Cataclysm

by Karice Bolton

  Athen pushed Cyril from behind, doing anything to distract him from whatever he was about to say.

  “It’s not what you think!” Cyril barked at Athen.

  “Well, who do we have here?” one of the demons interrupted. “Another eager participant?”

  “One of your worst nightmares,” Athen muttered, staring at them all. The anger was building in him extraordinarily fast. His fists were closed tightly exposing the whiteness of his knuckles.

  “They were following me!” Cyril interjected.

  “What do you want with Cyril?” I began.

  “We’ve been told to keep an eye on him, that he’s been considering our offer. Nothing more, really,” the older demon said, smiling and rubbing his hands eagerly together.

  The fury was now running through my system. The demons were relentless in taunting Cyril. Quickly glancing over at him, my nerves began to calm a little. He didn’t look like a white demon about to commit to the other side. Not that I knew, for sure, what that would look like.

  “Before you two interrupted, I was telling these messengers that they might as well give up on us and all the white demons. The cat’s out of the bag and nobody’s gonna fall for their stories any longer.” Cyril was grinning.

  “I hope you know what you are doing, Cyril,” the young demon said. “We need some playtime you know. We’ll just have to find some other willing participants.”

  Knowing exactly what they were implying only fed into their way of doing things. They were trying to guilt us into sacrificing ourselves to save the mortals.

  Not wanting to say aloud the thoughts that were stirring in my head, I knew I had no choice.

  “If there are going to be sacrifices, it’s not going to be on our side any longer. Tell Azazel and Lilith, their threats are doing nothing to our community,” I ordered.

  The older demon came charging towards me. His black hair was flailing behind him in a tangled mess, and his claws were stretched as far as he could get them. In one last dash towards me, his hand came swiping at me, but not before Athen’s hand reached up and grabbed the demon’s throat, crushing his neck with one squeeze. The black mist quickly escaped into the air, leaving the remaining demons staring at us blankly.

  “Don’t worry. We need at least one of you to deliver our message. Leave now or we’ll be the ones to choose who goes back alive,” I yelled. “Azazel isn’t doing you any favors sending you with unseasoned demons. Just some food for thought. Your time will come, eventually, to be destroyed.”

  The dark demons vanished almost instantly, leaving my head in a state of fog for doubting Cyril.

  “Cyril, you were sending them away? Why did you leave us this morning? Why not get us involved? We were worried sick!” The words came pouring out of me.

  “I know you know where she is!” Cyril’s fury was no longer pointed at the dark demons.

  “We all do. You know too. You saw her at the Westin in the vision.” I glanced over at Athen, who stood directly behind Cyril.

  “I feel dead. I really do,” Cyril uttered, his eyes completely red, either from rubbing or tearing up, either way I felt horrible. Knowing our plan to keep him away from Azazel worked, gave me the strength I needed. Thankfully, Athen was in this with me. Having him actually confront the demons, who had been tailing him for so long, was exactly what we needed.

  “I know, man. It’s not easy, but we know where she is. She’s gonna be fine, and so are you. Believe me, we’ve been through it,” Athen said.

  “Yeah, Cy. I mean think of all the flubs I did. In hindsight, I was pretty weak. You’ve been amazing.”

  Cyril’s eyes changed. Catching a glimpse of anger flash through them, I took a step back alerting Athen to my concern.

  “If it wasn’t for you and your dreams, none of this would be happening. How do we even know what you saw was real? If we hadn’t split up, Arie would probably be here right now. We all know I wouldn’t have gone to the dark side. We didn’t have to split up, but we did. Because of you!” Cyril bitterly accused.

  Athen was by my side instantly staring Cyril down.

  “Don’t do it, man. You don’t mean it. It’s the grief. It’s not Ana, and you know it. Get a hold of yourself,” Athen’s voice was filled with controlled anger. I never imagined, I would have to be protected from one of my own. I was so thankful Arie wasn’t having to witness this side of Cyril.

