Marked, Soul Guardians Book 1

by Kim Richardson

  Kara frowned and looked over to David. His eyes were glued on the men. He clenched his jaw, and his blade twitched in his grasp.

  “Angels shouldn’t be allowed to roam around in my city without my permission,” laughed the man, in a deep menacing voice. He moved his hand. A dark blade glided down from under the sleeve of his leather jacket to his wrist. Black vapors rose and coiled around his arm. He clasped the blade in his hand and lifted it to pick at his teeth. Kara recognized the death blade immediately. “I haven’t killed an angel in these parts lately—mind telling me what you’re doing here? In my city?”

  Kara’s elemental power awakened with the threat. It flared at the limits of her core and then settled, waiting. Sure enough these were mortal men, but how could they have death blades in their possession? Kara peered at them. Their foul stench reached her nose. She could sense they weren’t demons, but why did they smell like them? What were they?

  “They’re called seirs,” whispered David, as though reading her mind. “I’ve heard about them before, but I thought they were only a myth. Didn’t think these psychos existed for real.”

  Kara kept her eyes on the leering man. “Seirs,” she repeated, keeping her voice low so only David could hear. “So what are they? I’m pretty sure they’re mortal, but they feel…evil.”

  “They are foul. They’re a group of the worst kind of mortal men—wicked and deadly. They were born sensitives…but they’ve chosen a different path—a very dark path. Seirs work alongside demons, they swore their allegiance to the netherworld.”

  Kara couldn’t fathom why any mortal would choose to side with demons. It made no sense to her. There had to be another explanation. Demons killed mortals for their souls and ate them just for the fun it. One of the seirs turned his back and whispered something into the leader’s ear. Kara shivered at the sight of the eyes tattooed on the back of his head. They were staring right at her.

  “I hate having to repeat myself,” said the man, anger resonating in his voice. A wicked grin stretched across his face, and he licked his lips. “It’s not going to end well for you, angels.”

  “What happened to all the love? Last I checked, this city belonged to everyone…not some face-painted clown,” David challenged and returned a calm smile.

  The man’s face twisted, sending hundreds of tiny cracks around his white visage. “Are you trying to impress the girls with your bravery, boy? You angels are too much—always strutting around with a false sense of bravado. I never understood why you angels believe you’re above every other creature. I have news for you. You’re not. And I’m going to enjoy cutting up your face pretty boy.” He lifted his blade and twirled it around in his hand like a baton.

  “Not before I add some needed color to yours—clowny.” David stood his ground and grinned.

  The seirs broke away from the SUV and circled them. Their black leather coats spilled about them like liquid capes. The thump of their heavy boots cut through the eerie silence. The stench of rotten flesh burned Kara’s nose. Their death blades hung loosely in their hands. They were all over six feet tall and loomed over Kara and the others easily. Their thick muscles rippled beneath their black clothes.

  Kara glanced behind her. She flinched. The elemental was gone.

  “David…she’s gone—”

  Jenny screamed. She held her stomach and fell to her knees. Her bow hit the ground at her feet. A death blade protruded from her stomach. Black mist surged around the blade and coiled around her face. The wicked laughter of the seirs sounded all around them and one of them stood before Jenny with a self-satisfied look on his face.

  Kara jumped to Jenny’s aid. The blade burned into the flesh on her M-suit’s hand as she pulled out the black dagger and tossed it away. Then Kara grabbed a handful of the seir’s coat and pulled him around to face her. She kicked him hard in the stomach. The man stumbled backwards and laughed. Kara’s anger flared. With her blade in her hand she lunged for his neck—but sliced the air instead. The seir had slipped away easily to the side. His laugh echoed in her ears. Kara lost herself in her rage as she unleashed her fury. She turned and wielded her blade—

  “Kara stop!” David caught Kara’s arm in midair and forced it down.

  With venom still in her eyes, she yanked her arm free from his grip. “What do you mean stop? He tried to kill Jenny! They’re crazy. We have to stop them! They have death blades! They want to kill us!”

