Infernal Hunt Complete Set

by Holly Evans

  The river churned a grey-brown, lapping gently against the bank as though everything were right with the world. Birds had the audacity to chirp a cheerful song while I was racing to save my dear Lysander. My blades were in my hand as I broke away from the river and turned into an industrial estate. Warehouses and similar buildings surrounded the broken concrete, each boxy and grey. The details didn't matter. Lysander was snarling, blood marked his face and trickled down the back of his neck. Tyres screeched, voices cut through the haze of emotion. I was covered in fire. I could do this.

  The demon was fluctuating between two forms. One was a large man, broad, heavily muscled like an American football player. The other stood over seven feet tall with dark red skin and a set of black horns that curled around the back of his head. His attention snapped to me and those around him as I ran to my hound's side. His visage settled on the human one. Black shapes flitted and formed on the rooftops. Witches.

  I put myself between Lysander and the demon. It may have been the stupidest decision I made, but I stood by it. The demon laughed; even the witches cackled. I finally became aware of the others around me. Elise was on my right, glowing white. Quin was on my left, blue balls in his hands with Kadrix next to him. Felix and a small number of his pack fanned out to the left of the demon, slowly encircling him. Azfin and some fae I didn't recognise emerged from behind me. Elise really had summoned everyone. A small flush of pride and happiness formed through the cracks in the fury and terror.

  It happened in the blink of an eye. The air was suddenly filled with bright lights, fogs, curses, and the gods only knew what else. Screams cut through the sound of breaking bones and tearing muscles. The witches had been stupid enough to jump in and fight physically. I hacked at the closest one; she quickly set on fire. Her flailing and screamed spells did nothing to help her.

  I growled, "Hellfire, bitch."

  Quin was throwing his blue balls at the demon while fighting off another witch. I kept Lysander behind me. The demon wasn't going to get anywhere near him. The lycans worked as a group and launched themselves at the demon. They were soon writhing on the floor; the demon stood and laughed, not a scratch on him. Elise remained at my side. We pushed forward, slashing and stabbing anything between us and our goal. The Sidhe made light work of the witches; others were still on the rooves, throwing curses and other magical shit. I only had eyes for that demon.

  I was vaguely aware of being entirely on fire. The fire itself seemed to have a mind of its own as it flared and danced around me. The demon watched our approach with a small smirk. We paused; surely he wasn't that confident without some reason. Lysander had said he was powerful. I wished I'd studied more on demons. No, I wished demons hadn't broken through into my city. Elise began muttering something under her breath, a rhythmic chant that increased in intensity as we began circling around the demon, closing in. A pillar of bright white light struck him. I took the opportunity and charged in, my celestial blades in my hands. I caught sight of Lysander to my left. There was no time to stop him. To keep him safe.

  My blades cut through the uppermost layer of the demon's skin, and nothing more. I collided with the cold concrete. Air was driven from my lungs. Nothing but pain registered for a few long seconds. Lysander was scrambling back to his feet, preparing to try again. Elise was weaving something pure white around the demon. The witches were closing in around her, but Azfin was too quick for them. I spun my blades and circled around the demon, trying to draw his attention away from Elise. She dropped to her knees; the white strands vanished. The demon grinned. Lysander was behind him. I returned the demon's grin and stalked up to him, blades spinning. I didn't know what damage Lysander could do, but I couldn't let the demon see him.

  Quin's blue ball flew past my face and hit the demon in the stomach. He snarled and spat fire. Lysander leapt on his back and sank his teeth into the demon's shoulder. I ran at him, Kadrix next to me. We hit the demon as one. Kadrix's foot struck the demon squarely in the nose. I drove my celestial blade as deep into his thigh I could. It wasn't enough, but it was something. Lysander went flying. Kadrix and I weren't far behind him. The demon had tossed us aside like rag dolls. I shook my head to try and clear my vision. Elise was back up. The white was forming again. Quin was next to her. His lips were moving.

