Braving Darkness: The Complete Series (Paranormal Scifi Romance)

by Scarlett Grove

  Still running an overlay of The Program inside her mind, she sent a focused intention to know how to drive a bus. Suddenly, information began to download into her mind. She knew exactly how to drive a bus, as if she’d been doing it all her life.

  She turned the key and turned the bus around in the parking lot just as the Pyramid Corp van pulled in behind her. She slammed her foot on the gas and sped out onto the highway. The kids screamed and gasped behind her.

  The van gave chase, shooting bullets at her tires. Magda pressed harder on the gas pedal, urging the old city bus to pick up speed. But she couldn’t shake them. Their headlights continued to gain behind her.

  A beam of light shot down from the sky. At first, she thought it was dragon fire, but then she realized it wasn’t. A golden angel with massive white wings landed on the pavement between her and the Pyramid Corp van. Michael. He was here.

  He put up his hand, and the van went tumbling, end over end, off the highway and down into a muddy ravine. Magda slowed and stopped the bus before jumping out to run to him.

  Her heart leapt with joy and desire. He was here, in the flesh, truly real. He turned to her, his eyes alight with a violet flame. His tanned, marble skin glistened in the moonlight. He smiled at her and swept her up in his arms.

  “Magda,” he breathed. “To touch you with this fleshy body is beyond imagining.” He kissed her deeply, her body alight with need.

  “I can’t believe you’re here,” she said, pulling back from his kiss.

  “I must go. Take your friends north to Mount Shasta. When you get there, I will give you further instructions.”

  “What is in Mount Shasta?” she asked.

  “Answers will come soon.” He kissed her one last time and soared into the night sky like a shooting star.

  Chapter 13

  Magda blinked the tear from her eye, standing on the dark road with the taillights of the bus glowing around her. She had touched him in the flesh. For the first time, Michael felt completely real to her. No more dreams, no more virtual reality. He was a real man, and he loved her.

  The dark forms of dragons blotted out the stars above as they swooped down to the highway. A giant wolf galloped out of the woods with Cassie on his back. Cassie slid to the ground and strode toward Magda. Rafe, in wolf form, followed beside her.

  “What happened here?” Cassie asked, looking down into the ravine at the ruined Pyramid Corp van.

  “Michael came down and blasted them off the highway.”

  “He what?” Cassie’s eyes grew wide with shock. “A member of the council was here?” She pointed to the ground.

  Magda slowly nodded her head, crossing her arms over her chest. The dragons landed heavily behind Cassie and Rafe. Circe strode forward as all the shifters moved into human from. Naked, hot, muscled men. Magda tried not to look.

  Circe approached Cassie and Magda with a determined look on her face. “Did I hear correctly? A member of the council was here?”

  “He was. And he told me to head north to Mount Shasta.”

  The shifters had covered themselves in blankets and tucked them around their waists. Xavier and Rafe joined the conversation while the others looked after the frightened children inside the bus.

  “What’s in Mount Shasta?” asked Rafe, the dark-haired wolf shifter.

  “I don’t know. Michael said he would tell me when we got there.”

  “If it’s the same man who told you about the attack on the compound, I believe we should listen to his advice.”

  “I’m glad you guys are back. Most of the shifters never listen to me. They treat me like an idiot.”

  “We’ll put an end to that,” Cassie mused. “Now, let’s get going.”

  “We’ll find the other buses. Everyone, meet at Mount Shasta,” Xavier said, throwing off his blanket and contorting into dragon form. Circe leapt on his back, and they burst into the sky.

  Cassie and Rafe stepped into the bus. Rafe still wore a blanket tied around his waist. He slid into the driver’s seat, relieving Magdalena of her duty. She was fine to let him drive. Maybe she knew how to do it now, but the responsibility for all those kids was too much. She’d been just like them a few months ago. Now, somehow, she was a leader of this ragtag rebel army.

  They drove north through the night and met with the other buses near where the highway started east. They parked along the ocean, under the cover of trees. Magda joined a large group of kids and shifters on the beach with a blanket she’d found and spread it out to sleep.

  Sleep came fast, drowning her in the current of fatigue. Her dreams were incoherent and muddy until she saw Michael’s face under the bow of a cypress tree. He sat in a lotus position, overlooking the sea. His chest was bare, and a white sheath of cloth wrapped around his waist.

  She knelt before him, looking into his impassive face as he sat in meditation. He looked even more angelic than ever in his altered state. He lifted his hand into a mudra position and opened his eyes, his wings emerging from his back.

  “There is so much for your race to learn, my dear Magdalena. When you arrive in Mount Shasta, I will show you something, something that has lain in hiding for millennia. I believe this is what will show the rest of the council that humanity is worthy of liberating from the Anu’s iron grip.”

  “What is it?” she asked.

  “I can’t explain it until you see. But once we get there, your people will have a tremendous amount of work to do, and you will be among those who can help and teach them.”

  “Teach them what?”

  Magda’s eyes burst open to the feeling of someone shaking her shoulder. Through blurry vision, she saw Cassie standing over her with a gentle smile on her lips.

