“We sent out patrols to search for them. Those patrols didn’t come back. More were sent out. Again, no one reported back. I thought there was a mutiny, so I messaged the nearest battalion on Cornelius. The messenger said that no one was there. Their post had been abandoned. That’s when I sent word out to you, sir. But when the messenger failed to report back, I assumed she had either deserted too, been detained, or ...” He hung his head either in shame or remorse, or both.
Lucifer placed a hand on the man’s shoulder. “Take your time, Aquifas, but I need to know every last detail.”
“I... I... I didn’t want to leave our station without your permission, sir. So, we stayed.”
Diana’s gaze flicked to Lucifer. His troops had needed him, desperately, and he’d been stuck playing the diplomat with her father. And because of her, he’d been delayed in reuniting with his soldiers, and prevented from checking in with his own legions. They’d remained here, only for more of them to be taken or killed. She still held out hope that some—most—were alive... somewhere.
“When help did not come, I tried one last attempt to reach someone for assistance. Five hundred angels were sent out in all directions. None returned. I’m guessing since word finally reached you that at least one made it to safety.”
His violet eyes looked hopefully at Lucifer, who nodded for him to continue.
“That’s when the real terror began.”
Oh, dear heavens! Diana didn’t know how the story could get any worse.
She was wrong.
His tale was both a horror story and a mystery. No angel had been allowed to leave the safety of the liminality. The space was quite vast considering it was between realms, with plenty of space to wander, so they weren’t on top of each other in the small circle they now stood in.
But each night, more angels went missing. Sometimes fifty at once. No signs of struggles. No blood. Their weapons left behind.
“That’s when I sealed us in. I’m afraid to say, sir, that we cowered here like frightened sheep.” He raised his chin a little higher. “But we would never willingly leave our post. Not without permission.”
He kept coming back to that point—he would not consider leaving without permission. Despite the horror being inflicted upon them, despite the obvious danger of annihilation, they’d stayed. Even Ares—a true asshole of a general who would throw away soldiers’ lives just to work out his anger issues—would’ve understood if his legions retreated when faced with a comparable situation. His troops knew it as well. At least, Diana believed that to be true. She’d never heard of such a situation to have occurred.
Several moments of silence passed. Diana feared Lucifer was gearing up for another rage episode. She felt the cold nausea of grief wafting off his aura. Underneath it was the stronger energetic punch of determination. He had been dealt a great blow. Any commanding officer would be bereft at the news. She had only known Lucifer a brief time, but she could sense he took the losses personally. The angles of his face had sharpened with every word from Aquifas’s lips.
But this was the revered, renowned Archangel of Light... it would take much more to douse his spirit. Of that fact, she was certain.
His voice came out clipped, but sympathetic. “I was informed hundreds of dead angel bodies had been discovered.” His fists clenched and unclenched slowly. “How were they found? What has been done to track down who or whatever is responsible?”
“I was not aware that any were found. This is new information. One of the messengers who did not report back here must’ve lived to send the news to others who could help.” His eyes had rounded with newfound hope.
“Olivier found me on Olympus. He is the one who shared the news.” Lucifer steepled his index fingers under his chin. “But he did not give us reason to believe it was this”—his gaze went around the small group—“bad.”
“Sir, please tell me you brought more troops. Where is Olivier? Wouldn’t he have come with you?” His gravelly voice cracked. Despite being a seasoned general, Aquifas was showing signs of desperation. He was near the end of his capacity to keep it together.
More troops? Yes, that would’ve been a promising idea, but Olivier had made it seem like more of a hunting expedition, more of a search and rescue, and not a military assault.
Diana wasn’t prepared for battle. All her hunting equipment had been lost. Not even a lone arrow had survived the trip. Her only weapon—the dull dagger Puck had placed in her hand earlier—was all that remained.
And Olivier? Who knew what happened to him? Maybe he’d been zapped by lightning.
“We were led to believe the situation was not quite as dire as it apparently is.” Lucifer began pacing around the circle. “We were misinformed.” He glanced up at Diana. “I’m sorry. It seems I’ve brought you into another perilous mess.”
It didn’t pass Diana’s attention that the general also cut his gaze to her. But his narrowed eyes held suspicion and distrust.
“Which, sir,” Aquifas began, “is why when the goddess broke through our security, I assumed her reasons were nefarious in nature.”
Well, yes, that did make sense. If something were hunting me down and stealing everyone around me without so much as a squeak, I’d be wary of angelically sealed codebreakers.
Not that it had been difficult at all. She’d just raised her hand to one of the symbols. They needed better security. Aphrodite had better ciphers for her shoe closet.
Lucifer’s voice boomed through the vast space. “Your assumption is incorrect, General. The goddess is here to assist us. Since my own legion has shown itself to be too inept to track down the culprit, and too stooped in bureaucratic regulations that you chose to sit on your asses and be victims instead of elite warriors who know when to step out and when to retreat, we have lost five thousand or more angels... most, if not all, since their names have been stricken from the divine rolls of Heaven.”
The general stepped back, his eyes rounded, and mouth opened in shock. “The... their nam... names have been erased?”
“Yes!”
