*Chapter 4*

~Lyna~

》Someone called Oblivion.《

"So you're telling me... that he told you there was a war coming?" We were just finishing with dinner, and washing the dishes.

It took him quite long to understand everything about being a devil, and what exactly the void was. There was also the matter of Zyan...

He listened to it all. No judgments. No complaints. No interruptions. Just a comfortable presence, and a warm hand. He was something like Cassian and Kieran, my brothers, mixed in one.

"Yes. I don't even know how he got into the void in the first place. No one knows how to get in there." I set my plate on the side, and moved my hair away from my face with my wrist.

I looked at him from the corner of my eye, only to see that he was looking at me too.

"And he wanted you to join his cause?" He wiped his hands on a spare towel, and leaned against the counter. We were now standing opposite to each other, leaning on the counters.

"Yes." Come to think of it, it didn't seem like a mere coincidence. It couldn't be a mere coincidence. There were too many things that added up together.

I said it aloud, and his eyebrows furrowed. He looked down and nodded.

"First, Zyan died. Any person would be able to guess the emotions that came after. Either rage, or emptiness.

They must've searched for any trace of a large number of sudden deaths, or dead worlds. Those were the cases that would've happened if I was angry. But they wouldn't have found anything.

Then, he came to the void. He clearly knew how to, it was just a matter of what timing to come at. What timing would be the best to convince me to join. What wording were the best to have thinking.

He came after Zyan's death. Convincing me when Zyan was alive would be entirely impossible.

Finally, he wanted me on his side.

Why? Because I couldn't die? Because I could wipe out an entire army with ease? Those are simple reasons.

For someone who had everything planned out, the reason shouldn't be a simple one..." I went on, and bit my lip as I thought over it. Mateas looked at me with raised eyebrows, and then looked to the side.

"What did he look like again? Any distinguishing features?" He seemed to be getting more tensed by the minute. I thought over it. There was no way I could forget how he looked.

"He had white hair... and one red eye and one blue eye." I pointed at my eyes as I talked about his eyes, and Mateas lost all the color on his face. His hand went back to the counter and his breathing slowed down.

"Mateas? What's wrong?" I tried to reach out, but I held back. My hand stayed halfway between us two, frozen. His eyes met mine, and I placed my hand on his. He shivered at my touch.

"It's him." He breathed out, and I looked at him in confusion.

"Who?" I questioned, and he shook his head as he looked to the ground. He was breathing hard shallow breaths, and I couldn't understand what was going on.

I placed my hands on his shoulders, trying to get him into reality.

"Oblivion." His voice was small, and he gritted his teeth together. My eyebrows furrowed, and I thought over it.

I had heard the name before, but I couldn't quite remember why and how. I looked down, trying to remember.

"He tried to kill my kingdom a while back. 7 years ago. We... we won. But so many died... that our streets were painted with blood. Bodies covered every inch of the streets.

We barely managed to win, my father had to call in help from another realm. Everyone in this world fought, but it wasn't enough to make him lose." My eyebrows raised as I heard the story. And then it clicked.

Krocus. The first world to connect with another, for the sake of a war. Before, only Sheol and Nirvana were worlds which were connected with the other worlds directly. They had to be, considering after death, a soul had to go to either of these two places.

But 7 years ago, Krocus connected with Arabagh. Another world entirely. Another realm. It was a story that spread like wildfire in the afterlife. They couldn't figure out how it happened.

The thing that shocked me, however, was that Oblivion's army was that powerful. If it was that strong 7 years ago... I could only imagine how strong it must be now.

"They had monsters on their side. Ones that... black shadows. They were faceless, formless. People died just by staying in their contact." He went on, and my mind raced. This wasn't good at all.

"Soul eaters..." I whispered, and his head snapped up. It was the only thing that could do that.

The worst part... was that it was a type of demon. One that only a 1st rank devil could summon.

To have a whole army of soul eaters would mean that he had to have Lucifer on his side. But that was impossible... because Lucifer was locked away. Kieran made sure of that.

But they had also killed Zyan, using heaven's blade. They killed Life, with a recreated weapon.

This wasn't a mere war.