  “Wake up, sleepyhead,” she said. “Time to get moving. Breakfast on the bus.”

  Cassie stood and went to the next person, and Magda sat up, groaning. Nonstop running for the last few days was getting to her. How did the rest keep up with this lifestyle? Part of her still longed for the predictable routine inside the dome. She shoved the thought from her mind and stood, looking around for her bus.

  She trudged up the beach, getting more sand in her shoes, until she made it to the parking lot. Most of the kids were already on the bus. She took a seat near the front, and one of the kids gave her a granola bar and a bottle of water.

  She ate slowly as Rafe and Cassie climbed aboard. Rafe sat behind the driver’s seat again, and Cassie sat beside Magda as Rafe started the engine. The caravan drove onto the mountain highway headed east.

  “I had a dream about Michael last night,” Magda said after she finished her granola bar.

  “What about?” Cassie asked.

  “He said he was going to take us to a secret place where we would learn to become worthy of freedom from the Anu.”

  “What does that mean?” Cassie asked with an irritable tone.

  “I don’t know. I don’t know why we wouldn’t be worthy of freedom. But the council has never protected us from the Anu. I know that much.”

  “That’s for sure. They’ve barely given us any help. They let the Anu blast our world to smithereens. Sometimes I don’t think they give a crap about us.”

  “I think there is more to it than we realize,” Magda mused.

  “Who can know the minds of the gods?” Cassie asked, leaning back in her chair and crossing her arms over her chest as she closed her eyes and yawned.

  “I’m hoping to know the mind of one,” Magda said under her breath.

  They continued east along the highway until they reached I-5, where they passed through the zombie-infested town of Redding. Xavier had to burn a swath of land around the caravan to protect them from the undead cannibals.

  They continued north into the higher elevations. As they climbed into the mountains, they found a light dusting of snow still lay on the ground.

  By early afternoon, they arrived at the base of the great mountain, the blue peak covered in deep white snow. They pulled into town and found it qui
et and abandoned. The buildings had long since been scavenged. Broken window glass littered the sidewalks, and snow blew in light flurries down the quiet streets.

  “What now, Magda?” Rafe asked as he parked the bus in the parking lot of an old grocery store.

  “I don’t know. I’ll try to contact Michael. He’ll show me the way.”

  Everyone filtered out of the bus, and Xavier organized groups to scavenge the town until Magda gave them direction.

  She flipped on her terminal, no longer needing to lie down. She would watch the world and see reality overlaid with the higher dimension while still retaining consciousness. For long moments, nothing happened. She walked toward the mountain, which towered above the town, taking up most of the sky.

  Out of nowhere, Michael appeared before her. “I’m coming,” he said. Through her other eye, she saw a beam of light shoot down from space, and Michael landed on one knee with his knuckles to the ground before her. He looked up at her, the feathers of his wings fluttering in the breeze, his bright violet eyes shining with passion.

  She shut off her terminal as the shocked sounds of voices around her brought her to full awareness. He was here, in the daylight, standing before all the group.

  “Hi,” she said, meekly.

  “Come,” he said, sweeping her up in his arms. He spread his wings and shot into the air. They flew over the town, headed toward the mountain. Magda’s breath caught in her lungs as the force of wind blew over her face.

  Seeing the world fly below her as she rode nestled in Michael’s arms was as beautiful as her best dream. They descended toward a ledge at the snow line, high up on the mountain. He landed on his feet and let her down.

  “Here,” he said, passing his hand in the air. A section of rock slid away, as if it were a sliding door. Magda gasped. “This is the place where humanity will earn freedom.”

  Thank you for reading Desired By The Archangel (Book One). Continue the story with Desired By The Archangel (Book Two). Coming soon!

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  Braving Darkness Series

  Marked By The Alpha Wolf (Book One) Braving Darkness 1 Available Now

  Marked By The Alpha Wolf (Book Two) Braving Darkness 2 Available Now

  Marked By The Alpha Wolf (Book Three) Braving Darkness 3 Available Now

  Touched By The Dragon Lord (Book One) Braving Darkness 4 Available Now

  Touched By The Dragon Lord (Book Two) Braving Darkness 5 Available Now

  Touched By The Dragon Lord (Book Three) Braving Darkness 6 Available Now

  Desired By The Archangel (Book One) Braving Darkness 7 Available Now

  Desired By The Archangel (Book Two) Braving Darkness 8 Coming Soon!

  Desired By The Archangel Part 2

  The group stood at the massive entrance to the mountain, peering over each other to get a better look inside. Magda followed Michael into the cave as the rest of the group pressed in behind them. When they stepped farther into the towering cavern, lines of blue light traveled along the walls. The lights twirled and twisted through the cavern and crystallized into intricate symbols covering the entire wall. As Magda looked closer, she realized that the entire thing was an elaborate computer system.

  They moved deeper into the cave, and the group filtered in around them. Magda saw hallways leading off from the center cavern with the same strips of blue light along the walls and floors. A hush had descended over the crowd. A few soft voices murmured, speaking in wonder at what they beheld.

