Chapter 25: Hell, Heaven, And Earth

Kaiden departed without a word from the boys, leaving Luka without the opportunity to inquire about his connection with Leviathan. However, Luka's mind was consumed by thoughts he couldn't comprehend, and he didn't even consider voicing his questions.

William shared the same sentiment. The blood bond they shared was an incredibly powerful bond, one that few supernatural siblings had the privilege of experiencing. Yet, here they were.

Luka was the son of Julia and Samuel, while William was the son of Esme and Adrian, and he also had a twin sister named Maria. The idea seemed ludicrous. How could they be siblings?

"We're not—I mean—obviously, that can't be true, right?" Luka stumbled over his words. "There must be some mistake."

"We need to find Jonathan and Xavier," William asserted, nodding to himself. "Then we can discuss The Prophecy, and everything will make sense! No need to confuse ourselves, agreed?"

"Absolutely!" Luka nodded fervently. "We don't need that. Not at all."

"But we will eventually talk about it, right?" William cast a nervous glance at his friend.

"Definitely." Luka felt his own nerves creeping in, even though this was supposed to be the least of their worries. "Absolutely. Let's find our soulmates!"

"Let's do just that." William nodded anxiously, and together they rose to their feet. "Should we inform them about this too? I mean... they will sense the bond between us, surely. In fact, they might have felt it before."

Luka let out a sigh. "We can't ignore this, can we?"

William wanted to discuss it, to understand what was happening, but he convinced himself that he didn't want to know. The truth was, he was afraid for Luka.

Overloading themselves with too much information in one day, combined with the stress of everything else, wasn't beneficial. Especially considering the life growing within William at an unnaturally rapid pace.

"We should," William finally agreed.

"But we can't." Luka's gaze locked onto William's, leaving him no choice but to concur. "We should bring this up with Xavier and Jonathan. They might be able to help, I hope..."

"Perhaps." William nodded in agreement.

They made their way to the Throne Room, where they knew their soulmates would be waiting. Luka's right hand rested protectively on his stomach throughout the journey. William noticed but refrained from commenting. He found it both fascinating and endearing to witness Luka already developing maternal instincts.

In the comfortable silence between Luka and William, Luka allowed himself to momentarily escape from The Prophecy and their myriad of concerns. His thoughts wandered to River, contemplating their future appearance and the life they would lead. In that moment, Luka realized he would do anything to ensure their child wouldn't have to grow up in such a world.

"Luka," William's voice brought Luka back to reality. He had stopped in front of the gates. "Should we knock or...?"

"Nah," Luka replied with a small smile, opening the door. Inside, besides Jonathan and Xavier, five other demons sat around a table, all of them turning their attention to the two half-angels.

"We should have knocked," William muttered under his breath, and Luka struggled to stifle his laughter. But even though Luka had a more reserved side, he blushed easily, and words often got stuck in his throat.

Before anyone could react, Xavier stood before his soulmate and planted a gentle kiss on Luka's forehead. "Hello, my love."

Jonathan followed suit, joining his own soulmate's side. Just as he was about to bend  down, William playfully halted him with a smirk. "No PDA."

"What does PDA mean, anyway?" Jonathan grumbled, though he adored William for all his quirks.

"Ahem, Lord Lucifer," one of the demons with pitch-black eyes spoke up.

Xavier gestured for Jonathan to find a seat for William beside him and mumbled a few words under his breath.

That's how Luka found himself seated next to Xavier on another Throne Seat, which symbolized the equal power of Lucifer and his soulmate. William also sat beside his soulmate, who held the second-in-command position and possessed the same level of power as Jonathan.

Throughout the process of arranging the seats and settling down, Luka remained silent, as did the other demons. Their eyes simply followed Lucifer's soulmate, scrutinizing his every movement.

"Ahem, Lord Lucifer," the same demon spoke up once more. Luka couldn't discern where his gaze was fixed, but it made him uneasy, knowing he was being stared at like the others.

"Is something wrong with your throat, Mammon?" Xavier responded calmly, his left hand clasping Luka's right.

Luka bit the inside of his cheek, trying not to laugh, and he had a feeling William was doing the same.

"So, that's your soulmate, huh?" Another demon—whom Luka identified as Abaddon due to his striking two-colored skin—remarked, phrasing it as a mere question, devoid of rudeness. "And that one is yours, Asmodeus? Hmm."

