by Karen Swart
Chapter 22
“The demon with blonde hair, sitting on a couch, is mine,” Kali growled out. Ryan looked at me in question. I just shook my head to tell him to butt out; this was personal.
“Agreed, now lock in, and let’s get this over with,” Amon said, so they all locked in with me or Kali, who had a wicked grin on her face. She had been waiting for this for a long time; I just hoped the ass didn’t shift out before she got to kill him.
We shifted in and as we all trained, started the attack immediately. With Kali going for the kill, Max and I suited up as partners. Between him and me, we were making a killing. Yeah, I’ve got a sick mind. I enjoyed this part of my life; not the killing, but the team work. I may have lost my family and friends, but I got one hell of a weird bunch of new friends in return. The humans were also very good. Kali’s training has given them such an edge that we don’t have accidents anymore. And a few have been complaining because they wanted to become half-breeds, but too bad.
Max sliced a demon’s head off to my left, and I took out the one coming in from behind him. Yeah, we were on a roll. Every time I had a second to spare, I tried to find Kali to see how her mission was going, but it was chaos as usual. Well, she had a lot of training. No worries.
We went at it, and unlike the other times, demons were shifting in rather than shifting out. No complaining; more fun for us. After a long while of fighting and killing, I felt a strange move in the air. It felt like a shift, but it was like the whole club’s air was being sucked out. I glanced at Max and saw the same concern in his eyes. I looked around to see what was up while Max continued slicing any demons coming near me.
This was a huge freaking shift; I could feel the hair on my body standing up. Oh hell, what now? Preparing myself, I yelled at my team, “Regroup now!” They all started to move back to us, creating a huge group of fighters.
“Do you feel that?” Amon asked me, taking a head.
“Yep, do you know what it is?” I asked in return.
“No, this is the first time in my life I’ve felt this. Whatever it is, its big,” he replied. So I prepared myself for one hell of a big demon shifting in. We found two along the way, standing over three stories tall, and as a group we took them down. But their shift didn’t feel like this.
I looked around the group and saw that Kali was AWOL. My heart went into overdrive, so I scanned the club to find her, only for my view to be blocked by a huge group shifting in. Everything slowed down, and I was frozen on the spot. In front of me, Fallen were fully transformed and going after demons. Chax came into view, then Caim, a flying Nanini throwing light bombs in the air, Lada with her wings, Lotan behind her, Don and Dagon. They were here right in front of me, after all this time.
“Kasadya!” Max yelled at me, snapping me out of my starstruck moment to take on the demon heading right for me. With one slice his head fell away, and behind him a sword was heading for me, Chax guiding it. I saw the moment he recognized me, shock all over his face. Then he was punched away and went flying through the air, and Max came to stand in front of me, protecting me. “Move into the circle,” he said to me, but I just stood there, confused and happy at the same time. Seeing that I was not reacting, he pushed me back into the group with his body shielding me from the fight. “Why did you freeze?” he asked, still fighting.
“It’s them, the Fallen,” I replied, slowly trying to fit in the whole thing, and to get my brains back to function mode.
“Fallen or not, they try to attack you again, they’re dead,” he went on, guiding my body to stay in the middle.
“I agree,” Ryan said on my left. “Did anyone see Kali?” he asked. That name had me back in action again. Crap, Kali. Looking around, I tried to find her, but nothing.
“I can’t find her,” I said. Max turned his head slightly to look at me.
“Don’t worry; she’s good,” he replied, trying to calm me down.
I tried looking for her, my eyes falling on one Fallen after the other. There were about thirty I guessed, taking down the demons. After a long while the noise started to calm down, and when the last four demons fell, silence followed. I looked at the door, still trying to find Kali. I turned back to find my group surrounded by Fallen. Oh crap.
“Kasadya Levourne, what in heaven’s name have you done?!” Chax yelled at me. I cringed, taking in his anger. Yep, big freaking trouble.
“You yell at her like that again, Fallen, and you’re dead!” Max threw back at him, stepping in front of me to shield me. Chax looked at him, his face in a frown; I peered around and looked at Max to see his face also in a frown. Wow, they look alike.
“Chax, my old friend, it’s been a long time,” Amon said, walking out of the group to stand in front of Chax.
“Amon?” Chax asked in confusion.
“Ah, at least you still know my name, and I see you found Caim. Salve, Caim,” Amon said, nodding to Caim, who stood next to Chax.
“Salve, Amon. It’s nice to see you’re still alive,” Caim replied, and then looked back at me. Seeing him, I felt a little better. He looked good, real good. The last time I saw him, he looked tired and old; now he looked young and full of life. “Hellhound,” he greeted, making a graceful bow.
I smiled at that, still a gentleman. “What have you done, Amon?” Chax went on, looking at the half- breeds and then at me. I felt my heart turn to ice at that. Kali had warned me.
