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LAUDON'S POV

Laudon barely acknowledges his father, the only person on his mind being Maggie as he launches himself across the arena to be with her.

The panic brewing inside of him only subsides by a minuscule amount when he pulls Maggie into his arms, breathing her in as she hugs him back just as tightly. The scenario rapidly unraveling before him is exactly the scenario that he did not want happening. His plan had been to keep Maggie far, far away from his father by any means necessary. He would have somehow figured out a way to break the spell that ties her soul to Hell, preventing her from having to find a replacement. But now all his plans have been doused in gasoline and set on fire.

Lucifer's senses are sharp, and his intuition rarely led him down the wrong path. He will have many questions for Laudon after this battle is over, and there will be no lie that Laudon can tell that will be convincing enough to draw Lucifer's attention away from the not-quite-human girl who currently stands next to the spirit of his formerly imprisoned mate.

"Maggie." Laudon's mouth lightly grazes her ear, causing her to shudder in his embrace. "You really shouldn't be here, love. It isn't safe..." Laudon pulls back just enough to cup her face, his red eyes scanning for potential missed injuries. "You and my mother need to leave immediately. You still have time to get away from—"

"I'm not going anywhere without you. Your fight is my fight," Maggie replies, her voice stern and decision final. "We're in this together, okay?"

Laudon can do nothing but sigh and submit, resting his forehead against hers. "Together."

Before their conversation can continue, Lucifer whistles loudly, redirecting everyone's attention back to him as the shaking of the ground concludes.
"This is not at all the warm welcome that I thought I would receive upon returning home."

Lucifer takes his time looking around the room, his gaze lingering on Neira for several beats before eventually moving on. When he reaches the elder demons, he pauses, his black eyes narrowing at the five unfamiliar faces. Saying nothing, he snaps his fingers again. They explode where they stand, blood and a few pieces of flesh flying and landing on Zul.

"I have so many questions that I am not sure where to start..." Lucifer sighs, then looks at Zul. "Old friend, it appears that you no longer approve of my son being in charge while I am away on business. Please explain to me the reason why you felt the need to challenge him for the throne, and why you believe that you could do his job better."

Zul had not been prepared for any of this and it shows on his face as he respectfully bends the knee to Lucifer. He thought he would have taken Laudon out long before now. He thought he would have had a lot more time to come up with a proper excuse for why he felt the intense need to kill the king's son. Lucifer's unexpected arrival has undeniably thrown Zul off track, effectively massacring what little optimism he had left at taking the throne.

The regret that Zul feels for continuing on with his foolish plan to poison Laudon instead of simply backing down after hearing the news that Lucifer was returning now weighs heavy on his battered shoulders. The burning desire to pay Laudon back for having banished him to the seventh circle of Hell as punishment for what he had done to Maggie's friend, at the time, far outweighed the logic of him being patient and striking when the time was right. His timing had instead been way off, and now he may very well lose his head for it.

"My reasoning is simple, my king." Zul keeps his eyes on the ground, speaking clearly and with composure. "Your son has become smitten with one of God's toys, the same one you see wrapped around him now. She recently performed one of Castor's rituals and owes Hell a soul, something she has yet to give. The most interesting part of all this, however, is knowing there is more to her than what meets the eye—"

"Father, you cannot listen to that liar! Please let me try to explain instead." Laudon swiftly interjects before Zul can reveal the fact that Maggie is not entirely human and possesses powers. Laudon gives his father the abridged version of his relationship with Maggie, admitting that they got close while she worked to uphold her end of the deal that they had made.

"She is an innocent who had no idea that the ritual she performed was real," Laudon finishes. "I cannot in good conscious take her soul over such a trivial mistake. If that makes me weak as a leader, then so fucking be it."

Zul raises his head, shooting Laudon a fleeting look of utter disgust. "My king, is it not clear that he is in love with that girl? That is one of the reasons why I challenged him for the throne. Your son is not the leader that he once was, and half of the time he barely lifts a finger around here when it comes to putting in real work. He has become weak, increasingly selfish, and—"

"Enough." Lucifer raises a hand, cutting Zul off. "I appreciate your honesty, old friend."

