Garden Of Poison

Emily, feeling breathless, leaned against Raylen. She didn’t know what Nathaniel had done to her, but something felt strange, prompting her to close her eyes for a brief moment.

"Princess?" Raylen called out to Emily, his voice filled with gentleness as he noticed her wheezing. He set her down on the ground, allowing her to lean against the wall. "You crossed the line, Nathaniel," he said, turning his gaze on his fellow archdemon.

Nathaniel recovered from the shock of witnessing Emily shatter into fragments of ice, only to see her whole again a moment later. He inquired, "Crossed the line? I believe that’s what you are doing, coming between Emily’s and my union."

Raylen’s eyes narrowed, displeased with the words that Nathaniel spat. He remarked, "I don’t think you are thinking clearly anymore, because there is no union between the two of you. Have you forgotten that you rejected her and chose Layla as your soulmate?"

"Which your father clearly didn’t approve of, Raylen. The Devil showed me that maybe Layla was not my true mate, and I had to go to my actual soulmate." Nathaniel raised his hand, which clenched into a fist. "An eye for an eye," he added ominously.

"If you don’t like your eyes, you should have said so earlier," Raylen retorted, cracking his knuckles. "Unfortunately for you, my wife loves my eyes, and if there’s anyone who can have them, it is only her."

Nathaniel knew that if he was to take Emily, it would be over Raylen’s dead body, and he was ready to kill the Archdemon. Not only that, but Raylen’s death would bring him the glory of defeating the Devil’s son.

As anger and madness continued to escalate within the tower, Emily blinked, and in the very next second, an explosion rocked the tower, its walls crumbling and dust billowing everywhere. To shield herself from the blast, she instinctively raised her hand to conceal her face behind it. After coughing and eventually lowering her hand, she noticed an ice-like sphere that had formed around her, reminiscent of the barrier that had protected her earlier.

Another blow resounded, and Emily’s gaze moved in its direction to catch a glimpse of sparks emitting from behind the still-settling dust.

Raylen and Nathaniel found themselves locked in fierce close combat, their fists and legs flying at each other with intensity. On one side was the Archdemon determined to protect his soulmate, while on the other side was the Archdemon consumed by grief, seeking compensation for his profound loss.

"Emily’s soul belongs to me! It was destined for me, and I will use it how I see fit!" Nathaniel declared, only to receive a forceful punch squarely to his face in response.

Raylen’s glare only intensified, his eyes darkening, and he asserted, "I will make sure that you are put to rest so that you never have the chance to think about or lay eyes on Emily again."

Nathaniel raised his hands before placing them on the ground, and suddenly, the tower erupted as if struck by an earthquake. This violent upheaval also shattered the ice dome surrounding Emily. As the ground crumbled and gave way, sliding precariously, Raylen swiftly swooped in with his wings outstretched, reaching Emily just in time to prevent her from slipping into a searing pool of molten lava that had opened up below them before he carefully placed her in a secure location.

"Funnily enough, I couldn’t find any sympathy within me when I heard the news about your soulmate passing away," Raylen stated, turning around to see Nathaniel landing on the open ground.

"I am going to fucking kill you." Nathaniel’s expression twisted into one of agony.

"I keep telling people that you cannot kill something that is already dead. How foolish of you, Nathaniel. For an archdemon, you aren’t very smart, are you?" Raylen taunted the blond Archdemon, whose hands clenched into fists once more. "It makes me question the Devil’s intellect."

"Always the talker, Raylen. It’s been too long since you’ve set foot in Hell to think you have an advantage or understand what’s changed around here since your last visit," Nathaniel said before vanishing from where he had been standing.

Suddenly, Raylen was struck from behind as Nathaniel had apparated from one place to another in the blink of an eye. "Do you believe that merely being the Devil’s son grants you the upper hand?" Nathaniel taunted.

