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“Bravo,” Lucifer called out. “Really, bravo. Touching. Wasn’t it touching?” I turned around, and there was the first Lightbringer, his hands clasped together, his head cocked slightly to the side. “I have to say, I’m moved. It was all a little cliché—but hey—a cliché is a cliché for a reason, isn’t it?”
“What is this?!” I barked at him.
“Isn’t it obvious?” he asked. “Entertainment.”
“Entertainment? Is this some kind of sick joke?”
“I’ve been locked up since literally the beginning of time. I’ll take a good joke wherever I can find it, and this seemed like a good one to me. Shame he didn’t do what he needed to do, though.”
“And what was that?”
“Kill you… duh. We’ve only been preparing for this moment since, well, since we got to this place.”
“You’re deranged.”
Lucifer touched his hand to his heart. “Ouch. That hurts, coming from you. After all we’ve been through?”
I turned around to look at Abaddon. “We need to get out of here,” I said. “We need to get away from this lunatic.”
“I think you’ll find he’s not going anywhere,” said Lucifer. “Are you, Abaddon?”
Abaddon hadn’t said a word, and his silence was… worrying. He also hadn’t looked down at me since Lucifer showed up. His eyes were fixed on the first angel, his gaze lowered, his jaw tight. I wasn’t sure whether he wanted to attack him or if he was afraid of him.
“Why did you bring her to me?” he asked, finally breaking his silence.
“Question asked and answered. I brought her here so you could kill her and get this whole business over with. Consolidate your power, your position. That kind of thing.”
“Why?”
“Why what?”
“Why extract her from Hell only to have her brought here where she would face almost certain death? I do not understand the logic.”
“Ah, right, because I told you I’d bring her back in exchange for your service… yeah, no, I was lying about that. I had no intention of bringing her back. I mean, not directly anyway. But she’s tenacious, I’ll give her that! She found her way out of that prison quicker than, well, anyone ever. I’ll miss her fighting spirit, but she just doesn’t fit in this world we’re building. You know that.”
“Why send those other minions disguised like her into my chambers, then?”
“To make sure you weren’t going soft on me. I mean, at first, I wanted to see if I could placate you with a doppelganger of our little Sarakiel here. But you didn’t fall for it, and you got so angry. The way you tore that shade to pieces was, oof, like a work of art. After that, well, I just enjoyed watching you kill Sarakiel.”
“You have to be the most inconsistent madman I have ever met,” I said.
“Sarakiel, my dear, I’m not inconsistent. I am a—say it with me—liar. I lie, and I lie, and I lie. It’s what I do. I figured, if you’re going to be branded as a liar then you may as well fit into the role and do the thing.”
I stared at him, eyes wide, my heart heavy. “You really aren’t at all interested in redemption, are you?”
Lucifer shrugged. “What’s there to be redeemed for? More importantly, who’s there to offer any kind of redemption that I can accept? God is dead, and even if She weren’t, I’m sick of trying to get back into Her good graces. It’s time I was the one calling the shots for a change.”
“You’re pathetic,” I snarled. “Even Medrion had more redeeming qualities than you do. At least he stood for something. You’re only in this for your own selfish gain.”
The Morningstar rolled his eyes and pretended to check a watch he didn’t have. “Whatever. Look, no offense, but I’m getting really tired of hearing your voice. Abaddon, take care of this, will you? We’re on a schedule.”
Abaddon’s jaw tightened and pulsed. “This is unnecessary,” he said.
“Maybe to you,” said Lucifer. “Look, I’m seriously done talking, here—and you know me, I love to talk. You’ve done this literally a hundred times. I’ve watched you kill this angel in so many different and impressively creative ways, what’s one more?”
“A frivolous display of violence. This isn’t my way.”
“As long as she lives, she’s a problem.” Lucifer paused. “Wait… are you refusing my command?”
