Protector (Daray Hall #2)

by Hoffman, Samantha

  “Because we share a common enemy,” Pandia says, surprising me. “The sirens have decided to stand with Achlys, and will be wreaking havoc for our soldiers.”

  At the mention of the word siren, the merfolk all simultaneously hiss, revealing their sharp teeth. “You speak the truth? The sirens will be in this fight?” The chieftain does not sound happy, and I can see the anger in his eyes. “The creatures of the sea should know to stay out of the affairs of the gods,” he says, sneering. “Involvement with your kind rarely ends well for those of us considered below you.”

  “I am sorry for how the gods treat others, but you know my mother and I am not like that. We are good to all, including the people of the sea. We treat all fairly, and that is why we’re here to ask for your help, not demand it, as other gods would.”

  The chieftain does not look impressed. Instead of arguing, his gaze settles on me and Kaven. “What are these two vampires doing here with you? If you thought to impress us with your soldiers, you thought wrong. Vampires are nothing more than enhanced humans. They have the same cowardice and arrogance as humans, and are worth very little in a fight.”

  Pandia looks at me. “This is Kylie Redding. She died while in her goddess’ service, and survived the Trials of Fate in order to return to them. She fought a dragon alone, and won. She defeated Hades’ pet chimera, and she even outsmarted the Lord of the Underworld himself.

  “Since then, she has battled a minotaur, the sirens, harpies, and Achlys herself. This young vampire has courage, strength, and honor–the very things the merfolk hold dear. She is worthy of respect, and she has earned it. There are others like her, willing to fight and die for my mother. I would be honored to fight alongside the merfolk, and I know that Kylie would too.”

  I nod my head–getting the distinct impression that I’m just here for show–and bow to them. The chieftain of the merfolk looks me over, obviously surprised by Pandia’s glowing praise. Finally, he nods. “I cannot promise you anything, daughter of Selene, but I will take your case to my people. We will vote on this matter. Now leave us.”

  The three of us bow once more, and we follow Pandia back up the trench, and then back up to the surface. When I suck down a deep lungful of air, it burns, reminding me that I haven’t actually tasted air in probably well over an hour. We paddle toward shore, where Chloe and Austin wait for us. Chloe helps me stand, and my legs wobble like jell-o after everything that happened.

  “Well, how did it go?” Austin asks.

  “The chieftain of the merfolk heard us out,” I say, digging water out of my ear. “And he said he’d take our case to his people, and they’d vote on the matter. I guess that’s better than Pandia was hoping for, because she seems pretty pleased with herself right now.”

  Pandia nods. “Yes, I’m very pleased right now. I thought for sure we’d get an outright no. Now all we have to do is wait for them to make their decision. Unfortunately, the war might be over before they decide on what to do. They’re very political, law-abiding people, and the chieftain will probably hear every one of his clan members out.”

  “How long do you think it’ll be before the war starts and we need them?”

  “It’s going to happen very soon, Kylie. Within the next seventy-two hours I’m sure. Come on. We should get back to my mother and tell her the good news. Even if the merfolk decide not to help, we have the help of the pegasus’ and the griffins. That’s something.”

  Pandia takes us back to the Gardens, where Selene and Hecate are both waiting for news. The first thing I notice is that Selene’s Eternal Gardens are occupied with zombies. They’re decomposing bodies–some with missing limbs–and they don’t look happy to be here. Hecate sees the strange looks we give them and smiles.

  “I called in a favor with Hades, and he allowed me to use my magic to temporarily put the souls of the dead back into their bodies. They will not feel pain if injured, will not ever tire, and will not require sustenance during the fight to come. They are the perfect fighters.”

  “Speaking of fighters,” Pandia says brightly. “The griffins and the pegasus’ are definitely in. The merfolk chieftain heard us out, and told us that he would let his clan decide on whether or not to help us.” She looks at me. “They seemed particularly curious about Kylie after I mentioned some of her achievements.”

  I chuckle weakly. “I wasn’t aware that dying was an achievement.”

