CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
They entered the apartment to shouting from Lucifer and loud growls, mingled with roars that shook the walls. “Get the bandages! Abbadon, hold him down!” Mammon didn’t hesitate, he broke into a run. Isabelle followed behind, stopping at the door and gasping at the sight. The scene before her was chaos.
Blood covered the floor and the three brothers who held down a demon, an honest to god demon! The beast hissed and snapped his teeth, lost to his pain and desperately trying to escape the people causing it, even though they were attempting to help. The demon managed to get Ze’s forearm between his teeth, biting down.
“Sonofabitch! Cercyn!” Asmodeus grabbed the demon, sticking his finger between his brother’s arm and the death grip of the demon's teeth. Separating the two and not losing a finger was one hell of a feat. Asmodeus continued to hold the demon's head down as he roared in pain. Mammon joined the fray, protecting the wound in his side with his hands.
Isabelle couldn’t function. Everything seemed to move in slow motion. The man on the floor was a fucking demon—as in wings, giant claws and fangs. His skin was the color of fire, deep writhing orange and red. The clothing he’d been wearing was in a bloody pile on the floor, blood seeping from the multiple wounds covering his body. Isabelle could hear her blood rushing through her veins so fast, she could feel her pulse in her head. She had accepted her fate, and she knew what her future now held, but seeing it in gory detail like this made it all hit home.
Her eyes turned to Abbadon who had returned with the first aid kit, ripping it open. Gauze and towels were being used to stanch the flow of blood, but the demon, Cercyn, refused to stop fighting. Ripping his arm from Belor’s grip, he punched Asmodeus in the face. Losing the restriction, he flailed all the more, breaking free from his captors. He surged to his feet, blood seeping from the wounds, dripping to the floor. His eyes like the color of sunrise locked on Isabelle.
His pain beat at her. She had connected with him downstairs moments earlier, but blocking him out now was harder. There were shouts as the brothers moved to intercept him, but he was too quick. It was amazing how fast he moved, considering he was bleeding like a stuck pig all over the apartment. His body collided with hers, shoving her against the wall.
The air left her lungs in a rush as the demon closed his clawed hand around her throat. A roar of pure fury rent the air, but Isabelle’s attention was locked only on the demon before her and the pain-filled eyes that screamed without words. Cercyn tightened his grip around her throat, and his emotions rushed over her, drowning her in raw madness. He didn’t know where he was. Where were his brothers? How had he gotten here? These people were hurting him. He needed to fight, escape, and find his brothers.
Isabelle peered over his shoulder. His torn wings hung limply at his side. Behind him, the six demons of sin were holding back an enraged Mammon. Flames of green burned and sparking over his flesh, and his hands had morphed into deadly talons as he fought to get to her side. She lifted her hand and gestured for him to stop. It did nothing, of course, to placate her male, who was descending into his own madness, but she could only deal with what was before her.
She turned her gaze back to Cercyn, who still held her throat in his dangerous grip. He was filled with panic, worry, anger. Reaching up, she delved into herself to find the pool of calm that had kept her sane all these years. Isabelle touched his fevered face, imagining the cooling pool spreading down her arm and through her hand. Cercyn visibly relaxed, his grip around her throat lessening. He blinked at her in confusion, as if just noticing she were there for the first time.
“It’s okay. It’s okay. Easy. You’re going to be just fine. Shhh, you're safe here. We just want to help.” Isabelle had never heard this voice coming from her lips before. It was a low almost hypnotic tone. She could feel the well of energy spreading through her limbs, removing any fear she had, sending the calming force into the demon.
He blinked again, swaying on his feet before slowly sinking to his knees. Isabelle followed him down. Though her throat was still in his clawed grip, he was no longer applying pressure. He frowned as they slid down the wall together, tilting his head to the side as if considering her for the first time. Sanity slowly awoke in his eyes just as his body gave out. His hand dropped from her neck, his head coming to rest on her lap. He was panting softly, his body wracked by powerful tremors. Isabelle lifted her hand and stroked his bloody hair gently.
“Lucifer is going to come and move you now, okay?” She kept her voice gentle and low as she spoke.
Cercyn tightened his arms around her, mistrust radiating from his bloody form. Isabelle locked eyes with Mammon, who was pacing back and forth his eyes never leaving her. At least he wasn’t on the verge of turning demon anymore. He seemed to have calmed a little, although his hands still sported wicked talons. She turned her gaze to Cercyn, leaning toward him as she murmured. “I’m going to stay right here, okay? They need to stop the bleeding.”
With a little work she managed to rearrange her legs so she wasn’t cramped. Cercyn moved to lie beside her. His eyes were alert, watching everyone, but he was, at least, relaxed now. Isabelle continued to stroke his hair as the brothers gathered around and quietly began to attend to his wounds.
