by Caleb Zane
Desiree came over to her and smiled. Desiree was the most astonishing woman at times. Ziva wrapped her arms around her.
“Not much longer,” Dazielle said. She was on the other side of them, watching Ai with intent. “The time that it normally takes is about a minute away.”
Ziva had learned long ago that angels had the uncanny ability to know how much time passed to the exact second. At first, that had unnerved Ziva, but it meant she never needed a watch. Not that many were around these days. The war had taken out most of the technology like that. Sure, clocks hung on walls in a house, but watches and cell phones? Not so much. When someone was out of a house, the best way to tell time was to ask an angel.
Almost on cue, Ai groaned. “Ah.”
Followed a moment later by Kaiden, who muttered, “Fuck.”
They both fell to their knees in obvious pain.
“Fuck,” Kaiden said again. “That was terrible.”
Ziva couldn’t even imagine how awful that was, being unable to move while aware of the world around them.
Ziva and Desiree dropped to the ground. They hugged both of them and pulled them close.
“I was so worried,” Ziva said. She was nearly in tears over the thought of losing them. She never wanted to be without her lovers. Never.
“Please don’t do that again,” Desiree said. “Be careful.”
Kaiden forced a smile. “I won’t.” He coughed. His voice was off, and he sounded slightly scared.
“I didn’t mean too,” Ai said. Her voice was hoarse too. She was back on her feet and cracking every joint in her body. “Ah.”
Desiree cringed. “I hate it when you do that.”
Ai shrugged. “It helps with my magic and makes me more flexible, and I know you like that.” She winked.
Ziva and Desiree giggled. Ai really was flexible, and it made for some fun times when they were making love. She could do things the others couldn’t.
Kaiden was grinning from ear to ear. There was little doubt what he was dreaming about. Ziva was too. No matter what people said, women thought about sex just as much as men. Ziva fantasized about being with them often.
Ziva hugged him as he stood and kissed him. His body was cooler than usual, but as they held each other, the warmer he became. When their lips pressed against each other, it was intense, deep.
This brief moment was worth it. Any chance she got, Ziva loved to steal kisses.
After pulling away, Kaiden hugged and kissed both Desiree and Ai. Once he was done, he turned to the angels and demon. “Food and then we retrieve the Crown of Thorns. After that, we need to get back.”
Zaphkiel nodded. “We do. No word from the scouts.”
Kaiden moaned. “We need to find Lilith and her bond fast.”
Ziva agreed. They needed that now, and that was why she had gone with Desiree.
“Very well,” Zaphkiel said. “The Crown of Thorns isn’t far. Eat, and we’ll have it.”
They all sat on the ground and ate some dried meat and bread. The meal wasn’t much, but it satiated Ziva’s hunger.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Once everyone finished the meal, they started up the mountain. Kaiden hated that they wouldn’t have time for the Holy Grail, but they needed to get back to Necoloatan. Time was important. Oh, and they would need to show Lindsey the Crown of Thorns. She wasn’t going to help them unless she saw that.
If only Kaiden could control time. All the magic in the world yet time travel wasn’t one of them.
Kaiden still hadn’t picked his new special skill. He looked over his options as they walked up the mountain. They were strange names like enchanter, slayer, archer, assassin, healer, battlemage, magical warrior, berserker, shapeshifter, scout, hunter, and templar. Kaiden had no clue what he should do.
He turned to the others, “What specialization should I upgrade to?”
The whole group stopped.
“You need to do that, and soon,” Ai said.
Kaiden shrugged. “What are you?”
She grinned. “I’m a magical warrior. It enhanced my magic to the next level.”
Ziva spoke next. “I’m a slayer. It doesn’t help my magic, but it makes me a better fighter.”
That made a lot of sense to Kaiden. None of the ones he saw sounded like they would help his fire, but he did have the upgrade like Ai for his speed and stamina. He might be able to make that better. Still torn as to what to do, he turned to Desiree.
