Smoke and Ritual (Beautiful Dark Beasts Book 1)

by Melissa Sercia

  “Not without my mother,” she snapped. “Chaos, what about Gray? She could be in here too.”

  I winced at the sound of her name. The infamous Consilium leader who I had admired my entire life. What if Sapphire was right? What if they were all here and we destroyed them?

  “They aren’t here. I can feel it. You have to trust me on that,” Chaos said.

  My heart sank as I watched my best friend spin on her heel and stomp through the opening of the tree without so much as a glance back. “I hope you’re right about this.”

  Seven’s dhampir sight glowed like two amber-lit fireflies. His fingers twitched as if he were searching the air for their energy. As if he were trying to track them with his heightened senses. “He is. The one who made me is among the missing. I don’t feel her here either. I want to find them as much as Sapphire does, but this isn’t where they are. I am beginning to think that Echo is telling the truth…about having nothing to do with it.”

  Diego stepped forward. “I’ll try to calm her down. Arya, be safe.” He squeezed my shoulder before taking off through the opening with a disgruntled Lorenzo at his heels.

  Seven and Shade dragged the rest of the Elemental coven leaders through the opening, leaving Chaos and me alone in the clearing.

  He let out a deep breath and ran a shaky hand through his dark hair. “And then there were two. Your mother was right. There is a possibility that we could be punished for this. Last chance to back out.”

  I grabbed his hand, interlocking our fingers. “This needs to be done. No matter what happens, we’ll face it together.”

  He pulled me toward him and planted a soft kiss on my lips. “I had a feeling you’d say that. But I can’t let you take the fall for this.”

  I opened my mouth to protest just as he pushed me toward the oak tree. He flapped his wings, and a gust of wind hurled me backward, forcing me through the open portal.

  Twenty-Six

  Stumbling forward, Seven caught me right before I hit the ground. I spun around, my heart sinking. The opening in the tree was gone. I lunged at it, palms out, banging on the wood even though I knew it was no use. But Chaos was still in there. Why would he do that? We were supposed to destroy it together.

  I bit my lip, fighting back tears. “Did you know?”

  Seven couldn’t look me in the eye. “I’m sorry, Arya. He didn’t want you to shoulder any blame for this.”

  The tears spilled out anyway. “But…what if something happens to him? What if something goes wrong? He’s all alone.”

  “He will be fine. He’s a god, remember? Besides, he’s the only one who can get us through the gates of Elysium. He’ll be out soon. I’m sure of it.”

  I pressed my forehead to the tree and closed my eyes. Deep breaths, Arya. Deep breaths. “Still…he shouldn’t have lied to me.”

  My mother chided me. “He was doing what was best for you, Arya. You cannot blame him for that. He loves you deeply.”

  The bark cut into my fingers as I squeezed it, hoping if I drew blood, if I felt physical pain, then the panic in my heart would subside. “I love him more than anything in existence,” I whispered.

  Minutes turned to hours as we waited for Chaos to return through the tree. I was starting to lose my mind, pacing back and forth. I wasn’t the only one on edge. Sapphire was slapping her sword against a tree—no doubt thinking about what might have happened to her mother. Diego and Lorenzo avoided each other like the plague, yet there was no shortage of icy glares between them.

  The ancestors were the only ones who had any patience. They sat calmly on the grass, almost meditative. Waiting was something they were used to doing. They had to have been so happy to just be out of Purgatory that it didn’t seem to matter what I told them to do next. They were willing to do anything to get into Elysium.

  Another hour passed before the ground began to shake again. The leaves and branches of the oak tree rustled and its trunk began to part. With a sea of smoke and flames behind him, Chaos sprinted through the opening like a lightning bolt.

  I ran to him and then stopped. Beads of sweat dripped off his brow. His body trembled. “Arya…I—I’m sorry. But it’s done.”

  I wanted to punch him for lying to me, but I was so grateful that he made it out. I threw my arms around his neck. “It’s okay. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

  He hugged me tight, kissing my cheeks and my neck. “I love you too much to let you be punished for this.”

