T W E N T Y - O N E
Bottoms Up

"ABOUT TIME THE three of you returned."

Due to the momentum of the abrupt teleportation, I was thrown off my balance and onto the ground, sprawling across the grassy lawns and right in front of someone's feet. With my palms pressed hard against the dewy fields and my knees aching from the impact, it was only after I had looked up had I realized that it was Dimitri that had spoken.

Once he noticed that I was, in fact, staring right up at him, the corners of his lips tilted up ever the slightest, displaying a playful grin before he bent down to help me back up on my feet. With his fingers wrapped tightly around my upper arm, Dimitri barely even spared an effort before I was standing upright again, his arm still protectively wrapped around my waist nevertheless. Though I could not feel the standard sense of touch, the gesture was still enough to cause blood to go roaring through my veins and coloring my cheeks a bright ruby red.

I took a good look at my surroundings, just noticing that we were not at the front doors of the castle unlike each time we had left. Surprisingly, we were in the middle of the castle's gardens. Lush green flora surrounded us, flowers in full bloom with their colors melting with the gloriousness of nature. The scent of chrysanthemums was also overpowering, wafting through the air like an overspill of perfume.

"What took you guys so long?" He asked, brilliant metallic silver eyes eyeing me for a split second before diverting to his two brothers.

"We got the goblet, no worries. Frowning so much will end up only serve to give you wrinkles." With a playful roll of his eyes, Calvin handed the chalice over to Dimitri. As the latter examined the glorified cup, it caught the rays of the sun, dazzling brightly under its glow. However, the golden brilliance only reminded me that there was a more powerful enemy out there against us.

"And we also had the misfortune to bump into a few old faces." Fabian immediately voiced out my thoughts ever so perfectly, taking a step forward with his arms folded across his chest; his usual stance. "Lucius made an appearance."

"That bastard is still alive?" Came an incredulous voice from behind us, and soon, a bounding Wilhelm came, followed by Minnie who was close behind. The spirit of war had a bounce in his steps, a sort of hidden glee slotted in his features which darkened significantly - but not completely - at the mention of the old enemy. "I did pray that he had crawled back into whatever hole he had come from and died there. Oh well, I guess not every single wish and prayer will come true."

"That's not all. We found Lucifer's new hiding spot as well." Calvin sighed, shaking his head as his eyebrows furrowed.

"And where is that?" Dimitri questioned, tilting his head slightly. There was a frown on his face that matched that of his brothers. In Calvin's hesitance to answer, I turned to face Minnie, pursing my lips with a shake of my head.

Unlike most of her usual days, Minnie did not have that bright smile carved into her expression. Rather, she seemed to be overly worried and exhausted, her bright red lips tipped down into a sullen expression completed with knitted brows. When she raised a single eyebrow in questioning, I could only nod once with a heavy heart.

"In Lucius, apparently. The devil had decided to possess the angel of light, his ex-prodigy back when we were still flitting about Heaven like a bunch of fairies." Fabian spat the words out in an acidic tone, his voice filled with venom and heart undoubtedly filled with hatred. "We saw Lucius with eyes of aquamarine. The same shade of Lucifer's."

At Fabian's revelation, the hand that Dimitri kept by my waist dropped down immediately. There was a flash of calculation flying through his eyes, his mind far away from our current predicament before he snapped back to reality. Clenching his jaw tightly, Dimitri breathed out heavily before waving a hand towards the castle, not a single word leaving his lips. He then turned just as wordlessly, disappearing through the castle doors and curving down corridor after corridor.

The other members of the horsemen followed after him like servants after a king, hurrying down the hallways with Wilhelm leading right at the front. Their legs were much longer than mine which caused me to lag behind with Minnie. I turned to my best friend instead, a plethora of questions ready to tumble out.

"What happened when we were gone?" I settled with that first, watching as Minnie's eyes lit up for a second before dimming.

"Well, the good news is that we figured out how to make the potion and Wilhelm had finished brewing it with Dimitri's help. We've made a few backups in case anything happens. So, I guess you can say that it's been good here on our part. What happened when you were gone?" She turned the question on me instead, causing me to bite down on my bottom lip in reluctance.

"A lot. We got the chalice and that is the main thing. Minnie, when I saw Lucius, he looked to be a completely different person. For the first time in my life, I was afraid of him and what he could do. Imagine the power he now wields with the help of Lucifer. They both have a similar agenda and that is to end Hell as the way we know it and destroy the four brothers. I am worried. What if this goes wrong and we don't win?"

"There is no 'what if's in this case, Addison. You have to win. Not just Hell depends on you ascending to the throne but also Earth and maybe even Heaven. Those angels have been trapped by the devil's words and it's our job to set them free."

"I guess you are right," I mumbled, sighing heavily. "Oh, there is one more thing that you should probably know."

"What is it? Did Lucius see you or something? Does he know you're alive?"

"No, he didn't. But Ida appeared again and she told me something regarding my past lives."

"I don't have good vibes about that girl. She seems like she has a hidden agenda."

