by K.N. Lee
The Oni walked across the room whilst holding me in the air. My back slammed against one of the walls and he leaned into my face, mouth wide. He laughed and snapped at my face.
I made no face, or attempt to free myself, nor did I feel any sort of fear. I only felt the need to consume. “You’ve made your choice then.”
The Oni licked the side of my face and for a moment, I felt the pain of the burn, like fire, then it quickly left me. The demon leaned in and whispered, "You're not strong enough to withstand the storm."
Slowly my gaze lifted to his and I smirked. "No, I am the storm." In a quickness the Oni never saw coming, my hands grasped his face and squeezed. I then screamed. I screamed for Kai. Screamed for Felix. Screamed for our love and our family. I latched onto Tabby and screamed as loud as I could but it wasn’t enough.
“Consume her!”
The voice was loud but came from a distance.
“Consume her!”
It came again. Tabby began to pull away but she would not win. I began to inhale and my scream became that much louder.
“Consume her!”
The voice came again and this time, I saw them; the hybrid and his son. Alex grasped one arm of the Oni, Jonathan the other. They held the Oni in place as I pulled on Tabby.
Re-focusing my energy on her, I knew, without a doubt, she was going to die. I would not stop until Kai was safe. I inhaled harder, my scream growing louder. Glasses broke and the walls shook.
Alex and Jonathan dropped to their knees. One of them yelled out.
“Dad! Get out of here!”
Alex glanced to his son and shook his head. “We’re part demon. She can’t hurt us…too much.”
Jonathan looked to me then closed his eyes.
The demon shook in my grasp and a light began to erupt from his mouth. This was it. Tabby was going to be exorcised!
With one final hard inhale, she was ripped from his body. I collapsed and Kai’s body fell to the ground, unconscious, Alex and Jonathan behind him. No longer was Kai the demon, now he was only the man. My eyes never left what was left of Tabby’s soul.
She floated in the air and then smirked. “You cannot best me, bitch,” her voice was hallow as she spoke.
I smiled and got to my feet. My body wobbled slightly, but I held my own. “I don’t have to. You’re dead.” Her eyes widened as I opened my mouth once more. And screamed.
Tabby’s soul screamed. Light erupted from her mouth, eyes, ears, fingertips, then she shattered into thousands of pieces. Releasing my magic, the pieces left of Tabby rushed toward me and absorbed into my mouth, setting my body aglow. My entire body glowed as if my soul called upon the sun for its light source.
Then it was over. The room grew silent and I fell to the ground. The pain in my leg erupted and just before the blackness set in, Kai drew me into his arms and held me close.
“I love you,” he whispered. Then, blackness.
Chapter 16
ANGELICA
A few days had passed since we released Kai from Tabby’s grip. Matilda stopped by Kai’s and checked in on him, offering him herbs to release any remnants of the possession.
“What about her?” Kai asked her and glanced over to me. I sat in the corner of the room and had my good leg pulled to my chest, my casted one on the table in front of me. I stared off into the distance, looking at everything, seeing nothing.
“She will be fine in a few days’ time. Here, give her this. It is a tea that will help relax her and any anxiety she may feel. It will also help with her dreams. I think she’ll need it for a while.”
“Thank you for everything,” Felix offered.
Then Matilda left.
“I want to take a shower,” I whispered.
“I’ll help you inside,” Felix offered. I shook my head no.
“I can do it myself. Thanks.” Getting to my feet, I grabbed my crutches. My sides had begun to rub raw from the wooden supports. Glancing over to my men, they both stared at me, looking lost. Hell, I felt lost. I have never taken a life before. Technically, Tabby was already dead, but I killed her soul. She would never come back, never be re-born, never…anything.
Her soul would reside in Hell. I couldn’t think of a better place for that bitch. I just felt as if something was holding me back. There was a blackness placed upon my heart as soon as I absorbed her.
Lisa assured me the feeling would pass. Jonathan promised me that it, like any other painful memory, would come to pass.
Right now? I called bullshit.
Turning on the shower, I sat upon the closed toilet lid and waited for the water to warm. As steam began to build, I pulled my dress over my head. Dresses worked for me being in a cast. Wearing leggings, shorts or jeans? Nope.
I wrapped my casted leg in plastic and hobbled into the shower. The hot water singed my skin and for a moment, the pain reminded me that I was still alive; that I survived.
Lowering my head, the water ran over my scalp and down my back. My body suddenly felt heavy. My eyes burned and I was not aware if it were tears stinging me, or the hot water. Then I sobbed. Leaning against the back of the shower wall, I carefully lowered myself into a sitting position. I covered my face with my hands and cried.
Startled, I looked up as a hand touched me. Felix had opened the shower door and squatted next to me. He tilted his head, his hazel eyes with brown flecks staring into my own. His hand reached in and cupped my face.
“You are the bravest person I know,” he whispered.
I hiccupped and cried harder. Felix removed his clothes. I reached up like an infant as he climbed into the shower beside me. He pulled me into his arms and I curled into him.
“Why do I feel as if a part of me has died?” I asked. I did not expect an answer, but this was the best I could say under the circumstances.
