A Third of the Moon and the Stars Struck

by Jade Brieanne

  Summer Dantò grabbed her hand and placed it in hers. It was shaking and the movement brought the woman’s spirit essence to life, almost like pheromones. Musky, seductive, and floral, a testament to Summer. If Spring Dantò was the flower of youth and ambition, Autumn, the nucleus and nexus of power, and Winter, the gale of wisdom, Summer Dantò was the garden of feminine prowess, seduction, and Machiavellianism. Caelilore tells us the wealth of Khavah Dantò’s power was amassed in this state.

  “How are you, dear?” the woman tried, despite the way her voice quaked.

  Aria snorted. “I’m about to watch your daughter murder my cousin. I’m dandy.”

  Khavah’s head lifted minutely. “This is a difficult day for all of us.”

  “I bet,” she muttered.

  The hand holding hers tightened, almost to the point of pain. “Do you think I’m enjoying this?”

  “Wrong word to use,” Aria said, shrugging. “I don’t think you’re enjoying this at all but as I mentioned before the “accuser” has been running around Caeli in a bathrobe trying to pin something, anything on Ahn. She finally got what she was wishing for and you’re acting powerless to stop it.”

  “You have no proof she is Ose. And it’s not an act,” Khavah hissed. “You see that person?” she said pointing to a woman at the end of their row. “That is Prie, the granddaughter of Michael, the oldest, wisest and most influential archangel known, and someone very close to The Creator. She, like her grandfather, is a Hakimu.”

  Aria rolled her eyes again. The Hakimus were judges in The Glory Beyond. She wasn’t quite sure what they judged but because of their positions, they’d been given loads of power. Their power was secured within their clan; however, they disliked when that power was married off. That’s why someone like Balladan had such a prestigious and revered title. The youngest male Hakimu had to be protected.

  “I may be the Great Mother,” Khavah continued, “but I only control the noble houses, Aria. Ahn is accused of murdering the Son of the Hakimu. I raise a hand against them in this judgment and you won’t have to worry about The Eleven. There won’t be a Caeli left for them to fight.” The pressure on her hand eased.

  “So you think he did it,” she accused, her mummer low enough for only Khavah to hear.

  “No,” Khavah heaved a sigh. “I know Ahn’s methods. Murder isn’t one of them,” she murmured. “However, with SEKRÈ’s help, Dennes’ investigation was objective. All of the clues lead back to Ahn. And no, before you start, I do not believe SEKRÈ planted any evidence. Now, Ahn may not have done it, but he damn sure didn’t help by acting like a fourteen-year-old schoolboy in love and giving my daughter, or anyone else,” she pointed out, “who held a grudge against him plenty of leverage to pin this on him.”

  Aria thought of Elle but the chit was too stupid and gullible to plan something so elaborate. Irritated, she sat back in her seat, her arms crossed and her face stormed over.

  “I saw you talking to M’Chelle Kane. She is an instigator, a conspiracy theorist. Don’t let her get into your head. Whatever you’re thinking you should do, don’t. Don’t jeopardize your standing here. A lot of people sacrificed to bring you back. Ahn sacrificed a lot to bring you back. Don’t dishonor that being foolhardy.”

  “Anais is going to kill him, Khavah! You didn’t choose Ahn because he was a fierce warrior! You picked him because he is wise and resourceful, empathetic! He hasn’t fought since the war! She’s a freak of nature! I can feel the pressure from her psychotic spiritual mass from here!”

  Khavah released Aria’s hand and rubbed her face. “We all have our purpose. If Ahn purpose moves past this fight, then he will survive.”

  “And if not?”

  “Then Ahn’s final judgment will not be on this battlefield,” Khavah said. “It will be at The Creator’s feet.”

  CHAPTER EIGHTY EIGHT

  Underbelly of The Pit of Enduylah

  Ahn couldn’t say that he was exactly scared of Anais. That would be stupid. He loved her.

  He did recognize that she was insane. Out of her mind. It was the type of insanity that couldn’t be treated. It was the type of insanity that came from years of jealousy, resentment and a hunger for power that would never be hers. Anais thought Ahn didn’t know her.