  The lycans and Sidhe were working together as I slowly got to my feet. Everything hurt. Something warm trickled down my back and over my ribs. I coughed hard. It took more than that to keep me down. I shook my head again, trying to shake away the darkness clinging to the edge of my vision. The white ropes tightened around the demon. Kadrix was up, Lysander was standing. A little wobbly, but he stood. The lycans were circling, but there was room. Once more, we charged as one. The demon was screaming and fighting against the ropes. His eyes locked with Elise. She crumpled to her knees but carried on chanting. All colour left her face. Quin went down. The ropes vanished when we were one stride away. I managed to get down to bone that time, in his shoulder. Everything went black.

  I came to and wished I hadn't. Everything hurt. Somehow, it managed to be a maelstrom of different pains, each competing to drown out my other senses. I blinked a few times and sat up. My jeans had holes in them; there was a small blue fire on my shin. My ribs bore a green mark and felt as though I had severe frostbite. I hated witches. It was chaos around me. My legs supported me when I stood; Elise and Quin were both kneeling and glowing pure white. The demon was squirming against more white ropes while Lysander struggled back to his feet. Kadrix stood over Elise and Quin; three Sidhe were standing guard around them. A witch threw a curse at me, a manic grin plastered to her bright pink lips. I couldn't move as quickly or gracefully as I'd have liked, but I covered the few feet between us. She gurgled and choked when she slumped down at my feet. I pulled my blades from her stomach. One less witch in the world.

  Lysander was slowly circling around the demon again. The lycans were mostly standing with a few Sidhe and what could have been a redcap in their numbers, all keeping the witches at bay. Something long and pointed was forming in front of Quin and Elise. I turned as quickly as I could and hacked off a witches hand just as she unleashed some curse at me. Horror filled her face as she looked at the bloody stump; she turned tail and ran. I continued on towards Quin and Elise. I had to help. The white object before them solidified into a spear. A pure-white glowing spear. I ran and snatched it from in front of them. Lysander was behind the demon, his eyes dark, his mouth twisted into a snarl. I caught his eye, he gave me a small nod. He had to be the one to do it. Elise and Quin were focused on me, Kadrix was doing something with his hands. I threw the spear to Lysander.

  The spear swerved from the bad angle I'd thrown it at and landed in Lysander's hands. I grinned and gave a nod to Kadrix before I threw one of my blades at the witch who'd managed to sneak up behind him. She stumbled backwards with the small silver knife jutting out from her throat. Kadrix landed a spinning kick to her head; she fell onto her side, where she stayed. The demon howled when Lysander's throw was true and the spear pierced its back. It was accompanied by a great clap of thunder and a wave of heat that threw everyone back off their feet. The ropes slipped away from him and the demon vanished.

  It felt wrong.

  The witches quickly followed suit and ran away as quickly as they could. I couldn't explain it, but something was wrong. I swallowed down whatever was eating at me and ran as quickly as my wobbly legs would let me to my dear hound. We fell to our knees in each others arms. I kissed all over his face and held him close to me.

  "I'm so sorry, I should have stayed closer to you."

  His blood smeared my face, consciousness threatened to leave me. The pain crashed down from every angle. I was tired. So very tired.

  I did manage to stay conscious.

  Everyone was injured, some worse than others. Kadrix fussed over Quin while I checked on Felix and his pack. It was important to keep the alliances we'd managed to form over the weeks. Lysander remained at my side; we b
oth limped and stumbled, but we were alive and moving. Felix gave thanks for our consideration and offered to help us get home. Azfin and his Sidhe were the least injured of everyone. They helped heal Quin before they offered to help Lysander and I.

  "We'll do this one for free, but don't think we'll be making a habit of it."

  "Thank you, Azfin,” I said.

  He allowed himself a small smile as he worked; the pain somehow intensified. Consciousness fled.

  I came to in less pain than I had been, still on the concrete. There were no fires and Azfin was gone. Lysander kissed me tenderly.

  I stroked down his neck. "It's over."

  He smiled and helped me to my feet. Quin was standing; he was leaning on Kadrix, but he was standing. Elise pulled us into a tight hug.

  "What did you, what was…?" I managed to ask.

  She frowned and looked at me a minute before she said, "Oh! Well, that was magic. Quin helped, it seems he has some interesting skills. He was more acting as battery for me, as his skills are so new and raw.”

