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Yet, I’m the asshole?
2
Asmodeus
I’m too weak toteleport. The pix root from the blade won’t let me heal, and I fear using my magic will only sap my energy and make me succumb to the poison faster. If the wall around the keep has fallen and the enchantment is gone, there’s no telling what might lurk in the woods.
There are plenty of creatures to fear, especially now that the Realm of Monsters has been freed. The boundary that contained it was destroyed. Now, countless beasts have crossed into the other six realms, the worst of which come alive at night. They’ll be able to scent my blood from a mile away.
Needing to preserve my energy, I lean my head back against the wall, seated on the dirty, cool marble. The poison has sunk its claws in already, making me see double. My muscles ache, pulse weak, and the room spins. My mouth waters, a metallic tang on my tongue as I swallow yet another gulp of blood, too tired to spit it out.
Hands trembling against the wound, I try not to think about how clammy they’ve become. Nor do I acknowledge how pale my skin looks in the dim light of the moons. I have to dosomething… I’ll lose consciousness soon without the antidote. Seeing as that woman was able to walk through the front door, the wards on the keep are broken, too. Anything could sweep in here and have its way with me… and let’s just say I made quite a few enemies during my time in the prison realm. I’ve made enemies in all the Seven Realms, really. There are plenty of people and creatures who’d love to see me dead.
The lump in my throat bobs as I swallow.
What do I do?Attempting to teleport with magic might not be to my advantage. My head is too foggy to form a clear image of my destination. I could end up lost in the ether, in the veil between life and death. For all I know, I could drop into the open ocean, and it the very process would take enough energy from me that I’m not sure I’d have the strength to fight effectively if I landed in the wrong place.
Teleportation is out, though I might be able to bring someone here to me…
Alice. I’ll summon the queen.
Picturing her face, I let the image of her consume me. Her long dark red curls that bounce when she moves. Her intelligent blue eyes, framed by the soft freckles that cover her nose and cheeks. I can hear her laugh, wherever she is, wherever I’m about to rip her from. Then a blinding white light illuminates the back of my eyelids.
But when I open my eyes, she isn’t there.
Fuck… No…It didn’t work. Worse, I can feel the energy I just expended draining from my soul.
Searching the room, I pray to the long-lost gods that I overshot it. That I popped her in somewhere else—the courtyard, maybe. With a shake of my head and a deep, steadying breath, I try to slow my heartbeat. It’s frantic in my chest, the panic flowing deep in my veins, which will only make the blood spill faster, weakening me more with every passing second.
Leaning forward, I attempt to see past the arched wooden doors, still left ajar. The elf woman hadn’t bothered to close them when she abandoned me here. I barely make out a sliver of green between the wooden slabs. Hope plummets into my stomach.
It didn’t work…Okay, Plan B: find a place to hide while I heal.
I take in the holes in the plastered walls. Heart-stopping art once hung in this foyer, but it’s since been reduced to charred frames and blackened canvases. It’s like this place was set aflame after I left, and a small part of me wonders if the village masters and the lords of my deceased father’s court torched it. If they’d tried to burn me out, not knowing my mother had imprisoned me.
A layer of dust and grime as thick as my fingernail coats every surface, save for the scuffs of old footprints on the floor. The woman’s, I assume. I didn’t have time to wander about upon coming inside.
Chunks of fallen stone litter the midnight-blue marble. Dozens of them have embedded themselves down the hall, leading from the foyer through the heart of the keep. A staircase wraps to the right spiraling upward in an open, hollow tunnel, leading to the third floor. It's crunched from the debris, and half of the steps rotten, the railings broken into splinters. There’s no way I’ll be able to crawl up there. The best I can do is slide toward the infirmary down the hall and hope I don’t pass out first.
With a guttural growl, I try to use the wall to get myself to my feet, cringing from the strain.
This is bullshit.I’m a fucking demon prince. I can command death, yet standing is an exhausting effort. Staggering a step, I wince. The muscles in my stomach flex, tearing the wound wider with every disappointing step I take.
My blood drips, leaving a trail as I fight my way down the long hall. Barely making it a few feet within the minutes that tick by.Head too heavy to keep up, I tuck my chin to my chest, grinding my teeth hard enough to crack bone as I force my way forward.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
Fucking elves. Fuck those pointy-eared pricks.
Letting rage burn through me, fueling my efforts to keep going, I click my tongue. I can’t believe I let some random, magicless stranger stab me… And for what?
I dropped my guard, took one look, and labeled her as a non-threat.
“Never… Again…” I breathe between steps, determined to get to the infirmary. My legs are weak, the strength leaving me in droves. But I’m so close.
