The Third Throne: Angel of Darkness (32 page)

His mouth captured her breast to suckle and lick her nipple.  He lightly bit her nipple as she surged forward over him.  He finally lost his hold on reality and came brutally inside of her.  All of his anger and rage was drained from him.  He allowed the darkness to melt away and basked in the beauty and perfection of the woman that he loved.

Anjali’s body exploded one last time as she felt Lucifer tense up and burst inside of her.  She kissed his face and his neck, letting him know that she was there with him.

Lucifer fell back on the bed gasping for air.  Anjali fell along with him and giggled.  She laughed at the fact that neither of them had the strength to remain sitting.  She stayed perched on top of him, not wanting to separate.

She placed her head over his heart and listened to it beat madly in his chest.  She snuggled into his arms and felt contented. “This is what I would have done last time, if I had stayed.”

“I would have liked that,” he sighed and hugged her.

They lay in silence embracing each other.  She was sad when Lucifer’s erection waned inside of her.  She pouted when he finally fell from her body.

Lucifer chuckled and kissed her nose, happy that he had satisfied her.  Apparently, he was good at sex, or maybe he was just good at sex with her, which was fine by him.  He never wanted another in his bed.

She smiled at the look of contentment on his face.  She noticed that his eyes had turned blue and his hair was lighter again.  She couldn’t help herself.  She had to know.  “Why does that happen?  Why does your appearance change when we’re together?”

Lucifer sat up and gently moved her over to the bed next to him.  It was time that she knew the power she had over him.

“You carry the light of Father inside of you, along with His destructive power.  There are times when, without realizing it, you release the light, the goodness.  When you are happy, you shine and instead of the brutal nature of your power coming out, you release a feeling of joy and peacefulness.  It’s truly a remarkable thing; it’s what gives you the ability to forgive.  I am grateful that you have it, not only because it saves humanity from being crushed, but because it also lightens the darkness within me.  When I, or any of the Fallen, are in Heaven, we are restored to our former glory and become good again.  Of course, the guilt of all that we have done overwhelms us since our emotions are restored.  You have seen the Fallen here, they lack the capacity to care about what they are doing, and it gives them the edge needed to torture.  It is very difficult for us to experience positive emotions.  It seems that when you are in the throes of passion, you allow this side of your power to escape.  I am cleansed and, my heart, my hair, my eyes, and even my wings change back to the way I was, or at least close to it.  It’s only a fraction of His power, so I don’t change completely, but it is enough.”

“I can see why Hades is concerned,” Anjali considered the problem carefully.  If Lucifer lost control of Hell, who knows what would happen.  Hell was supposed to be a place for punishment.  If a sympathetic devil was in control, things would fall apart and the wicked would rebel.

“Yes.  I’m more stable with you near me, but more lenient.  Without your influence I would have done far worse to Azazel for his disobedience,” Lucifer took her hand and kissed her knuckles.  He couldn’t resist touching her.

“It would be catastrophic if the prisoners and the Fallen believed they could get away with doing terrible things without repercussions,” Anjali shivered as she watched Lucifer’s mouth on her hand.  He was warm and very close to her.  She thought about all the things she wanted to do with him.  She should be embarrassed by being mostly naked in front of him, but she liked the way he looked at her.  It made her feel confident and wanted, something she had never experienced before.

“I’m afraid I must find a balance.  I hate to even consider it, but it must be.  I know that.  I will not give you up though; that is not an option.  There will be times when I need to leave your side and become evil again, so that I can rule Hell.  I will warn you that it will be nearly impossible for me to leave you.  I’m afraid that you may have to be strong for both of us,” Lucifer touched her face and indulged in her skin.  She was far too innocent and tempting for her own good.  He needed to find a way to resist her long enough to fulfill his oath to Father and make the wicked suffer.  How had his world changed so drastically?

“We will find a way,” she nuzzled his neck.

Lucifer sighed and pulled her closer.

If she was truly going to stay in Hell, by his side, then she needed to renegotiate the terms of her contract.  Dealing with a pliant and happy Lucifer seemed like the best time to bring up her issues.