  “What do you know, Athen? You’d do anything she tells you.”

  “Cyril, you are falling right into Azazel’s hands. You may have chased away that batch of them, but your mind is still all messed up. We don’t have the luxury, like we used to, to do or think crazy things.” Athen approached Cyril now, preparing to calm him down either way.

  “Tell me this!” Cyril snapped. “If her dreams are so accurate, why didn’t she see Arie get taken away and warn us all on that! Instead, she comes up with something that can’t even be proven.”

  “Cyril, I know you don’t mean what you’re saying, but I’m not gonna hang around to hear anything else you might want to blame on me. I’ll see you in a bit.”

  Turning to face the Westin, I marched myself right into the lobby hoping to soon see Arie’s smiling face greet me. I wasn’t sure what Athen was going to do to get a grip on Cyril, but we couldn’t afford to waste any more time with this nonsense. It was time to alert the other families of the memsors. Hiding this information couldn’t go on.

  Arie’s door opened right up, before I even knocked on it, with Noah staring right back at me.

  “Thank God, you’re here.” I patted his arm and walked into a discussion I didn’t want to have.

  Chapter 7

  Arie’s face was plastered with mixed emotion. On one hand, she seemed relieved that Cyril felt strong enough to banish the demons back to Azazel. But on the other side of it, she wasn’t ready for the hostility that was surely going to come with the decision she had made to keep him safe.

  Noah had been busy on the phone calling, everyone he could think of, to spread the news that the whole process of memsors had been working. I felt immensely better having that info out there for the rest of the white demons. Not knowing, if it really would work for all the other families as easily as it did for us, was cause for worry, but the sooner it was out in the open, the better it would be.

  “Do you think we should have Cyril come here? Arie’s usually bubbly expression was nowhere to be found. “I’m so worried I made a mistake, Ana. What if this tears us up more than if I took my chances with Azazel snatching him up?”

  It pained me to see Arie’s eyes unable to reflect anything but worry. Dark shadows were already beginning to make an appearance under her eyes.

  “I think if he’s strong enough to confront the demons who’ve been tailing him, we can be sure the worst is over… At least for that part of it.” I reached for Arie’s hand, which was ice cold. “Oh, my word, Arie!”

  I jumped up and grabbed a throw for her to cover up with.

  “Can you not even tell that you’re freezing?” I asked.

  “I didn’t notice,” Arie huffed.

  “Athen’s got Cyril downstairs. He texted me that he calmed Cyril down. I think we should go for it. Plus, we’ve got Noah here. That might help if things go south.” I grimaced at the thought.

  Arie looked over at me and took a deep breath in. She called for Matilda to come up on the couch, which Matilda obediently did. She began nervously petting poor Matilda’s ear over and over again.

  “Let’s get it done,” she said, her voice full of misery.

  Nodding my head, I hopped off the couch. I needed to grab Noah and let him know what happened.

  Texting to Athen that Arie was ready, I paused. I wasn’t sure I was. This could go really badly, but I hit the send button.

  Noah was just finishing up one of his calls and quickly hung up.

  “Well, it’s time. Cyril and Athen are on their way up.” My lips tight with anxiety.

  “It’s for
the best,” Noah whispered. “This could only go on for so long. There are far bigger concerns that we need to get started on.”

  I knew he was right and was thankful for this voice of reason we suddenly had in our group.

  “ETA is less than five minutes. I think you should be here from the get go. I think Arie should be in the bedroom. There’s no doubt that Cyril will be able to feel her closeness,” I instructed. “I know how intense the pull was being in the same town as Athen, let alone a hotel suite. We’re gonna have to talk fast.”

  “And hope for the best,” Noah finished. “I can’t imagine being told something like this.”

  “Yeah, well, we’re in some crazy times,” I chimed in. “Hopefully that will count for something, and he’ll understand Arie’s reasoning.”