  Jenny staggered to her feet and clutched her stomach. Her bow shook in her hands.

  “You don’t understand. I should have told you. We can’t harm them.” David’s face was a mixture of anger and uncertainty. He glared at the men, and then settled his gaze back on Kara. His body shook, and she could sense he was fighting to contain himself.

  Kara threw her hands in the air. “What? Are you serious? Who says we can’t? These are wicked, murderous men intent on killing us. You heard him. He wants to kill you!” A harmony of sickly chortles rose in the air. The seirs were enjoying themselves.

  David put a hand on her arm. “We can’t hurt mortals. Even the worst of them,” said David. “We can’t touch or harm them…ever.”

  Kara looked at him in frustration. She shook her head like a stubborn child and tried to collect herself. “But…that can’t be true. Surely there are exceptions to the rules…these men tried to kill Jenny. What about self-defense? Don’t these rules apply here as well?”

  “You should listen to the boy. What he says is true.” The seirs’ leader smiled widely. He ran his hand over his bald head. “You have sworn to protect all mortals. And that includes us. If you harm us—you harm yourselves.”

  “If we kill a mortal,” interrupted Peter softly, with a look of terror. “Our angel essence dies. A detail in the guardian angel contract that we sealed by the oath we all took on our very first day at Orientation. The star on our foreheads—remember?” He pointed to his forehead and wrapped his arms around himself.

  Kara pressed her index finger to her forehead. She remembered how excited she had been after the oracle had branded her with a star. She really had no idea at the time what it had implied. She was still confused about its meaning. She dropped her hand and gritted her teeth.

  “Fine,” said Kara angrily. She sheathed her blade. “I trust what my friends tell me. I won’t lay a hand on you—even if it’s killing me. I really just want to rip off that ugly head of yours. Just get out of our way, and we’ll get out of yours.”

  The seir leader lifted his arms in the air. His coat billowed out like giant bat wings. “But you are in our way. Roaming in my city without my permission comes with a price. I can’t let you just walk away, my little angels. You have to suffer the consequences of your little trip.”

  Kara glared at them. She’d had just enough of these freaks. “Stop playing with us. We don’t have time for this. We’ll be leaving now—”

  “I don’t think so.”

  The seirs lashed out suddenly. Two of them came for Kara at once. They waved their blades skillfully and sliced into her M-suit’s flesh. Kara cried out in pain as the liquid fire of the death blade’s poison made its way through her body. She stepped back and tried to avoid getting cut. She tripped and fell onto the ground, just as a death blade came slicing above where her head had been a second ago. She rolled around and jumped to her feet. Another strike. This time Kara lost a chunk of her thigh. Light shot out from her wound. She clenched her jaw and ignored the pain. Kara tried desperately to scramble away, but the men were too fast.

  She couldn’t fight back for fear of hurting them. These were not mere mortals. They fought as combatants with years of fighting skills under their belt. They jumped up and ran easily across walls, their long coats rippling in the air like wings. They attacked with precision and grace, like ninjas from hell. They were extremely fast, and Kara wondered how mortal men could fight so well against angels. She thought about calling out to her elemental power, but that could be disastrous against mortals. If what her fri
ends told her was true, using her elemental power against them would surely end up killing her in the process. They were losing this battle. The odds weren’t in their favor.

  Thumps and wails echoed all around them. She caught glimpses of her friends avoiding blows and blocking deadly strikes. Jenny was suddenly backed into a corner, her green eyes wide with fear. Her bow was armed with an arrow—but she never used it.

  Kara recognized Peter’s cry. She wiggled herself free momentarily and limped to Peter’s aid. He lay on the ground in a fetal position, his arms wrapped around his stomach. She kneeled over him protectively. Fists flew and Kara was hit hard against her temple. She fell forward and landed on Peter. Her head throbbed. Stinging poison gushed into the side of her head.

