Kobal

The walls of the tunnel gave way to reveal the open pathway that we’d traveled into Hell. On the way into Hell, I’d still believed there was a chance we could stop this without all the humans learning the truth. Now, there would be no keeping Hell’s existence from them.

Hell was on its way to Earth, and there was no changing that, but I would get River out of here. She would not die in this place.

Screams rent the air as both craetons and palitons were shoved over the side of the pathway. Their bodies bounced off the rocky walls as they tumbled into the abyss below. Normally, the fall wouldn’t kill them, but I doubted any of them would survive what was escaping below.

River grew stronger with every step I took. The holes in her hands were nearly healed, but it wasn’t happening fast enough for my liking. The rocks beneath my feet vibrated before heaving upward. Demons cried out and flung themselves against the wall to my left while others staggered to the side and tumbled over the edge.

Chunks of wall broke off and fell from above, crushing those unfortunate not to get out of the way in time. Rocks battered my back and split open my skin as I hunched over River while I ran.

Caim swung his wing out to block a small avalanche cascading toward us. I didn’t know why the angel had switched sides—I knew why he said he’d done it—but even the fact he’d returned River to me couldn’t make me trust him. However, I would use him in every way possible to get her out of here.

I leapt over a set of falling rocks as the ground shook again and a wave of creatures rose from the pit below.

“What are those?” River breathed as men and women floated past us toward the surface.

“Jinn,” I replied. Like the tree nymphs, the jinn possessed an ethereal beauty. Unlike the tree nymphs, they used their beauty and magic to ensnare and destroy other demons. They were some of the most conniving and savage creatures behind the seals. “You also know them as genies.”

“You’re shitting me,” Hawk said as he gawked at them.

“Like rub the bottle and be granted three wishes, genies?” River asked.

“More like, they’ll tell you they’ll grant you a wish and make it more of a nightmare. Then they’ll tear out your heart, or drain you of your essence, as payment. They also have a way of making others do things they normally wouldn’t do for the mere promise of a wish,” Magnus said. “When I learned what they could do, and what they had done, I admit to a bit of admiration for their ways.”

He shrugged when River and Hawk scowled at him.

“They’re… devilish,” Magnus said as he shoved a demon over the side of the pathway without breaking his stride. “And they’re free.”

“What seal were they?” River demanded.

“Ninety,” I replied.

“Are they all coming down?” Hawk asked.

“Yes,” I replied. The amount of power River had released would not be stopped.

“Put me down,” River said.

“You’re still weak,” I told her.

“I’m strong enough to run.”

She squirmed in my arms as she tried to break free of my hold. “River—”

“Put me down, Kobal. I did this. I will face it on my own two feet, and I can’t be a burden to you right now.”

“You did not do this, and you could never be a burden,” I snarled, but I paused to set her down.

“I did do this. Not on my own, and not willingly, but this is because of me,” she said as the last of the jinn drifted out of view. “Once those wraiths pulled away, the flood of life and power from the seals and Lucifer, and then you…” Her voice trailed off as her eyes lifted to mine. “I couldn’t control it. I didn’t know I was capable of so much destruction.”

“Of course you are, dear. You are part human, demon, and angel after all. I’m sure you’ve realized that we can all be highly destructive beings.” Caim hooked his arm through hers and tugged her forward. “But if you insist on discussing this now, I suggest running as you do.”

I slid my arm around River’s waist and shot Caim a lethal look. He released her before moving slightly ahead of us. I used my other arm to shield River’s head from more falling debris while we ran.

“If your human father, as a wraith, could bring down the seals, then you most certainly could,” Caim said as he plunged a spike through the throat of a craeton and tossed him over the edge.

“When Lucifer blocked you from drawing on life by surrounding you with wraiths, he confined your ability in a way it had never been confined before,” I said to her.

“And it sought release as soon as it could get it,” Corson said. He didn’t miss a step as he cut a demon’s legs off at the knees before jumping over him.

“When Lucifer confined your power, it built within you,” Caim said to River. “Add Lucifer using your blood to puncture the seal and binding you to it, toss in the varcolac grabbing you while Lucifer also held you, and you were a powder keg waiting to explode. And explode you did, child. Lucifer may not be able to connect with life anymore, but he is still the strongest fallen angel in existence. However, I don’t even think Lucifer saw that coming, but then he never expected Kobal’s power to be thrown into the mix too, and I think he may have underestimated your strength. I know I did. There was no way you could have stopped what happened once Lucifer set it into motion. And now that it has been set into motion, there will be no undoing it.”