  Pandia looks at Selene. “Well, when do we cross over with our army? Do we know where Achlys is going to attack first? Gathering all of these fighters isn’t going to do us much good if we get the location wrong.”

  Selene nods. “I know where Achlys plans to cross over, and we’re going to be ready and waiting for her. Our army crosses over a few hours from now at midnight. We’re just waiting for the rest of our army to arrive. The griffins are on their way, and the pegasus’ should be here any moment. I’m not sure about the phoenixes or the hellhounds Hades lent to Hecate.”

  “Hades lent you hellhounds? He wants us to win?” I ask, surprised.

  Hecate smiles, and manages to look much younger and less evil in the process. “He’s become particularly fond of you, Kylie. You’ve impressed quite a few people, including me. Selene definitely knew what she was doing when she chose you.”

  I’m sure I’m practically glowing with the praise. “Thank you.”

  Later, Kaven and I sit around the falls, waiting for the rest of our army to show up. Right now there are only about fifty thousand zombies, four hundred pegasus’, and eight hundred and fifty griffins and phoenixes. We’re still waiting on the hellhounds, and unsurprisingly, there’s been no word from the merfolk yet. Selene told us not to get our hopes up, because the merfolk usually take so long to decide anything.

  “Fifty thousand zombies, Kylie, that’s a lot.”

  “I know that, but I just know it’s not going to be enough. We saw Achlys camp. She has to have at least that many creatures fighting with her, if not more, and we won’t be able to survive long without those merfolk. They just have to agree to help us. To be honest, I’m not sure we can win without them.”

  He pulls me closer. “Don’t worry too much. The fighting will start in a while, and you can worry then. But for now, just try to relax, and maybe get some rest. I’ll wake you if anything happens, ok?”

  I don’t think I’ll be getting any sleep anytime soon, but I close my eyes and snuggle closer to Kaven’s side. Another thirty minutes passes by, and I don’t get a second of sleep. Instead, the ground starts to shake, and I hear what sounds like growling dogs. Or, more precisely, growling hellhounds, because these hounds truly look like something out of hell, and are unlike any dog I’ve ever seen before.

  They stand to Kaven’s hip, and are barrel-chested, with sleek, black fur. Their jaws are massive and full of sharp teeth, and look capable of snapping a bone without breaking a sweat. Their eyes blaze a brilliant red color, and their paws are so large and heavy that they leave deep imprints in the ground wherever they walk, and that’s what’s making the ground shake.

  More than a hundred hellhounds stop obediently in front of Hecate, and each one looks to weigh about two hundred pounds easily. When they sit, their muscles all bunch up. If ever a dog could be a weightlifter, these would be the dogs. They’re large, heavy, and powerful, and they’re definitely going to be a valuable addition to our army.

  Hecate smiles grimly. “Let the war for the moon begin.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  The field is mostly flat and devoid of any kind of vegetation apart from the soft grass beneath our feet. The field is almost a mile and a half long, and it should be plenty of room for our upcoming battle, which is why Achlys picked this place to cross over with her army. She’s hoping we’ll be here waiting for her, because she wants a fight. She doesn’t care how many of her soldiers die in the process, so long as she can wipe us out.

  She knows that we’re the only thing standing in her way.

  I look behind me, and see c
ountless zombies, griffins, and hellhounds. With them are hundreds of uncomfortable looking Protectors. Jillian called in the fighters from all of the Daray Halls around the world, and they’ve spent the last two days familiarizing themselves with the flying steeds they’ll be riding into battle.

  The pegasus’ are incredibly shy and startle easily, but Pandia swears they’ll be loyal and brave in battle. I hope she’s right, because without them, we’ll have a more limited air force, and we can’t afford to lose any of our fighters right now. Without the help of the merfolk, our numbers are probably going to be much lower than Achlys’ army. I just hope we can keep up.

  Selene takes her place beside me. “It won’t be long. Achlys is positioning her fighters as we speak. She could cross over as early as within the hour. I hope we’re ready for her, because this is our only chance to stop her. If she defeats us here, she’ll take over the world.”

  “I know. We can’t let that happen.”

