Chapter 385: Promise

"That's right. This was what I used on him. It is really handy at times," Salazar affirmed. "But it also has some bad sides to it."

"I call it Dream Illusion," he added. 

"How does it work?" Lucifer asked. 

"With this, I can trap any person in a dream. As long as that person doesn't realize that it's a dream, he'll stay stuck," Salazar replied. "I can keep that dream up for around five minutes. That's what I used on Kellian."

"Since I didn't want him to realize that he was in a dream, I made it a continuation of our own battle. He was fighting me in his dreams."

"It's certainly a good ability. But what bad side were you talking about? How does it stop you from breaking promises?" Lucifer asked, not able to link the two. 

"It's pretty simple. I need to have my heart clean to perform this skill. If I can't, it backfires on me. And I get trapped in nightmares for months at a time, unable to get out. Even when I know that they're dreams, I can't come out that easily. It's a really bad experience," Salazar explained. 

"You need to keep your heart clean? You mean you can't do anything that you consider bad or lie?" Lucifer inquired. 

"Not really. I tried testing this. I can do bad things. I can even lie, and I don't face the backlash of this ability. I only faced this backlash twice, and both were the times when I broke a promise. That's why I don't promise anyone anymore," Salazar answered. 

' Trapped in a dream for months? That's a long time to be trapped. I can't afford that. But to get to where I want, I'll have to make quite a few promises and break them.' Lucifer thought, losing himself in deep thought. 

'This ability isn't suited for me. But can I steal the Time Manipulation without stealing this ability too?' 

"So, yeah. I can't break a promise unless I want to be at the mercy of others," Salazar continued. 

"Didn't you promise recently that you'll keep me safe? So if you ever tried to attack me, you'll get trapped in a dream?" Lucifer asked, thinking back to his first meeting with Salazar. 

"That's right. And since the backlash is immediate, it'll act instantly. So before I could even land an attack, I would be trapped. Even if I wanted to hurt you now, I can't. You're the safest person in this building," Salazar affirmed.

"Is he telling the truth?" Lucifer asked, glancing back. 

Salazar also turned back, surprised, wondering who Lucifer was asking. 

As he turned back, he noticed a woman standing there. 

"Veracity? You're here as well? Since when have you been standing there?" Salazar asked, surprised. 

"Since you started opening your heart," Veracity replied, smirking. 

She looked at Lucifer and continued, "Everything he said was the truth. He hasn't lied even once."

Lucifer nodded in satisfaction. 

"Ah, so it's that. You're keeping me under a lie detector. Not bad," Salazar said, bursting into laughter. 

"Well, you did kill four of my people. And we've just met. I can't trust you that easily. I'm sure you'll understand. I'm not going to make the same mistake as my father," Lucifer explained. 

"So, Salazar Lucia. I'm sure you understand where I'm coming from now? You know what I want as well. So do you still want to take me back? Or will you stay and help me? What do you want to do?" he asked. 

Salazar turned his body around and stood up. 

"That's a good question indeed. I think your cause is good. But I still don't agree with the approach. Generally, I wouldn't agree to help you, but I'll do it. I'll do it for Zale."

"But I'll only help you against the Warlock Council. I won't help you with anything else, you understand?"

"That would be enough."

"Now that we're part of the same team, can you take off the bracelet?" 

"I can, but only if you promise me something."

"Seriously? You're going to use that against me now?"

"I'm just taking precautions."

"What do you want me to promise you?"

"I want you to promise me that you won't attack any Uprising Member in the future," Lucifer said. 

"I can't promise that. If my life is in danger, I want to be able to protect myself. I'm not going to sit idle if a crazy Uprising member attacks me," Salazar immediately rejected the proposal. 

" Fine. Then promise me that you won't use your powers against any Uprising member or attack them unless that person attacks you first?" Lucifer improvised.

"That I can promise. I promise that I won't use my powers against any Uprising member or attack them unless they attack me first," Salazar promised. "Can you take off the bracelet now?"

"I'm not taking the bracelet off. That'll stay on your hand. But you'll be able to use your powers. Just think of that as an accessory now," Lucifer responded before he spoke two words. "Unlock powers!"

The red light of the bracelet turned to white light. 

"It's unlocked now. You can now use your powers. Just don't use them on my members. Also, don't try to take off the bracelet. It has protection against that. I don't want you to suffer because you tried that. So keep that in mind." Lucifer reminded Salazar as he also got up. 

Salazar looked at the ant, which was walking on the ground, smiling. He spread out his domain to test his theory. As the ant came inside his domain, it became even slower. 

"Argh, it feels good to be able to use my powers again. But I feel like myself again. Even though I still have this handicap, it's better than nothing. Now, tell me. Who's the second person that you want to take revenge on?" he asked Lucifer. 

"Follow me." Lucifer walked back to the lift with Veracity and Salazar. 

The lift started going down. 

It stopped on the second-highest floor. Lucifer and Salazar walked through that floor to stop before a room. "You stay here with Veracity. I'll be right outside."

Opening the door, Lucifer stepped inside the room. 

As he entered the room, he noticed Kellian sitting behind a table, looking at something on the screen of his laptop. 

"I heard you took Salazar with you?" Kellian asked, noticing Lucifer. 

"That's right. I've decided that he'll work for us. I made him accept my proposal," Lucifer responded, taking a seat before Kellian. 

"You know he killed four of our men?" Kellian inquired. "What do you think the others will feel when they know that you're freeing Salazar?"