Hexes and Hellfire: Kyra Bell: Book One
Page 18
Unfortunately, he eventually caught on to my plan, and I suspected he was finally getting low on magic while I still had plenty. Something had sobered him, and it was my hope it was that. He changed tactics then, and took off into the sky after me only to turn and blast a stream of fire at Vic.
A whip of hellfire raced his magic down, and as it got to Vic the tip exploded into a net of fire, that surrounded him. It ate the fire that had gotten through and was consuming his flesh, while blocking the rest of the column. The bastard was forcing me to go magic against magic, but in truth it was far too late. I was too far ahead in the game, and I could afford some even exchanges.
I dove down at his back as he continued to blast away at Vic, and I formed blade tips of hellfire along the fingers of the flaming gauntlet, and I raked them down his back. My magic cut into his shield, but more importantly it sheered his wings off and the dumb ass dropped like a stone, finally cutting off his attack on Vic.
To his credit, he landed on his feet quite gracefully, and managed to keep hold of his sword. He also kept on the same tactic, just in a different manner, as he rushed Vic and started to slam his blazing sword into my protective net. I had no choice but to pour magic into it, if the sword got through Vic would be cut in half.
Once again, he found a way to make me take the hit, or my magic, instead of dodging him and making him look like an idiot.
I hadn’t even noticed, but Abby had recovered, and they say the third times the charm, as she finally managed to get through a whole spell.
The whirlwind of air blades that surrounded him surprised me, and he was also thrown a good thirty feet by a powerful gusting stab of air. The whirlwind of blades went with him, further degrading his magic. I was already ahead of the game, despite him finally getting a clue, even if his latest tactic was kind of evil.
His shield flared brightly, though not nearly as brightly as earlier it was still enough to eat Abby’s spell.
I pounced on the that sign of weakness, and a whip of hellfire snapped out and circled his neck, then drew closed. I poured my power into it, more than I had been, a lot more as the hellfire whip dug into his shields.
His flaming sword swung at it as he rolled to his feet… and bounced off.
My laugh may have been a bit evil then, as I poured even more power into it, even as I slowly floated to the ground and absorbed the power of my wings back into my body. His shield dimmed, then died. Less than a second later, the whip’s noose tightened and pulled closed, burning right through his neck like a hot knife through butter. His skin melted, and his head rolled off his body. There wasn’t even any blood as the hellfire cauterized the wound as it was made.
I cleared my throat nervously, and I looked over at Abby and my lover. Vic’s wolf was obviously nervous, and Abby was looking at me in disbelieving horror.
“So, this is awkward,” I said in my best offhand tone.
It was also over, the end of this part of my life. I couldn’t stay, it was only a matter of time before the investigators came and read the earth, then the manhunt, or woman-hunt in my case, would begin. If they saw Abby and Vic siding with me, they too would be killed, so it wasn’t just fear and disgust at what I was, even if they could accept me, I couldn’t stay.
It was also moot, Abby would never let me stay, now that she knew what I was. And Vic… that was too painful to contemplate, so I told myself he’d get over his horror and accept me, it was the only thing my heart would accept. Either way, it was over.
I’d had a thought though, and one I wouldn’t have had if my bag hadn’t been burned to ashes. One I’d pushed aside in the heat of battle, but I dredged back up now that we were safe.
A half-demon could open portals to hell as I’d said, but also to any dimension save heaven, not just hell. The power was more generic than our bad press implied. My mound was on another dimension, a personal dimensional pocket perhaps, but still a dimension that was separate from the mortal plane on this earth. I focused on the idea, imagining the trail where Muriel so often met me, and channeled my power into it.
Flames rose before me, it almost looked like they were consuming the barriers between realities, and for all I knew that’s exactly how the magic worked. Even us supernaturals didn’t know all the answers, that’s why it was called magic.
The flaming doorway cleared, and I smirked as I saw my mound on the other side.
“Well, tell the council not to bother chasing me, they won’t find me, and tell them I know the truth. The pack of hypocrites, Nephilim and half demons are exactly the same, neither of us inherit the grace or sins of our parents, they just have better press, and training. Fuckers.”
I winked, “Tell John I said goodbye, I’m sorry, but I didn’t have a choice. I couldn’t watch you die just to hide.”
Vic let out a whine, but if I didn’t go right then I wouldn’t go at all. I stepped through the gate, and it winked shut behind me as I released the magic feeding it. I also stuffed my demon magic deep in the core of me, to keep it controlled and hidden once again.
