CHAPTER 1
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The valley shook as if doomsday had dropped right in the middle of it. An armada of monsters and beasts peeled off the black mountains’ shadows, galloping in our direction with bloodcurdling shrieks and wails.
“What the fu—?” Before I finished swearing, Ares and Lucifer sprang past me and my mates, fear bleeding through their cold, vicious eyes. They no longer paid us attention, even though we had just battled each other brutally in the realm of Hell.
We weren’t the threats anymore. The things with fangs and claws that came after us were far more dangerous.
I traded an apprehensive look with my mates, who pressed close around me in a protective formation. Their muscles flexed as they tightened their grip on the hilt of their longswords. My warrior mates wouldn’t mind cutting down more foes with the blades that still dripped fresh blood.
“Legend says the beasts of the Void specialize in eating gods and immortals as if we’re candy,” Zak, the Demigod of Sky, told us grimly. “We’re in the belly of the Valley of Monsters and the Plain of Cannibals, if I’m not mistaken.”
“Fuck! We’ll never catch a break,” Axel hissed.
I agreed with the Demigod of War. All we wanted was a little break. Just let us sit the fuck down and breathe for a second before the next onslaught arrived in waves.
But there was no peace for the nice.
Paxton’s violet eyes flashed with feral, frustrated light. The Demigod of Sea had looked forward to mating with me, and we’d almost done it. Until the war god and the devil brought war to my door in the middle of our heated mating.
Zak had nearly died defending me. I’d cried into the ground, believing the Void had separated my mates from me forever before they managed to track me down into this godforsaken realm.
We were finally together, all of us. No way would we let the beasts fill their bellies with our flesh and bones.
The valley trembled again. The monsters of all shapes and styles bellowed inhuman cries, chilling my bones, as they charged toward us.
Angel, the hellhound that followed me from Hell, threw his two heads back and howled, his challenge drowned out by the noise of the armada of beasts.
“Run!” Héctor roared.
He didn’t need to shout twice.
We bolted after Ares and Lucifer. My mates rushed in a coordinated circle, keeping me well-protected in the center. My hellhound ran behind us, keeping himself between us and the monsters.
“The assholes didn’t even have the decency to warn us of the cannibals,” I spat.
“That’s why Lucifer and Ares are called the biggest assholes in the galaxy,” Paxton growled.
“Let’s not compare their size now,” Axel said wisely. “We need to outrun them.”
“Agreed,” Zak said. “While the beasts devour them, we’ll have time to find shelter.”
“Isn’t that wishful thinking?” I asked, surveying the valley as we ran for our lives.
A ring of serrated mountains enclosed three sides of the valley. They towered over us, casting menacing shadows on one-third of the region. Unfortunately, we were at the bottom of the valley.
“We don’t know anything about the Void and its geography,” Axel admitted. “We don’t know if there’s even a shelter nearby. None of us have been here.”
“I should have picked a better location to land after I hurled Ares and lured Lucifer to this realm,” I said.
“It’s never your fault, Lamb,” Héctor said. “I want you to stay positive. You promised me that when we first met.”
A sweet memory washed over me. When I first met Héctor in the Dreamland, I bitched a lot. Héctor had listened to my whining patiently instead of trying to get into my pants, though he really wanted to do that. His heated sapphire gaze had nearly melted my panties. So I told him I’d stay positive for him to reward his kindness and also to keep myself sane.
We had come far, all of us. Héctor and I had hit it off right from the beginning, but my other three mates and I had gone through a rough patch until instead of bending me, they bent for me.
They’d come to Hell for me, knowing I had demon blood in my veins and not minding a bit. Never wanting me to be alone again, they’d leapt into the Void after me, not caring they might be trapped here forever.