Ten Sickle Chains
Chapter 10
It took the better part of the week before Hera was mostly back to normal, and in that time Salazar had really stepped up. It was easy in moments like these to see why he'd wanted to become a teacher in the first place. He was perhaps more stern than she would have been, reminding her of Snape's style of teaching, but he was never needlessly cruel with how he handled a situation either. Perhaps he had developed his own methods after having watched how the two of them differed. It did seem that there was something that troubled him lately though, not that Hera knew quite what that could be.
“Alright, everyone. That's time.” Hera announced. Salazar gave her a stern look, knowing that she'd had to cast several charms to adjust her voice to that of a normal volume; it was still a bit high-pitched without them. “Stasis charms, and clean up.”
It didn't take long for them to clean up and clear out for their next class, and when they were gone Salazar rounded on her.
“Do you want to blow your vocal cords? Because that's what will happen if you keep pulling that stunt.” He argued. “The chalk board is literally right behind you. Use it.”
She used the spell he was referring to, making the chalk spell out ASS.
“How American of you.” He snapped, unimpressed.
What's wrong?
“When Tony says he'll stay in touch, he means it. Yes?” Salazar inquired. Hera nodded, because it was true. When Tony gave his word, he kept it. “What's the longest he's ever gone without replying to a letter?”
A couple of weeks. He says he likes that the bird mail gives him time to formulate his words properly. Why?
“It's been a month since he's responded to my last letter.” Salazar revealed, and Hera froze. “I gave it a couple of extra weeks just in case he was on some sort of creating streak, but I think it's past that point now.”
Has it really been that long?
“I'd say so.” Salazar confirmed. “There's a Hogsmeade weekend coming up. It's the middle of October just now.”
It was the middle of October?! How had she not noticed? Things had been particularly busy, she knew, and being a junior professor was a lot more time consuming than she'd initially thought it would be. Even so, she should have noticed. Still, he might also be right about that creative binge; at least, she hoped he was.
“It shouldn't be happening yet.” Hera muttered, before looking to him. “What was the name of the bomb he wanted to show off?”
“At least your voice is finally back to normal without all the spell-work.” He commented, not answering her question. She glared at him, knowing he was stalling for time. “Jericho. He named it Jericho.”
She was almost out the door before he managed to grab a hold of her wrist.
“Hera, he knew.” Salazar insisted. “Whatever it is you wanted to prevent, he saw it and walked into that trap eyes wide open.”
She whirled around to glare at him, pulling her wrist free as she did so.
“They torture him. Did he know that?” She snapped, livid now. “This shouldn't even be happening yet! Years! This isn't supposed to happen for years! How long has he been there by now? Do we even know?”
“I'm not saying we shouldn't go after him.” Salazar pointed out, keeping his voice even. “I'm saying we should wait until this weekend, when there is an excuse for us to be absent.”
Oh.
“Two days, Hera.” He continued. “He can survive another two days.”
She tried to calm her breathing down, understanding what he was trying to do now.
“Two days,” She agreed, grudgingly. “and then we go get him.”
“So where are we going, and who are we getting?” Came a familiar voice she should not be hearing right now.
“Uh…Hera?” Salazar hesitated, turning around to see who had spoken. “Was he there before, and I just…didn't notice? That seems unlike me.”
“No.” She replied, before glaring at the man. “Look, just because I stole the cage from hell doesn't mean you have free reign or anything. You're still stuck in there, you know.”
“Hey, this is the most movement I've had outside of that cage in aeons.” Lucifer objected, dismissively. “Let me have my fun.”
“Remember what I said before? I don't care that you're the first angel or whatever. I will curb stomp your ass if you hurt even one of them. Understand?” She threatened. It was really more of a bluff, but he didn't need to know that.
“Like you could really do anything to me, Pagan.” Lucifer snorted, more interested in poking at one of the spare cauldrons.
In response, Hera raised her fist and made a twisting squeezing motion before tugging down; Lucifer fell to his knees hard.
“Care to try that again, Luci?” Hera asked rhetorically, with more bravado than she actually felt. “You're in my house now.”
“Alright! Alright! Shit!” Lucifer gasped, with a half hearted glare. She let go of the magic she'd held to do that. “You don't have to be so annoying about it. It's not like I was really going to hurt any of them. They're kids. That's more Lilith's baggage anyway.”
“Hera?” Salazar tried again, and this time she looked over in answer. “Is that who I think it is?”
