Page 36 of Falling for the Devil

Behind her, Lucifer noticeably stiffened.

Aquifas addressed his superior. “It is a legitimate question, sir. Only an angel should’ve been able to decipher and unlock our shield. She... The goddess stepped up, the cipher lock lit up, spun around, and unlocked itself. All she had to do was place her hand on the right one and the door swung wide open. In an instant, our cloaking mechanism had been dismantled.” His throat bobbed while he stood unmoving under Lucifer’s close scrutiny for several silent moments.

“As you said”—Lucifer gestured for them to step through the wide-open door into an unknown world, perhaps another dimension, even—“we should talk away from what unknown enemies may lie in wait under the cover of the forest.”

“After you.” The angel commander bowed his head to Diana, his arm outstretched at the edge of the opening.

Trepidation seized her heart, but Diana refused to allow it to control her. She inclined her head toward Aquifas. “Thank you.”

Nausea and exhilaration swirled in Diana’s belly. She had traveled to other worlds, traveled to other dimensions. Until now, this particular place between worlds was only known to the angels. For all the adventures and exploration her brothers had experienced, she... Diana... would be the first to tread into this mysterious place that loomed before her, dark and intimidating. She picked up one foot, followed by the other, and took her first step into the great unknown.

Chapter 17

A Debriefing

Well, that was anticlimactic.

No sparks. No whirling vortex of energy. Nothing extraordinary marked the transition from real world to something in between. In fact, everything looked the same, except the lush forest had been drained of its color to a variety of different shades of gray. The trees were the same as a moment earlier, just without varying hues of green to mark their leaves. Same with the grass. Rocks remained the same... gray, gray, and grayer.

Diana tilted her head to the sky. Even that was gray, with a thick mist swirling overhead.

So much for an exciting new world! It was as dull as her philosophy tutor trying to instruct her in the classroom when all she really wanted was to play outside in the sun with the other gods.

“Love what they’ve done with the place,” Puck whispered in her ear.

Her hand flew up to her lips to stifle the snicker threatening to burst forth. Despite the disappointment, she was lucky to have him with her on this adventure. The pooka could add a smidgen of fun and folly to any situation. He’d saved her from death by boredom plenty of times.

Once everyone was inside the liminality, Aquifas sealed the entrance shut by chanting a few words in what she expected was Enochian or another unfamiliar ancient angelic language.

She glanced back to discover the door—if it could be called such—was in place, but it was transparent. On the other side everything was in full vivid color.

Lucifer wasted no time in demanding a full report from General Aquifas.

The other soldiers gathered around but far enough back to not crowd them. The order to be at ease had not been given. They stood as erect as giant pillars of granite.

“We have suffered many losses. What you see around you”—Aquifas’s arms swung wide—“is all that is left.”

A flicker of what she guessed was shock washed over Lucifer’s features, along with a stiffening of his spine. “But this is not even a handful. Are you saying that we’ve lost close to five thousand angels since the legion has been stationed here? You’ve only been assigned to guard Methuselah for a fortnight at most.”

Aquifas’s throat bobbed. “Yes, sir.”

A great rush of air left Diana’s lungs. That many lost? Murdered? This wasn’t a normal mortal legion, not even one made up of gods and goddesses or other higher realm entities. These were angels! Once thought to be indestructible.

She glanced around at the survivors. Fifteen.

Fifteen out of five thousand?

“Olivier did not indicate so many. He...” Words failed her against the grief written all over Lucifer’s face.

The general’s face fell into a deep frown. Diana marveled. Angels were beautiful creatures, immortal, forever young. But Aquifas could’ve passed for a mortal in the fifth decade of his life with his weathered skin, creases around his eyes, and frown lines drawn into his forehead.

Lucifer’s jaw clenched, removing all hint of grief or any emotion. “How?” It was one word, but quite powerful and spoken so low that it barely registered on the ears.

Yes, indeed. How?

“Sir,” Aquifas continued, “I just... don’t know. It started slow. One or two soldiers went missing over the course of a few days. Nothing to worry about. Sometimes there are... deserters.” A nerve twitched under one eye.

Deserters? Angels didn’t leave their posts. Their devotion was legendary.

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