Midnight Flame and Crowns : a Shifter and Demon Fantasy Romance Boxed Set

by Meg Xuemei X

  Merlin’s magic.

  It was the galaxy fire.

  The most potent power now flowed through my veins, waking up every dormant cell. My magic responded and leapt, reaching his, circling before joining him.

  Fever, lust, pleasure, desperation, dreams, and despair came together. Merlin’s magic mated with mine, touching and caressing me everywhere at once and in every possible way.

  It stroked the flesh between my thighs and entered my depths, filling me with magic and wonder and promises.

  Together, our magics rippled, vibrated, and sang until they coaxed out my orgasm, wave after wave lapping at the golden shore.

  Lightning ran across my skin and shot into the gray sky. Our magics finished the final mating, gazing and whispering at each other in awe and tenderness.

  When I opened my eyes, Merlin wasn’t at my side anymore.

  The rose gold icon beamed like a star, and the glyph of an ivy vine that connected the four icons sparked to life; the mating circle was finally complete.

  Merlin had done what he’d promised.

  My power transcended everything, and I felt I could reach the stars again.

  Initially, Max and Ash had tried to get me to the Upper Realm to have Merlin train me. There’d be no training now. It was up to me to learn how to use my full, awoken power.

  I felt complete, yet at the same time, so lost. Merlin and I were no longer together. But in a sense, he would always be with me, as he’d whispered to my soul while our magics mated. He wouldn’t be with me physically, unlike Ash and Max.

  My gaze shifted to the icon of dark gold. The pale light from it had never vanished, even though Elijah was hunting us. Maybe the mating bond was beyond even the dark force? Maybe the archdemon was still redeemable? I’d have to check with Merlin later and get the druid to help him.

  I soon joined all of my mates to help the seven clans get above ground. Many of them inhaled the dense, sulfur-filled air and laughed, especially the children. They had never in their lives come to the surface until now.

  There were always many more who were less fortunate than us, and helping them kept our humanity alive.

  My gaze traveled between Ash, Max, and Merlin as they worked together to help our people to safety. Their hair was tussled and wild, their hard muscles flexed and sweated, they had dirt and grime all over them, yet they were the hottest in my sight.

  And the kiss with Merlin still burned in my memories that would last for a lifetime.

  CHAPTER 20

  __________________

  We continued our exodus toward the Shades.

  The cracked land was hot and dry beneath our feet. The air was thick with sulfur and smoke, as we marched closer to the volcanic hills. No one complained, not even the children. We moved on as one people.

  Max, Ash, Merlin, my tiger, and I trekked in the front. Sebastian, Octavia, and the Alpha Pure warriors marched right behind us. The children, elders, and civilians were placed in the center. The Omega Power team and fighters from other clans brought up the rear.

  During the whole day’s journey, we hadn’t spotted a single demon. Maybe we finally had a lucky break. But the tightness in my chest told me that the Guardians of the dead in the Shades might be worse than the demons. But we had to face them. We had no choice. We had to cross over the Shades to get to the last leyline. It was either risk the wrath of the dead or be hunted by the demons and die.

  We stopped at the fringe of the land of the Shades.

  The entry to the realm was a narrow trail between two columns of black mountains that spewed lava now and then. The path beyond the entrance was pitch black.

  When the lava stopped, smoke and ash spilled from the red-gray sky.

  Max ordered the Alpha Pure team to get the seven clans to camp where they were for the night.

  Only my mates and I would enter the Shades to get a pass first. If we made it out alive, we’d then bring our people in. That was the solution we and the Protectors came up with. And despite all her nasty objections to our exodus to the Shades, Halia had followed us, all the while spreading rumors and negativity.

  I allowed her to follow, but I wouldn’t allow her to reside in Atlantis if she ever made it with the rest of the clans. But I had bigger issues than her to worry about at the moment.

  Raven, Willow, Jonathan, my brother, Octavia, the women from the Desert Belle, and the Alpha Pure team stood on the outskirts of the Shades, watching my mates and me enter the narrow, dark path between the mountains.

  “Be safe and return for us, my queen and her consorts!” they called.

