The Soul Thief

by Kim Richardson

  “You’re sick,” said Erik. “And I’m going to put you down for what you did to my friend.”

  Erik shifted his weight. Alexa knew he was about to throw himself at Ryan. Although Erik was a skilled fighter, Ryan was an angel with superior skill and supernatural strength. He would kill Erik.

  Alexa reacted before Erik could strike.

  She slipped off her pack and hurled it into the mouth of the Hellgate. It rippled once, and the bag disappeared into the blackness.

  Then nothing. Alexa stared at the Hellgate hopefully, but it appeared that her brilliant plan had been a disaster. Dread coiled around her core, her soul. She’d failed.

  Ryan threw back his head and howled with demented laughter. “If only you could see your face. Stupid angel. Give it up. I told you, you’re too late. You can’t stop the inevitable. You can’t stop fate. The Hellgate has been fed. It’s over.”

  And then, as if on cue, her worse fears materialized.

  Lightning tore violently across the blackness of the sky. It flashed in every direction, forking and doubling over on itself until the whole sky burned. Thunder rolled through the forest, and more thunder echoed out from the Hellgate. The ground shook, and the atmosphere itself appeared to be in a fury.

  Alexa stood in the center of the maelstrom and screamed. It was as though darkness was ripping the fabric of the air. Alexa felt as if it would pull her body apart.

  Shafts of green light shot out and upwards from the Hellgate. Green and red curtains of light vibrated, danced, and with gathering speed were pulled into a vortex that disappeared into the mouth of the Hellgate.

  There was a tremendous flash of light, and a violent explosion of wind stripped the trees of their branches and blew a wall of dirt and pine needles into Alexa’s face.

  She wiped her eyes and recovered quickly, but it was too late. The deity was coming out.

  Ryan danced demonically around the Hellgate. “I call upon the true Gods of old, beautiful and cruel and powerful. Come now. Come to this place, this world. Take these offerings as the true sacrifice. The Hellgate is open. Rise. Rise! All that dies shall be re-born. All that falls shall rise again! Rise. Rise! I am at your service, Lord. I await your command.”

  Alexa felt the air move behind her.

  “Erik! No!”

  But before she could stop him, Erik shot forward and caught Ryan off guard. For a moment she thought he might have a chance. But Ryan recovered too quickly, and in a moment Erik was pinned against a tree with a soul blade pointed into his face.

  Alexa exploded in a rage that surged from deep within her core. Images of the dead girls rose in her mind, and she was running and screaming before she had time to think. She attacked with the speed and grace of a cougar.

  Just as Ryan was about to drive his blade into Erik’s face, she threw her arm around his neck and yanked him away.

  She dropped the soul blade, but it didn’t matter. Before Ryan could steady himself, she punched him as hard as she could, and he tumbled to the ground. She was on top of him in a second and drove her fists into his face again and again. All her rage and fear poured into her fists, and she hit him until she thought the skin on her hands would rip away. She didn’t even care that she’d become a monster.

  And then she heard a voice as old as dirt.

  “If you don’t stop killing my angel, the mortal dies.”

  CHAPTER 33

  ALEXA FROZE, HER FISTS suspended in midair.

  Ryan’s face was smashed, and his angel essence poured from his nose, his mouth, and the many cuts on his face. While she had succeeded in knocking him out cold, she knew she couldn’t kill him with violence.

  Too bad.

  The forest had grown unnaturally quiet, and Alexa braced herself and stood up.

  At first, she could barely see through the blinding white light. She squinted and blinked until her eyes had adjusted. What she saw nearly sent her to her knees.

  A giant man stood in front of the great oak tree. He was completely naked, and his muscles rippled over his strong body. His skin gave off a sparkling glow as though he had been painted with stars. His ageless face was neither old nor young, beautiful or terrifying. His white beard grazed his chest, and the unlimited knowledge in his bottomless black eyes commanded her attention.

