"That's not what I wanted," Allegra said, launching into another tirade of complaints. She'd gotten her request of being in the Queen's presence, Viserra's, but it had thrust far not gone how she wanted it to go. Despite attempting to exercise the power and control she once had, it had gotten her nowhere; neither had the yelling, screaming, and unladylike comments. "I know some demons are given high ranks upon turning. If I'm to turn, I demand a high rank, in the royal house at least."
Viserra didn't utter a response to the comments and complaints; she merely quietly walked the length of her chambers, rolling her sapphire eyes now and again. Occasionally, she'd hold back bouts of laughter when Allegra displayed her stupidity and entitlement, even more so when making demands she had no right, let alone power, to make in the first place.
"You speak as if your presence here is a gift," commented Viserra, her words echoing through the quiet room as if cursing Allegra to hear them. The judgmental woman stopped momentarily, stunned at what her cousin had told her. At least, before she shook her head, she continued as if Viserra had not spoken at all. Silently, however, Allegra questioned why Viserra would speak those words. She was the daughter of Guiseppe Snow, one of the most powerful lords in Umbarian History. Of course, her presence was a gift, even more so when she'd determined the demonic realm needed her. "You have no power here, Allegra, nor will you. The damned did not choose you thrust you will start in the same place as everyone else, you will earn what you get or have nothing at all."
"I am your superior cousin. I will have what I demand!" yelled Allegra, rushing forward until she was almost nose to nose with Viserra. She would have pulled the queen's crown from Viserra's head had she been wearing one. Allegra fumed even more at Viserra's inhuman calmness, her nostrils flaring with unspoken anger, even more when Viserra did nothing, not flinching or blinking. She just stood there, fearless.
"Stand back," quietly spoke Dexter, his words so quiet even the best listeners would have missed the softly spoken warning. His features, however, were void of any emotion. Instead, he stared at Allegra as if looking into her dark, broken soul.
"I WILL NOT!" screamed Allegra, reaching to her side to push Dexter away, although her efforts had little effect on the usually silent demon, he just stood there as if he'd not felt the force of her push or the balled fists she threw against his chest when he didn't go away. "I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE A QUEEN, TO HAVE EVERYTHING I WANTED. I AM THE DAUGHTER OF GUISEPPE SNOW. I DEMAND TO BE GIVEN WHAT I WANT. I DEMAND TO BE TURNED. I DEMAND TO BE YOUR QUEEN, TO HAVE THE POWER I WANT. I DEMAND SHE BE NAMED A USURPER AND MY BROTHER BE EXILED. I DEMAND SHE BE EXECUTED LIKE MY FATHER!"
Allegra's words soon turned to terror, and her confidence quickly withered into fear again. Horror soon rattled down her spine when she finally noticed Viserra had changed. Silver decorations appeared through her dreaded hair, her sapphire eyes turned violet, her teeth sharpened into razors, and her fingers became claws of bone. A crazed glimmer appeared in Viserra's violet eyes now. Despite Devitt taking over, no words were uttered between the cousins, nor did Dexter move to stop her.
Instead, Allegra scrambled away from her cousin's demonic form as quickly as she could, her thoughts and confidence abandoning her as she did. Only her cowardly thoughts remained as fear and terror took over. Allegra had always been so proud to be Guiseppe Snow's daughter, his favorite child, and had always believed he was an unsung hero, but now she found herself questioning it all. Her cousin, sweet little Viserra, wasn't the weak girl Allegra had thought she was anymore. She wasn't a pushover who could be beaten down, tormented, and forgotten. She was the very thing her father had fought to prevent, not only a queen but also powerful, one capable of doing anything, including tearing apart Allegra's own hopes and dreams.
"You think your father was a hero," Devitt's echoing voice mockingly said, as if Viserra's demon could read Allegra's mind. "You tell me, Allegra, which one of us is worse. Me, the demon, or your father, the man who created me?"
The choice of words was not lost on Dexter, nor was the burning hatred rife through Devitt and Viserra's joint voices. Viserra didn't blame Finn for turning her into a demon, merely angry that he'd broken his promise. Instead, she blamed Snow for the demon she'd become, for the suffering she'd been destined to be tormented by for her entire demonic existence. She placed the blame where it truly belonged.
Allegra stuttered from the corner she'd chosen to huddle up in, scared by the display of power, as it finally dawned on her she couldn't overpower her cousin anymore, she couldn't do anything she once could, at least not without suffering a wrath far worse than anything her father could master and weild. The scared mortal woman watched Viserra return to normal as if nothing had happened. She watched as Viserra whispered something to Dexter, and the smallest grin appeared across his lips. She watched as Aleister appeared from a ring of black smoke, as if drawn to Viserra's power.
It didn't take Aleister long to notice Allegra shaking in the corner she'd found haven in, although he didn't bother questioning it or showing her empathy; instead, he ignored her, taking over the role Dexter previously held when the silent demon left. In Aleister's hand was a tightly rolled and bound piece of parchment, the one Finn had sent him with upon finally getting Qimir to answer the only question asked of him.
