Page 184 of Crimson Promises
Lucifer finally released his hold and walked away.
"What they fail to own is that they started everything," he revealed. "I refused to cower and accept my fate. I was promised to reign over all. I wasn’t going to give that up without a fight."
Ben tried to make eye contact with me, but I kept my eyes fastened to Lucifer's moving frame.
"So, I kept my head down, gathered support from those directly affected by the consequences of The Original’s decisions and their actions.” He jerked his chin in the direction of Ben. “In secret, I trained the most ruthless, efficient, deadly soldiers the world has ever known. They were powerful enough to battle The Originals. But we had traitors who cowered under the threats The Originals posed. They knew when and where we would attack and met us on the battlefield. We had lost the element of surprise. Most of those generals and soldiers, the ones I had trained myself, perished. I thought I had been lost to the void. For years, I had lost count of how many I was resigned to my fate in this realm, never able to exact my revenge, until that stormy night twenty-one years ago."
During one of his rotations, Lucifer grazed his pinky against the side of my hand. My hand shouldn't have blazed in heat, but it did.
"Part of the powers I possess," he began, his voice steady and assured as he paced before me, the measured steps of one who knows their own might, "is that I can senseaurum, the manifestation of angelic power." He stopped and closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath, his chest rising and falling with the rhythm of someone slipping into a state of deep contemplation.
"When I am in a meditative state," he continued, opening his eyes, which seemed to look through the very fabric of reality, "I can see the dots of those withaurumacross the universe’s different planes." He gestured to the space around him as if plucking stars from an invisible sky. "Those with divine power or lineage flash gold," he said, his hand pausing in the air, "but yours," he turned to me, locking his gaze with mine, "flashed gold and white the night you were born."
He took a step closer, the intensity of his presence palpable. "You were what I had been waiting for," he whispered, as if sharing a secret that the walls themselves hadn't heard in ages.
His hand reached out to nothingness, and he clenched it as if grasping the truth from the ether. "Something I hadn’t seen in hundreds of years." His voice was a mixture of awe and something darker, a hint of greed for something long lost.
"Adimidium," he said, turning away, looking past the walls, past the present. He paused, and then he spun back to me. "Adimidiumwith healing powers."
He stepped forward, each word punctuated with a step closer. "The key to my revenge," he said, his hand over his heart, the beat of his pulse visible at his throat, the drum of war in his veins. "The weapon I needed at my side."
Another step, and he was close enough that I could feel the heat of his breath. "Someone with the healing abilities to bring those soldiers back to life, and if they perished on the battlefield," he lifted his hands, palms up as if weighing the balance of life and death, "you would be able to revive them."
He turned his palms down, pressing down the air as if showing the crushing defeat of his foes. "Able to tear apart the Originals yourself."
He looked at me, a smile creeping onto his face, one that didn't reach his eyes. "Finally," he said, stepping back, his arms opening wide, encompassing the grandeur of his vision, "there would be a force to match and defeat The Originals."
Ben let out a whoosh of a breath. Obviously, he hadn’t been let in on Lucifer’s grand plans.
“Why did you wait until now to take me?”
Lucifer scratched his chin. “After that night, your presence was concealed from me. No matter what I did, I could not find you. Only someone with powerful magic could help to disguise adimidium.
“Then a few weeks ago, whatever was cloaking you vanished. I needed to take a closer look and learn who you were for myself, and I couldn’t exactly walk down the streets of Arch Cape. Though I imagine the fans would flock to me.”
Images of red eyes and violent nightmares made my body shudder. “You tortured me through those nightmares for weeks,” my voice rose.
“Your fear always did taste delicious,” he said as his tongue swiped out to taste his lower lip. “It was a necessity. I had to ensure you were the one I sought after all this time.”
“Asshole,” I spat.
“I’ve been called much worse, Little Star. That isn’t going to turn me off.” He had the fucking audacity to wink at me. “The age of twenty-one is vital todimidiums. On their twenty-first birthday, adimidiumwould have to choose one side of their heritage. One cannot straddle two worlds—a decision must be made by then. I’m sure Bennett has done what I’ve instructed and at least shared this information with you. He didn’t tell you that you must repeat the prophecy to embrace your powers. Right now, your abilities are half of their capacity.”
A small gasp escaped me.Only at half?
“Exactly. Now, you understand why you are so special. Your powers, whether by me, The Originals, or others, will always be coveted, Aurora. But here, I can protect you. You can live a life of luxury, of decadence. I will spoil you and fulfill your every whim and fantasy.”
My eyes drifted over to Ben. His clothing was torn, and his face was smudged with dirt. “What is the prophecy?” I asked.
"Aurora…." Ben’s voice was quiet and so thick with pain it made my heart wrench.
I met his gaze, his eyes a storm of emotions—desperation, regret, love. They pierced through me.
"Aurora, you can't do this. You can't give him what he wants." The anguish in his voice twisted my insides. The hurt from his betrayal was raw and fresh, but his plea tugged at something deep within me. The remnant of a bond that was fractured.
"He says I have no other way," I whispered, feeling trapped and cornered.
"There's always another way," Ben responded, his voice firm, unwavering. "I... I chose wrong once. But you... you're stronger than me. You can resist him."
