Miracle

Pt. 46

"Well, if you wanna kill him, I'm down, but you'll need to get better with your powers if you wanna actually, ya know... win. Good for you, I know a guy," Max said with a small, knowing smile, attempting to lighten the suffocating atmosphere.

Just then, Alex flinched, closing his eyes as a loud, urgent message echoed in his head: Get to Heaven now. Apparently, he had a mandatory meeting. It couldn't be a worse time for him to just jet off and leave Lily alone, but when the people in charge call, you kinda have to go. He put his hand on Lily's shoulder. She turned her head, her red, furious eyes meeting his.

"I'm sorry to just leave you, but apparently, I'm in trouble with the head angels. I need to go," Alex explained, his voice laced with regret.
Lily nodded, her face still etched with the aftermath of grief and rage. Alex turned, looking down at Max. "I'm trusting you to take Lily to that guy you're talking about. Wherever she goes, I'll know where it is, so don't worry."
Max put his hand over his heart, beaming. "Wow, you're trusting me! Wow, I'm so-"

Jinx rolled her eyes, stepping in front of him. "You don't have a thing to worry about. I'll keep an eye on both of them," she said, her voice dry but firm. Alex couldn't say that he completely trusted her yet, so he just gave her a curt nod, a silent acknowledgment of her promise. He then kissed Lily softly on the lips, a lingering, tender touch, before slowly fading away, his form dissolving into shimmering light.

Max gently took Lily's hand, pulling her away from the burning building. Sirens began to wail in the distance as police cars pulled up, lights flashing, along with neighbors pouring out of their houses, drawn by the horrific spectacle. Lily pushed down her emotions, forcing them deep inside, and carried on, her steps determined.

"This guy is about the only demon I know who can actually teach you," Max began, leading them towards the nearby woods. "He's old, but he knows fire magic, so that must mean he's powerful. I'll never understand how he ended up in Nearon Village in the first place."
Jinx, following behind them, let out a small, derisive laugh. "Ha! A demon in Nearon Village, with the fairies and elves? What a joke. He can't be all that powerful."

They made their way through the dense woods, searching for a specific carving on a tree's bark. "Well, you better hope it's not a joke. He's our only hope if we want someone to teach Lily to fight and use her powers properly. Unless, by some chance, you know how to do fire magic?" Max challenged, a hint of challenge in his tone.

Jinx rolled her eyes. Of course, she didn't have fire magic; only the most powerful demons possessed such a skill. "If I had fire magic, I would have told you, so we wouldn't be here right now. Does that answer your question?"
Max muttered something under his breath about an annoying demon before they finally found the correct tree. He pushed aside a curtain of vines, revealing a hidden entrance. "Wow, a secret tree passageway... how original," Jinx said aloud, full of sarcasm, as they stepped inside.

Max knocked three times on a wooden door hidden within the tree. As soon as it swung open, they were greeted by an excited River, her blue hair practically vibrating with energy. "Oh, hello, Lily! I've missed you! How have you been? Oh, and I see you have Maximus with you, and a purple demon girl! Hello, pur-"

Max gently pushed past River, slightly annoyed by her high energy. "Geez, River, chill! Can we enter Nearon before you talk our heads off?"
Jinx let out a small laugh, a rare sound, seeing the blue-haired fairy pout. "Where is old man Billy today?" she asked, interrupting River's indignation.
River tapped her chin, thinking hard. "He's probably at the springs. He loves being there recently. Could I join you? I'm pretty bored around here."

Lily acted reluctant about agreeing to let River follow them. River was too sweet and pure of heart to be pulled into their mess, especially with Alistair involved. She didn't want to expose her to their darkness. "Please, guys! There's nothing to do around here today! I could be of help talking to Bill, he's nice to me."
Jinx looked River over, a calculating glint in her eyes. She leaned over, whispering into Lily's ear, "If she's useful, we might as well bring her along. We need to get you trained to fight your dad." Lily nodded, a grim resolve hardening her expression.

River's face lit up, and she used her iridescent wings to fly around in a happy circle. "Okay, okay, River, you can come along. Just stay behind us," Lily conceded. River nodded enthusiastically and followed behind them as Max led them towards the springs.
As they reached the springs, they saw an old, black-skinned demon seated on a floating cloud of smoke in the middle of the clear water, his eyes closed in what appeared to be meditation.

"Hello, Billy! How's it going?" Max greeted, his voice boisterous.
The old demon let out a long, weary sigh, hearing Maximus's voice. He still didn't open his eyes. "What is it, Maximus? Can't you see I'm busy? And I thought I told you not to call me Billy." Even in his old age, Jinx could sense the raw energy and power coming off old man Bill in waves. It amazed her that such a powerful demon could just be chilling here in Nearon Village, seemingly content.

Max let out an awkward laugh, rubbing the back of his head. "Ha, ha, yeah, you did tell me that. I keep forgetting. Well, umm... I kinda need to ask for a favor of you."
Bill slowly opened his yellow eyes, his gaze sweeping over them. He first noticed Jinx, another demon, whom he hadn't seen in many years. Then his eyes landed on Lily, and specifically, the vibrant red crescent-shaped mark on her neck. His eyes widened slightly, a flicker of recognition passing through them, as if he had seen the mark before.
"I need you to train my friend fire magic so she can kill her asshole father," Max said bluntly, making Lily cringe and rub a hand down her face in embarrassment.

"Ah, your father hasn't changed much, huh?" Billy said, a faint, almost sardonic smile playing on his lips. He pushed off his smoke cloud, walking across the water with a new smoke cloud appearing beneath each step he took, until he reached the grass where they stood. "I wouldn't blame you for wanting to kill the bastard."

Lily raised an eyebrow, a mix of surprise and desperation in her voice as he stood tall in front of her, his presence commanding. "How do you know my father?" he glanced at the mark on her neck once again, a shadow passing over his ancient features. "I'll never forget that family mark. And I wouldn't forget the man that had me banished from my own home."