Vala Eminence (18 page)

Denver took a tentative step forward. If they were indeed on the last floor, that meant inside of the cell was his father — and the Devil himself. Few things scared Denver, but the ultimate Prince of Darkness was on his list.

He didn't want to call out, not sure he wanted to face whoever, or whatever, was on the other side of the golden bars. A face appeared before him, and he let out a yelp of surprise. Zach grabbed the hilt of his sword. When Denver saw bright, green eyes gazing back at him through the bars, he waved back at Zach.

“At ease, it's… it's him…” Denver said.

Zach let go of the sword, but his body did not relax. “Y-your dad?”

Nodding slowly, Denver leaned in a little.
It has to be him. His eyes are so
…
green.
He finally understood why people were so captivated when meeting his gaze. If Denver did, in fact, have his father's eyes, then he could see the magic-like shimmer he must have had as well. The man moved closer, the light of the room hitting more of his features. Sure enough, Denver noticed their shared jawline, cheekbones, and forehead. They had the same dark, nearly black hair, and a similar body frame. The man was a little taller, and Denver was a little broader in the shoulders. Still, the resemblance was uncanny.

“So you've finally come,” the man said, then snickered. At least he was able to have coherent thoughts, which was a big step ahead of what Denver had been expecting.

Denver peered at him. “Yeah, I figured it out, Dad.”

The man laughed. “We placed a bet over what would happen first. You croaking or me. Looks like I win.”

“Let's not be a Debbie Downer just yet, Pops. I'm not quite in a hurry to off you.”

“Ah, yes, I'm sure you have a lot of questions and want to make up for all kinds of lost time. I can't take you to any baseball games or anything, but I can indulge you for a handful of minutes. Then my friend is going to wake up and you'd be better off not seeing him.”

“Lu—”

“Don't speak his name,” his father warned. “Such close proximity will definitely wake him. He's kind of vain like that. Every time someone on Earth says his name, he stirs.”

Nodding, Denver took in a deep breath. “I don't know what I want you to say to me.”

“That's good. It takes a great deal of the pressure off me. I'm not sure I have much I can say. Not without it coming across as negative. Being held prisoner here for so long would make anyone a sour puss.”

Denver laughed quietly, amazed his father even had a sense of humor still. Another thing they seemed to have in common: they were both a bit sarcastic and cynical.

Sighing, his father reached out of the bars and gently ran his fingers over Denver's chest. “You're big. Really, big.”

“Thirteen years will do that,” Denver said quietly.

“I always wondered what you'd turn out like. If you'd be more like me, or more like your mother.”

“Pretty sure I got an even amount of you both, don't worry.”

His father cracked a small smile. “Good, because even if she was a demon, there are some things I was hoping you'd get from her genetics.”

“Why a demon?” he asked. “C-Ceete told me a few things, but I figure hearing it from you would be more accurate.”

“You need to make sure she didn't leave anything out, basically.” The man nodded. “I understand, but there isn't much to tell. She was hot, I was lonely, and clicking with people was pretty much impossible for me. Our family line has always been reclusive, Denver. It's in our nature to shun society just as much as it is society's job to shun us. I'm sure by now you've grown comfortable with that. Anyway, your mom was one of my favorite demon friends. We got along, she eased my loneliness, it worked… sort of. There was a wedding, of course. Demons don't see marriage the same way as people do.”

Denver snorted. “I could have told you that. My girlfriend is married to one right now because of some stupid deal they made.”

Smirking, his father nodded some more. “So you two did find each other, good. No wonder Lucien is so nervous. He keeps visiting me, demanding I hand over the family inheritance. I keep telling him to buzz off.”

“So Mom didn't love you?”

“She was fond of me, just like I was, her,” his father said with a shrug. “We were a good partnership, and we both kept our vows. The marriage itself wasn't one of love, but necessity. Nobody in the Divine Council was happy I took a demon for my bride. Kind of ironic since they're leaping for joy over it now, huh?”