“Evolution,” Amon replied back, and at that Chax’s head snapped to him, anger all over his face. Wow, glad to see he lost that cool thing he had going. Now at least you knew what was up with him.
“How?” Chax went on, turning his sword in his hand, still ready for the kill. Silence followed for a while.
“With our blood,” Amon answered, and all the other Fallen took in a deep, shocked breath and looked at us. Chax stood there looking at him, and his face said it all. I then saw a young female harpy behind him, and my last problem flashed back into action.
“Kali!” I yelled, and stormed out of the group. All the Fallen went on alert, taking a stand. That made me and my team counter it. Now we faced off against each other, weapons ready. “Where’s Kali?” I asked, looking at Chax. He looked around and then back at me.
“She was taken more than two years ago,” he answered.
“Yeah, I know that. I ended up in hell with her. But as you can see, we made it out. She’s here. She went after Ballen,” I replied, angry with him. I kept my eyes on the rest of the Fallen, ready for the first move.
“We saw only our harpy,” Caim replied. I looked at him.
“What?” I asked confused. OMG, Kali! I moved forward and the first Fallen went for me, the stupid young harpy. I sent her flying with a wing, and marched around the club towards the couch Ballen had been sitting on. I found nothing. Angered and scared, I looked around, ignoring all of them. “He took her,” I said, my eyes landing on Max of all people. “He took Kali,” I sneered, and I could feel my throat close up with fear. Max saw that I was about to break and moved to stand in front of me, cutting off the rest.
“We’ll find her. I promise,” he replied as fear pounded through me.
“I should have gone with her,” I whispered, and the image of Kali being released from her trance hit me.
“She’s not a little girl anymore. She will be okay until we find her,” he said, trying to comfort me, but all I could see was Kali on the floor, totally broken.
“That will have to wait, I’m afraid,” Chax said. I wasn’t ready to look at him, but Max moved his head to look at him.
“Really, why would that be the case?” Max asked him.
“Because all of you will report to the council, to discuss the situation of your nature, and find a solution for it,” Chax went on. I saw Max go tense, and knew the real fight was about to start.
“Chax, I have to go find her,” I pleaded. He looked at me, but anger was all that I got back.
“You broke the law, Kasadya,” he replied, no mercy written all over his face.<
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“I know, but I have to help her. I’m sorry,” I said, taking a fighting stance in front of him, my team following and taking a stand next to me.
Chax frowned.
“Kasadya, if you do this, it will end badly. Stand down and take responsibility for your actions,” he went on.
“I take responsibility for them every day, Chax. But I will not let her be sucked back into their world. You stand in my way, and I will take the necessary action to get you out of my way,” I said, gathering strength from my Hellhound place inside me. I knew it was dangerous, but I also knew that a fight with Chax was definitively going to be bad.
“Chax, brother, don’t do this,” Caim said next to him. I didn’t look at him. Taking my eyes off of Chax could have cost me my life.
“Caim, you know as a council member, I can’t let this go,” Chax replied, keeping his eyes on me too.
“Brother, please, I owe her my life,” Caim continued, and I could see his words reaching Chax. Come on, Chax, back down. Time’s wasting.
A guy’s laughter broke out somewhere to our left. Chax looked away from me to see who was making such a daring move. I kept my eyes on him; I remember my days as his Apprendo. I saw his eyes go wide and his face go into shock. Surprised, I turned to look at what had gotten his rockets up and found my mute guy standing there, smiling at us with huge golden wings sticking out from his back. Where his hair had been blonde, it was now black.
“What the … now you can suddenly speak?” I said, confused at what I was seeing. Last time I checked this guy was a demon and worked for Draco. Now he had golden wings sticking out from his back, and they looked like Kali’s bird-like wings?
“Ah, Kas, nice to see you again. Glad to see you found your friends,” the mute guy said, smiling at me.
“Who the hell are you?” I went on, looking over at Chax to see if he knew what was up with the wings. I found him looking at me with shock.
“Kasadya, show some respect,” he said to me, and at that I frowned.
“Why?” I asked him and saw his face go into even more shock, his eyes going wide.
“Because, Kasadya, I’m Raphael, the archangel,” the mute guy said, and I whipped my head around to look at him.
“Okay, what would an archangel be doing in hell, playing errand boy for a demon?” I asked, confused with his role in hell.
“Ah yes, of course. When word came of a hellhound taken, we thought it best to observe the strength of a hellhound in such a predicament. I must say you really made us proud,” Raphael replied, smiling at me.
Now, I know there was a time for fun and all that, but that was just sick. Standing by and watching me and Kali go through that without even trying to help us? So, the first logical thing that came to me as I was walking up to him slowly was giving him one hell of a fist in the face and sending him flying backwards.
“Kasayda!” Chax yelled behind me. I heard him take a step to me but apparently Max felt that I was in my right mind and stopped him, the two of them going at each other. I walked up to where Raphael laid on the floor and looked down to him. “You watched, but did nothing to help? Some archangel you are. You’re nothing but a coward.” I sneered out at him.
