Page 30 of Witch's Rebirth
"What happened to her soul after she died?" I asked. "For some reason I thought she would end up down here, maybe reborn as a succubus."
"No, my dear," Lucifer said gently. "Only humans and fallen angels end up here. Witches, shifters, and others only come to the lower circles if their crimes of morality are so great, they must suffer for eternity. But when I gave you your powers," he looked at me. "I wanted a different afterlife for the people you’d create, the witches."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"You were created from the earth, my dear." He gave a gentle squeeze of my fingers. "Your powers are of the physical world. Earth, Water, Fire, and Air. It only made sense to me that after death, a witch's soul returned to where her power originated."
"I'm not sure I understand."
"Your physical body decomposes and nourishes the earth," he explained. "So does an ordinary human's but their soul comes here. A witch's soul returns to earth, nourishing the elements and the power you draw from." He stopped walking and turned to face me. "You feel your mother every time you draw magic to manifest, Deja. She and all the witches before her are always with you."
I didn't realize I was crying until he wiped a tear from my cheek. But the sadness in my chest lifted into joy. The hole that felt ripped open by my childhood being stolen from me, and the wrongness of my mother's death, I felt it close and heal.
My mother was always with me. And when I got back to the surface and watched Diana's life drain from her body, her death would balance the wrongness of the lives she took. It wouldn't bring my mother or Juno back but the sense of closure, the process of healing, was already beginning.
"Now tell me about Seth," Lucifer said as we continued our walk. "What does he make you feel?" We rounded a beautiful, crystal clear lagoon where a few demons swam naked, giggling and splashing each other.
"I'm scared," I admitted. "Ash was meant for me from the beginning, and the other two you made for me. All this time, I felt comfortable knowing my lovers and I were always meant to be in a sense. But he throws everything off balance for me."
"Welcome to what humans feel like when they fall in love," he laughed. "An all-consuming fire, coupled with confusion and uncertainty."
"Yes, that's exactly it," I admitted. "I've been fighting it but it's no use. I want him, and the guys have essentially given me their blessing, but I still feel like I'm stepping over the edge of a cliff."
"Love is always a risk," he said gently. "You put your heart on the line and he does the same. It's terrifying and a thrill. But," he quirked an eyebrow at me, “you know better than anyone how important it is to take risks. A safety net is what the angels use to corral their followers. But us? We burn that net and embrace the unknown."
He was right. He was telling me what I always knew, who I was at the core of my being but lost sight of along the way. I was born to defy the status quo, to take what I wanted instead of asking permission to have it. I loved my men and never wanted to hurt them, but Lucifer didn't give me my power to please others.
"I have missed talking to you," I said, patting his forearm with my other hand. On a whim, I leaned my head against his shoulder. "Thank you for the reminder of who I am."
"My pleasure, Deja." He placed his hand on top of mine. "I wish I could keep you longer, but I know the surface needs you more than I do. Of all my creations, you are one I'm most fond of."
Warmth bloomed inside me. "You are the closest thing to a father I've ever had," I admitted. "Just talking to you makes me feel ready to take on anything again."
His face turned and I felt a soft kiss brush my forehead. "I'm honored you feel that way, dear. You make me proud and I think of you like a daughter as well."
Our stroll continued in companionable silence. It felt like neither one of us wanted to be the one to say goodbye. Still, that didn't keep my thoughts from circulating about the future, the aftermath of all this craziness with Diana. As much as I hated to admit it, the running, the killing, all of it, would not end with her.
It would never end.
"You're thinking too loud," Lucifer chuckled. "What's troubling you, dear?"
"It's just," I hesitated, chewing my lip as I put words to my thoughts. "I don't want each of my lifetimes to be the same cyclical thing. Opening people's minds, running from those who want to kill me until they inevitably catch me, and then start the whole thing all over again. I want to leave something lasting, something that'll hold for multiple generations."
"You've done well at leaving a lasting legacy," he said. "Humans still know who Lilith and Jezebel are. To some you are reviled, but moreso each century your past lives are an inspiration. I see it now in the young human women more than ever. You are a symbol of independence, of taking ownership of your sexuality without apology, of demanding to be heard as equals, not silenced by your peers."
"It's not so much that," I said. "It's more like, I know there is always going to be push back for what we do. Witches, shifters, and demons will always be villainized and persecuted by the ignorant masses. I wish I could save them all but I can't. I want to make some kind of safe place for those who can't go anywhere. A sanctuary, of sorts. Where everyone is safe and protected from humans with pitchforks."
Lucifer was silent for a moment as he absorbed my words. "That is certainly a worthwhile endeavor, and something that's never been done before," he said. "You would need long-lasting glamour magic to keep it hidden from humans, and even then the spell would need to be regularly maintained."
"I was inspired by Astrid, the fox shifter I met," I told him. "Her little village is a safe space for all shifters escaping humans. I love that and I want the same thing for all magical beings. But her place isn't protected by magic at all. If humans were to stumble upon it, her whole rescue operation would be ruined. I can't stand the thought of that happening."
"Then you should absolutely do this." He squeezed my fingers affectionately. "Make a safe, hidden realm on the surface. You have my full support."
"You really think I can?"
"My dear, you are single-handedly turning the tide against a globally oppressive culture. You can absolutely do this, and anything." He grinned. "With your fallen angel and super-powered witch-demon hybrid, you should have no issue holding the magic until your next lifetime."
"Thank you," I said sincerely. "Your support truly means the world to me."
