Dark Goddess

by Amalie Howard

  Sera tried not to roll her eyes as she nibbled the corner of her grilled cheese sandwich. The Yoddha had become her second shadow. “If you’re here,” she said aloud. “You might as well join us.”

  The barest rush of wind against her cheek was the only sign that the Yoddha had heard her, but seconds after Sera had issued the invitation, a girl walked out of the bathroom. Tall and fierce in stature, Mara had her dark hair plaited into two face-framing braids, and she was dressed simply in jeans and a T-shirt. Her dark skin glowed as if it couldn’t quite conceal her true nature. She looked so much like her sister Maeve that Sera caught her breath.

  “You want to order something?” Kyle asked as she sat beside Sera.

  “Just water, please.”

  They signaled the waitress for a glass and waited for her to deliver it before resuming their conversation. Sera eyed the Yoddha, bitterness rising within her. “You know that I can take care of myself, right?”

  “Of course,” she replied with a deep incline of her head.

  “Which one of them told you to follow me?”

  Mara bowed her head again. “Lord Devendra.”

  Sera sighed, swallowing her resentment. There was nothing she could do about Dev’s protective streak, especially after recent events. And it wasn’t Mara’s fault either. She turned her attention back to Kyle. “So what happened with Kira?”

  His eyes flicked to Mara before he responded, but it wasn’t like she wouldn’t already know what had happened. “Nothing. I ended it.”

  “You ended it? When?”

  Sera noticed the flush creeping up his neck as he focused his attention on his food. “Yesterday morning,” he eventually mumbled.

  “Before or after the pishacha?”

  “After.”

  “But you said that it was early.” She frowned, but then understanding hit her in a rush. “Oh.”

  “It’s not like that,” he said, reading her face. “We just talked.”

  “Not that it’s any of my business, but please tell me you at least kissed her! Or should we get you some lessons from Nate, the lady-slayer?”

  Kyle’s flush deepened as her teasing fell flat in the awkward silence between them. Sera stared at her best friend. He wouldn’t meet her eyes, which was odd, even for him.

  “Hey, Kyle, look at me.” He raised his gaze after a moment and she was shocked to see real misery lurking in his eyes. “What’s wrong? You know I’m happy for you, regardless of which one of them you choose.”

  “I know,” he said quietly. “It’s just that it’s been—” He cleared his throat, chugging his water and glancing at Mara, who might have been a statue for all her participation in the conversation. “The thing is, it’s been you for so long that I don’t want you to feel like I don’t . . . care anymore.”

  She reached across to grab his hand and squeezed. “I would never think that. You’re my best friend in the world, and if things had been different, who knows what would have happened. But things are the way they are, and neither of us can change that. Lemons and lemonade, and all that. I just want you to be happy.”

  “Yeah.”

  Sera checked the time on her phone and signaled to the waitress to bring their check. They only had an hour for lunch and she didn’t want to risk getting into trouble by being late. “I guess that means you chose Darika?”

  He shrugged. “I guess.”

  “What do you mean you guess?” Sera asked. “You just told me that you ended it with Kira. Unless you’re not interested in either of them—and if that’s the case, you could have fooled me.”

  Kyle shook his head. “No. It was something Kira said when she left. She said that she and Darika were one and the same.”

  “Because they’re twins?”

  “Maybe.”

  The sisters were both similar on the surface, though in temperament they were quite different. But goddesses could manifest in any form at any time—they had full control over whatever shades they chose to wear in the Mortal Realm. Even Dev’s appearance could change on a whim. Or hers for that matter. She fingered the red-gold strands of hair falling over her shoulders and stared at them thoughtfully. A year ago, they’d been black, thanks to her mother. Now that Sera thought about it . . . just because Kira and Darika were sisters didn’t mean they had to look identical. It was curious.

  She turned to Mara, who had remained quiet during the entire exchange. “What do you know about them? Kira and Darika?”

  Mara smiled. “The goddess Parvati has many faces. She exists in fearful and friendly forms; she is an incarnation of shakti, the divine feminine force.”

  “No riddles,” Sera said frowning. “Are they twins?”

  “They are both parts of the whole.”

