Page 51 of The Dark Lord Awakens
“Of course.” As long as it wasn’t “Do you have any idea what you’re doing?” because the answer to that was a resounding “absolutely not.” Or possibly “I’m making this up as I go and hoping nobody notices.”
“These plans of yours—the relief camp, the distribution systems, even the notion of domesticating monsters—they are unlike anything in Iferona’s history. Where did you acquire such… innovative concepts during your slumber?”
I hesitated, unsure how to answer without revealing too much. “Let’s just say I had a lot of time to think,” I finally replied. “And sometimes, the best solutions come from unexpected places.” Like binge-watching post-apocalyptic survival shows while eating microwave burritos or playing resource management games until three a.m. on a work night.
Azrael studied me with those unsettling crimson eyes, and for a moment, I feared he would press further. Instead, he simply bowed.
“Indeed, my lord. Most unexpected and most welcome.”
As we prepared to return, Azrael moved toward me with obvious intent and swept me up into his arms with supernatural ease. I let out an undignified squeak that I would later deny to my dying day.
“Allow me to assist you once more, my lord,” he said, his face close enough that I could see flecks of darker red in his irises, like garnets suspended in blood. They were actually quite beautiful, in a terrifying, otherworldly way. “Dragon mounting can be… treacherous for the inexperienced.”
“I can climb up myself,” I protested, feeling ridiculous being carried like a damsel in a gothic romance novel. If my gaming buddies could see me now, I’d never hear the end of it. “I managed to climb onto the office printer that one time it ate my quarterly report. This can’t be much different.”
“Of course you can, my lord,” Azrael replied smoothly, not making any move to put me down. His eyes gleamed with something that looked suspiciously like amusement mixed with something darker, hungrier. “But why should you exert yourself when I am here to serve?”
He deposited me onto Mr. Snuggles’ back and vaulted up behind me in one fluid motion before I could form a coherent response. This time, his arms wrapped around my waist without pretense, pulling me firmly against his chest until we werepressed together from shoulder to hip. The proximity sent a confusing mix of signals through my body—part alarm, part something else I wasn’t ready to examine too closely but that made my pulse race and my skin heat despite Azrael’s cool touch.
“For safety, my lord,” he murmured, his cool breath tickling my ear and sending shivers down my spine that had absolutely nothing to do with temperature. “The return journey can be… turbulent.”
As if on cue, Mr. Snuggles launched us skyward with even more enthusiasm than before, forcing me back against Azrael’s chest with a gasp. His arms tightened around me, one hand splayed possessively across my abdomen while the other rested dangerously close to my thigh. The dragon banked sharply, and I practically melted into Azrael’s embrace, my head falling back against his shoulder.
“Comfortable, my lord?” he asked, his voice a velvet rumble against my ear. I could have sworn his lips brushed my temple, but it might have been the wind. Probably the wind. Definitely the wind. Maybe.
“Just peachy,” I managed, my voice embarrassingly breathless. “Nothing says ‘comfort’ like being sandwiched between a dragon and a demon while hundreds of feet in the air.”
His soft chuckle vibrated against my back, and I felt rather than saw his smile. “I can think of worse situations to be in, my lord.”
Mr. Snuggles carried us back toward the Dark Citadel where, in just a few hours, the first test of my interdimensional shopping abilities would either cement my reputation as a miracle-working dark lord or expose me as the fraud I feared I was.
No pressure or anything. Just the fate of an entire kingdom resting on my ability to place what was essentially the largest online order in history. I’d faced worse odds, though. Like that time I tried to explain to my parents why a business degree was a practical choice for my future. This would be a piece of cake in comparison.
Hopefully.
Maybe.
Oh God, what had I gotten myself into?
13
Lucien/Beau
Word spread through the castle like wildfire. By the time the four-hour mark approached, it seemed every demon in the Dark Citadel had found a reason to be in or near the eastern courtyard. They lined the surrounding balconies, filled the windows, and crowded the courtyard itself, leaving only a large clear space in the center where Azrael had meticulously marked out a receiving area.
I stood on the main balcony overlooking the courtyard, trying to project calm confidence while internally wondering if I’d hallucinated the entire OpenSesame experience. What if nothing appeared? What if I’d just mobilized the entire castle for nothing?
“One minute remaining, my lord,” Azrael murmured beside me, checking a complicated-looking timepiece that appeared to run on small insects instead of gears.
The crowd below had fallen silent, all eyes fixed on the empty space in the courtyard. The tension was thick enough to cut with a knife—or whatever the demonic equivalent of a knife was.Probably something with more spikes and a name like “Soul-Render” or “Hope-Eviscerator.”
“Thirty seconds,” Azrael announced.
I held my breath. This was it—either the moment I cemented my reputation as an all-powerful dark lord or the beginning of my career as the realm’s biggest disappointment since “Diet Blood” (which I sincerely hoped wasn’t a real product but suspected probably was).
“Ten seconds.”
The crowd began counting down in unison, their voices creating an eerie chorus that echoed through the courtyard.
