by Ella Summers
“It matters to me. These demons hurt you. They used you. And they kept you away from your family.”
“Going after them won’t change what has already happened, Naomi.”
He was right. It wouldn’t change what had happened to Dad, but maybe she could prevent the demons from hurting others. The problem was, after two months of nonstop battles, her magic was being held together by a few frayed strands right now. She had neither the time nor the strength to dive into the spirit realm and track down every demon who had ever hurt Dad.
She could barely fight a demon when she was at full strength, let alone when her magic was a weak trickle. Even so, she felt compelled to fix something right now, to right some wrong—whether on earth or in the spirit realm didn’t matter much. Fixing something would calm her. It would make her feel like there was sense to the world, that she could make a difference. It would remind her that not all was lost.
“You’re getting that look again,” Makani told her.
“Which one?” She smiled demurely. “My sweet and innocent look?”
“Sweet and innocent with a compound bow that shoots 350fps.”
“You forgot lightweight. And adorable.”
“You? Or the bow?”
“Both.”
“Naomi, you’ve spent the past two months fighting almost nonstop, hunting down demons, expelling them from their hosts’ bodies, and sending them back to hell. You’re not in any condition to go fight a random demon, rescue hostages, or create everlasting world peace right now. You need to rest before you succumb to delusions of grandeur.”
“Maybe you’re right,” she sighed.
“Repeat those words a thousand times, and you might actually believe them.”
Naomi flashed him a smirk. “Nice try, Your Majesty.”
“Your Majesty?” Dad asked.
“Makani is a prince,” Naomi told him.
Well, he had been a prince. His kingdom no longer existed in this century. Still, once a prince, always a prince.
“Didn’t he tell you he was a prince?” Naomi asked Dad.
“No. We were too busy escaping and running for our lives to engage in smalltalk,” he replied, filling his bowl with strawberries. “Tell me about your current demon problem and how I can help.”
“How much do you remember about the time after you returned to earth?” Naomi asked him.
“I remember my body being used as a demon-loaded suitcase, if that’s what you mean.”
“We tracked down and expelled most of the demons. Only two remain.”
“My old friends, Paladin and Paragon. The princes of hell,” Dad said quietly. “I felt them inside of me with the others, directing them.”
“Paladin and Paragon are the demons who plotted with Darksire and Firestorm to use the demon Septimus. To use us,” Naomi realized. “They engineered this entire situation. And we have no idea where they are or what their endgame is.”
“To take over the world,” Dad suggested.
The old gold standard demon formula.
“Yeah, there is that,” she agreed. “But how will they achieve their aim? How do Firestorm and Darksire play into this plan? And where are the demons now? It’s been two months with no sign of either Paladin or Paragon. They are apparently behind this all, but there’s not been even a single hint of their presence. No possessions. No demon marks appearing on their victims. Nothing.”
“Powerful supernaturals could hold the demons indefinitely. And cause a hell of a lot of destruction,” her father said. “Do not underestimate the princes of hell, Naomi. They are not like most demons. They are far more powerful and, worse yet, patient.” His hands curled into fists. He looked ready to go out and fight.
“This is not your fight, Dad,” Naomi told him. “It’s mine. You were stuck in hell for years. Demons drained your magic. They used you as a carrier. You need to concentrate on getting better. You need to rest.”
“I slept for two months.”
“You might be awake now, but you are still recovering.”
“I still have some fight left in me, Naomi.”
“Then fight here,” she said. “Protect Fairy Island from the demons. Protect our family.”
“The island’s magic will keep out the demons.”
“Evil is cunning,” she countered. “It has a way of finding its way inside uninvited. Most of the people here on Fairy Island do not know how to fight. They will need you to protect them.”
“You are very stubborn,” Dad grumbled.
“As Mom said, I take after you.”
He chuckled.
“Is there any way to make the demons show themselves?” Naomi asked him.
“Bombard the host with spirit magic.”
