Atlas (The Atlas Series)

by Becca C. Smith

  “Kala, Linda, step away from that man. NOW!” Owen’s voice sounded from the front door.

  Turning to see her dad, Kala saw that he had dropped the four bags of groceries he had been carrying and was staring daggers at Asmodeus’s back.

  Asmodeus slowly turned around to see who had spoken. When he saw Owen he smiled maliciously. “Malak.”

  “Wait, what?” Kala said in shock.

  “Try Grigori, Demon King. Leave now, while you still can.”

  “Wait, what?” Kala was even more shocked.

  But Asmodeus was downright scared.

  Owen turned to Kala. “I mean it, Kala. Step away from it. Take your mother and lock yourself in the bedroom.”

  Linda was visibly shaken at Owen’s words. “Owen, this is Frank. He’s Kala’s new boyfriend.”

  “No, he’s not.” Kala knew now was not the time to lie. If her foster father was a Grigori, then he could potentially kick Asmodeus’s ass. And that was not something Kala wanted to miss.

  Linda looked at Kala, rattled. “What do you mean? Who is he?”

  Kala took Owen’s advice and started to move Linda away.

  Asmodeus turned to Kala, venom in his eyes. “Don’t go anywhere. You’re coming with me.”

  Owen stepped forward. “She is not going with you. Leave this house before I turn you to dust.”

  “I’d like to see you try.” Asmodeus was out of his seat in seconds, facing Owen.

  “I don’t have to try.” Owen’s eyes lit up a bright white, like Talan’s had before Asmodeus had teleported Kala away.

  Asmodeus leapt at Owen, squeezing his arms around Owen’s body like a vise.

  Owen laughed. “You may be King, but you’re still just a Demon.” He barely shrugged his arms and Asmodeus flew off his body like a rubber band that had just snapped. He soared backward across the room, his back hitting the granite-topped kitchen island with a large CRACK!

  Kala flinched at the sound, but kept moving her terrified mother backward.

  All Asmodeus needed was one touch, then he could take her anywhere.

  Asmodeus seemed to realize this, too, as he turned to Kala with a look of determined desperation burning in his eyes. He jumped toward her.

  White light streaked across the room, a glowing snake of lightning, hitting Asmodeus before he could touch Kala. He screamed in pain as the light engulfed him. His skin started to disintegrate. Kala knew she should be happy, but a tiny part of her had grown kind of used to the jerk. Seeing him die wasn’t as satisfying as she thought it would be.

  Through his screams, Asmodeus saw what must have been concern on Kala’s face. It made him smile. “Don’t worry, I don’t die that easy.”

  “Oh you do die easy, little King, but not today. Go tell your Elders, the Grigori are back and they should be scared.” Owen turned his hand, which twisted the white light tightly around Asmodeus, causing him to screech in agony. Kala had forgotten how disturbing his screeching was.

  Then in a quick bright flash Asmodeus disappeared.

  The light popped out.

  For a second Kala wasn’t sure if this was a trick — that Asmodeus wasn’t actually gone, but when Owen reached her side he confirmed, “He’s gone.”

  Kala realized that she’d been shaking as she and Linda both embraced Owen like he was their lifeline.

  After a moment, he pulled away and looked at the two of them. “Are you two okay? He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

  “I made him a sandwich,” Linda muttered nervously.

  It struck Kala as funny through all this chaos and she laughed. Soon Owen and Linda were laughing as well, breaking the tension of the last five minutes.

  “You know what a Grigori is?” Owen asked Kala.

  They both looked at her for an answer. Kala wondered if Linda knew, but then saw in her expression that she knew who her husband was.

  Kala nodded. “I met another one of you. His name is Talan, he helped me.”

  Owen’s face showed relief. “Talan. Good. Why didn’t he protect you against Asmodeus? And why does Asmodeus care about you? What kind of missions are you doing over there with Turner?”

  It took a few seconds for Kala to respond as she was soaking in Owen’s statement. He knew Talan, he knew Asmodeus by name, and he knew Turner was her boss. Not to mention the fact that her foster dad was a freaking Grigori! “I need to sit.”

