In another clap of thunder, he was gone. Serah stared at the spot he’d occupied seconds ago, horrified, mortified, as she wrapped her arms tightly around her chest, trying to hold herself together. The ground rumbled viciously, cracking, opening up as flames erupted from below. The loud shrieks of agony tore through the air as everything started to collapse in on itself, the King of Hell no longer there to contain anything.

Without realizing it, she’d freed the monster from his cage.

Four

"What have you done?"

The low, venomous voice was so close the hair on the back of Serah's neck stood on end. She slowly turned around, coming face-to-face with Michael in the shadows of the woods of Hellum Township.

Serah could sense it was early morning, a few hours past sunrise, but the day was as dark as a stormy midnight. Red had seeped into the sky, thick bloody clouds blocking out all sunlight. Mere minutes had passed since she'd stood in that fateful room with Lucifer, but it seemed as if a lifetime had withered away on Earth. Everything was dry and brittle, a drought ravishing the land, while the air was stale with a musky, foul odor.

Had it always been that way?

"I can hear your heart," Michael pressed, "a heart that shouldn't beat!"

"I made a mistake."

"A mistake?" Michael raised his eyebrows in sync with his voice. "You unleashed Hell on Earth!"

"I didn't know Lucifer—"

"He's Satan!" Michael screeched, stepping closer, rage clouding his face. "You allowed the devil to seduce you!"

"Forgive me," she whispered, a lone tear streaming down her cheek.

Michael's cold, hard stare burned through her. "No."

A roar cut through the woods as the trees around them bent and snapped. Evil brushed against her skin, bouncing off of her, flying right by, as souls spilled out from the gates, left wide-open in Lucifer's wake.

Or Satan's, Serah thought. Maybe Lucifer didn't exist at all.

Angels descended upon the area, apparating in packs as they rushed through, trying to stop anything more from escaping. Michael stepped away from Serah as her brothers and sisters appeared, prepared for battle, not a single one acknowledging her.

"You should say your peace," Michael said, a staunch detachment in his voice. "This won't end well for you, miscreant."

Miscreant. The word was like a knife thrust through Serah's tight chest.

Michael vanished, joining the others. He was the one who had locked Satan inside in the first place, so he alone would know how to reseal the gate. Devastation struck Serah as she dropped to her knees, doubling over in sobs.

She'd done this.

"Samuel," she cried. "I need you."

Static popped right in front of her. She looked up, irrationally seeking out her lost brother, but found Hannah standing there instead. Hannah frowned, grabbing Serah's arm and yanking her to her feet.

"Pull yourself together," she said, her voice hard, but there was no anger in her expression. "We can't have you in pieces right now."

"I did it," Serah said. "It was me."

"I know. We all know. The moment it happened—the moment he rose—the magnetic pole shifted majorly. It’s going to be difficult to reverse this—if we even can."

She blinked rapidly. "I triggered the apocalypse."

"Yes, which means you're somehow integral to how this all plays out."

"I'm nothing. I succumbed to the snake's temptation. I unleashed Satan."

"You were enchanted by Lucifer." Hannah sighed, shaking her head. "He was an Archangel, Ser, the most glorious one ever created. I can't fault you for falling for him."

Falling for him.

"I am," she whispered. "Literally."

A rush of black shadows whipped past then, blanketing the land as far as the eyes could see. The oxygen seemed to be sucked from the atmosphere as Serah gasped painfully, struggling for air.

"Michael released the reapers," Hannah said, watching the morbid creatures as they descended upon Earth. "It's only a matter of time before they track him down."

"Then what?" Serah asked.

"You know the prophecy—Satan will be destroyed once and for all." Her gaze turned to Serah again. "Michael's coming. You need to get out of here."

"Where am I to go?"

"Wherever you feel safe," Hannah said. "Once the dragon is slayed, he'll see things clearly. I'm certain of it."

Serah wasn't so sure.

The apocalypse. The end of days.

The world didn't end in an hour. It didn't end in a day. In fact, it didn't end at all. Most corners of the planet remained oblivious to the Hell sweeping through the land. As water supplies were poisoned, the air tainted, crops dying, it was business as usual in the mortal realm. They went to school, went to work; they studied and took tests, held meetings and conducted business, adapting instinctively to the perilous conditions.

Global Warming was blamed, as was a fictional Mother Nature. The storm of the century was upon them, they said, as they hunkered down and waited for it to all eventually blow over.

Serah laid low—out of sight, out of mind—as the angels fought to contain the mess she'd made. Creatures of all sorts had spilled through the gate, stepping foot onto Earth for the first time: vampires, werewolves, even the fairies. The supernatural realm had exploded, led by a horde of demons that had broken free.