He started laughing again. “Ah. Hellhound, again you do us proud. The first of the Fallen to successfully hit on an archangel. Remarkable,” he finished. At that, I turned around to see Caim and Dagon holding Chax, Amon and Ryan holding Max. Ignoring them, I walked over to Amon.
“Let’s get the hell out of here; I’ve had enough of weakling Fallen and angels,” I spat out, pissed beyond the point of trying to go on with this conversation.
“Don’t you want to save Kali?” Raphael asked from behind me.
“You didn’t help much in hell, archangel. I don’t think you mean to help now,” I threw back at him, and turned to face him.
“True, in hell I have my limitations, but on earth and Exsilium I have none. I could not help you in hell, Kasadya, because I did not have the power. But seeing that Kali is in London at this moment, I can help you,” he replied, wiping a small blood trail from his lip.
“Really, and what would you be able to do for us?” I sneered out. It wouldn’t have taken power to get a weapon and free us. Two humans showed me that. As an archangel, he had no excuse.
“Well, I can tell you they have her nailed to the London bridge, and have set a trap for you and your half-breed friends. But what they don’t know is that you’ll have more Fallen and an Archangel on your team,” he said, smiling at me.
“You missed the part where Chax didn’t give a damn about anything but his council seat,” I said to him. I could feel Chax’s eyes boring into my back, but didn’t care.
He looked at Chax. “Old friend, there is a time for formalities, and then there is a time for new ones. Your young harpy showed you that with time, new things can bring better results. Don’t look at this as an abnormality or broken law, look at this as a beginning of something new,” he finished. I turned to look at Chax.
He looked at Raphael for a while, and then looked at Caim and Dagon to release him, straightening up he looked at me. “If this is your wish, Raphael, I will comply. But hear my words. If they betray us, they will die,” he stated, his eyes boring into mine. Oh please, like you have a chance.
“Wonderful, now let’s get this party on the move,” Raphael said and walked over to Ballen’s couch and planted himself there, looking at all of us.
Well then, this will be an interesting chapter in my life. A crazy archangel, a gang of pure Fallen who hate me, and then me and my half-breed human gang. Yep, this is going to be fun.
Kasadya Saga:
Kasadya: Hellhound Twisted (Book #2 of the Kasadya Series)
She fought against all odds and became the warrior she was meant to be … or so she thought. In a world where the rules have changed, can she embrace her destiny and become the hellhound she was meant to be?
Kasadya is back in Exsilium and finds her world a little different. Her half-breed fallen friends join her, and they are ordered to complete their apprentice training in order to obtain the right to be guardians. She must learn that her own fate cannot be denied and that others are set to follow. But most of all, she must learn that to trust is the greatest battle of all.
The tables are turned and Kasadya is put to the test. Will she be able to prevent her own death, or that of a friend? Or will her actions call forth the destruction of Earth and Exsilium?
Book Junkies Choice Awards – YA Fantasy Winner 2013
Kasadya: Hellhound Born (Book #3 of the Kasadya Series)
In a world filled with evil, the Fallen prepare for the ultimate battle against the demon world!
Kasadya is ordered to unleash her crazed born transformation to complete her divinity. But there is a chance that her born will be uncontrollable, and she will be destroyed. There is just one person that can save her; her charm, her destined mate. Left without a choice, she must surrender, and place her life in his hands.
In a race against time, the Fallen must stand together and fight the evil threatening to invade earth. If her divinity was in reach, victory would be theirs. That is until she starts having visions of the final battle, and her true destiny is revealed. She just found her love and place in the Fallen world; will she be able, and willing, to sacrifice it all?
Book Junkies Choice Awards – YA Paranormal Winner 2013
Kasadya: Hellhound Defined (Book #4 of the Kasadya Series)
For centuries his only reason for existence was to destroy evil. But when he finally found his mate, that all changed for the deadly Chax De Luca. When the hellhound Kasadya captured his heart, he surrender it to her, thinking he’d finally found what he’d been looking for. Little did he know that his mate would sacrifice herself to save them all.
His fury is legend. His wrath, merciless. His love for his mate, undeniable. He’s going to hell to retrieve his heart, and if that means that he must destroy hell itself, then so be
it.
Kasadya awakes to a world in peril, her mate forever changed, and a war filled with evil creatures intending to enter Earth’s realm and destroy all that she holds dear. Can she complete her divinity in time to save her loved ones and mankind? Will she have to choose? Or will all be lost in the final battle?
The final battle is here, and with it, secrets are revealed and worlds are changed forever.
About The Author
I am a complete book addict, and really proud of it. My entire world is made of books. From reading to writing to blogging to helping other authors. A day without my world of books would be impossible. I am a mother of three, two boys and a little princess. Happily married for 8 years with my high school sweetheart. I live in South Africa, just on the rims of the Kalahari Desert in a small town with one shop and friendly faces.
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