“Lucifer? Yeah, but he's not out yet. He's just projecting.” Hera nodded in confirmation, only to have to hold him up by the shoulder when it looked like his knees were going to give out. “There'll be none of that, if you please. I get why, but his head is already fat enough as it is. He doesn't need another ego boost. Have some pride.”
“I've got plenty, thanks.” Lucifer chimed, clearly amused, while Salazar looked at her like she was insane.
“You sure this is a good idea?” Salazar wondered, clearly doubting it now.
“Not in the slightest, but the chaotic nature of the challenge appeals to me.” Hera admitted with a wicked grin, eyes filled with a mixture of worry and glee; her earlier worry not forgotten.
“So, let me get this straight.” Salazar stated, looking like he was trying to get his thoughts in order. “You stole Lucifer's cage? (Hera nodded) With him still in it? (She nodded again) How?”
“Ah,” Hera grimaced at the last question. “about that.”
~`~`~
“You know, I think this is probably the most honest game of Poker I've ever played.” Hera mused, looking over her cards.
Lucifer barked out a laugh before exclaiming. “We're both cheating!”
“True, but we're being honest about it.” Hera pointed out, with a grin. Her grin dropped immediately when one of her silent alarms started pinging as a small blinking light behind him. “What did you do?”
“Who said I did anything?” Lucifer easily countered, innocence personified. Hera just looked at him, completely unimpressed. “Honest.”
More and more little lights were blinking into existence, letting her know just how bad things were about to get.
“Then why is every alarm I have to protect this space lighting up?” Hera countered, glaring at him now. “I've been straightforward with you. I expect the same in return. Out with it.”
“How long did you think you could stay here and not be noticed by the others? That pretending to be me gambit won't work this time. They're coming, and they're coming for you.” Lucifer replied, with a smile twisted by a sneer. “You tell me Father's changed, but I don't buy it.”
“I didn't say he's changed. I said he's trying to be better.” She corrected, snapping at him. “How can I say he's changed? I didn't know him to begin with!”
“A technicality.” He allowed with a sneer. “Fine then. What about your conditions? Why have you really set them? Is it because you want those things for me, or is it that you just aren't good enough to pick the lock?”
“I chose the one I did because it is based on consent. That's important. You have to choose to want this. If you don't, we can't continue, and I might as well just wake up now.” Hera explained for what felt like the millionth time, annoyance clear in her voice as she tried not to lose her patience with him.
“Eager to leave, are we?” Lucifer scoffed, resting back in his chair like he'd won something.
That's when Hera realized what this was. He thought she would abandon him. She'd leave, intending to come back, but how much time would pass between now and then? How long until he gave up and went with the plan the demons were cooking up? It was clear he hated them, but he'd go along with what they wanted if it meant getting out of there. She'd known this was coming, had planned for it, but it had taken longer than she'd thought; allowing her to let herself believe for a moment that it would not.
“I know what this is, what you're doing, because I've done it too many times to other people who only wanted to help me.” Hera stated, keeping her voice even. He looked defiant, ready to deny everything. “You're trying to push me away so that I'll meet your expectations, so that you can go back to being alone. It's what you know best. Reaching out or trying something new feels too alien after surviving for so long alone. Best to play the part you've been give. It's safe.”
She stood up from the table then, and made her way to a rarely used room, not looking to see what his reaction had been to the rest of that. Just because she knew what he'd been doing didn't mean she had to like it. It was strange seeing it in someone else. This is even worse than what she'd experienced with Salazar before he'd chosen his new life. Lucifer had sought to test her in the only way he knew how, and now she had an untold number of demons who were going to become a problem in the very near future.
When she walked back into the room, he stood up in shock. Hera knew what she looked like. Battle ready, weapons adorned, ready for a fight, she knew what she was likely walking into as well. She just had to hope that the gamble paid off before the shield-brethren bond thought pulling the others here was a good idea. She didn't think it would, not with how time seemed to work here, but she couldn't be certain.
“What do you think you're doing?!” Lucifer shouted, alarmed. “They'll kill you!”
“I am the god of Magic, Mischief, Chaos, and Stories; of Lies and Hard Truths; of the Spark; Protector of Children.” Hera rattled off as she continued to make her way to the point she'd deemed for apparating out of there. “They can try.”
“Why are you doing this?” Lucifer demanded, sounding hysterical now. “I'm literally the villain of every story!”
“Not mine.” Hera muttered, making one last check over.
“What?”
Oh, he'd heard that.
“It doesn't matter.” She tried, deciding that what she had would have to be good enough for whatever waited for her out there.
