Wars of the Underworld

by Olivia Ash

  A sensation prickled through Mordecai and he paused. He looked to each of his brothers, all standing alert and at attention.

  Good. They felt it too.

  Each of them turned to stare into the shadows, searching for anything out of place.

  There. He spotted movement and the tell-tale glow of magma.

  Hellhound. And he prowled near the gate of the fortress.

  Mordecai shifted into shadow and floated closer as the hellhound sniffed at the gate, growled, and started digging under it.

  Before he could reach the creature, four more showed up from within the shadows. He heard footsteps stomping the ground from behind him, and he found assurance in knowing his brothers followed him.

  “Those are father’s dogs,” Kaiser said. He would know. He had many encounters with them over the years and ones not soon forgotten with the screams Mordecai had to endure during the many, long, sleepless nights of his childhood.

  Zagan probably sent the dogs out to find a way into the gate and report back. But not alone. There were imps too, somewhere. Spineless bastards.

  They had a problem, and Mordecai was going to make sure they wouldn’t get in.

  “They’re trying to get into the gates,” Kaiser said, voice shaking.

  Fat fucking chance.

  “You know what to do Steele,” he said and seeped through the gate, stopping behind the dogs.

  Meanwhile, Steele did his thing and Mordecai could see the faint, ghostly outline of the images of him and his brothers stalking the creatures. He moved into position and waited for the right moment.

  Kaiser’s hands started to glow with red flames. Damien stood by with his sword in hand, waiting for the signal to hop through the gate and kill these dogs.

  The illusion was set. Mordecai was at the ready. Time to go.

  Damien charged. Kaiser shot flames at the dogs to aid in distraction. Mordecai solidified and drew his staff from the shadows. They attacked.

  Mordecai swung his staff, sweeping the closest hellhound to him off its feet. The creature yelped, catching the attention of one of its pack mates. It lunged at him, scratching his leg. Deep gashes tore through his armor and flayed his skin. Biting back the pain, Mordecai thumped the dog on its head.

  Damien jabbed at a hound between slats within the gate and Kaiser tossed another stream of fire to distract the other two.

  Steele released his illusion as Mordecai looked passed him, watching Sadie approach with a fierce march.

  “Enough!” Sadie shouted, and all four princes looked to her.

  The hellhounds instantly submitted to her, cowering, whining, and rolling on their backs, revealing their bellies like little lap dogs of death.

  “I can use these hellhounds. See?” She gestured to them. “They’re obedient to me.”

  “Sadie,” Damien said. “Our father sent these creatures. If you take them from him, you’ll only be angering him more. Tread carefully.”

  She shrugged. “His loss. Besides, look at them. They’re so stinking cute! Maybe they will get along with Pyra?”

  Mordecai shifted into shadow and seeped back through the gate a split-second before Sadie opened them and let the hounds in. They ran to her, barking and yelping. She giggled, turned around, and headed back to the fortress.

  “You know this is just the beginning,” Mordecai said to his brothers.

  Damien nodded. “He’ll send more and more, weakening our defenses little by little before his big attack.”

  “Then he’ll come for her hide,” Steele said. “Add it to his collection in his throne room.”

  “Over our dead bodies,” Kaiser said.

  They began to walk back, exchanging a few commendations for a job well done. Mordecai was relieved he and his brothers could work so well together. It felt good. Like old times. And he owed that to the woman he loved.

  She really was the glue for them now. And with that realization came the fact that he would rather die than let his father touch a hair on his woman’s head. He stopped following his brothers long enough to look back along the horizon.

  He knew his father’s scouts were out there, and another troop was on their way. His father was a cunning little bastard and would likely wait until everyone’s guard was down before they arrived. Meanwhile, he would do whatever he could to make sure Sadie and his brothers were safe.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Sadie

  The next morning, Sadie made her way to the courtyard to train. As she entered her favorite training spot, Steele was there. She watched him move, his torso laid bare and the muscles stretched and moved with each motion he made. The light danced off his golden skin and he used his wings to aid in his momentum, which impressed her as she had wondered if they hindered movement.

  She caught a glimpse of the scar from his latest injury. The one that nearly killed him. She frowned but shrugged it off. He was fine now. And that was what mattered.

  His expression was focused. She wondered what he thought about as he trained. Her warrior. So serious. So fierce. She wanted to share in that.

  She smiled as the urge to spar with him overtook her wonder. That would give her an opportunity to further unify their ability to fight side by side. Like he did with his brothers.

  Moving from the spot where she stood, she walked into the courtyard and waited for him to notice her.

  He spun with a jab and a side kick. His eyes caught hers, and he smiled.

  “Hey, gorgeous,” he said.

  She took her ready stance. “Hey, handsome.”

  He immediately took his stance and Sadie lunged. Laughing, he easily dodged the blow that would have hit him square in the jaw. “I love it when you’re feisty.”

  She faked a left jab and did a front kick to his groin, which he avoided. “Not fair to cheat, Steele.”

