Page 81 of Soulmarked

“They need me,” I said, the realization settling like a weight.

“That's right.” Sterling met my eyes directly, his voice softening. “The attack on your parents wasn't random, Cade. Everything since then, the mark, your path to CITD, even meeting him,” he nodded to Sean, “was orchestrated.”

“By who?” But even as I asked, I felt the answer burning under my skin.

“We don't know exactly who marked you,” Sterling admitted. “Because your mark is different from any I've ever encountered. But the being behind all this? The First. He was the original marked one. A being that was once human, once angel, once demon, and now wants to be god.”

“Fantastic,” Sean muttered, his shoulder pressing against mine. “Another day, another apocalypse. Same old, same old.”

“Worse,” Sterling said grimly. “The First understood something that neither Heaven nor Hell wanted known, that the barriers between worlds aren't fixed. That with enough power, enough sacrifice, someone could reshape reality itself.”

Alana stepped forward, O'Brien's journal open to a particularly disturbing page. “That's what these rituals are about. The marked victims, the summoned princes, they're not just collecting power. They're creating fault lines in reality.”

“And they need me to break it completely,” I finished, the words tasting like ash. “Because I'm marked by...” I trailed off,realizing I didn't actually know what had claimed me that night in the alley.

“That's just it,” Sterling's expression was troubled, but his voice held concern rather than anger. “Your mark doesn't align with any known power. It's not celestial, not infernal, not anything we've documented. It's something else entirely.”

Sean's hand brushed my shoulder, the contact brief but deliberate. “So what do we do? Let them keep sacrificing people while we try to figure out what flavor of cosmic crap this is? Not on my watch.”

“We end this,” I said, surprising myself with how steady my voice sounded. “Before they can open any more gates, before they can summon any more princes.”

“You make it sound so simple,” Alana said, but there was approval in her tone.

“Nothing about this is simple.” I touched my chest where the mark burned steadily. “But we can't let them succeed.”

“And you're sure about this?” Sterling asked, his expression showing genuine concern beneath the gruff exterior. “Once we move against them directly, there's no going back. No do-overs.”

“I'm sure,” I said finally. “Whatever marked me that night, whatever game they're playing, I'm done being a pawn in it.”

“Well then,” Sean said with a smirk, “looks like we're going prince hunting. Just another Tuesday, right?”

“Not just hunting,” Sterling corrected, pulling more files from his desk. “We need to understand what they're building. These ritual sites aren't random. They're creating a pattern across the city.”

Alana spread a map across the desk, marking locations of known gates and victim sites. “If we overlay the ley lines...” She worked quickly, drawing connections that formed an unsettling geometric pattern.

“A summoning circle,” Sean breathed.

“They're turning Manhattan into a focal point,” Lex added, studying the pattern. “And once the ritual is complete...”

“Reality itself becomes vulnerable,” Sterling finished. “The boundaries between our world and Hell weaken, allowing demons to cross over freely. Pure chaos.”

“Then we stop them,” I said simply.

“Just like that?” Lex arched an eyebrow. “Take on a Prince of Hell, ancient demonic forces, and a corporation with enough resources to make it all happen?”

“No.” I touched Heaven's Lash, feeling power hum through the weapon. “Not just like that. But together. All of us.”

Sean's shoulder pressed against mine, solid and warm. “Someone's gotta save the world. Might as well be us.”

Sterling looked between us, pride now clearly visible beneath his gruff exterior. “Your parents would be proud,” he said, his voice gentle. “They believed one person could make a difference, even against impossible odds.”

“Good thing he's not just one person anymore,” Sean said, and the possessive note in his voice made something warm unfurl in my chest.

Sterling closed the ancient text with a heavy thud, his expression determined but almost fatherly as he looked at us. “We'll reconvene at first light. What's coming will require everything we have.” He looked between us, taking in our exhaustion-lined faces and blood-stained clothes. “Get some rest, both of you. Clean up, eat something substantial. I need you at full strength, not running on fumes and adrenaline. And for God's sake, take a shower. You smell like you've been wrestling demons in a sewer.”

The order felt strange coming from Sterling. But there was something different in his eyes now. Not just a director managing assets, but someone who understood exactly what we were facing.

We had a weapon that could kill almost anything, a team that understood both worlds, and nothing left to lose. It wasn't much against the forces gathering in our city, but it would have to be enough.

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