Academy of the Devi- the Complete Collection Read online

  Eva Brandt

  Academy of the Devil

  The Complete Collection

  Copyright © 2019 by Eva Brandt

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

  This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

  Eva Brandt has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party Internet Websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such Websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

  Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book and on its cover are trade names, service marks, trademarks and registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publishers and the book are not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. None of the companies referenced within the book have endorsed the book.

  Cover art is for illustrative purposes only. Cover design by Fantasia Cover Designs.

  First edition

  This book was professionally typeset on Reedsy

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  Contents

  The Academy of the Devil Complete Collection

  A Note From the Author

  Index

  I. A HELLISH YEAR ONE

  Prologue

  The Unlikely Messenger

  Hellish First Impressions

  Arrival

  Abandon All Hope

  Demonic Sloth

  Deadly Introductions

  Creatures, Connections and Computers

  Through Anger and Envy

  Familiar Confrontations

  The Scholomance

  Collapse

  Through Weakness and Hatred

  White Ruin

  Sacrifice

  The Choice

  Epilogue

  II. A DEMONIC YEAR TWO

  Prologue

  Private Lesson

  The Test

  First Time

  Demonic Contracts

  Detention

  Battle of the Watchers

  Ghosts from the Past

  Revelatio

  Battle Magic

  Divine Families

  Betrayals

  To Move On

  Transfers and Transformations

  Severed

  Adjustment

  Demonic Status

  Acceptance

  Epilogue

  III. A SINFUL YEAR THREE

  Prologue

  Surprising Hunts

  Dawn of the Morning Star

  Unexpected Connections

  Manipulation

  Punishment

  Consume

  Vessel

  Difficult Decisions

  Lair of the Hell Hounds

  Fear the Reaper

  Stefan’s Stand

  Mikael’s Malice

  Meph’s Mutiny

  Callum’s Choice

  Lucifer’s Light

  Aftermath

  Epilogue

  IV. A DEVILISH GRADUATION

  Exam Preparations

  Return to the Academy

  Demonology for Humans

  Stefan’s Strength

  Meph’s Madness

  Callum’s Courage

  Lucifer’s Lie

  Mikael’s Mother

  Graduation Gift

  Epilogue

  Watcher Academy First Look

  Watcher Academy 1. A Merciless Year One

  Coming Soon

  Also By Eva Brandt

  About the Author

  The Academy of the Devil Complete Collection

  At the Academy of the Devil, weakness is anathema, hope is unheard of, and students die one after the other in their quest to become the next Satan. How, then, can a human hope to survive?

  For as long as I can remember, I’ve been the girl who didn’t fit in, the epileptic trying to build a life despite my seizures. I had a plan, a way to move forward, to surpass my condition.

  Everything was torn asunder when I received an invitation to attend The Academy of the Devil. All of a sudden, I’ve been thrust into a whole new world, one populated by demons, ancient deities, ghosts, and more secrets than should ever exist. I have to learn how to wield my new powers and survive long enough to go back to my family.

  It would be a little easier if I wasn’t slowly falling in love with the unlikeliest people possible. Before long, I find myself engaged in a complicated relationship with the princes of the school, incubus Callum, cambion Mikael, and hell hound Stefan. Known for the ruthless ways they eliminate any threat to their position, they’re still just attracted to me as I am to them. Then there’s Dean Mephistopheles, who has his own agenda, but who turns my blood to fire whenever he summons me to detention. And let’s not forget Lucifer, the Brightest Star, the Fallen One, who’s somehow determined to make me his queen. Or is he?

  At the Academy of the Devil, nothing is what it seems. I can’t trust anyone, not even myself. Where will this journey end?

  The Academy of the Devil boxset contains the three Academy of the Devil books, as well as a bonus, previously unpublished novella, A Devilish Graduation.

  Book 1. A Hellish Year One

  Book 2. A Demonic Year Two

  Book 3. A Sinful Year Three

  Extra Epilogue. A Devilish Graduation

  The series contains dark themes, including ableism, torture, mutilation, death, graphic violence. Don’t step into The Academy of the Devil if you are not prepared!

  A Note From the Author

  Thank you for checking out The Academy of the Devil Complete Collection. As mentioned in the blurb, this series contains some pretty heavy themes. It is the story of a disabled character who suffers a great deal because of her condition.

  Keep in mind that epilepsy is a complicated illness. While writing this series, I relied heavily on my own experience. Two types of generalized seizures are mentioned: convulsive seizures—which you may be familiar with from depictions in the media and basically involve the patient losing consciousness and starting to seize—and absence seizures, when the patient loses track of their environment. I didn’t go too in depth, as I’m actually not an expert at all the medical terminology. In other words, it is the perspective of a patient, not a doctor. But for people not in the know, epileptics need to avoid flashing lights, anything involving caffeine (coffee, chocolate, black and green tea), alcohol, smoking (passive smoking is included), excessive amounts of strain, both physical and mental. That’s only a part of it, but every single epileptic is different, so I won’t go further.

