Celestra Forever After (55 page)

In all my years I’ve stayed within the bounds of the powers I believed I had, but now that I’m a wicked spawn—a brute beast—the powers have escalated far beyond any boundaries I thought I knew. And now, stepping into the Tenebrous Woods will be as easy as stepping into the next room.

Ordinary. I shake my head in disgust. I think I might have lied to Skyla earlier because this night requires me to be anything but ordinary.

A sacrifice was made to get Laken back—to free Skyla from her oath, and now I have to pay the price. And if I don’t, the heart of one I hold dear will turn against me—and everything I think I stand for. Skyla is the only thing I hold dear, and if I stand for anything it’s for Celestra—for the Nephilim people.

Ironic, though, since I’m about to turn against them.

The Tenebrous Woods form around me, dipped in midnight. The air is congested with the stench of a fire that burns in the distance.

I spot Wes and Demetri near the mountain of Celestra skulls that seem twice as high as it was before. A fire encircles the large, flat, granite altar with a trio of golden chalices set on a tree stump nearby.

“Brother.” Wes slaps me over the back as I join their circle.

“Son.” Demetri grips me over the shoulder, and my dinner does a revolution in my stomach.

“Are you ready?” Wes asks while ushering me closer to the flames.

I look up at the tower of bony grimaces as the flames roar to life around me.

“I’ve been ready.” I sling my arms around Demetri and Wes. “I was born for this.”

The three of us walk through the wall of fire and onto the granite stone of sacrifice. Demetri hands us each a chalice brimming with sanguine liquid that glimmers in the night. We raise our goblets to the sky, and they catch the dim reserve of light, shinning like three golden suns.

“To the Steel Barricade.” Demetri’s voice twists through the night. “The wine in your hands has been blessed with the finest Celestra reserve. This blood marks a new covenant, one that allows the Fems to prosper as they were destined to, so long ago.”

“To the dawning of a new era.” Wes raises his cup ever higher. “One that sees the end to the Nephilim and the beginning of a new breed of angelic beings.”

Our chalices meet with a muted click before we drink down the blood of the innocent.

Demetri turns to me. “To the fruit of your loins, long may they prosper.”

The sky explodes in a colorful fit of blue and red lightning. A horrible scream emanates from deep in the woods as if a live sacrifice were offered at this exact moment in time, and I pray to God that’s not the case.

“Place your hands over the stone,” Demetri instructs, and we do with Wes landing his on top of mine.

“The older shall serve the younger.” Demetri looks to Wes, with that same shit-eating grin brewing on his lips. “Reverse the order.”

I land my hand on top of Wesley’s as Demetri pulls a spirit sword from the sheath strapped to his hip.

“Under the sanction of light and darkness, I declare a new ordinance—one that binds through blood, through life and through death, before Him who is invisible, immortal, eternal. We are gathered today under the cast of darkness to declare our loyalty to the Fems everlasting. So it is—so it shall be.”

The spirit sword sparks to life as the blade illuminates an electric blue, disrupting the maudlin colors of this tainted underworld.

Demetri raises the dagger high over his head, his eyes glow like fires from the pit of hell.

Skyla and all of our love, the vows we took before man and God all swirl through my mind like a tempest. It’s happening. I’ve slipped. I’ve fallen into the skin I was destined to reside in all along.

Demetri lets out a roar as he brings down the blade, pinning both Wes and I together.

The sky explodes in another colorful fit of fractured light as the Tenebrous Woods lets out a roar of its own.

The electrical show in the sky manifests into a twirling tornado above our heads before touching down over the spirit sword and moving its knife-like currents through all three of our bodies. The woods begin to fade away as we dematerialize.

Glimpses of my life with Skyla pulse through me, one picture after another spin in a dizzying circle of memories, of dreams and wishes that all point to the intense love we share—how right and beautiful it is.

I wonder if Skyla can ever forgive me.

I wonder if she should.

Logan

I’ve waited for a lot of things in my short life, waited for the rain to end, waited for the sun to emerge from the perennial fogbank the island is constantly locked in, waited for love to come—and all of those things eventually happened. I know the prophecy that Candace gave me is real, and I hang onto the fact that Skyla and I will be together one day. It feels more like a pipe dream at the moment, but most things usually do until they actually come to fruition. And, even then, some things simply feel too good to be true. That’s what it felt like being married to Skyla for three bliss-filled days.

I’m waiting for Skyla in a waking dream I’ve left open to her tonight. The only way we can get into Tenebrous is without our bodies. As soon as she’s sound asleep, she’ll be here. I’ve summoned her, and we’ll head out together to inspect this latest round of Countenance bullshit—the Bullshit Brigade—or, as Wes has aptly named it, the Steel Barricade. But he’s forgetting I’m a Count, a dead one at that, so I get the all access tour with or without his permission. There’s not a binding spirit on the planet that can circumvent me in this nocturnal state. Skyla and I are as good as gold. For once the lack of air in my lungs is working to our advantage.

I sit on the grassy knoll, in the world of my making, as I wait for her to materialize from thin air. I’ve brought Skyla here before—blue skies, sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows—a peaceful stream thrown in for good measure. The funny thing is, it doesn’t look too unlike the real deal. The Paradise of God, Ahava—all of the heavenly places and spaces I’ve seen look remarkably just like this one with the binding ingredient being love. Love you can feel. Love that penetrates down to the dregs of your soul, blessed by joy everlasting—all of the same emotions I’ve had just being near—just thinking of Skyla.

