Marked, Soul Guardians Book 1

by Kim Richardson

Kara stared at her recently polished boots—they were so shiny they looked wet. The elevator’s gentle sway made her move slightly from left to right. The elevator’s operator, an excessively large toothed baboon by the name of 3B52, had survived the attacks—he couldn’t shut up about it. He tried relentlessly to get her to talk, but she only heard muffles and stared at the floor.

  Ding. The elevator doors slid open. Kara peered out. White light blinded her vision. It was like stepping into the sun. She heard a clang behind her, and she knew the elevator had departed. Kara walked further into the light, and when it dispersed she was in a giant penthouse sort of apartment.

  The room was elegantly furnished with plush carpets and soft looking sofas and armchairs. Twenty-foot high windows ran the length of the room on all four sides. A black sky glinting with crystals shone behind the glass, and Kara thought they looked strangely like stars. She felt heat on the side of her head. She turned around and covered her eyes. Incredibly, Kara was staring at the sun. She ran towards the closest window. She pressed her forehead against the glass and peered out into outer space.

  The large apartment floated in a galaxy of millions of stars, dust, and gas. She recognized the ring around Saturn, and guessed that the largest planet was Jupiter. The tiny planet that was undoubtedly Earth, floated in the blackness. Even from here Kara could see the soft white clouds wrapped around the blue planet—so this was how astronauts saw outer space. It was more beautiful than she could have ever imagined. Streaks of purple and pink painted the black sky, like a modern canvas.

  Someone cleared his throat.

  Kara turned and gazed into the face of an elderly man. He stood in the middle of the living room between a large sofa and chairs filled with fluffy pillows. The square coffee table beside him was fitted with plates of food and a variety of drinks. The man was of medium height with a round face, pink cheeks, and small sparkling eyes. His white hair brushed his shoulders. A thick beard draped over his large belly. He wore a white kimono with gold stars stitched into the fabric and tied around the waist with a golden belt. Kara thought he looked a lot like Santa Clause. She almost smiled.

  The Chief wrinkled his face in a large grin. “Welcome, Kara. I’ve been expecting you.”

  The hair on the back of her neck rose. She had heard that voice before. She studied the man more closely, tried to figure where she had heard the voice.

  “Come. Have a seat here with me.” The Chief gestured to the large beige sofa beside him.

  Kara let herself fall into the soft cushions. She got a good look at all the food. A variety of plates were filled with fries, fried chicken, dill pickles, onion rings, hotdogs, pizza, chips, jelly beans, and bottles of soft drinks.

  The Chief grabbed a plate from the coffee table and placed it in front of Kara. “Onion ring? They’re very good, you know. Very crispy. Here try one—”

  Kara shook her head and stared at the plate covered in crispy onion rings. She guessed by the size of the Chief’s belly that he could actually eat like a mortal. But how could he?

  “No, not really,” said the Chief, as though he read her mind. “I don’t need food like mortals, but I do enjoy eating from time to time. I can actually taste them. They taste exactly like real food. I rather enjoy eating, you know. Keeps me occupied. You sure you don’t want any?”

  Kara shook her head again. At last, she recognized the voice. She stared wild-eyed at the man.

  “Legan! You’re the prisoner from Tartarus!”

  The Chief’s shoulders shook as he laughed gently. He stuffed three onion rings into his mouth and set the plate down. “Yes. That was me,” he said through a mouthful of food.

  “So . . . does this mean you knew what would happen? You knew what Asmodeus was planning all along.”

  “Yes.”

  Kara stared at him blankly. “I don’t understand. If you knew what he was going to do, then why didn’t you stop Zadkiel yourself? Or Asmodeus? Why did you let all those mortals and angels die?”

  Sadness passed in the Chief’s blue eyes. He was silent for a while. Finally, he spoke. “I wish it were that simple, Kara. But unfortunately it’s not. I can impersonate a character here and there … but I cannot change the course of events. What is meant to happen—will happen. The universe always finds a way. I simply pushed you in the right direction.”

  “But why me? I’m not even a real angel. I’m tainted with demon. I’m a freak.”

  The Chief reached over and put two onion rings in his mouth. He wiped the grease from his beard with a white cloth and grabbed a large jar filled with candy.

  “Jelly bean?”