"Your soulmates seem rather impolite," another demon—Sathanas, Luka recognized—commented, addressing both Xavier and Jonathan. Then he turned his gaze directly to Luka. "Acting as if he owns the Throne Room by simply opening the gates."

For the first time since arriving in Hell, Luka felt the familiar discomfort and self-consciousness he had experienced during his time on Earth and in Heaven.

Xavier's eyes glared at the demon, but this was the High Council, so he couldn't yell at Sathanas or throw him out. However, that didn't mean he couldn't crush him with words.

But there should be no reason for him to raise his voice. Sathanas shouldn't dare to speak to Luka in such a manner. Luka was Xavier's equal. Luka was the King of Hell just as much as Xavier was.

"Apologies," Xavier's words were intended to crush Sathanas. "How dare you address your King like that?" Lucifer didn't yell, yet his words carried enough force to achieve the same effect.

"Apologizes, my King," Sathanas sneered, but Xavier couldn't say anything else, as he didn't want the Throne Room to burst into flames. And Luka didn't need to witness a fight. Perhaps later...

"Luka is my soulmate, and I expect all of you to treat him with the same respect you give me," Xavier's voice resonated with authority. "And William is Asmodeus's. Any harm that befalls our soulmates will be seen as an offense against us. Is that clear?"

Numerous "Yes" and "Of course" echoed throughout the room. Luka felt his cheeks flush with indescribable emotions that eluded his understanding.

"Ahem," Mammon interjected once more, causing Xavier to roll his eyes.

"Speak, Mammon, but if you're unwell, then leave."

Should I listen to him? Luka silently conveyed the question to Xavier through their soulmate connection. It was a realization that they could communicate this way, and Xavier responded in the same manner.

Yes, Xavier replied mentally. This is important, and I believe it may be related to the trance your body experienced that day.

"As I was saying before I got interrupted," Mammon continued, his voice measured to avoid offense toward the holy creatures in the room. "We are here because there have been some... inconveniences in the main dimension.

"As much as we'd like Heaven to suffer―" Surprisingly, the demons present groaned, prompting Mammon to change his wording. "―As much as I'd like Heaven to suffer, we can't ignore what's happening. This is starting to put pressure on our demons' missions, and we can't corrupt people as easily as we used to."

Luka raised an eyebrow at Xavier, and he shrugged slightly. "We need new demon races sometimes."

"And, as you all know, this problem is not limited to the main dimension alone. We have heard reports of many other dimensions facing difficulties in their normal routines.

"That being said, Hell and Heaven have always been on the verge of war. Although most of Heaven is unaware of the Hell's Mansion in the main dimension, which delights me, it won't be a fair war."

"Excuse me?" William interjected confidently, capturing everyone's attention, including Luka's. "I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but this war will be fair. I grew up in Heaven, and now I'm here. What do you think?"

"Do you believe you've lost your way and stumbled upon Hell?" Belphegor, one of the silent demons, chimed in.

"Obviously not," William scoffed, earning a proud look from Jonathan. "If I know of Hell, then many other angels in Heaven know too. And if anyone here is foolish enough to believe that the angels in Heaven will remain silent about this war, then Hell will find itself at a disadvantage."

"The kid has a point," Beelzebub nodded thoughtfully. "Your hatred for Heaven has blinded you, Mammon. You can't see the obvious truth right in front of you."

"Maybe we should seek the thoughts of our new King as well?" Mammon suggested, making Luka's throat feel dry.

Luka silently prayed to whatever force might be watching over him. Please don't let me screw this up.

His thoughts drifted to his uncle and father. His uncle wasn't a bad person and wouldn't want Luka to share this information with Hell.

Then he considered William, who might feel betrayed by Luka disclosing sensitive details to a room full of high-ranked demons.

He also thought about the angels in Heaven and the pain it would cause them, even though they wouldn't know Luka was the one who spoke up.

But then he thought about Xavier. Wasn't it fair for him to know? For Hell to know? If Hell couldn't have the element of surprise, then neither should Heaven, because at the moment, it all seemed to be the same.

Hell, Heaven, and Earth were all interconnected. Luka didn't want any of them to be destroyed, but if one side was going to fail, it should lose knowing that it was fair. And that was true fairness.

Taking a deep breath, Luka let go of Xavier's hand and removed his hand from his stomach. He intertwined both of his hands and placed them firmly on the table, exuding an aura of authority and confidence.

With one final breath, he knew he was breaking a potentially deadly vow, but he needed to explain the mission.

"Once upon a time..."