  Carlos clears his throat, and we look at him. “My goddess, our troops are all in position, as you requested. Kaven and I shall be taking our places with the Protectors at the far end of the field. With me are Morgan and Tara.” He looks at me. “I will keep her safe with my life if need be.”

  Selene nods. “Thank you, Carlos. Please, take care. If I have need of you, I will let you know.”

  Carlos bows deeply, and retreats through the crowd of zombies behind us. He looks a little nervous at being so close to them, but he holds his head high and ignores their light touches, and the fact that they lick their lips as he passes by. Hecate promised they wouldn’t harm us, but I’m not so sure. They look scary and more than a little threatening.

  “He’ll be fine,” Selene says. “Don’t worry about the zombies. They won’t dare touch him so long as there are so many powerful goddesses around.”

  That reassures me slightly, but not enough to walk through a crowd of them like Carlos. Selene raises her hand, flicks her wrist, and the zombies create a wide path for me. I nearly run through them because I don’t want to risk getting attacked for moving slowly. Their heads turn slowly and they watch me run by.

  When I’m free of the zombies, I give a thankful sigh, and set out to find Tara before the war finally starts. I need to tell her some things, and I need to make her promise to stay as safe as possible while we’re on opposite sides of the battlefield. I find her talking with Morgan and Austin, and the two of them give me tight, scared smiles, and leave the two of us alone to talk.

  Tara gives me a nervous smile. “Hey. How are you holding up?”

  “Fine,” I say, watching her. “Tara, I want you to be careful. I know that Carlos will take great care of you while you’re here, but I want you to be extra cautious. I have a feeling that Achlys may search the two of us out so she can have the pleasure of killing us herself. If that happens, I’ll find you as soon as I possibly can. Understand?”

  She nods. “Don’t worry so much. Pandia and Hecate are going to be here with Carlos. If Achlys does attack us personally, we’ll both be protected. You have Selene on your side, and you’re really important to her, Kylie. I doubt she’d let anything happen to you.”

  “It’s not me I’m worried about,” I say softly. It isn’t entirely a lie; I just don’t want her to know how worried I really am about this whole situation. “Just stick close to Carlos, and do whatever he tells you. He has a lot of experience fighting and keeping people alive.”

  She nods. “Kylie, don’t worry about me so much. You’ll just get yourself killed. Again.” My hands absently reach up and rub the red crescent moon shaped scar over my heart, and Tara’s eyes sadden. “Sometimes I almost forget everything you’ve sacrificed for the people you care about.”

  “Can you believe that just a couple of weeks from now, we’d be graduating? Now look at where our lives have ended up! We’re vampires, and we’ve made friends and enemies, battled immortal beings, met the gods, and are now trying to save the entire planet from destruction! We’re gonna be legendary.”

  I smile. “If this all goes well.”

  “It will.” She sounds so sure and confident that things will work out for the best, but I can’t be so optimistic. Even if we win this war, many people and creatures will die in the process–on both sides. What if Kaven dies? Or Tara? I’d miss Morgan, Chloe, and Austin as well. Right now, there are so many things that would hurt me if I lost them.

  I sigh. “Be careful,” I tell her again. Then I pull her close and hug her. Her arms go around me, and we just stand there for a minute, doing and saying nothing, but I can feel how important I am to her, and how important she is to me. Even though she’s the most important person to me in the world, I don’t feel the flutter in my stomach like I do with Kaven.

  That’s the thing about crushes…they fade so quickly if there’s nothing you can do about it. I care about her, and I always will, but deep down I know that she and I were never meant to be.

  “Kylie, just because you and I were never meant to be doesn’t mean I won’t care about you for the rest of my life. You’re my best friend, my Protector, and my sister. Nothing will ever change that.”

  “Damn you and your mind reading,” I mumble.

  She laughs. “I’m sorry, but those thoughts were kind of projecting. Plus, you should know you’re right. You and I aren’t meant to be together like that. We’re already meant to be in each others lives forever, Kylie. You’re meant to be my sister, my family, my Protector, but not my lover.”