She decided to start small, to test the waters.  “I want to discuss the matter of panties and shoes.  I can’t go traipsing around Hell without panties.  I don’t need you killing everyone who looks at me,” she leaned closer and licked his earlobe.  She ran her hands through his hair to feel its texture.

“I hate the thought of you wearing panties, but I suppose you are right.  It will save a number of necks.  Shoes I can live with.  You will also need other amenities while you are here.  This is your home now,” he kissed her neck, hoping to distract her from asking for something more difficult.  He could live with minor wardrobe changes, but feared what else she might ask for.  Given his current state, he would give her his throne, if she asked.

“I don’t want to go back to the realms.  I know that I killed myself, but...” Anjali could feel Lucifer tense up.

Lucifer grabbed her face and looked solemnly into her eyes.  “You never have to go into the realms again.  I swear it.  You were never meant to be punished.  It’s true that suiciders must suffer the realms, but my contract with Gabriel states that you weren’t to be harmed.  Technically, he has grounds to go before the Council and seek retribution since I failed to honor the contract, but you need not tell him that.  I am sorry for all that you have suffered.  It was never my intention for you to be harmed.”

Relief flooded her as she accepted Lucifer’s promise.  She thought about her old home and couldn’t imagine going back to the Mortal Realm or her family.  “Even if I could go back to my old life, I know that I might hurt someone, especially now that I know what I am capable of.  I would be afraid of getting angry and causing an earthquake in the middle of town.  I wouldn’t be able to live with myself,” she knew she wasn’t the same person.  “I feel that I belong here.”

He leaned back and sighed.  “Your power is volatile and dangerous and I fear the consequences if you were to lose control.  Hades was lucky that your power didn’t kill him.  I have seen with my own eyes the utter destruction you can cause.  For that reason, I don’t want you to transcend from this form yet.  It adds a layer of protection.  When you were in the Mortal Realm, you had Gabriel’s power and protection to keep you steady, but even he couldn’t keep you contained.  Now that you are away from Gabriel, there is even less keeping your powers in check.  You must accept that you aren’t ready to wield them yet,” Lucifer frowned at her.  He hoped that she understood his concerns.

“I know I’m not ready to use my power and I will do what is necessary to keep it contained.  I learned that the hard way when I tried to stop the storm.  I was scared when I couldn’t reign it back in.  If you think I should stay in this form, then I agree.  I can’t remember who I used to be in Heaven, but I know that I was a complete mess and caused a lot of damage.  I would rather be who I am now, until I learn more control,” she tried to remember Heaven and living with Gabriel, but she couldn’t remember anything about her former life.

“Once you have gained more confidence and strength, we will complete the ritual, and you will become what you once were,” Lucifer hoped that day would never come.  He didn’t want to see the world burn, which was odd given his previous attempts to destroy the world.

She nodded her head, afraid to make her next request.  “I agreed to stay, but I don’t want to be your servant.  You said that you considered me your equal.  I don’t want to be like Caleb and Aganon.  I’m afraid that you would one day command me to use my power against the world,” she was afraid to look at him.  She didn’t want to see his rage again.

Lucifer played with her dress, knowing what he needed to say next would upset her.  “I told you when you arrived that you were my servant.  That wasn’t exactly true.  When mortals take their own lives, they become servants of Hell.  They must suffer all the realms as punishment for throwing away their lives.  After they have suffered considerably, we are allowed to offer them a choice; servitude or back to the realms for a very long time.  You were never given that choice, so you are not actually my servant,” he hung his head and braced for the possibility of losing a limb.

“You lied about that too.  I’m not surprised.  While I’m glad that I’m not your servant, you need to stop lying to me,” she pursed her lips and put her hand on her hip.

