When Hope came out of the water, Sereph exhaled with relief, but Aleks didn't follow. Belial looked at Hope, who was lying down on the floor. Where's Aleks?
Hope looked at the water, waited, but Aleks didn't come. Then the fish and the eel stopped swimming and dived, they just disappeared. The barrier that kept the demons out vanished and they rushed to Hope.
Sereph took his mate in his arms and hugged him tightly.
"Hope, where is Aleksander?" Belial asked with fear in his voice.
The human looked at the demon. "He is still below, with the god."
That's all he knew. He didn't know why he and Aleks were separated. He told the two demons what they had experienced while waiting for Aleks to appear. A tremor went through the floor. The pond vibrated, and the next moment Aleks burst through the surface of the water. He coughed and gasped for air, swam to the edge.
The relief flowed through Belial and he pulled his mate out of the water. Grief stood on Aleks' face and tears ran down his cheeks.
"What's up, Tsuka?" Belial asked, dismayed.
"Degei, he's dying. I couldn't stop it," he sobbed.
Hope's chest contracted painfully.
"Then we should get out of here as soon as possible, who knows what will happen to the cave when the god is gone," Sereph said seriously. As if he had seen the future, the cave began to shake and the ceiling began to collapse.
"Damn!" Belial cried, for the passage was buried. There was only one way out and he prayed that it would work. He created a portal. This time there was no power to suppress it. They quickly ran through it and heard the loud crash as the cave collapsed behind them.
Nero was on his way out from the kitchen when he felt a resonance of power. A portal opened and four figures came rushing out of it. When he realized that it was Belial and Aleks, as well as Sereph and a young blond man, he stopped in amazement. All four were wearing wetsuits and were wet, especially Aleks and the blond young man dripping.
What the hell?
"Why does everything around us always have to collapse? Can't you just walk out somewhere peacefully? Hell again!" Aleks shouted, beside himself.
The other three looked at him in astonishment. Hope began to laugh and their mates relaxed as well.
"Kuro?" a questioning voice came from the left.
Belial looked at Nero, who looked at him questioningly. He replied with a don't-ask-because-you-wouldn't-believe-it-look. He cleared his throat. "Nero, Sereph and his mate are our guests for the time being. Would you have a room prepared for them?" he asked his right hand. He nodded perplexed and started right away.
Hope and Sereph were grateful to be able to find a quiet place after these hardships, so they gratefully accepted the offer. They went to the room, which an astonished servant showed them, and Aleks and Belial also went to theirs. They took off their clothes and armor and sat down in the warm tub.
Hope and Sereph did the same. They calmly discussed with their partner what had happened, and then went to sleep. All four slept a deep and restful sleep, which they desperately needed after this adventure.
The next morning, Belial was awakened by the rays of the sun. These got caught in the white-blond hair of his lover, who had snuggled into the crook of his arm. They had begun to sleep in the spoon position, as Aleks' stomach only allowed the lateral position. He inhaled the scent of roses and rain after sunrise and kissed the sensitive neck of his angel.
Aleks made soft protesting sounds, as he was far from ready to get up. Belial smiled and stroked his lover's belly. "I'm getting up, Tsuka. Tsuki and you, rest a little longer. Call me when you're awake," he whispered in Aleks' ear, which he also pressed a soft kiss on.
Reluctantly, he got up and got dressed. He sent out several ravens and called a meeting for the afternoon. They had to bring everyone up to date. After he had done that, he went to the garden, where Sereph was waiting.
"Is your mate also a sleepyhead?" he asked the prince of Hell kindly.
Sereph looked at him and smiled. He had never seen that before. "Worse. Getting him out of bed in the morning is an impossibility, because he can't even be woken up by the light."
That's right, he's blind. Many would have pitied Sereph – but after what Belial had seen in the cave, no one would guess that the boy couldn't see anything. It was strange. They were both sitting on this bench and suddenly they had so much in common. Their mates were both carriers, both part human beings and raised in the human world. They had completely turned their lives upside down. Belial sighed.
"How do you do that?" Sereph asked, resting his chin thoughtfully on the back of his hand.
"What exactly do you mean?" he asked, guessing what he was getting at.
Sereph continued to look ahead. "Your mate is pregnant and both him and your child are carriers. He is also an angel and a highly sought-after object of Hell. Hope is already in a dangerous position as my heart, but Aleksander is on a completely different level," Sereph said deliberately.
Belial was silent. "I live with it. I know that our situation is very delicate right now, which is why we are hiding the pregnancy. But I can't help it, I live with this fear every day. For over a thousand years, I had nothing that scared me. I lived as a warrior, ready to die at any time. But when this innocent person with his radiant smile stumbled into my life, everything changed. I now know the true meaning of fear. And yet I would never trade him in, never. I think you feel the same way," he replied to Sereph.
Belial was right. Sereph's view of things, other people, and life had changed fundamentally when Hope came into his life. He would do anything to protect him. "Is the fear lessening?" he asked Belial.
Belial shook his head. That's what I thought.
A smile crossed Sereph's face. "Because Aleksander and Hope are related, we are now a family as well," Sereph said, looking at the Leviathan, who looked at him in surprise.
"Is that a threat?" he said with a grin.
Sereph stayed silent, but the corners of his mouth twitched. Maybe Belial and he would become something like friends after all. Who knows. But one thing was clear, family ties were strong and since Aleks was Hope's only family, he would protect him.
Warm arms wrapped around Sereph and a kiss was pressed on the crown of his head.