A warmth captured my backside and when I glanced around, Kai had climbed in. I sobbed even harder and turned immediately into his embrace.
“I’m so sorry, Kai, I’m so sorry!”
“Baby,” he whispered and held me close to his chest. “Why? Why are you sorry?”
“I could have killed you!”
“Impossible,” he told me.
“Did Alex and Jonathan tell you that you were in control the entire time?” Felix asked.
“How would they know?”
“Jonathan said he was able to tell, based on a similar experience he had been through,” Felix whispered. “Kai was never in any danger from you.”
“Only that whore witch,” Kai told me. “I promise. You never once hurt me. Your magic, I never felt it.”
I sat up and looked into his eyes, his rich brown eyes. “But you felt something, didn’t you?”
He nodded. “Only from the witch. It was as if she had bound me, tossed me in a dark room and locked the door. I managed to escape once to warn you—”
I cut him off. “I remember!”
He nodded. “But she pushed me back in. As soon as she found my inner demon, it was all over. I knew, without a doubt, I was going to die. She was going to kill my soul and take over.”
“Could she have done that?” Felix asked.
“I think so,” Kai answered. “It certainly felt that way. There’s something more.”
My brows raised in question.
“Alex told us that you…well, you changed.”
“Me?” Kai nodded. I looked to Felix who also nodded yes. Glancing back to Kai, I asked, “How did I change?”
“Well? You grew…hell, I don’t know how to explain this.” He rubbed his hand through his wet hair, then sighed. “You grew old. Like ancient. Your eyes were silver and your teeth, they became sharp, something similar to a shark’s. And…you floated in the air.”
My eyes widened and I stopped breathing. I blinked once. Twice. “Well, that has never happened before.”
“Because you’ve never used the banshee call,” he whispered and kissed my forehead.
I shook my head and rested it against his c
hest. I could hear his heart. This was a lot to take in. I knew I would change, but I had no idea it would be like this. His heartbeat soothed me. The tears continued though. I was a wreck. My two men, my loves, would get us through this. We would come out together on top. This much I knew. Now, it was only a matter of time.
They say time heals all wounds. Well, I was ready to get a jump start on it and get those events behind us.
A part of me wanted Felix for a long time. Crush, infatuation, call it what you will. I loved that man.
Then there was Kai. He came in like a storm to be reckoned with. He made me smile and brought out a ray of sunshine on the cloudiest of days. Demon or not, I was in.
Together, our trio, our symphony, there was no stopping us. Now, or ever.
Epilogue
ANGELICA
Winter had arrived. Everything settled in our lives. The Oni still lived inside of Kai, but it did not control him as it once had. Felix continued to run with his pack during the turn of the full moon. He recently challenged the Beta of the pack for rank, and won.
“I want to protect all of my families, not just the pack,” he informed us.
I had my cast removed and took up martial arts; Tae Kwon Do specifically. My leg healed remarkably well.
Felix and Kai helped me move into their place. It was amazing having both of them with me, especially at night. I loved falling asleep in both of their arms. If I had any reservations on falling in love with two men at once, I was over that now. I had fallen in love with both of them.
I heard the door open and close, then heard Kai and Felix talking. Using the remote to the television, I unmuted the music, filling the house with rock.
Stepping out of the bedroom, I placed one arm up high and rested my weight against it, the other on my hip. I decided to buy something new for today. I wore a red leather underbust corset with no panties and over-the-knee-boots. I knew I was hot.
Felix’s brows rose and Kai’s mouth dropped open.
“Seems someone had a good day,” Felix told me.
“My gods,” Kai whispered.
“Welcome home, boys. Who’s ready to have some fun?” I winked at Kai, then blew a kiss to Felix.
It did not take long for their feet to begin moving across the floor. Kai took me from the front and kissed me, hard. His hands upon my hips, he opened my mouth with his tongue. Felix came up behind me, his hands in my hair. He pulled my head to the side and nibbled on my neck while his free hand grasped one of my breasts.
Kai dropped his head down to my other breast and sucked on my nipple, then scraped his teeth across the flesh.
I gasped and my head rolled back. Kai pulled one of my legs up over his shoulders as he sat on his knees, then buried his face in my pussy.
“Oh gods,” I whispered and held onto his shoulders.
Felix took my hands and gently pulled me to the floor; Kai never released me as I laid down. His arms locked around my thighs and he growled against my sex. My first orgasm erupted through my body, and I knew this was only the beginning of our night.
Kai sat back on his knees and took a long, slow wipe across his face. He grinned and waggled his brows.
“Mmm, I want you in my mouth, I want to taste you,” I told him. He sat back on his elbows and moved his legs apart.
“Come here, baby,” he whispered. Crawling toward him, I felt Felix moving in behind me. Grasping Kai’s erection, I stroked the length, then licked the head. He groaned and relaxed his head back. I took him fully in my mouth and he gasped.
Felix lined up the head of his cock behind me and pushed. His fingers gripped my hips as he thrust in and out of me. Hard and fast, then slow and sensual. My body moved with his own. Kai pulled my hair to the top of my head and held it. Looking up, I caught his gaze and he groaned. I felt his cock twitch.
