Dark Angel Box Set

by Hanna Peach

  She moved to the side of Israel’s image and slipped an arm around him. “Where are they taking you?” she said into his ear.

  “A cave at the base of a mountain? That’s an unusual place to keep your captives.”

  Her heart sank even further. The Hollows. They were taking him to the Hollows. This meant that Elder Michael had him.

  Israel let out a cry and doubled over, folding in half at his stomach. He fell to his knees groaning, his arms still held awkwardly behind his back. Her stomach clenched at the sound of his moans. They were hurting him. And she could do nothing to stop it.

  A force yanked Israel up until he dangled in the air, his chin thrust to the sky, feet wriggling helplessly above the ground.

  “Stop it,” Alyx pleaded to an empty warehouse. “Stop hurting him.”

  “Yes, I’ll be quiet,” Israel croaked.

  Israel was dropped to his feet and fell forward as if pushed. He started to stumble and trip as he was dragged faster than he could walk. There was nothing she could do except keep her hand on him to let him know she was still there beside him.

  Finally they stopped dragging him. He was kicked forward and stumbled to his feet. Israel turned, reaching his hands out to grip invisible bars. “Are you just going to leave me locked in here? Hello?”

  It hurt to see Israel like this. But Alyx forced herself to remain calm. She had to be strong for him. She stepped in front of Israel, rested a hand on his translucent cheek and held his gaze in hers. For a moment, it was just them. “I will find you and I will free you. I promise you, on my life.”

  Despite the pain etched on his face, she caught a slight smile to his lips and a barely perceivable nod. I believe you.

  Chapter 37

  The bell hanging in the Saint Paul’s Cathedral bell tower was a large bronze monster. If it were cut from the yoke that it hung from, it could hold a standing adult like an insect under a cup. The bell hadn’t rung in over sixty years since it rang to sound the end of the last Great Mortal War. After which the clapper, the striking implement that hung like a tongue under the skirt of the bell, was removed so it wouldn’t ring again.

  Tonight it clanged three times.

  Jordan appeared out of the night and landed softly on the tower next to Alyx. Before he could speak, she unsheathed one of the demonswords from her belt. “Know what this is?”

  Jordan drew back from the blade. “Black Stone. I feared as much.”

  Alyx sheathed the sword. “Talk. And don’t leave anything out.”

  “Black Stone is an otherworld metal brought to Earth several centuries ago by other-realm invaders, Celestial Fairies. The Seraphim banished the fairies from this world during the last Inter-realm War. After they were cast out, all of their leftover Black Stone weapons were collected and melted into large rocks. The rocks were flung out into space. The knowledge of Black Stone was lost over the centuries.”

  “So how did the Darkened get hold of it?”

  “What the Elders didn’t count on happening was some of those Black Stone rocks returning back to Earth as meteorites.”

  Meteorites? Something about this bothered Alyx, but she couldn’t grasp the significance of it.

  Jordan continued, “Black Stone is the only substance we know of that can delay a Seraphim’s healing abilities. Get cut by it and you heal like a mortal.”

  A puzzle piece fell into place. “Wait,” she said, “meteorites. I remember seeing something in a newspaper recently about a robbery in a museum. A meteorite was stolen.”

  “That was probably a Black Stone. How big was it?”

  “Big enough to make a lot more weapons. Dammit. But how did the demons get hold of this knowledge? Why only now?”

  Jordan’s look was grim. “Someone has betrayed the Seraphim.”

  Something occurred to Alyx. “Something was stolen from Michael’s chambers. A piece of some Amulet. The Elders have accused me of stealing it. I bet the thief and the betrayer are one and the same.”

  “The Trinity Amulet?” Jordan’s eyes widened and he cursed.

  “What’s the Trinity Amulet?”

  “It’s part of an old demon legend.”

  “A demon legend?”

  “The legend says that God gave the Trinity Amulet to the three Seraphim Brothers for safekeeping. The Trinity Amulet has the power to control Lucifer and his army.”

