A second chance!

[Author's note: Please take note, this chapter shifts POVs. It starts with Depravity and ends with Lucius. I made sure to indicate their names at the beginning of each POV for easy detection.]

—Depravity

Violation spent the next while poring over the spells, committing them to memory. When he finally stood, there was a determined set to his shoulders. He was ready.

A thought occurred to me then, one I should have considered earlier. "How do you intend to leave Hell?" I asked. "The gates-"

"Are bound by pacts, yours in particular." Violation finished for me, that knowing glint back in his eye. "And a pact, my dear friend, can never truly be severed. Not completely."

Understanding dawned on me. "So as long as we both make our way to the gates..."

"They will open," Violation confirmed. "Your connection to Lucius, to the world of the living, weak though it may be, is enough. We need only reach them."

With that, we set off.