chapter 29
So many images passed through my mind in that moment as I relived every second of my existence since the woman sitting so patiently in the chair across from me had killed me.
I should have been afraid, because the Demon Queen knew who I was, and was waiting for me, and was going to destroy me once she had finished with whatever conversation it seemed she wanted to have - there were two chairs after all.
I should have been angry, because she had caused such wanton chaos and destruction, had left such evil in her wake.
Instead, my mind was distracted by how beautiful she was sitting there, her lustrous long black hair falling over her right breast, her perfect white smile so inviting, her feline yellow eyes sexy and dangerous in a way that Rebecca could only dream of. A black collared coatdress with a deep neckline and low boots rounded out the vision. What the heck was I thinking?
I took a deep breath and swallowed, trying to get my stomach back down where it belonged before I made a mess of her clean stone floor. I could see the source of the light now, spotlights arranged around the perimeter of the room, casting so much brightness and heat that any demon not wearing an amulet would be hard-pressed to do much of anything caught in the trap. Yet there she was, sitting bathed in the light, oblivious to the damage it should be doing to her. I could see the plunge of her dress down into her cleavage. She wasn’t wearing an amulet.
“Waiting for me,” I stuttered, trying not to sound overwhelmed, and failing miserably.
“For longer than you know,” she replied. “We have a lot to talk about.”
I started walking towards her, my legs feeling shaky beneath me. Dante’s voice echoed in my mind, describing to me how this woman had slaughtered the Knight Templar who had defended the Chalice for over two thousand years, along with a whole contingent of seraphs. What could I have that she wanted?
“I need the Chalice,” I said, feeling stupid right after I said it.
No doubt she knew I needed the Chalice. She had been waiting for me. Did she take it not for the demons, but to draw me in? How could she, if I had still been a mortal then? Had she known what I would become when she killed me? That one was too much to wrap my mind around.
“Take it,” she said, motioning to where it sat on the pedestal. “On one condition.”
One condition. I should have known. No demon would give up anything without making a deal. “What condition?”
“A few minutes of your time. That’s it.”
I stood there, trying to think of the trick, the angle she was using to take advantage of me. I looked at the Chalice, and then looked back at her. She didn’t need to take advantage of me. There was nothing I had that she couldn’t take. I walked over to her, pulled the other folding chair around so I could sit across from her, and planted myself in it.
“I’m listening,” I said.
“Like I said, I’ve been waiting for you for a long time. Since before you even existed in fact. That day at the Museum, the day I took the Grail, I didn’t know that it was you, the too polite security guard, who would be the one. I had thought I would be stalling the archfiends for years, perhaps centuries while I waited for you to arrive.”
“Why were you waiting for me?”
“I want your power,” she replied. “I need your power, if I am to do what needs to be done.”
“I have a feeling you could just kill me and take my power,” I said.
She smiled, a warm sweet smile that confused the heck out of me. She was evil, right? “It’s not a power that can be taken,” she said. “You have to share it willingly.”
“Why would I ever want to do that?” I asked. “You’re the most powerful evil in this world. You used the Chalice to arrange the devastation of mankind.”
She reached out and put her hand on my leg. I could feel the warmth of it through my jeans. “You of all people should know that evil is subjective,” she said. “Is it evil to kill in order to save? Is it evil to lie in order to protect?”
I couldn’t really argue with that. “So you’re saying you aren’t really evil?”
She took her hand away. “What I’m saying is that the word evil is just that. Look at the seraphim. The reason Hell exists is because they hold the capacity to do bad things, just as some demons have capacity to do good things - your friend Rebecca for instance. I have done things that you would call evil, but I had also done my share of good. What I need from you has a purpose that I believe is good, even if others might disagree.”
“What purpose is that?” I asked.
“To end the war, of course.”
“You can end the war with the Chalice. You can end the war by sitting here, talking to me. The archfiends will destroy the sanctuaries and all mortal life will cease to be.”
Another smile. This one was much more placating. “That’s only true under the assumption that I want the demons to win. That’s only true if we are speaking of the same war.”
I was lost. Who did the Demon Queen want to win, if not the demons? What other war was there?
“I don’t understand,” I said.