  Alyx felt faint under the gravity of this information. Some connections began to arise in her mind. “I came across a communication thread in Michael’s chambers. It spoke of a secret army, an army of darkwarriors.”

  “A secret army… I’ve suspected something like this may be happening but I never had any proof.”

  “Could Michael be controlling Lucifer’s army? Could this be his secret army?”

  Jordan shook his head. “The legend says that the Amulet is so powerful that it is too dangerous to keep intact. So the Brothers broke it up into three pieces and kept one each. You need all three pieces of the Amulet to use the power. What was stolen would have just been one piece.”

  “Where are the other pieces?”

  “I suspect that Gabriel has the second. The third piece is said to have been lost thousands of years ago. I believe that Raphael hid it before he died. We have to find this third piece before anyone else does.”

  “We have something more urgent to do first. My friend Israel has been captured by the Seraphim of Michaelea. Israel killed that Darkened in Remembrance Park and…I’ve been Guardian-bonded to him.”

  “Guardian-bonded…he has a destiny then,” Jordan pressed his lips in a firm line. “I take it you have a plan to get him out?”

  Alyx nodded and began to speak.

  Chapter 38

  Uriel was the last of the three to arrive in a flat circular grass clearing about fifty meters wide, timid yellow buds peeking through thick grass, but nothing growing taller than them. The permanent ward that domed over the circle ensured that no trees would ever grow within it and neither animal nor mortal would dare enter. Giant trees stood shoulder to shoulder in a ring around the ward, silent guardians to a place that none of the three Elders had returned to in centuries. Until now.

  “Is calling a meeting here your idea of a joke, Michael?” Uriel’s voice was curt and clipped, his face half hidden under his hood. Uriel stopped before Michael and Gabriel, cloak swirling around his booted feet suspended several feet above the ground.

  Michael wanted to slash at Uriel for speaking to him like that. How dare he. But Michael remained silent and channeled his anger back inside. He needed to keep them on his side if this was to work. It was unfortunate that he had to trick them, but they would never understand what he was doing. At least not at first. Gabriel and Uriel were never the visionaries. Not like he was.

  “It was the one place I could think of where we would not be overheard,” Michael said. “Our chambers in our respective cities are too easy for eavesdroppers, intentional or otherwise. And this...this is too important to leave this circle. Not even our Entwined nor our second-in-commands can know. Elders, I must have your word on this.”

  Gabriel and Uriel looked at each other, then back at Michael.

  “What is it, Brother?” asked Gabriel.

  “We have captured a mortal. A mortal working with the traitor Alyxandria.”

  Uriel drew a loud breath in. “Exposing us to the mortals.”

  Michael continued, his speech rehearsed, “The mortal has confessed. Alyxandria has crossed over to the Rogue’s side, taking with her the stolen Amulet piece. They plan to gather the rest of the pieces and use the Amulet to raise a demon army against us.”

  “We must resume our search for the missing piece,” Gabriel said. “We must get to it first.”

  Michael nodded. “I agree. But you haven’t heard everything yet.” Turning to Gabriel, he placed his hand on Gabriel’s shoulder, pausing to allow the silence to build the tension. “The mortal has admitted to a plot to steal the second Amulet piece from you.” />
  Gabriel drew back, his face growing pale. “No. It can’t be done.”

  Michael shook his head. “She was able to get the first Amulet piece from out of my chambers. Now that she has secured her alliance with the Rogues, she will have more resources. Your piece is now unsafe anywhere in Gabriela, let alone on your person.”

  Gabriel drew back from Michael. He was afraid. Good.

  “I know you wear it on you,” Michael continued, “and so does Alyxandria, which makes it even more dangerous for you.”

  Gabriel looked at Michael then Uriel. “What do we do?”

  “Give it to me to keep safe,” Michael said. “Michaelea will be the last place they expect it to be.”

  Gabriel looked at Uriel.

  “Michael makes sense,” Uriel said. “It’s not safe with you anymore if the Rogues are planning to steal it.”

  Gabriel pulled the long chain out from under his collar until the charm on the end pulled free. It was simple, beautiful, but incomplete without its other two connecting pieces.

