Cult of the Hexad (Afterlife saga Book 6)

by Stephanie Hudson

  I remembered Ragnar saying how he and Sigurd could stop it if they could take the power away from the four Fathers but no one could get close enough. Draven had tried a few times and Rue had been hit and lay on the floor unconscious. Takeshi did what he had pledged to do and was protecting her against the walking dead that Hel, the ruler of the underworld, had brought through with her.

  It was only now that I could see she was only half the image of a beautiful naked woman and the other half was decaying death, with ripped grey flesh and withered bone showing through. Yet despite appearances of frailty, she was kicking Lucius’ ass and seeming to be enjoying herself whilst doing it…well if the evil grin and laughing was anything go by because she certainly wasn’t speaking English!

  No there was only one person they weren’t expecting to stop them and that was a human girl they had helped terrorise for the last eight months that had felt more like a life time! So I crept up to the church just as I had done at the cabin and keeping close to the wall I edged my way round. The four robed figures all had their backs to me and thanks to concentrating on what they were doing they didn’t even see me.

  Not until it was too late.

  I pulled the gun from the waistband of my jeans and from watching probably too many cop shows from my other life I knew to flick the safety off. I then aimed and fired at the closest one. I heard a click and had been expecting a lot more than that!

  “Oh come on!” I whispered wondering why we couldn’t just get a freakin break here! I looked down at the gun wondering what I had done wrong but at least not playing the stupid blonde in this disaster movie by looking down the barrel. I looked back up to see I didn’t have much time as the next beast was making its way through and I don’t think even after finally bringing down the wolf that Jared and his men looked capable for another round.

  No, it was up to me to try one last time because it was now or never. I raised my arm again and this time prayed for violence. Then I pulled the trigger and finally fired my first bullet. One of the Fathers dropped to the floor and the pathway disappeared. I didn’t stop there as I continued to fire all the bullets I had in the gun until all four were on the ground moaning in pain. I knew that if a blade in the head didn’t kill one then a couple of bullets wouldn’t but this was all Draven had needed!

  This was also perfect timing as Hel looked to be getting ready to deliver a few killer blows down at Lucius when her source of power she was tapping into was ripped away from her.

  “My turn, bitch!” Lucius said and kicked up so hard her rotting arm was severed. Draven too finally had the upper hand as the flames from the giant’s sword he had been fighting suddenly extinguished, then turned to stone before crumbling away. The giant bellowed in anger but by this time Draven had flown up in the air and landed on its back slamming both his swords into the creature’s brain. As it fell forward Draven rode the body down until it was on the ground and then calmly jumped off its shoulder.

  Ragnar was already taking charge of the Runes after stepping on one of the Fathers hands, crunching his bones before he willingly would give it up. He threw it to Sigurd who got started on what needed to be done. Draven flew over to me, pulled me into his arms and simply held me for a moment as if needing to be reassured first that I was real and I was alive.

  “Are you alright?” He asked holding me back at arm’s length to look at me.

  “You know, I don’t think I even have a scratch.” I told him looking down at myself. He smiled down at me and said,

  “I have decided that’s the only thing I ever want to hear from you after a battle.” Then I reached up on my toes and whispered in his ear,

  “Trust me, that’s not the only thing you want to hear from me after a battle.” Then I winked at him and did something I never thought I would do and that was I grabbed his man package and rubbed my hand along his length. His reaction was priceless as he groaned after giving me eyes wide with shock.

  “Do you know what I would do to you right now given half the chance?” He growled back and I moaned at how sexy it sounded. That was until someone cleared the voice behind us.

  “Sorry to interrupt my Lord but…”

  “The fuck we are! If you don’t mind we have shit to do here and I think there is shit in there for you two love birds to be getting on with, don’t you think?” Sigurd said after dragging one of the bleeding Fathers off the front of the church before flinging him towards one of Jared’s men, saying,

  “Hold that for me won’t you?”

  “Oh god Draven, the ritual!” I shouted remembering this was what it was all for.

  “Christ alive… Monster dead shit everywhere, barn blazing to the ground, human zombies in the cornfield and all of us watching and you two are about to get it on! And I thought I could get horny at the weirdest of times…well you two can certainly take my crown for that fucked up shit award!” Sigurd carried on talking to himself and I blushed every shade of red!

  “I don’t think you will be needing that now, sweetheart.” Draven said ignoring him and taking the gun off me. He clicked the safety back on and took my hand. I looked over my shoulder at everyone dealing with helping Sigurd and Ragnar contain the mess of defeated creatures, ready to send them back to where they belonged. Vincent ran up to us both and asked,

  “Where would they keep her?” I told him about our basement and pointed to the furthest house at the back of all the others. He nodded and set off in search of my sister.

  “You ready for this?” Draven asked looking down at me and I nodded back up at him. Then he said the sweetest thing at a time like this…

  “Let’s go kick ass together.”

  “Hell, yeah!” I replied and we both pushed open the door only to witness the new horror waiting for us.

  Ari was dead.

  Chapter 41

  Remembering Lost Decisions

  “NO!” I screamed as my eyes first went straight to Ari’s body lay on the altar bleeding into the grooves carved around it. I tried to run to her, not seeing anything else when Draven grabbed me from behind.