  He knew her very well.

  He thought he could bring peace to her obsession. After all, she was already influential, she was already the smartest creature he’d ever met, and she was already powerful.

  He wished that she could be satisfied.

  “You remember the rules?” Parker asked. “Because I really, really need for you to remember the rules. Desperately. If you remember the rules maybe you can find a way to beat her and win this. I just…you remember the rules, right?”’

  Ahn laughed. “You’re nervous.”

  Parker frowned. “Obviously more nervous than you are.”

  “Yes. Currently, my heightened emotion is deathly fear. Comes out a little smoother than nervousness despite the fact I can’t feel my face. Or my hands. My legs are fine, which is great. I’ll need them to run from Anais.”

  Parker whined a bit in the back of his throat. “That’s one of the rules, Ahn! You can’t run. You don’t have anywhere to run to!”

  “Jog, then. Whatever. Stop acting like a spineless yellowbelly and help me with this armor.”

  Parker handed him a gauntlet, thin, almost like it was made out of delicate translucent gold. He slapped it on his forearm with little care to if it was on correctly or not because it wasn’t like the armor would help. It was just for show. “Truss a turkey up before you slaughter it.”

  “Okay,” Parker breathed, next handing him greaves made of the same thin translucent gold. “The rules since it seems you have forgotten them.” He cleared his throat.

  Ahn didn’t sigh. He didn’t roll his eyes. He didn’t tell Parker to shut up. Because Parker was nervous and…just maybe Ahn needed a refresher on the rules. He nodded as he moved to a seat to get the shin guard into place.

  “You as the accused–”

  That didn’t last long. Ahn rolled his eyes.

  “–will face the accuser on a battlefield of their choice.”

  “Which is how we ended up at this hell hole.”

  Parker glared at him before continuing. “Both the accuser and the accused will bring with them a weapon of their choice.”

  “You know,” Ahn said, interrupting him again, “I should have thought about this for Jin Amaris. Running her through at a duel would have been a lot more spectacular than at a graduation.”

  “This is not a fight to the death…for you, the accused,” Parker pressed on. “For the accuser, their ultimate goal is your death. Killing in self-defense is allowed but it doesn’t work in your best interest as killing the grieving widow of a man you’re accused of killing is…well…it doesn’t look good.”

  “Oh, yeah because not killing her and letting her kill me looks GREAT. Continue,” he said, breaking his second rule and sighing.

  “Your fate, however, can be decided by rendering the accuser unconscious, disarming the accuser and making them surrender, or if you can make them withdraw their accusation. Any of the above and you win. Win as in, not die.”

  “Which is a very big goal of mine.”

  “Do you think you can disarm her?” Parker asked, his eyes wide with hope.

  What a stupid thing to have. Ahn shook his head.

  “Knock her out?”

  “Hell no.”

  Parker took a seat next to him and slumped forward. “The probability of you surviving this are dwindling.”

  “Understatement.” Ahn chuckled. “Hey, Park…you remember what it was like when it was just the two of us before they sent Bon Baji and then Seff down? Back when we were dashing and young? I remember the thought of half-angels running around like little demons. It scared me to death! I had no idea what they would look like, how they would survive being so…fragile.”

  “I was scared they wo
uldn’t listen to us.”

  “They didn’t! They even threw rocks at us! Shemhazi was the one to calm them down,” Ahn finished quietly.

  “And now they listen to you without reservation, my leader.”

  “Ah,” Ahn’s smile was small but the feeling on his face was comforting, “Thought I’d never hear that word from you guys again.”

  “You are our leader, Ahn. You may be a suicidal criminal mastermind, but you care for Caeli and it shows. We just worry about you.”

  A horn bellowed, the sound loud and ominous. It’s about to begin.

  Ahn looked up from his seat. “Your worrying may be about to come to an end.”

  With Parker’s help, Ahn finished putting on his armor. On a long pedestal was his weapon, nestled deep in one of Liam’s chrome weapon crates. An Echo, the ones who served the E’phors, stood at the door. Ahn sighed. “A few things before I go, Parker.”