  “Of course.” Owen was all concern as he led Kala back to a stool.

  The granite was cracked down the middle of the island like a boulder had landed on it, a reminder of how much stronger Demons and Angels were compared to her fragile human self. There was no way Kala would have survived a tossing like that.

  “It was all a mistake,” Kala said. She was with her parents now. For the first time since this whole thing started, she felt safe, like they could fix everything. “I didn’t mean to. I really didn’t.” Kala felt the need to preface what she was about to confess.

  “We know you wouldn’t do anything intentional, just tell us what happened,” Owen encouraged.

  Always on her side, Kala felt a twist of overwhelming emotion. She felt ashamed then, knowing they wouldn’t be on her side much longer. Not when she told them what she planned to do or, more accurately, not do. But they’d find out sooner or later. If Owen was a Grigori, and the world started to crack, he’d know why. He’d find out the Atlas failed. Then he’d find out the Atlas was his daughter. It hurt her on such a deep level, for the first time since she was five-years-old Kala cried.

  Linda’s arms were immediately around her. Kala grabbed her back, desperate for contact. It somehow made her feel better for what she was about to say.

  “Was it Asmodeus?” Owen sounded protective. “I should have killed him. I’ve gotten soft over the years. What did he do?”

  Kala pulled out of the embrace and wiped her tears away. “It wasn’t Asmodeus, although you probably should have killed him.”

  “Agreed,” Owen grumbled.

  “You guys are going to hate me.” Kala took a deep breath.

  “We’d never hate you, Kala, just tell us so we can help,” Owen urged.

  Kala nodded and took another calming breath. “I’m Atlas.”

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Linda looked at Kala with confusion. “As in the Titan god?”

  Owen, on the other hand, had gone completely white. “No,” he said in a small voice.

  “Yeah,” Kala and Owen shared a pained look.

  Saying it out loud had an effect on Kala she wasn’t expecting. Being Atlas, the job itself, the actual position, had always felt like a far-off dream that she could ignore until it went away. Admitting it to her foster parents, saying the actual words, brought it all into the spotlight.

  “You both look like death warmed over, so it must be bad. Tell me what this means.” Linda stroked her daughter’s hair comfortingly.

  Kala told them everything. From how Jack was supposed to kill the President, to how Kala took the shot, to her mission to kill Jack.

  “Oh sweetie,” Linda said. There was pain and sympathy in her eyes. “You love this Jack, don’t you?”

  Tears welled up in Kala’s eyes again and she felt like punching herself for being so emotional. Unable to speak, she simply nodded.

  Then Kala remembered her shred of hope. “But I have an idea. I think I can stop this whole thing, or at least my part in it.”

  “There’s no way out of this, Kala,” Owen said firmly, but he looked inconsolable for having to tell her that.

  Kala started to ramble. If she just said it fast enough, Owen couldn’t veto the plan. “General Turner. He gave us drugs that made us appear dead, in fact, we were almost dead, but the drug revived us after a certain amount of time. It’s the only way to meet with the original Atlas. Dying. You can see him when an old Atlas dies and a new one takes his place. I could trick him, or beg him, or something. If I could just talk to him, convince him somehow, even for one day, it would be enough. The
cycle would break and Jack and I wouldn’t be causing some paradox by existing together at the same time. We could both live. Don’t you see?” Kala knew she sounded crazed, desperate, but she didn’t care. She had to try.

  Owen nodded slowly.

  Kala was too stunned to speak or move.

  Owen held Kala’s face in his hands, his eyes intense. “I understand why you need to try, and I won’t interfere because I don’t want this for you. If I could pick one job on earth that I would never want for my child, it would be Atlas. But he’s been tricked before and if anyone can do it, you can. But Kala,” Owen dropped his hands and placed them on her shoulders, “If you end up staying the Atlas, you have to complete your mission.”

  Kala looked away. She couldn’t face Owen knowing she couldn’t kill Jack. “I can’t.”

