Hell Bound

CHAPTER 16

RECAP:

"My powers?" she asked, bewildered. She searched his gaze, looking for any sign of trickery, but when she saw none, her expression became confused. "I do not have any powers, Dragon. I am a human, despite my birth parents' heritage," she said with conviction.

Dragon studied her expression for a moment, then his lips pulled up into a cold smirk. Chills ran down her spine, and she couldn't help but think that she had played right into his hands, whatever his plan had been for her. His answer chilled her to bone. "Not anymore, you're not," he said. " Cara Mia,"

~~~

Alithiya stared up at him then blinked. She ripped herself away from him, and wrapped her arms around herself as she stared up at him. "W-what do you mean?" she asked, her voice shaking.

The Deceiver closed the distance between them and ran a hand up and down her arm, making cold sparks erupt on the places he touched. Her shoulders sagged, but she didn't lean into his embrace. The Deceiver smiled coldly. "Exactly what it means. You are a human. A human with the powers of a demon and an angel," he said.

She looked up at him, her gaze hopeless. "But I don't want to have powers, Dragon," she whispered, her voice cracking at the end. For once, Dragon was quiet. His expression was unreadable as he stared down at her eyes. She looked away from him, her shoulder sagging in defeat. She was fooling herself by thinking that the demon lord would understand. She started to turn away but stopped when she felt his hand on her shoulder. She looked at him, questioningly. With a gentleness, she was sure he was not accustomed to, he pulled her back to him, and this time she didn't resist and walked willingly into his embrace.

As soon as she felt his hand on her back, she felt the power stirring within her. She closed her eyes, then concentrated when she saw the colors flash behind her eyelids in a blur. Then suddenly she felt herself being pulled into a void. She tried to fight it, but Dragon's hand on her back made her completely relaxed and she let the void pull her in.

Then she opened her eyes.

And jerked back in surprise. For before her, instead of the forest, she was met with the colorful scenery and cheerful atmosphere that usually accompanied a ball. Colors swirled around her in various forms. The ladies and lords all dancing to a music she couldn't hear and they seemed completely oblivious to their presence. She looked around her, and noticed that Dragon was beside her as well, with his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze impassive. She turned to him. "Where are we? What happened?" she demanded.

Only it wasn't Dragon who answered her. It was someone else. Someone whose voice was very familiar to her. "Sometime in the late sixteenth century, my sister,"

Alithiya whirled around and took a step back startled to meet a woman who looked as if she had descended from heaven itself. Blonde locks fell to her shoulder and her blue eyes were regarding her with a small smile as if she found her reaction amusing. Her porcelain skin was gleaming under the candlelight in the ballroom, and the sea green dress she was wearing was curving around her figure like a second skin, indicating her slim figure beneath, and fell to her ankles.

Then she gave a small bow. "Names Athena Sacarina Morfron, or as you may know me, The first hell bound,"

~~~

Alithiya looked up at the woman with disbelief. "The first hell bound?" she asked. "How?"

Athena waved her hand. "Oh, you know. It all started with a prophecy and all. And the next thing I know I was being dragged into hell to be married off to the demon king. Hello, Dragon," the last part was directed at the Deceiver, whose blank gaze didn't waver but inclined his head in a silent sign of acknowledgement.