  As soon as we passed through the dark passage, lava erupted into the sky and the mountains trembled. The ground shook and rumbled, and lava flowed to the ground and formed a hot stream.

  Rocks from the side of the mountains also rained down. Merlin’s shield of light went up, covering us. The rocks and the swirling lava soon sealed the way behind us to stop us from retreating.

  There was no return path. That was the Guardians’ message to us.

  Fog arose ahead to further obscure our sight.

  Ash growled like a wolf, and Killian roared. For the first time, my tiger didn’t leap into the impenetrable darkness. He pressed closer to me.

  I didn’t blame him. The land of the Shades wasn’t for any living being. Even the demons stayed away from the Shades for centuries.

  Ash lashed out with his icy current to keep us floating in the air. His ice magic also enhanced Merlin’s shield and protected us from the lava.

  “Shades, this isn’t the way to entertain guests,” Ash bellowed. “Where is your honor?”

  Merlin sighed. “Prince Ash, it’s best to let me do the talking. As I said, I’ve had dealings with one of them. Also, the Guardians don’t take kindly to being called Shades.”

  “It doesn’t matter what I call them,” Ash hissed. “They attacked us.”

  “If you call that an attack, then you haven’t seen the worst yet,” Merlin said.

  “Let the druid do the talking first,” Max said. “If it doesn’t work, we go for plan B.”

  But there was no plan B.

  “Guardians of the dead,” Merlin called out. “Merlin humbly requests an audience with you. I bear a gift in exchange for passage through your land.”

  There was no answer, and we let the silence linger.

  Lava bubbled and hissed beneath our feet.

  “Morgan, answer me,” Merlin barked. As I expected, his politeness and patience didn’t last long. “Show me some fucking courtesy, or I’ll have to remind you in an unpleasant fashion that you still owe me a debt.”

  “When was that?” an unimpassioned male voice answered.

  “Five centuries ago,” Merlin said firmly. “Don’t tell me you don’t remember, Morgan. I nearly perished saving your ass when you first traveled to the Upper Realm.”

  “You can remember something that happened so long ago?” the voice asked, a bit more curious now.

  “It’s a life debt!” Merlin snarled. “And I don’t forget anything. I don’t forgive either, if the sin is big. I’m here now to collect the debt you owe me.”

  Perhaps I should learn from his example. I was the more easy-to-forgive type. As if he perceived my thoughts, Merlin darted a stealthy glance at me.

  “Don’t be snappy with me, druid,” the voice said. “I’m not Morgan. I’m Alessandro.”

  Merlin exhaled. “You’re one of the seven Guardians, then. Where is Morgan? Is he hiding from me?”

  “Morgan’s sleeping,” Alessandro said.

  Ash snorted. “It’s the first time I’ve heard that the Guardians of the dead require sleep.”

  “You don’t know the first thing about Guardians, fae,” Alessandro said.

  “Well, wake him up, Alessandro,” Merlin said testily.

  “I’m on duty now, so you deal with me at the moment,” Alessandro said. “What kind of gift have you brought us?”

  “Show us courtesy, and you’ll get to
see the gift,” Merlin said.

  A bone-chilling wind rattled by us, and the lava vanished from beneath our feet, but the entrance was still blocked by rocks that dripped with lava.

  “The ground is cool to stand on,” Alessandro informed us. “Now, show me the gift.”

  “We need visibility all around so we can see who we’re talking to first,” Merlin said.

  “You’re one demanding druid,” Alessandro grunted. “No wonder Morgan warned us about you.”

  The fog lifted to reveal a dark gate ahead of us, yet we still couldn’t see anything beyond the ominous gate.

  A giant figure stepped into our field of sight, and I swallowed a gasp.

  He was probably eight feet tall, a pair of long horns sticking out of the sides of his head. His eyes were all black, yet they emitted twin beams of hellfire. When he breathed, a trail of smoke puffed out.

  His monstrous body constantly shifted between solid and shadow.

  I stared at him. “Sha—shade,” I murmured in a gasp.

  I had never seen any creature quite like him. He looked even more formidable than a Sváva demon.