Lucifer laughed at the adorable face she was making, grateful that he still had flesh on his face.  “I promise that I will do my best not to lie to you, though I know that I will fail often.  There are times when I can’t help myself.  It is a part of who I have become.  I’m sorry for all the lies, but the truth is, if you were to become my servant, I would be able to help you control your abilities.  I want very much for that to happen.  As you saw in the Throne Room, your power is unpredictable.  I’m not saying that you must go back into the realms, I’m merely asking you to take me as your Master, so that I can help you.”

Upon hearing Lucifer’s desire to have her as his servant, something inside of her snapped.  Waiting on him as a servant was one thing, but hearing that he could help control her power made her angry.  He wasn’t meant to control her power.  “I can’t allow that.  Even though I don’t want to lose control of my power, I won’t have control taken from me.  I don’t want to be at any else’s mercy,” Anjali quickly jumped off the bed.  The thought of being controlled by someone else made her twitch.  She wouldn’t give up her will to anyone.

Lucifer leapt off the bed and tried to calm her.  “I understand your hesitation.  Father made you an immortal instead of an angel so that you wouldn’t bend to His will or the will of anyone else.  You alone must make the choice to end the world, but I’m afraid that you could lose your way and end up destroying everything on a whim.  I don’t want that to happen.  I want to help you and do what I can for you,” Lucifer ran his hand up Anjali’s neck and rubbed his thumb across her soft lips.  He understood her reluctance to become his servant, even if she didn’t.  She was meant to rule others, not be ruled.

“I don’t want to lose my way.  I don’t want to start another Ice Age or Dark Age, but I need to find a way to be strong.  I can’t have someone else calling the shots.  Something inside tells me that I have to do this on my own,” she played with the muscles on his chest, trying to calm down, hoping that she hadn’t offended him.

“I understand, but you must be careful.  As your Master, I would protect you.  Know that, as difficult as it may be, you can be killed.  If you die, Father will replace you.  I shudder to think what would happen then.  It has taken a long time for you to gain enough wisdom to reach this point.  It would be an eternity for another to attempt to take your place,” Lucifer’s hand grazed her cleavage as he indulged in the feeling of her delicious skin.

“Hades almost took my head.  I don’t ever want to get that close to dying again, but I still can’t accept a Master,” she leaned forward, pressed her chest into Lucifer’s, and rose higher on her tiptoes to throw her arms around his shoulders and hold him.  She pressed her face into his warm neck.

“I understand your hesitation, but I’m still afraid for you.  I never thought Hades would go to such extremes.  We’ve had our differences, but we have always managed not to kill one another.  I will make sure that he never harms you again.  I almost died when I saw the blade at your throat.  I felt all of my happiness drain away and the only thing I saw was Hades’ blood on my hands.  All  my hope was crushed when I saw him pull the blade against you.  I have tried to kill Hades before for different reasons, but this was the only time that I would have been completely justified in doing so.  Are you going to seek retribution, beyond hitting him with lightning, breaking his body, and freezing him alive in the Realm of Frost?” Lucifer ran his hands up Anjali’s back.  He needed to have her in his arms, where she was safe.

“No.  While I may not like the reasons why he attacked me, I do understand them.  I have a feeling if I did anything else to him, he would seek retribution against me.  Instead of battling him, I have to find a way to deal with him.  You don’t need us trying to kill each other every other day,” she shrugged away the image of shoving Hades’ face into a pit of vipers, knowing that she would have to make peace with him.

“See.  This is the exact reason why you should sit next to me and rule Hell.  You already understand the game.  As much as I hate Hades, I have to deal with him.  He’s an asshole, but he’s good at his job.  Just don’t tell him that.  I would never hear the end of it.  I believe you will find a way to balance out the thrones, while keeping Hades in his place.  I’m going to make sure that Hades understands your importance to me.  For those reasons, I’m granting you a gift,” Lucifer grabbed her face and kissed her passionately.  He pushed his power into her body, knowing that he trusted her to do the right thing.

Warmth permeated her body and a sharp sensation burned through her all the way to the dark storm inside of her.  A strange feeling sparked inside of her, but it didn’t collide with her darkness.  Instead, the feeling grew and spread out, filling her body with a different kind of power.