FALLEN ANGEL: MARRIED TO THE DEMON KING
Chapter 128: THE SHORT LIVED VICTORY

Chapter 128: THE SHORT LIVED VICTORY

The silence after the closure of the vortex was closed was painful.

There were no screams, no screeches.

Varziel hovered in the air, holding Arella in his arms. Her staff had disappeared after the eyes peeking through a crack disappeared. His hands were hooked below her knees, and her head rested on the crook of his neck.

Her halos were spinning slower, their glow faint. Below them the demons who had joined in on the fight stood battered. They held weapons in their hands, and many had collapsed to their knees from exhaustion.

Varziel’s gaze swept over them all, his soldiers, demons, many of who were considered low ranked demons. Few of the high lords would leave their homes, and many of them lived away from the palace.

Those who were present looked up at him, waiting.

There was no more sickly green tearing through the sky, no more intruders falling from the sky. He could now rest easy.

His grip on Arella tightened slightly as he lowered them slowly. He stopped just when they were close enough to the ground that the weary demons could hear his voice.

"Thank you." Varziel said simply, eyes landing on the generals who had fought with him. General Thaluzar’s hulking frame stood close to the front. His ashen gray skin was dotted with fresh wounds that he did not seem to take notice of. His hammer still had that blue flame burning at the tip.

General Nyssa stood a few paces away from him, Her hair had, at some point, fallen out of its ponytail and fell to her ankles in soft white waves. She did not look like she had just gone through a battle.

On the far end of the gathered demons were General Lilithia and her sorcerer battalion. Her lips were pulled down in a frown, and Varziel was sure she was itching to ask questions about how they had managed to close the portal, where she and her sorcerers had failed.

He turned his attention back to the demons. "You fought, when others would have fled, you stood beneath a cracked sky to fight enemies none of us have encountered before." The demons were quiet, letting him speak.

"Thank you." Varziel finally said.

The words felt too small for what they had endured, but he gave them anyway.

Arella’s breath was soft against his neck, the slight rise and fall of her chest the only thing reassuring him that she was still alive.

"You have earned rest. All of you." His voice carried gently across the gaggle of demons. "Those who are wounded can head to the courtyard closest to the north spire. There will be healers stationed there in a few minutes."

Sounds of assent floated in the air. A few demons began to stir, pushing themselves upright, or helping one another to stand. General Thaluzar gave a short grunt of acknowledgement before turning to bark orders at his unit, rallying them into motion.

General Nyssa did the same, but with a lower voice much unlike the booming voice that was General Thaluzar’s. The palace knights were also as quiet in their movements.

General Lilithia did not speak, but she stepped aside to let her sorcerers begin conjuring spells to help take the heavily wounded to the courtyard Varziel had instructed.

Many were injured, but from what Varziel could see from a glance, none of them had died.

Not that it mattered, he would get a full report soon anyway.

He looked up at Velmoria and the young lady of Darvia who were on either side of Arella’s brother. The angel looked worse than he had during the battle. Varziel had not noticed it before, but the angel’s robes were tattered, and his halo was much dimmer than Arella’s was.

The young lady of Darvia, who he knew to always smile, had a glare on her face, looking absolutely livid. "You fool," her voice became clearer as Varziel ascended, "what part of you are injured do you not understand. By the flames. Do you not know your own limits."

She raised the hand that rested on his shoulder and pinched his ear.

Castiel winced, but did not make any sound of pain. "They needed time," he rasped, "I gave it to them."

"We could have held them back." The young demoness snapped back. "I do not know much about angels, but surely your halo dimming as it is doing right now is definitely not a good sign."

Just when Varziel thought that the young demoness was done, she continued, "If I hadn’t flown in to catch you when your barrier collapsed, you would have plummeted to the ground to your death."

"I doubt I would have died from that height."

"Shush." Lady Darvia pinched his ear one more time, and this time, he yelped.

"I didn’t fall, because you caught me."

That gave her a pause, and for a moment, she looked ready to tear his ear off. But then, she exhaled, long and slow, the heat of her anger cooling into something softer.

"You fool."

"Indeed." Castiel did not deny her words.

Just then, as if Arella could sense that her brother was close by, she stirred faintly in Varziel’s arms. Her fingers twitched softly before curling around the fabric of his robe. Her eyelids fluttered open slowly, her lashes trembling against her painfully pale cheeks.

The dim light from her halos pulsed once, and a soft breathe escaped her lips as she whispered, "Cassie..."

Varziel looked down at her, smiling at the green color of her eyes. "He is here," his voice was gentle as the breeze as he loosened his grip on her, allowing her to lift her head.

Her gaze turned toward her brother, her eyes finding his instantly, "You idiot." She chided in a hoarse voice. "You should not have pushed yourself that hard."

"Look at the pot calling the kettle black."

Arella’s brow furrowed, "You were in a worse situation, do not compare us Castiel."

He looked ready to argue, but the young lady of Darvia gave his ear another sharp tug that made him stay silent.

Together, the five of them descended fully to the ground.

Reluctantly, Varziel let Arella’s feet touch the ground. She swayed, and he raised his arm to steady her.

She stepped forward slowly to her brother, raising her hands toward her brother and touching his cheeks. "Let me. Mother is not here to help expedite your healing," she murmured.

Golden light gathered around her fingertips, soft and warm, but far less brilliant than usual. The light spell was slow but steady.

"You always do this," she muttered quietly, "you protect everyone but yourself."

Castiel’s gaze softened, and he reached up to rest his hand gently over hers. "It must be a family trait."

"We must have got it from father." Her cackle was interrupted by a bought of coughing. Her knees buckled again, and Varziel was there in an instant, catching her before she fell.

"That is enough." His voice was kind, but left no room for disagreement.

Her hands slipped away from Castiel’s cheeks, and she let her eyes close once more. Varziel let her lean on him as he used his free hand to hook beneath her knees.

Velmoria stepped forward then, her expression uncharacteristically serious. Varziel had only ever seen that look on her face when she was trying to hide something from him. He did not try to pry, although he could clearly see what she was trying to hide.

It was in the way her hand lingered on Castiel’s skin, and in the way the young Lady of Darvia sneaked skin contact with her over Castiel’s shoulders.

"We need to get them to back to the palace to allow them to rest." Luck was on their side, as the battle had not drawn far from the palace grounds. Although Varziel wanted to chastise Velmoria for giving him a command, he actually agreed with her.

"Can you fly?" the young demoness asked the angel of water.

"Well enough to get to the palace grounds."

Lady Darvia obviously itched to tell him off for the white lie, but thought better of speaking up more in front of Varziel.

He glanced up at the sky, at the setting suns. Darkness was going to befall the demon realm soon, and he planned to have his wife tucked in bed before then. "Shall we?"