  I nodded as though I had some idea what she was talking about.

  She laughed. “Let’s get home.”

  We were herded into a big black car; Elise headed to another vehicle somewhere. I curled up with Lysander, my head on his warm chest, his arm around me. He was safe.

  I thanked Felix again for his help. Lycans weren't quite the beasts I'd originally thought. It stung a little to see how my views were evolving, but I shrugged it off. The new flat felt odd. Kadrix and Quin were already there. Quin was lying on the sofa with a blanket over him.

  I stroked his hair. "Are you ok?"

  He smiled. "I'll survive."

  "You should be very proud of him, Evelyn. He helped Elise with very old, very powerful magic,“ Kadrix called from the kitchen.

  I scowled at him. "I am very proud of him, and I don't appreciate you insinuating otherwise."

  He smirked at me. "I see you finally had your mating rituals."

  I rolled my eyes and led Lysander to the bath with the jets.

  "Dinner will be twenty minutes."

  "Thank you, Kadrix,” I called back.

  The jets on the bath were wonderful. My muscles relaxed, some of the aches and pains vanished, and that was without Lysander's magical touch. Fresh clothes helped my mood some, too. I needed some more jeans, though. I was going to keep a jeans company in business, the way I was going. We didn't have a proper dining table, so we clustered around the kitchen wall, counter, thing. Kadrix was a surprisingly good cook. I'd half expected to be given some colourful powders with a potion and a dash of gloop. Instead, he'd put together a divine chicken dish with wine and cheese. I had no idea what it was called, I just knew that it was the best food I'd had in a very long time.

  "If you cook like this, you can stay any time you want,” I said to Kadrix with a grin.

  He narrowed his eyes at me. "I was under the impression that I could stay when I pleased as long as Quin was with me."

  I laughed.

  Quin kissed the elf's cheek and cleared away the plates. "You can stay whenever you want, you don't even have to cook. Evie was paying you a compliment."

  Kadrix eyed me suspiciously. "Thank you, Evelyn."

  I shook my head. He was a peculiar thing. I stretched and yawned; I felt like I could sleep for a few weeks.

  "We're heading to bed." I hugged Quin. “You did amazing things today, I'm proud of you." He grinned. "And you, Kadrix, thank you for your help today."

  The elf preened.

  We were halfway across the living room when Kadrix said, "Will I need normal earplugs or magically enhanced earplugs?"

  I ignored him. Quin laughed. Everything felt right again. It all slipped into place.

  I covered my head in the two pillows and groaned. It was so wrong hearing my twin, or possibly Kadrix, I didn't care. I shouldn't have been subject to those noises.

  Lysander wrapped himself around me, his hand slid over my hip. “We could always block out the noise."

  I pulled the pillows tighter around my head, that felt so wrong, competing with my brother. I kissed Lysander tenderly.

  "Sorry, but that's killing my mood. It's wrong, it's just so very wrong."

  He laughed softly. "We often had an audience, such things do not concern me."

  I wrinkled my nose. "You can add that to the list of things that won't be happening now you're mine."

  A grin spread across his face and he pulled me into his arms. I kept the pillows over my head as I cuddled up to him and tried to block out the noises.

  We went for a run at sunrise; I couldn't bear it any longer.

  It felt good to run for the sake of running, to feel my muscles stretching and my heart-rate slowly increasing. The crisp cool air was refreshing and brought a smile to my face. The city changed around us from traditional houses to sleek modern businesses and into more compact housing with narrower streets. The bright pastel colours added a little extra personality to the intricate mouldings and complex artwork that adorned some of the walls. There was no place like home.

  We eased to a steady walk and passed by a small park affair, a collection of benches around some trees set in a concrete square between two narrow roads. A man stood as we approached, dressed in a black wool coat, black slacks, and a white shirt. He looked out of place. Lysander snarled and I realised who, or perhaps more importantly, what, he was.

  "Evelyn, you look stunning as always. That faint blush suits you, it brings out your eyes beautifully. That shirt clings rather delightfully, too."

  Lysander snarled at Tiel; the celestial grinned and said, "Down boy."