"Qimir's answer," spoke Aleister calmly, handing over the tightly bound parchment. "He's improved a fair bit, starting to regain his humanity now," he chuckled at the irony. How Qimir's hatred of his sister had trumped his refusal to face his past, his determination to be what Allegra couldn't have proven to be his greatest ally so far, either that or his resentment of his father and sister had. "Caught Kane off guard with his frosty powers, although Brie's happy to gain another child."
"An iceling," curiously spoke Viserra, unraveling the parchment while showing her contentment to ignore Allegra completely. "How's Dean?" she enquired, knowing her protector had undergone a lot of training lately, training with Finn to ensure his sword skills were up to par and he could properly control his rage, if only so he could seamlessly blend into the mortal realm if needed.
"He's more powerful than most of us realized, but at least Jeff and Alexa are entertained," replied Aleister, glancing over to Allegra. He noticed anger written across her features again, no doubt because she was being ignored and forgotten so easily. "Have you decided what to do with the curse?"
Aleister didn't dare mention the common theory regarding Allegra among the demonic ranks; he refused to give it power or claim any truth. Again, the Devil glanced over to Allegra, questioning how any demon, let alone mortal, could live with her, questioning what any demon would have done to deserve being stuck with her for an eternity. In a way, the theory that Allegra was a horseman made him laugh, the family curse many had commented she could be, due to her blood relation to the queen and the latest iceling child of the priestess.
"Indeed I have," replied Viserra, wondering how many would disagree with her and what she had chosen to do. Allegra was a curse, not one she wished on the demonic or mortal kind. However, despite her hatred for the ghastly woman, Viserra couldn't bring herself to sentence Allegra to execution. Instead, she'd come up with something where Allegra would think she'd won when, in reality, it would be anything but the prize she desired and so often demanded. "Up for playing the long game?"
"Paint me intrigued, my queen," replied Aleister, bowing when Finn entered the Queen's chambers. Finn, too, seemed intrigued by her idea of a game; it was clear he already knew what she had in mind, but he had questions that needed to be answered before he could fully commit.
"What of the Seven?" asked Finn, recalling the powerful weapon created with Viserra's mortal sacrifice, a weapon that would linger in the minds of anyone who knew of them. "Sadly, she remains one of four that can handle them without obliteration," he added, remembering when lower-level demons had handled the seemingly ordinary stones. Each had screamed out in gut-wrenching pain before being torn apart from the inside out, becoming nothing but tormented fragments of a memory.
"We agreed only our inner circles would know the location of that forsaken weapon," replied Viserra, as if the seven stones were venom to her. Still, she had no intention of breaking her word; the Seven would be kept hidden until they found a way to destroy them for good. "Plus, she'd be neither near those in the mortal realm nor those here. You already chose the place for her," added the Queen, reminding Finn of the old castle he'd mentioned hidden in the mundane volcanic region. The place he'd told he'd send his worst enemies if given the chance.
"I will not leave here until I get what I want," quivered Allegra from her safe corner, terror written upon her face as she feared her cousin would revert to the monster hidden within again, as if she was terrified the calm demon and the king would become something else also, monsters like her cousin was.
"You can either remain here as a prisoner for the rest of your mortal days, or you can willingly go to Ash Cloud Castle and achieve immortality," said Finn, disguising the punishment as something he knew Allegra would want. However, just like Guiseppe Snow had done with so many, he didn't shine a light on the strings that came attached nor the hidden cost that waited when she eventually changed her mind. "You choice, but once you've made up your mind, you can't change it."
"I chooseimmortality," hastily replied Allegra without a second thought, barely hearing Viserra's gentle wordstoldyou.Immortality was all Allegra wanted, the chance to achieve ultimate power with no foreseeable weakness. Predictably, she didn't consider the cost, the hidden strings attached, or what she'd be throwing away. She didn't bother to think maybe one day she'd live to regret her choices or even desire to change it.
Aleister soon held out a small corked vial to Allegra. It was filled with a yellow concoction, the sunset yellow appearing to glow and sparkle as Allegra snatched it from Aleister's hand, yanked off the cork, and downed the fruit-smelling potion without a second thought. It would give her everything she wanted, after all; what did she need to think about? Only after she wiped her mouth with the sleeve of her torn dress did she notice how the three demons looked at her, and she felt regret for not asking questions about the potion before.
"Your immortality is linked to Qimir," spoke Viserra with a wicked grin of her own, knowing the tib bit of information would torment Allegra for centuries. "For as long as he lives, so will you; whatever happens to him will also happen to you," she added, watching as Allegra's face fell, as it finally hit her she couldn't torment, torture, or kill her brother without hurting and killing herself at the same time. Allegra soon screamed out; it would be a long time before she gained the power to stand toe-to-toe with Viserra, with the Queen. Now she found her plans for Qimir would be useless against the protection; Qimir held the power and would win either way.
"What of my power?" growled Allegra, angerily standing and throwing her arms over her chest. Fury seethed from her, but at least she'd have power few others would ever get a taste of.
"What power?" asked Finn, witnessing as Allegra's face fell further and her fury grew. "I said immortality, not power," he added, almost amused by the sudden realization dawning on Allegra. She would have no power but what she had now. She has immortality as she wanted but had to work for the rest. Finn soon waved his hand, and there, to Allegra's side, a portal of red shimmering sparks appeared. From it, thunder loudly clattered, and lightning flashed every now and again. "As promised, Ash Cloud Castle is yours."