"You know about them?" He asked me, his voice very low. I nodded, and summoned a small shadow. It didn't take much energy in general, but right now it was quite draining.

I remembered what a soul eater looked like, and made the shadow take it's form in my palm.

"Did it look like this?" I showed him the shadow, which was swirling and swaying in my hand, acting as if it were eating souls. His face lost even more color as he nodded.

"But how is that possible..." I muttered, and he looked at me in confusion.

"A soul eater. It's a type of demon. A very powerful one, which you may have witnessed. You have to be a 1st rank devil, a very strong devil, to be able to summon one. Maybe on par with Lucifer himself.

To summon an army... without Lucifer... that's another level of power. It should've left him crippled for life. For the next few lives.

But when I saw him, he was completely fine. More than fine. And he's a human..." I bit at my lip. It was too much to process. He was on my general level of powers, and I was stronger than all the devils.

He couldn't possibly be human. That much power would kill him.

"Is that a bad thing?" He asked, and I nodded. He ran a hand through his hair, his eyes dim and dark.

"He's out for war again. And this time... I don't think it's just one world." I swallowed and out a hand to my forehead as I listened.

"It's a war on the multiverse." I stated, and he sucked in a huge breath.

"What can we do?" His hands ran through his hair again, and settled on his neck. He looked up, worry clear in his eyes.

"We have to raise an army, but we don't have any idea of how much time we have." I tried to talk slowly, but my words came out in a rush. He blinked and sighed.

"But how? My father won't believe me, thinking I've just cooked up a story.

You're not quite in good health, not enough to actually prove your point. And as for other worlds..." I nodded as I understood. If this world's people wouldn't believe us, how would another world? And I didn't have enough power to create a portal just yet.

"I can assume that we have enough time in our hands." I raised an eyebrow at his statement. How could he assume that?

"Hear me out. He waited 4 years till he could approach you. He wanted you in his army most.

Based on that assumption, he's probably rounding up more powerful people as we speak. Those who need the time of convincing. Those who need the reasons.

He wouldn't want any chances to lose this time. He'll keep his army as big and as strong as possible. For that, he'll need time. He's waited for 7 years, he can wait some more.

In that meantime, we can gather proof. Maybe some ways of showing that he's coming.

Hopefully you'll be in full strength by then, and can gather your army as well." He placed his hand on his chin, and had his brows furrowed together. He said he wasn't ready to be king. With this level of thinking, he could take over his entire court.

"Maybe. That's in the case that we have some hope." I thought over it all again, wondering why his name was familiar. Oblivion... Oblivion... Azazel.

"His name. I remembered his name." I stated in shock, and Mateas looked at me.

"His name?"

"He was mentioned in the Gralia. The book of prophesies. The one who would destroy the multiverse. Azazel." I burst out, and he laughed in shock.

"Now we're getting somewhere!" He half yelled, and ran his hands through his hair again. I smiled, and nodded.

His arms were on my shoulders, and he smiled at me. I stood still in shock. He was about to pull me to him when the sound of a doorbell startled us.

I jumped back, bumping my back hard against the sharp edge of the kitchen counter. I winced, and rubbed at the sore spot.

Mateas looked at me in concern, and pulled me forward gently. His hands were rested just on the sore area, and he looked into my eyes.

I stared at him in confusion, when the area began to sting. I inhaled sharply, and then sighed in relief as the pain went away.

In any other case, it should've been me healing someone else, or even just me healing myself. It was nice to have someone else do it for once. Even if it was just a guy who knew me for a day.

I smiled at him, and he nodded, walking away to answer the door. My eyebrows furrowed as I remembered that he was a runaway prince. He said that no one knew about this apartment.

"Matt!" I called out just before he was about to open the door. He looked at me, a blank expression on his face.

"You're the prince here. You've run away. Let me open it." I reminded him, and he looked shocked, as if he had just realized it.

He may be smart in the matter of a war, but definitely not when it came to simple things.

I waited till he was in a hiding place, and then unlocked the door. My hair fell on my face as I opened it, and froze. It was a lady, in the royal uniform.