  I pulled away and looked up at his dark brown eyes. “I know. I would have done the same for you if you’d let me. But no matter what the punishment is, we will face it together. I’m not letting you take all the blame. This was my idea.”

  “Arya—”

  “Not another word about it. I don’t need saving anymore. I can handle whatever comes.” The heat of his touch, the intoxicating way he looked at me, was like a drug. So powerful that it made me feel invincible.

  I pointed to the road ahead. “Now that that’s settled, lead the way.”

  He hesitated, but then motioned for everyone to gather round. “Listen up. We will pass through my realm first. I will put you somewhere safe while Arya and I meet with the gods. If everyone does what I say, we will all be just fine.”

  A sinking sensation grew in the pit of my stomach. The gods were not blind. They knew Purgatory was snuffed out the second it happened, and they knew who’d done it. But these people were trusting us. I hoped we weren’t leading them to a worse fate. I forced a smile, trying to shake off the dread that was growing and followed Chaos into the Harpy Forest with the rest of the group marching behind us.

  Chaos stopped at a stone bench near the entrance to the forest and waited. The flapping of wings resonated through my ears. I looked up to see the rainbow-haired harpy leader flying toward us. She landed softly on the ground, a serene expression on her face.

  He approached her with caution. “I’m pleased that you have returned to guard the gates. I hope you will let us pass.” After all the fighting and bloodshed between us, the harpies were not the enemy anymore. Hopefully it would stay that way.

  She bowed slightly and raised her hand for us to continue forward. I stopped in front of her, looking deep into her eyes. There was a kindness there that was missing from the other harpies. A shyness that was out of character for their kind. I stuck out my hand to shake hers. She hesitated, but took it, wrapping her talons gently around my fingers. “Thank you for helping us. You won’t regret it.”

  “Neither will you,” she whispered. Her voice was sweet and melodic, like a child’s. A feeling of mutual respect passed between us as I skipped to catch up with Chaos.

  With wings unfolded, both of us charged forward toward the opening to Elysium. To his realm. Chaos’s realm. A part of me was a little nervous. He was letting me see his home for the first time. It was a huge part of him that I knew very little about.

  Sensing my apprehension, he grabbed my hand and held it tight to his chest. “Don’t be nervous.”

  I rubbed my damp palms against my jeans. “I don’t know why I am. I get to see where you came from, where you lay your head at night for thousands of years. I never thought I’d ever see it, actually.”

  He grinned from ear to ear. “I can’t wait to show you. Especially where I lay my head.” He winked and a little ripple of excitement tingled through me.

  We came to a stop in front of another oak tree, similar to the one in Purgatory. He placed his hands on its trunk and created an opening like before. “I have to warn you. Your magic doesn’t work in there and my powers become stronger. But please know that you will not need them. I will protect you.”

  Nerves stirred like butterflies in my stomach. I hadn’t thought about that before. That my magic would be utterly useless. It made perfect sense, though. This was a land of gods. Magic was irrelevant. “I trust you,” I murmured.

  I took a deep breath and followed Chaos through the opening to Elysium. Stepping through to the other side, I looked up
and gasped. It was breathtaking. I had never seen trees that green before. They were like sparkling emeralds. And between them were perfect little glass houses.

  The others echoed my awe as they stepped in behind us. Whispers and gasps broke out amongst them. It was clear to me now why no one would ever want to leave this place. The energy was electrifying. It tingled through my body.

  We walked through the forest like ghosts and the souls living here did not pay us any mind. They had truly passed on. They were not intruding, as we were. A part of me felt unwelcome. Like this was wrong. Our presence was unnatural. We were alive, yet we were walking amongst the dead. And we brought more dead with us. My ancestors who had been cast out—we were infringing them upon this world without permission. What price would we have to pay for this act of rebellion?

  Chaos guided the others toward a clearing much like the one in Purgatory, and instructed them to wait. I wanted to cling to them all of a sudden. I wanted to remember every detail of their faces as if it might be the last time I ever saw them. My heart ached as he led me away. I looked back, lingering on my mother’s face, smiling as we left them there. Totally trusting.