"That's what I thought too but she seems generally nice. After all, she had helped us this far and she is probably the only past life that I can trust completely."

"What did she say?" Minnie prompted, her eyes darting over to eye the four brothers, whom which we had almost caught up with.

I cleared my throat softly, preparing to lower my voice so that Fabian would not be able to hear what I have to say.

"Ida told me that all of my past lives would be wiped from existence once Dimitri and I get married. That means that no one will remember them except, well, me."

"Well, shit. I don't know how to feel about that."

"Me either. It's been bugging me the entire time."

"Does Fabian know?" Minnie's voice was also dropped to a very soft tone, her large doe eyes darting over to glance at Fabian for a split second before looking back at me.

"No, but I told Calvin about it. One of the four brothers might as well know since they were friends with her when she was still alive."

"Can you guys hurry up? We are kind of on a time limit right here."

At the sound of Fabian's impatient voice, I immediately turned to face him, eyes wide with panic since I was worried that he would catch my conversation with Minnie. Thankfully, other than his usual disdainful scowl, Fabian did not seem to have caught any part of what I had just revealed to my best friend. Instead, he stood with the rest of his brothers, arms folded across his chest and a single foot tapping the floor in an obnoxious restlessness.

"Just a second!" Minnie yelled back before I could, tugging at my elbows so that I no longer faced the four brothers. She turned alongside me as my voice dropped down to a nearly inaudible whisper.

"Promise me you won't tell them about what I just said. Especially Fabian. I don't know how he will react and I am honestly worried for him."

"I think we all are, at this point of time," Minnie agreed.

Just like that, the both of us braved on brilliant smiles and a lighter expression, hurrying towards the boys while mumbling apologies under out breaths. They were gathered around a large round table that had four seats strategically placed around it, the same one that I had seen them gathered in when I had overheard them speaking about the prophecy for the first time.

"Wilhelm brewed the potion that we found in Lucifer's book. It will be able to provide Dimitri with temporary access to holy places like churches and Heaven. With it, you will be able to go in without a hitch." Calvin piped up, gesturing to the display of many filled up glass vials placed in the center of the table.

I eyed the vials with distaste. Each one of them was filled to the brim with a sort of bubbling black liquid, swirling like a pot of ink and had a shimmer of iridescence in it. I gagged a little at the sight, wrinkling my nose before pointing at it.

"Do I want to know what's inside that concoction?" I asked, mildly afraid of the answer the brothers might provide.

From beside me, Dimitri laughed at my reaction, a single hand snaking around my waist to pull me towards him. "Nothing out of the ordinary in there. Just simple ingredients like fruits and herbs."

I released a breath in which I didn't even realize that I held at his answer.

"And also leeches and slugs."

Immediately, I was jolting away from the table again. They must have noticed my reaction for all four brothers started to erupt into a bubbling laughter. Even Fabian had the hint of a grin shaping the pink of his lips, causing me to scowl when I realized that they had me fooled.

"Haha, very funny. But I suppose that I no longer want to know what goes into that thing. It could be human sacrificial blood, for all I know."

"For all you know," Wilhelm humored, a twinkle in his eye.

"Now that we have the potion and the chalice, I believe that it is finally time for us to depart to Heaven?" Dimitri's hand felt heavy on the curve of my hips, reminding me constantly that we were always in a rush and never able to spend time at a relaxed pace. Then again, we were fighting for the survival of nations and this is a war. In a war, nothing ever stops and time is an enemy of both sides.

"It is best that you guys be off. The rest of us will stay here in Hell to guard the place and prepare the soldiers. In case Lucifer brings the angels here and the fight along with them, we will be ready to face them." Wilhelm nodded, already reaching for the vials of inky potion, most likely ready to package them for our travels. "Drink one now and I'll pack a spare for you to take on your journey, just in case."

"What about Minnie?" I darted over to eye my best friend, whom which was shuffling unsurely due to her obvious misfit in this new quest. "Is she staying here or coming with us?"

"I think it is safer for Miss Hoover to follow you on this journey. After all, you will need all the help you can get. She should be able to enter Heaven without a single problem since Lucius had brought you there when you were still alive." Calvin stared at Minnie for a second longer than what was normal before turning his attention back on Dimitri and I. "Be safe, the three of you."

"Of course." I nodded.

I watched silently as Fabian reached for a vial of the potion, gravely passing it to Dimitri with a grimace on his lips as he eyed the substance contained inside. "Bottoms up, brother."

The spirit of death took the vial without any form of resistance, holding the glass near his lips with his usual playful grin. With the cap popped open and the edge pressed against his lips, he took in a deep breath as if to mentally prepare himself.

"Bottoms up," he said before tipping the vial and emptying the contents into his mouth.

[A/N]:

Chapter dedication to @SamihaFaizahKhalid for the stunning covers shown above. Thank you so much for submitting these! I love them so much.

[Courting Death] contains a total of 30 chapters and 1 epilogue. Let the countdown begin.

Thank you for reading.

xx aurora