Celestial Wars Ch. 02

***

-Cariel-

Shame.

That was all I could feel. It burned hotly in my veins.

Through my hair, I could see Alarial standing in the doorway. Her face was a masterwork in conflicting emotions. I could see rage clearly in her eyes... and I could see jealousy in her balled fists. However, underneath all of that, her sadness was the most profound. She truly and utterly loved Devnikolus.

My body twitched in the chains reflexively.

I was a hypocrite. I was pathetic. Not more than a few nights ago, I had sanctimoniously preached about how I would rescue her from the demon controlling her mind. She had begged me to just go away... but I didn't listen.

Now the demon had me as well. I was tied just as tight as her. Sisters in blood and sisters in service. Degrading, pleasure-wrenching service.

Alarial took a step forward into the bedroom. The soulless knight kept pace with her. He looked as if he were readying himself to restrain her if necessary.

"Tell me what happened," Alarial said. Her voice was pitched in the unnatural calm that sometimes precedes loud and terrible anger.

I peeked up and made the mistake of looking straight into my sister's bright silver eyes.

My heart wanted to apologize. It wanted to beg forgiveness. But my mind was sullen, and my shame had awakened my battered pride.

"I think you know," I said sullenly.

Alarial nodded. "Yes," she said, "I think I do."

"Well, well!" called a voice from the doorway. "Look what I've stumbled onto!"

Alarial and the soulless knight whirled around. I peered over Alarial's shoulder trying to get a glimpse of the speaker.

A man with dirty blond hair stood at the threshold of the doorway. In his hand he held a sword. Along the flat of the blade the words "Fleeting Light" gleamed with blue magic. The man was a Judicar, a mortal selected to be a judge of Heaven.

The soulless knight smiled consolingly and took a step towards the Judicar. "This isn't what it looks like, Daniel," he said. "This angel wronged our Master. No harm will come to her. Besides, what do you care? No one has paid you to do anything, Monster Hunter."

The man called Daniel spat, glaring at Alarial and the knight with loathing. "I heard your conversation on the landing, Jon," he said bitingly. "I know that I didn't succeed in fooling you for even a day."

A thunderclap echoed in the distance.

Jon raised a hand. "Be very careful what you do, Daniel," he said. "You are in The Prince of Destruction's house... and he will be—"

Jon was cut off when Daniel raised his free hand. Blue magic erupted from his palm, and Alarial and Jon were flung in different directions. They rattled off the walls with a dull thud.

Daniel rushed over to me. "Quickly, m'lady," he said breathlessly. "We must get you free of those chains before Devnikolus returns. I have a thrice blessed cross that can aid us, but I will still need your help to destroy him."

I could feel my eyebrows raise. A thrice blessed cross was a rare thing and took years to make. However, they could drain an enormous amount of power from demons. Such an advantage might have been enough to tip the scales in his favor... if I had been capable of fighting.

I thought about telling Daniel that I couldn't help him. I thought about telling him about the collar around my neck. I nearly did. I opened my mouth to speak.

Then I realized the collar felt warm and soothing as it rested against my skin. I had never realized how bare my throat had felt before. Suddenly, the thought of having my collar removed made my muscles tense in fear. It was easier to be owned. All I had to do was let myself float away and fill myself up with His will. All I had to do was move at his word.

Daniel was oblivious to my inner turmoil.

He raised his sword and brought it down hard on my chains. The moment his blade touched the dark iron, red magic whooshed into life, and demonic runes began to glow fiercely all over the room.

Suddenly, the manacles around my wrists and ankles released me, and I fell to the floor. The chains that had entrapped me began to writhe like snakes.

"No!" Daniel yelled hoarsely. "Shit, Vraiel... help me! It's a trap!"

Daniel's human brown eyes filled with power and changed until they were colored silver. Blue sparks gathered around his hands... but I could already tell it wasn't enough.

The power that radiated from the wards placed on the chains and in the room was unbelievable. It bore down like a heavy, oppressive weight.

The wriggling chains lunged, and both manacles encircled Daniel's wrists. His sword fell from his hands and clattered onto the wooden floorboards. Daniel thrashed violently as the chains pulled him up off the floor. He kicked his feet madly as they dangled in the air. Then, the ankle restraints had him... and his feet were immobilized.

Daniel looked more beast than man as he tried to jerk his arms and legs out of his bindings.

