Page 26 of Absolved In Death

The vibe of the room changed in an instant. My men and brother shifted toward me, positioning themselves to defend and attack. My heart leapt into my throat.Desmond was right.They did plan to target me. They were charging me for something completely out of my control.

“You will not execute my daughter for a bullshit, subjective charge that is out of her control. If you try, you’ll find that everyone at this table will defend her with their lives,” Michael said, his voice a deadly calm I had never heard before. His eyes were such a light shade of blue, they were almost clear and his entire body was strung like a bow, ready to lunge across the table and strangle the robed figures.

“We do not wish to kill Lucifer Morningstar’s only daughter. The punishment we have determined is that Diana Morningstar will voluntarily bind her powers to a manageable level, until she can better control them.” Blue Robe’s voice sounded familiar, but my heart was racing so fast, I couldn’t focus enough to place it.

I had to regain control of myself and the situation.Think. Think, Diana. You’re a Morningstar…

“So you wish to charge and pass judgment on me with no demonstration of how controllable my powers are? On what evidence is this charge based? It seems circumstantial and, excuse my language, like a witch hunt.”

“The Council is not required to explain themselves, the sources, or their decisions,” the figure in black snapped. “Youshall treat the Council with the respect it’s due as the governing body of the paranormal community!”

“My daughter will not bind her powers, especially since we are in an active war,” Lucifer scoffed, as if they were joking.

“Some feel that your war is an uprising that will only hurt the magical community,” black robes stated in her annoyingly monotone voice I was tired of hearing. “And that Lucifer Morningstar does not deserve the throne.”

“Red wants to subjugate and disenfranchise the magical community, with the long term goal of expanding into all four realms. Anyone who truly feels the way you claim is either ignorant to Red’s true intentions, so callous they do not care, or they stand to gain from his cruelty,” I fired back in a similar fashion.

She stood from the table, aiming her stark white palm at me. Before she could unleash her magic, my father erected a shield around us all. It felt like an iron wall locking into place around me.

“Diana will not bind her powers. You will do nothing about her mother’s return. I immediately order that you leave my property,” Judas ordered. “The council obviously abandoned their neutrality and has been compromised. You are no longer welcomed here.”

The other two figures stood, looking between us and black robes. I felt her signature magnify as her magic unfurled around her, but I refused to cow to it.

Before she could aim it at our shield, I pierced it, channeling my magic through the tiny slit I made and aiming it directly at the figure in black. She was obviously their ring leader and needed to be made an example of.

I unleashed a torrent of sharp electrical magic right through her. She convulsed, shaking so violently that her hood was knocked back.

She had big brown eyes, pale skin, and a shiny black bob that reached her chin. Her red lipstick was perfectly applied on her thin, sneering lips. I had never met her before, but her face looked familiar. She cried out in pain, dropping to her knees. Ares broke through the shield, winding his arm back and unleashing a spear of red flames. It pierced her heart, bringing her to the ground.

But she didn’t die. She got back up, raised her arms, and loosed a blinding blue flame right at me. Mal redirected it back at her, but it died on impact. I ducked, then morphed into a smaller version of my red dragon form. I opened my mouth and called forth a white flame. Her magic shielded her at first, but my onslaught slowly ate away at her defenses.

Blue robe threw his hood back, and my concentration faltered, breaking my flame. Poseidon.Ocean blue robes… He was a member of the Council.

Black robes took advantage of the break in my attack and slammed me with a direct burst of magic. It was weak compared to her earlier work, but strong enough to knock me over and loosen a few of my scales. I morphed into a raven, diving straight for her. My claws connected with her face, scratching her as she sputtered.

She choked as briny ocean water poured out of her mouth, nose, and ears. I looked to Poseidon, and saw him smirking at her as she died. Her corpse dropped to the ground with a resounding thud. I morphed back into my regular form, then quickly snapped my fingers, summoning a copy of the black suit I wore. Saving my clothes while I morphed was a work in progress still.

“Thank you, Poseidon,” I said before directing my palm at the figure in white robes. “Who are you and with whom does your loyalty lay?”

Desmond erected a shield around me, and the rest of my men stood at the ready to eviscerate him if need be. White robe’s deep sigh caught my attention. Everyone’s magic crackled, waiting for him to attack or reveal himself.

He pulled down his hood, and Zaz laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. “Of course you would be on the Princeps Council, Raphael. Secretive as always.”

“You could have warned us!” Michael snapped.

So he was the Archangel Raphael. I had heard of him, and Zaz and Michael mentioned him in passing, but I had never seen him before.

“God’s orders. I was to infiltrate the Council through my membership and report back. When you allied yourself with the Greeks, I revealed myself to Poseidon, and we realized that Red also had eyes and ears on the Council. We started making a plan to tear it apart from the inside.” He ran a hand through his short hair. “That’s why it took me so long to meet you a couple months ago…”

“As soon as your case came before us, Raphael and I made sure we were part of the trio that would pass judgment. Based on what we know about Lucifer and from what Ares shared about your tenacious attitude, Diana, we knew you’d all rather fight than stomach the charges brought against you.”

“So you took a risk with my Adelphi Psyche and let this woman attack her?!” Ares growled, slamming his hands on the table.

“Yes, but it was the only way. We can say that Lucifer killed Tabatha–that you’re seeking vengeance on Council members for the charges brought against your resistance. This will make the Council members on Red’s payroll flee and will force the others to join you. Win-win,” Raphael explained.

“That’s actually a great plan,” Desmond remarked. “I would have suggested that myself.”

“Who is Tabatha?” Judas asked. “I’m assuming the corpse on the floor in black?”

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