by Faulks, Kim
Hell’s touch burned in the pit of my soul.
A mark meant just for me.
Cekresy sent a howl tearing through the night. I glanced up into the mirror, catching the blue flames once more. “They can never know,” I growled.
And with a savage breath, blue bled into red.
Hell’s touch remained, but it was hidden now. Just as it’d been hidden for all these years. I’d pushed the rest of my line from Hell, but Hell refused to be abandoned, turning the blood red flames of Hell inside me to blue.
Cekresy let out a roar and lunged, paws pounding as she tore along the mountain trail to the dark house above.
It wouldn’t be long now.
Until this was over.
Death would come once and for all.
Margaret’s face filled my mind, so perfect and pure, and with the image, came the nightmare. Her lips moved, but there was no sound...and no screams. “I’m coming, my love,” I spoke aloud, as trees blurred as they flew past me. “Hold on...I’m coming.”
8
Artemas
I felt Cekresy’s pain as I hit the city limits of Hell’s Gate. I consumed her torment, her agony, her panic, and her fear. She was strong, but no Hellhound was that strong. As she fell and that lash curled around her throat, the full force of my line came crashing down on top of me.
My bones cracked and my shoulders shifted, fighting the weight as the red sky brightened. I gripped the wheel and lifted my head, then between one towering building and the next I caught a glimpse of that black Goliath of a house hidden in the grasp of the mountain.
They were there. They were all there, holding onto the last tiny thread of our existence.
Hopelessness consumed them...burning with hate in the middle of my chest.
Fuck you! Cekresy had screamed as her knees met the hard floor. Now, it came down to me...just as it always had.
The last one to fight. The last to fall. The last to fail them.
Agony coursed through my body, throbbing harder than a heartbeat ever could. Sweat dripped down the back of my neck and my stomach rolled, sending the spill of acid into the back of my throat. Red flames flickered in the rear-view mirror as the car wove across the white lines.
But there were no oncoming headlights, no screech of tires…no loss of control.
My Hound dragged in harsh guttural pants and let out a whimper. The call of Hell was undeniable. I turned my head and tapped the brake, slowing the Chrysler to a crawl. I turned the car, corner after corner, making my way closer to the heart of the city, and the underground river of lava that’d found its way to the surface.
Hell was here, in this city, on this earth.
Hell, with its undeniable call.
My Hound let out another whimper, and that piercing sound tore through my head. “Easy now. Easy.”
The engine of the car hissed, spewing white plumes of steam from under the hood, making it impossible for me to see. I ground my teeth and stabbed the button, winding the window down.
The foul scent of sulphur invaded the car, and my body. I stilled, heart slamming against the confines of my chest, and breathed deep. Home. HOME.
Red spilled through the cracks in the road. The Chrysler slowed, this time on its own, the engine spluttering and hissing. Red lights gave a ding…ding...ding...on the dashboard. The radio station flickered, gave a screech, and then went dead.
Nothing survived Hell’s Gate...not even me.
The Chrysler lunged, engine redlining, and then died. Tires crunched on the cracked asphalt, the hulking machine rolling until it came to a stop. Sweat dripped, smearing on the leather seat as I stabbed the seatbelt release.
My hands trembled as I grabbed the door handle.
My slick fingers missed. Pain roared through my body, and my eyes shot open as I fell against the back of the seat. My muscles trembled under the strain, spine bowing until all I could see was the roof of the car.
Panicked cries burned along my throat, sounding like a terrified, tortured beast. I clawed for the handle as desperation burned in the rear-view mirror, and slowly the red flames in my eyes turned back to blue.
“No,” I roared. “They cannot know. Not now. Not now!”
I sucked in hard breaths as the agony eased. My body pulsed with the call, fingers dancing in the air...until the blue died down once more, and that infernal burn of blood red raged once more.
They can’t know. Not the price. Not the torture.
I closed my eyes, steeled my nerves, and tried for the handle once more. My fingers found purchase, yanking the lever, and the door opened. I shoved, spilling out onto the road.
Flesh singed, hissing, as my palm hit the asphalt. I jerked my hand away, bits of pavement came away, embedded in my hand. The city was on fire. Pooling pits of lava ate away the edges of the city streets. Hell would never stop, never give in...not until it consumed everything.
Just like the fire inside me.
I stumbled forward, feet moving on their own. I staggered as heavy thuds tore through my boots, as well as my chest. Street signs were bowed and twisted, most were gone now, ripped from the ground by the lava. Thick metal was pliable like putty.
I didn’t need street names to guide my way…
Screams echoed inside my head. Blaze Trigg. The name roared through my head. I knew who he was now, who wielded the Cursed whip--who forced my line to heel like we were nothing more than mongrels.
I sucked in hard breaths and kept walking, kept slamming my boots on the pavement. A screech tore through the air. I jerked my gaze right, catching a blur of black against the haze of red, and the sickening stench of curdled blood filled my nose.
Those things weren’t Hounds…nor were they mortals.
They were something else, something new, something Hell-created.
They were Vampire.