  Sera thought of the many stories she’d heard of how the gods and goddesses had come into being, and how her mother had told her that in the end, they were all part of Brahman.

  “Did Kira say anything else?” Sera asked, her gaze flicking to Kyle, who was staring at Mara with an arrested expression, his burrito forgotten.

  “Just that she wasn’t heartless.”

  Sera glared at him, surprised at his cluelessness when it came to matters of the opposite sex. “You told her she was heartless?”

  “It’s not like she cared,” he said defensively, his blush returning. “She’s a goddess who doesn’t feel anything. She thinks we’re all pawns, and that humanity is expendable.”

  “I think you’re wrong about her. I think Kira does care—about the Mortal Realm, about me, and about you. She wouldn’t have come rushing to your side if she didn’t. And if what you told me is true—that she let you banish the demon possessing Carla despite her loyalty to the Trimurtas—that’s another sign that she’s not as merciless as you’ve made her out to be.” Sera drew a breath, considering her words even as she could feel Kyle’s disgruntled look settling on her. “You know, my mom once described Kali as a mother bear defending her cubs. She’ll stop at nothing to protect them—even from themselves.”

  “By killing us all?” he shot back.

  Sera shrugged. “That’s a last resort, and you know it.”

  “Whatever. She’s gone now. And good riddance.”

  “You don’t mean that,” Sera said. But Kyle didn’t answer, standing instead with a resolute look on his face. His coolness was a defense mechanism, Sera knew. He tended to clam up whenever he felt cornered, and she guessed that he wasn’t as unaffected as he was pretending to be.

  His scowl was painted on as he slammed a twenty to the table. “Let’s get out of here before we’re late.”

  “You’re welcome to come with us,” Sera said to Mara, who had stood as well, her beautiful face composed. “Kyle has his car, and it’s not like we aren’t going to the same place.” The Yoddha nodded, much to Sera’s surprise. It couldn’t be easy sitting there listening to an uncomfortable conversation—about teen angst and crushes, of all things—especially when it involved another goddess. Sera almost grinned, but caught sight of Kyle’s face as he stalked past and thought the better of it.

  The ride back to Silver Lake High was quiet, the silence fraught with tension. Sera kept sneaking glances at Kyle, but he wouldn’t even look at her.

  “I’m sure you’ll get a chance to apologize,” Sera ventured after a while.

  “For what?” he snapped.

  She grinned at him. “For being a first-class douche pot pie.”

  “I was not,” he said, but the corner of his lip twitched slightly at the ridiculous insult. “And that’s kind of harsh. It was more on the douche paddle level.”

  “Total pie.” Sera snorted as her phone buzzed with a few rapidly incoming texts. Two were from Jem, the others from her mom. The smile fled from her lips as she read the messages from her mother, feeling the blood drain from her face. Mara leaned forward as if she could sense her swift mood change.

  Kyle pulled the car to the curb. “What is it?”

  “Turn around. We need to go
to my house.”

  “What happened?”

  “Another possession,” she ground out, tucking the phone back into her pocket. “Jem’s there.”

  “He wasn’t in calculus today,” Kyle said, his brow furrowing.

  “It’s not Jem,” she said. “It’s Nate’s friend, Stella. The neighbor.” She sucked in a sharp breath. “Jem was the one who found her trying to crawl through Nate’s window.” Sera turned to the Yoddha in the back seat, who had already flared into full battle mode. “Go to Nate’s school. Find him.”

  “But I am tasked with your protection.”

  “My brother’s life is more important than mine.” She gritted her teeth. “I’m ordering you to go, Mara.”

  Nodding unhappily, the Yoddha left, and they made the drive to Sera’s house in less than ten minutes, coming to a squealing stop in the driveway. The smell that greeted them was reminiscent of the school basement—a dry, rancid odor, that of a corpse that had long since decayed.

  “Vetala,” Kyle muttered as they burst into the kitchen.

  Sera took in the sight of her mother standing in full deifyre armor with Jem tucked protectively behind her. The little girl was huddled in a corner, rocking back and forth and making keening noises. Her eyes were rolling back in her head as she sobbed, and the rank smell was definitely emanating from her small form. She was definitely possessed by something.

