The Fallen and the Forgotten

Chapter 30

“Don't be so melodramatic.” The Demon of Wrath growled, annoyance clear in his voice.

“What are we going to do? We can't take on Hell by ourselves.” Luke muttered, downing the drink in his hand.

He was right, there was no way that the six of them were able to stop Lucifer's plans on their own. Just retrieving Zachriel would have been nearly impossible, but now to think that they had to take on Lucifer plus half of the deadly sins? There's no way that they could do that.

“Don't doubt us so soon Nybbas.” Life said, her green eyes watching him and a smirk dancing on her lips. She knew something, but obviously wasn't willing to talk.

“I don't care how dangerous it is, no more innocents will die while I'm able to stop it.” Lane's strained voice came from the doorway of the kitchen, her arms folded across her chest.

“What are you doing awake? You should be sleeping still.” Nybbas stood up and walked over to where his Mate was leaning shakily against the wall. She smiled softly at him and shook her head, as if to tell him not to worry.

“She has a point. If we let this happen, then the balance will be tipped and another Great War will occur.” Death said, annoyance clear in his voice.

“But what if something happens to one of us?” Nybbas said, he focused on Lane, her soft eyes were staring back at him. “I don't think I could live if I lost you.” His voice nearly cracked at the mere thought of having to continue living without his Mate.

Lane lifted her hand and gently touched his cheek, her warmth seeming to burn into his skin. He placed his hand over her smaller one, before pulling her closer and pressing his lips against hers. He vaguely realized that she wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed herself closer to him, forcing the jolts of electricity running through his body to increase.

It wasn't until moments later, when someone cleared their throat, that Lane pulled away from him with a blush covering her cheeks. Nybbas had to control the urge to kiss her once more, regardless of the people most likely watching them.

“You have a room for a reason, maybe you should use it. After we finish this discussion.” Luke said from across the room, amusement lacing his voice.

“I think that's a good idea,” Nybbas said, never taking his eyes off of his beautiful Mate. He enjoyed watching her cheeks turn pink once more, though the way her eyes darkened at his words made him want to take her to the room and forget the discussion that they were having.

“There will be time for that later, my dear. Right now we need to focus on the topic at hand, and I would like to hear what else Laneene has to say on the subject.” Life's words, though true, didn't help Nybbas's frustration.

“We go into Hell and split up. I'll go after Zachriel since I know where i'm going and you all go after the lesser demons, taking out as many as you can.” Lane turned to her Wrath, her body straightening and a professional demeanor taking over. She stood tall and her golden eyes became dark, the black surrounding them becoming more prominent. It seemed as though her aura changed, became darker and more intense.

“Wrath, I assume you will be able to ask the other two to help? I know I'll be able to get a hold of Havoc and Chaos, the twins wouldn't pass this opportunity up for anything. There's a few others I could contact, and I assume the rest of you can too.” Lane's tone held no room for argument, and it was obvious that she had thought about this longer than a few minutes.

“What happens if you get caught trying to find, or in the process of freeing your brother?” Death was watching Lane with fascination, his blue eyes a shade brighter than they had been earlier.

Lane smiled at Death a moment, then her eyes flashed a pitch black and her skin became blood red and covered in burns and scars. Her sleek, fleshy wings escaped from her back and the sharp tips made of bone were covered in blood from ripping through her back. She continued to smile, and her teeth were also covered in blood from breaking through her gums, but they were razor sharp and obviously made for ripping through things and causing pain.

The transformation took seconds, and though Nybbas was worried that the Demon of Pain had once more taken control, the demonic form of Lane moved so she was standing behind Luke and pressed her mouth against his throat without anyone seeing her move. Nybbas felt his heart get caught in his throat and he moved to stop her, feeling his own demon surface once more, but then she stepped back and became her normal self once more. Her honey blonde hair hung in loose waves over her shoulders and her eyes were a bright gold, even surrounded by black.

''I can handle myself. At this point, with all the anger and blood lust my demon has fueling her, she could probably take on Lucifer himself and win.” Lane pulled her hair up and into a ponytail, leaving her slender neck revealed and Nybbas couldn't help but wince when he saw her shoulder was red and his bite mark was there, scarred into her skin.

Though his Lupine felt pride at the sight, Nybbas knew he had hurt his Mate when he had marked her, and that bothered him more than he thought it would.

“The next question is how we plan on getting into Hell without Lucifer noticing us?” Luke muttered, his brows drawn in thought.

“Leave that to me.” Was all Wrath said, his clipped answer leaving no room for argument.

“So we have the next month to prepare and train for this, that's more than enough time. The only thing I'm worried about is the fact that the three demons are going to eat more than we can provide.” Lane muttered as she looked in the pizza boxes to find them empty. She sighed and opened one of the remaining cabinets to grab a granola bar.

“You think a month will be enough time to survive going to Hell to fight against Lucifer, to go against him and take one of his most prized captives?” Remiel growled, his head lowered and his hair covering his face. It was obvious from the Archangel's tense body and dark aura that he was upset, not the mention the fact that he was clenching his fists so tight they were turning white.

“We don't really have a choice either way.” Lane said between bites, her eyes never leaving her brother's form. Nybbas didn't know whether she was watching for any signs of danger, or if she was wondering what was wrong with him.

“There's always a choice. You're going to sacrifice yourself trying to save Zachriel, and i'm going to lose all of my siblings.” Remiel stood up, his wings snapping out and his eyes shining with anger and fear. “Just because you're now a demon, doesn't mean I don't still care about you, you're still my Little Sister and you're going to purposely leave my life. Do you not realize what happened the lat time you went to Hell? Your Mate lost his mind with worry, he became obsessed with finding you. I've never seen one being kill so many demons in such a short amount of time, looking for some kind of hint about you, even though he ended up with nothing every time.”

He stood and smiled a cruel, sarcastic smile. “Do you know what it's like for an Archangel to lose his Little Sister, not to know whether she's alive or dead, or if she's become a Demon? Do you know what that did to me? I failed at protecting the only person who has ever mattered to me, the one being who I swore to protect. I promised our brothers I would look out for you, but I failed. And now, just when I get you back, you're going to put yourself in danger once more. I can't just sit by while this happens, Laneene, not this time.”

At that, Remiel vanished. The room was silent for a few seconds, before Lane stood up and walked out of the room. Nybbas followed after her into the bedroom where he found her sitting on the bed, staring at the wall. Tears filled her eyes and her arms were wrapped around her chest. She was obviously in pain, and he wanted nothing more than to rip Remiel's throat out for hurting her.

He sat on the bed next to her, and when she leaned into him and pressed her head into his shoulder, he wrapped his arms around her and did the only thing he knew to do, comforted his Mate. Though he didn't have a lot of practice in comforting women, he figured it couldn't be all that hard.