“Baby, I’m going to cum,” he growled.
I sucked even harder. I wanted him, in my mouth, on me, in me, everywhere. And he came. It was warm and I swallowed him down; all of him. Licking his head once more, I released him and looked back at Felix.
“Lay down, baby. I’m getting on top. And you,” I shifted my gaze to Kai, “I want you in my ass.”
I doubt Kai ever lost any part of his erection after he came. He left the room long enough to grab the lube, then came back. The coolness of the liquid poured down my cheeks and legs, then I felt him press against me.
When he pushed, he glided in gently. I could feel his cock rubbing next to Felix’s. Oh. My. Gods. The sensation of one pushing in while the other pulled out…I often wondered why I never did it before now. I began to have another orgasm. Kai gripped my hair and pulled while Felix had my breasts in his hands.
My men, my two lovers, were now, and would be forevermore, my life.
What felt like hours later, we cleaned up after sex and laid in bed. Felix on his back, I rested my head on his shoulder, and Kai spooned my backside.
“I love you,” I whispered.
They both whispered, “I love you, too,” back to me. No one questioned who it was to, because we all knew. This was our life, our symphony, our power.
Pisces
D.N. Leo
Prologue
The beginning of time.
He picked up a ball of dirt hardened by time, space, and dimensional shifting and nursed it in his hands. This piece of land was a haven for him, a place where he could harvest the material to make his keys.
People called him Keymaster.
He didn't make just any keys. His keys unlocked sources of energy and power that all creatures in every world would kill for. He considered himself an artist in the key-making business.
He had come from nothing. He didn’t know how he was created. He hadn’t had a shape, let alone a name. He couldn’t remember exactly when what he did had become his name, but he was more than happy to accept the name given to him by his clients.
As for his form, he had gone through some trial and error before settling on his now human shape.
He was a collection of energy. His creator—whom he didn’t know—had made him for a purpose. When he’d grown strong and had taken control of his own actions, his creator was no longer important to him, so he had terminated him. It had probably been too soon to kill his master—he hadn't yet had a chance to discover his purpose, what he had been created for.
He’d wandered around the multiverse in search of a purpose and had taken many shapes and forms in many worlds. But in the material world, the human shape had appealed to him most, so that was the shape he adopted. He was attracted to the everchanging skin tone of the Eudaizians, but he did not like their minds. Some might look at them as innocent, but to him, they were simply too naive.
He had the mind of the underworld. Not only did he like it, he planned to keep his mind sharp for eternity.
The ball of dirt in his palms stared up at him. He transfused some energy into it. It looked happy, he thought. He had made several keys over the years, but this one was the most special. He chuckled at that thought. He’d thought the same thing when he made his second key.
“Damn!” He cursed when the ball melted and exploded in his palms.
He blew gently at the burns on his palms, and soon the skin returned to its usual light blue tone. Right now, that was his favorite skin color. In a few hundred years, when he was bored with this color, he might consider changing to another.
“Too much mercury,” he muttered to himself, shaking his head to clear his mind. This experimental key was a bad idea. He should return to his usual method of key making and look for the main ingredient—precious stone.
Hunger pains clawed at his stomach. Looking around him, he noticed a slight movement in a small shrub nearby. He sniffed the air and smelled the faint scent of flesh and blood.
“I'm stronger than you think,” he growled. He hadn’t killed his creator for no reason. He’d been a good student—until his creator told him he was weak and couldn’t resist the temptation to kill.
> He made powerful keys and had saved thousands of creatures. He didn’t see the harm in killing just a handful of them. The multiverse would be less crowded for it.
He hadn’t asked to be created. Thus, if he killed, that was the responsibility of his creator. He thirsted for blood, and he needed to kill…now.
He strode toward the little bush, pushing away the weeds and tall grass.
In front of him, sitting on a soft nest of wild daisies and feathers and smiling up at him, was a baby angel. Her little angel wings were as tiny as the hand-fans he saw the goddesses at the Babylonian court use for no apparent purpose other than decoration.
“Aaa brbrb.”
The baby curved her lips and cooed, then made other noises that made no sense to him. She flapped her fancy little wings.
“You know I'm a predator, and I'm hungry, right?”
“Arrhh,” said the baby.
“If you want to fly, you’ll have to flap your wings harder than that. And if you want to communicate, you’ll have to use a different language. I don't speak baby…if that's what it is.”
The angel made more cheerful cooing noises and clapped her little hands.
He was about to leave but then saw what he had been seeking for a very long time. He shook his head and couldn't believe his eyes. Just behind the baby angel, a colorful piece of rock blinked up at him.
“What have we here?” he muttered. He reached over the baby and grabbed the rock, trying to pull it up from the ground. It was heavier than he’d thought. He shifted and looked at the baby angel.
“I’m going to have to move you aside for a bit. I need that rock, and you’re right in my way.”
“Braaa.”
“I have no idea what that means, but I’ll take it as a yes.” He lifted the angel gingerly out of the way and kicked up some grass and wildflowers to make a soft surface before placing her on the ground behind him.
