“The heavens, that their beauty not be lessened,
have cast them out, nor will deep Hell receive them —
even the wicked cannot glory in them.”
― Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy
“Where is your father now, little mongrel whore? He isn’t coming to help you? Is he?” she asked, laughing, and then started stabbing me with her tranquillising spells. Her energy lifted me above the ground and then slammed me on my back, the dull, paralysing pain blinding me for a split second. Acrid smoke from the pits was burning my eyes and I kept telling myself I needed to wait for a window to attack.
In hell Alexis didn’t have to follow any rules. The darkness and the heat. It was just the way I remembered hell. My skin was burning and my throat felt raw. Everything was falling apart and I was supposed to fight, not lie on the ground, pitying myself.
“Shut up, you bitch!” I shouted back, spitting out dust that was in my mouth to be able to breathe again. She ceased her attack for a few seconds and I stood up, struggling to remain on my feet, glaring at her from the distance. She was smiling, standing gracefully on the rock, and behind her there was something shining in the darkness.
My heart lurched with hope, because I instantly recognised it. The Watcher’s sword, not just any Watcher’s and not just any sword. This one belonged to Paul. He must have thrown it down when I jumped in after Alexis – sending me a message. Finish her.
“Lucifer! I dare you to come and save your mongrel daughter. Show yourself, you coward,” she roared, turning and glancing around. She was really playing with the devil, but this wasn’t his job. He gave me this task and I needed to complete it.
Only silence answered her and I laughed.
I could see that Alexis was still in love with my father, and she was bitter, hurt and filled with resentment because he pushed her away. This was never about wanting to take his place. She was heartbroken.
Either way, I didn’t give a fuck. This was going to be her end.
I wasn’t going to wait for her to start torturing me again. My soaring energy came back and first I threw a ball of flames at her, and then I launched forward. She dodged to the side to avoid the fire, and then she hesitated, not ready for my sudden act of violence.
After all, my physical strength was an asset too.
We both slammed on the ground, and I grabbed her arms. We started rolling around and I dug my sharp nails into her skin. It was a cat fight in hell, two women tearing each other apart.
She laughed.
Huh?
Yeah, she started laughing then pushed me and I landed on the sharp stones. A fiery pain shattered my vision again and I tried to use my energy for a counterattack, but she was suddenly using my own magic against me.
I didn’t scream, but the pain was spreading across my forehead, burning my eyes and disabling me from the neck down.
Alexis darted and then launched forward again and I pushed another burst of power at her.
I waited, but nothing happened.
Then she smacked me with the ball of energy and my body started convulsing, my teeth chattering, and a sharp slice of pain shot up over my spine. It felt like she was pressing burning hot metal to my back.
“Feel it, mongrel whore, just a little bit more, before you die,” she said, standing a little further away from me. A stream of rippling power burst out of her.
Fear balled in my core, and that tiny voice in my head was telling me that she was stronger. My arms shook when I tried to lift myself up. Slowly, darkness began creeping on the edge of my vision. All of a sudden, it felt as if the skin on my left thigh was being torn apart.
“No one is coming to save you. The pits will devour your useless body and you will never die. Soon you will be one of many souls, little mongrel whore.” She laughed, causing more lasting pain that spread everywhere. I couldn’t move, my muscles were trembling, and the smell of burning flesh clogged my throat.
What the hell was wrong with me? Why wasn’t I fighting back?
These questions began surfacing in my head, but the pain was distracting me. I squeezed my eyes shut, and I felt blood in my mouth.
“Lucifer was only using you for entertainment. You never meant anything more to him,” I spat out, wanting to distract her.
I sensed her circling around me, growing agitated and angry as my words were getting to her. There was no one else in here, and no one was coming to help me. This was my fight and only mine.
“Shut up, you whore,” she screamed, balancing fire balls on her palms. Drops of sweat broke over the nape of my neck.
I stood up and a slow, unnerving smile twisted her lips, and it felt like I was being hit with heated air.
Then I let out an inhuman roar and threw a ball of light down under her feet. The energy crackled over my palms, causing her to dance around. Blood was pouring down my left thigh and I had several deep cuts on my face. I felt dizzy, but I needed to get to the sword.
Alexis screamed with fury, trying to use her magic to destroy my ball of light while I ran. My legs were moving, although my body screamed with painful spasm.
I managed to get to the rock where the sword was stuck between the stones.
“I’m immortal, a reborn soul, and you don’t stand a chance. The messenger sword won’t give you any advantage,” she yelled, sending a wave of energy that must have cracked my ribs the second I grabbed the sword’s grip.
I went down on the ground, but didn’t let go of Paul’s precious possession. Several breaths later I was standing back on my feet and my heart pounded in my chest. When I held the sword in my hands, it was like taking a breath of fresh air for the first time. Pain and exhaustion eked away, and a low buzzing energy was slowly filling my system. Blood thrummed through my veins giving me the strength that I needed.
My eyes registered movement on my right. Alexis had vanished from the space in front of me. The wind picked up and I tapped into my source until sparks of electricity started streaming down my arms.
“Any final words?” she roared suddenly appearing right opposite me. I parted my mouth, feeling the warmth from the sword slowly diminishing.
Then Alexis rose a few inches above the ground and pounded her energy in my direction. In that moment I knew it was her last deadly spell. She launched herself at me with everything she had.