“That’s what I’ve been doing. It sucks.”
He offered her a sympathetic smile. “I know, but unless Paladin and Paragon want to flaunt their evil intentions for the world to see, that spell is the only way.”
“Great.”
“The demons would have taken hosts close to them when they all streamed out of me. There are few supernaturals who could hold them in indefinitely without their body decaying.”
“I already checked everyone who was close to you and powerful enough to be suitable hosts when the demons escaped,” she told him. “Unless a demon can possess a ghost?”
“No, the most a demon can do is control a ghost’s movements. It cannot use its body as a host because a ghost has no body to possess, at least not in the earthly sense.”
Well, there went that theory. This demon hunt had more dead ends than a labyrinth.
“You can bet the demons didn’t leave anything to chance,” Dad said.
“Meaning?”
“They would have planned for their hosts to be right there for them when they burst out of me. And which two extremely powerful supernaturals were indeed right there when the demons got loose?”
“Only the most powerful Dragon Born mage ever born and the most powerful fairy ever to walk the earth,” Makani said.
“Firestorm and Darksire,” Naomi gasped.
Makani shook his head. “But neither would agree to play host to a demon.”
“Maybe it wasn’t part of the deal,” said Naomi. “After all, since when has a demon ever kept its word?”
“They are the most likely picks to be the demons’ hosts,” Makani agreed.
“Find Firestorm and Darksire, and you find the demons,” Dad said. “Find them, and you are one step closer to ending this.”
10
A Storm of Mirrors
Just find Firestorm and Darksire. If only it were that simple. Neither Firestorm nor Darksire had been spotted since they’d escaped Monster Lake. Of course, everyone had been too busy hunting demons to look for them…
Naomi slept away the day in her old room on Fairy Island, recharging her magic for the battle to come as the other enforcers searched for Firestorm and Darksire. She woke up as the sun was setting. The ghosts Chastity and Valor hovered over her bed, their shimmering silver bodies translucent. Ghosts wielded many magics, including the power to pop between realms, the ability to make their bodies invisible, and the capacity to pass through solid objects. Chastity and Valor were engaging the third skill right now.
“Where’s the party?” Naomi said sleepily, blinking up at the ghosts.
“The party is at the fortress of Firestorm and Darksire,” replied Valor.
“That was fast work.”
“Valor looked through the eyes of some kooky ghost named Yarran who was trailing after Firestorm like a lost puppy,” Chastity said.
Well, everyone had a fan club, even psychopaths like Firestorm. Though if this was the Yarran that Naomi remembered, death hadn’t been kind to him. On a good day, the ghost barely remembered his own name.
Naomi climbed out of bed. Chastity’s brows lifted when she spotted the lacy red panties and matching camisole.
“It’s not nice to stare,” Valor told his wife.
“I’m taking notes for our future mutual enjoyment,” Chastity said. “Naomi is a vixen. Did I tell you about the time I saw her and Makani have sex in hell?”
Valor sighed. “Too many times.”
Chastity looked at Naomi, her gaze genuinely apologetic. “He doesn’t mean that.”
As though Naomi was supposed to be offended that Valor might not like to hear about her and Makani getting it on.
“He likes hearing about it,” Chastity assured her. “Really.”
“Chastity, it is possible to give too much information,” Naomi sighed.
“Not for girls like us.”
Girls like them? A sixteenth century ghost bride and a twenty-first century Spirit Warrior?
“No, not for girls like us. But others can’t handle our awesomeness in all its glory.” Naomi winked.
“Oh, right.” Chastity winked back. “I get it.” She giggled.
Valor was making a valiant effort to keep his face blank.
Naomi squeezed into a pair of stretchy pants that would allow her to move and fight. She pulled on a tank top and a leather jacket over that. Now dressed to kick ass, Naomi walked to the bedroom door. When she pulled it open, she found Makani standing on the other side, his hand lifted to turn the knob. His gaze shifted to the ghosts standing right behind her.
