—daughter of Lilith and ruler of the Darkness. This is my order. It’s not a request. If you want your freedom and your lives, you will do as I say. Pandora is with me. I vouch for her.”

The chaos calmed a bit, but the wariness remained. While I couldn’t blame them, I didn’t have time for this shit. I gave it one last shot.

“If you do not follow my orders, you will not be protected. It’s about to get ugly and none of you are strong enough to defend yourselves. Am I clear?”

This time the chorus of yesses was more subdued. However, I heard no dissent. It would have to suffice.

I motioned up the hill to Pandora that phase one of the plan had been implemented. Fifi, Cher and Abaddon already knew since they could hear me in their minds. I couldn’t see Abaddon and Cher, but Pandora had a clear view of all of us.

“Are you scared?” I whispered to FiFi.

“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself, My Liege Bitch Goddess Cecily,” she said.

I knew the author of the quote. “Franklin D. Roosevelt.”

She gave me a thumbs up with her grenade-free hand. “Paralyzing fear is the greatest obstacle we face. I have fear every time I go into battle. It keeps me sharp. The day I don’t have a healthy dose of fear, is the day I will die.”

It was a crazy analogy, but the first thing that came to mind was having butterflies before I performed. I’d always told myself it was because I cared about being an actress and that the day I no longer cared was the day I would stop acting. My new butterflies would be replaced with a healthy dose of fear. There were no plans of stopping, and I did not want to die today.

When Pandora marched down the hill to the gate, I was so close to a panic attack that I could taste it. However, there was no time to indulge in a nervous breakdown.

It was showtime.

CHAPTER EIGHT

“Hello, boys! I’m back,”Pandora bellowed. “Did you miss me?”

I heard Fifi chuckle right before she tossed a few grenades and made a run for the fence. It was happening, and it was happening fast. My Demons moved as soon as the first word left Pandora’s lips. The guards didn’t notice, they were focused on Pandora. My relief when several of my Demons picked up the beaten women and raced to the far corner of the camp was palpable.

With a wave of my hands, I dropped a ward around them. They were safe. We, on the other hand, were not.

The evil Demons only let their shock of seeing Pandora last for a brief moment before the shouts of treason began. Purple fire swords were drawn, and they came at the Goddess like a freight train going downhill at over three hundred miles an hour.

It was not good. If Pandora was bothered it wasn’t evident. She had a vicious grin on her face and a purple fire sword in her hand.

“That’s no way to greet me,” she said with an unhinged cackle. “In fact, it pisses me off, you shit stains.”

I knew I’d promised to electrocute her if she called a Demon a shit stain, but in this case, I was A-Okay with it because I agreed with her.

“Kill the bitch,” the one in charge roared. The veins in his bulbous neck bulged, and the foul scent of sulfur permeated the air. I gagged as I sprinted to Pandora’s side. Beckoning my magic, my two purple fire swords appeared in my hands.

Cher’s war cry was ear-piercing. My scarily made-up agent was in her element. I spared a quick glance up as she and Abaddon flew over the camp and firebombed it. The scent of burning flesh mixed with the sulfur was bad—really bad. But the hulking assholes they took out meant the less trash Pandora and I had to take out, and by taking out, I meant decapitate.

“They are both here! Both the former Goddesses,” one of the sword-wielding Demons bellowed. “Glorious be to our God and his prophecy. It is as He has foretold. They will both come bearing false witness and shall die at the hands of the righteous, and all of Darkness will rejoice.”

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