  “I have been wearing it for over two thousand years. I can’t bear to think about it leaving me.”

  Michael tore his eyes away from the Amulet piece to look at Gabriel. It’s almost mine. “For the safety of our people, Gabriel.”

  Gabriel nodded. “You are right, Brother. It is safer with you.” He removed the chain from around his neck and pooled it in his palm.

  It’s mine.

  Gabriel held out the Amulet piece. Michael’s fingers closed around it.

  Chapter 39

  When Alyx finished outlining her plan, Jordan shook his head. “If this is going to work, we’re going to need more help.” He gave out a short, sharp whistle. A swallow fluttered down from the roof of the cathedral. It appeared Jordan hadn’t come alone.

  “Find Lukas,” he said to the swallow. “Tell him to meet us at Tara.”

  The swallow cooed before taking off.

  “Who’s Lukas?”

  “A friend of mine and an Animale.”

  “Another Rogue?”

  Jordan nodded.

  “Are you sure about getting this Lukas involved?”

  “We need him. For your plan to have a chance at working, we need his Animale gift.”

  Alyx was unconvinced and it showed on her face. “Are you sure you can trust him?”

  “Do you trust me?”

  “No.”

  Jordan rolled his eyes. “Well, I trust Lukas. I trust him with my life. You should too.”

  * * *

  “This is ridiculous. We should be headed to Michaelea now.” Alyx made an exasperated noise as she sat up, throwing her hands in the air. The lion head ring Jordan had given her twinkled on her thumb.

  They were waiting for Lukas at Tara, an abandoned farmhouse in the remote country around Saint Joseph and a Rogue safehouse. For the last hour Alyx had been lying on a rug spread out across the living room floorboards with Jordan sitting beside her trying to teach her about DreamCalling. DreamCalling was new to Alyx. There was no mention of it in The Lightwarrior’s Protocol. But as Alyx learned more and more, there was much about the Seraphim abilities and magics that the Elders had kept from them.

  “It’s like this,” Jordan had explained. “When you focus on someone and push that energy into the DreamPlain, it sends out a tiny vibration towards that person. This is DreamCalling.”

  “And having your ring on me helps?”

  “Yes. When you are holding something that belongs to me it helps to connect our energies. It’s the same reason why it is easier to find someone in the DreamPlain when you are holding something of theirs.”

  “Can I alert anyone using DreamCalling?”

  “No. Just DreamWalkers. Our ability allows us a far greater affinity with the DreamPlain and we are more sensitive to the energies. DreamCalls are very subtle. My DreamWalker ability allows me to keep a connection with the DreamPlain but, like anything, it gets tiring after a while. After years of practice I can now keep it up for several hours at a time.” Jordan didn’t say this with any arrogance, but in a matter-of-fact way.

  He continued, “When you send out a DreamCall it’s like sending a small vibration to me, which I can pick up through my connection to the Plain. But I’ll only feel it if I’m also connected to the Plain and am open to receiving energies from you.”

  “But couldn’t I receive DreamCalls if I use DreamWalker bloodink?”

  Jordan scrunched his face up. “Theoretically you could. But like I said, you’d have to keep up a connection with the DreamScape, and that would use up your bloodink really quickly.”

  Alyx wasn’t getting the hang of DreamCalling. She couldn’t concentrate. Every time she closed her eyes she saw Israel’s face. His face in pain. How could she be expected to just lie there when…

  Images of Israel being tortured filled her mind. It made her feel sick. Like someone was gripping her chest with their fist and twisting so that she had to fight just to breathe.

  “Relax, Alyx.”

  “How can you just sit there all calm? They could be killing him right now.”

  “Michael wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of capturing the mortal if he’s just going to kill him. He’ll be fine. Besides, if you get in trouble this may be your only lifeline. Now try again. Focus your awareness on my ring and speak my name in your mind.”

  “The mortal’s name is Israel,” Alyx muttered as she lay back down.

  Jordan seemed to refuse to call Israel by his name. She didn’t know why.