“The ghosts have caught you up to speed?” he asked.
“They say we’ve found Darksire and Firestorm.”
“They’re in an old building called Castle Soulbreaker.”
“The city’s most charming magic estate,” Naomi commented.
“You know it?”
“Yeah, it’s on Haunted Loop. It was once the west coast home of a prominent mage dynasty’s patriarch. I forgot which one. Fifty years ago, he died from mysterious causes, as many did on the Haunted Loop. And the house has sat abandoned ever since.”
“The family was scared by tales of ghosts,” Makani said, his mouth twisting into a disapproving frown.
“Not everyone is a badass, Your Majesty.” Naomi smirked at him. “How many guards do Darksire and Firestorm have standing watch at the castle?”
“There are some beasts and soldiers patrolling the grounds,” he said. “But they aren’t the problem.”
“Oh?”
“The castle is protected by a magic barrier,” he told her.
“From the aggravated look on your face, I take it you were unable to break that barrier.”
“Alex, Sera, and I—hitting it with all the magic-breaking power we collectively possess—were unable to break it. Kai shifted into a dragon and tried to stomp on it. He used his dragon body as a battering ram to smash it. Neither had any effect.”
That must have really annoyed Kai. He was of the opinion that he could smash his way through any obstacle.
“Logan tried to find a hole in the barrier, some weakness, some place we could break through,” Makani continued. “There is none. The spell is perfectly cast, intricately woven. I’ve never seen a more flawless spell, nor one backed by so much raw power.”
“A spell backed by the combined power of Firestorm, Darksire, and two demon princes of hell.”
“It does seem more and more likely that the demons have possessed them,” he agreed.
“You want us to get into the castle through the spirit realm,” she guessed.
“That’s the plan. We’re going to scout ahead. If we find a way into the castle from one of hell’s circles, we’ll go back to earth and bring the rest of the team.”
“And then the real fun begins.”
“By some definition of ‘fun’.” Makani had his down-to-business battle face on. “Are you ready to go?”
“By some definition of ‘ready’,” she countered with a wry smile.
Makani stepped into her room, trailed closely by his three commandos, who’d apparently arrived on the island while she was sleeping. He was adamant that they were warriors, not commandos, but ‘hell’s commandos’ sounded like too cool of a nickname to go to waste.
Emma was first in line, a mage with a long ponytail and an even longer katana. Troy, an elf with spiky silver hair, came next, moving with the smooth spryness of a cat on the prowl. The muscular vampire Bruce brought up the rear. They were each wearing a suit of magic-proof armor from Drachenburg Industries. Though it was nearly as thin as normal street clothes, the material completely repelled most basic spells and significantly mitigated the effects of even the most vicious curses.
Makani’s commandos had recovered shortly after they’d returned to earth—and they’d been helping in the enforcers’ demon hunt ever since. In between tracking down the demons on earth, they dove into the spirit realm with Naomi and Makani, raising an army there to take out the warlords’ bands in the third circle of hell. Riley was helping them store spells in artifacts so they had magic in the spirit realm. That alone had given them a tremendous advantage.
“Hey, Sleeping Beauty,” Bruce said, winking at Naomi. He sort of had the hots for her.
“Hey, Fangs,” she countered. “How are you feeling?”
He pounded his fist against the palm of his open hand. “Ready to sink my teeth into something big.”
“You can’t get much bigger than fighting Darksire the Destroyer and the Fire Monster,” said Troy.
“I was thinking about Firestorm’s jugular.”
“Of course you were.” Troy rolled his eyes. “Vampires. When you’re not thinking with your fangs, you’re thinking with your—”
“Stay on target, boys,” Emma chided them.
“Oh, no, please don’t,” Chastity said, bobbing up and down with excitement. “These deviations are so delightful.”
Bruce’s chest rattled like a train tunnel. His shoulders shook violently.