She shrugged. “My specification is soul mastery.”
Kaiden hadn’t seen that one. “What is that?”
Desiree shrugged.
It was Orlas who answered for her. “It’s special to demon-bonded people. It helps her magic.”
It made sense she went that route. It tempted Kaiden to follow both Ai and Desiree and pick something to help increase his magic, but he was tempted with what Ziva had done.
“What should I do?” Kaiden asked.
Just then, a temple appeared in front of them. The front had large marble pillars. The whole building was white. With the sun shining on it, Kaiden was nearly blinded.
“It’s in there,” Zaphkiel said. “We can’t enter.”
“Why not?”
Orlas laughed. “They can’t, but I can.”
Kaiden thought about it for a moment. “The crown being tied to the death is more Hell than Heaven.”
“Correct,” Muriel said.
“So why can’t Zaphkiel enter?” Ai asked. “He’s tied to both.”
Zaphkiel shrugged. “I am, and I might be able to, but I don’t want to. Just the thought of it creeps me out and makes me ill. The less I have to deal with it, the better.”
For the first time since Kaiden had bonded with the angel, Zaphkiel looked truly scared. An angel being frightened was something Kaiden had never thought possible. Kaiden swore he saw Zaphkiel’s body shaking, and actual sweat appeared on his body. This was terrifying even for Kaiden, and he didn’t like it.
“If you won’t go in…” Kaiden took a deep breath. “Should we?”
The whole group looked at him. Shock covered their faces.
“You have to,” Zaphkiel said. “Just because I won’t and Muriel and Dazielle can’t doesn’t mean you shouldn’t. You have to. We came this far. We overcame a lot to get here.”
It was true. They traveled a long way to get here. They had dealt with monsters, riddles, and more. It had been tough and hard on Kaiden and the others. Kaiden could see it on Ziva and Desiree. They had a rough time while he had been frozen in place. Ai had suffered too.
“We go,” Ziva said.
“Yes,” Desiree said. “We are well past the point of no return.”
They were all right, but Kaiden was worried. He was scared that this was going to end badly given the fear the angels were displaying.
Orlas was standing there with a big smile on her face. She was almost giddy.
“Let’s do this,” the demon said. “I’m not scared of some artifact that was part of his death.”
“Our Savior,” Ai said. “Jesus.”
Orlas shrugged. “Yes. I know God’s son’s name, and I’m not scared of the thorn.”
“You should be,” Muriel said.
Orlas laughed or hissed. It was tough to tell the difference at times. “I’ll be fine and keep them safe.”
Zaphkiel sighed. “Thank you, Orlas.”
“You’re welcome,” she said. “You could join me. I can sense it.”
Zaphkiel shook his head. “I very well might, but the principle of it…”
Kaiden was worried. Who knew what was going to happen if Zaphkiel redeemed himself, but that was a thought for a later day. Not for now.
Taking a deep breath, Kaiden entered the shimmering temple.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Inside the temple was one large room, and on a table in the center was the Crown of Thorns. It was smaller than Kaiden thought it would be. It wouldn’t fit around his own head, but still, it was imp
ressive.
The thorns were covered in blood. Jesus’ blood. Just the thought of that scared Kaiden. That had been there for eons. The man had given up his life for them, and now Kaiden was using his magic and power to save the world again.
It was only fitting that Kaiden was using artifacts from Jesus to save the world from demons and Lilith.
“Wow,” Desiree said. She was next to Kaiden and holding his hand. Kaiden didn’t know when that had happened. “It's beautiful.”
“It really is,” Orlas said.
Ai and Ziva stared at the crown, speechless. It looked like they were unable to move. Kaiden wasn’t able to fully comprehend what was going on. The crown was just as magical as the Holy Grail, though in a different and terrifying way but magical nonetheless.
“That will definitely get us to Hell,” Desiree said. “I can’t scan objects, but it just feels immense.”
Kaiden agreed. It was powerful. “We have to be careful,” he said. “There might be more traps.”