  Sera glanced at Kyle. “Is it a vetala?”

  She watched as he squinted at the hunched figure and nodded after a few moments. A shudder ran through his body as his eyes refocused. “Yeah. Similar to the ones from the school. This one hasn’t been asleep though—it’s been well-fed, and it’s strong.”

  Sera suppressed a shiver at the thought of one of those things feeding on human beings, sucking their bodies to husks. No wonder they were called vampires in some parts of the world.

  “How long has she been like this?” Sera asked, edging closer to the creature. Blackened veins discolored the child’s arms, and her flesh was graying and sickly. “What did it come for?”

  “Since Jemitra found her,” Sophia replied. “And it was trying to get into Nate’s bedroom, presumably to find him.”

  “Is he safe?” Sera blurted out, her eyes rising to her mother’s. “I sent Mara to him at school just in case.”

  “Sam’s on his way there, too.”

  “How did you see it?” Kyle asked Jem. “How did you even know what it was?”

  Jem ran a hand through his dark hair, his normally vibrant blue eyes leaden. “I’m Ne’feri, remember? I’ve seen my share of demon possessions. And I thought it was strange that she was up on the roof, climbing into Nate’s room. By the time I got Mrs. Caelum and we went upstairs, I could tell from the smell.”

  “What were you even doing here?” Kyle asked with a frown. “Skipped school today?”

  Sera shot him a look. “Kyle.”

  “No, it’s okay,” Jem said with a bland smile. “I’d be wary, too. My mom was sick. She sent me to the convenience store to get some juice and I happened to be walking past.”

  “Walking past.” The simmering tension in the room shot through the roof.

  “That’s what I said.”

  A muscle ticked in Kyle’s cheek. “I don’t believe in coincidence.”

  Jem’s mouth tightened and Sera intervened before things could escalate further. “Look, we’re all on edge,” she said. “I’m grateful that Jem was in the right place at the right time, and able to spot the vetala before something terrible happened. It’s obvious that that thing was here to hurt Nate, and we need to save Stella if we can.” She paused, distracted by a piteous moan from the child as a wave of convulsions rocked her slim form. “Kyle, do what you need to do.”

  His eyes slid to Sera and then to Sophia before flicking briefly to Jem. He lowered his voice. “I don’t know that I can after what happened with Carla and Kira. She said it was forbidden, and the Trimurtas may not be so forgiving a second time.”

  “She’s an innocent kid,” Sera said. “We have to.”

  “I can’t.”

  Sophia paled as a wail from the girl echoed in the space. “We can’t leave her like that. The demon’s killing her. You have to send it back.”

  “No, Kyle’s right. I think that’s what they want you to do anyway,” Jem pointed out. “They want you to banish it back to Xibalba so it opens a two-way portal, right?”

  Sera froze. “What did you say?”

  The realization hit her even as it swept across the other people in the room. The blood drained from Kyle’s face. Her gaze fell back to Jem, her eyes narrowing.

  “What did you mean?”

  The silence thickened, holding them all immobile for precious seconds. Jem’s eyes flashed with frustration, and a sardonic twist curled the edges of his mouth as he stepped closer to her mother.

  “I gave it away, didn’t I?” he said, correctly interpreting Sera’s horrified expression. “I should have remembered how perceptive you are.”

  Mordas appeared in Kyle’s fingers, but neither of them moved at the sight of the ifricaius whip Jem was wielding, its black tentacles weaving around Sophia’s body like headless snakes. It was similar to the barbed crop Jude had used last year to capture Daevas, and the one that had entrapped Ilani.

  Sera swallowed the rush of fear in her throat as the tips of the whip grazed her mother’s skin. “Jem, what are you doing?”

  “What I came here to do,” he said evenly.

  “But you’re Ne’feri.”

  His mouth broadened into a cold, inhuman smile. “Not exactly. Your father, you see, felt that my dad was unfit to remain a member of the order, and as a result, my family was forced to leave in shame. He made his peace with it when he died, but I never could.”

  “Your father’s dead?” Sera asked, confused. “But you said you moved back. Your family was supposed to come to dinner.”

