"I will. Let me discuss everything with him first. Okay?" Kato asked.
"Naturally. Just remember that Jaylen is a boy. He's a lot of responsibility."
"I know, but I think I can handle it."
"Very well. Farewell, Kato." Xair took off into the sky, leaving nothing but a single black feather drifting down to the deck.
Chapter 7
"Gavin, get down!" Trevor dove behind the crumbled wall of what used to be a house and covered his head with his arms just as the blast from the nephilim's magic rushed over head. Bricks, splintered tree limbs, and broken glass showered down around him, bouncing off of his heavy plate armor. He wiped the mud and sweat from his face and brown beard as he glanced around the side into the clearing in the forest.
The tall incubus Nephilim with the slicked back black hair and a goatee turned his attention back to Gavin who was on the ground, clutching his chest. "Now you die."
Gavin's red hair was matted with his purple blood, his half shirt was ripped up the middle where bruises spotted his stomach, and one of his fangs was chipped. His pale skin had grown even paler as he was shaking and barely able to stay up on his hands and knees. He looked small and insignificant in comparison to the other incubus who used to be his lover and covenant partner. "Stephan, don't. Please . . . don't."
Stephan grinned, flashing his bright white fangs. "What's wrong, darling? Can't take the pain? Oh, you look so pathetic, just like our first night together. You had been whimpering and crying like a little baby."
"Shut up. I never would have agreed to that covenant if I had known . . ."
"If you had known what, Gavin?"
Gavin grunted through the pain. "That you were evil."
"Evil?" Stephan's dry laughter cut through the smoky air. He sent a powerful kick slamming into Gavin's side, sending him a few feet back to the ground. "I'm not the one who betrayed the other. I'm not the one who broke our sacred blood covenant. And for what? To protect that worthless gimpy paladin?"
"Jaylen . . . is more powerful . . . than you'll ever be!" Gavin looked over at Trevor and slightly shook his head, telling him as quietly as he could to not take action.
But Trevor wasn't about to let him die. He picked up his heavy war hammer from the muddy ground and waited for the prime opportunity to strike. He wasn't going to be overwhelmed by the sheer gravity of the situation, but he wasn't going to be stupid about it, either. Stephan, as a Nephilim, was one of the most powerful beings in existence. There was no way of knowing what Stephan was going to do, but Trevor wasn't going to let that uncertainty get into his head. Gavin's groaning brought him back to the immediate danger of the situation.
Gavin was squirming under Stephan's boot that was pressed against his neck. "Stephan! Stop. Stop!"
"I will snap that little neck of yours and-"
"No!" Trevor leapt over the wall and ran towards them. He reared back and swung his war hammer. The heavy metal collided with Stephan's back with the crunching of bones and a dull thudding sound. Once Stephan fell, Trevor smashed the hammer down on the incubus's legs, eliciting an agonized howl. Just when he started to swing again, a sudden burst of black shadows sent him flying backwards back over the wall. Flames leapt into the air, melting the snow and searing the ground underneath.
Trevor hit the ground hard enough to knock him out, but he soon regained his consciousness. He crawled over to the wall where he leaned back against it. Blood was trickling down the left side of his face from a deep gash on his temple so he wiped it away, but he gasped when he saw it. It wasn't all his blood. Some of it was purple demon blood. "Gavin? Are you there?"
No one answered.
Grunting in pain, Trevor turned around to see Stephan missing and the entire forest ablaze with the orange inferno. A few trees had been blown over the clearing where a pool of dark purple blood shimmered in the light from the fire. "Oh, damn. Gavin! Gavin, where are you?" Trevor clambered over the slabs of stone as the dust settled. He coughed violently from the smoke that filled his lungs and stung his eyes. The fires were rapidly spreading and engulfing the nearby trees that encircled the area. "Gavin! We have to get out of here before we're trapped. Gavin, answer me!"
"Trevor . . ."
"Gavin!" Trevor ran through the smoke then dropped to his knees in the rubble. He spotted Gavin's pale hand reaching out from underneath the pile of fallen trees. He started pushing the heavy branches off of his friend as quickly as he could. "Come on, get up. We have to get out of here. Don't make me carry you."