The sound came again, this time at my left. Hunger filled me. The kind of hunger I’d fought my entire life not to feel. But here is was, filling every nerve, tearing through every pulse in my chest.
Kill…
Kill them…
The midnight blur drew my gaze right. This time the creature was bolder...and closer. Memories pushed in, flickers of faces...a woman, dressed in khaki green…
Senator, she called inside my head.
But her name escaped me...and her words meant nothing.
There was only the beast now. Only that hunger burning in my veins.
Only that howl of hunger roaring through my soul.
KILL THEM NOW.
The blur raced toward me, nothing more than a shadow.
I lunged at the sight, instinct driving me now, burning away all I was before.
I barely remembered the man, barely remembered the face, or the body. Heat slapped my face as I slammed my boots into the ground, hands open, reaching for the creature as it tore from the corner of a building once more--coming for me.
A roar ripped through my throat. Something inside me tore, like a seal that’d locked away a lifetime of hurt and hunger. And that tether to my line burned with power.
We were more alive than I had ever been.
More powerful.
And weak.
Wide eyes shone in the night as I grasped the creature around its neck. It kicked and thrashed, its shrieks tearing like nails through my head. Its pale fangs were bared for me to see, and the foul scent of blood wafted from its mouth.
Its filthy, infernal mouth.
Not just any blood.
Hellhound blood.
“You killed them?” The words on my lips were not my own.
They were from another. Another, that raged and howled inside my head. Another, that threw faces at me like blades. The other inside my head wanted the memories to cut me...it wanted the memories to hurt.
Still, I turned to that creature in my hands and sucked in the stench of this weak thing. Not a Vampire, but its taint reeked of death. “What are you?”
It opened its mouth, eyes wide with r
age. That was all it was, rage confined in flesh.
“Who made you?”
Its answer was mindless and nothing. I clenched my grip, bringing it closer. It was once male. Once...I lowered my gaze, taking in the green uniform. It was once something.
But not anymore.
It opened its mouth once more, feet kicking as I lifted and its boots left the ground. Thin white fangs were still bloodied from the flesh of my kind...my people...my home. It wanted to hunt and kill. It wanted to destroy.
I wrenched it close, slamming its face against mine as my own fangs pushed through its soft flesh. The sickening tear filled my ears, bones crunched, cavities gave way. I bit until there were no more screams, and there was no more kicking.
I bit until there was nothing but a hole where its face had been.
And I dropped what was left, letting it fall into a heap at my feet.
Savagery filled me. My Hound was so close to the surface.
I lifted my hands and, in Hell’s glow, I saw paws instead of hands. One blink, and they were hands once more. I turned from the foul mess, catching the dark blur as another rage-filled creature tore through the city streets.
This thing thought it belonged here.
Thought it was damned.
It had no idea what damned was.
Power lashed deep, cutting to my soul...growing stronger. I stumbled under the weight. The air grew heavy as the high-pitched sound made me flinch. I winced, and shook my head, palms slamming to cover my ears. Still that sound slipped between my fingers.
Screams followed. Savage shrieks. I glanced down at the mess I’d made. There were more of these creatures. A lot more.
I turned my gaze to the black mountain high above and felt my soul pulse with need. Streaks of black blood were on my arms as I swiped my face. I’d show them what it meant to be part of Hell. I’d show them what it meant to make the Cursed line heel like we were nothing more than a dog.
I sucked in the stench of curdled blood and sulphur and pushed forward. Creatures screamed in the night. One of them came for me, tearing between two burning cars with hands raised.
I tore it apart with my bare hands, leaving pieces behind as I headed through the melting streets. Pain lashed the soles of my feet. I looked down to where the remnants of my black boots flapped and slowed long enough to rip the blistering leather free.
I knew this pain. I lived this pain, and now it was all coming back. Embers burned through my clothes, and singed the flesh underneath. I left behind the heat and the lava as the streets grew steeper.
The harder the climb, the more my Hound filled me. Savage breaths stole my focus. He was back there, in the darkness of my mind, screaming words I couldn’t hear.
It was all about the pull now, all about the lash around my neck.
All about the fire that burned inside me.
A flare of something moved through me. My steps stuttered. My hand rose, fingers pressed to the area above my heart. Hate and heat followed the flare of panic.
A terrifying, guttural snarl ripped through my head, and I jerked my hand away, stumbling. A memory. A haunting, terrifying memory. The man inside my head was screaming, red face flushed, hands curled into fists, pounding on the wall inside my mind. The same wall I’d waited behind for what felt like eternity.
There was something I was missing.
Something that danced at the edges of my mind.
Flashes of memories. The Queen...The Queen on the floor…
And then an unmerciful touch of agony, like a fist around my heart. A fist that refused to let me go. Fear moved in. My own terror was a beast of its own. I stumbled forward in the dark.
The towering mountain pulled me forward like a secret desperate to be told. I shoved one foot in front of the other and climbed. Screams followed. Piercing, haunting screeches. But this was no half-beast thing. This was retribution...infernal and filled with power.
Flashes of outstretched wings cut through my mind. Memories of the man behind the wall inside my head.
Blood red eyes.