  Seven, Sapphire, and Diego stood to the side, awaiting Chaos’s orders. He was a true god here, and it was clear from the way the passing souls bowed to him that he commanded this world.

  “Arya and I will journey to the Elysium court with the Elemental coven leaders. Wait for us here. If we do not return in three days, take this and get the hell out of here.” He handed Seven a pendant of some sort. Seven nodded in agreement, knowing in an instant what it was.

  I squinted, straining my eyes to get a closer look but Seven quickly shoved it into his coat pocket.

  “What was that?” There were still so many secrets between them. Between us.

  Chaos steered me away from the others. “Something I made for Seven a long time ago. In case something ever happened to me and he needed to get out.”

  Seven followed, shifting back and forth on his feet, hesitant. “As discussed, I will lead the others out, but you know I will never leave my wife.”

  “I’m well aware. You are the most stubborn fool I know.” Chaos’s tone was light, but the way their eyes locked, like steel and shadow, the way his hand firmly squeezed Seven’s shoulder, revealed just how far he was willing to go.

  I turned to Sapphire, who was no longer mentally present, and embraced her. “Hey. I promise you, we will find your family.”

  “I fear it’s worse than we imagined. I can feel it, Arya, and I’m scared.” Her eyes brimmed with tears, a display of emotion that was not common for her. “Something dark is coming,” she whispered.

  A cold chill ran up my spine. “Saph, don’t let your mind wander. We will find them.”

  Diego’s fidgeted with his collar, pulling it away from his neck as if it were suffocating him. “She’s right, mi amica. There is something very wrong about this that even the gods do not know where they are. Get back to us as quick as you can so we can figure this out.”

  I didn’t want to leave them behind but what choice did I have? I had to face the gods with Chaos and learn our fate. But a new fire was stirring in me. I knew for the first time in my life that I had a purpose. A mission. I had to save the ones who could not save themselves.

  I pulled Shade to the side. “Can you find them…with dark magic?”

  He crinkled his brow, confused. “I thought you were against that. I mean, aside from getting rid of the gravediggers.”

  I grabbed his arm, harder than I’d intended, a desperation coming over me. “Forget about what I believe in. Can you locate the missing coven leaders?”

  He took a deep breath and stared down at his feet for what seemed like an eternity. Jerking his head back up, “You know I can,” he replied.

  “Good. Start immediately.” Whoever was behind this was already a step ahead of us.

  “Are you—”

  “Yes. If something dark is coming for us, we need to be ready.” I locked my knees to keep them from shaking. Chaos couldn’t know about this. He would never understand.

  “Understood. I’ll get right on it.”

  I felt horrible keeping this new secret. Dirty even. But I made a promise to Sapphire, and I wasn’t going to stop until her mother was found, dead or alive. Shade had proven himself to me at the Sylph headquarters. I watched the sadness creep into his eyes as he witnessed me kill the tormented Rougarou man. He was not without mercy. Dark magic or not, he was a man of his word and honor. I was going to need his skills more than ever in the days to come.

  Chaos approached, apprehensive. “Everything all right?”

  I put on my best fake smile. “Yep. Just discussing his reinstatement as a coven leader. No big deal.”

  Chaos eyed him like a snake. “Of course, my love. We should get going though. The court awaits.”

  The two exchanged a look fit for battle, but they shook hands, respectfully, nonetheless. My heart raced as I prayed he would never find out what I was willing to do.

  Chaos pulled me toward him. “Close your eyes. We will be traveling a bit differently from here.”

  “Can’t we just fly there?” I figured this would be the one place where our wings could come in handy. A place where we wouldn’t stand out.

  “I can but not both of us. Not without being struck down from the sky. Trust me. This is the only way.”

  I nuzzled up against him. “Of course I trust you. I’ll go wherever you take me.”

  He didn’t return the embrace, his body rigid. “You are too trusting sometimes.”