  The Guardian of the dead snapped his head to me. I bit my lip at my embarrassing slip of the tongue. I was a bit shocked, but at least I hadn’t pointed my finger at him, though I was itching to do just that.

  “My mate has never heard of the existence of your kind before,” Merlin said, “although she was raised in the Underworld.”

  Alessandro sniffed, then he smiled at me, showing his jagged fangs. Both Ash and Max stepped forward a pace to shield me, and my tiger glowered.

  Ignoring my mates, my beast, and me, Alessandro turned to Merlin.

  “Gift, please,” he insisted.

  “Just a second,” Merlin said. “It’s not like I’m going anywhere.”

  I craned my neck and turned my head to Merlin. I was also curious to know what gift Merlin had brought to bribe the Guardians. It must be spectacular or very expensive.

  Merlin pushed his sheathed longsword aside and pulled out a transparent ball from inside his white robe. He’d been battling since he’d come to the Underworld, yet his robe remained clean. And he didn’t have that haggard look, unlike Ash, Max, and me after we went through a long journey or a battle.

  The only way to tell Merlin was tired was the weary look in his ancient eyes and the tense lines at the corners of his sensual lips.

  All of us, except for Merlin, stared at the ball.

  “This is a music box snow globe crystal ball,” Merlin said. “It’ll become a very popular ornament in every human household. I brought Morgan a gift from the future.”

  He twirled the ball, and a lovely, joyful melody that I never knew could exist floated out of the ball. I nearly closed my eyes, wanting to forget myself in the music and probably dance a little to the soft tune.

  Inside the ball, a miniature beautiful couple started dancing in circles as snow drifted from the sky. A rainbow curved around them to add to the joy.

  It was a desirable gift. Life in the Upper Realm must be like heaven compared to life in the Underworld.

  “Look at the hand-carved top and the base,” Merlin said. “The workmanship is exquisite.”

  Alessandro tilted his head, his horns bending backward, as he regarded the snow globe with an intrigued expression.

  “It is exquisite,” he agreed.

  “So, what do you say?” Merlin asked. “A debt for a free pass, with an incredible gift from the future world as a bonus.”

  “Uh, slow down, druid,” Alessandro said. “As you know, we’re the Guardians of the souls. We aren’t allowed to indulge in pretty things like that.” His eyes, the pits of fire, suddenly trained on me.

  And I thought he’d forgotten my existence.

  The way he peered at me sent a bad chill slithering up my spine, yet I straightened and lifted my chin and held his gaze firmly.

  I wouldn’t back down even from a formidable being.

  “Calamity, is it?” he asked, his flaming eyes still sizing me up. “You fought bravely in the imposter emperor’s arena. I heard your speech was full of sparks of fire, and now every slave has risen to fight the demons. The social structure amid the living in the Underworld was stagnant for centuries until you stirred shit up.”

  I tried to wear a blank mask, not revealing my surprise that the Guardians of the dead were incredibly well informed.

  “I’m Calamity,” I said. “And I’m not fond of slavery.”

  “Change is good.” He nodded. “Change is very good. The Underworld needs it.”

  “Could you wake up Morgan, Guardian Alessandro,” Max chimed in, trying to sound diplomatic, “and tell him his druid friend Merlin is here?”

  “That’s right,” Ash said. “We’d love to chat with you, but we don’t have all day. We need to get on the road.”

  Alessandro sighed. “One doesn’t just wake up Morgan. It’s not fun when he’s grumpy. He’ll wake up when he feels like it. That’s the benefit of being the true King of Hell.”

  Morgan, the one who owed Merlin a debt, was the King of Hell?

  I barely covered up my shock, along with Max and Ash.

  “But I’ll do you all a favor,” said Alessandro. “If you want a free pass through the land of the dead, you can win the rights of the road.”

  “Name the terms,” Ash said roughly.

  “Pick a champion among you to fight me,” Alessandro said. “The Shades never allows the unworthy to walk through its valley of death.”

  “I’ll fight you,” Max and Ash said at the same time.

  Merlin arched an eyebrow. “Or would you prefer I do it, Guardian Alessandro?”