  Erik hung limply like a puppet in the deity’s grip. His skin was too pale, and Alexa feared the worst.

  “I can’t remember seeing an angel female fight like a real warrior before.” The deity’s voice sounded alien and ancient. “A valiant effort, considering your size. I was expecting a legion of archangels upon my arrival. But they sent you. Are you exceptional in some way? Why did the Legion send a child to stop a God?”

  Alexa trembled in fear. She knew in her soul there was nothing she could do. Even if she fought, even if she raged with everything he had, she was like an ant to this pagan God.

  All that remained of the Hellgate were the stones that had formed the circle around the tree. She could see the forest through the cleft in the tree. The Hellgate was closed. The deity was out.

  Erik did not appear to be breathing.

  “Please,” she whispered. “Please, let him go. You’ve got what you wanted. You’re out. Let him go.”

  The deity ignored her and stepped around the clearing as though he were testing his legs for the first time. He didn’t seem to notice that he was naked. Even without looking at him, she could sense the mass of darkness that swirled around him.

  He halted and turned around, poised to devour the world.

  Alexa was terrified and wanted to run, but she ignored her impulse to flee and faced the deity in the hope that she could save Erik.

  “What I want,” growled the deity, and the ground shook beneath Alexa’s feet, “is for all the souls in this mortal world to bow down to me, to worship me just as they’ve done for centuries. I have taken back the Netherworld, and now I want the mortal world, too.”

  The deity leered at her so viciously that he looked like an animal. He moved so close to her that she could smell him. While ordinary demons had smelled of rotten flesh, the deity smelled of cider, moist soil, grass and meadows. He smelled like the earth.

  Alexa was horrified to see that what she first had thought were stars painted on his skin, were in fact the remnants of thousands of mortal souls. His entire body was made up of souls. She could almost smell their fear and hear their futile cries as they had been devoured.

  Alexa swayed with rage, barely focusing on what was happening. Her insides had turned into ice.

  “And when I’m satisfied, I will then let out my brothers and sisters. We have taken over this mortal world before, and we will have dominion over it now. It is our right, and your Legion of angels will not interfere with us again.” His laughter sounded like bone rubbing against rock. “You stupid angel heroes, your hopeless work to save the souls of mortals will come to nothing. I’m going to rip your world apart piece by piece simply because I can. And you can’t stop me. I have felt the cruelty of your Legion, and when they’re all gone, you will have nothing.”

  “Who are you?” asked Alexa shakily. She didn’t think she’d survive this encounter, but if by some freak miracle she did, she knew that any information would be helpful.

  She seemed to have appealed to the deity’s vanity because he replied proudly, “I’ve had many names, but I’m known as Hades.”

  Oh crap.

  Alexa wasn’t well versed in mythology, but she knew that Hades was one of the bad guys, perhaps even the worst. He was the God of the dead, the God of the underworld.

  She didn’t know what was worse—to stand before Hades or to watch as Erik’s life slowly fade away before her eyes.

  Hades must have recognized something on her face because he said, “Who is this mortal to you?” He swung Erik by his arm as if he weighed no more than air. “He must mean a great deal for you to butcher your own kind in an attempt to save his life. Do angels and mortals mate now? Is this your m
ate?”

  Alexa couldn’t move. “He’s my friend. And I care about him.”

  “Friend? I think not.” Hades laughed and shook Erik violently.

  “Stop!” Alexa raised her hands in surrender. “Please. Please don’t. Stop. I’ll do anything you want.” She swallowed as she tried to control her breathing and ease the pain in her throat.

  The deity smiled in the most disturbing way. “Excellent. Then let’s deal.”

  He dropped Erik like a sack, and something snapped as he hit the ground. Alexa started to move to him immediately, but with one look from Hades, she stilled.

  Erik’s eyes fluttered open and settled on Alexa. He was alive. Alexa’s relief only lasted a moment before she saw the fear on his face. Erik’s voice was barely audible.

  “Alexa. No. Run.”