"Secret conversations behind our backs?" the voice of his beloved sounded.
Our? Then followed two arms that wrapped around Belial.
"Hope and I have a lot to talk about and would like to go for a walk. We will take Shin and Alas with us. Is that okay?" Aleks asked his demon.
"Yes, but don't go too far away and don't overexert yourself," Belial said, pressing a kiss to his angel's lips.
Aleks nodded and summoned Shin. The Byakko demon appeared and rubbed against his foot. Sereph looked at the angel with an astonished expression on his face. Hope stroked the white tiger and rubbed his face in the fur. Then the two of them started running, Alas at some distance behind.
"He tamed a Byakko demon?" Sereph asked in astonishment. This hasn't happened for centuries.
Belial smiled. "Yes, he is a pure soul that everyone falls in love with. He breaks through any wall, no matter how thick, and fills the room with warmth. Not even these demons stood a chance against him. He is leading an entire pack that has settled in our forests," Belial said. He then told the story of Aleks' and Shin's first meeting. Sereph, on the other hand, told of Hope and his rebirth.
So time passed.
Gradually, more people arrived. Lucan and Zack were already sitting on the sofa, while Zack touched Aleks' stomach with a smile. Hope and Sereph sat opposite them and Astaroth had placed himself to their right. He rolled his eyes over the turmoil.
Always these couples. At some point, I will pass a law against it. Even Sereph looked at his mate with loving eyes and allowed him to snuggle up to him. Only Nix and Lyric were missing. The door opened and the two entered, with Nix' skin flushing slightly and clear marks emblazoned on his skin.
You really did it before the meeting? What is this bond actually? A permanent stimulant and aphrodisiac?
"Already practiced for the offspring?" Astaroth's greeting came out of his mouth and everyone looked at him in astonishment. They didn't expect that and he had to admit he should have held it back.
Nix smiled. "You should never get out of practice, especially if your partner has a huge," a hand closed around Nix' mouth before he could say anything more and it stayed that way.
"If you want to experience the end of the day, oracle, keep quiet," Lyric said with a threatening look, which irritated Nix more.
Astaroth sighed. Hell. I quit. Slowly, the end of the world is really becoming more attractive.
"All right, let's get started," Aleks said.
Now everyone was all ears. He and Hope talked about the journey and the encounter with the god, bringing everyone up to date. Only the last words of Degei were concealed by Aleks.
"So your son is the third carrier?" Lucan asked, relief streaming through him. He had been afraid that it might be Zack after the event after the first meeting with Sereph and Hope.
"Yes, but he made it clear that Zack is also a Deva. That's probably why he was able to create the key," Aleks said.
"Besides, there's something else. Degei said that we carriers mustn't die, otherwise the powers locked within us would be released. We've already woken up too far," Hope said.
This made some people think. "Be that as it may, our next destination is heaven. We need to find a way to get to heaven," Astaroth said. The two nodded. This will be difficult, because only an angel or a deceased soul is allowed to enter heaven.
"Then only Aleks remains, since he is an angel. He should be allowed to enter, even if he is half Deva," Sereph said.
"That's not possible," Zack says harshly. "The angels must never find Aleks, my mother was clear about that," he said with a serious face.
"Why?" Hope asked.
"Because they wanted to kidnap him as a baby. Our mother died trying to protect us. They're not allowed to find him, so he can't go there," Zack said in a bitter voice. A look of guilt wandered from Aleks' face. Everyone knew it was serious.
"Well, then we'll find another way. We have time until the birth of Belial's and Aleks' son," Astaroth said and the others nodded.
"Nix, do you have anything for us?" Lucan asked. Everyone looked at the oracle.
He sighed. "The future is unclear until just before birth, so it's not written yet. It is only when certain decisions are made that it is formed. So I can't really say anything at the moment. But there is one thing," he said, biting his lip. "I had a vision and there is a third party that will get involved in this war. I can't say anything more just...," and he looked at Aleks.
"When time unfolds its silver wings, the blind blade becomes clear and emerges to bathe everything in an emerald green light."
Everyone looked at the oracle and thought only one thing, what the hell is that supposed to mean?
Belial made a thoughtful face. "Time means Aleks and wings means his wings," Belial said. The others nodded in agreement. Then an image came to his mind.
The light flowed from Aleks' and Hope's body to the statue and the pattern of a magic circle formed on the wall. There were three circles superimposed on each other. Slowly, they began to rotate until the patterns overlapped exactly. Then they went out and Aleks and Hope also returned to normal.
Aleks' fire wings gave way to feathers, which now shone distinctly silver, and Hope's hair had become a shade lighter.
"Aleks, unfold your wings," Belial said.
Aleks looked at him in surprise. What does Belial want? He unfolded his wings and looked at his mate questioningly. "Bel, what is it?" he asked uncertainly.
Everyone stared at Aleks' wings, everyone except Hope, who couldn't see their color.
"Have his wings always shimmered like this?" Zack asked.
Belial shook his head. "Only after we have opened the chamber in the cave."
Aleks looked uncertain and opened his mouth in surprise. His white wings actually had a silver glow in the light.
"Then this event will occur when Aleks' wings have turned completely silver," Astaroth said.
"Until then, we must act. We need to figure out how to get to heaven without attracting the attention of the Archai and Archangels – and we need to know what the second part of the prophecy means," the hellprince added.
"Archai? Archangel?" came from Aleks' and Hope's mouths at the same time.