Page 21 of Reaper Unhinged
I wiped my bloody hands on my pants. “Now let’s get that fucking audience with the Righteous.”
* * *
This timethe Dominion guarding the golden doors stepped aside, and the doors swung open to admit us.
Cassius ordered his men to stay behind but didn’t stop me from following him into the vast chamber beyond. It was a circular room with several balconies, but the celestials were all gathered around an impressive-looking table on the ground floor. Silver goblets and trays of strange glowing fruits covered the surface.
My ire rose at the sight. While we were out there busting our asses to kill the Dread, they’d been cloistered in here sipping beverages and eating magical fruit.
The Righteous, my fucking ass. They were cowards. Look at them in their flowy robes with their pinched faces and silver hair.
“Cassius, the threat is averted. Well done,” one of the Righteous said.
“Lianel, the Dread are all dead, but we’re losing power fast,” Cassius said.
The Righteous exchanged glances. “Yes. We are aware. Which is why we have decided to initiate protocol Flagship.”
Cassius went very still. “You wish to abandon our home?”
“We are at a juncture where there is no other alternative. Seats are limited. Righteous, of course, will be given priority. You’ll select twenty of your best men, and the rest of the seats will be filled with domestic celestials. We will use the last of the power we have to propel the Flagship into the ether.”
Wait a fucking second. “You’re leaving? You’re running away?”
Lianel transferred his pale, wishy-washy gaze to me. “You have not been given leave to speak, demon.”
“Dominus.” I glared at him. “I’m a Dominus, and I can’t believe you’re giving up.”
“Cassius, why does it continue to speak?” Lianel sounded genuinely confused.
“Seraphina Dawn is a descendant of Samael,” Cassius said.
Lianel’s brows twitched upwards. “Is she now? It explains her insubordination.”
“Last I checked, I worked for Lilith.You,we work with. And giving up is the coward’s way out.”
Lianel sighed. “There is no other way, child.”
“That’s not what you thought centuries ago when you sent a troop of Powers to the Underealm.”
His lips pinched, and he turned an icy gaze onto Cassius.
Cassius didn’t flinch. “If there is a power source out there, however dangerously placed, we need to know. We have to try.”
“Celestials died,” Lianel said. “Have you any idea how difficult it is to snuff out a celestial?”
“And more will die when you abandon them here and fly off in your flagship.” I stepped forward, sweeping my gaze over the gathered Righteous. “Whatever you were after is still out there. I can get it for you. All you need to do is tell me where it is. Give me a chance to save this world and mine.”
“Lianel, what do you have to lose?” Cassius asked.
“Time,” Lianel said. “We are short on time.” He sighed and studied me for a long beat, and then he closed his eyes. The other Righteous did the same, and their foreheads began to glow.
I leaned in toward Cassius. “What’s happening?”
“They’re conferring.”
Long seconds passed, and then Lianel opened his eyes. “It is agreed that considering our predicament and your offer of aid, you will be privy to classified information. You are already aware that the divine abdicated his role here a long time ago. But he left writings, ramblings that held secrets, and in them was mentioned a power to rival his own hidden in the Underealm. You have seventy-two hours to retrieve that power source. Once the time elapses, we will drain what is left of the power in the Beyond to propel our departure from this plane of existence.”
It was real. There was hope. “Where is it?”