“Boo.” A gentle voice emits from my left, and I turn to find Skyla lying next to me in all her ethereal glory. Her hair is alive and electric, each strand lit up with its own filament of light. Her eyes shine like blue topaz, dazzling and splendid under the charge of the blazing sun. “Sorry I’m late.”

“Not a problem. I’ll just back up the train by about fifteen minutes. Nothing a little light drive can’t cure.” I glance behind her. “What about Gage?” It doesn’t seem natural to see one without the other anymore.

She shakes her head. “I didn’t think it was a good idea. I’m not sure Gage can hide from Demetri or Wes.”

“You’re right. They’d sniff him out of a celestial crowd in a heartbeat.” I take up her hand and gaze into her breathtaking eyes. “You ready to do some party crashing?”

“If it involves taking down some Counts, I’m always in.”

“Taking down the Counts.” A dull laugh rattles through me. “That’s all we ever seem to do.”

The Tenebrous Woods form around us, dark as hell. The stench of a fire burns in the distance.

“It’s that way.” Skyla points over to the tower of skulls that twist into the night like an oppressive omen of things to come.

We make our way toward the altar Wes prepared with a ring of fire surrounding it like a barricade, a pedestal with three gold goblets sits high on a tree stump.

The Counts are conducting a waking dream of their own tonight, one in which each member of the Countenance will decide if they’re turning their back on the Nephilim to join Wesley’s newly minted band of pussies. Skyla and I are simply hoping to glean any information we can from ground zero.

Skyla picks up my hand and interlaces our fingers as we crouch behind a juniper bush. I close my eyes for a brief moment just savoring the sensation of her skin over mine. I miss this. I miss everything about Skyla even if I am holding her quite literally.

What do you think that altar is for?
She gives my hand a squeeze.
The waking dream is open for private voting, isn’t it?

It’s ritualistic.
I squint over at it.
Probably to commence the covenant in the name of their people
.

Wesley steps out of the woods along with Demetri, and they stop just shy of the wall of flames.

“Do you think he’ll come?” Demetri pans the woods as he asks the question.

“He will. I have faith in him.” Wes glances around as if he’s not sure at all.

A set of footsteps crackle from the blood-soaked path that leads to the tunnels, and a dark figure emerges from the shadows.

“
Gage
,” Skyla gives it in less than a whisper.

Shit. My eyes widen as I look out at the clearing in disbelief.

“Brother.” Wes slaps him over the back as he joins their circle.

“Son.” Demetri lands a hand over his shoulder, and, right about now, I regret coming. I’m horrified this is happening—more so that I’ve brought Skyla here to witness the event.

“Are you ready?” Wes asks while ushering Gage closer to the flames.

We have to help him
. Skyla pants with an urgency that can only be quenched by getting Gage out of this mess.

Gage looks up at the tower of Celestra skulls as the flames roar to life.

“I’ve been ready.” Gage slings his arms around Demetri and Wes. “I was born for this.”

Skyla and I watch as the three of them walk through the wall of fire and onto the altar. Demetri hands each of them a chalice, and they raise their goblets to the sky.

“To the Steel Barricade.” Demetri’s voice twists through the night. “The wine in your hands has been blessed with the finest Celestra reserve. This blood marks a new covenant, one that allows the Fems to prosper as they were destined to, so long ago.”

“To the dawning of a new era.” Wes spikes his cup in the air. “One that sees the end to the Nephilim and the beginning of a new breed of angelic beings.”

Their chalices click before they drink down the blood of Celestra prisoners.

Demetri looks to Gage. “To the fruit of your loins, long may they prosper.”

The sky shatters with lightning in a patriotic blend of blues and reds. A scream shrills from the heart of the forest, and Skyla gives my fingers a squeeze as if death were coming for her—and it might be.

“Place your hands over the stone,” Demetri instructs. “The older shall serve the younger. Reverse the order.” He pauses. “Under the sanction of light and darkness, I declare a new ordinance—one that binds through blood, through life and through death, before Him who is invisible, immortal, eternal. We are gathered today under the cast of darkness to declare our loyalty to the Fems everlasting. So it is—so it shall be.”

Demetri wields a spirit sword high in the sky, and it lights up a burning electric blue, dangerous as hell to the touch. He thrusts it to the stone where Wes and Gage are huddled. It’s a blood bonding. That sword would have killed any other Nephilim. It has the power to disable Dudley from his angelic properties for days at a time. This only goes to show how powerful—how resilient, the Fems really are.

The three of them clap out of existence, leaving a plume of cobalt fog in their wake.

Skyla steps out into the clearing, stone cold, with a vacant look on her face.

“It was never the Counts we needed to fear.” She glances my way with a fire in her eyes. “It was Gage.”

Chloe

The sun cuts across Devil’s Peak like the opening of a wound as dawn breaks over Paragon. Wes and Gage have spent the last few hours bonding. It’s a beautiful thing to witness. There is nothing like the bond between brothers—it’s the lineage—the
blood
is what really qualifies you as family. All that other bullshit the world tries to feed you is simply a feel good message that belongs in a cheesy greeting card. You can hate your brother with all your heart, and he will still hold your blood—still be your closest relation. You can hate someone outside the family bonds just as vehemently, but the only title that will garner them is enemy.