12. Enoch

12

ENOCH

I bolt down the corridor, my boots echoing against the cold stone. Lily stands at the end, hesitating in front of a door, her hand inches from the handle.

I don't slow down. I grab her arm and yank her inside, slamming the door shut behind us. My back presses against the wood, and I hear the guards outside, their footsteps pounding closer.

The door shakes as the guards pound on it. "Open up, traitor!"

I grit my teeth and tighten my grip on the door handle. "Lily," I say, my voice low and urgent. "If this is the end, it's a good one."

Her eyes soften, a mixture of fear and something else—something I desperately want to believe is love. "Don't talk like that," she whispers.

"No," I say, my voice firm. "I need you to understand. I love you, Lily. More than anything."

For a moment, the world narrows to just us. The guards' shouts fade, and all I see is her—her auburn hair, her bright green eyes, the scar on her cheek that I hate myself for causing. She throws her arms around me, burying her face in my chest.

"I love you too, Enoch," she murmurs against my skin. "I never thought I'd say that to a demon."

I chuckle, a sound that feels foreign in this moment of chaos. "Guess I'm not just any demon."

She looks up, her eyes meeting mine, and I can't resist. I capture her lips in a kiss, fierce and desperate. Her fingers tangle in my hair, pulling me closer. The taste of her is intoxicating, a blend of defiance and sweetness that makes me forget everything else.

As the door shudders under another blow, I tighten my grip on Lily.

The door bursts open, splintering under the force of the guards. I don't let go of Lily, don't even break the kiss. Our magic flares, a surge of heat and energy that makes the air around us crackle. I feel her power mingling with mine, amplifying it in ways I never imagined.

The guards charge in, weapons drawn, but they're stopped mid-stride. Their eyes widen, confusion turning to terror as they're lifted off their feet by an invisible force. I hear their screams, muffled by the rush of power that surrounds us. The room pulses with our combined magic, a living, breathing entity that bends to our will.

Lily's hands clutch at my shoulders, and I deepen the kiss, pouring everything I have into it. The world narrows to just us, our bodies pressed together, our hearts beating in sync. The guards' cries fade, and I don't care what happens next as long as she's in my arms.

When we finally break apart, breathless and dazed, the room is silent. I look around, expecting to see blood and bodies, but the guards are gone. Not a trace remains, as if they were never here. Only the echo of their fear lingers in the air.

Lily pulls back slightly, her eyes wide with shock. "What just happened?"

"I don't know," I admit, my voice rough. "But it felt... right."

She nods, her fingers still gripping my shirt. "We did that, didn't we? Together."

"Yeah," I say, feeling a strange pride. “We did.”

We turn our attention to the small wooden box sitting in the middle of the floor. It wasn't there before, and its sudden appearance sends a shiver down my spine.

"Is that...?" Lily's voice trails off, but I know what she's thinking.

"The artifact," I confirm. "It has to be, I can feel it."

We approach the box, our magic still humming in the air around us but Bethana storms into the room, her golden eyes blazing with fury. She looks every bit the terrifying demon matriarch she's known to be and I can feel the weight of her power pressing down on us.

I step in front of Lily, shielding her with my body. "Mother…"

Her cruel eyes narrow, and a wave of dark energy pulses from her, making the room shudder.

"You've betrayed me. Betrayed all of us," she hisses, raising her hand, a ball of dark fire forming in her palm. "Now you'll die!"

I feel Lily's hand slip into mine, and a surge of strength flows through me.

"Maybe," I say, my voice steady.

Bethana's face twists in rage.

“You always were a smart ass,” she says and hurls the dark fire at us.

I brace for impact, but the wooden box containing the artifact suddenly glows, a brilliant light emanating from it. The dark fire dissipates, and the box opens on its own, revealing a shimmering crystal inside.

Lily gasps, her eyes fixed on the crystal. "What is this?"

Bethana's expression shifts from rage to fear. "No..."

The crystal pulses with light, and Lily's eyes glaze over as if she's seeing something beyond our reality. I hold her tighter, my heart pounding in my chest.

"Lily, what do you see?" I ask, my voice urgent.

She blinks, her eyes focusing on me. "I see... a life of peace. A world where demons and humans live together in harmony. No more hatred, no more fear."

Bethana recoils, her fear turning to fury once more. "Lies! There can be no such world!"

Lily shakes her head, her voice firm. "It's possible. We can make it possible."

I step forward, feeling the crystal's energy intertwining with our own. "Mother, you taught me that power is everything. But this is a different kind of power. One that can change everything."

Bethana's face contorts with rage and desperation. "You would throw away everything we've built for a dream?"

I meet her gaze, my resolve unshakable. "Yes. Because this dream is worth fighting for."

The crystal's light intensifies, and I feel a warmth spreading through me, connecting me to Lily in a way I've never felt before. We stand together, united by love and a shared vision of a better world.

Bethana's dark magic falters, and for the first time, I see uncertainty in her eyes. She looks at the crystal, then back at us, her expression torn between anger and something else—something that almost looks like fear.

"You're making a mistake," she snarls.

I shake my head. "I somehow don’t think so."

The room falls silent, the only sound the steady hum of the crystal's light. Bethana takes a step back, her power waning, and I realize that our love, our determination, has weakened her hold over us.

I pick up the small heart-shaped stone from the box, turning it over in my hand. It's smooth, almost warm to the touch, but it feels underwhelming given the legends surrounding it.

"This is it?" I ask, raising an eyebrow. "Kind of disappointing for something that's supposed to be so powerful."

Lily shakes her head, her eyes locked on the stone. "It's shaped like a heart for a reason. It reveals what it's capable of if it's not locked away."

I smirk, a spark of mischief in my eyes. "Alright," I say, feeling a surge of determination. "Let's see what this thing can do."

We stand close, our hands clasped around the heart-shaped stone. The warmth intensifies, spreading from the stone into our bodies. I feel Lily's pulse sync with mine, our breaths falling into a shared rhythm.

"Focus on us," she whispers, her voice steady. "On our love, our bond."

The stone begins to glow, a soft, pulsing light that grows brighter with each passing second. I open my eyes and see Lily's face illuminated by the light, her green eyes shimmering with determination.

"It's working," she says, her voice filled with awe. "Keep going."

The light envelops us, warm and comforting. I feel a shift within me, a tingling sensation that spreads from my chest to the tips of my fingers. My demonic features—the horns, the claws—begin to recede, replaced by something new, something different.

It hurts, but its somehow right.

"Lily," I say, my voice trembling with a mix of fear, pain and excitement. "What's happening?"

"We're changing," she replies, her eyes wide with wonder and pain. She doubles over and I grip her to me. "Neither demon nor human," she gasps. "Something... more."

The chamber seals itself with a deafening thud, a shockwave of energy blasting Bethana back into the corridor. The door slams shut, cutting us off from the outside world. I hear her scream in fury, but it's muffled, distant.

I look around, the walls of the chamber glowing with a faint, otherworldly light through my haze of pain. "The artifact must have activated some kind of protective barrier. We're safe. For now."

"Safe," she repeats, a hint of sarcasm in her strained voice. "In a sealed room with an angry demon queen outside. Something happening to our bodies that may kill us with the worst pain of our lives. Sure, let's call it safe."

I can't help but chuckle. "Well, it's an improvement over imminent death, isn't it?"

She gives me a wry smile then gasps in pain. "I suppose."