“Cercyn, we need to move you. Your wings are torn. I can’t work on them like this.” Asmodeus kept his tone low, taking to Isabelle’s cue. Cercyn was silent for a long time, then slowly nodded.
Finally, the weight of the partially deranged demon was removed from her legs, allowing circulation and sensation to return. Letting out a rush of air, Isabelle hung her head, her heart suddenly pounding in her chest. She felt strong arms encircling her, lifting her from the floor. Was someone shaking her? Everything seemed dulled and muted, energy humming in her ears. She could feel herself retreating inside her own head. Damn she was tired, drained. She just wanted to sleep.
“Goddamn it, Isabelle! What the hell were you doing? He could have killed you!” The voice was rough, fraught with worry. She vaguely registered the hands on her cheeks, tilting her face up.
“Isabelle! Fuck, come on. Come back to me.”
The voice seemed muffled, like she was hearing it underwater. The hands on her face were trying to pull her back to reality, but she was falling. Her eyes slid shut as strong arms swung her into the air. She was floating in warmth. Muted voices rose around her, but she shut them out. It was so nice to just float here.
Belor exited the bedroom, covered in demon blood, and headed directly towards the Seer. Desperation and terror shone in Mammon’s green eyes, and his body trembled as he clutched Isabelle to him. He looked like a lost child. As the only one of his brothers with the ability to see energy levels and energy flow, he focused his burning orange eyes on Isabelle. He placed his hand on her forehead, opening himself to the flow of energy within her. He nodded and dropped his hand to Mammon’s shoulder.
“What’s wrong with her?” Abbadon returned from helping tend Cercyn in the bedroom, his concerned eyes on the limp Seer in his brother’s arms.
Belor turned his gaze to Abbadon, “She will be just fine. She used too much of her own energy to calm Cercyn. Take her downstairs. Keep her warm. I would suggest a bath. Make sure she does not wake up covered in blood. I will send Ze down with blankets and towels.”
“If he harmed her in any way, I will kill him.” The promise in Mammon’s tone was absolute. His eyes locked on the door to the room where the bleeding demon had finally settled down. Flames still flickered in the depths of his gaze.
“Isabelle saved his life today. I am sure you killing him will just upset her more. Now do as I say, little brother. Let us worry about Cercyn.” Belor turned Mammon around and pushed him towards the door.
Mammon reluctantly left the apartment, holding his female to him with pure reverence and no small amount of desperation. Belor watched him a surge of jealous hitting him, oh to love so deeply. He pushed the fanciful idea away, then directed his gaze to Abbadon.
“Will she be okay?” Abbadon’s voice was low, concern marring his dark features.
“She’s weak, took too much from her inner source, the power that sustains us. He needs to keep calling her back. There is nothing we can do for her. It is up to him now. I have no doubt he will succeed. With more practice, she will gain control over her power, preventing this occurrence from happening again.” Despite his assurances, Belor worried for the Seer. She had nearly killed herself helping one person. Granted, he was a battle crazed demon, but still. If she was to find the other Seers, she would need to focus so she used the energy around her, rather than the energy from within her.
“Leave Mammon to look after the Seer. We have to find out what happened to Cercyn. This is too important to delay,” Lucifer’s voice called to the pair of them from the doorway of Cercyn’s bedroom before he ducked back in to finish tending to the demon.
Belor and Abbadon returned to the bedroom, pausing at the threshold. Belor frowned as he took in the myriad wounds covering the demon's body. He couldn’t believe Cercyn had managed to transport himself to the mortal realm while injured this badly.
“Cercyn, I need you to focus on me, okay?” Asmodeus used the same low humming tone mimicking Isabelle. “Tell me what happened.”
“Malakhim came. Managed to fight them off. Hades, my brothers, still fighting in Tartarus. I…was sent, get help.” The demon was losing his battle with consciousness, blinking as Lucifer came into his vision.
“Where in Tartarus?” His tone was more than worried.
“Don’t know. Held them off so Hades could move the jar.” The injured demon shook his head and then promptly passed out, his breathing becoming shallow.
Asmodeus placed a hand on his forehead. “He is going to be out for a while, lost way too much blood. If not for Isabelle, he might have died. Our little Seer has some power in her.”
Lucifer swore and began to pace the room. Belor frowned. None of them had expected the Malakhim to move so quickly. It was clear their priorities had changed from obtaining a Seer to securing Pandora’s Box. If the battle still raged, they needed to join in. Fuck, he should have fed more. No, damn it! He wasn’t going back to that club. He didn’t need that shit to live. Lucifer stopped pacing, having clearly come to the same conclusion. He turned to his brothers.
“Tanus, Abbadon, Belor, Ze, and I are going to Tartarus. Asmodeus, you stay and tend to Cercyn. When Mammon is sane enough to be reasoned with, send him our way. I think we may need him.”
Belor knew what Lucifer was thinking, what they were all thinking. Hades and the remaining two brothers of Cerberus couldn’t hold out for long.