Page 53 of Beyond the Storm
He would be taken from me nearly as quickly.
But this isn’t a story of loss. It’s a story of how I found a love that transcended time and space, a love that saved me in all the ways a cursed being like myself could be saved.
And it begins on a battlefield beneath a scorching hot sun.
Chapter One
Kallias
“Demons have infiltrated the ranks,” Lazarus said as we stood before him. “Athens, Corinth, Thebes, and Argos have banded together against Sparta, and the demons have possessed commanders and soldiers from these allied forces to further orchestrate conflict and incite war. The Spartan army responded to those attacks.”
Thebes had been our ally once. Or, I should say, Sparta’s ally, for I no longer called Laconia my home. I hadn’t for many years.
My brothers and I had been released into the world for quite some time, tracking down Lucifer’s elite generals and eliminating them—some more successful than others. Belphegor still lived, as did Caim and Azazel. For now. We had also confronted several demon hoards and killed their leaders. Yet, the war waged on, a never-ending cycle of bloodshed.
Lazarus had found us in the small tavern we were staying to provide another update. More so, another command.
“Why is Lucifer doing this?” Castor asked. He had recently recovered a golden dagger from the ruins of his childhood home and slowly twirled it in his hand. “Pitting mortals against each other seems beneath him.”
“It’s part of his plan,” Lazarus responded. “Tear humankind apart from the inside. Weaken them. Violence begets more violence, resulting in absolute chaos. It not only spreads turmoil amongst the mortals but those of us assigned to protect them as well. That’s when he’ll hit the hardest. And considering there was already tension building between Sparta and those who oppose them, he seized the opportunity.”
“What are your orders?” Alastair asked.
“The two armies will clash at first light. The eight of you will leave tonight and enter Corinthian territory where Thebes, Athens, and their allies have gathered. Locate the demons possessing the soldiers and eradicate them by any means necessary. The humans they inhabit are already lost, so do not concern yourselves with sparing their lives. The bodies are merely vessels for the demons to control now.”
“How will we know which humans the demons inhabit?” Raiden asked.
“You will sense them, just as you sense others you’ve hunted,” Lazarus answered. “Most will be in positions of power. However, demons of lower rank have possessed foot soldiers. Be as discreet as possible.” He looked at Gradyn. “Your skills will be of great use.” Then, he nodded to Daman and Castor. “As will your tracking skills.”
Galen’s teeth clanked together before his lips stretched into an animalistic smile. “Once they’re located, I will rip them apart.”
Alastair placed a hand on his back and said, using our mind link,“Do not lose control, Wrath.”
Lazarus kept an eye on Galen before moving his gaze along the rest of us. “Remember, it is not your place to choose sides in the war among humans. Your interference in this matter is strictly to target the demons. What path the armies choose to take once they’re no longer being manipulated is their decision alone.”
“Yes, sir.” Alastair bowed his head.
Lazarus stared at him longer than he did the rest of us before taking his leave.
I understood the look. He expected much of Alastair. The burden on Alastair’s shoulders was a heavy one, although he rarely showed it. As the holder of Pride and the first Nephilim to ever exist, he was the most powerful of us. As such, he was our leader.
“Should we strategize?” Castor asked
“The plan is simple,” Alastair said. “We will leave tonight for Corinth as Lazarus ordered.”
“He said the armies will battle at first light.” Raiden rubbed the back of his neck. “If we can kill the demons before then, perhaps the battle will be called off.”
“Well, that’s no fun,” Bellamy muttered. “I love a good fight almost as much as I love a good fuck.”
“Lazarus said demons have infiltrated the lower-rank soldiers as well,” Daman said, leaning against Bellamy.
Alastair nodded. “Correct. Even if we locate the commanders and kill them, the demon-possessed soldiers will likely convince the others in the army to still fight. They will spin the tale to say the Spartans assassinated the leaders and to fight to avenge them.”
“Why must we intervene, then?” Gradyn asked. “If they will only fight anyway.”
“Because if not stopped, the demons will continue to spread chaos. It is not our responsibility to prevent war between mortals, only to eliminate the darker forces at play. Lazarus was right. What the humans do once no longer influenced is their decision.”
Sparta was too proud to back down once challenged. Yet, I held on to hope we could dissolve the tension before it became too thick.