“It matters.” He grabbed her wrist; a last attempt to stop her, perhaps. “Tell me.”
She doesn't bother turning around, not at first. How could she explain why she was doing this? He'd instigated the situation into what it was, had needed to see how she'd react, but now that she had he was fearful. This wasn't the reaction he'd expected, but he needed to see what she'd do, and there was no taking it back; what was done was done, and what was said was said. She tugged on her wrist for him to let it go; which, thankfully, he did.
“When we're young, we're taught the distinction between a hero and a villain, good and evil, a saviour and a lost cause.” She stated, resolved, before turning around to look up at him. He looked horrified; more than that, he looked truly afraid. “But what if the only real difference is just who's telling the story?”*
With that she turned on her heel, and twisted just enough to apparate out of the Incredible Trunk. She'd actually set it on top of the cage some time ago, and was glad of it now. Looking out at the expanse of nothingness filled with fire, it was easy to become overwhelmed. Lucifer projected to be next to her not long after, looking out at the literal army he'd called for. It was…a lot to take in.
“See? There's no way you could win against this.” Lucifer insisted, not yet looking to her. “Just wake up, and go back home. I'll tell them it was all a misunderstanding, and they'll believe me. Things can go back to the way they were. It'll be fine.”
“It almost sounds like you're worried for me.” Hera teased, thinking over her options. “Can't have that, can we?”
He didn't answer her, but she hadn't expected it either.
“Soul, any ideas?”
*I would suggest working with Power on this. They might be agreeable, if they know I am also willing*
“Power? I'm not asking for your aid exactly, but…” Hera hazarded to speak. “Any ideas?”
#Soul's idea has merit. For what they wish to attempt, I will lend you my aid. This does not mean I will so readily agree in the future#
“Prickly thing.” Hera teased fondly. “Alright, Soul, what did you two cook up in the nanosecond you spoke without me?”
*Stand at the edge of the cage, and say the word you wish. Make sure to hold your weapon high as you do so. Power will lend me aid to absorb their souls without contact*
“A demon army? A literal demon army?” Hera tried out the words, stunned, unable to keep from grinning just a touch. “And here I didn't get you two anything.”
*This will only work on the weakest of them. If you wish me to absorb more, direct contact will be needed*
-_-_-_-
“That's what was going on?” Lucifer cut in, interrupting her story. “I thought you'd gone insane. I still think that's what happened, considering what you did after that.”
“Hey! Do you wanna tell this story?” Hera countered, incredulous.
“You know what? I think I will.” Lucifer retorted. “So, anyway…”
-_-_-_-
She's to the edge before he can think to stop her, but she doesn't leap off of it. Instead, a wicked looking halberd of some kind materializes in her outstretched hand. He has no idea who she's been speaking with, or if she'd just lost her mind at the sight of what looked to be her demise. He could send them away – he was certain he could! – but she'd insisted he not do that, and now he didn't know what to do. She wasn't supposed to call his bluff, and it wasn't like the demons cared one way or the other.
“I've been told my self preservation instincts could use some work, and I will always call your bluff no matter how life threatening it is to myself.” Hera stated, looking over to him. “So, word to the wise for the future. Next time you're thinking about pulling a stunt like this? Don't.”
“What are you going to do?” He demanded, not that she answered him; instead turning her attention to the crowd gathering below.
“Hey, you lot! Would you mind not moving about so much? I've only got one shot at this!” She shouted down to them.
“What are you about to do?” He demanded again, hating being ignored. He didn't have to wait long.
“ K̶̡̡̛̛̯̹̬̭̗̑̊́̕̕n̴̢̢̨̯̰͖̼͌̀̽e̴̖̍̀̓̆è̶͈̖̫̩̱̮̘̗̮̉́͐̅̋͘l̵̳͍̤̪͐͒̿͜͝.”
This voice did not belong to her. It was older than old, certainly older than him. She had spoken to beings she'd called Soul and Power, but he hadn't thought it literal. They'd been scattered before he'd even come into being, and here she'd casually talked to them like friends, wielding the powers they granted her. She hadn't tried to command them as he undoubtedly would have; she'd just asked.
He wasn't sure how many were absorbed into the halberd as they tried to attack her, but it didn't matter. That just left the strongest of them to retaliate. The second wave hadn't even moved before something had happened. She hadn't noticed yet, but they weren't alone any more. A shadowy figure stood just behind her.
“How was that?” Hera asked, turning slightly to look over to him. “Not bad, right?”
“A little over the top, but not bad, kid.” Lucifer allowed, still reeling. “What else ya got?”