Gavin's breathing was rapid and raspy, his orange demon eyes filled with a gloss of obvious pain. He grabbed onto Trevor's arm while he writhed in a pool of purple blood. "No. Go without me."
"No way in Hell. We've fought together every day these past four months. I trust you with my life. You've saved my life a few times, now it's my turn to save yours. I can't leave you."
"Trevor, I can't move my legs." Gavin gasped for air between moaning. "I'm dying. Let me die. If I die, Carvael dies too. Let me . . . end this."
"But your demonic contract with that girl. If you don't fulfill all of it, then you'll be tortured and suffer so much at the hands of the archdemons."
"If I don't . . . die here, this will never end. Go be with your son. Cael needs his father. Go. Do this for me. Leave me here."
Trevor knew there was no other way, but that didn't make it any easier. "Gavin, I will never forget you. I'll tell them that you died a hero."
"If Nimiel . . . wakes up, tell him . . . tell Nimiel . . . I'm sorry. Now, go. The flames will get me soon."
"Farewell, Gavin."
* * *
"I never want to drink rum again." Jaylen mumbled as he sat up on the side of the bed and wiped his drool from the side of his mouth. "Ugh. Can you blow out some of those candles? The light is hurting my head."
Kato blew out two candles then poured some fresh water into a glass. "Feeling that bad this morning?"
He gratefully took the water and the pain pills. "I hardly remember anything. I didn't do anything too weird, did I? I didn't embarrass myself or do something I would never do if I hadn't been drinking?"
"Well . . . I wanted to talk to you about that, actually."
"Oh, Sola's rays. What did I do?"
"For starters, you were dancing. Do you remember dancing?" Kato asked.
"Dancing?" He must have been more intoxicated than he first thought. "Dancing? Well, that's embarrassing, but if that's all that happened, then it's all good."
"Do you not remember anything after we danced?"
"Kato, I don't remember dancing. Oh, wait. I think I remember something. It's coming back to me." Jaylen clamped his hand over his mouth. "Oh, no. I think the rum is coming back to me too."
"In the bucket."
Jaylen vomited into the bucket then collapsed back on the bed. "This was not an issue when I was adhering to my vows. But it was fun, wasn't it, Kato? We had a lot of fun."
Kato joined Jaylen in his giggling. She leaned against the wall and tied her bandana around her hair. "So, do you have any major life plans that you should be planning for because someone agreed to something special or crying about it because you might have been rejected?"
"What? What kind of question is that?"
"I should have asked that last night."
"Huh?" Jaylen asked.
"Oh, nothing. It's nothing."
Jaylen's laughter left him as he sat up and studied her. "Kato, something else happened last night, didn't it? Oh, no. Don't tell me I tried to do something in bed . . ."
"No. No, don't worry. Nothing like that."
"Good. Because I would never do anything like that with you."
Kato's demeanor switched to borderline hostility. "What is that supposed to mean? Am I too old or ugly for you, Jaylen? Do you lust after tiny thin blonde girls? Or are you just into men?"
What in the world was she talking about? "Kato, what is this about?"
"Just answer the question! Are you intimidat
ed because I'm bigger than you? Does that make me ugly?"
"No. Not at all. You're one of the most beautiful women I've ever met. Your curves are feminine."
"What about my hair, huh? Does it disgust you because it's not pale and golden?"
Jaylen frowned. "I love your hair. It compliments your skin."
"Or is it just because you would rather be with a man like all those paladins you trained with?" Kato asked. "Don't think I don't know what goes on in the barracks."
Okay, now that one was confusing in more ways than one. Jaylen was getting angry. "What? No. I'm not attracted to men. Kato, stop. You're scaring me. And no, a bunch of extremely religious chaste men who have been starved and beaten for weeks don't want anything aside from sleeping and getting through the next day. You're starting to really insult me. Those true paladins were my family and they were good men. To suggest that they would break their vows in the holy paladin barracks is sickening."