  Emilia pushed through, holding Brigid’s hand. The genius wolf shifter gasped as she looked around. Magda followed Emilia through the cavern, watching her look at the alien technology with Michael not far behind.

  “What is it?” Magda asked Michael.

  “This is your salvation. This is how we elevate the human race.”

  Chapter 15

  “It’s an access portal to the fourth dimension,” Michael explained. “This was built millions of years ago when humans were first hybridized by the Anu. Intelligent races are expected to join the Galactic Federation. But the Anu wanted to use humanity as a slave race, and humanity seemed to want to comply. The Council of the Seventh House’s prime directive is to never interfere with free will. If a race wants to be enslaved, we cannot stop them. It is our most sacred law.”

  “But we don’t want to be slaves,” Magda said, turning to Michael, desperation in her voice. They had found a chamber furnished like a comfortable sitting room. Magda sat on a soft couch while Michael made tea from the kitchen-like appliances across from her. He handed her a cup and she drank the sweet-smelling liquid. It was a foreign taste, but good.

  “Your race has accepted the Anu’s rule unequivocally for hundreds of thousands of years. It cannot be argued that you do not. They have told you in the most obvious ways, all this time. Even in the modern world, the signs were there. I’m sorry, Magda. It must be difficult.”

  “I’m not a slave,” she huffed.

  “Let’s just leave that word out. Humanity has been in bondage and now is the time to break free. The way to accomplish this is for a large group of humans to enter the fourth dimension. It must be done in full knowledge of your past and in the knowledge that we are all interconnected as one to the universe.” He sat on the opposite couch and sipped tea from a white cup. Magda frowned. “I know this is a lot to take in,” he said. Michael’s wings had receded somewhere inside his body. Sometimes he looked just like a human man—a godly attractive man, but a man nonetheless.

  “How are we supposed to enter the fourth dimension? Many of the shifters in our group were living like animals before they joined Xavier’s complex in New San Diego. They don’t know anything about The Program. Most of them haven’t seen a computer in six years, and I doubt anyone out there has ever meditated. You know, besides the witches.”

  “None of that matters here. There are chambers within this mountain that were designed specifically to help large groups of humans enter simultaneously. It can be done. They will have guides. You, Cassie, Circe. You are each immensely talented in your own ways. Once we can show The Council of the Seventh House that the group can evolve, they have to help us defeat the Anu. It is our only hope.”

  “I still don’t get why they didn’t help us in the first place.” Magda set her tea cup down on a table and sat back on the couch, crossing her arms. She’d been angry at the Council for a good long time. The fact that they’d let the Anu blow up the world with a fake nuclear war that caused the apocalypse didn’t sit well with her. Who did that? She had a hard time seeing them as the good guys.

  “The complexities of Galactic political management may be difficult for you to comprehend. You are only eighteen,” he said with a half-smile. His flowing blond hair waved around his face as he seemed to shimmer.

  “I might be eighteen, but I know right from wrong,” she countered.

  “Unfortunately, these things are not black and white. But I do know that as soon as humanity crosses a certain level of development, the Council will help. It is a matter of critical mass, and that is what we are going to accomplish here. Critical mass.”

  “All right. Where do we start?”

  Chapter 16

  The inhabitants of New San Diego settled into their new accommodations. There were beds and private rooms for everyone. The farther the group went into the winding corridors inside the mountain, the more chambers they found. It was estimated that at least three to four times as many people could live comfortably inside the mountain.

  The advanced technology provided the people everything they needed, from comfortable beds to running water and food. Machines that used the energy pr
esent in the air around them created any kind of food imaginable.

  The computers held indexes of data from before the beginning of earth, holding all the collective information of the entire human race in a small section of its immense hard drives. Long forgotten movies and books were available to enjoy in the many private chambers scattered throughout the mountain.

  After a community meal, the leaders gathered in a central chamber and privately discussed the next steps for the group. Michael held back, not informing the leaders of what he had told Magda. She listened to Rave, Cassie, Xavier, and Circe talking about the group with the witches and dragon shifters who made up the main council.

  Even with her involvement with Michael and the fact that they had brought everyone to the miraculous mountain, she still didn’t feel comfortable getting involved. She didn’t want to speak up in the middle of their meeting. Biding her time, she held back and waited.

  After the meeting, she tapped Cassie and Circe on the shoulders and asked them to come back to her rooms. The two other women followed her to the chambers she shared with Michael, but when she got there, he wasn’t inside.

  “What is it?” Circe asked. The older woman had always been something of a mentor to Magda. Cassie had saved her from the dome, and Magda idolized her.

  “Well. As you guys know, my, um, boyfriend is a member of The Council of the Seventh House. He knows things about the history of humanity that no one else knows. He’s told me a lot of stuff. I wanted to share with the two of you because I can’t do this alone,” Magda said, feeling self-conscious. She hated leadership roles. All she had ever wanted to do since leaving the dome was play in The Program and create worlds of her own imaginings. She knew she’d never be as kick-ass as Cassie or as wise as Circe.