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“Hot damn, Florian,” I said, lowering my sword.
“Yeah,” he croaked, looking at his empty hands, like he didn’t know what to make of himself. “I guess I did all that, then.”
I was right yet again. Never, ever underestimate the empty-handed.
15
I looked on with open awe as Florian reached out his hand to calm the vines, as they retreated back into the bushes, back into the earth, to sleep once more. Standing there in the moonlight, the touch of silver from the night sky made the curls of
his hair glow a strange, deep jade green. For possibly the first time, I saw him for what he really was: a powerful ally, and a threat to everything that opposed us.
“Thanks for saving my ass,” I said, dismissing my sword and clapping him on the shoulder. “That was amazing. Disgusting and maybe excessively violent, but so amazing.”
He clenched his fingers, then unclenched them, staring and still dazed. “It’s been a long time. I guess I don’t know my own strength anymore.” He looked up into my face, the bright green of his frenzy fading from his eyes as his magic waned. “And it’s easier – or maybe harder to control once it goes wild, because of all this nature around us.”
Florian gestured vaguely at the arboretum, just moments ago the site of an incredibly dangerous and incredibly short-lived fight. But with the demons and their husks gone, and with Florian’s pet vine monsters gone dormant, it was peaceful again, just a beautiful, sprawling botanical garden.
Except there was that weird crimson light heading towards us.
“Oh no,” I groaned. “Not this again.”
I was grateful for the fact that a lot of the entities – and a lot of mages, for that matter – tended to express their magic in singular, signature colors. It made it easier to find your allies on the battlefield, and conversely, to pick out your enemies. Of course, I never could tell whether the bearer of the crimson light was our ally or our enemy. You never can tell with demon princes, especially one as moody and morose as Belphegor.
The crimson light faded as he approached and joined us under the looming shadow of the hedge maze’s outer wall. I wanted to run in there, get lost, far away from Belphegor, from the demons, from the entities. From all of them. But I burned with a need to know as well. Why did he keep showing up? What did he want from me? And, most important of all, I wanted to know what he had to do with all these attacks.
“I’ve got some questions that need answering, Belphegor,” I snarled. Forget the etiquette of entities, all the supernatural niceties.
He rolled his eyes and shrugged, ever the impertinent teenager. “Get off my case, man, I just got here.”
“I’m not so sure about that anymore,” I said, my fists bunched up tight. Nearby I could feel Florian staring holes into the side of my head, warning me against being too forthright, too frank. “How do you always know where to find me?”
Belphegor scoffed, digging into his pockets for something – probably his phone, the ultimate sign of his dismissal, how he loved to suggest that he was so bored, so above it all. And yet there he was, trailing after us like a puppy, hounding my every move. I waited for him to pull his phone out. At the sight of the bluish glow of its screen, I moved in and slapped it out of his hand. It landed with a wet splat in the grass. Florian gasped. I held my ground, lifting my chin higher, puffing my chest out, like a cockerel that doesn’t know it’s headed to the chopping block.
“You’re at the scene of every demon attack. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist. You’ve been sending these assholes to test us.”
Belphegor calmly stepped over to his phone to retrieve it, wiping the dew and grass away from its screen before depositing it back in his pocket. Then he brushed the fringe of hair away from the center of his brow. I staggered back at the sight of the third eye lingering there, embedded in his forehead. All three of his eyes turned crimson. I backed away some more, leaves rustling as I collided with the hedge maze.
“Nephilim,” he said, the word rolling on his tongue like a sour piece of fruit. Belphegor’s voice was different, too – deeper, more menacing. “Have you considered the possibility that I am appearing in response to these attacks? I am as puzzled as you are. I would advise you to tone down your baseless accusations. Demon princes we may be, but even demons have their honor.”
I wasn’t going to argue the point with him, not when his eyes were lighting up like a really angry traffic stop. I put up my hands in placation and nodded my assent in silence. The crimson faded from Belphegor’s eyes.
“Awesome. Then I guess we keep up what we’re all doing and try to figure this out.” The prince threw me a mischievous grin, a sliver of his tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth. “Don’t worry, Mason. I’m very pleased with the progress you’ve made with Florian here. It looks like you’re finally waking up.” Belphegor leaned towards Florian, giving him the same simpering smile. “Aren’t you, my dryad friend?”
“Right,” Florian said, his body perfectly still, the equal stillness of his breathing betraying his discomfort. “I’m awake.”
“Excellent,” Belphegor said. “Then we’re all getting what we want.” He winked at me with his third eye, such an inhuman sight that it sent revulsion wriggling down my spine. “Except you, apparently, Mason. You really should reconsider the errand for that bruja. Beatrice Rex’s services are pretty damn expensive, but it must be better than running from demons for the rest of your life.”
I gaped at him, hating that he somehow knew about every single one of my movements, but too stunned to answer.
“Oh, and maybe spring for enchanted boxers,” he said, winking again. “When it comes to magical underwear, you’ll want to go for maximum comfort.”
With that, Belphegor burst into a plume of crimson flame, then vanished. Florian stared at the smoking spot on the ground, then turned to me.
“What the hell was that all about?”
“Let’s get out of here first,” I said. I pulled my jacket’s hood over my head as the sound of popping started to fill the air, wincing at the pain of the gash the demon had cut into my chest. “We’ve got company.”
We disappeared into the foliage and headed straight for the gates as more noises popped behind us, as Lorica employees and enforcers teleported into the Nicola Arboretum. I bit on the inside of my cheek in my anger, tasting blood. Everywhere I turned, someone was following me. It didn’t matter if I left Valero, that much I knew. The Lorica’s shadow fell across the entire country. And the demon princes, the angels, the entities? They could see everywhere.