Raylen chuckled, licking the corners of his lips where blood had begun to ooze. He responded, "Indeed, I do. I call it being privileged. The privileged life of the Prince of Hell. What do you think?"

The more Raylen spoke, the more it infuriated Nathaniel. He growled angrily before surging towards Raylen with an intensity that threatened to burn anything in his path. However, the Prince of Hell was forged from the same fiery essence, and he deftly blocked Nathaniel’s onslaught.

Raylen caught Nathaniel’s enraged fist, yanking it forward and delivering a headbutt with enough force to leave the latter staggering, struggling to regain his balance. Taking the opportunity, Raylen turned and unleashed a forceful kick directly into the Archdemon’s stomach, sending him flying into the air.

Nathaniel suddenly materialised behind Raylen, running his hand through his back, which emerged from the latter’s chest. He said, "You could choose to step aside, Raylen, rather than provoke my anger and risk killing her."

"Like you did?" Raylen’s voice came from another direction, leaving Nathaniel utterly stunned again.

Nathaniel was certain he had struck Raylen’s weak spot, but when his eyes trailed down his arm, his eyes widened in shock. He hastily withdrew his hand upon seeing Layla, who turned to face him, her eyes filled with sorrow and blood oozing from her chest where his hand had pierced through her.

"L—Layla?" Nathaniel uttered her name with evident pain. For those brief seconds of seeing her alive, he had forgotten about Raylen’s ability.

Layla moved her lips, but no sound came out. As Nathaniel reached out to touch her face, she disintegrated into fragments of icy dust, scattered and carried away by the wind.

"Like it or not, Nathaniel, you are the reason your soulmate died," Raylen stated with not a trace of pity in his voice. He continued, "I used to think I was an unlucky person, but you have outdone me in that department." He clicked his tongue in disapproval. "First, you rejected the soulmate who was destined for you. Second, you ended up killing the person you chose to be your soulmate."

"I did not kill her! It was Viktor who killed her!" Nathaniel retorted, his anger flaring at the accusation.

"My father never touched Layla, nor did he even breathe near her. He did send Celeste to end her swiftly as retaliation for you stealing what belonged to him. But Celeste spared her," Raylen stated, his darkened eyes locked on Nathaniel as they stared at each other. "You brought death upon her soul first by bonding with her. You are an archdemon, and only those of strong blood can handle your blood within them. You forced the bonding, and she eventually fell ill, something you should have known would happen. Then, you stole and fed her poison with your own hands."

Nathaniel gritted his teeth as the pain in his chest intensified. He said in a low voice, "If my soulmate isn’t alive, then neither can anyone else’s..."

"Why don’t you try?" Raylen challenged, for Emily was his, and he would never allow anyone else to claim her.

"Don’t be so cocky when your powers aren’t on par with mine," Nathaniel spat, and in an instant, he apparated from where he stood, dodging Raylen and reaching where Emily stood. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com

Raylen swiftly pulled out a lighter from his pocket, flicking it open. In the next moment, flames erupted through the space, creating a barrier that prevented Nathaniel from advancing any closer towards Emily.

"I am cocky because I know what I am capable of," Raylen chuckled, encasing Nathaniel within a fiery sphere, not allowing him to apparate without being consumed by flames.

In one swift motion, Raylen swooped in before Nathaniel and plummeted the Archdemon into the ground beneath them. He grabbed Nathaniel by his collar and unleashed a barrage of punches on his face until blood began to splatter.

Emily stood there, watching Nathaniel, who showed no signs of wanting to stop with his attempts. In a way, it was sad that things had turned out this way.

"This is for thinking you could have her," Raylen said as he continued to rain punches down upon him. "This is for hurting her when she did nothing to you. Do you know the pain she endured while you completed bonding with Layla? She swallowed that pain in silence, every agonising bit of it." The onslaught of punches continued to fall like a relentless downpour.

Nathaniel groaned in pain, his hand moving in the direction where Emily stood. "My..."