  The series as a whole will contain other dark content, including, but not limited to torture, mutilation, and gore. Starting book 2, there will also be sex scenes that might not be for everyone - partially-shifted sex (basically werewolf sex) and mentions of dubious consent. Throughout the whole series, I’ll be taking a lot of liberties with biblical content.

  If you’re okay with all that, wonderful! Let’s enter the academy together!

  Index

  In Academy of the Devil, I used (and modified) several concepts. Here is a small guideline for what you might find inside.

  Princes of Hell and
corresponding Academy of the Devil houses

  Lucifer - House of Pride

  Asmodan (Asmodai) - House of Lust - a fire-breathing demon with three heads (one like a bull, the second like a man, and the third like a ram) and the tail of a serpent, also known for riding a dragon in battle

  Satan - House of Wrath

  Belphegor - House of Sloth - demon depicted here as obese, filthy and always in repose

  Beelzebub - House of Gluttony - originally a fallen angel and one of Lucifer’s most important lieutenants, described here as having a secondary shape-shifted form

  Mammon - House of Greed - described here as a demon clad only in gold coins carried up from Hell by a wolf

  Leviathan - House of Envy - a shape-shifting whale-like monster; like Lucifer and Beelzebub, originally a fallen angel

  Angelic entities of note - ranks of angels

  Seraphim - highest order of the Hierarchy of Angels, each with six wings.

  Cherubim - powerful and majestic angelic creatures who surround God’s throne, mentioned as the guardians of The Garden of Eden after Adam and Eve’s expulsion

  Thrones - third ranking order of angels, described as having four wings and four faces.

  Dominions - the fourth ranking order of angels, described as wearing long gowns and carrying golden scepters or orbs

  Virtues - fifth ranking order of angels, the angels of miracles, encouragement, and blessings

  Powers - sixth ranking order of angels, guardians against the attacks of the demons

  Principalities - seventh ranking order of angels, guardians over the nations and the leaders of the world

  Archangels - eighth ranking order of angels. Archangel Michael is believed to be the highest-ranking warring angel in God’s heavenly host.

  Guardian Angels - last order of angels, meant to guard those who will inherit salvation.

  Sources seem unable to agree on what rank Lucifer had before his fall. He’s been described as a cherub, but also an archangel. I chose to make him a combination between a cherubim and a throne.

  I

  A Hellish Year One

  Abandon all hope, ye who enter here. The Academy of the Devil is waiting, and there will be no mercy.

  Prologue

  Waking up after a seizure was always the same. There was always an overwhelming feeling of confusion, one that the worried people nearby often made worse. Usually, the people in question tended to be my panicked parents, but there were exceptions to that. I still remembered a notable episode when a random homeless guy had dragged me off the street so the cars wouldn’t run me over. I’d been very grateful, of course, but that didn’t mean it hadn’t confused me to wake up to a stranger with no teeth peering down at me and asking me if I needed an exorcism.

  Anyway, most times, there was a doctor. I didn’t need it for every single seizure, but when my parents did take me to the hospital, the doctors always asked the same questions.

  “What is your full name?”

  “What day of the week is it?”

  “What is the month?”

  “Who is the president?”

  Three-quarters of the time, I could never get the latter right, although I doubted it was because of brain damage. Some things, you just had to block out of your mind to stay sane.

  All these similarities aside, the most important thing that stuck with me was the crushing feeling of failure, inadequacy, and defeat. No matter how hard I tried, it was never enough.

  “You should have slept more, Ms. Michaelis.”

  “You shouldn’t have gotten so worked up over your school issues.”

  “You shouldn’t have stayed at the computer so long.”

  That was what they always said, and I would have liked to tell all of them that it wasn’t so easy, that I couldn’t just turn off my feelings and not get stressed, that I wanted to get my degree, damn it, and the computer was a little necessary for that. But it was all stupid and pointless, because the fact remained that every time I fell apart, it was my own fault.

  In my heart, I knew I was lucky. There were countless other people with my condition who couldn’t even function at all. My epilepsy was at least manageable with medicine. For the most part, I could lead a normal life.

  I would have still liked to have at least one birthday in which I didn’t have to worry about such things. One day in which I could celebrate and simply… be. For my eighteenth birthday, I would have liked to relax and not worry.

  I didn’t want fancy gifts or parties. I just wanted a migraine-free day, one I could enjoy with my parents and my dog. We were looking forward to our picnic. We’d had it all planned out.