  The knock came rattling through the hotel suite, creating even more dread than I knew possible.

  “Arie, go into the bedroom. Don’t forget to take Matilda,” I whispered, attempting to smile. All that probably resulted was an awkward twist of my lips.

  Staring at the door, I took a huge gulp of air in before pulling on the handle. This was it. Cyril would either forgive us, or he wouldn’t.

  Swinging the door open, Athen smiled at me, his eyes filled with the same worry that I had bottled up. Giving me a hug, I squeezed him back and saw Cyril staring at me from behind.

  “Ana, I’m sorry,” Cyril began. “I honestly don’t know how you and Athen stayed so civil when you both went through everything.” He threw his hands to the side.

  Letting go of Athen, I dove into Cyril’s arms only hoping that his forgiveness would last once he finds out the rest of the story.

  “It’s okay, Cy,” I muttered, as he squeezed me tightly. “I know how tough it is, but it’s all going to come to an end.”

  “Yeah, I’m certainly hoping so.” He smiled as best as he could, releasing me. Grabbing his hand, I pulled him into the sitting area.

  Cyril’s body stiffened instantly. The pull was hitting him. He could sense her. Noah stood up from the couch and extended out his arm to Cyril.

  “Hey, you must be Cyril?” Noah’s graciousness was one of the only calming elements in the room.

  “That’s me, and you are?” Cyril’s voice caught a little, probably completely distracted with the thought of Arie.

  “I’m helping out with things for the next little while. Arie actually contacted me about helping with some of the strategy and using information that I had collected on Azazel,” he started. “Right before she was taken.”

  “Ah, makes sense. Well, I think you’ll get to meet her soon. She’s gotta be on this floor or something.” Cyril’s lips finally showing the smile that we had missed. “She’s definitely around here,” he continued.

  “We’ve got a plan for that, Cy,” Athen began, sitting on the couch. Cyril followed.

  “Do you know which suite she’s in?” Cyril’s voice was so full of eagerness I could almost taste it. The knot in my stomach kept growing.

  “We do, buddy,” Athen sighed, looking over at me. “But there’s something we’ve got to tell you before we go get her. It’s not going to be easy to hear.”

  Cyril shot up from the couch, pillows tumbling to the floor.

  “Is she okay?” Cyril asked. This was horrible. His emotional rollercoaster was only getting prolonged.

  “Yes!” I exclaimed. “She’s fine, perfect – really.”

  Trying again, I looked over at Athen for support. He nodded and gestured for Cyril to sit back down.

  “Before Arie was taken away, she asked me to do something for her. She had been fairly certain that demons were following you, trying to coax you to their side. Judging by who you were talking to this afternoon, I’d say she guessed accurately.” I realized that I had taken a breath and hadn’t released it out yet. Making myself breathe, the air slowly trickled out of my mouth, as I tried to formulate everything very carefully.

  “Arie was worried that you might sacrifice yourself for her safety. She felt that they might’ve made some progress with you, especially with the mind control that started happening with others.” I paused, letting my words sink in as best as they could. “Noah, in fact, has experienced Azazel’s trickery.”

  “What are you telling me, Ana?” Cyril scooted forward on the couch.

  “She thought that if she was out of the picture, and you were focused on getting her back, that you might ignore all the demon’s attempts and mind tricks. She was hoping your energy would be focused on getting her back.” I stopped, looking over at Cyril. There wasn’t any hint of anger in his eyes, only fear.

  Athen decided to start explaining for which I was so grateful, especially with the scene that had happened outside earlier. I looked over at Noah, who stared intently at Cyril, probably wondering why Cyril wasn’t exploding yet.

  Cyril began wringing his hands together. His lips were tightly shut.

  “She asked me to take you to the families around here who had lost a family member in the same manner that Azazel and his followers were coming after you with.” Athen’s body stiffened, as he sensed Cyril’s uneasiness with the words that were landing on him from every direction.

