Afterlife (Purgatory Series Part Three)

Chapter Seventeen: One day to live and die

Chapter Seventeen: One day to live and die

Two weeks later

My eyes burned from crying and my lungs ached from screaming. Restraints bound me to the ground on my knees and a heavy chain around my neck kept me in a constant bow. Pools of bile, tears, and blood were scattered around me.

I wasn't sure how long reverted, original vampires could survive torture, especially without ingesting blood, but it seemed Delilah was determined to use me to find out.

After losing Gabriel, none of the nephilim or angels were eager to help me out of my predicament. I honestly couldn't blame them. He had been pure, an innocent soul, trying to rescue humanity from an evil hoard of monsters. I should have sent him away. I should have protected him. There were so many things I had come to regret. But his death would haunt me forever.

Though I had expected the angels to ignore my pleas for help, I hadn't expected to lose contact from all of my friends and allies. But since the demons had dragged me here I hadn't heard a peep from anyone. I had originally assumed Delilah had taken Roran and Altair, but she took great pleasure in constantly reminding me that she had nothing to do with it and that they had abandoned me of their own free will.

It had been hard to believe at first, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Altair must have found out about the Aerie being in danger and he and Roran probably went to warn their people. It had probably still been day time so they would have had to leave me behind. I got it. I understood. Whatever.

I was done caring. About all of it. I just wanted to die and go back to purgatory.

A cynical laugh escaped my lips. Who would have thought I would have wanted to go back there after everything that happened? But I had given up on my 'mission.' There was no point in trying to help anyone when I couldn't even save myself.

The click of heels on stone caused me to cringe in fear and dread. Delilah had returned for another round it seemed.

"Good morning, dearest," she called, her voice echoing into the open air. Digging her nails into my chin, she yanked my head up so that I could meet her eyes. "How are we feeling this morning? Miserable? Good."

I could only grunt in pain and glare, hoping that if I made her angry enough she might end it.

"I've got wonderful news for you today," she continued on, ignoring my look of hatred. "I'm letting you go."

For a second, I thought it was some cruel joke. But then the sound of a metallic click echoed in my ears like a gunshot and as I felt the weight of my chains lift from my body, I realized I was free. My throat was too raw from screaming to ask any questions, but Delilah seemed to know them before I said them anyway.

"You're wondering why I'm setting you free. Trust me, it isn't out of mercy, or pity, or anything like that. It's actually the opposite."

She moved back around to squat in front of me and if I had had the strength I would have ripped her throat out. As it was, I hardly had the strength to breath and blink.

"You see, dearest, everything is finally ready. Today I will finally accomplish what I started so many years ago. Cambion will rule the earth and there is nothing and no one to stop us."

"You're crazy," I finally gathered enough energy and willpower to say.

Delilah smiled, but it was full of wrath and malice. "Am I? We will see. History is written by the victors and today, after we've annihilated every last nephilim, that will be us."

I shook my head, refusing to believe it.

Her eyes glittered manically in the low light and I shivered at the triumphant look on her face. "And you, who have been a giant thorn in my side, will finally get what is coming to you. I'm going to cure you. I'm going to make you human again, just so you can last long enough to see all of your friends die. To see everything you love fall away. And the best part is, you've lost so much blood and your body has been through such trauma, you won't last longer than a few hours as a human."

Before I could protest, or even move, a syringe was injected deep into my vein and from the agonizing burn searing up my arm, I knew. It was phoenix blood. It didn't take long to spread, my skin becoming ashen and flaking where it burned me from the inside out. My entire body felt as if it had been dipped in lava—or acid.

I was too tired to fight, to struggle, or even writhe in pain. Praying for unconsciousness to take me, I closed my eyes and clenched my teeth together to keep from screaming. My only thought as I finally drifted off into the black was:

Where had she gotten the phoenix blood?

_

I woke to the sharp sting of frost on my skin and the taste of blood congealing against my teeth. The latter wasn't surprising. In the last year I had been on the receiving end of enough carnage for that to seem almost commonplace.

Fragments of memories flashed behind my eyes, but none that would explain what was happening to me. Realizing I would never find the answers in my head, I pried my frozen eyes open and flinched as snow and ice fell into them.

My hands were tinged a deep purple and felt completely numb as I brushed the snow away. I must have been unconscious for quite some time. The snow surrounding me was at least two feet deep, and unless there had been a freak blizzard it would have taken hours to accumulate.

I inhaled a deep breath and froze in horror as I felt my heart stutter to life. Panic filled me and I shoved my hand underneath my shirt. The soft thud of my heartbeat against my palm told me everything I needed to know.

Gabriel's theory about the phoenix blood had been correct. I was human again.

"Well, shit."

Staggering to my feet in disbelief and dread, I caught sight of the last thing in the world I wanted to see. I had somehow been transported very close to the front lines, where hoards of vampires, demons, and goblins amassed on the horizon all ready to go to war.

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A/N: I know this is short. I'm trying to get back into the habit of updating regularly now that my schedule is calming down a bit. Hopefully, starting next week I can start posting twice a week and editing what I already have. I would appreciate any encouraging words or comments you have, as it's been a trying few months and this story feels so complicated and frustrating now that I haven't looked at it in some time. Thanks for being patient and being supportive.