  I put my hand on Lysander's thigh, telling him to behave himself and stay behind me.

  Tiel's grin widened. "Do remember my offer Evelyn, when you're ready for a real male."

  "Why are you bothering us, Tiel?" I said in a bored tone while stopping and crossing my arms.

  "Unfortunately my superiors are unhappy, once again. The witch still hasn't been dealt with. The city remains unbalanced."

  I shrugged. "Not my problem."

  His eyes flashed an icy blue for a brief second.

  "It will impact you and your friends,” he growled.

  I pursed my lips. "I see they stuck a rod up your ass; shame, you were almost fun."

  He smirked and stood up a little straighter. "I'll keep my comments to myself, you are supposed to be a lady, after all."

  I smiled sweetly. "Run along, I'm sure your superiors have more errands for you to attend to."

  He shook his head. “We could have had so much fun."

  With that, he did his vanishing act.

  Lysander snarled and muttered under his breath. We continued our walk home. We needed to deal with the witch; whether I liked it or not, the celestials were right. She was clearly causing trouble in the city, but we had no leads. I didn't know who or what I was supposed to turn to. The witches we'd captured had all committed suicide; the Sidhe knew nothing of use. The celestials were worthless. I sighed. Lysander wrapped his arm around my waist and directed me to a quaint little café.

  "Why don't we get breakfast here, Evelyn? I'm not quite ready to hear Quin and Kadrix again."

  I laughed despite myself. I was happy he was happy, but it was just too weird.

  Breakfast was pleasant; I texted Elise to come and join us. We giggled over the poor night's sleep we'd had and grumbled over Tiel having the nerve to show up. It felt good to shrug off the chaos and mayhem that had happened the previous day. The demon was gone, the threat was removed. We could finally return to the quiet life we'd had before, with nothing more than irritating redcaps and the odd lycan pushing their luck.

  Quin texted when we were on our third pot of coffee, saying that we had the all clear to return home. I felt a little guilty, but pushed it aside; I was sure he'd understand and that he would have done the same had the roles been reversed. Elise returned to her church, saying she had things to do for her lady, and we headed bac
k to our new home. I smiled and leaned against Lysander as he had his arm around me; it was our home. Things were finally falling into place.

  Kadrix was preening and sauntering around the flat in just his boxers when we returned. I wanted to knock the smug smirk off his face, but the contented looked on Quin's stopped me. Fortunately, the elf made some excuse about needing to get work done before long, and I could relax. Quin stretched out on the sofa and peered at his phone.

  "Evie, Azfin's pissed about something and wants to talk. Would you mind meeting him? I'm exhausted from the magic-work yesterday."

  I raised an eyebrow. "You're blaming the magic for your exhaustion?"

  He gave me a roguish grin and left it that.

  "Fine, where am I meeting him?"

  "That new underground bar that opened last week, over in Holešovice.”

  I curled my lip. "I'll take extra blades then; do you have some of that magic dispersal powder?"

  He gave me the address and the powder. If the little shit wanted to try something, then I was going to be prepared. I made sure Lysander had a couple of knives, too. He was good with his claws and teeth, but I wanted to be sure.

  "I'm sure it's just a whiny nymph or something, Evie, you worry too much,” Quin called as I placed the final dagger in its sheath.

  "I'd rather be paranoid and safe, thanks,” I called back.

  The address was on the outskirts of Holešovice, near the industrial estates. The Sidhe had been good to us as of late, which was suspicious in and of itself. I remained tense on the tram ride out there and looked around for any signs of anything suspicious as we stepped off onto the concrete platform. A trendy little café sat opposite us, with a bank next to it. The neighbourhood was gentrifying; it was currently in the trendy artistic stage of progress.

  We walked away from the main road down into the denser more industrial area; we went a block before we saw Azfin casually leaning against a wall. I pulled my leather jacket closer around me. Without a word said, they led us through the pitch black door down the narrow steps into the club. Magical orbs hung around the edge of the room producing just enough light to stop us from bumping into anything, and nothing more. Azfin and Haeyl took a seat at a small table in the middle of the seating area. We remained standing, and tense. I kept an eye out for any movement or unusual sounds, but none came.