  “I’d give anything to protect Arie. I’d never do anything to put her in harm’s way. I don’t understand.” Cyril sounded broken and confused. How Arie didn’t come running out of the bedroom, I didn’t know.

  “We know that. She knows that. And that’s why she did what she thought was best. She put everything in place, like her brother did.” I pointed at Athen. “She placed ten times as many memsors everywhere. She was overly cautious. She found a group of brand-new minions to…”

  Cyril interrupted and sprung up in a flash.

  “A group of minions to do what?” The anger finally filled up his body.

  “She sacrificed herself, to save you,” Athen stood now too. “My sister threw herself to the dark ones in hope that it would save you. Buy you some time to get hold of yourself. Not fall into one of Azazel’s traps that you couldn’t get out of.”

  Noah spoke up, “I’ve seen firsthand what Azazel and his demons are capable of. I lost my soul mate, Vanessa, in the name of saving me.”

  I was shocked that Noah decided to help talk sense into Cyril.

  The words were frozen in the air. No one knew how to react. Noah’s eyes were wide, and he braced the chair, presumably thinking he would have to break up something between Athen and Cyril. But no such occurrence happened. Instead, Cyril fell back onto the couch, dazed and silent.

  Then the silence was broken. Matilda barked. Cyril’s eyes darted to each of us quickly. His green eyes glaring, he stared at the door to the bedroom. In an instant, he was at the door, trying to get the locked doorknob dislodged.

  Athen and Noah were by Cyril’s side, calming him down.

  “Step back from the door,” Athen commanded to Cyril.

  “She’s in there. Isn’t she?” Cyril was seething.

  Arie flung open the door, with Matilda standing by her. Arie’s eyes still not showing the green we were all accustomed to.

  “I’m sorry,” she sobbed, holding out her arms. We all waited. All of us holding our breath that Cyril would do the same. What seemed like hours passed by, when he finally stepped forward towards Arie and embraced her, closing the door behind him.

  After minutes of feeling like there was no air left in the room, we all looked at each other, half embarrassed, half in shock.

  “Is it always this drama filled being around you, guys?” Noah broke the silence.

  Athen grabbed my hand, a smile spreading across his face, “Lately,” he shook his head.

  “Yeah, lately,” I sighed. “Should we really leave them alone?”

  Athen rolled his eyes. ”I dare you to go interrupt them.”

  “Poor Matilda!” I uttered, shaking my head.

  “I’m sure she’s got herself hidden in the corner,” Athen laughed. “But I’m not going in there to rescue her. That’s fo
r sure.”

  “No, kidding,” Noah replied, his face completely deadpan.

  “I totally thought it was going to go another direction,” I whispered. “I’m glad it didn’t, but I’m really puzzled.

  “I think that right there, tells us how close he truly was towards falling into Azazel’s trap. There’s no other reason for him to have been so calm,” Athen surmised.

  “I agree. Not that I know the guy, but I would’ve expected some more anger or something,” Noah said.

  “It’ll probably come out later,” I grimaced.

  “Thanks for being here,” I told Noah. “Probably a bit awkward.”

  “To put it lightly.” He smiled. “Now let’s figure out what we want to do next.”

  Chapter 8

  Arie and Cyril were going to meet us back at the Kingston home. They had spent the night at the hotel, while Athen, Noah, Matilda, and I returned to Kingston. Arie and Cyril had a lot to go over, and none of us wanted to interfere. It was a delicate balance, to say the least.

  Matilda started going crazy, and we realized that Cyril and Arie had already pulled into the garage. Running to the mudroom, I was shocked when Arie opened the door. What I saw, staring back at me, was Arie and her bright, green eyes. We had planned on doing the reintroduction process here, but somehow they already did it.

  “What the heck!” I exclaimed. “How did you guys do that already?”

  “What are you talking about?” Athen called from the family room.

  “Apparently, I’ve got it down to a science,” she said, giving me a quick kiss on the cheek, her eyes shining brightly.