The angels had a sick sense of humor and honor. All the test and traps for the artifacts they guarded both annoyed and impressed him.
Desiree started forward, but Kaiden held her back. He wanted to make sure that nothing was off in the room. He still remembered the Holy Grail.
Reaching out with his magic, he tried to detect if anything was here. This was something Kaiden had never tried before.
“Do any of you sense any magic?” he asked.
That shook Ai and Ziva out of their funk. They both concentrated with crinkled noses. They were doing just what Kaiden had, and Desiree did too.
“Nothing,” they all said.
“Okay,” Kaiden said. “One step at a time. Be careful.”
It was a slow process, but they moved forward, paused, and took another. Each one was harder and slower. There was apparently magic that none of them could feel.
The pressure on Kaiden was great, and he felt like he was being crushed from the inside out. Nothing in his life had hurt this much.
A flash of light blinded him for a moment, and he swore he saw an angel there, but it was gone immediately. Then something else was in front of him. Kaiden blinked, and it vanished. Something was playing tricks on him.
Kaiden didn’t know what was going on, but the air was making him see stuff. Maybe the others were affected too. The only one who didn’t appear to be fazed by it was Orlas.
It was Orlas finally spoke. “Enough,” she said.
The demon went to the crown, dragging Kaiden along until he was next to it. This close, Kaiden could feel the power and the filth.
The Crown of Thorns was tainted. Dark magic was in it along with death, destruction, and hatred. It both hurt him and made him feel alive. That angel part of him loathed it, but the demon part was pleased. That part wanted to wear it and soak in the energy.
Kaiden picked up the crown. Instantly, everything changed. The magic that had slowed them was lifted, making them capable of moving normally again, but that wasn’t the only difference. The entire temple shook. The ground beneath them erupted into a massive earthquake.
“Time to go,” Orlas said.
Kaiden couldn’t agree more. “Run!” he shouted.
The group dashed out of the temple just in time. A few paces away, they were greeted by the angels. Kaiden tucked the crown away in spot that wouldn’t prick him but still keep it safe.
“What did you do?” Dazielle asked.
Kaiden held up the Crown of Thorns, and the angels cringed. Behind them, the temple was sucked into the earth, and the hole grew and started to reach out to them.
“We need to go,” Kaiden said.
The angels flew into the air, leaving them behind. Kaiden cursed under his breath. Orlas was gone too. That meant the humans needed to run for their lives, and they did. Ai was at the front of the group with her speed. Kaiden didn’t mind at all, being able to watch her run was nice. It wasn’t the time for ogling her, but he couldn’t help himself. Her ass was just that fine. As he ran, he couldn’t stop glancing at it.
Ziva and Desiree weren’t that far behind Kaiden. All of them were running as fast as they could to avoid falling into the ever-growing hole in the side of the mountain. It was getting wider and wider.
Kaiden thought of the videos games he’d played in Kathill. This was just like a mission to run as fast as possible to avoid falling to one's death. At least in those, there was a checkpoint but not here. If they failed to run fast enough, they would join the temple in the earth.
There was no way to know just how deep that chasm was. Kaiden wasn’t going to risk looking back.
The longer he ran, the harder it was. His chest started to hurt, his breath laboring. How long he ran, Kaiden didn’t know, but the sun was beginning to set when he stopped, and the ground was no longer rumbling.
They had made it but just barely. Looking back, he realized to his horror that the mountain was gone. They would never be able to go back to the Holy Grail. That path was gone. Kaiden hadn’t thought they would have much of a chance at recovering it anyway. Oh, well. Time to move on.
The angels landed next to them.
Orlas appeared too. “You made it,” the demon said.
“Don’t sound so surprised,” Ziva said.
Orlas shrugged. “Humans will never cease to amaze me.”
Kaiden laughed.
The Crown of Thorns had been tucked away and was safe. He had made sure not to let it prick him. If he had, Kaiden was sure he would be dead already. That would be bad.