  Kara shook her head. “No, thank you.”

  The Chief set the jar on the table. “Asmodeus thought he had created an evil weapon to do his bidding when he used you, but I knew that wasn’t the case. He chose you for a purpose, and I chose you for another purpose. You were the only one who could defeat him in the end. He had created his own demise—killed by his own creation—so to speak. You are a special angel, Kara. You saved the world.”

  Kara remembered the demon lord’s wails the first time she had thought she had vanquished him. She had been horrified to learn later, that he had not been destroyed—but simply returned to his demon realm. Perhaps the demon lord couldn’t be killed.

  “So … is Asmodeus gone forever? Is he finally dead?”

  The Chief picked at some food in his teeth. “He appears to be. Yes, my dear. I believe we have seen the last of him.”

  It was the good news she’d been waiting to hear. She let herself sink deeper into the soft sofa and tried to relax.

  “Then the mortal world will be safe, won’t it? If Asmodeus is no longer there to lead the demons, won’t they simply disappear? They’ll be scattered, leaderless … and much easier to kill. The mortals will have a demon free world, right?”

  “I’m afraid it’s not that simple.” The Chief shoved a slice of pizza in his mouth, and washed it down with a drink. “Pizza?” He handed her the open cardboard box with the juicy pizza inside.

  “Ah—no, thanks. What do you mean?”

  The old man placed the box on the seat next to him and clasped his hands in his lap. “Where there is light, there will always be darkness. And where there is good, evil will always linger nearby.”

  Kara screwed up her face. “I don’t get it. What are you saying?”

  “There will always be demons, Kara. Just as there will always be angels. Even with Asmodeus’s demise, the mortal world will not be safe forever. Soon another angel will fall under the temptation of power, and will want to rule Earth or Horizon. It might be millennia before we know of another demon leader’s claim, or it might be in two weeks. We just don’t know. And the process will start all over again.”

  Kara sat back and processed the information. What the Chief said made sense. At least for now, the mortal world and Horizon were safe.

  “Kara. I asked you here for a reason. I have a proposition for you.”

  Kara looked into the Chief’s clear blue eyes. “What’s your proposition?” She couldn’t think of anything. Was he going to send her off on a secret mission?

  The Chief ate another onion ring, and Kara couldn’t help but stare at his protruding belly. “As you know, I have a few … vacancies in the archangel department.”

  Kara sat up straight. She wasn’t entirely sure she heard him correctly.

  “I’m offering you a chance to be an archangel.” The Chief regarded Kara with such intense delight that she figured he was sure she was going to accept. She almost thought about it seriously for a moment. But she knew she couldn’t. This wasn’t for her.

  “You have something different to offer, and your youth will be a healthy change for the government.” The Chief’s smile broadened and Kara noticed two small dimples below his cheeks. “I believe you would make a great new addition to the council. What do you say, eh?”

  His words spun in Kara’s head. David’s face appeared in her mind’s eye. How
she missed him. Horizon just wasn’t the same without him. She looked up and met the Chief’s eyes. What was she to say? How could anyone refuse? But she heard the words in her head before she could actually utter them.

  The Chief seemed to be reading her thoughts again. “You are unhappy here, aren’t you? I can sense the suffering in your soul, Kara.” He placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently. His kind eyes searched her face.

  “I’m … I’m sorry—I can’t accept.” Kara didn’t know what else to say. She felt terrible.

  “Well then. You give me no choice.” The Chief bounced up from the couch. He seemed surprisingly light on his feet for someone so large around the middle. He grabbed a glass of tan liquid and drank the entire contents in one large gulp.

  Kara brushed the hair from her eyes. “I beg your pardon?”

  “I said … you give me no choice. You give me no choice but to offer you something in return. I need to thank you somehow. You have saved my kingdoms—now I will grant you a wish.”

  Kara stared at him bewildered. “A wish? Are you serious?” He didn’t resemble a jinni at all. Maybe Santa could grant wishes too.

  “Of course I’m serious, my dear girl. Ask, and it shall be yours.”

  “Anything?” said Kara to no one in particular.

  “Yes,” answered the Chief. “I will grant you anything you wish for.”

  And so Kara smiled for the first time in days.

  Chapter 20

  A new beginning