“Not too weird. You married a demon. They probably think that the real heir is demon spawn, literally. I always wondered why they believed Lucien could possibly be the true heir.” Denver lowered his gaze.

“Yeah, now you know.”

“And now it's time to get things back on track.”

His father closed his eyes and smiled. “I've been looking forward to this day for a long time, let me tell you. At first, I was frustrated that it wasn't coming fast enough, but I like this more. You needed to be old enough to understand what was happening and bold enough to kick some serious butt.”

“There's a lot I still don't understand,” he admitted.
Like my magic. If this place has taught me anything, it's that I'm helpless against all things magical.
And he used to pride himself in his knowledge. In truth, he knew just the minimum to scrape by.
That's not going to cut it for the ruler of the underworld.

Smiling, his father pulled Denver in closer for an awkward hug. “You'll learn. Just stick to your guns and don't show them you're afraid. My biggest regret was not fighting back hard enough. I let them win, you see, because I was too scared.”

“Gotcha.” Denver shifted between his feet, pulling away from his father. “So uh, do you have any special requests? Quick and painless? Slow and dramatic? Can't say much for last requests because I can't get you much, but I could at least try.”

“I appreciate the gesture, but I'm good. As for how to do it, you can simply take my soul from me.”

“I don't know how to do that.”

His father frowned and Denver wondered if perhaps he'd finally managed to disappoint the man. After all, he'd let everyone else down throughout his lifetime. Even if he was only getting all of ten minutes with his father, it seemed appropriate Denver would do something to mess up the moment.

Shrugging weakly, Denver was disappointed in himself, too, for a change. “Sorry…”

“No.” His father shook his head. “Don't apologize. I doubt anyone wanted to teach you, yeah?”

“Mr. Thantos tried to teach me about seeing the spiritual realm so I could protect myself and make better wards. That was about it. My other tutor told me that my magic was only limited by my imagination. Frankly, I think they both sucked at teaching me stuff. They didn't want me to learn. Nobody does.”

“I do. They were both right, in a way. You do need to tap into the spiritual and see it, and your magic is one-of-a-kind in that as long as you can think it, you can do it. Controlling an element is limited by your confidence and energy.” His father offered a weak smile. “You don't need them or anyone to teach you anymore. Everything you need to know you'll get from me, from our family history.”

Denver exhaled slowly. “Got it.”

Chuckling, his father continued. “So that's how I want to go. When you enter the realm, you'll see me, my heart, my spirit. Take it. All of it.”

“Okay.” Denver swallowed. He closed his eyes and opened himself up once more to the spiritual world around him.

Everything surrounding the cell was a blinding white. His father, in comparison, was a dark gray, solid and unwavering. Taking in a shaky breath, Denver pressed a hand against his father's chest. Perhaps he should have said something before taking the soul of the man who gave him life, but words were escaping Denver's mind. How did he say goodbye to someone he barely knew?

So he said nothing, and pulled his father's spirit from his body, absorbing it into himself.

His father wasn't kidding when he said Denver would gain all of the knowledge from his ancestors. As soon as he took his father's soul, there was a great surge in his magical energy. Flashes of memories appeared before his mind's eye, memories that were not his own: the wedding of his mother and father, images of a once flourishing underworld, and the wedding of Persephone the First to a man he'd never seen before. Those were just a few of the things that stuck out to him, but countless lifetimes worth of information poured into his brain. Most of it was too much for him to decipher right then and there.

Denver was brought out of his trance when he felt someone grab his shoulder. He spun and faced Zach once the initial surprise wore off.

“We need to leave,” Zach said. His gaze was beyond Denver, and the young man was trembling.

A quiet, guttural growl rumbled through the dungeon. Cold wrapped itself around Denver's entire body like the embrace of a ghost. When he gazed into the dungeon using his spiritual magic, he saw a swirl of blood red and the blackest of black. He swallowed. The Devil had awoken.

Nodding at Zach, he started for the stairs. “Let's jet.”

Zach grabbed hold of Denver's arm and they teleported to the top floor of the dungeon.