"No! I'm so close! I'm going to get you! Show yourself, Devnikolus! Come and let me KILL YOU, YOU THRICE CURSED BASTARD!"

Daniel's voice sounded broken and crazed. Never in all of my fifteen hundred years had I heard a human scream as he did.

***

-Alarial-

My head throbbed from hitting the wall.

A spell of dizziness blurred my vision and obscured my hearing. It was like trying to see through a fog, like trying to hear through water. I could hear screaming. Terrible, rabid screaming. But I couldn't discern the words.

Jon! I thought to myself frantically. What if Daniel is killing Jon?

I shook my head, trying to clear it. A sharp pain gathered at the back of my head and neck, but my vision did slowly clear.

I had to get up. I had to get up.

Now was not the time to let my Master down. The moment I thought of my Master was the moment I mastered myself.

Blue sparks filled my vision as I rocketed to my feet. My eyes found Daniel's face, and I raised my hand. Lighting arced from my hands. The magic hit Daniel squarely in the chest. Sparks danced angrily across his body as the magic crackled down to the bottoms of his toes and the tips of his fingers.

Daniel opened his mouth to scream, but only a dry, rasping noise scraped from the back of his throat. Chains rattled as his arms and legs twitched in them.

That wouldn't do, I thought darkly. He needed more pain. He wanted to kill my Master. He needed all the pain I could give him.

I raised my hand again and more blue power came eagerly to my palm.

"Alarial! Stop!" screamed the voice of Cariel.

But she seemed far away, and Daniel's agony-ridden face was all I could see.

Suddenly, a soft body tackled me, and I fell to the ground with them on top of me.

I blinked.

Cariel's naked body was on top of me. Her hands were pressed against my shoulders, holding me down. Her silver eyes were glistening with tears.

"Please stop, sister," she said softly, in a voice that sounded small and gentle. "Please, he's already locked up in chains. Look."

She rolled off of me but kept a tentative hold on my arm. Daniel was dangling limply in the black chains that Cariel had just been restrained in.

"How?" I said in slow wonder.

Cariel rubbed my arm. "The Master must have somehow anticipated this Judicar. He had the chains spelled to trap the first one to touch them."

This was all too much. Master had somehow known about Daniel? Cariel called my Dark God Master now too? Cariel was acting as bait for Daniel?

"I didn't know about the spell," Cariel said, having seemingly read my thoughts. "He never tells me anything."

There was a pause.

Then I giggled.

For a brief and absurd moment, I giggled at something this red-headed angel said. A part of me hated the fact that I was sharing this moment with someone who I should despise, but I couldn't help it.

Cariel's eyes narrowed slightly, and I couldn't tell if she was angry at me for laughing, or questioning my remaining sanity.

"That does sound like him," I said as an explanation.

Cariel gave me a wide smile of her own... one that reached her eyes. We sat there like that for a full moment, quietly grinning at each other. Then her smile faded, and she looked away. Her cheeks darkened as she blushed.

She made a haphazard attempt to cover her bare breasts with her hands, and she crossed her slim legs.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I'm naked... and I know you must hate me."

She looked so vulnerable and hurt. She looked nothing like the proud creature that had bravely attempted to defeat my Dark God.

In that moment of vulnerability, I saw how similar we were.

"Did you call me sister a moment ago?"

***

-Devnik-

I appeared in the entrance hall with my hair slightly damp from the rain. I shook my head, and small little droplets scattered. For a brief moment, I paused to collect myself. Seven angels had just died by my hand. Despite Orias' assurances, I didn't feel entirely comfortable provoking the Light in such an open manner. Perhaps I was out of practice... It had been a long time, after all. But still, after tonight, I would be in for a fight very soon.

With my mind settled, I began to calmly walk up the stairs to the master bedroom.

I knew Daniel was in my house. I had smelled the stink of his sword from the field. He didn't concern me. Especially after what I had just done.

Before I was even halfway up the stairs, I felt a tug on my magic, and I knew the Judicar had sprung my trap. Cariel did make delicious bait after all. It had probably helped that she had a few belt marks on her. The Light loved their heroics.

Idiots, all of them.

And Daniel might just be the biggest idiot of them all.

I paused on the stairs to listen to his incoherent screaming. My lips curled into a smile. I had to force down a small chuckle.