  He shrugged, and a debonair smile pulled on his lips. “I am a demon.” He winked then dashed to the side, swooped Sadie off her feet, and rolled to the ground, landing with him on top. “Demons don’t fight fair.” His words came out soft, deep, alluring.

  She stared into his green eyes as they swirled with tinges of red, and she felt the gentle scratches on her mental barrier. He kissed her, and she let him in.

  Visions of what the sparring session could lead to floated through her mind and she loved every idea. But she wouldn’t give in. Not just yet.

  She pushed him up, hooked her leg around his waist and pulled him down, rolling on top of him as she sat up and narrowed her eyes on him. “Steele. Focus.”

  He chuckled, and she couldn’t help but join in. “But I am focused.”

  “On training,” she said, playfully slapping him on the chest. Always a one-track mind.

  He feigned injury and bucked her off him. She ducked and rolled, twisting at the landing to face him. He charged. Sadie side-stepped to avoid being barreled into and turned in time to duck a punch to her cheek.

  “I’ll make a bet with you,” he said, holding up one finger.

  She narrowed her eyes on him, already figuring what he was going to lead to. The same thing he always tried. Getting her in bed. “And what’s that?”

  “If I defeat you, I get whatever I want.” He smiled, bobbing his eyebrows.

  Sadie chuckled and shook her head. “And if I win?”

  “You get to do to me whatever you wish.” He spread his arms out to the sides.

  She propped a hand on her hip and leveled her gaze on him, trying to be serious but knowing he probably saw right through her façade. “Steele, if you don’t behave yourself, I’ll cut this session short.” Then, again, she felt more serious about that than she originally thought. They needed to train together. She needed to learn how he moved and reacted, and he needed to do the same.

  He shrugged. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

  Her eyebrows knitted together. “Wha—”

  He charged her, cutting off her words so she could quickly run away from him.

  They shared in a laugh as he
chased her around the courtyard. Despite her need to train, she loved how Steele made her feel so carefree and happy. It made things easier to handle, somehow. The way he always took things with a grain of salt instead of being so uptight, balanced the gravity of planning ways to take Zagan off her radar and combat training. He helped her see that it was good to mix things up a bit and have a lighter heart.

  Damn she loved him.

  And she couldn’t run from him forever. Though she knew he could catch her if he really tried. He just wanted to see her have a bit of fun. Still, she needed to think of a way to win this bet she didn’t really agree to. The wall to her fortress was just ahead. It had vines and ivy climbing up the stone, and she could use that as a good foot hold.

  But that wouldn’t be enough to win the bet.

  She conjured her shadow sword and ran up a wall, back flipping so that she could land behind Steele. He turned, and she held the point of the blade at him. He raised his hands in surrender, and a cocky grin stretched his lips.

  She winked. “I win. Now, let’s train.”

  He nodded and went to collect his own sword and stood in the center of the courtyard, waiting for her. She arrived, took her ready stance, and waited. Steele smirked and attacked.

  Each move he made, she parried and countered. She knew he took it easy on her, and she appreciated that. She needed the practice anyway, and this was helping her to learn how he moved. She focused her strikes to the side, where he left himself the most open, but that wasn’t a vulnerability as he managed to parry those attacks and gain advantage on her.

  Good, he’s learning too.

  As they trained, her thoughts drifted to her new hellhounds. Maybe she should train with them too. They would definitely hold their own in a fight, especially in the upcoming war with Zagan. Getting practice in with them would ensure her hold over them and she could learn what they could do, decide how to best employ them, and build on her connection with them all at the same time.

  “It’s dangerous when you get lost in your thoughts,” Steele said as he swirled out of the way of another one of Sadie’s advances.

  She lowered her sword. “What do you think about training with the hellhounds?” she asked, ignoring the jibe.

  “You prove my point,” he said and lowered his sword. He rubbed the back of his head and sighed. “Lay it on me.”

  She leveled her gaze on him and hoped that he would take her question seriously, for once.

  He stopped as well and nodded in thought. “Zagan has a few packs loyal to him. And, like everything and everyone else, they’re completely expendable to him. You would likely need more than the few you have to make any real impact in a fight with him.”

  “Well, they’re not expendable to me,” she said. “Plus, we need all the help we can get.”

  “Very well. I don’t recommend doing battle drills with them. They could get carried away and hurt you on accident. You could, however, practice on commands like you do with Pyra. Bonding with them will make them extremely loyal to you.”

  Sadie nodded and decided she would fit some time in with them after her training. The sooner she got started, the better.

  Steele continued, “You know my father has a cruel nature about him. And he has a nasty habit of not accepting someone’s ‘No’ when he gets one. He will do everything in his power to seek his vengeance for you turning him down.”

  He stepped closer as she opened her mouth to speak, and he placed a finger over her lips. She narrowed her eyes on him. “Let me finish, would you?” He chuckled under his breath and shook his head and removed his finger.

  He gazed at her as though he waited for her to respond. She nodded.

  Satisfied, he said, “I promise, I will do everything I can to keep harm from coming to you. I have allies I can call on. Succubi. I just don’t know how far that will get me.”