“Balance,” she said. “It’s all about balance. You. Me. This world. Heaven. Hell. Purgatory. Good and evil. Every one of these things is a gyroscope, turning and spinning in a perfect choreography of chaos and order. Yet, if that is true, then why do you exist? Why do I exist?”
It was back to the question of why I am? “Balance,” I replied
“Yes, that is part,” she said. She waited for me to tell her the rest.
“I don’t know,” I said. I looked over at the Chalice. Time was not a luxury I had right now to be partaking in her riddles. “Is there a purpose to this?”
She pursed her lips, looking thoughtful. “I was afraid I might be moving too fast. That it was too soon.” She was talking, but not to me. Her yellow eyes dilated and focused, as if there were someone else in the room with us. “I can’t be sure I’ll have another chance.” It was like sitting with someone while they were on the phone. “You’re right. It’s a risk, but I have to take it.”
She blinked once, then leaned forward again and put her hand up to my face, moving too fast for me to pull away. Her soft, cool palm pressed against my cheek.
“There isn’t much time,” she said to me. “I will tell you this once, and I need you to remember it.”
Her eyes locked onto mine, and I found that I couldn’t pull away. The black slits resting inside the yellow orbs captured me, held my soul in a way that left me powerless, and defenseless. While I had feared the Demon Queen and her power, I had still badly underestimated it. She could have taken my head from my shoulders and I wouldn’t have noticed.
“I do not know how long it will take. It may be days, it may be years, it may be millennia. The day will come when you will no longer eat, no longer sleep, and if you aren’t careful you will no longer feel. You will sense the balance in your soul, and what was once familiar will become alien. You will question the balance, question the war, and question yourself and everything you see around you. You will search for answers. You will scour the world to find the true purpose of who and what you are. Some you will find, and some you will need to determine for yourself. Remember that you are free, that you have your own will and your own choices. Remember these words, search for your answers, and then find me again.”
She pulled her hand from my face, keeping her eyes locked with mine. I had so many questions, but only one of them managed to find its way from my brain to my lips.
“How will I find you again?”
She leaned forward, keeping her eyes on mine until she was too close for me to focus on them. Warm lips brushed against my cheek, then slipped back to my ear. “When you are ready, you will know. I will be waiting.”
My eyes closed of their own volition as she whispered, my body and soul absorbing as much of her essence as it could manage. “Reyzl,” I said, fighting to speak above the chaos churning through my being.
“Let him send his army. I am prepared. Take the Chalice, and hide it as Dante has asked.” I felt her hand lift mine, push open my fingers, and place something in it. “Pour this into the Chalice before you step into the Rift. It has been blessed by an archangel and will permanently negate the power of the crystals. Once you step through the circle be prepared. Reyzl has betrayed you.”
She backed away from me. I opened my eyes and looked down at the object she had placed in my hand. It was a vial of blood. Her blood.
“Who are you?” I asked, looking up. Gone. I should have known.
I jumped out of the chair and raced over to the pedestal, grabbing the Chalice from the platform and running back towards the Rift. I had expected that I would have felt something from holding an object of such power, but it could have been a Chinese knockoff for all I knew. I laughed when it occurred to me that maybe it was, and the Demon Queen had just played me for an even more complete fool than Reyzl had. This whole thing had gone from crazy to crazier over the last few minutes, so I wouldn’t have been too surprised.
I stopped right before the circle, taking the vial of blood the Demon Queen had given to me and holding it over the Chalice. I hesitated to use it, unsure if I would be doing the right thing or just falling for another demonic trap. She had said an archangel had blessed the blood, and she hadn’t been lying, but Josette had told me all of those guys were staying up in Heaven, and I trusted her, so how could that be? Still, it was such an unbelievable statement that I found myself believing it. After all, the Demon Queen had let me live and I knew Reyzl wanted to kill me. It was a flimsy bit of logic, but it was all that I had.
I used my thumb to push the cork out of the vial and dumped the contents into the Chalice. The moment it touched the wood it began to hiss and steam, leaving a smell of sulfur and incense behind. I felt a shockwave that ran through my entire body, and deep within my soul I understood that I hadn’t been deceived. Now I just had to somehow deal with Reyzl.
I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, taking hold of my Source and pulling its power to me, preparing it for use. I had no idea how I was going to use it, but I had been warned of the impending ambush and I needed to be ready.
I took one last gulp of air and stepped forward.