Page 136 of Lucifer's Redemption

The pang in my body hurt so much at his tremendous lie. Luci yelled for me to run, to save myself.

How could I save myself when half of my soul was chained to the floor? How could I leave knowing that all the realms would be destroyed?

“Lie,” I said aloud. Ember gripped Lilith tighter, and Luci’s mouth hung open as I stepped forward.

‘Zeus’ stepped back, his brows furrowing.

“You arenotZeus, God of the Sky.”

Chapter 58

Under the Moon

Uriel’ssmallbodybarelyreached mid-chest of the mighty Zeus. His towering form held a dark shadow over her as she clutched the handle of her dagger at her side. In no way, shape, or form, would this dagger do her any good, but the small amount of comfort it gave her steadied the quiver of her shaky breath.

Lucifer, still held to the floor by the thick lightning restraints, growled. He was livid that his mate would dare disobey him, but most of all, he was worried for her safety. The prophecy was unfolding in front of his eyes. His beloved Uriel was hanging by a mere thread, just a helpless little lamb ripe for Zeus to slaughter.

Lucifer grunted, fighting against his restraints, his wings breaking free, and his claws scratching the already ruined floor. Angels fought back, pushing him lower, the electrical bands holding him tightly to the floor only grew stronger as Zeus looked over his shoulder, smirking.

“Pray tell, who do you think I am?” ‘Zeus’ lulled his head to the side in amusement.

This tiny goddess in front of him had him laughing from within. She came so willingly, so easily, because she had already bonded to the God of Destruction, making it so easy for her to find him. His once complicated, meticulous plans were paying off. His back straightened with the confidence building inside him.

“I’m not sure.” Uriel glanced at the god with her golden eyes. Her position wavered when she saw his eyes go from the deepest navy to a bright blue. Those bright blue eyes she remembered from so long ago when her touch healed Zeus from his burdens.

Hera and Michael shivered in the corner as their naked bodies were incessantly poked and prodded by the darkened angels. Their torn skin dripped golden blood to the floor, but they did not dare to make a sound as they watched the scene unfold. Just like Hera and Michael, all the other gods held quietly onto their souls watching Uriel’s interaction with the Zeus look-alike. News had traveled fast of Uriel’s prophecy and how their lives, along with the lives of all living things, hung in the balance with the fate of this tiny goddess.

Meanwhile, the gentle tapping of small claws hopping along the floor neared the cage that held Ember. In the short time Loki had discovered his raven, his skills had grown exceedingly. He was able to manipulate his size in just a matter of minutes after he studied the books Poseidon had in his library. His now small body hopped between the bars, pecking lightly on his mother to get her attention.

Ember stared down at the bird, immediately knowing who it was. “Loki?” she whispered in her shaky voice. His head rubbed against Ember’s thigh in greeting. “You need to let your father free,” she whispered hastily. “Luci is out in the open, but your father, you could help him.”

Loki opened his beak in understanding. The vile around his neck that Uriel had given him would help heal his father’s wounds so he could help Lucifer. Loki got to work, gently hopping across the floor. No god or goddess paid him any mind, assuming he was just a lost, stupid bird.

Uriel’s eyes remained on Zeus, making sure his attention never diverted from her. “You are something different,” Uriel mused, trying to get the mighty god to talk. Zeus stepped closer to her, and Lucifer shook the chains now covering his wings.

“That’s right.” Zeus’ dirty bare feet slapped the floor.

“Something different entirely.” Uriel scratched her face with her hand. Trying to buy time. She had to stall until another god or goddess was free because she knew her physical strength was no match against this god.

“Time is of the essence, Uriel.” Zeus backed away from her. “Come.”

Walking with Zeus, since she had no other choice, she walked past her mate that lay on the floor. The helplessness in his eyes was overshadowed by the rage fueling him to get to his mate.

“Don’t even think about it.”

Zeus didn’t even look over his shoulder when Uriel stopped to stare at her mate. Lucifer’s glare at Uriel, warning her to leave, didn’t make her budge. She mouthed, ‘I love you,’ before turning back to follow the God of the Sky. Lucifer’s breath hitched. It was not that he didn’t appreciate the sentiment, but he knew those words had a double meaning—they meant goodbye.

Uriel rounded the table, rather similar to the table back in the Underwater Palace. This time it was folded into a scene of Earth—New York City, a place where heavy populations of innocent people lived, and children played.

“Time,” Uriel muttered to herself, watching fire drench the skies from above. Glancing back to Lucifer, she saw the darkness in his eyes as the bright red electricity engulfed him further.

“I’m channeling his power of destruction,” Zeus explained, “sucking him dry of the power he holds inside and putting it here.”

With a wave of his hand over the table, fire rained from the sky of the city displayed, causing countless buildings to go up in flames. Women and children ran from their homes into the streets only to succumb to the fire raining from the sky.

“No.” Uriel shook her head. “You can’t do this. They are innocent. They did nothing to you!”

Zeus chuckled, not moving from his place. His eyes danced across the apparition on the table. “Oh, they aren’t dead yet,” he scoffed. “But soon, it will happen. This is just a glimpse into the future. In time, this is what the Earth will look like.” Zeus’ hand waved over the table, changing the image to show the entirety of Earth and of Bergarian. Both worlds were enveloped in flames. Terrible screams of pain and terror rang in Uriel’s ear, begging for mercy.

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