  “That’s enough,” a harsh voice called, silencing the sounds of battle instantly. “You’ve had your fun. We don’t want them too spoiled—not just yet. Round them up. We’re leaving.”

  Strong hands yanked Kara to her feet. Her vision blurred, and she strained to see her companions. A shady version of Jenny appeared by her side. Her head hung down on her chest. The white pasty faces of two seirs hovered over her. They roughed her up, and slapped her hard in the face. Jenny looked up. She held Kara’s eyes for a moment before letting her head fall again. It was enough for Kara to see the terror and pain in her eyes. Feet shuffled behind her. A pair of seirs dragged David and Peter to her other side. Kara noticed that Peter seemed to be doing better. She sighed in relief. The angels huddled together in silence and waited.

  “Tie their hands and blindfold them,” said the leader.

  Kara’s arms were wrenched backwards forcefully. Burning flamed around her wrists. Someone pulled her arms together briskly, and some sort of wire was clamped tightly around her wrists. She fought against her manacles, but it was no use. The material was unbreakable, even for her.

  “We’re so screwed…” said David. A seir placed a piece of black cloth over his eyes and tied it tightly behind his head with a jerk. “Blind and totally screwed. You’d think I’d be enjoying myself.” He cocked his head forward. “By the way, my friend, your breath stinks—it’s nasty—I’d give you a mint…but my hands are tied.” David grinned, and he was rewarded with a hard punch across his face. “Ouch. I knew you liked it rough.”

  Finding some inner strength, Jenny kicked and struggled desperately against her captors. “Get away from me you beasts!” They finally pinned her down, and slammed a knee into her back. Jenny cried out. Once she stopped struggling, they tied her wrists, hauled her back on her feet, and then wrapped a blindfold around her eyes. She clamped down her teeth savagely, inches from their fingers.

  Peter’s head was yanked back forcefully as a seir blindfolded him.

  “There are worse things than the dark, little angel,” mocked the seir, in a deep rough voice. Once he was done, he hit Peter on the head with the handle of his death blade. Peter moaned. The seir laughed, and Kara watched him climb into the back of one of the SUVs.

  Jenny nudged against him. “I’m here, Peter, don’t worry. It’s going to be fine. We’ll figure out a way to get out of this mess.”

  Kara stiffened as a seir blindfolded her. An icy ripple of panic washed through her. The seir pulled the blindfold tightly around her head. Kara couldn’t even blink if she wanted too. Her eyes were pinned open. She stared into the blackness. It was like opening your eyes in the middle of the night, while you waited for your eyes to adjust to the darkness. Only this time, the darkness remained. Her panic was soon replaced with anger. Wild energy surged through her, and she fought to control it. She searched for a calmness that didn’t come.

  “Where are you taking us?” hissed Kara. She continued to struggle and tried to free herself from her bonds but it was impossible. She couldn’t stand being handcuffed. Her hands started to shake. Being blind was a million times worse than she could have ever imagined. It was like being a caged animal.

  “You know, you’re going to pay for this. I’m sure kidnapping angels is a capital offense…no matter which master you serve.”

  An engine roared into life. Tires crunched pebbles and glass against the concrete. A door opened and heavy boots sounded around them.

  “Put them in,” ordered the leader’s voice.

  Strong hands grabbed Kara. Her boots dragged behind her for a few paces and then her body was lifted off the ground. She was tossed into the SUV forcefully. Her head hit something hard, and she crumbled on a hard surface. Another weight crushed down on her.

  “Sorry, Kara,” said David. She felt him roll off her to the side. His body brushed against hers.

  “How did you know it was me?” Kara heard a thump, and recognized Jenny’s angry groan and a few curse words that would make any football coach proud.

  “I smelled your perfume.” Even in the darkness, Kara knew David was grinning. It made her furious.

  “I don’t wear perfume,” said Kara irritated.

  “Then I must have recognized your overall natural smell.” Kara lifted her leg and side kicked him hard.