Kato turned to the window and looked out over the dark water. "I'm sorry, Jaylen. That was completely wrong of me. I was out of line. I'll go now. You can have the day off to recover. I'm sorry."
"What did I do last night? You wouldn't be acting like this if it was nothing."
"You asked me a question."
"What kind of question?" Jaylen asked.
"You . . . you proposed."
"Proposed what?" Jaylen flashed a smile. "That we stop drinking so much rum?"
"No. Be serious for a minute, please. You asked me to marry you."
"Uh . . ."
Kato placed her hand on the cold window where her breath had fogged on the glass. "You got down on one knee and told me that I completed your life and you wanted me to be your wife."
Jaylen's mouth fell open. He did that? He had hoped that was just an awkward dream. "So?"
She turned around with tears falling down her blushing cheeks. "So what?"
He had never seen her like that. Kato was strong, stubborn, and matter-of-fact. This was truly bothering her. What was he supposed to do? Jaylen was the one who caused this mess, but he still had to know. "What did you say? What was your answer?"
"Forget it." Kato wiped her eyes on the backs of her sleeves then stormed out of the cabin, leaving Jaylen hurt, confused, and speechless.
* * *
This bread was darker, heavier, and filled with tiny whole grains. Jeremiah sat at the cafe in the plaza of the elven city of Tivareshen underneath the clear and green glass sculptures that twisted over the streets and surrounded the holy tree named Tivare where all life was rumored to have originated. He nibbled on the coarse bread while he watched the vibrant blue hummingbirds darting around between the pink and yellow flowers on the vines. This was a calming place where Jeremiah didn't have to constantly take his allergy pills because most of the citizens were the friendly grey-skinned elves with foot-long ears who were eager to please with their hospitality. The mage-glow here was different, made from the pure natural elven magic.
He had been there all morning, reading the names of the elven children that had been born in the past year. Three. Only three children had been born in the entire elven country in the past year. It was sad and concerning. Most of the citizens, who weren't doting over Jeremiah and offering him gifts of food or silks, were dressed in all white as they carried the bodies of deceased elves down the twisting pathways to the harbor. The bodies were wrapped in white sheets that had been bound with flowered vines. There had been a werewolf attack the previous night, leaving sixty elves dead and nine elven children were taken as slaves back to Wolfekin. When only three children were born in the past year, losing nine was devastating. While Jeremiah was out on assignment like this, the speaker of the Angelic Court would take up the slack. Not that Jeremiah actually trusted Tarael to do his job, but what choice did he have?
Being the shepherd of the poor souls awaiting their eternal fate was a heavy burden to hold on his shoulders, one that the hot-headed Tarael wasn't able to understand. Jeremiah knew how to comfort and console the souls during their temporary stay in Purgatory. Even though he was enjoying the sights and sounds of the human world, Jeremiah longed to be back in the emptiness of Purgatory where he felt safe. There was a wonderful feeling he received once he sent a soul on its way, to be either eaten by angels or demons. It was a finality that was unavoidable and eternal. Things were always better when they had run their course and come to an end. Sometimes the souls would tell him of their lives as humans or elves. Many of them were filled with sadness, loss, and loneliness. Most of them had died before they felt it was their time, but Jeremiah did his duty to embrace them all and remind them of the ultimate truth of his job. A life hasn't been lived until it is allowed to reach its end.
But sometimes even that wasn't enough to make everything right. If Jeremiah was being completely truthful with himself, he knew that nearly every single soul moved on from Purgatory just as terrified as they were when they first arrived. He held his ruby setting sun necklace in his hand as he continued to pick at the crust on the bread. Lost in thought, he didn't hear the swooshing of wings behind him.
"Seraph Jeremiah, I am here to turn myself in."
Jeremiah set the bread down on the table then stood up and turned around. The few elves who were still around the cafe gasped and were backing away from the grey-skinned man with the braided black hair, orange slanted eyes, and translucent wings. Jeremiah immediately noticed the red halo above the man's head. "Divinus."
Divinus knelt down in front of Jeremiah and held out his hands. "I surrender myself to you in exchange for a lighter sentence."
"I can't guarantee that."