“So why do you get to do that and not me?” Denver scowled. Teleporting through the building would have been easier than going down so many stairs.

“I've seen you walk through walls here,” Zach said, giving Denver a pointed look. “Pretty sure you
can
directly teleport to wherever you want to, but never realized it. Now you know. You'll pick up on a lot of things about this place, boss.”

Denver smirked. “Boss, I like the sound of that.”

“It's what you are. You're officially the next Hades. Feel any different?”

“A little tingly, but otherwise the experience was sadly anticlimactic.”

Laughing, Zach stepped into the hallway of the castle. “Were you expecting confetti and a party or something? If it's any consolation, the castle feels different, alive. I've never noticed so much energy here before.”

“I notice it, as well.” Before the castle of the underworld had been dull and desolate, like it was starving for sustenance.
Perhaps it reflected how Dad was feeling while he was imprisoned.
The castle must have some kind of a connection to whoever is in charge. Now that I'm officially the head of the household, so to speak, its strength is returning.

“So what is the first official business you want to do today as Lord Hades, ruler of the underworld?” Zach asked.

“Find my woman.” Denver said, heading in the direction of the garden. He could sense Cheyenne was there.
Now is as good of a time as any to test out the teleporting thing. I mean, if a guardian can do it, why can't I?

As he walked, he focused on the garden, trying to visualize it. The warm water of the pool, the soft crashing waters of the waterfall pouring into it, the luscious, vibrant flowers decorating the area. Cheyenne in her sexy bikini was a strong enough mental image to actually bring him to the garden, and she was the first thing he saw when he arrived.

She sat up, startled by his sudden intrusion. Denver sauntered over, sitting down in the chair next to her and relaxing.

“Hey, Babe,” he said and gave her a large grin.

Cheyenne gasped. “D-Denver, what are you doing here? This has got to be some kind of a dream, right?”

He pinched her arm and was satisfied when she winced a little. “Nope, not a dream. I'm sure you think it is, because let me guess, the last thing you remember doing is taking a nap.” She nodded. He sighed. “That's Lucien's way of bringing you here. He gets you while you're sleeping and tries to brainwash you and Persephone.”

“I don't—”

“Understand? Yeah, I figured you didn't because you don't even realize she's there.”

“Dr. Warhol told me, once upon a time, that her spirit was inside of me because of something Lucien had done.”

Denver bit down on his lower lip. “Actually, it was my fault, but we can talk about that later, fight about it, even. Right now, I want to make sure I have as much of your attention as possible. I don't know when I'm going to lose it.”

She frowned deeply, her lips pushing out into a pout and he noticed them quiver ever so slightly. “Y-your fault?”

“Please, let's focus on something else,” he begged, and grabbed her hand. “I don't know when Persephone is coming and I don't know when
he
is coming. Focus on this detail; I am going to protect you from him.”

“W-who?”

“Lucien!” He gave her hand a squeeze. “He's brainwashing you and bringing you here any chance he can. I don't know what he's been telling you or Persephone, but it's all lies. He's not who he's claiming to be, and he's definitely not the real Hades. I am. That's why I'm so drawn to you. That's why I love you.”

Cheyenne gazed into his eyes, tears pooling inside of her own. “You love me?”

“Yes!” If only he knew how to express how much, but he'd never been good at pouring out his emotional guts.

It must not have mattered to her, because she flung her arms around him and cried against his shoulder. For a moment, all he did was hold her, savoring every second he had. His Cheyenne was in his arms, not Persephone, and not a dazed and confused version of the girl he was in love with. Cheyenne. Finally, the important details of the truth were out in the open. He didn't have to hold back or be afraid for her safety.

A slow clap snapped Denver's attention away from her. Lucien stood in the entryway of the garden.

“Well done. I was wondering when this performance would be put on,” the demon said.

“The only one of us who's performing is
you,
” Denver seethed. He let go of Cheyenne and stood, ready to fight the monster, kill him, and end everything once and for all.