Lucifer casts a dark look Laudon's way, sighing heavily in frustration because he knows Zul spoke nothing but the truth. Laudon is indeed in love with the girl, perhaps they might even be mates. It would be an extremely rare pairing but not impossible.

Though not officially documented, Lucifer has seen a handful of cases where demons and angels have found their matches in humans. Those who had been unlucky and had their secret relationships exposed were swiftly eliminated due to the law that forbids the races from bonding with their opposites. Many probably still live in hiding, naively risking their lives for love.

Lucifer will never allow his son to succumb to such a miserable fate.

"My son, your words have told me all that I need to know." Lucifer maintains eye contact with Laudon while walking towards him. Dressed in expensive fabrics, looking both stunning and regal, Lucifer is just as handsome as Neira had remembered him to be... and still just as ruthless. "It is a perplexing miracle how your mother is here with us right now, and for that reason alone, I will forgive you for sorely disappointing me."

Lucifer stands tall in front of Laudon, looking him over once before backhanding him hard.

Maggie screams as Laudon falls to the ground, blood running down his chin from his busted lip. Neira tries to interfere, but Lucifer ignores her, grabs Laudon by the throat instead, and takes him several feet into the air out of earshot from everyone.

"I think you do not fully understand just how detrimental it will be for the both of us if you proceed to entertain whatever connection it is that you think you have with that odd girl down there," Lucifer whispers, still holding Laudon by the throat. "The only reason why I am partially sympathetic to your unique situation is because I have already gone through it with your mother, my opposite. You know how our story ended. Do you really want to walk the same path as I already have? Because actually living a peaceful life together with that girl is something that neither of you will ever get to experience."

Laudon gasps for air after Lucifer releases him, barely resisting the urge to slit his father's throat. Had he not been tirelessly fighting with Zul, Laudon would not be half as passive as he is now with Lucifer. His main priority, after getting rid of Zul, is getting Maggie out of here. Only then will he properly entertain his father's fury.

"You're damn right about that. I know exactly how your story ended," Laudon replies. "I also know how it began. I know that my mother is an angel. I know that I am a halfling. I know that you are a liar. I learned many interesting things while you were gone, father. We can have a discussion about them later if you'd like. For now, I wish to finish my fight and put an end to that traitor down there."

Lucifer is silent for a full minute, staring intently at his son as he debates what his next move should be.

"Well?" Laudon speaks, breaking the uncomfortable silence. "Are you holding me hostage or am I free to leave?"

"What of the human?" Lucifer asks, ignoring Laudon's question. "There is something off about her..."

"She belongs to God," Laudon interrupts, desperately hoping the name drop is enough to deter Lucifer's growing interest. "Unless you are ready to go to war against Heaven, you will leave her be."

"Be that as it may, you cannot continue to see her," Lucifer replies. "I forbid it."

"What the fuck else do you expect me to do then?" Laudon snaps, barely suppressing the growl that rises in his throat. "Go on living my life and pretend as if I never met her?"

Lucifer smiles. "That is exactly what you will do. And in exchange, to show you just how merciful I am, I will break the spell that has brought you two together. She will be free from whatever obligations you had her under, and you will resume your duties as Prince. You will push everything about her out of your mind and, if you must, replace her with your dear friend Lila. Had you fallen for her instead we would not be up here having this conversation."

"This is ridiculous!"

"No. This is your only option for keeping that girl down there alive."

As painful as it is to accept, Laudon knows he has no other choice at the moment but to take Lucifer up on his offer. If only to keep Maggie alive.

"You must swear to me that you will not go after her when she returns to Edreial," Laudon says, looking his father dead in the eyes. "If I ever find out that you have, not only will I tear this kingdom apart level by level, but I will kill you, father. And I will not be merciful. This I promise on my life." Laudon calmly extends his hand. "Do we have a deal?"

Lucifer laughs, impressed, and shakes Laudon's hand. "We have a deal."