Her hair was black, and put up in a bun. Her eyes were a bright gold color, which made me wonder if anyone I've seen recently were human. None of them had remotely human properties.

"Yes?" I adjusted the hem of my shirt, feeling nervous. Well, technically it wasn't my own shirt, it was Mateas's. His pants didn't fit me, so I was basically walking around it an oversized shirt, since the shirts were quite loose for Mateas as well..

"Good evening. I am looking for Prince Mateas. Have you seen him, recently? And may I know your name?" I blinked. They had decided to search outside the city so quickly? I recovered quickly, and shook my head.

"No, I haven't seen him. I'm Lyna." It was way past time for his coronation, I could only imagine how furious everyone must be. She looked quite calm though.

"May I check inside the house please?" She held onto the door with her hands, the cool expression still on her face. Man, she must be good at gambling.

"But you don't have a warrant." I bit my tongue as soon as I said it. This was a monarchy, not a democracy. If the crown Prince was missing, then the royal guards had the right to check any house they wished.

"Darling, I don't need a warrant. Now if you would please step aside." She pushed the door open and walked right in. I looked outside the apartment, on the landing, near the staircase, but there was no one there. She had come alone?

"Quite a nice apartment, isn't it?" She said, while looking around. Her eyes were sharp, focused. I tried to keep myself from looking at where Mateas was hiding, the room I was rudely awaken in this morning.

"Yeah, it is." I followed her around, watching her carefully. She didn't leave any stone unturned, observing everything with detail.

"And you live here alone?" She asked again, leaning against one of the chairs in the dining area. I nodded.

"Yes." I answered, trying to make myself sound honest. Even being a devil, I couldn't lie smoothly.

"Oh really? That shirt doesn't seem your size. Must be a man's shirt." She poked at me with her baton, moving my shirt slightly upwards. I moved away from her, pulling it down again.

"He used to live with me. Now he moved away." I thought up some story in my head, and tried to make it feel real. But all it did was remind me of Zyan... how I used to steal his clothes. Hoe he used to catch me later.

"Hm." She said in a sharp tone, and began moving to the bedrooms. There were only two rooms, it wouldn't be long before Mateas was found.

She checked his room first, and came out quickly. I knew she found something in there, her expression was that of a detective who ha just solved a huge case. My hand ran over my face as she opened the door, and then froze.

"Prince Mateas. What a surprise." She stood in the doorway, right across from a very startled Matt. He blinked a few times, before smiling casually.

"Captain Nora. A pleasure." His eyes met mine, and he nodded his head slightly. I shook my head, I wasn't going anywhere.

"Would you be so kind as to come back to the palace and be crowned king?" Her tone was different with him, a soft, gentle one. He gave a sad smile, and shook his head.

"You know that can't happen." He threw his hands up, and sighed.

"It has to. That's why I didn't bring anyone with me. So that I could bring you back, and explain everything with ease. Do you want to get arrested in front of your people?" Her voice was now threatening, and hard. He was about to turn himself in when I yelled.

"You can't do that!" They both turned to me as I burst out, and I blushed. I backed away, and stood straight.

"You can't force him. He's not ready yet." I explained, and her calm poker face returned. She simply sighed, and looked down. And then took out a gun, pointing it at my head.

I froze, and began calculating. If she shot me, did I have enough power to heal? I mean, I would heal, no question. But would I heal on time? Did I have enough power to heal fast enough?

"Miss..." She looked at me, trying to figure out my name. "Lyna, was it? Miss Lyna. You have one minute to move out of the way before I shoot a bullet in your head in the charge of kidnapping the prince, and preventing me from taking him back to the palace." Her voice was entirely serious, and I stood my ground.

"Nora, no!" Mateas yelled from behind, and looked at me incredulously.

Nora simply pulled on the hammer of the gun, and rested her finger on the trigger.

"10... 9... 8..." She counted down, and I closed my eyes. Mateas yelled from behind, and she kept counting.

"7... 6... 5... 4..." Mateas kept protesting. I held myself ready for the incoming pain. I can't fight against her, I don't want any more people to get hurt because of me.

"3... 2... 1." I swallowed and held my breath.

And then the gun fired.