  “Why do you think I kept rescheduling?” He laughed, and the sound of it felt like a thousand beetles crawling all over her. His cold eyes met hers. “They’re all dead. My father, my mother, my brothers. I had to prove myself worthy.”

  The fear in her chest expanded. “You killed them?”

  “‘Kill’ is such a harsh word,” Jem said. “I delivered them home.” His cool stare settled on Kyle, who hadn’t moved from where he stood. Nor had Mara. The smile returned to his lips as he studied Kyle from head to toe. “Your instincts served you well about me, though clearly not soon enough.”

  “Why, Jemitra?” The soft question came from Sophia.

  Jem’s stare flicked to her, the whip’s tentacles vibrating as if in tune with his thoughts. “We were banned. Exiled. Shunned.” He hurled the last three words like bullets. “And now your dear husband will pay for what he’s done. And all of you.”

  Sophia’s eyes went wide as the barbed tips of the whip lodged into the flesh of her upper arm, pulling a scream from her mouth. Sera lurched forward involuntarily.

  “Not one more move, my friend,” Jem warned her. “We both know how painful this can get, and as much as I’ve loved your mother, I will not hesitate to rip her to pieces before you get within one inch of us.” His smile widened. “I’m sure you saw what this beautiful weapon did to that Yoddha.”

  “Why are you doing this?”

  His eyes caressed Sera, making her flesh prickle. “Payback. You see, at first I was just going to take Nate—the prophesized hand of the gods. Lord Temlucus wanted him so badly. But I saw an opportunity and I took it. And now Samsar will pay when I take all of you.”

  Sera blinked at him. “What are you?”

  “He’s human, but as the Ne’feri serve the gods, he serves the Demon Lords,” Kyle said quietly from behind her. “His soul is on the brink.”

  “I’ll just leave sweet Stella here as a gift for Nate when he returns.” Jem smirked, wrenching his hand backward so that Sophia dropped to her knees, writhing in pain. To her credit, she remained silent, though her
deifyre flickered and darkened at the edges where the barbs continued burrowing into her flesh. “And then we’ll all get what we want, won’t we?”

  “I can’t let you do that,” Sera said. Fiery rapiers extended from her palms, and Jem squealed his delight, his blue eyes widening appreciatively.

  “I still can’t get over the fact about who you are,” he said, waving his free hand. “Who knew that little Sera Caelum would turn out to be a goddess of Illysia?”

  “Jem, revenge is not going to get you anything.”

  He nodded solicitously. “I know. But it will make me feel better. Closure, you know. Trust me, I lost any sense of empathy years ago.” He drew an amused breath. “And, well, with what’s coming, figure I better get satisfaction while I still can.” The sound of the front door opening and closing made him grin and pull the whip tighter around Sophia. “Let’s not spoil the surprise for dear Samsar, shall we?”

  “Dad, don’t come in here,” Sera yelled, even as the chains sank deep into her mother’s flesh and she slumped into a senseless faint. Sophia’s deifyre winked out completely as her father rounded the corner, not heeding her desperate warning, and froze at the tableau greeting him.

  “Stella!” Nate’s cry as he sped across the living room floor toward his friend jerked them all into action.

  “Nate, no,” Sera cried, but it was too late. Nate skidded to a stop right at the feet of the whimpering girl. She could only watch in horrified silence as the creature wrapped its arms around her brother, squeezing his vulnerable throat with slow, relentless force.

  “Perfect,” Jem crowed. “I couldn’t have planned this better myself.”

  REVENGE IS BEST SERVED COLD

  Adrenaline surged through Kyle’s limbs. Mordas pulsed in his fingers like an extension of his own arm, and he longed to sink its thirsty blade into Jem’s body. He’d always had an odd feeling about the boy, but his gifts didn’t tell him whether beings were evil, only what they were.

  And Jem was human.

  Albeit a terrible human.

  Kyle squinted now, studying him. The boy was mortal, but that didn’t mean his soul wasn’t as tainted as the fiend that controlled the girl. Humans had free will, and he had chosen to become what he was—a servant to the Dark Realms. The Demon Lords would have granted him power, Kyle knew, like the ability to use the Preta weapon he wielded now. Ra’al’s doing, no doubt.