After they return to the ground, Lucifer keeps his word and undoes the spell that is linked to Brinton Forest. The bracelet around Maggie's wrist suddenly disappears, freeing her from the obligations that she had previously agreed to uphold, and effectively breaking the contract she had made with Laudon regarding finding a replacement soul for Hell.

"You will say your goodbyes to her after the battle is over, and then send her back to where she belongs," Lucifer says to Laudon, briefly glancing at Maggie before turning to finally embrace his mate. He kisses Neira, holding her gently as he whispers low enough to where only she can hear him. "You have no clue how long I have been searching for a way to free you from that dreadful prison in the sky. Tell me honestly, my beloved, because I sense that it is not permanent, how much longer will you be able to stay in this form?"

"Laudon." Maggie touches his arm, drawing him back into the present. "What does your father mean about saying your goodbyes? What did you two talk about up there?"

Laudon keeps his emotions in check, hastily burying his feelings as he pulls Maggie in for one final embrace. "I'll tell you everything later, I promise."

As he walks back out onto the battlefield, Neira immediately protests. "Lucy, please put an end to this madness! Can you not see that our son has been through enough?"

"Forfeiting a challenge is not an option down here, my dear. Those are the rules." Lucifer smiles at her, though his expression is apologetic. "You can turn away if you would prefer not to watch."

"You and your rules..." Neira sighs, shaking her head in disappointment. "After all these years, I see that you have not changed much at all."

Lucifer chuckles. "And neither have you, because despite who and what I am, you remain in love with me after all these years."

As Zul and Laudon pick up where they left off, Maggie finds comfort in Lila. The two of them vocally lend their support to Laudon, cheering loudly as he gets the upper hand on Zul.

Knowing what all is at stake if he were to lose, the biggest thing being him never getting to see Maggie again, Laudon fights even more aggressively during this second round. Zul's protection spells have long worn off and he is slower to react against Laudon's movements, making him more susceptible to basic attacks that he had no problem blocking earlier.

"Your time has officially run out, old friend. This fight is over," Laudon taunts as his body starts to expand, his transformation finally beginning. "And I pray that you never find peace in The Void."

Zul smirks, clutching the lethal wound across his stomach from when Laudon had sliced him open with his growing claws. "Your prayers will be for naught because I am positive that I will find peace in the afterlife, little prince. There will be a smile on my face every single day, and do you care to know why?"

"No." Laudon moves in on Zul after he drops to his knees in defeat, releasing the broken blade in the hand not pressed against his abdomen. "But if these are your last words, say them quickly. You have taken up more than enough of my time tonight."

"Very well." Zul laughs, coughing up blood. "I may not have succeeded in getting rid of you and your father, and my only regret is how hastily I acted. The plans that I had were poorly made and poorly executed, and I have no one to blame but myself for the way that things have unraveled between you and me." Zul pauses, hanging his head and staring down at the dirt that is being painted black with his blood. "The reason why I know that I will find peace in The Void is because it matters not that you have won this battle..." Zul raises his head, puzzling Laudon with a sadistic smile. "You still lost the one thing that you care the most about. You will have to live the rest of your life knowing that I took it from you, and that there will be nothing that you can do about it."

Before Laudon can raise his hands to finish Zul off, having paid little attention to the nonsense that flowed out of his mouth, he makes the devastating mistake of underestimating Zul one final time.

Zul picks up the broken blade by his side and, with the most accurate precision, sends it flying across the arena. The screams that follow immediately after confirms that he hit his target. Laudon's expression drops, and the sound that he makes shakes the entire arena. Laughing maniacally, Zul closes his eyes and falls onto his back, welcoming death as Laudon rips him apart. It all happens within seconds, and just like that, the battle is over.

"Laudon, stop! He's dead..." Lila screams repeatedly, unable to pull Laudon out of all the pain and rage that he seems to have succumbed to. "Laudon, please! We need you over here! Maggie needs you..."