  “Ssshh, she’s not dead…do you hear me?” Draven said but I was too far gone to hear his words of comfort. I fought him, needing to get to my sister.

  “Listen to me! Look, she is still bleeding, which means she is still alive!” I finally let what he was telling me sink in and saw what he was talking about. She was still bleeding and if you looked very closely you could just about see she was still breathing.

  “You’re too late! Our Lord comes this night!” My Uncle shouted raising his hands up to the ceiling.

  “We need to do something.” I told Draven but he was looking along the floor to see there was some kind of white line.

  “Is that salt?” I asked in confusion.

  “We can’t cross over.” He told me still looking for a way.

  “Can’t we just…” I went to kick it with my foot to break the line when Draven shouted,

  “NO!” And grabbed me back before I could touch it.

  “It won’t recognise you as human.” He told me and I looked up at him frowning.

  “It won’t let anything from Hell to pass.”

  “Well then I should be able…” Draven started to shake his head so that sentence tailed off. From the look on his face now wasn’t the best place for confessions, although we were in a church!

  “We have been together.” I frowned again and said,

  “Yeah but just because we have been around each other shouldn’t mean…” Draven sighed, pulled me to him and decided to clear this up in the only way he knew how in a situation where time was of the essence,

  “I have come inside of you, many times now.”

  “Oh…right, super demon seed, got ya! So how do we get past this?” I said ignoring when he rolled his eyes at my ‘super demon seed’ comment. Before he could answer me someone else decided to join the party. Draven and I both spoke a name at the same time, only the names didn’t match up,

  “Rory
?!”

  “Aurora!” Okay, so Draven definitely hissed this name. He looked to me and said,

  “You know her?”

  “Yeah, she’s my cousin or at least I thought she was. Now I have no clue what she is, other than a total bitch with a baby on the way!” Draven growled turning back to face her and I could definitely tell these two had history. But wait, did he say,

  “That’s the Aurora chick you have been telling me about, the one who double crossed you?”

  “Yes and she also left you for dead in a prison in Hell.” He told me, not taking his glaring eyes off her.

  “Figures…she was always a bitch to me in here too.” I said taking it all very well I thought…well that was of course until I got my hands around her scrawny swan like neck!

  “It will hold?” She asked my uncle, referring to the salt line that was keeping us out.

  “Yes, it has been purified in holy water before being blessed by our seer.”

  “Is there any way to stop it?” I whispered side on to Draven.

  “In the time we have…I just don’t know.” I looked around just like he did hoping that answer would be staring us in the face. Come on think Katie! What would Ari do? I looked towards her and gasped when I saw she was looking right at me. She was mouthing something to me but I couldn’t make it out. Then I saw her painfully lift her bloody hand just a fraction and point towards the back of the room. I saw there was nothing there but stacks of old pews and a dusty piano that was never allowed to be used, no matter how many times Ari begged with our mother. Ari loved playing…

  “Oh god. That’s it.” I said.

  “What? Wait Keira what are you…” He never got to finish as I picked up one of the tall church candles and chanted the song I had heard my sister singing in her dream…that’s what I needed to see that night. That’s what she was trying to tell me!

  ‘It is not this salt I wish to burn,

  It is my lover's heart to turn;

  That may neither rest nor happy be,

  Until he comes and speaks to me.’

  “We have to burn it!” I said and used the candle to set it alight. I jerked back when it started to sizzle and burn, crackling like gunpowder all the way along. Draven gave me a look as if say, ‘how did you do that?’ but instead just took my hand and we both stepped over.

  “You’re both too late, the ritual has begun, our Lord will be born!” Draven growled ignoring my uncle but looking down towards Aurora’s belly.

  “Don’t make another step or he’s dead!” My mother’s voice echoed around the room as she stepped from behind a large red curtain that was hung up, concealing the doorway behind the altar. With her she was dragging in the poor lad I saw that day in the barn bringing in the X frame when I was hiding in the loft space.

  “John?” I spoke his name and he looked towards me but the confusion on his face was clear to see, especially when my pretend mother was holding a blade to his neck.

  “Celina!” Draven shouted her name and what must have been out of habit, she flinched.

  “You’re too late, it has begun.” I looked to Draven and said,

  “They really need to get a new line, I’m getting bored.” Aurora snarled at me and I gave her the finger.

  “Let them go or else!” I demanded and Celina started laughing at me. I shrugged my shoulders when Draven looked down at me and I said,

  “What, you’re scary enough, I thought I would give it go.” The next thing Aurora doubled over and started screaming,

  “It has begun! Our Master comes!”

  “Who is she talking about?” I asked but Draven took a step towards her and Celina dug the knife further into John’s neck at the same time Ari screamed out.

  “Ari!” I also took a step towards her and my Uncle shouted,

  “Stay back or they both die!” Draven held out an arm to stop me and snarled,

  “You don’t have the power to do this, or the right vessel, Cronus’ reincarnated soul will never survive the crossing!” This is when the image of my mother started to change. I gasped when she lifted up her hand over herself and what was left behind it was a beautiful red headed woman with an evil grin.