  Parker turned troubled eyes towards him but dutifully listened. “Make sure Liam gets a good assignment after this. Someone high up but who won’t be as hard on him as I was. He has a lot of potential. I can even see him as a Luminary one day. Don’t let Bon Baji act like a stick in the mud as your leader. Fight with her like you would fight with me. It’ll loosen her up over the years. Tell her if I hear about her crying, I’ll haunt her or something. Seff is the keeper of my plans. If you want to know all the bullshit I’ve been doing in secret around here, tell him he has my permission to tell you. But, you are not to get in the way. He holds my will, my desires for this realm, for Jin and for Aria and Caeli. Promise me, Parker. Don’t let your sensibilities corrupt my goals.”

  Parker nodded stiffly and bowed his head. “I promise.”

  “Make sure Elle eats well and is protected. I love that little girl like she were my own. Also, make sure Aria doesn’t get herself killed getting on people’s last nerves.”

  “Yes, my leader.”

  “Oh, and Parker…after the war, should you survive, you have my leave to officially mate if that is still your wish. Just as I spoke to Khavah about Bon Baji, I spoke to her about you.”

  Parker’s head flew up. Tears sprung to his eyes and his bottom lip began to tremble. “The restriction for Sheena will be lifted?”

  “Permanently. Khavah doesn’t want you to suffer any more for breaking one small rule. Eventually, after this is all over with, that rule will be abolished.” The rule that Ahn broke so often. Parker was different. His lover wasn’t the high and mighty daughter of the Divine. She was just an angel with little power, none to fight against a restriction that meant to keep The Above subdued in Caeli.

  “Thank you, Ahn,” Parker replied brokenly. “Thank you.” He lowered to both knees and bowed, his head touching the back of Ahn’s armor covered hand.

  “Oh, get up would you?” Ahn said, smacking Parker’s shoulder.

  “It is time,” the Echo said from the door. He could hear the words being echoed down the hall by the other Echoes before their voices all sounded together to repeat, “It is time.”

  Ahn cracked open the crate and looked down at his weapon. “It’s been a while, old friend.” He removed the scythe, the blade still sharp and the handle in pristine condition. Wrapping his gloved fingers around it, he looked at the door where the Echo stood waiting.

  “It is time,” he whispered.

  CHAPTER EIGHTY NINE

  “The Pit is sealed! Unleash the pendulum!”

  The long, silent walk from the antechamber to the Pit was dreadful, especially with the Echoes blank, ashen eyes staring at you. The sound of the steel gate closing behind him had been scary. The loud clanking sound of the gears working to release the giant pendulum that would sweep across the center of the Pit floor was slightly more chilling. He meant slightly more chilling as in absolutely fucking terrifying.

  “How much worse can today get?” he groaned.

  The pendulum swung in a mighty moving crescent as it gained speed, whooshing with each pass. That horrifying sound was accompanied by a high pitched sccccrrrt as the razor-sharp blade glanced over the stone floor of the Pit.

  Ahn never understood their use of the pendulum other than to inspire fear. A seasoned fighter would say something along the lines of it kept the combatants alert, making them ultimately more aware of their surroundings and keeping the playing field sharp.

  Ahn wasn’t a seasoned warrior. He thought that Later Ụwaians were goddamn barbarians and anyone who chose this as a duel site was a sadistic fuck.

  Speaking of sadistic people, Ahn stared across the Pit floor, his eyes falling on the one person responsible for his fear. Anais looked beautiful albeit deadly and bit deranged, but that was a daily occurrence for the angel. She stood on the other side, her gaze hard, unrelenting, unforgiving, as the pendulum swept between them. She was light on the armor as well, her outfit almost causal. It spoke to her confidence. She came to a duel dressed in an outfit that looked like she would go horseback riding afterward.

  She broke her glare to turn towards the audience and Ahn started to breathe again.

  “I am Anais Dantò of clan Elizi, Cherubim angel of The Glory Beyond, an angel of fire and light, widow of the Son of the Hakimu, and daughter of The Divine. I speak vengeance, I seek vengeance and I shall have my vengeance today!” She side glanced Ahn and pointed one of her two weapons, a heavy claymore, at him. “With his death, the vengeance for my realm, my clan, and Balladan will be complete! I humbly ask for permission to exact it!”