  She asked, “Why?”

  “Because the usual price for their help and alliance is sex.” He winked at her.

  Sadie tried to force down that bubble of jealous anger that pooled in her gut. She clenched her fists and took in a steadying breath. Letting it out, she relaxed her hands and said, “Well maybe they will accept a different form of payment. Perhaps we can sway them with land, gold, or something that would benefit them.”

  He nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.” He gently cupped her cheek and leaned in to kiss her. Before his lips met hers, he said, “Don’t worry, Sadie. I belong to you now. You’re the only woman I want to be with.”

  His lips were soft and gentle as he kissed her, and that made Sadie feel like his words weren’t just meant for reassurance, but also a promise.

  When he pulled away, he asked, “Shall we continue, then?”

  “Let’s,” she said and smiled with anticipation of training with him more.

  Of course, that also meant avoiding his sexual advances. Though she let him get away with a few of those as well. She couldn’t help herself. The things she felt for him were just too powerful to avoid completely, and it helped that she used them as distractions.

  Lunch time approached when they decided to end their session and get some food. Sadie’s stomach growled in agreement and Steele laughed. He held out his arm for her and she took it, letting him walk with her to the dining hall.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Sadie

  Sadie laughed as Steele stood on top of the dining room table and, with grand gestures and a great deal of stretching the truth, retold his personal account of the fight with the hellhounds. They were all healed from the scratches they endured.

  He kicked a goblet off the table. “He slammed the staff into the dog, knocking his hind legs from under him.” He held up a finger. “But I could tell he put all his strength into it. Must suck to have that blow up in your face.” He pouted.

  His face lit up. “Oh, but here’s the best part. The other hound had turned,” he twisted in place, “and was staring at him like, ‘why’d you do that?’” He took on the look of what Sadie considered a “puppy dog face.”

  Another roll of laughter filled the room.

  Steele shifted on top of the table, crouched down, and held his hands up like claws. “Then he was like, ‘Eh? Pick on someone your own size,’ and slashed,” he quickly brought a clawed hand down, “Slicing your leg up pretty bad.”

  He hobbled the length of the table, pouting. He stopped at the edge, jumped down, and then spun around to bow.

  “Is that how it happened?” Mordecai asked. “I seem to recall you standing around with this blank stare on your face.”

  Steele shrugged. “I was simply hoping the dog would bite a chunk out of you. Shorten you a bit. A very humbling height, I do believe.”

  The rest of the brothers joined in with their own retellings, and each one managed to poke fun at the others. The table was an utter mess at the end of it all. Food was scattered. Drinks were spilled, and poor Hobson stood off to the side shaking his head, frowning at the mess.

  She watched the dramatic retellings. It was fun to be so at ease with her men, and to see them get along as brothers should, filled her heart with warmth. Each day that passed she found herself more and more appreciative of their presence and willingness to get along for her sake. But it seemed they truly enjoyed themselves as well as each other’s company.

  Once Kaiser finished his story, Sadie stood and said, “Regardless of how… comical your retellings are, I still must know when enemies come to my gates. Before you start fighting them.”

  “Yes, of course,” Mordecai said. “If we have time. Which, that time, we didn’t.”

  Sadie nodded. “Fine. Just keep in mind my order for next time.” She looked to each of the men pointedly as each one nodded. “Very well. Now, let’s clean up this mess and move to the war room.”

  Once the table was cleaned and all the debris from the reenactments was over, the men followed her to the war room. After everyone was seated and looking at her expectantly, she took in a deep breath and said,
“I need a plan of action against your father if we want any hope of defeating him.”

  Kaiser said, “There is a rumor about a weakness my father has, but I never figured out what it was. Cedric knew. I went to go ask him about it, but it was too late. Cedric was already dead.”

  “I have a band of warlocks,” Mordecai said. “I could ask a few favors from them. They may be able to find out more about the weakness than I would know. I hated my father from the moment I could think for myself and I don’t want to spend any more time talking about him than necessary.”

  Duly noted. She wouldn’t force him to talk if he didn’t want to. Though she wished he would, she also understood his hatred for his father and could appreciate wanting to avoid the topic. While he could do that, she couldn’t.

  “Could his weakness be consuming souls?” Sadie asked.

  Damien shook his head. “I don’t think that’s it.”

  “Why not?” Sadie asked.

  “It’s more the strength he gains from the souls as he ages,” Damien said.

  Kaiser said, “I may have to disagree, brother. I recall a number of times when father’s health declined suddenly and then the very same day, just later, he seemed to have bounced back with more strength and vitality than before.”

  “I’ve seen the same things,” Steele said. “Always was curious about that.”

  “So, you both are inclined to believe that is a possible weakness we can exploit?” Sadie asked them.

  “Yes,” they said.

  Steele added, “I will speak to the succubi queen on your behalf, and I’ll barter for a different form of payment.”

  A pinched formed in Sadie’s forehead at the reminder of the payment they usually required from Steele. She nodded.

  “I also have allies I could get on our side,” Kaiser said. “My strongest ally is the gorgon queen.”