  Alessandro chuckled. “I want none of you, since I heard a joke a long time ago about a fae, a vampire, and a druid walking into a bar.” He pointed his thick finger-claw at me. “I want to fight Princess Ayanna, the daughter of the First Witch and the Dragonian King, also the great-granddaughter of the once most powerful Sváva archangel in the universe.”

  My limbs turned cold. How did this Guardian know all about my origin? I’d only learned about it after my mates came down to Hell and found me.

  “Not a chance,” Ash said, stepping forward threateningly, viciousness rolling off him. “You’ll have to get through every one of us to get to our mate.”

  Alessandro only shook his horns and fixed his hungry gaze on me. “Not up to the challenge, Princess?”

  “If I win, we have the rights to the road—a free pass for my mates, all of my people, my tiger, and me.”

  “You’re thorough.” Alessandro chuckled. “Yes, if you win.”

  I eased Dreamkiss from its sheath. “How do you like to duel?”

  At this point, my mates understood that I had to fight the Guardian to win the pass—their land, their rules. The four of us might be able to fight our way through the Shades if we refused to meet the Guardian’s terms, but our people would have no hope of crossing over the land.

  Alessandro eyed my blade enviously. “That is exquisite.”

  If he wanted to trade a free passage for my Dreamkiss, I’d do it, no matter how much I valued the sword forged by Merlin.

  “Don’t even think about it,” Merlin chimed in. “It’s a gift to my mate.”

  “Ah, possessive,” Alessandro said. The twin flames in his eye sockets jumped, which was disturbing, especially as I was psyching myself up to fight this Guardian of the dead. “I wasn’t going to ask for it. I was merely admiring the special sword that was forged by love, magic, and angelic fire.”

  The Guardian of the dead seemed to know lots of things about the living and their world.

  “We’ll have to set boundaries for the duel,” Merlin said. “It’s already an unfair match, since you can’t be killed in the Underworld as one of the seven Guardians to the dead. You can shape shift between shadow and solid form, so no weapon can harm you either. And you don’t bleed, so don’t tell me whoever draws the first blood shall win.”

 
“Feel free to reveal all of our secrets to your mate!” Alessandro snickered, his tone laced with sarcasm.

  “Sure, thank you for your generosity,” Merlin said. “Fire can’t burn you either, since every Guardian was reforged from hellfire. You basically have no weaknesses in the Underworld. One can only kill you in the Upper Realm.”

  “That’s enough,” Alessandro said. “Let’s just get on with it. The druid loves to hear his own voice too much.”

  “Whoever is immobilized first loses the game,” Merlin said. “And whoever draws blood will forfeit his or her honor and also lose the challenge.”

  “Uh, you’re very protective of your mate,” Alessandro said. “Without bleeding her, it would be difficult to kill her. But there are many ways to kill.” He spread his arms. “However, I have no intention to kill such a rare beauty with such great power. And I haven’t told you about our Guardians’ hobbies and obsession. We don’t just collect the dead.”

  My mates snarled in fury.

  Alessandro only smirked. “So, if I win, Calamity will stay with me.”

  Max and Ash drew their swords. “Over my dead body,” both males promised.

  Alessandro’s smile turned icy. “That can be achieved. After all, this is my realm.”

  Before Max and Ash could lunge at the Guardian and make things messy, I spun and charged the asshole without giving him a fair warning. My sword swung toward his thick neck. If I beheaded him, it would take him at least a few seconds to grow back his head, if he could recover that fast. Right?

  And that should be counted as immobilizing him. And he didn’t bleed, as Merlin had informed me.

  As soon as my blade touched his neck, he turned to shadow, and Dreamkiss passed through him. Even with the red lightning hissing on its blade, it couldn’t harm the Guardian.

  Alessandro shifted back to his solid, monstrous form, his black sword appearing in his large, claw-like hand.

  He slashed the blade toward my face in a fast arc. I bent my head backward to dodge the slash, my foot shooting out and connecting with his chest. Once again, my foot went through the empty air.

  Then he was behind me like a dark flash.

  My eyes didn’t catch him, but my magic sensed his presence. He was aiming for a stealthy attack. I stepped aside and spun in the other direction, narrowly missing his stab.