  Suffice to say, it didn’t work out. Then again, very few things ever did for me.

  Because as it turned out, migraines and seizures were the last thing I had to worry about on my eighteenth birthday and maybe that homeless guy hadn’t been wrong in mentioning exorcism.

  The Unlikely Messenger

  “Lyssa, did you remember to put the napkins in the basket?”

  “I told you before, Mom. Yes, I did.”

  “Well, they’re not here. Where did you hide them?”

  I rolled my eyes and leaned against the tree trunk, not bothering to reply. Shiro padded to my side and placed his massive head on my knee. I scratched his ear, reveling in his familiar, steadying presence. “I bet she took them out of the basket because they were the wrong color of something and she forgot. Don’t you think so, Shiro?”

  Shiro woofed at me and gently tugged on my jacket with his fangs, ushering me to get up and play with him. “Shiro, now is not the time to play,” I told him. “Come on. No, don’t you dare… Don’t you dare give me the eyes.”

  Shiro ignored my request and proceeded to do just that, staring at me with a pleading expression that made my resistance crumble. “All right, but just so you know, if you get yourself dirty, mister, you’re taking a bath.”

  I picked up a stick, threw it, and smiled as I watched Shiro bound after it with enthusiasm. I’d had him for a little over three years, since he’d been only a puppy the size of my fist. I’d found him after the homeless man incident, abandoned and almost freezing in a box, and to this day, I had yet to identify his breed. The vet claimed he was some kind of German Sheppard-Husky mix, but I couldn’t always see the resemblance. Half the time, Mom just called him a wolf, although that wasn’t accurate either. I had abandoned all attempts to identify him in any other way except “my Shiro.”

  He’d saved my life on more than one occasion. Even if he wasn’t a trained dog, he still sensed my seizures and knew to warn me that something would happen, so that I wouldn’t fall over in a dangerous place and do more damage to myself.

  It also helped that once he’d grown into his current size, everyone interested in bullying me had found other hobbies. He was my best friend, and without him, I probably wouldn’t have been able to survive high school with my sanity intact.

  As such, I was naturally inclined to indulge him. The end result was that he’d ended up quite a brat. I was good at plenty of things, but not spoiling my dog didn’t make the list. Shiro knew it.

  It took about ten more seconds for him to make my resistance crumble. It was a little irresponsible and childish of me to go play with Shiro while my parents were preparing the picnic, but hey, it was my birthday. I could afford to celebrate, even if only through something simple.

  Truth be told, it was the simple things I’d always found most comforting and reassuring. I enjoyed being in this small forest with my family, feeling the breeze pass through my hair, so refreshing and different from the scent of the city. I enjoyed throwing around a stick for Shiro and seeing him respond with such joy. Later, I would certainly enjoy eating my mother’s delicious cooking and reading a good book in the shade of a tree. Maybe these weren’t remarkable, celebratory activities, but I didn’t need anything more.

  It was probably a good thing, because throwing wild parties or visiting more exciting venues co
uld’ve led to me having a seizure, which was something I sought to avoid.

  So far, everything was going well. The sun was shining. My parents had yet to start bickering over nonsense. I didn’t have a migraine. There was no need to dwell on things I couldn’t change and spoil my enjoyment.

  It would’ve been difficult to hold onto any kind of negative feelings anyway when faced with the determination of a certain dog. He rushed back to my side, holding the stick in his mouth. He dropped it at my feet and looked up at me, looking very proud of himself. “Yes, thank you,” I told him with a snicker. “You did very well. Do you want me to throw it again?”

  Shiro woofed and wagged his tail in response. At such moments, I could’ve sworn he really understood what I was saying, and I could almost understand him in turn.

  “Okay, you pest,” I told him. “Let’s see how fast you are this time.”

  I threw the stick again and Shiro shot after it like a bullet. I watched him go with a smile, his white fur standing out in the tall grass like a beacon.

  “Lyssa!” my mother called out again. “I still can’t find those napkins! Where are they?”

  Huffing, I turned to look in her general direction. As soon as we’d reached the forest, I’d fled our little camp site, retreating to a tiny grove nearby. From my current position, I could only see the top of her head. I had no desire to go back to help her look for such a trivial item, but at this point, it seemed I wouldn’t have a choice.

  “I don’t know,” I replied with a sigh. “Just give me a moment. I’m coming.”

  Before I could do exactly that, my father rescued me from my predicament. “Never mind,” I heard him say. “Found ‘em.”

  Of course he had, because just like I’d expected, they’d probably been in an obvious place. I rolled my eyes and turned toward Shiro, ready to throw the stick for him again.