  Owen forced eye contact with Kala by lifting her chin with his finger. “If you don’t, it will kill billions of innocent people. Kala, I know you. You’d never be able to live with yourself if that happened, not even for the love of your life.”

  “I don’t know how.” Kala was honest. Even if she agreed and thought it was the right thing to do, she didn’t think she could go through with it. And having to watch the video on repeat every time a television was on only made it more surreal, and more unfathomable.

  “When the time is right, you will. I have faith in you.” Owen leaned down and kissed Kala’s forehead, then stood back to look at her. “I can finally tell you how I found you. I never dreamed I’d be able to.”

  “I thought I was sent to you through the foster system.” Kala was happy to change the subject.

  Owen shook his head. “Kala, Grigori see humans differently. We can see what you would call auras, I guess. Most people are pretty boring, the color of their aura is in line with what they’re good at, and let’s face it: most people never discover what they’re good at. They simple lead mundane lives, never living up to their potential. But the truly special people have auras that are almost blinding. These are the people Grigori seek out to teach, because they’re destined for great things. You are one of those people, Kala. Your aura was so bright I saw it from miles away, and when I found you, you were in a terrible home.”

  Kala remembered that home. The home of Harold and June Slater. They were the kind of foster family that was only in it for the monthly paycheck, pretty much leaving the kids to fend for themselves. Kala remembered having an all-out war with one of the other kids for the last hot pocket. When the officer arrived and took Kala to Owen and Linda’s home it was a huge relief. Having three meals a day without having to fight for it was a perk alone, but to have foster parents that gave a damn was priceless.

  Owen continued: “I nurtured your talents, which seemed to be with your ability to target things. But it is so much more than that: you have an innate ability to see things others can’t. That’s why your aim is so precise. My job as a Grigori was to bring you to your full potential, but Kala, your potential is limitless. Every time I tapped into one talent another one would present itself. I’ve never seen anything like it.” Owen placed his hand on Kala’s arm, looking at her with pride. “Kala, what I’m trying to tell you is that you are special. I’ve always known that you were destined for great things, it’s why I made sure you were placed in Turner’s army. He’s also destined for greatness, he will change the world, but you, you will keep it safe. I think it was your destiny to be the next Atlas, whether you want to believe that or not.”

  Owen’s words made Kala’s head spin. Owen was the only father she’d ever known and his approval meant everything to her. To see this pride for her radiating from his entire body made Kala feel both happy and devastated all at once. “I have to try to save Jack first,” was all that came out of her mouth. Kala felt like a broken record, but there was nothing else she could give. That was all she had.

  Owen held her once more and Kala clung to him. “I’ll help you any way I can. I love you, Kala.”

  Linda came in for the hug as well. “We both do.”

  And for the first time Kala was too defeated to feel awkward about the “L” word. “I love you guys, too.” It felt right. It felt good. And she meant it with every fiber of her being. Foster care or not, these two people were her parents. Her real parents.

  And she wouldn’t let anything happen to them. Kala knew it in her soul. If it came down to it, she’d save them at any cost. It brought another lump to her throat, but Kala was tired of chastising herself for feeling emotional. At this point, she earned every tear that fell from her eyes.

  “Am I interrupting?” Kala recognized Talan’s voice immediately. Though she had only spent a brief time with him, one thing she couldn’t argue was the fact that they had some kind of connection.

  The trio separated from the hug to see Talan standing in their living room, his expression concerned and humbled.

  When Owen saw Talan he quickly walked over to him and embraced him like he was family. “Talan.” Kala could hear so many different meanings in the way he said Talan’s name. It was a mixture of relief, happiness, and confidence all combined into one.

  “Owen.”

  Kala could see that the two of them hadn’t seen each other in a long time.

  “Talan this is Linda, my wife.”

  Talan walked over to Linda and hugged her. She looked thrilled at meeting him. “So nice to meet you.”

  Talan pulled out of the hug and looked at Kala. He was so respectful it made Kala’s chest hurt. Talan was still abiding her wish not to be touched. But in this moment, finding out that Owen was a Grigori, that Talan was his friend; it made Kala feel an overwhelming sense of emotion. Like Talan was a friend for life, like he would protect her until the end of days, like he was… family.

