“Lords and ladies gain esteem from their guards’ selfless acts of bravery,” Calix said, and he didn’t even look like he was being ironic. He was dead serious. “Twenty-five years ago, Lord Faris himself gave me my assignment. My mission wasn’t on the battlefield, however. It was smaller—and yet more important to Faris than any single battle against the demons.”
I waited for Calix to continue, and he didn’t waste any time.
“I worked alone. My assignment: to spy on Grace, Demon of Faith.”
“My mother.”
He nodded. “You were the reason for my mission, Leda Pandora. At the time, Grace was pregnant with you, a child of heaven and hell. I discovered that Grace spent her days in meditation, performing rituals of ancient magic. A fetus can absorb so much more magic than any baby, child, or adult—and Grace poured magic into you continuously for nine months. Specifically, these rituals saturated you in telepathic magic.”
Of all the powers gods and demons possessed, telepathy was their weakness. The strongest telepaths, or ghosts as they were often called, wielded the gift with far greater mastery than either gods or demons.
That’s why Faris was collecting powerful ghosts. He commanded them to look into the past and dig up his enemies’ darkest secrets. He used them to see the present, all that was going on in all the realms. And he wielded them to look into the future so he could avoid losses and solidify victories.
At least that was what Faris wanted. Thankfully, the power of telepathy was not nearly so precise. His ghosts caught enough glimpses to give him an edge, but not enough to give him complete supremacy over every deity, supernatural, and human in the known universe.
But Grace had saturated me with telepathic magic for nine months. Her goal was all too clear. She’d tried to create someone with total mastery over time, someone who could see anything that had ever happened, was happening, or would happen.
In other words, a terrible weapon. And whoever controlled this weapon would control every world in the cosmos.
“Did Grace succeed?” I clutched Calix by his jacket, desperation seeping into my words. “Did she succeed in giving me this magic?”
“You are an unusual case,” he said, apparently completely unconcerned that I’d grabbed him. “In your natural state, your light and dark magics cancel each other out.”
For that reason, I’d grown up believing I possessed no magic. And now, with each stronger dose of Nectar and Venom, I claimed another power, another piece of my magic destiny.
“So I won’t know if Grace succeeded until my telepathic magic is unlocked,” I said.
“That’s right.”
I’d joined the Legion of Angels to gain the power of Ghost’s Whisper, the magic I needed to find and rescue my foster brother Zane. I’d worked toward this goal for two years. When I finally achieved it, when I finally acquired this magic, would I get more than I’d bargained for? I’d always thought that I made my own path, but maybe I was really following Grace’s plan.
“Good luck, Leda Pandora,” Calix declared. “You are surely going to need it.”
With that said, Saphira’s bodyguard walked away. The Lords’ Gala was coming to an end, its share of drama exhausted for now. My head was buzzing with so many thoughts; it wasn’t until Stash nudged me with his elbow that I realized the rest of the team had joined us.
“Another successful mission,” Devlin said with professional satisfaction.
And he wasn’t the only one satisfied.
“Glad you came along for one more job.” Punch punched me playfully in my arm.
At least it was supposed to be playful. In truth, it felt like being hit with a baseball bat.
“This was certainly more entertaining than the last Lords’ Gala,” Octavian agreed. “The most exciting thing that happened there was when someone sprinkled Devil’s Powder on the cupcakes.”
Devlin frowned. “We never did identify the culprit.”
Punch winked at me behind Devlin’s back. Nice to see he could find ways to amuse himself that didn’t involve brute force.
“I wonder if Saphira truly has enough support to take Valora’s place,” said Patch.
“I’d love to have front-row seats to that show,” said Punch.
“Did I hear that correctly, Punch?” A ghost of a smile touched Devlin’s lips. “Are you volunteering for another gala mission?”
“Only if Leda comes along. Nothing ever goes to plan when she’s around.”
Punch cheerfully slapped me again. At least this time, he hit my back, which hurt considerably less than when he hit my arm.
“That will be up to Faris.” Devlin looked at me. “Your service with Heaven’s Army is complete. You’re free to return to Earth now. I’ll write my report on you and send it to Faris in the morning.”
“So, how’d I do?” I asked with a coy smile.
“Let’s see. You revealed a scheming goddess’s deception, thereby averting a civil war. I’d say you did ok.”
“Just ok?”
“Pretty ok.”
“Is ‘pretty ok’ better or worse than just plain ‘ok’?” Arabelle wondered.
“What the hell do I know? Playing with words isn’t nearly as much fun as playing with fists,” replied Punch.
She frowned. “You would say that.”
“Of course I’d say that.” He thumped a fist against his chest. “And so would any self-respecting soldier.”
“I happen to know you do crossword puzzles when you’re off-duty, Punch,” Octavian said. “And that’s absolutely playing with words.”
“And? Doing crossword puzzles helps me prepare myself for battle.” A grin twisted Punch’s mouth. “Just like you always meditate naked before a mission.”
Octavian’s face flushed as red as his hair.
“You guys are so weird.” I wrapped one arm around Punch and the other around Octavian, and we all walked down the stone path toward the exit. “I never thought I’d say this about gods, but I’m really going to miss you.”
“Right back at you, angel,” Arabelle said, matching my smirk. “Come visit us anytime.”
“Just make sure to call first so we know to pack fireproof armor,” Octavian added.
Patch nodded. “And explosives.”
“And lots and lots of popcorn,” Punch said gleefully.
“Gods eat popcorn?” I asked in surprise.
“Leda Pandora, you spent a week with Heaven’s Army, but there’s still so much you don’t know about us,” Devlin said.
“I can’t wait to find out more.”
And the crazy thing was, I was completely serious. Though every step I took was bringing me closer to home, and though my life was back on Earth, a part of me wanted to stay here. I was the child of a god and a demon and had been raised as a human on Earth. I belonged nowhere—and yet everywhere.
I was Leda Pandora, the Protector of the Earth and the Angel of Heaven and Hell.
4
Home Again
The Legion’s Interrogators could have learned a few things about torture from my kitten Angel. Her technique was subtle, merciless, and never failed to get results. To wake me, she began by sitting on my pillow, curling her furry belly around my head. Soft and steady, the ripple of her purrs rumbled in my ears. After a few minutes of that, she’d begin poking me with her paw. Then she’d upgrade her attacks to nipping my face at irregular intervals. She would continue this barrage until I couldn’t stand it anymore and finally got up.