  Alexa turned away from Erik and looked directly at Hades. “Fine. Let’s hear it.”

  She realized her error almost the moment she spoke. She knew something was wrong, and he’d trapped her somehow, but there was nothing she could do. She waited for Hades to speak.

  The deity stepped around Erik, and an icy smile spread across his ageless face. “Your angel soul in exchange for his mortal life.”

  This was worse than she had imagined. She would have agreed to be his plaything in exchange for Erik’s life. She knew that making a deal with Hades was probably the worst idea she had ever had, but she also knew that she’d do anything for Erik.

  Alexa trembled and swallowed again. “And you’ll let him go? You’ll let him live if I agree to it?”

  Erik’s eyes opened wide, and she tried to ignore the fear and horror that she saw in them. He feared for her and not for himself.

  The deity smiled greedily. “Of course.”

  “How do I know you’re not lying and that you won’t kill him right after you…after you kill me and take my soul.”

  “You don’t,” he said. “But that’s just a chance you’ll have to take. But know this…my word is good. I will let him live if you give me your soul willingly. An angel who willingly gives away their soul is worth the souls of a thousand unwilling angels. It is much, much more powerful. I promise I won’t hurt the monkey. He has nothing I want.”

  Alexa looked at Erik again. This time her life did flash before her eyes because this time she knew she was going to die. She wished she could have told him how she felt, even how ridiculous it had been to have fallen in love with him. Still, she would have told him how she wished they had met as mortals in another life. And when she looked at him for the last time, Erik’s free falling tears were all she needed to see to know that he understood how she felt.

  “So, Alexa,” purred Hades, as though tasting her name on his lips. He moved forward and stopped a just a foot away. The space between them felt strangely intimate. “Your soul for his life? What will it be?” The greed in his expression also promised the violence and pain that would follow if she refused his deal.

  “No. Alexa.” Erik strained to say the words.

  She could see his fear and anger through his tears, but there was something else in his expression that she had never seen before.

  She knew that to negotiate with demons contradicted all the angel rules and laws. If she agreed to his deal, she would be breaking the most important one—an angel should never willingly give up its soul. But what did that matter now?

  “Don’t do it,” breathed Erik. His face was twisted in pain, and his hair was smeared on his sweaty forehead.

  But Alexa had already made her decision.

  Bracing herself, she stepped forward until she could smell pine needles and tree sap, until she could see the small wrinkles widen on Hades’ cheeks as his black eyes gleamed with greed.

  “Do it.”

  Erik shouted her name, but she could barely hear it as the god slammed his fist into her chest. It happened so fast that she didn’t even have time to say goodbye.

  Pain like she’d never felt before exploded inside her. Her body was on fire. Her soul was on fire. Her vision splintered, and she screamed and screamed until her voice broke, and there was no more screaming left in her.

  A worm of darkness pushed its way into her core, wriggling and squirming inside her. Her body thrashed as she tried to get it out, but she was too late. Millions of trapped and screaming souls pounded in her head. She could smell burnt hair and something else unfamiliar. It was the smell of her life being pulled away. And then she simply felt cold and empty.

  The last thing she saw before she slipped into nothing was Erik’s pained and pleading face.

  CHAPTER 34

  ALEXA STOOD IN A ROOM SURROUNDED by windows.

  At first, the bright white light blinded her, and she couldn’t see more than a few paces in front of her.

  How did I get here? Where is here?

  Her memories were muddled and out of reach. But as she grew accustomed to the light, shadows became solid, and she could see that she was in an elegant room that was furnished with plush carpets and comfortable looking sofas and armchairs. A black sky glinted with stars outside.

  She knew she should be scared, but she wasn’t. There was a calmness here that she couldn’t explain, like the comfort of a hug from a friend. It felt safe. She felt safe. But what was she even doing here? She felt the presence of someone else behind her and turned around.