“What is it?” Emma demanded.
“If you’re going to be sick, go over there.” Troy pointed across the room. “I just got these new boots. I don’t need you throwing up all over them.”
“I was just marveling at the irony of an elf lecturing me about violence and sex,” Bruce chuckled.
“Well, marvel on your own time,” Emma snapped. “Our prince requires our assistance.”
Troy and Bruce looked at Makani, all humor washed from their faces. They might have been clowns on occasion, but their loyalty was unwavering. Chastity’s grin faded. She looked like she’d just been told that her favorite flavor of ice cream had been discontinued.
“Let’s end this,” Naomi said, opening a passage into the first circle of hell.
From there, they caught a spirit magic stream across the rippling waves, jumping out where the first circle’s San Francisco overlapped Haunted Loop. It wasn’t a coincidence that ghosts flocked to earth at this spot. It lay at the intersection of many magic streams.
But here in the first circle, Haunted Loop wasn’t a street of haunted houses. It was a street of ruins—and the big ass black castle jutting up from those ruins. The dark castle looked distorted, and not in the usual hellish flavor. Hell was a decayed version of the earth. The deeper you went, the more decayed, the more ruined, hell became.
This castle was different. It wasn’t decaying. It simply was not solid, at least not entirely. Sparkling dark particles, constantly in flux, formed its towers and turrets. Its walls flickered with dark reflections. The particles of black magic swirled in spirals around and up the castle, disappearing into the storm cloud looming overhead.
Naomi looked up at it and gaped. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Neither have I,” said Makani.
They passed under an open archway and entered the castle. Rasped whispers and muffled howls rode on the eerie breeze that whistled through the hollow hall. Naomi reached for the threads that wove together the veils between realms, trying to open a passage to Firestorm and Darksire’s fortress on earth. Her magic bounced back, dissolving into silver dust.
“The way is blocked,” she said. “Someone has sealed the veil shut.” She didn’t even k
now that was possible.
Makani hit the same spot in the air with a Magic Breaker spell. The seal gobbled up his magic like it was candy.
Naomi tried again. Her spell blew up in her face. “Now that’s just annoying,” she said, wiping the smudges of ash from her skin.
She looked up through the open ceiling. The storm cloud overhead was made from the same black particles that formed the fluid walls of the castle. The black dots continuously cycled between the castle and the cloud.
“The spirit realm around here has been weird lately,” Chastity commented, her gaze shifting to the dark lake in the middle of the castle courtyard.
Balanced at the edge of the lake’s cobblestone shore was a gigantic green fly. It stuck out its tongue, wrapped it around a pink frog, and scooped it off its lily pad, swallowing it whole. This reversal of nature was not altogether uncommon in hell.
Chastity watched the monster fly chew on the frog. “Ok, weirder than usual.”
“My visions have revealed a troubling disturbance,” Valor said.
“Can you explain?” Naomi asked.
“It would be easier if I showed you. We need to fly into the storm.”
Naomi eyed the black storm cloud warily. “I don’t know. I don’t want my body dissolved into a million tiny pieces that will filter through the storm and be recycled into parts of this castle.”
“That won’t happen,” Valor assured her.
“How do you know?”
“Because it didn’t happen to me when I flew through it.”
“You can make your body non-corporeal. I cannot,” she pointed out.
“It will be fine.”
“Are you sure?” She certainly wasn’t.
“Mostly.”
“How reassuring,” Naomi said drily.
Valor grinned at her. “Trust me.”
Hmm, trust the ghost who’d been insane until very recently…
Sighing, Naomi looked at Valor. “Ok. How do you suggest we all get into that storm?”
“You can fly. So can Chastity and I. The three of us will fly into the storm.”
It sounded simple enough. And Naomi didn’t have to see Makani’s face to know he didn’t like this plan one bit. Dragons were overprotective, but ever since her close call with death during a demon battle last week, Makani had taken that to new levels.