  “You have no idea how long we have planned this. Even Sammael had no clue as to the depths of our plan right under his nose. He was always going to fail but we needed you in Hell!”

  “Enough Celina!” Aurora snapped obviously not wanting to her to divulge their plans too much.

  “And what does it matter now, it cannot be stopped Eos! Our Uncle comes to claim back what was taken from him!”

  “Your uncle?! But that means…” Draven was piecing it together and Celina started laughing,

  “You are such a foolish King and have little clue what happens right under your nose! I am Selene, daughter to the mighty Titan Hyperion who was imprisoned in Tartarus and who Cronus will release with his rebirth!” Celina or Selene told us with pride but Aurora shouted,

  “Silence sister!” As she doubled over again.

  “It is near, get him ready!” My uncle interrupted and all the pieces started to fit together for Draven.

  “I have to stop this… I have no choice, Katie.” Draven told me and I knew what he was asking of me.

  “No! You can’t…you…” I was cut off when Ari screamed out again.

  “I have to kill the boy!” I frowned and after taking a deep breath he told me,

  “He’s RJ’s brother Jack and he is also your friend.” I inhaled sharply at hearing this and looked to him trying to dig deep and find those memories. I didn’t find them but what I did find was a good soul looking back at me through those eyes. I just couldn’t do it and I couldn’t let Draven,

  “There must be another way!” Draven looked around and said,

  “Cover your head.” I did as I was told and just as Aurora screamed for the last time, Draven unleashed his power. He opened up his arms and roared. A wave of energy blew out all the glass around the church but this move backfired. Celina held out her hand and drew in some of the power for herself and from the look of things this was something Draven didn’t know she could do.

  “My turn!” She said and then fired it back out at Draven and I, only this time it seemed more concentrated than what Draven was trying to attempt.

  “Look out!” Draven said pushing me off to the side so I wasn’t hit.

  “Now Selene!” Aurora screamed bending double again and crying out just like someone in labour.

  “Do it, drain her Galizur!” Aurora’s sister then shouted to my Uncle and before he could do anything to Ari I ran at him. Unfortunately, Selene saw me coming and threw some of Draven’s stolen power my way, knocking me off my feet. My Uncle took one of chalices that Ari’s blood was dripping into and first drank some himself and then walked over to Aurora who drank from the same cup.

  “Give me that!” Selene said then grabbed Jack by the hair and forced him too to drink. Then, at the sound of Draven’s wrath, she dropped the cup, slopping Ari’s blood down Jack, when his furious roar was powerful enough that the walls began to crack.

  “Deal with him!” My Uncle ordered and Selene threw Jack by the hair over to her sister. He hit the ground with a thud and Aurora forced her bent body over to him.

  “Give me the blade!” Aurora snapped pointing to the one she couldn’t reach lying on the pulpit next to my Uncle. He grabbed it and I knew I had to stop them. Draven was busy fighting Selene and I could tell he was doing so in a calculated way so as not to slip up again and give her any more extra power to work with. I also noticed the way he drew her even further away from me, so that he could keep me protected.

  “Begin the transfer!” Aurora snapped obviously being the one in control here. My Uncle nodded and began chanting over Ari, doing something to her that caused her back to start to arch off the altar.

  “No!” I shouted looking around for something to use. I ended up picking up a tall candle stick and I walked up to him and said,

  “Hey Uncl
e, why don’t you preach about this!” He turned around just at the right time as I swung the heavy brass stick around, connecting with his face. I think if you could have slowed down time you would have seen the moment his lower jaw dislocated from the rest of his skull. Unfortunately, he didn’t sack it to the ground as I had hoped, so just before he could seek his revenge I went to grab Ari off the altar. I was finally just within reach of her when once more I went hurtling backwards, my body slamming into the line of pews laid out ready for service.

  I looked up only to see I had underestimated my Uncle and after quickly snapping his jaw back in place he carried on sucking the life out of Ari. At the same time the whole place was suddenly filled with the deafening sounds of agony coming from Jack, pleading for his life. I looked over to see Aurora was bent over him carving something into his chest with the blade.

  “We are running out of time…transfer it!” Aurora screamed at my Uncle who had his hands hovering over my sister. A second later Selene’s body came crashing down the centre aisle like a human bowling ball and smashed into the altar enough to leave a back shaped indent. I looked back to Draven to see him panting in anger, no doubt finding it difficult to rein in his powers and not use them against her. I stood up and ran to him.

  “Are you alright?” He said lifting my chin and wiping the line of blood he saw from the cut I knew was there.

  “I’m fine but we need to stop this.”

  “You’re too late!” Aurora said picking Jack up by his hair and holding the blade to his neck.

  “Now Galizur! TRANSFER IT NOW!” Selene thundered the order and he held out his hands towards Aurora’s belly letting streams of light fire from his palms. Aurora could barely keep on her feet and the force knocked her back against the wall where she took Jack with her. Then she groped around for the red curtain and yanked it down as soon as she felt it, ripping it from its hoops.

  It quickly revealed another set of Runes all painted on a wooden door in blood and each of the symbols was positioned around a giant Pentagram.