  An elderly man made his way towards her with an easiness and a quickness of step that seemed more suited to a man half his age. He wore a white kimono with gold stars stitched into the fabric and a golden belt tied around his thick waist. He smiled at her with small sparkling eyes that almost disappeared into his cheeks.

  He offered her a bowl of M&Ms, Skittles, Toffee, Jelly Beans, and Gummy Bears. “Here, try the Jelly Beans. They’re my favorite.” He popped a red one into his mouth and chewed it cheerfully.

  Alexa stared at this smiling man, and her mind cleared. She remembered everything—who she was, how she had died, Erik’s sad face, the archangel, Metatron, the Hellgate, and the deal she’d made with the Hades. They all flashed in her mind’s eye.

  There could only be one reason why she stood here now. She had suffered an angel’s true death.

  “Are you…are you God? I mean, the God?”

  The man swept his long white beard over his shoulder. “I have many names. You can call me Chief, if you wish.”

  “I don’t understand. If this is an angel’s true death…shouldn’t I have disappeared into nothing?”

  “Tell me, Alexa, what do you remember?” said the Chief with a mouth full of M&Ms.

  She wasn’t surprised he knew her name, but she was surprised to be here. “I…” she paused. She found the words were hard to form, like she had been forbidden to talk about what she’d done. “I gave my soul to Hades.”

  The Chief watched her for a moment. “Come. Let’s sit and have a talk.”

  He gestured towards the soft sofas, and she followed him and let herself fall into the sofa across from him. The square coffee table beside him was covered with plates of food and a variety of drinks.

  He grabbed a small bowl of fries with gravy and cheese curds. “Poutine? I’ve only just discovered this. Comes from Quebec. Spectacular. Who knew that fries and cheese and gravy would taste this good?”

  Alexa waved her hand. “No thanks.”

  He settled into the sofa with his bowl of poutine. “I know about Hades. It is unfortunate that he has managed to slip into the mortal world once again. Deities like him are far superior to mere demons.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said guiltily. “If we had more help, maybe we could have stopped him. Maybe—”

  “This is not your fault, Alexa.” The Chief frowned. “You shouldn’t blame yourself. If fact, you should be very proud of what you’ve achieved.”

  Alexa looked embarrassed and twiddled her fingers nervously. “But now he’s out in the world wreaking havoc and destruction and death.”

  “Yes,” sighed the Chief. “Hades is a seriou
s problem. And he will only grow stronger the more he feeds on human emotions and energy. He’s addicted, and he won’t stop until has consumed every single mortal soul.”

  A shiver ran down Alexa’s spine. She thought of Erik and Matt and all the others. How could they face such evil?

  But if she was here now, that meant the Chief must have known she’d escaped Metatron’s clutches. She knew Metatron would catch up with her one day. And it looked like today was the day.

  “Are you going to send me to Tartarus?” her voice trembled slightly. “Is that why I’m here?”

  “Tartarus?” The Chief looked surprised. “Not today. Unless you want to go.”

  “No.” Alexa strained to look neutral, but her insides jumped with joy. She could see that the Chief sensed her relief. Alexa leaned forward. “Hades took my soul. I felt it. Why aren’t I dead?”

  The Chief raised his thick white eyebrows. “Excellent question. Because of the sacrifice you made, my dear. You gave your soul willingly to save a life—and that in itself provided you with the strongest kind of protection. When Hades took your soul, he only got half of it.”

  “Half?” Alexa stared in disbelief.

  The Chief popped a handful of jellybeans into his mouth. “Souls are curious things. Your sacrifice gave your soul more power and more protection. When Hades reached out to take your soul, he could only withdraw half of it. He might not have noticed right away, but he’ll come to discover it sooner or later.”

  Instinctively, Alexa touched her chest to see if she could feel any difference, but she only felt a strange calmness and comfort. “But how will I function? I’m not whole. Am I even a real angel anymore?”

  “It’s a rare thing to give up one’s soul for another,” said the Chief. “It takes a special angel with the purest of souls to counter such terrible evil. And your soul protected you.”