Chapter 22: Chapter 22

IRIS

Avery was the first to leave our room while I was still changing in the bathroom. When I walked into the living room, Avery and Aidan were standing there with Devas and another man.

The mood seemed tense, and everyone looked very stressed.

“Now everybody calm the fuck down… Sit down and I’ll explain,” Devas said as he ran his hand through his hair.

“Why did you bring him here?” Aidan asked angrily.

“Because I need his help to prepare your sister!” Devas replied, his voice just as angry.

My brother seemed furious; he looked like he was about to beat Devas up. I had never seen him like this before.

“Does the king know he’s here?” Aidan asked, standing in front of Devas with an angry expression.

Devas rolled his eyes, completely unfazed by Aidan’s behavior.

“He came through the fucking portal… so you know he has no evil intentions! The king allowed me to… that’s why I went to him first. Your little witchy friend helped me,” Devas shouted in Aidan’s face.

I stood in the room and watched the two arguing until Devas noticed me. He looked at me and took a step back to make room between him and Aidan.

“Iris… nice you are here too,” Devas said, trying to get Aidan’s attention.

And that seemed to be enough, because Aidan turned to me and I could see on his face how uncomfortable he was.

“How about we all do actually sit down… and Devas explains everything to us,” Avery said, stepping protectively next to me.

The tension was still there even as we all sat down.

“What’s going on here?” I asked, looking from Aidan to Devas.

“This is Bael,” Devas said, pointing to the man sitting next to him.

Bael exuded an almost unreal grace as he smiled at me with a nonchalance that seemed as natural as the flow of a river. His deep black eyes shone like polished onyx, soft and impenetrable, without even a hint of menace.

Instead, there was a calm warmth and an almost magnetic attraction. His face was flawlessly shaped, with high cheekbones and an even complexion that lay like silk-smoothed skin over perfect proportions.

His long, raven-black hair fell in an intricate braid over his shoulders, each strand carefully placed as if he had stepped out of an old painting of a legendary samurai—noble, timeless, irresistible. His presence was so captivating that it was hard to look away from him.

Every movement, every gesture seemed effortlessly graceful, as if he was not just a being of this world, but something that far surpassed it. Even the way he sat exuded an aloof elegance, as if he had been cut from the pages of a glossy magazine.

Yet no model on earth could ever have achieved this aura. There was something demonic in his beauty, something that at once enchanted you and gave you an idea of the power that lay dormant within him.

When Avery noticed my stare, he gave me a look that sparkled with jealousy. But how could I help it? Bael was simply… overwhelming.

“Bael is an exiled demon,” Devas explained, his gaze turning coldly to Aidan.

“He helped me escape when the Lords of Darkness found out about my switching sides. I have known him since he was a child. I raised him. For me, he was always… mine,” Devas added.

His voice had a possessive undertone.

“Branded a traitor, he also had to go into hiding. Had he come to me, they would have attacked Antaris again… so he stayed in the human world, hiding,” Devas explained.

Every word brought the story to life, and yet it was impossible not to keep glancing back at Bael. This demon seemed to devour the light around him and turn it into something much more enchanting.

“What do you mean… you raised him?” The question slipped out before I could think. “How old are you, anyway?”

Devas’s gaze froze. Any spark of warmth in his eyes went out as if I’d hit him between the ribs with a knife.

The air seemed to freeze around us.

“What the~ fuck ~is this?” he hissed at me, his voice a growling rumble that sent a chill down my spine.

“Are you trying to make fun of me? Of ~me~?” he hissed.

His last word ripped through the silence like a blade.

His pupils dilated, swallowing up all the white until only a bottomless black remained—an abyss that threatened to pull me in.

“N-No…” My reply came too late, shaky, uncertain. It sounded like the stammer of a frightened child.

He eyed me. Very slowly. From my trembling hands to my feet pressed firmly against the floor.

Then he took a breath. Deep. As if he were forcibly holding himself back.