Time slowed down or it was my mind showing me what she was truly capable of. I saw her demonic energy speeding towards me, and it was poisonous, deadly magic.
I heard her laugh in the background, so I did the only thing I could. I lifted Paul’s sword to protect myself and shut my eyes. I felt the energy hit the blade as searing heat moved through me, and my hands began to tremble. My whole body was suddenly charged with unbearable heat; my fingertips were burning, and I just had to hold on to it for a few more seconds.
I dropped the blade. Alexis won – she was stronger.
Maybe my precious time with my daughter was never meant to be. It was always just an illusion–a wish that could never have been fulfilled.
The end never came, or at least it didn’t hurt. Seconds rolled by and I heard a scream, so I opened my eyes.
Alexis was lying on the ground, and it looked like she was hit with her own spell. Her body was smoking and shaking. I dropped the sword and ran to her, forcing my tired body to move.
Half of her face was burned, skin torn, and I could see her raw flesh. I had my small knife in my right hand and was turning it around, knowing this was it–– Alexis was going to die. She opened her right eye and stared at me for a moment. I hesitated, waiting for my father to appear to give me the go-ahead. A twisted smile returned to her face and then I remembered all the evil things she had done, so I made a choice.
She had suffered all this time when she walked on earth with her heart broken, being humiliated by the greatest demon in hell. Maybe Lucifer would want her in the pits, but I wanted her to die. I needed to end this once and for all. By killing her I would avenge Arthur, and all those other demons and humans that she had murdered.
“Go to hell, bitch!” I roared and stabbed her directly in her heart. She tried to lift her hand, but my magic scorched down, ripping her poisoned heart and soul apart.
Her body turned into dust in a matter of seconds and I stayed in the same position, holding my bloodied knife in my hands.
I dropped on the ground, breathing hard with tears in my eyes. My battle with Alexis came to the end, and she was now gone forever.
I lay there for a while, trying to steady my heart, enjoying the silence for a long moment, contemplating everything that had happened.
I didn’t know how much time had passed, but at some point I turned my head to the side and saw a tall, dark figure coming towards me. Moments later, I lifted myself and stared at the gold sword that lay next to me.
I wished that I could see Arthur one more time. I never had a chance to tell him how proud I was that he was the father of my child. Over time. I’d regretted that I got involved with him, my time in the palace, but all of that made me stronger and a better person. Arthur had given me the most precious gift—my daughter, Summer.
“She’s gone forever and I have taken her life away,” I said, when Lucifer approached me. He seemed satisfied with the outcome.
“I’m proud of you, Maxine. Alexis had shown tremendous strength, but you have defeated her,” he said.
I didn’t feel any pain anywhere. The dried blood and my wounds were gone. There were so many other things I needed to ask him, but I had no idea where to start.
“I hope she’s dead, truly dead? She won’t be able to reincarnate or something like that?” I asked, just to be sure.
“She’s dead, but her sinful soul always belonged to me. She has caused too much pain and she’s gone back to the place where she was born,” Lucifer explained.
“So what happens now? Can I go back upstairs?” I asked, remembering the agreement that I made with him.
“Alexis made your life a little bit difficult, so we need to fix that, I suppose,” Lucifer said with a smile. “But are you a hundred percent sure that you want to get back? You could stay in hell. Things aren’t bad here. My offer still stands.”
My father—I still wasn’t quite used to calling him that—was offering me a place by his side. I was baffled, and amused by his proposition.
“No, thank you. I don’t want to stay in hell. My life is back in London. My daughter and my friends are there. It’s time to start over. Besides, what would I do in here?” I asked.
“Help me run the underworld, change the lives of mongrels and campaign for equality. As my daughter, you would be fully respected here,” he explained.
I still couldn’t believe that he was offering me such a power. I knew that I could do so much for mongrels in hell rather than back on earth, but there was my other life that I left behind.
“It’s a very tempting offer, but this isn’t me. I’m not interested in ruling the underworld; it’s your job. Alexis’s charms must have stopped working, and I can make everyone believe that she was the one that murdered Arthur,” I said, knowing this was going to require a lot of effort, but I was ready to clear my name.
“That’s a shame, because you would have been great,” he said, sounding genuinely disappointed.
I smiled to myself, thinking that from now on everything was going to change. My life, Zach’s, Emma’s, Ricky’s, Paul’s and even Cyril’s. Of course, I couldn’t forget about Zara and Matilda. All of these people I’ve met on my complicated journey were now part of a new era.
“I’ll still campaign for equality on earth, if you let me. It’s a real challenge, but it’s time to shift things around there,” I said.
“How about you take the role of head of the faction in the palace? Now that Rodriguez is gone, I think for a change I have to have someone in there that I can fully trust.”
My jaw dropped and for a moment I just stared at him, baffled he was even suggesting something like that.
“What about my business, the agency, and royals? They wouldn’t accept me there.”
“You can still have your beloved agency, and I will give you an assistant for your work in the palace. I’m sure you would be able to handle all your duties,” he said. “And as soon as you return, demons will know that I have nominated you to that position. The royals won’t interfere.”
I took a deep breath, imagining myself being back in the palace. Ricky had handled things in Doomed and I was still his partner. Maybe Lucifer was right, maybe I needed a change. If I was the head of the faction, no one would be above me, no one would tell me what to do.
“Send me back and I’ll accept it.”