Laudon stops clawing at the severely mutilated body lying beneath him upon hearing Maggie's name being screamed by Lila. He turns around slowly at the feel of a hand on his shoulder, looking up and making eye contact with his mother. He suddenly remembers where he is and why, for a short while there, he lost his mind and tore Zul to literal pieces.

"I-Is she d...?" Laudon whispers brokenly, unable to complete the sentence. "I cannot go over there if she is. Please, mother..."

"She is still breathing, but if you wish for her to see another day you will get up and come with me. Together we can save her before it is too late."

Laudon nods and follows his mother. He has half a mind to break down again after he returns to Maggie's side. She is lying on the ground, her eyes struggling to stay open as Zul's blade protrudes from the center of her chest.

"W-What do I do?" Laudon stammers, visibly panicking. "How do we fix her? I can't... I don't know what to do! I can't think straight..."

"We first need to remove the blade." Neira pulls Laudon down to the ground with her, Lila and Lucifer standing off to the side watching them work; only one of them interested in seeing Maggie live. "Then we must work quickly to heal her."

Laudon is filled with so much dread that he feels as if he may soon choke on it. He exhales an unsteady breath as he watches his mother remove the blade from Maggie's chest. Blood pours out of the wound like water from a faucet, her caramel complexion progressively fading in color. Neira yells for Laudon to use his hands to cover the open wound while she places hers on either side of Maggie's head, passing onto the girl what little strength she has left.

"Now is when you must tap into the connection that you share with her," Neira tells Laudon. She then, very briefly, speaks to him telepathically. "I am not powerful enough to save her, my son. I can feel my spirit fading, and I will die soon... All this time, I thought it would be her who needed to save you, but it was you who needed to save her."

"Mother, I..." Laudon speaks aloud, shaking his head. "I-I don't think I can do this. What if I fail?"

"You will not fail, do you hear me?" Neira's golden eyes flash brightly before immediately dimming, her body sending a final warning that she is overexerting herself. "I love you, Laudon. I believe in you. Maggie believes in you, so you cannot fail her. Understand?"

Laudon has everything to lose by choosing to cower away from his mother's request. Rather than doing so, he trusts in her words and pushes past his instincts to use his demonic powers on Maggie, instead making an attempt to tap into the part of himself that he had never been given permission to explore.

He closes his eyes and thinks of his soulmate. Thinks of how beautiful she looks when she smiles, thinks of how giddy he feels when she is smiling at him. He thinks about the way that every minute feels like a blessing and a gift when spent in her presence, thinks about how her gaze strips him bare and forces him to confront certain feelings that, to his kind, would make him appear weak. He thinks about how her touch warms him from the inside out, how it makes him want to fall to his knees and serve her like the royalty that he sees her as.

Laudon thinks about the future that he and Maggie could potentially have together.

It is bright and glorious and filled with so much love and happiness that he can almost taste it. The images that flash behind his closed eyelids make him cry to the point where his hands begin to tremor, the tips of his fingers tingling with a new sensation that he has never felt before.

Laudon opens his eyes to see that his hands are encased in a bright yellow light. He can feel Maggie's body working overtime to restore all the blood that she had lost, her familiar blue light gradually making an appearance and mixing with his. Laudon makes eye contact with his mother, relief washing over him as they smile at each other.

Not much longer after that is when Laudon feels Maggie's body jerk, her eyes blinking open. He remains still as she raises a hand to his face, smiling at him in confusion and wonder.

"Your eyes... They're golden just like your mothers."

"Nevermind that, love. Tell me how you're feeling right now? Are you in any pain?" Laudon hesitantly removes his hands from off her chest, his new eyes widening in surprise because the skin showing from the hole in Maggie's shirt is without a scar. "I thought I lost you at first, then I saw that you were still alive, and I began to think that I was going to lose you all over again..." Laudon pauses, refusing to have another breakdown in front of his father. He can feel him watching their every move. "Never scare me like that again," he whispers to Maggie after pulling her into his arms. "Promise me."