  On her back, she pulled at her restraints again, but they only sliced deeper into her wrists. She gritted her teeth at the pain. Exasperated, Kara let her head fall against a hard platform. “I can’t believe this is happening! We’re supposed to be chasing the elemental. How are we ever going to find her now? We’re being kidnapped!”

  A boot smacked Kara in the face. “Hey! Watch it.”

  “Sorry,” said Peter. He struggled to turn himself around and stepped on everyone in the process. She was sure she heard him giggle.

  Doors slammed shut around them. The SUV wavered as the seirs climbed in. The angels were piled in tightly like a can of sardines. Kara knew they weren’t in the soft backseat, but rather squeezed into the vehicle’s back trunk, like bloody body bags courtesy of the local mob. With a click, the doors were locked. She lifted her leg and kicked at the door. It wouldn’t budge. Her body was pinned tightly between the side of the SUV and David. She was sure he was enjoying this part.

  With a sudden jerk, the SUV kicked into life. The engine roared and the tires squealed as they rolled forward. Kara’s body shook with the SUV’s forward momentum. The vehicle made a sharp turn, and everyone was thrown on top of Kara. Once everyone had apologized and rolled off, the SUV made two more turns, and then drove steadily for about twenty minutes.

  The sound of vehicles passed them by. Kara was growing restless. “Has anyone ever heard of angels being kidnapped by a bunch of seriously deranged mortals before?”

  “I’ve never heard of clowns abducting angels before,” answered David. “It’s news to me. Maybe they’re taking us to the circus? Might be fun. I’ve never been to the circus before.”

  “I’ve heard that they’ve attacked a few sensitives and mortals,” muttered Peter from his sandwich position between David and Jenny. “But that was more than a century ago. I don’t think the legion is aware of what’s happening. I think they’ve forgotten about the seirs.”

  Kara didn’t like the sound of that. Clearly the seirs were known in Horizon, otherwise David and Peter wouldn’t have heard of them. But the fact that the legion might have forgotten about them all this time put Kara more on edge. This was new territory. They found themselves with an old and deadly enemy that they couldn’t fight. How were they going to get out of this mess, if they couldn’t even fight back? Were they just supposed to let the seirs kill them? It was crazy. There had to be a way around the rules.

  The group was suddenly hurtled forward. The screeching of the brakes drowned all other motor sounds around them. The SUV stopped moving. Kara heard doors open and close and the murmur of voices. Then a tack, tack, tack, of some sort of slow mechanical device, like the scraping of metal on wheels.

  With a pop, the lock on the trunk’s door unlatched. Hands grabbed Kara, and she was pulled out of the trunk and left to stand alone on her feet. She felt the presence of the others around her, and then heard David voicing a few angry curses
. Once he was done, she concentrated on her hearing. She recognized the dull humming of neon lights and the soft drone of traffic. The sound was obscured as if it was coming from behind a wall. The air was stale, with a hint of mildew and she knew they must be inside a building. She strained her ears for more details, but the sound of heavy feet and mumbled conversations buried everything else. Where were they? So far, all their souls were still intact. Since the seirs had death blades, things could have been much worse. Why did the seirs kidnap them and bring them here?

  Kara’s head snapped back as her blind fold was ripped off her eyes. Bright light struck her, and she averted her eyes. She blinked several times and tried to mend the stinging. After a moment, her vision cleared as her eyes grew accustomed to their surroundings.

  They stood in a large warehouse lined with wooden crates and the large metal containers she’d seen before on freight trains. Long oval light fixtures hung down from an incredibly high ceiling. Tall glass windows ran the length of the building, their brown and black blotches barely allowing any light to filter through. Brown rust stained the metal walls like a flesh eating disease.

  The soft tread of shoes reached her ears. Kara looked up. A figure approached them. It was small, almost childlike—

  The hairs on Kara’s body stood on end and her jaw fell open. A white dress swayed towards her.

  Kara stared into the dark eyes of the elemental girl.

  Chapter 6

  Lilith