  Ahn rolled his eyes. She already had her damn permission. That’s why they were in the pit of death to begin with! What was she hoping to accomplish with that ridiculous speech? Faintly, he could feel some of his love for her turn to hate. Fair. She did just declare to all of Caeli that she wanted to rearrange his insides with her laughably humongous sword.

  “It has been granted, by and by, Anais Dantò,” Dennes intoned, his weathered hands pressed against his chin. “However, you understand that if you are not able to bring death to the accused, they go free?”

  “Don’t worry. “Anais grinned nastily. “His blood will spill and his deplorable existence will be gone from this realm.”

  Ahn scoffed and threw his hands up. She’s laying it on really thick! Before he quite possibly died, he planned on telling her that, plus a bunch of other nasty insults he’d always held back. Like the one time she DID look fat in that dress.

  For now, he opted for: “You can try, you hell harpy!”

  “Don’t antagonize her, Ahn!” Bon Baji cried from somewhere.

  “That’s what I do! I antagonize people!”

  “This isn’t a talent show!”

  “Yeah, yeah,” he muttered. “Uh, can I get a final word?”

  Dennes glanced him over before nodding slowly, as if he didn’t trust what was about to come out of Ahn’s mouth. Dennes was a wise man.

  Ahn turned towards the audience. “Greetings, everyone. Um. If I can have your attention before my inevitable grisly death!” he laughed. No one laughed with him. Tough crowd. He paused and cleared his throat. “Just wanted to say a few words and I hope you understand my sincerity in such a…tragic moment, personally, anyway. I just wanted to say…I didn’t fucking kill Balladan! Fuck your proof. It’s all fabricated! This is a setup! I’m being framed, you halfwits!”

  Dennes’ head dropped with a sigh and he raised his hand. “Okay, that’s enough, Ahn–”

  Ahn rolled right through his command. “I’m not sure what happens when you kill innocent people but I sure hope it’s slow and painful! Have a wonderful fucking life! Fuck you!”

  Apparently, no one in the Pit liked what he had to say, go figure, and the arena quickly filled with boos and swears. “I didn’t say you had to agree with me!” he spat back, sticking his tongue out at them.

  An Echo hovered near the hinge point where the pendulum was connected to the ceiling of The Pit. “The Accuser and The Accused, ready your weapons! The duel will commence on the third swing!”

  �
�Whatever plan you have, Ahn, use it!” Parker yelled from…somewhere. “Improvise! Quickly!”

  He did have a plan. He could admit it wasn’t a very good one but it was a plan. It was the only one he had. He hoped he didn’t die doing it. Ahn rotated his scythe into position, watching the double edge weapon gleam in the low light of The Pit.

  The pendulum whooooshed between them.

  One.

  Anais dropped into position.

  Two.

  “Sagun Path,” Ahn whispered, his body tingling as he asked for permission to uncap his powers. This was one of the reasons why Ahn spent more time reading than fighting. The Above, like all full-blooded angels on this plane, had limited power access. Having to ask for permission was exhausting.

  Still, if there was a time he needed to call on a higher power, it was now.

  “12thth disciple. I command you.”

  CHAPTER NINETY

  Aria watched the battle unfold from the platform, her body tilted forward on her elbows, her eyes locked on the fight. It was difficult. The Pit was dark and there was scarce light scattered inside of it. This was compounded by the fact that tall volcanic mountains rose on each side of it, blocking outside light, and the dense jungle vegetation latched onto the exterior like gristle to a bone.[AW2]

  The little light they did have from the torches was a gift and a curse. As the pendulum swung in its deadly arc, the light bounced off the edge of the blade, causing most to squint and deflect their eyes.

  A shadow fell across her face and she looked up to see Kano. He looked at her for a long moment before he moved to the seat next to hers, and sat down, quiet and brooding as always.

  “How are you holding up, kiddo,” she said, her eyes never leaving the Pit floor. Ahn feinted with his weapon and Anais blocked it before withdrawing back to her side of the pit, the pendulum scrapping across the floor as she moved out of the way.