"I promise," Maggie whispers back, smiling into his neck. "I knew you would save me. I believed in you and Neira. I felt you both..." Maggie looks around to find Lucifer and Neira standing off to the side having a heated discussion, the latter looking a lot more translucent than what she had looked before Maggie was stabbed. "Laudon, you should be with your mother instead of me. I don't think she..."

"I know she doesn't have much time left," Laudon replies, following Maggie's gaze. "She told me as much while I was healing you. I assume that's what she's trying to tell my father right now."

"Laudon, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault..."

"No. This is all Zul's fault and he's dead now." Laudon stands and teleports off the field, taking Maggie to his bedroom where they have more privacy.

After they get cleaned up, he lends her one of his shirts to wear and then takes her home. They sit in the center of her bed, holding hands while staring at each other. Neither wants to be the one to say goodbye first, both of them knowing the moment is soon to come.

"I promise not to be too upset if you end up forgetting about me a few weeks from now," Laudon jokes, trying to lighten the somber mood. Maggie sighs, not even cracking a smile. "Come on, love. Don't make this any harder than it has to be."

"After everything that we've been through, I refuse to believe that this is how things are meant to end between us," Maggie replies, moving to sit on Laudon's lap. She wraps her arms around his neck, stares into his golden eyes and prays that he can feel just how much she cares about him. "Your father made it obvious that he doesn't like me. I know that's why you were so quick to bring me back here."

"I'm sorry," Laudon whispers, snaking his arms around her waist and resting his head against her chest. "I had no other choice."

"What did you two talk about when he pulled you away?" Maggie asks, one hand stroking the back of his neck. His body tenses at the question, and she immediately regrets having asked it. "It's fine if you don't want to tell me..."

Laudon raises his head, meeting her eyes. "It's not that I don't want to tell you. I can't tell you."

"Why not? You know I can keep a secret, especially yours."

"This secret will break your heart, and I refuse to cause you such pain."

"Laudon..."

"I know you wish for us to be together. It's a wish that I share too, but I'm afraid the timing isn't right for us. Not at the moment." Laudon pauses, gently thumbing away Maggie's tears. "This thing with my mother is bound to destroy my father. All he ever wanted to do was set her free from Heaven, to live with her in peace, and now he must say goodbye to her forever. I'm barely keeping it together myself, so I can only imagine how he's processing the news that she is soon to die. Either way, my father knows about my feelings for you, and he will surely kill us both if he ever discovers that we've been sneaking around behind his back. As desperately as I want to be with you, I will always put your safety above my desires. I don't know how, and I don't know when, but I will find a way for us to be together. Until then, you must swear to me that you will go back to living your life as if we have never met."

Maggie shakes her head, crying harder. "That's impossible and you know it."

"You're right, but until I come back for you, I promise the wait will have been worth it," Laudon whispers before kissing her.

It is as explosive as he imagined it would be, so much passion and desperation rolled into one kiss. Multiple kisses. The sounds that Maggie makes as he does to her mouth what he wishes he could do to her body will later play on repeat in his mind when he returns to Hell and is alone in his bedroom, nothing but his thoughts to keep him company. When she begs for him to mark her skin as he kisses down her jawline, licking at her pulse point, he suddenly hears a voice calling out to him from Hell.

"Fuck," Laudon sighs, pulling back and reluctantly untangling himself from Maggie. He moves quickly to go stand by the door, putting distance between him and her bed. She follows. "I have to go..." Laudon flashes her a sad smile, caressing her flushed cheek. "My mother needs me."

Maggie nods in understanding. "For the record, I don't regret doing that stupid ritual anymore. I'm glad we met."

"Likewise. You're the best thing that ever happened to me," Laudon says, kissing her once more. "I'm sorry."

Maggie pulls back to look at him, her brows furrowing. "Sorry for what?"

"Everything." Laudon presses two fingers to her forehead and she immediately falls into a deep sleep, going lax in his arms. He returns her to the bed, carefully places her underneath the covers and sweetly tucks her in before turning around to leave.

When she wakes up in the morning, her powers will become dormant once more, and her memories of Laudon and his world will be gone.

. . .