“I saw that,” the succubus said, giving me an excited punch on the shoulder. “Way to fucking go, Luke.”
“Saw what?”
“The thing you did with your eyes,” Mareth purred, gesturing at her own eyes with two fingers. “It looks like the rest of your powers of darkness are beginning to appear. Even I didn’t think it would happen this fast.” She glanced down at the massive demon. “Or that they’d be so strong!”
“I did not realize who you were,” the demon rumbled, its head low to the ground. “Had I known, I never would have raised my hand against you or damaged your property.”
So I’d done this? It must be some sort of sign, I realized. When the demon saw the magic in my eyes, he knew I was one of Lucifer’s candidates for Archlord. Meaning I’m much higher up the demonic totem pole than he was.
Shit. That explained why he kept bowing and scraping, like he’d just pissed off Tony Soprano. He knew I was one of Lucifer’s close associates.
“Hey—no worries,” I said, patting the demon on the shoulder. “Really. If anything, I ought to be apologizing to you. I nearly ran you down right in the fucking street!”
His wariness dissolved into relief. “You would not have seriously hurt me,” he rumbled, looking the van up and down with a critical eye. “Not with a vehicle of that size, at least.”
“Duly noted,” I said with a laugh.
When the demon didn’t rise to his feet after a few moments, the atmosphere around the van grew awkward. “You can, uh, get up now,” I said, trying my best to reassure the demon he wasn’t in trouble. I felt kind of silly about the whole thing now.
“He’s waiting for you to command him,” Mareth said matter-of-factly.
My eyebrows rose. “No shit?”
The succubus chuckled. “You’re very powerful, Luke. Even if you don’t realize it yet. When you showed your sigil to this demon, you didn’t just convince him of your status—you hit him with a compulsion. He’s your demon now.”
It took a few moments for me to digest the implications of that. “I didn’t even mean to do anything,” I said, locking eyes with Mareth. “I was just trying to get out of those catcher’s mitts he calls hands…”
Mareth shrugged. “Regardless, it’s done. I know this class of demon, Luke—they’re physically imposing but mentally weak. It should take a long time for a compulsion like the one you laid on him to wear off.”
Relief flooded me. It wears off, I realized, feeling less guilty about the whole thing. “How soon will he stop having to follow me?” I asked.
Mareth sniffed cutely. “Around thirty years,” she said, the corner of her mouth curling in a smirk. “Give or take a few months.”
“Thirty…?” I looked up and down the rows of houses, unable to believe what she’d just said. Thirty years was the length of a mortgage—if someone bought a house on this street, today, this guy would still be following my commands until the day they paid it off.
I whistled through my teeth. That was a long, long time.
“Can I just...I dunno, free him?” I asked. “Like the genie in that movie—they wished for him to be free at the end.” I tapped the demon’s knee with the side of my foot. “Hey, guy?”
The demon raised its massive red head. “Yes, Master?”
“What’s your name?”
He paused but a moment. “My name is Oni, Master.”
“Oni, cool.” I waved my hands like a stage magician doing a trick. “Oni, I grant you your freedom! You are released from my compulsion…”
I trailed off. The demon had already begun shaking its head. “Master, I cannot.”
I scoffed. “Shit. Mareth, a little help here? I’m not exactly versed in what to do with demons I’ve put a compulsion on.”
The succubus regarded the hulking demon before her coolly. “You can do anything you want,” she said, cocking one flawless eyebrow.
“Except free him, I guess,” I grunted. “Well I can’t leave you here—but you won’t fit in the van. Plus Christina would probably have a heart attack.” I cocked my head, looking back toward the driver’s seat. “How is Christina, by the way?”
“She’s rattled, but otherwise unharmed,” Mareth informed me curtly. “If you’re really having trouble, may I make a suggestion?”
The demon continued to bow before me, just waiting for commands. “Please do,” I said.
“You should command Oni to travel to the Infernal Academy,” she said, crossing her arms beneath her breasts. “He’s not the sharpest knife in the drawer, to be sure, but you saw what he did to the van. He’s muscle—and you could use some muscle when you start setting up within the student body.”
Yeah, I thought, looking Oni up and down. I probably do. But this much?
Well, it would have to do. I made a decision.
“Give him directions,” I told Mareth, walking back toward the driver’s side door. It hung half-open, nearly torn from its hinges by the demon’s anger. “I’m going to check on Christina.”
“Of course,” Mareth said smoothly. “Soothe the girl. I’ll join you momentarily.”
I grinned. “I’m starting to understand why Lucifer wanted you to shadow me,” I told the succubus, climbing back into my seat. “What would I do without you?”
As Mareth gave my commands to Oni, I put my seatbelt back on and checked the engine. We’d taken some cosmetic damage, to be sure, but other than that everything seemed alright. Satisfied that we could drive out of here, I turned to Christina. “Problem’s solved. You okay?”
The blonde shook like a leaf in the passenger seat. Evidently, she hadn’t torn her eyes from the demon the entire time. “That was