Then, suddenly I saw a bright blue flash. The smell of foreign Light magic lit up my bedroom like a beacon.

No, it couldn't be. There was no way Daniel could work magic when he was bound in chains made by my own hand. I blurred up the rest of the stairs and up to the open door in time to hear Cariel scream, "Alarial! Stop!"

With my eyes, I scanned the room, using my powers to enhance my perceptions. Within a mere second, I had taken in everything.

Jon was in the corner of the room. His skull was cracked, but his immortality was healing him.

Daniel was uncurious as well. He was bound up in the chains that I had left to trap him. There were small scorch marks on his clothes and skin, and a red line of blood dripped from his nose.

Then, my eyes landed on them.

Cariel was on top of my Maria. For a moment, my stomach tightened. Maria's face was twisted in rage and confusion. Her eyes looked slightly unfocused, but she was no less lovely.

Even there, rumpled and splayed out on the floor, she looked beautiful. Her thick blonde hair fanned out in a golden wave behind her. Her pale and strong jaw quivered as she looked up at Cariel. A weight that I hadn't realized I was carrying suddenly slipped from my shoulders.

Maria was here. Maria was safe.

She was right there. I could go touch her if I wanted. My hands had missed the soft feel of her.

I was about to step in and drag Cariel off of her when I heard the red-haired angel speak again.

"Please stop, sister," she said in a voice that didn't carry a hint of violence. "Please, he's already locked up in the chains. Look," she said.

In an instant, I decided there was no danger. With a flick of my finger, I cast a spell of invisibility. I disappeared from the threshold just as they looked at Daniel.

I wanted to eavesdrop on them. I wanted to know what they would speak of while they thought they were alone. Beings of my power rarely hear the truth of what others think of them. Most are afraid to speak the harsh words they carry in their hearts. Some might think this is a blessing, but they don't know how lonely it is.

***

I laughed silently along with Maria when Cariel pouted about being used as bait. My mirth soured slightly when Maria made a joke at my expense.

I thought that would be a good time to reveal myself. It would be fun to let them know I caught them being naughty. Their punishments would be... delightful.

Then Maria spoke. "Did you call me sister a moment ago?"

Cariel stiffened, and then nodded. The naked angel was sitting cross-legged with an arm over her breasts. I doubt she could have imagined a worse situation to talk about their relation to one another.

Cariel struggled to speak. When words came, they sounded stilted and heavy with embarrassment. "We're half-sisters," Cariel stuttered. "We have the same mother."

Maria ran a hand through her hair. She looked hard at Cariel, as if trying to see the family resemblance.

"That's why you tried to save me," Maria said. "You were family."

Cariel nodded. Tears glimmered in her eyes. "Yes. I had to try. No one else would."

"Why didn't our... um... mother try to help you?" Maria asked.

Cariel laughed darkly. The sadness that had been threatening to overcome her was quickly replaced with smoldering fury.

"Mother is far too important to disobey orders," Cariel said bitterly. "No... she was all too willing to fall into line when Seraphiel gave the order to abandon you as a lost cause."

"I see," Maria said sadly. "I guess I'll never get to meet her anyway. I doubt that Master would arrange for us to meet."

Cariel shrugged and glumly looked down at her bare toes.

They both lapsed into silence for a moment. I wanted to know what they were both thinking.

Then Cariel spoke. "I guess none of this matters anymore. We're simply the kept women of a demon now. Our futures are what he makes of them." Cariel looked up, fixing her sister with a look. "Doesn't that powerlessness frighten you? Don't you wonder what will become of us?"

My patience was suddenly exhausted.

Before Maria could respond, I stepped smartly into the room and let my invisibility spell fall away. Both of them jumped in surprise.

I smiled at them, basking in their expressions.

"Hello there..."

Chapter 12

Dark Embrace

~We each carry a sadness that lies heavy within us. Most of the time it is obscured, lost beneath muddied waters. But sometimes, in times of great stillness, the silt settles, and we can see our sadness, lying hard as ice in a crystal cool pool.~ An Old Fae Parable

-Alarial-

Two little words.

That was all it took...that was all that I needed.

"Hello there..." came the silky baritone of my Master.

Just his voice reminded me of his hands on my breasts... his teeth against my flesh...his heavy ivory manhood as it roughly invaded my sex.

