Page 257 of Dark Haven Omegaverse

“The true demons of Helheim, the ones who have been lurking in these halls for years, waiting and growing stronger. All under the one, mighty ruler of Helheim.Weare Hel’s true protectors.”

The demon who spoke seemed different. More aware than the feral pawns he sent to us to die. They severely lacked power,however. Monty, and even those I’d met in Helheim, glowed with power from the realm.

Theirs was muted, if it was there at all.

Monty let out a bark of laughter as the demon finished his crazy monologue. It was loud enough that everyone was watching my commander as if he’d lost his mind.

Then as abruptly as it started, he stopped and stood tall, facing off with them as the room descended into intense silence. I felt Helheim’s magic push from me to Monty, giving him a boost.

“You are no protectors of Hel. If you were, you would know where she was and what she stood for. You were nothing more than tools, used for her own gain. Notice she’s not even here anymore. She’s human, gave her power to escape, and left you behind. I don’t know why it’s so hard for you all to understand that. Your time is ending. We’re closing the portal and you’ll have nothing holding you here any longer, nor a way back home. Helheim has rejected you for your betrayal. You will fade into nothingness until you disappear completely. No second chances.”

“You know nothing about us,” one of them yelled before rushing forward. The entire group took that as their time to strike. Monty was laughing again as he killed the entire charge in one swoop of his hand.

Crew was now alone.

I could tell that scared him.Good.He should fear us now that he’d tried to kill Layne, and frankly, I was beyond fed up with his bullshit.

“Attack!” Crew yelled. His war cry had summoned more demons. They rushed forward, weapons raised, filling the space in seconds so we were forced to continue our fight.

Wave after wave of demons struck, all while Crew stood against the back wall.

He was my target.

At some point, I had to let go of who he used to be and face him as the one causing hell to rain down on Dark Haven.

I made my way forward intending to knock some sense into his dumb ass. He would get one last chance, but if I had to kill him to ensure Layne’s safety and my ability to close the portal, then that was a sacrifice I would have to face.

When I reached him, his face was blank, completely devoid of emotion. He held two daggers in his hands, lifting them high and watching me like a predator waiting to strike.

“Are you going to kill me, Crew?”

We were at a stalemate. Neither of us wanted to kill the other, or I liked to think something of the old Crew remained and that was why he hadn’t tried yet.

Then something changed within him. The fissures widened along his skin until blood was seeping from every sluice.

It was the perfect distraction, my eyes locking on his arms and face in horror so I could barely react when he lunged at me. I blocked the attack with my spear but he was right there again, forcing me to fight him.

Sparks erupted as our blades clashed over and over again, the sharp sound jolting every fucking time.

He was far better trained than a pyromaniac who lived on the streets should be. Every strike of my weapon was easily blocked by his.

Crew didn’t tire any more than I did. He truly was more demon than human now, just the wrong kind of demon.

Calling on Helheim was all I could do, and I refused to let my humanity get in the way as I fought back, pushing the power through my weapon and into Crew with each blow.

I intended to drain the poison from his body but it was impossible. The attempt was met with no reaction, as if it were immune to the realm that created it.

I knew the demons had changed, but the fact they could corrupt and twist the power that gave them life seemed impossible.

Unless Hel allowed it to happen, helped them along knowing this would give her more time to escape unnoticed.

They weren’t special. In fact, they had less power than we did. The only thing they had going for them was the fact they were delusional and determined, a volatile mix.

That thought fueled me to end this as quickly as possible, to finish the final loose end holding me back.

I let Helheim wrap around my body and my blade. His eyes flared, his arms flexing like he was going to strike, but I was faster. The blade hit his chest with a sickening crack.

His knees buckled as I struck him. It was Crew’s turn now. The demons had died for their choices, and he would, too.

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