"But I bet you can guarantee it if I lead you to Kato as well. Oh, and one more thing. I have discovered the identity of the lost seraph."
Jeremiah took a step back. "You've found him?"
"His name is Nimiel and I can deliver the boy into your custody."
"Boy?"
Divinus looked up at Jeremiah. "Nimiel is a fledgling. He is half demon, half angel. But he has all the powers of a seraph. The only catch is that he was cast out of Heaven by Sola. You know as well as I do that if we are going to free Sola, we need all three seraphs."
"For the three locks that Carvael made. I know."
"Oh, yes. There's another little tiny issue we need to get rid of. There has been a child born to a female angel and her human lover."
"No."
"Yes." Divinus grinned darkly. "The baby's name is Cael. I know where he is. We have to eradicate the threat before that innocent-looking baby becomes the catalyst that launches all of Aldexa into the apocalypse."
"I wasn't aware of an ishim being born. When did this happen?" Jeremiah asked.
"Within the past year."
"But Sola told us that there weren't supposed to be any more ishim being born. Do you know what this means? If the human-angels are returning, then we are running out of time." Jeremiah took the enchanted golden shackles from the pocket of his long grey coat and secured them around Divinus's wrists. "All right. I will work with you, but you will still be in shackles."
"I would expect no less, honorable Jeremiah."
* * *
Trevor slid off the back of his horse and landed knee-deep in the snow that had piled up in the snowdrifts. They were tall and still growing around the modest house in the secluded forest in the forgotten plains in the northern part of what used to be Vilyron. No one came up here anymore, now that the kingdom had fallen and all of the trading was moved down to the south and into Wolfekin. While it was a vast and dangerous frozen wasteland, it proved to be the safest place for their group of rebels, demons, and fallen angels.
He wrapped his black wool cloak around himself before peering off into the blowing snow behind him to make sure no one was watching him. Surely it had been his mind playing tricks on him, but he could have sworn that he saw a sleek black raven perched on a nearby stump in the dim mage-glow overhead. But what would a raven be doing up here in a blizzard? Upon furt
her investigation, the stump was covered by nothing but snow. Trevor had turned back towards the house until he heard heavy footsteps in the snow approaching quickly. He drew his dagger from his belt and spun around to slash into . . . the wind. By this time, he was breathing hard and becoming more paranoid by the second.
Trevor went around to the back of the house where Liam's window was. The kid would be the easiest one to manipulate. He tapped on the frosty glass. "Liam. Liam, open the window." Once the window slid open, Trevor climbed inside the bedroom.
Liam's face lit up with excitement. "Trevor! Brinx-"
Trevor grabbed Liam and slammed the boy up against the wall with his hand covering his mouth. "Shh. Listen to me very carefully, Liam. I've been followed. I don't know who it is or even what it is, but it followed me here. You have to hide me, but don't tell anyone else that I'm here. If you do tell them, their lives could be at stake. I've done some bad things over the past few months. They were desperate times, so I did what I had to do. Take me into the basement, bring me a basin of hot water, some blankets, and some bread, then lock the door and pretend that I'm not here."
Liam squirmed out of Trevor's grasp then whispered to him. "What about Brinx? You haven't seen your son since the day he was born."
"I know, but I have to stay hidden or Cael could be in danger. As his father, I cannot have that."
"Okay, then." Liam pushed the bedroom door open then peered out into the empty hallway. "Come on. It's clear. They're all sleepin'."
Trevor followed closely behind Liam until they were down in the empty basement where only boxes and extra supplies were stored. He found a lantern hanging from a support beam and lit it. He set his bag down then brushed the melting snow from his beard. "Thank you, Liam. Again, do not tell anyone I'm here."
"I won't. I have somethin' for you." Liam dug in his pocket then held out a clump of tiny dark green downy feathers. "Here. These were in his crib."
Trevor's breath escaped him as his heart fluttered. He took the little feathers in his hand and held them to his nose. The scent was the most wonderfully sweet fragrance in existence. Cael. "Oh, thank you, Liam."
Angel of Darkness Books 6-10 Page 6