  Before Kala knew what she was doing, she wrapped her arms around Talan and squeezed. She felt his arms firmly hold her and his touch gave her goosebumps.

  Oh yeah, that’s why I don’t want him touching me. Kala suddenly remembered and extracted herself from his embrace. “Okay, that’s enough touching.”

  Owen hid a smile, but Kala saw it. She knew she was being her normal ornery self, but she couldn’t help it. Talan was dangerous to her because of the way he made her feel.

  “How did you find me?” Kala asked.

  “I knew Asmodeus had you so when I felt Owen use a banishment spell on him I used it to come here,” Talan explained. He turned to Owen. “Where did you banish him?” Talan asked.

  “I sent him to the Elders,” Owen chuckled.

  Talan smiled, extremely amused. “He probably hasn’t been to the 5th in a long time. I wish I could see his face.”

  The two of them looked like they were sharing some kind of inside joke, so Kala asked, “What is the 5th?”

  “The 5th level of Hell. It’s not somewhere you ever want to be,” Owen answered.

  “Isn’t he like a King of Hell or something? Why would he care about being down there, or up there, or wherever it is?”

  Talan explained to Kala, “Asmodeus is the self-proclaimed King, which I’ll admit, he’s earned. He’s definitely the strongest Demon I’ve ever seen and over time he’s grown more powerful. But the 5th level of Hell? That place is deadly to all supernatural beings if they’re not careful. It’s why the Elders live there: for protection. Only the Grigori are powerful enough to destroy them and even then they’d give us a run for our money, especially since there are only five Grigori on the planet. The rest of our brothers are still trapped in the 7th Heaven as I showed you.”

  “You showed her our prison?” Owen asked Talan. When he nodded, Owen turned to Kala. “For you to have met two Grigori in your lifetime shows the strength of your potential.”

  Kala couldn’t listen to another speech on how great she was. “Owen, seriously, I get it, I’m full of potential, but I’d rather use it to take down terrorists with my sniper rifle than to kill Jack. So, can we try my plan or not?”

  Owen nodded and filled Talan in on what Kala want
ed to do.

  To Kala’s relief, Talan didn’t dismiss the idea either. “It might work.”

  “Might is better than impossible. Now, will one of you take me to Turner or what?”

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  After an argument of Dad versus soul mate (soul mate according to Talan, not Kala) soul mate won. Talan convinced Owen to move locations, since Asmodeus would certainly be back with reinforcements. It was sad that they’d have to leave the only home Kala ever knew, but Kala wanted her parents safe and, after all, it was just a house. After promising to meet up in a few days, Kala and Talan were finally ready to leave.

  Linda and Owen gave Kala and Talan one last hug before they popped out of the living room to who-knows-where.

  Talan turned to Kala. “Ready?”

  “As I’ll ever be,” Kala said with more confidence than she felt.

  Talan touched Kala’s arm and her parents’ house was just a memory.

  With a disorientating SLAM! Kala and Talan were in a beautifully decorated living room. The design was of the Victorian era with antique furniture made up of ornate wood and brown velvets. There was a small sitting couch and a large couch, both with rounded individual backs tacked in with intricate studs. To say the fireplace was large would be an understatement, it was almost big enough that Kala could stand in it. For a second, Kala thought Talan had teleported her back in time to some rich person’s mansion, but when Turner and his wife Roberta entered the room, Kala knew she was at their house.

  “Kala, this is a surprise,” Turner said with a kind of amusement. “I’m not going to pretend that I’m particularly happy that you didn’t set off at least one alarm breaking in here, but I did hire you for your talents after all. I trust my injection worked for you?”

  Kala knew he was referring to the anti-tracker, which had worked great until Lali had decided to find her the old-fashioned way by following her. “Lali was a Demon. She tracked me down.”

  Turner couldn’t hide his disappointment at the news. “Lali? A Demon? Can you tell me if I’ve employed any other supernatural beings?” Turner seemed disturbed by this news.