He wasn't expecting her to turn all the way back around, and kick herself off the cage.
-_-_-_-
“That is not what happened!” Hera objected, mortified, face heating up in embarrassment. “I tripped!”
“You…tripped?” Lucifer asked, to clarify. Hera nodded. “That explains their reaction then.”
“Whose?” Hera wondered. “You said someone else was up there, but I didn't see anybody.”
“Ah,” Lucifer grimaced at the question, mirroring her earlier words. “About that…”
-_-_-_-
The shadowy figure that had been behind her stayed on top of the cage, and whirled around to face him. There were few beings that scared the ever loving immortal fuck out of him, and this happened to be one of them. It rushed over in a whirl of energy, until it was practically in his personal space. He didn't bother taking a step back, knowing it wouldn't matter if he did.
"̷̱̞̝̖͋̒I̵̦̮͠f̷̨̧͖̘̜͆̌̓͝ ̵̩̲̞̙̂s̷̙̳̱͑̍͂̂͝h̸͚̆͒͋͠è̶̯̊ ̴͇̙̳́͂̾ͅḑ̷̥̓͆͑͆i̶̲̍̎̈́̄͆ē̵̞̈́͝s̸̢̻̽ ̷̟̐̌̅̿ỉ̶͚̀ņ̴̽̈̾ ̵̻̗͌͌t̶̮͍̂ḩ̸̻̀ͅi̵̧͚̩͉͇̊̍̌̀s̸̹̦̰̪̽̅ ̷̡͔̟̇̅̆h̷̛̩̾̇e̴͖͌͝l̷̜̘̈́̓͂l̸͚̼̞̜̒͜,̷̺̞̅ ̸̡͚̦̪̽́͛͘̚s̴̝̊ő̴̜͎̙̿̓͘ ̶̢̣̻̉̇́ẅ̸͚́i̵̻͚̘͑̾͒̚͘l̶̖̪̿̄͛̓l̵̨̠̪̟͍̍ ̶̨͚̘͍̒ẏ̵̯͙̙͕͙̀̆̆͝o̷̢̹͔̱̿̀̃̋ũ̸̡͍̫̀̌̍!̴̹̻̾͛!̷̡̼͕̻̫̈́̄̿͠!̵̼̒"̶̠͛͑̎̚
He didn't even get the chance to respond before the being was hurtling itself down the cage after her. Lucifer watched as she rose up on some kind of broom, halberd in hand. Either the demons around them didn't recognize the being for what it was, or they were too enraged by the girl's previous actions to care. Perhaps they thought it was on their side. Whatever the case, they came at her in a rage, a thousand swirling black masses all trying to attack her all at once.
He watched as she ducked and weaved, twisted and turned, trying to dodge their efforts. She dived and soared, striking out when the opportunity arose, each strike with the blade true. The being moved her about – or moved with her? He wasn't sure – guiding her actions enough that though she got injured, she remained alive. It was then that Lucifer began to notice a rattling sound, and looked around him; only to realize the chains binding his cage were snapping.
If I can't pick the locks, I'll steal the whole damned cage; he'd remembered her saying. He hadn't thought she'd been serious, but clearly he'd been wrong. She'd known he wouldn't be ready soon enough to agree to what she wanted, knew that he'd pull some kind of stunt like this to test her, and had planned for it. How long had she been working on the chains without his knowledge? In all the time he'd been trapped down here it had never occurred to him that though the cage was protected by the seals, the chains were not.
When the first of the chains gave way, things immediately shifted as it set off a rapid cascade. He stopped projecting, watching the fight from inside the cage once more. Her trunk began to slide off, though she swooped down to save it before it could. It disappeared, though he didn't understand how or to where. In the next instant, his entire view shifted as he was once more within the living space of the trunk; the kitchen, he believed.
Through the window, he could see his cage taking up nearly the entirety of the 'yard'. He was more than a little discombobulated, getting used to the shift in views, so it took some time before he thought to look around. Lucifer wasn't expecting to find Hera sitting in one of the dining room chairs, eyes vacant and blown, being tended to by tiny pygmies. She looked like shit, and his insides squirmed uncomfortably at the sight. If this is what guilt was, the mortals could keep it.
~`~`~
“And that's how I stole Lucifer's cage from Hell. The End.” Hera concluded, sarcasm laced in her voice. “Doesn't explain who that other being was though.”
“I can not begin to stress enough just how much that being scares me, and I am the literal Devil from the Bible, so…No. I don't think I'll be revealing that.” Lucifer countered snarkily. “I don't know what you did to get yourself on that being's good side, but it is highly protective of you. You even wear their accoutrements.”