  They went over and over this exercise. Finally, Alyx managed to send a DreamCall. “Finally. Can we stop now?”

  “That took you over a minute to get the DreamCall through. You need to be quicker. Try again.”

  Alyx grumbled but she did what he said.

  She had just managed to reduce the time down to several seconds when a low whistle outside interrupted them. It must be Lukas. Alyx followed Jordan out onto the porch to greet him.

  Jordan and Lukas clasped hands. “This is Alyx,” said Jordan. “The one I was telling you about.”

  Lukas was a dark-skinned man with thick black hair and a strong nose. Alyx noticed an intricately detailed tattoo banded around his left arm. On his shoulder was a pair of swallows, their feet unadorned.

  “You don’t use Animale bracelets?” Alyx asked.

  “Alyx,” admonished Jordan.

  “It’s okay, Jordan,” Lukas said. Turning to Alyx, he said, “I don’t. It’s unnecessary. My swallows, Zulu and Nerabah, stay with me and help me because they want to, not because the bracelets force them to stay near me. They are my friends, my family. Can you imagine being made to stay within a confined area and only being let out to carry out orders?”

  Alyx thought of her old life at Michaelea. I can imagine.

  * * *

  Just inside Michaelea’s ward, Alyx, Jordan and Lukas waited in silence. Alyx could hear the distant passing of the patrole guards through the trees. She held her breath until the sound faded. Where were the swallows? What if they didn’t come back? Lukas seemed to think he had these untethered swallows under his command, but Alyx wasn’t sure.

  Minutes later the two swallows returned. They cooed softly to Lukas, one on each shoulder. Lukas listened intently, whispered something back to them and they took off back into the air.

  “There is a break in the patrole lines coming up,” Lukas said. “Zulu and Nerabah will call out when it is safe for you to go. You’ll have less than two minutes to get through the lines.” Lukas looked at Jordan. “I hope you understand what you’re doing. As a Rogue within the Michaelea wards, if you get caught they’ll kill you on sight.”

  “I won’t get caught.” Jordan clapped a hand on Lukas’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

  “Thank me by getting out alive. Go. They’ve just called. Remember, less than two minutes.”

  As Alyx and Jordan left the safety of their hiding place, she looked back and caught Lukas staring at her, a wary glint in
his eyes.

  Alyx and Jordan made their way through the ward lines, darting through the canopy in silence. Once through the patrole lines they veered left around the outskirts of the lake towards Mayrekk’s hut. Alyx was still thinking about the look Lukas had given her.

  “Don’t take it personally,” Jordan said. “Lukas is just worried about me.”

  Alyx started. “Are you a mind reader or something?”

  “No, I can see it on your face.”

  “I didn’t realize I was so obvious.”

  “You’re not. I’ve just learned to read people. Out here, as a FreeThinker, you learn very quickly how to observe people, how to know when to trust someone. You need to if you’re going to survive. You can’t just trust that if someone is Seraphim they’re your friend, nor can you assume that just because someone has horns they’re your enemy.”

  Alyx let this sink in. “Have you and Lukas been friends for long?”

  “Lukas is the one who found me when I first left Michaelea. He’s been like a brother to me ever since. We’ve been through a lot together.”

  Alyx wanted to ask more, but Jordan signaled her to be silent. They were nearing Mayrekk’s hut.

  Two guards were standing on either side of Mayrekk’s door. Alyx and Jordan crouched low in the nearby bushes. They were close enough that Alyx could recognize the guards as lightwarriors, although she didn’t know their names.

  “What do we do now?” whispered Alyx.

  “I have an idea,” Jordan whispered back. “Wait here.”

  Before Alyx could ask where he was going, Jordan disappeared into the undergrowth. She couldn’t see him now. I hope he knows what he’s doing.

  Alyx counted the minutes that passed, each one feeling longer and causing her shoulders to pinch higher and higher. Where was he?

  She spotted Jordan darting from the bushes around the side of Mayrekk’s hut and up along the curve of the roof. Did one of the guards just flinch? Did he hear Jordan approaching?