White, and red.
Blue and orange.
And black...Jesus...the black.
I swallowed a tremble as a knowing inside me took hold.
Those weren’t just any creatures.
Nor were they just any beasts.
Those were old, and powerful. Older than me.
Those were the Guardians...
Not just one.
But all of them.
Here in Hell’s Gate.
And they wanted blood.
9
Kalliste
Mommy? My voice echoed.
Only this time, there was no innocent lilt in the sound. There was only desperation, and pain. A sound that only came with age. A sound that only came with a life filled with cruelty and betrayal.
You will do what’s expected, Kalliste. My father’s cold words raced through the hallway. I jerked my gaze toward the sound and kept walking that never-ending hallway.
The same hallway I’d walked as a child. The same one where I found her on the throne room floor. But this time would be different. This time, I’d save her...just as I’d save Amaris and Oryn.
Just as I’d save them all.
Because that’s what a Queen does.
I stopped walking, heart pounding, while the words rang inside my head. I glanced down at my hands and saw blood. No. I flicked my fingers, sending droplets flying to splatter against the walls. Not my blood...someone else’s...I jerked my gaze up to the shadows that clung to the walls and the floor in the distance. The shadows that seemed to move the closer I came.
I swiped my hand against the wall, leaving streaks of blood behind, and felt the vibration. Power danced along my arms, and goosebumps followed, making me shudder. I lifted my gaze, taking in the towering stone walls and the marble floor.
Something’s not right.
The thought grew bolder, and with it the power. The floor trembled under my feet, first softly, until a quake raced. And with it came a growl of thunder. One like I’d never heard before.
It’s not right. It’s not...right.
Screams followed, piercing. Terrible screams. Ones filled with rage and hate.
Kill them! Kill THEM ALL!
I spun and stared into the shadows once more. Only, those shadows made me want to pull away...those shadows made me take a step backwards. Darkness reached along the walls and the ceiling, spreading like a disease as it moved on its own, only this time, not slipping further into the distance. But it was coming for me.
I shook my head, heels clattering on the hard floor as I stumbled backwards. Bloody smears were left behind on the wall as I turned and started walking back the way I’d come. My heart thundered, fear was a beast hunkering in the shadows behind me. And it was coming. It was coming for me.
Slow steps picking up pace, I hurried now, wanting to go back where I’d come from. And where was that? The thought lingered. I couldn’t remember. Not the moment before the hallway, or anything.
Shrill shrieks cut through the air and that hum of power grew louder. My hair danced in the air, tickling my cheek as I lunged, heels slamming onto the floor. But there was no floor...there was nothing.
A cry ripped from my lips as I kicked. I jerked my gaze around me as I floated. Shadows consumed the walls around me, and through the murky haze I saw them...my family. Amaris stood there with gun drawn, the muzzle aimed low, while I rose above her, arms outstretched.
“Kalliste!” she screamed. “Kalliste, no!”
Light filtered in, and I was gone from that hallway and the shadows. I drew in a hard breath and opened my eyes. The air hummed. No. I hummed. I was the power.
My chest throbbed, the power around me was vacuum. I was the eye of this storm.
My sister stumbled forward, her face glistening with tears, her eyes open wide. The room was faintly familiar. But I couldn’t think about that now, only hover in the air as the shadows danced around me.
<
br /> Screams echoed outside. But they couldn’t hurt me now.
They couldn’t reach me.
Nothing could.
“Yes!” A male screamed below me.
I looked down into dark, soulless eyes. Eyes that were familiar. Eyes that gripped mine. He held a lash, the tethers golden and powerful. I reached out, fingers splayed, and felt the hum of recognition.
The whip.
My whip.
Six bodies knelt on the ground in front of him. Their eyes blazing with hate and rage. They were still in their human form...barely. I stared down at them, and felt the hum of recognition in my bones.
They were the Cursed. Seven Hellhounds created to protect the royal line. Only six of them were here. One by one, they lifted their gazes until their Hellfire eyes met mine.
“You were dead,” my sister called.
Her muffled words reached my ears. But they went no further. Power had me in its grip, power that lifted me up and stretched out my arms like a sacrifice.
And within that field of energy stood the man below me who held the lash in his hand. The man I hated. The man I wanted to destroy.
But my thoughts were slow and painful, threatening to take me back to that shadowed hallway. Gunshots echoed somewhere outside these walls, and the air hummed with the screams of war.
I felt them, invaders. But the more I lingered in their energy, the more familiar it became. The air throbbed with danger, heartbeats like wings pounding the air. Whoop...whoop...whoop...I gave myself over to that sound, and to the six Cursed kneeling before me.
“Give her back to me,” Amaris wrenched her panicked gaze from me to the man who held the lash.
She lifted the gun once more, the muzzle pointed at the cruel man’s chest. But he only chuckled and shook his head. “You think your bullets can hurt me? You think anything can hurt me now?”
“I’ll take that fucking chance,” she said, and took aim.
“They’re here,” the male beside her growled.
Fire burned in his eyes. Violent and hungry. He looked behind him and then turned to my sister. “They’ve all come…”