“What is the plan?” Zaphkiel asked.
“We need to go back and show Lindsey the crown,” Kaiden said. “Then, we need to hope that they’ve located Lilith and her bond.”
Zaphkiel nodded. “Okay.”
They had come far, but they still had more to do.
That night, Kaiden laid awake in the tent.
Ai rolled over. She was the only one awake. “You can’t sleep?” she asked.
“No.”
“Did being frozen in place mess with you?”
Kaiden nodded.
“Me too.”
Ai pulled him even closer. She was soft, her body warm. Kaiden loved the way she felt pressed against him. Her breast felt incredible. Her nipples were hard, and he felt them too.
Kaiden couldn’t help but sudden be turned on. He was always ready for her, for all of them. He loved them. It wasn’t all about the sex, but that was part of it. Being in her and feeling her vagina walls gripping his penis was heaven on Earth.
Ai leaned over and kissed him. Her tongue darted into his mouth and his into hers. The kiss was intense, pleasurable. Kaiden was lost in her. While he would never forget the others, this moment it was just him and Ai. No one else even though they were sandwiched between them.
Ai slid onto Kaiden and pulled down his pants. The smile that formed on his face had to be massive. Ai exposed her pussy. She was dripping wet. It leaked onto him. Kaiden loved how wet she was.
He easily slid into her, filling her with his penis. She squealed out in delight but only loud enough for him to hear. The others needed to rest and recover from the day.
Kaiden had no worries, no fears. Ai rode him and gyrated her hips. She gripped him tightly with her walls, tighter and tighter, more and more.
The intensity of it overwhelmed him, and Kaiden couldn’t hold back. He shot his load into her. Ai yelped, leaned down, and kissed him.
They both had climaxed.
She passed out with him still in her. Kaiden wasn’t that far behind.
Chapter Thirty
Ai woke up early the next morning. Yesterday had been a long day between being frozen and then nearly sucked into the earth. She really hadn’t been in much danger. She could have run faster and been far away. Kaiden could have too, but the others couldn’t. Ai might have been able to carry one of them but not both. Kaiden might have been able to as well, but that would have slowed him down too much. They made it out of there alive, and th
at was all that mattered.
Ai was still on top of Kaiden, and he was still slightly in her. His penis was limp but still useable. Ai was very tempted to start rubbing against him. She wanted to make him harder and make love to him again. She could wake up the others, and they could have a great time.
But she didn’t. Time was important, and so was rest. They couldn’t risk that.
She slid off Kaiden regrettably and dressed. She left the tent and waited for the others to wake.
Outside, all of the angels were up and waiting.
Dazielle walked over to her. “Ai.” The angel eyed her up and down. “We need to be careful.”
Ai sighed. “Why?”
“You are traveling with the Crown of Thorns. It is dangerous.”
Ai knew that none of the angels were fans. The way they acted at the temple had been a bit of a shocker to Ai. “We will be smart.”
Dazielle groaned. “We can’t go to Hell with you. Not even Orlas or Zaphkiel.”
Ai hadn’t thought about that, but it made a lot of sense. “I understand. We have to find Lilith first.”
“You do,” Dazielle said. “I hope you do. She is a vile creature who needs to be killed.”
“You really don’t like her.”
“No,” Dazielle said. “She is vile. Worse than Lucifer. At least he didn’t want to go. God forced him, unlike her. She asked. She wanted to be that.”
Dazielle cringed. Ai couldn’t think of any reason to want to be sent to Hell. Sure, they were going, but it was to kill Lilith, not because they wanted to.
The others woke, and they started the trip to Kathill. They had been lucky to find the car they had before.
Taking turns driving, they spent a long and tortuous week heading back to the city. When they arrived, Adriel was on the road waiting for him.
“Do you have it?” the angel asked.
Kaiden stepped out of the car. The Crown of Thorns was being transported in the trunk of the car. They were doing everything they could to avoid it touching them.