“I'm not wearing any…” Hera paused as she realized what he might be talking about. She holds her right hand up, tapping the finger the ring was on with her thumb. “This one of them?”
Lucifer froze, not long, but it was long enough for Hera to know he was lying when he replied. “No.”
“Fuck.”
“I just said-” Lucifer denied, or tried to, before Hera cut him off.
“Yeah, and you can't lie for shit.” She scoffed, shaking her head. He looked offended by that, but her mind was elsewhere. “Sal, I don't know what this means.”
“We talked about this.” Salazar reminded her, looking slightly confused; likely by the nickname. She doesn't remember if she's ever called him that before.
“I know that, but this…This can't just be about three magical items. It just can't.” Hera countered. “Is this a job interview? What do they even want with me? There is no mastering Death. I don't believe that for a second. So what are those items truly for?”
“That's something you'll have to ask them.” Salazar pointed out.
“That's just it. They were right there, and I couldn't see them.” Hera huffed, beginning to pace as she thought about it. “How am I supposed to talk to them when I can't see them?”
Oh.
“I know that look. That's your 'I have a dumb idea that might actually work' face.” Salazar accused, narrowing his eyes. “You can't possibly be thinking what I think you're thinking.”
“You got any better ideas?” Hera countered, raising an eyebrow at him.
“Well, nooo, but casually thinking of killing yourself is generally seen as a bad idea.” Salazar conceded. “You have a casual disregard for your own life, and Tony said that required copious amounts of hot chocolate to counter. He wouldn't want you to do that to yourself, Hera. I'm prepared to drown you in hot chocolate if I feel it necessary.”
“It's literally the only way I can think of to talk to Death as an entity.” Hera insisted. “I can access realms of the dead, sure, but speaking with Death? I don't know if that's possible without being dead. Also, how many cups of hot chocolate were you thinking of trying to ply me with just now?”
“I dunno…At least twenty.” Salazar shrugged. "The three brothers weren't dead when they spoke to Death in the tale, Hera. You really need to read that story."
“So I take it you don't want to get the rest of your soul back?” Hera inquired. Salazar froze. “There's only one way I know of to do that.”
“It would kill you.” His words were spoken so quietly, she wasn't sure he'd meant to say them out loud at all.
“Then it's a good thing I have people who care enough to pull me back.” Hera countered, and waited.
“Before or after we rescue Tony?” Salazar sighed. Hera furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, and he explained. “If we do this beforehand, you might not come back at all, and then we won't be able to rescue him. I don't know what you know, remember? If we do this after we rescue him, he might not be okay with us doing this at all. Is figuring out why Death likes you so much really worth possibly losing everything?”
“This is better than television.” Both looked over at Lucifer in annoyance, finding him with a bag of popcorn in hand and snacking on it. “Don't mind me.”
A second later he was gone.
“I mean it, Hera, he warned me that was the first thing you'd suggest when it came to anything like this; risking your own life.” Salazar got back to it, instead of floundering at the odd situation with Lucifer. “I have most of my soul back. I can live with that. It's not a pressing concern.”
“Thanatos seemed to think it was, even if he was being a total tit about it.” Hera reminded him. He looked a little green at that, and she knows that she could manipulate him into agreeing with her if she pressed it; it's not a very comforting thought. Sighing, she continued. “Fine. No causing my own death to speak with Death, at least not without some research first. Sound good?”
“It does.” Salazar nodded, relieved. “Now that we've got that out of the way, and a tentative plan to rescue Tony in the works, want to tell me how you really managed to steal Lucifer's cage from Hell?”
“It really was as simple as breaking the chains.” Hera admitted with a slight grin.
“It can't have been that simple.” Salazar objected. “Truly?”
“It really was.” Hera revealed, grinning a touch. “Think about it this way. What's the first thing you think about when you want to guard something. The lock, right? You put everything into curses to protect the ring, didn't you? What about the wards? How much effort did you put into those?”
“So you're telling me that…Chuck had the same thought process?” Salazar asked, like he was testing out the question by saying it out loud.
“Yup.” Hera confirmed. “It's the same failing anyone can have when it comes to protecting or guarding something. Hundred galleon lock, ten sickle chains.”
Quote from Legacies (Vampire Diaries Spinoff) - When we're young, we're taught the distinction between a hero and a villain, good and evil, a savior and a lost cause. But what if the only real difference is just who's telling the story?