Thrones of Hell *Book One*

14. HELL TO THE KING

He walked into the room like he owned the entire world. Dressed in all black and chains he looked like the guy most of the girls at my college had their heart broken by. The man before me had pale white hair and the same captivating crimson eyes as Corson.

run, bow, beg, kneel---

"Vine," Corson growled as he kept a close eye on me.

Is he jealous of Vine? Why?

"Castor, take Proserpina back to the room," he commanded as Castor grabbed ahold of my wrist and tugged me along.

_________

When we made it back to the room Castor slammed the door shut.

"What was that," I asked, "who's Vine?"

Why was my demon scared of him???

"Don't let Lord Corson hear you say that," Castor snapped at me, his eyes glowed red for the first time. "Lord Caster doesn't trust Vine for a good reason."

"And that is," I asked impatiently as I frowned.

Should I be worried for Corson?

"Stop thinking like that. Corson will take it as an insult and he will punish you."

Should I be scared of Vine??

"Yes, if you're smart you will be," Castor stated as he sat down beside me on the bed. "You've only seen a small fraction of Corson's true demon form. He's one of the most powerful demons out of the five," he stated, "Corson controls the west of what you understand to be hell. His influence is great."

"So why is he afraid of Vine," I asked curiously. Castor shot me an angry look before he started discussing Vine again.

"Each of the five kings possesses power over their sections of hell and its armies. They also possess certain abilities. Corson probably wields his power the best out of all of them, he's also the king who sits on his throne the most. He, much like the other kings, are only to be summoned on the rarest of occasions."

"So, what exactly is Corson's rare gift?"

"He can control, influence and bend the will of what's around him. People, landscapes, time periods-- anything."

"Why didn't he do that to me?"

"I can't talk about that," Castor responded, his face turned blank.

"Why," I challenged, I felt my eyes burn red again and my claws elongate. Why do these people keep treating me like I'm a damn child??

Castor just ignored me and said, "Vine's commands come directly from Satan."

"And Corson's don't?"

"No, Corson is simply a king of hell. Vine is a pawn of the devil. He was gifted the power to steal whoever's soul he wanted, as long as Satan agreed. He's also extremely deadly and a known trickster, that's why he's Satan's favorite king."

I wanted to throw up.

"When he walked up something inside me screamed for me and run or bow or something," I gasped frantically.

"It's part of his gift. Vine can see the future, the past, the present, create storms and destroy entire villages. He's not to be messed with."

Fear tumbled through me.

"So Corson didn't want me around him because-" I prodded.

"You're the daughter of a powerful sorcerer. Your soul was innocent and pure. Corson's afraid Vine will try to take you as his."

"W-What does Corson do with my soul exactly?"

"Feed off of it. It's where the four get their power from, with the exception of Vine, souls fuel their powers and blood feeds their existence."

That explains a lot.

"And flesh?"

"Eating flesh is a pleasure thing for demons. It makes them feel powerful but some prefer it over blood."

"I do," I said without thinking.

"You're an upper-level demon," Castor responded, his eyes lit with humor.

"Am I," I wondered as I looked down at my claws.

"Corson made you, so I'd say yes," he chuckled "you really didn't know? Do you even know why you're here?"

"I sold my soul."

"That's not why you're here. Plenty of demons stay on earth to feed and torment humans."

"I'm Corson's prey," I guessed again, still unsure.

"You're Corson's bride," he corrected "what do you think happened when you bit Corson?"

"He bled," I guessed innocently.

"Union of flesh," he laughed "literally."

No, no, no, no---

"Don't. It's too late now to back out."

"I didn't agree to this," I sobbed as tears ran down my eyes. I swiped my hand across my face in an attempt to clear the tears away but when I looked at my hands I saw blood. "Am I crying tears of blood," I gasped loudly as I flicked my hand in an attempt to get it off of me.

"Yes, and the more you waste blood the hungrier you'll become."

"I'm married," I screamed "to a demon. A demon who forced me to give him my soul."

"That might not have been his best moment," Castor sighed "but you'll find Corson was justified in his actions."

Justified????

"He stole my soul," I screamed in Castor's face.

"Happens more than you think here," he brushed off with laughter.

Just then, the door slammed open to reveal someone drenched in blood and oozing power.

"Corson."