Devil in a Red Dress

24

Nyx was hiding in the shadows. She knew she was being followed. Her heart was racing, she had run out of options and she hoped that what she planned to do next wouldn't fail her. She reached inside her dark cloak to tuck the crown in deeper into its folds making sure it was still safe. She had a mission to do and she would see it to the end. She couldn't risk forgetting it. She was much too close to the river Lethe now. The roundabout journey she had taken to get to her destination had unfortunately led her here, and she could go no further. She was truly cornered now despite having evaded them for so long, they meant to close ranks and make her take the plunge so she would forget, any moment now she would be overwhelmed and all would be lost.

The footsteps stopped, and she finaly stepped out of the shadows.

"I knew it would be you." Nyx spoke first as he easily jumped from a crevice on the cliffed obsidian rock and landed in front of her.

"And who else would I have found sneaking off with a most powerful object but you," Kai replied evenly. "You have something that doesn't belong to you."

He reached out, beconing for Nyx to hand over the crown.

"I suppose you think this belongs to you now?" Nyx taunted mockingly. "Have you finally grown tired of serving those more powerful than you? Did you finally outgrow your cowardice and decide to take stand up for yourself? As much as I commend you for that Kai, this is not the way."

Kai bristled and scowled. He hated nothing more than that word. Coward. That's what had led him to this moment, wasn't it. His cowardice had been the bane of his existence, even as a human. He long held that as the reason for him becoming a demon, after all. He didn't have his memories of course, but he had a stronger sense of his previous life, more than most, if not all demons.

"I'm not so presumptuous as to believe myself King. I am not you, I have never reached for titles that do not belong to me. I know where my place is. Unlike you, I haven't forgotten that I'm a demon. Titles shouldn't be given to a being without a soul, not even in the underworld." Kai bit back, smirking at the hint of annoyance on Nyx's face for the taunt. She was the Queen's darling, and because of that was made the ruler of the dominium for her loyalty. A right he truly thought no one in this place deserved, they all deserved to rot, even him. "I only meant to hand it over to tis rightful ruler."

"As do I." Nyx answered fiercely.

Kai looked at her wearily. He had to tread carefuly. Nyx had always been formidale. She had aligned herself with Jennie from the beginning but she had not been so different from him. He wasn't sure if it was truly out of loyalty, or because Jennie had held the most power in this realm and she saw an opportunity to charm her. That was something that couldn't be done with their previous master without devolving themselves in the process because all he had valued was cruelty.

Now that the tides were hanging, he truly wondered whether her loyalties might be changing too. He couldn't outright say it, not yet. Nyx was smart, probably smart enough to know where his loyalies lied now, but he couldn't be sure. The matter was delicate. He had to figure out who's side she was on, he couldn't risk a battle with her. He'd always been careful not to show the extent of his power, but if anyone knew he had always held back, it was Nyx and Nyx alone and he couldn't bank on the element of surprise to be on his side. For all he knew, Nyx might actually know all he could do, and he had never been able to find all she could do either. He knew she held back just as much as he did.

"Which master do you serve, Nyx?" Kai finally asked bluntly.

"The same as yours, of course. The side of power. The winning side." Nyx replied easily, and with a little too much conviction that made Kai feel uneasy.