  I nod. “I know. And to be honest, I never really loved you. I thought I might at one point, but it was just a crush. That doesn’t weird you out, does it? I mean, I think a lot of people wouldn’t have handled it as well as you did.”

  She laughs. “Oh, Kylie. No, it didn’t bother me. At first, it was a little weird, but I got used to it pretty fast. Actually, after a while, I felt kind of flattered that of all the women in the world, I would be the first one you had a crush on.”

  “Kylie!” Selene shouts. “It’s happening. They’re crossing over!”

  I rush over to Selene’s side. Minutes later, the opposite side of the field begins to glow a bright silver color, and everything just explodes. A massive portal opens, and Achlys steps through with a sneer. She raises her arms above her head and screams, “The moon is mine!”

  Hundreds of creatures start pouring through the massive portal, and they form obedient lines behind her. They all look bloodthirsty and ready to fight to the death, and even before they stop coming through, I realize that we’re outnumbered at least two to one.

  I recognize several minotaur, ogres, harpies and chimeras. Sirens flood the lake to our left, and they watch us with their cold, calculating eyes. In a few moments, they’ll become evil seductresses that try to drown our male soldiers. Harpies flood the skies, and I look at Selene. “We were wrong about her not having an air force. I hope this mistake isn’t too costly.”

  She nods gravely, and motions to the Protectors down the field from us. They grab their weapons, and mount their pegasus steeds. The winged horses fidget nervously beneath their new riders, but they take running starts and leap into the air, flying higher and higher, until they’re on level with the shrieking harpies.

  Achlys smiles evilly. “Attack!”

  The war begins.

  Achlys’ army charges forward and I draw my bow. I have a sword buckled at my hip, but I’m hoping I don’t have to use it. Over the last forty-eight hours, Kaven showed me a few things, but I’m not nearly as good with the sword as I am with the bow. Plus, I don’t want to have to get any closer to these monsters than I have to. Already, my wrist is burning so intensely it’s almost painful, but I can’t stop to worry about it right now.

  My first arrow sails across the field, burying itself in the neck of a minotaur. It bellows loudly, before dropping to the ground, tripping up several creatures behind it. My second arrow is already fitted to the bowstring and I take aim at the nearest charging creature. The arrow lodges in the sh
oulder of an ogre, but it keeps charging.

  All around me, Protectors fire their bows at the oncoming horde of evil monsters, and they start to steadily drop. However, out of the corner of my eyes, I see the sirens taking their places in the lake. They’re getting their voices ready to drown our Protectors, and I can’t let that happen.

  “The sirens!” I shout.

  What few women we have–including Chloe, Tara, Morgan, and Tricia’s friend Kita–are racing toward the lake with Hecate and Pandia. I hope they can get there in time to stop the sirens from killing our Protectors. If we lose them, we’ll be losing the most powerful part of our army. The zombies are numerous, but they’re not incredibly strong.

  Some of them break away from the fight and head to the lake to back up the goddesses. As much as I want to watch and make sure nobody gets hurt, I have enemies itching to sink their teeth into me, and I can’t lose my focus. So I turn around, draw the sword hanging at my belt, and charge the nearest creature.

  A chimera rushes at me, and I jump to the side to avoid the dragon’s head, and I slash at its neck. It drags uselessly along the ground, but with still two more heads to fight with, the chimera is nowhere near dead. The lion head snaps at me, and I duck, bringing my sword up and under its head, plunging deep into the monster’s brain. I rip my sword away and bring it around in a wide arc, completely lopping off the final head.

  The chimera’s body twitches, and I jump over it to get to my next opponent, a giant ogre. Its reddish skin is already stained with blood, and its massive, powerful looking limbs swing around like a battering ram, knocking everything out of its path. I duck under one heavily muscled limb, and slice at it with my blade.

  I pivot out of the way again, and I walk right into another arm. It collides with my stomach, throwing me across the field and right in front of a giant basilisk snake. The snake is almost a hundred and fifty feet in length, and its head is full of razor sharp fangs that drip venom. Along the snake’s back is a giant fin that probably helps it swim through the water like a shark.