  I winced, taken aback by his tone. “What—what are you talking about?”

  He sighed and pulled me in tight. “Never mind. Just remember, not everyone has your best interests at heart… Now close your eyes. It’s time to go face the gods.”

  As Chaos whisked me off the ground, I knew he wasn’t convinced that Shade and I were only discussing his status. I buried my face into his shoulder and whispered, “I’m sorry for asking Shade for help…but no matter the cost, I promised my best friend I would save her coven.”

  He pressed his soft lips to my ear. “I understand more than you know. The sacrifices that are made for those we love. The magic inside of you…it has many facets. I always knew it would be your destiny to put others before yourself. You risk losing some of your light in doing so, and yet…I will love you anyway.”

  Maybe it was the tone of his voice, or the chill on my back, or the night sky above me that I couldn’t see with my eyes closed, but I could feel it in my bones with every fiber of my being. My magic was changing me. By the quiet way he accepted my bargain with Shade, it was all of these things that were threatening to unravel… But for the first time I felt free. I felt powerful. And the idea of using dark magic excited me in a way that I wasn’t expecting.

  Twenty-Seven

  I opened my eyes as soon as my feet touched the ground, just in time to see two winged beings charging a direct path toward us. Chaos tensed beside me and released a long drawn out breath. “Just do as they say,” he whispered.

  I swallowed down the lump in my throat, afraid to move a muscle. They circled behind us and placed their hands on each of our shoulders. Chaos offered them his wrists, which they bound in fiery chains without hesitation. Beads of sweat formed on my brow from the heat. Chaos nodded for me to follow his lead.

  The being behind me flapped his wings with a fury as he breathed down my neck, sending chills across my back. He wanted my surrender, but he would take it from me if he had to. I didn’t want to find out what that would feel like. I extended my trembling arms back toward him. His cold hands pulled my wrists together, locking them inside a burning inferno of chains. I bit down on my lip to keep from crying out.

  I shifted my wrists and regretted it in that instant. A tickle of flame singed my flesh and sparks of light danced in my vision, dizzying me to almost passing out. The being jerked my shoulder, forcing me to lift my head back up. There was no e
scape. We were bound by the gods now.

  Chaos was as still as a statue next to me. “Don’t fight it, Arya. It’s no use.”

  The beings nudged us forward, forcing us to walk. Their silence unnerved me. Were they taking us to our execution? Our salvation? My stomach turned with each step I took.

  If I hadn’t been so terrified, I might have been able to enjoy more of the scenery. The path we walked was decorated with magnificent oak trees and colorful flowers, their vivid hues almost too bright for the mortal eye. The air was warm and sweet, and songs of hummingbirds echoed in the distance. It could have been peaceful, but it wasn’t. Not with ropes of fire wrapped around my wrists. Not with two all-powerful beings making it very clear that were prisoners, not welcomed guests.

  They led us to an opening in the forest, a sprawling field with golden flowers as far as the eye could see. As we were shoved into the middle of the field, I spotted three marble podiums. Three empty spots. The beings forced us to our knees.

  Chaos released a grunt as we went down. “Easy.”

  My knees smacked the ground, sending a searing pain up my spine. The beings showed no concern for me. This only made me more aware of how fragile I was in here. I wanted to reach out to Chaos. To feel his strong hands wrapped around mine. But I couldn’t move. I was afraid to even breathe.

  The ground rumbled against the sound of flapping wings, sharp and shrill, as the Adonis-like god sliced through the air and took a spot at the first podium. His pale blond hair was slicked back off his tanned face. His piercing blue eyes locked onto Chaos, his brows pinched together in disappointment.

  Another rustle from the trees revealed a second god. She floated through an opening and landed at the opposite podium, also focusing her gaze only onto Chaos. Her eyes were puffy and red.

  A third god shot down from the sky, landing with a thud on the center podium. His eyes were black and full of rage, a stark contrast to his pale white locks. Together, the three of them glared at Chaos for what seemed like an eternity. I thought my heart was going to explode out of my chest. I prayed they would make my death swift.