Page 68 of Cosmic Power

As Barnabas moved onto Daeva, Gabriel slumped in his chair, eyes closed. Zamorra couldn’t tell if he was still breathing. She hoped he was. He may have been a bit of a dick, but they were all in the same boat here. She wanted them all to rise up and take this fucker down.

The ancient vampire stared Barnabas down as he tucked the demon blade away and pulled out a unique silver blade with strange markings etched into the steel. “For you, I had to dig a little deeper and find something that could actually hurt you. Something that will stop that pesky little healing ability you have. Cost me an arm and a leg, too. But it will be worth it.”

Daeva eyed the knife curiously. “You’ve got this all wrong, you know. What you’re doing won’t bring you power and riches. It will bring the end. Your doom.”

The Alpha shifter raised a brow. “You talk as if you know what will happen. Didn’t you say this was all, oh, what was it? Ah yes, ‘a bunch of hocus pocus bullshit?’ I wonder, what has your father told you of the Artefacts?”

“That to use them could bring the death and destruction of the entire planet and everyone on it,” Daeva answered calmly. There wasn’t an ounce of fear on his face, despite the blade being only inches from his skin.

“He was lying. He just didn’t want anyone to surpass him. I will have the power they’re hiding and I will use it to rid this world of the weak. Only the strong will survive.”

The vampire shook his head. “You have no idea what you are going to unleash.”

“Oh, I think I do. But thanks for the concern, anyway.” Barnabas swiped the blade across Daeva’s throat and stabbed him deep in the stomach, ripping it out viciously a moment later.

“You fucking bastard!” Zamorra cursed, thrashing wildly, ignoring the searing-hot pain the iron cuffs brought with each movement. She liked Daeva and she was seriously pissed off that Barnabas just gutted him like he was nothing.

Blood poured down Daeva’s front, soaking into his clothing and flowing onto the ground as he gurgled and choked, his body convulsing. His chair lit up like the others, and his blood was directed by some unseen force into the tube that led towards Luther’s ring. When his blood made contact, another round of magic and earth-shattering power tore through the room like a tidal wave. The red crystal inside the gold ring burst free and shone brightly alongside the others, like a beam of bright red light.

When Barnabas stepped in front of Lilith, Zamorra really got vocal. “Leave her alone, Barney! Stop this shit! You’re out of your fucking mind!”

Barnabas snapped his eyes to her and they flashed silver as a deep, savage growl ripped from his throat. “Wait your turn, my darling daughter. I’ll get to you soon enough.”

“Get to me now. Come on, you know you want to put me in my place. Punish me for all the shit I’ve put you through.”

He smiled. “I will be punishing you, youngin, but it will be when I’m ready.” Turning to face Lilith, he cocked his head, eyeing her with mild interest. “No last words like all the others?”

A dark, twisted look took over the demon’s face as she glared at the Alpha shifter standing in front of her. “You’ll get what’s coming to you. It might not be by me, but someone somewhere will make you pay for what you’re doing here today. And I hope they make you suffer,” she hissed angrily.

“As far as final words go, it could use a little work,” Barnabas said, putting away the strange blade he used against Daeva and taking out the demon blade again. He held it close to Lilith’s black eye, enjoying the way she shrunk back to avoid it. “It’s kind of poetic, don’t you think? Using a demon blade to hurt a demon,” he laughed, thrusting the knife into her chest. She screamed, bucking and thrashing her body as Barnabas twisted the blade before yanking it out again.

Like all the others, her chair lit up as it soaked up Lilith’s blood and sent it sailing towards the silver band on the floor in front of her. A strong torrent of power and magic hit the air the moment it made contact; the black crystal broke free from the piece of jewellery, glowing with a deep black aura.

Zamorra looked down the line as Barnabas took slow, measured steps towards her. Gabriel wasn’t moving. Benjamin’s head lolled on his shoulders, blood dripping from his mouth. Davea’s throat was exposed, a clean cut along his skin as blood continued to pour out. And Lilith was slumped forward, her black hair covering her face, not moving a muscle. Their blood still flowed to the crystals in front of them like a waterfall, each one absorbing the blood, glowing brighter and brighter with every second.

Barnabas exhaled like a great weight had lifted from his shoulders. “Saved the best for last.”

Zamorra refused to show fear. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of such an emotion. Her eyes flared silver as her werewolf glared furiously at the Alpha shifter.

“I will admit, I am somewhat disappointed. You had such promise. Such potential. Your power almost rivals my own. With a little work, you could have been magnificent. But I found you too late,” he sighed, shaking his head. Braeden scowled at her, his anger and jealousy so potent that Zamorra could feel it from where she was. “I will never forgive Adele and Orion for that. Our bloodline would have been the strongest it had ever been if we had had the time to breed you.”

Scrunching up her nose, Zamorra said, “Do you hear yourself right now? How twisted you sound? What kind of father would ever want that for his daughter? To ‘breed her’ with the strongest stallion he could find like a fucking animal?”

“The bloodline must be preserved. No matter. I will continue to try for another Alpha child. And who knows? Perhaps this one will be even stronger than you.” Mathias frowned behind his father’s back as Barnabas raised the demon blade towards her. It was drenched in the blood of those before her and Zamorra tried not to baulk at the idea of being stabbed with such an unclean blade.

“Hopefully you live long enough to see the portal open. To see what your life brought forth.” He rammed the blade deep into her stomach and she cried out, white-hot pain tearing up her insides. He ripped it out and she screamed, her back bowing.

Light surrounded her as her chair lit up brightly and absorbed her blood, feeding it directly into the tube below her. She groaned, watching as the white crystal inside the necklace glowed luminously and burst free, releasing a strong wave of magic and power.

The air crackled and the ground shook with tremendous power, like a level-six earthquake. The five ancient crystals blazed brighter and brighter, drawing in every ounce of blood surrounding them. They floated into the air, pulsing and twisting until they snapped together and released a powerful force of magic outward, opening an enormous purple portal. Purple lightning popped and fizzled, snapping out in all directions like a bullwhip and hitting the walls, leaving giant holes in their wake. Shifters scrambled, ducking and weaving to avoid being hit by the pure uncontrollable power being unleashed into the room.

Zamorra gasped, struggling to draw breath at the amount of power buzzing around her. There was so much, it was almost oppressive. Like it was sucking the oxygen right out of the air. It pressed against her skin, smothering her. Despite the pain in her stomach, her werewolf lapped it up, absorbing as much of it as she could.

The portal shone like a bright beacon in the night sky, its beauty so mesmerising Zamorra could do nothing but stare as different shades of purple swirled within the portal, blending and mixing together.

Where did it lead? What was on the other side?

“I was right,” Barnabas breathed, eyes wide with shock. Mathias and Braeden joined him at his side and they all gaped at the twenty-five-foot purple portal before them. Barnabas strengthened his stance and squared his shoulders, pointing towards it. “It’s time to claim our prize!” he roared, his voice echoing throughout the room.

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