Tenebrae (Fyren Trilogy #3)

Part 1

RISE

The being known as Xavies knelt on one knee on the ground, a long black unbuttoned coat over his bare body, a pair of black pants clad around his legs, bare feet on the concrete floor. Broken concentric rings of fire which radiated outwards surrounded him, the light reflecting off his grim face, smoke still curling away from his body.

He was standing at the City Circle, but the statue that had been there moments ago had vanished, melted away in a flash of intense heat and force. The ground was cracked, lines running all over the ground, as if a huge object had impacted it, creating a crater upon its surface, the concrete and marble peeling away due to the heat.

The boundary between Earth and Hell was weak here, and the demons had performed a required blood ritual, the last amount of blood spilled to bring him back into the mortal world. Xavies lifted his eyes and looked around him, his red eyes flashing momentarily before dissolving into golden irises. He took in a deep breath, savoring the smell of freedom.

Hell, known as Durares in the Old Language. It has been his home for a millennium, trapped inside it, unable to escape from it. Finally, he was back in the mortal world, able to exact his revenge on the angels that had locked him up, and wreak havoc on this world, enslave the mortals.

He gave a satisfied evil grin. He was not known as the Lord of Hell for his kindness.

He slowly stood up, and the 4 beings behind him, 2 on each side, stood up silently as well, black eyes staring ahead, their faces impassive. Their long raven black hair flowed in the wind, framing their pale beautiful faces, their thin white robes billowing around them, bare feet making no sound on the ground. They were known as Sirens, servants of Xavies in Hell. Wherever he goes, they will follow.

Xavies walked over to a corpse nearby, killed by the explosive force that brought Xavies back, and grabbed the dead man by his head, lifting him up. His palm closed over his skull, and knowledge seeped into his mind, knowledge from the dead person, the memories still fresh from death, knowledge of everything new, that had happened in his absence, that he had lost for so long. He drank it all up, savoring the feeling of knowing what he missed. When he was finished, he dropped the corpse, now a brown withered husk, a shell of its previous self. Screams were heard as people ran away, horrified by what they saw. Sirens sounded in the distance, heralding the appearance of the police and the fire trucks.

He looked around him, acknowledging the demons who formed a ring around him, the demons who had slaved and planned his return, noting those who were absent, gone. In one motion, the demons knelt down on one knee and bowed in respect, their heads down. They knew the penalty of disrespecting him, and they did not want to challenge him. Even in his current weakened state, he could still tear them all apart, if he wanted to.

'Rise, all of you,' Xavies said, fixing his eyes on Marcus and Viktor. 'What has happened in my absence?'

'My Lord, our comrades Isaac and Damian has fallen, their souls burned away, both of them from the angel Fabian's doing. But we have killed angel Julian as well, and we will get the others,' Marcus said, trying to steel his voice from trembling.

'And the Fyren?' Xavies asked.

'She is still alive, protected by the angels,' Viktor said, his head lowered.

The demons looked on in fear as a scar, a rune of the word 'Hell' on Xavies's chest, glowed with golden orange light; showing his anger, but his face remained calm. The sirens grew louder as the fire trucks turned a corner and screeched to a halt some 20 metres away. The firemen got out, but stood there as they looked at the sight in front of them. Something felt wrong with these people, IF they were even people at all.