I had a lot to do. I had to replace my bag, and I had ideas for that. I’d learned a lot the last four years through experimentation and studying my family grimoire. I bet I could make a much more elegant solution than lugging around a huge bag with an anchor point to my mound. I wouldn’t be using a lot of gates, using my demon powers unless I absolutely had to seemed like a bad idea.
Still, it was good to know that I could open a gate to anywhere on Earth that I’d personally been and knew well enough, from my mound.
I’d also have to add a second option to my fae enchanted necklace, a new look, and perhaps go for half fae half human by spell detection? I was strong enough to hide my witch magic too, which was much weaker. Point being, fae-witches weren’t thick on the ground and I was sure my first disguise would be well circulated soon among all the councils around the world. Another witch-fae that was a master alchemist trying to join a group, would be too obvious, even if I looked different.
Blonde hair, lighter skin to make it look natural, softer cheek bones, slightly lighter gray eyes. That should be more than enough to fool facial recognition and human instinct. I made a face, not really thrilled with the idea. I liked my current looks, which was the real me minus the horns.
It took me about a year to enchant the bag, but the new one would happen faster, and be better, now that I was past the learning curve. Maybe six months, and in here that could be in as little as a day or two out there, if I didn’t want to lose earth time. I thought I’d use a ring this time, anchored to my mound. I could project small doors to the mound from above my palms, and stuff would literally appear in my hands. No reaching for a bag required.
The reason I didn’t do that last time is obvious, if I opened a door to my mound large enough to walk through, then my ring would come with me. I’d had to leave the bag on earth for that reason. But I knew a lot more now. I could temporarily move the anchor into almost any object, and then close the door when I moved through. For instance, if I was in the forest, I could put the anchor inside a small rock, or even a living tree, and once in my mound I could still command that anchor from the inside, to close the door so no one could follow me, either on purpose or on accident.
The anchor would stay in the real world, even if the ring came with me, then the ring would reabsorb the anchor when I left my mound. I could even create an enchantment where I could cut off that temporarily displaced anchor and let it die, and let a new anchor grow in the ring in less than a day, which would give me the ultimate in flexibility. Especially combined with my ability for demon gates.
The two new enchantments would also keep my mind occupied. My heart ached, literally, and my stomach churned at the idea of never seeing Vic again. Never being in his arms, never being possessed and ravished by him. Gods, it would be a good distraction, and maybe in six months I’d be ready to try again. Giving up wasn’t an option, I was only twenty, I had a long life ahead of me, and in six months th
e world wouldn’t know what hit it.
That was the plan anyway.
~ Author’s notes ~
Blessed be.
Thank you for reading the first book in the Kyra Bell series.
This was the first book of three planned for this Romance Urban Fantasy. I hope you enjoyed it. It was a little edgier than my usual stuff, and I’m sure you’ve noticed I’m taking a step back from the reverse-harem genre I’ve been writing in the last few series. Kyra will be facing even worse trials in the next book, but there’ll also be hope.
Please leave a review if you feel moved to. Independent authors depend on reviews, and it makes more of a difference than you would think. Thank you!
Other Series by Brittany Rose:
The Taylor Coven Series (A complete seven novella series) – This series is seven he-said she-said Romance Urban Fantasies, all related to the seven witches of the Taylor coven. The books should be read in order. The romances are complete with no cliff hangers, but the urban fantasy plotline advances and spans all seven books.
The Amanda Johnson Series (A complete four full novel series) – This series is an urban fantasy reverse harem romance, that neither stints on the fantasy or the romance. It’s also the start of the universe that the Anise Evans series starts in.
The Anise Evans Series (A complete four full novel series) – This series is an urban fantasy reverse harem romance. It is also a spin-off of the Amanda Johnson series, but can be read indepently.
Contact and updates Information:
E-Mail: Brittanyroseauth@gmail.com
Amazon Author page: https://amazon.com/author/brittanyrose
Goodreads Author page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7802619.Brittany_Rose
~ Book Description ~
Kyra hasn’t had an easy life. She hides the dark truth of her existence in a world that would see her dead if they learned what she really was. Fortunately, she’s also part fae, and hiding her true nature is simple enough.
She joins a group of outsider supernaturals in the outskirts around the suburbs of Chicago, trying to make connections and start a new life. Outsider supernaturals are a mix of the dregs of supernatural society, half breeds who can’t find welcome anywhere else, and are treated as third class citizens. Problem is, life is hard for those supernaturals on the edge of society, and it isn’t going to get any easier for Kyra.
She may be welcomed, but she’ll have to risk her life to earn it.
Author’s Note: This is a full novel, slow burn, romance urban fantasy. There are scenes of a mature nature between a man and a woman. This is NOT a RH, like some of my other series. It is also told from first person, from Kyra’s point of view.