“Your brother here thinks Bael is a danger, but I assure you he won’t harm anyone,” Devas added, looking into my eyes.

“My father trusted you, so I will too,” I said to Devas.

He seemed happy with my answer, although my previous question still seemed to be gnawing at him.

Aidan and Avery both looked at me, but quickly understood that I meant what I said as I raised my hand to show them the conversation was over. Even though both wanted to add something.

Devas nodded, seeming relieved that the tension had gone. At least for now.

And Bael hadn’t spoken, not a word, since his arrival. It must have been very awkward for him.

Neither my brother nor Avery hid their feelings and mistrust toward Bael.

After breakfast, we went behind the house to a training ground. Aidan used it while we were waiting for Devas.

Now I was supposed to use it too.

Devas stood in front of me. “I need to see how far you can control your powers,” he said.

What did he expect me to do?

“Control? I can’t even use my powers!” I replied, glancing at Aidan and Avery at the edge of the ground.

“What do you mean? You used your power a few days ago, didn’t you?” Devas asked, confused.

Avery walked up to me and explained the whole situation to Devas—my amnesia and the magic that had kept my powers in check for years.

“And you’re telling me this shit now? What a bunch of morons… Oh honey…” A slow, mocking grin crossed his lips, as if he knew a secret that would rip me to shreds.

He glanced at me. “Answering how old I am would blow your mind. You don’t even know what you are,” he added.

His gaze sparkled with dangerous amusement now, as if my cluelessness had suddenly amused him to no end.

“You have to remember in order to harness your powers,” Devas said.

“I know that, but this seems to take time,” I replied.

He furrowed his eyebrows, almost annoyed at my statement.

“Yes… It does take time. But we can also speed this up,” said Devas with a smirk.

I looked questioningly at Avery, who was standing in front of me, his purple aura shining brightly.

Devas rolled his eyes.

“You can of course wait, my prince... But I didn’t know how much time we had. As I searched for Bael, I noticed strange dark forces everywhere. They were searching for Antaris. They were searching for her.

And when they found Iris, without her powers, she was just ruthlessly at their mercy,” added Devas as he sat on a log.

He raised an eyebrow at Avery and looked annoyed because of his protective behavior.

“If we use magic to affect her memory, Iris could be seriously damaged,” said Avery angrily.

“Yes, my prince. But our Bael here is not just any demon, he’s a trickster, and he can affect your memory without using elven magic to remember,” said Devas triumphantly.

A trickster...here in Antaris he was called something else. A shapeshifter.

Someone who influenced other people’s thoughts, manipulated what you saw.

Someone who pulled the strings of memory like a puppet master. A mind distorter.

“Iris... I don’t like this. What if something goes wrong?” Avery said worriedly.

I saw concern and fear for me in his eyes, but I had no choice. I was vulnerable and defenseless without my powers.

And to do so, I endangered all beings on Antaris.

How was Devas supposed to teach me something if I didn’t even know how to use my powers? I owed it to my parents...to my grandparents.

“We could also do this step by step over the next few days. What do you think?” Devas asked, looking at Bael.

Bael glanced at Avery and nodded in reply.

But Aidan was upset and paced to keep himself in check. Even though Bael didn’t speak, it gave Aidan no peace.

Just his nod was reason enough to be angry.

“I’ve lost her before. I don’t want to lose her again,” Aidan stated angrily.

It wasn’t until I had stopped him that his anger seemed less.

“You know I have no choice. The king brought me here to help me. He said Devas would know what to do...and our father trusted him,” I reassured my brother.

He glanced from Devas to Bael, and then back to me. A gentle nod could be seen; he was not enthusiastic, but my words seemed to reach him.

“Now that the drama is over, how about you let me do what you’re here for?” Devas said mockingly.

Avery and Aidan looked at each other, as if they weren’t sure if this was the right thing to do.

But I was sure.

The only way to have my powers was to get my memory. To the fullest.

I just hoped I was not making a mistake with this decision.