But that was not all I remembered. I also remembered his whispered words...uttered close against my ear. I remembered him saying, "I love you Maria, and I think I always have."

With those words ringing in my ears, I turned, and looked upon my Master.

He stood in the doorway and he looked every inch the Dark God.

His midnight hair was slightly damp, and water dripped slowly from the tips of it. At his shoulders, his dark black cloak hung down to his feet. The fabric was pinned with the deep red ruby that he seemed to like so much. The gem seemed to sparkle even though no light touched it.

But none of these mattered compared to his eyes. His eyes were dancing. They glowed red and warm and welcoming as they looked right at me.

His perfect face and lips were drawn up into a smile, "I'm right here pet," he said with outstretched arms.

"Don't keep me waiting."

A laugh skipped out of my throat before I could stop it. I scrambled up off the floor, and over to the creature I loved.

I was full up of joy and bubbling happiness.

I didn't slow until I bumped forcefully into his chest. He didn't budge an inch. Instead, he drew his arms around me and held me tight. I was right next to him...it felt like a dream. It felt like everything would suddenly be alright.

I wanted to meld with his very being. I wanted to slip inside of him, where I could lay down and inhale his essence with every breath. There, I could doze and languidly sleep forever...contented and at peace.

Master's hands trailed down my flanks. He caressed the sides of my breasts, then continued downward, until he reached my thighs and buttocks. His fingers pressed into the soft skin there, and I mewled into the crook of his neck.

Then suddenly, I felt a hand grab at the back of my traveling dress. With a great heave, I was forcefully yanked backwards, and I slipped for my Master's grip.

With a quick turn, I slapped the hand clutching at my clothes. Cariel withdrew her hand quickly. She rubbed it while glaring at me. Her silver eyes had narrowed into focused slivers, and she darted her gaze back and forth between me and Devnik.

Master looked amused, "Do you think to keep Maria from me little Cariel?" He said in a voice rich with mockery.

Cariel squared her shoulders, and drew herself up. She didn't look particularly imposing. She was still naked, and angry welts still colored her thighs.

"Her name is Alarial, Master," Cariel spat. She put a disrespectful emphasis on her words. "And I sacrificed a great deal to keep her from your grasp."

Listening to her was like listening to myself...back when I didn't truly accept that he owned me. That denial had made me angry and irrational.

Devnik raised a perfect eyebrow, "And how do you plan to keep her from me little one?" He asked. "You can't even keep yourself from me."

Cariel grew rigid and tense with anger. Her fists balled at her sides, and for one brief moment I thought she would try to punch him. Then, something unexpected happened. Cariel took a deep breath, and both Devnik and I watched her anger cool.

"I hate this," Cariel said softly. "My emotions keep swirling inside of me. It's like living in the center of a windstorm. I can't settle myself, I can't keep myself from getting caught up in the gale."

Master's face turned thoughtful. For a brief moment, a silence stretched out, and the only sound that could be heard was Daniel's wheezing breath.

Devnik cast an irritated look at Daniel's bound form. He snapped his fingers, and Daniel disappeared in a flurry of red sparks.

There was a silence following Daniel's disappearance.

Cariel had her eyes fixed on the floor in front of Devnik. She was shaking slightly...but not in the way one does when they are cold. Rather, she shook with the frantic movements of someone in the throes of great fear...or great anticipation.

Finally, Master spoke, "Perhaps you need a few moments to settle yourself." He motioned to a corner of the room.

"Jon," Devnik said, "if you could be so kind as to escort Cariel to the guest quarters I would greatly appreciate it."

While we had been talking, Jon had been busy dragging himself up off the floor. There were flecks of dried blood on his clothes, but he otherwise looked quite recovered from Daniel's spell.

"Good to see you again too Master," Jon said with a smile. "I was worried that you were losing your touch. You had been in the room a full five minutes without giving me an order."

Devnik smiled and waved a casual hand, "You'll wish I had forgotten about you very soon. Cariel needs someone to watch her and calm her down."

Cariel widened her stance and raised her arms slightly. She stared at Jon with a look that would make a statue cringe.

"Just you try and take me somewhere little human," Cariel said venomously, "I'm not done talking to him."

"Cariel..." Devnik intoned softly, drawing her attention from Jon, "Why are you being difficult? You said you were feeling emotional. I am generously allowing you time away from me. Isn't that what you want?"