Apocalypse: The Lords of Deliverance Compendium by Larissa Ione

“His generosity knows no bounds.” He nudged Than with his boot. “Now I guess I’m stuck helping you. Recover quickly. I want to hit one of those new succubus whorehouses before I have to head back to the Gra.”
    A million pinpricks stabbed Than’s muscles as he struggled to prop himself against a fallen tree. The blue-haired bastard just stood there and watched.
    “Why… help… me?”
    Hades’s face went as hard as the landscape around them. “Because your fucking brother is pissing me off. While I can appreciate what he’s trying to do, starting an Apocalypse and all, I get ticked off when he noses in on my business.”
    Thanatos wiggled his toes, relieved to feel them again. “What are you talking about?”
    The blue veins that spiderwebbed Hades’s pale skin grew brighter and started to pulse. “He’s trying to dismantle Sheoul-gra and destroy Azagoth.”
    “Oh, shit.” Without a Sheoul-gra, any demon or evil human killed in the human realm would be free to wreak havoc in their phantom form.
    There was also a running theory that Azagoth might be the Horsemen’s father, but so far, no one had been able to verify that. Until the rumor could be confirmed, Thanatos would rather the guy not be killed.
    “Oh, shit, is right. Who’d have thought your screwball brother could have gone so serial-killer fucktwat insane?”
    And that was the big problem. Reseph had been the kindest, most even-tempered of all of them. For him to have turned so evil did not bode well for Ares, Limos, and Than.
    He became aware of a branch biting into his back, and at the same time, a low-level vibration started in the pit of his stomach. His body was coming to life.
    And it was hungry.
    Along with the hunger, the tug toward danger grew stronger, became a pulsing awareness in the back of his brain. What the hell was it?
    “He grows stronger every day, Thanatos. The souls I watch over are starting to reincarnate at rates I’ve never seen.”
    Than frowned. “You think Pestilence is responsible for that?”
    “Maybe not directly, but as the Apocalypse grows closer, souls are leaving me faster than they’re coming in. Pestilence is getting a big boost in the demon population, and I’m growing weaker. You need to kill him.”
    Thanatos rocked his head back against the tree trunk. “I intend to repair his Seal, not kill him.” Than had found evidence that Reseph’s Seal could be repaired, but only if Than stabbed him with a specific dagger at a specific time. Problem was that he hadn’t figured out the “time” detail.
    “Criminy. Whatever. Just do
something
. My very life comes from those souls. I need them.”
    “Criminy?” Than stared. “Seriously? Big, bad, mohawk-haired demon says ‘criminy’?”
    “Yes, criminy.” Hades rubbed his bare chest. “And, fuck off.”
    Than closed his eyes. “That’s better.”
    The vibration in Than’s core became a gnawing hunger, threaded with malevolence. The scent of blood hit him, and he snapped open his eyes. Hades was on his haunches next to Than, a knife in his hand. Blood flowed from his slit wrist, and Than’s fangs punched down as the starvation that had been kept at bay for eight months roared to the surface.
    He lunged at Hades, but the male caught him around the back of the neck and slammed his bleeding wrist against Than’s mouth. Thanatos’s brain blanked out as his body was hijacked by fierce hunger and pure animal instinct.
    “Ow, fuck.” Hades’s rough voice was a mere buzz in Than’s ears.
    At this point, he didn’t give a hellrat’s ass if he was savaging the male’s arm. All that mattered was filling the hole inside him that, when emptied, led to indiscriminate feedings and a lot of death. Fortunately for Than, Hades was one of the few people who knew about Than’s need, although he didn’t know the extent of it.
    Time swirled in multi-colored circles until finally, Hades pulled away and left Than leaning back against the tree, his body