"I am sorry about Layla," Emily expressed sympathy for her friend’s death, knowing she didn’t deserve it. However, she continued, "But your emotions are misplaced out of frustration. You should know better. She deserves to be remembered and not replaced."

The ground beneath Emily began to frost over, as if a sudden snowfall had occurred, and the icy terrain spread towards the two Archdemons. The barren trees around them were quickly enveloped in a layer of ice. Meanwhile, as Raylen held Nathaniel’s head firmly in one hand, his other hand came to rest on the latter’s shoulder.

"Seriously, what were you thinking, going after another man’s woman?" Raylen’s head tilted in incredulity before he violently tore Nathaniel’s head from his body. He callously threw the severed head into the fractured ground, where the molten lava bubbled below.

Raylen rose to his feet, turning to face Emily with his blood-marred face, and said, "It is finally over."

Emily walked to where he was, her footsteps producing a soft, tinkling sound against the ground with every step. As they drew nearer to each other, unshed tears glistened in her eyes.

"Finally," she breathed out in relief, a sensation she hadn’t been able to experience in all these years. "Wait," she said, just as Raylen reached for her.

"What is it?" Raylen inquired, a slight frown appearing on his face.

"My hands, they are leaving frost on everything I touch," Emily informed him, concern evident in her voice as she didn’t know how to stop it. However, despite her warning, Raylen picked up her hands and gently placed them on either side of his face. "Ray..." she whispered with worry, noticing the icy texture forming on his face.

Raylen’s briefly closed his eyes, and in that moment, Emily heard a crackling sound and observed the ice frost that had formed swiftly evaporate. When he reopened his eyes, they met her worried hazel brown gaze, and he reassured her,

"There is nothing you can do that will ever hurt me. Nothing."

Emily let out a sigh of relief before jumping into Raylen’s embrace, wrapping her arms around his neck, and hugging him tightly. She held him close and expressed, "I was so worried." She wished to be nowhere else but with Raylen, she thought as she continued to hug him. She had expected Logan to come for her, but she hadn’t considered that Nathaniel would come after her too.

Raylen tenderly stroked the back of her head. He said, "I’ve got you, Princess. Always. And you did exceptionally well."

As his comforting words reached her ears, the ice around them began to melt and evaporate into thin air, gradually restoring the place to the way it was, with the exception of the fractured ground and the fallen tower.

"It appears my archdemons like to take out the other archdemons," Emily heard Viktor’s voice, causing her to pull away to look behind her, where the Devil stood in his signature black cloak. "First Magnus, now Nathaniel."

"I was just cleaning up for my future position," Raylen quipped, and his words were enough to spark a glint of approval in Viktor’s eyes.

"I suppose it can be overlooked." Viktor clicked his tongue, his eyes lazily shifting towards Nathaniel’s body, and with a single snap of his fingers, the Archdemon’s body turned into ash. "Also, daughter-in-law."

Emily’s eyebrows subtly arched in surprise, as it was the first time the Devil had addressed her in such a manner. She responded, "Yes?"

"I didn’t know you were so popular with so many men chasing after you," Viktor said in a dull voice. "Next time, you should say, ’Oh Devil!’"

What? Emily remained perplexed, not understanding what he meant.

"Anyway, now that you both are in Hell, you should go to your quarters and rest," Viktor suggested, more than eager to have them settled in.

Raylen had no objections, and neither did Emily, as they both wanted to rest before heading back to the living realm. However, before they could move away, a lowly demon materialised before the Devil, bowing his head deeply in respect.

"Forgive me for interrupting, Master," the lowly demon apologised and then informed, "A soul has entered Hell."

The Devil closed his eyes, as if he were rolling his eyes in exasperation, but he maintained his patience before stating, "Souls enter this realm every second, you dim-witted creature."

The demon fidgeted anxiously and clarified, "No, no! The soul belongs to a member of the Blackthorn family."