Knowledge Hurts (The Nememiah Chronicles Book 3)

by D. S. Williams

  Lucas, Conal and Nick were in close proximity to my side, not only attacking the enemy and defending themselves, but keeping a close eye on me as I fought everything which approached our position.

  The reverberating sound of a weapon rang out from the ramparts and I risked a quick glance. Matt and Clinton were up there, high above the battleground, operating a rocket launcher and machine gun. Their efforts were inhibited by our people mixed amongst the enemy, but Matt was firing the rocket launcher further out, towards the demons as they coalesced.

  The noise was deafening, a constant barrage of sound which assaulted me as I dipped and whirled, throwing orbs and attacking. For every demon which arrived and was dispatched, two more erupted from the ground to replace them. The portals remained open as dozen upon dozen younglings poured through them. Ambrose Wilkes and his pack were doing an outstanding job in this regard, Ambrose had his men positioned at the portals. As quickly as the vampires appeared, the tigers pounced, tearing limbs from the vampires and immobilizing them. They weren't able to impede every vampire, but they were disabling at least one out of three. It was reducing the numbers we had to deal with, but barely making a dent in our overall situation - there were too many demons, hundreds of them in all shapes and sizes and they steadfastly ambled towards the city.

  “Form a barrier!” William ordered, dispatching a Valafar with the Katchet and throwing a Philaris towards an Omias which was lumbering towards him. “Keep them back from the gates!”

  The demons were making a concerted approach towards the walls and I couldn't understand their determination, as they had no way of passing the barriers guarding the city. Yet they continued to pound their way towards the massive walls, forcing us into a slow retreat.

  The gates swept open, and light shone through the entrance, creating a shaft of illumination over us. I stole a fleeting glance to see Clinton and another couple of human men running towards us, boxes in their arms. The gates slammed shut again and Clinton dropped to the ground behind us, handing me a new Philaris. I was grateful as I'd lost both of mine and now relied on the Katchet alone, but the thought of them being outside terrified me.

  “Get back inside!” I shrieked, grunting as a demon swiped at me with claws as long as my arm.

  “You need rearming - I can help by doing that. The machine gun wasn't having any effect,” Clinton argued loudly.

  “Clint, you'll get yourselves killed!” He was a good man, but human, with the fragility that would take seconds to destroy out in this hellhole. “Get back inside, for God's sake!”

  “No,” he repeated stubbornly. “There are few enough of you who can use the weapons. I'm staying here to help.”

  “Leave it, Charlotte!” Ben ordered as he swung past me and threw a Philaris towards the demon who'd approached while I dealt with Clint. He dispatched the demon seconds before it would have sliced through me with its razor-like fangs. “We need the replacement weapons!”

  Clint handed me a second Philaris. “Don't worry about me, just fight the damn demons!”

  With no further debate, Clinton continued to work valiantly, replacing our weapons as needed. We needed them desperately. The onslaught seemed never-ending, as fast as we dispatched demons, killed vampires - more arrived to take their places. The fires burnt themselves out as night receded and daylight filtered over the horizon.

  Exhaustion was beginning to overtake me, along with the terrible apprehension that this would never end. They would never stop sending demons, we would be fighting here until we dropped. The stark reality when daylight crept over was clear - we weren't winning. A glance at my arms confirmed the sigils had nearly burnt themselves out, the marks faded to almost nothing, explaining my weakened condition. The potency of the orbs was waning, although managing to dispatch the demons in small groups, it was becoming more difficult to sustain the orbs in which to crush them.

  The most bizarre thing happened - the majority of the demons vanished, their forms turning to mist and floating away in the cool breeze which blew over the plains. As they disappeared, I realized the vampires had also drastically reduced in numbers. They'd ceased coming through the portals and we were battling perhaps thirty or forty who remained.

  Which was when I saw him.

  Archangelo stood near the edge of the battleground. He was watching me over the heads of those fighting, his handsome face impassive.

  When he saw he'd captured my attention, he took off at a run towards the woods, his speed dizzying as he made a beeline for the trees.

  “Archangelo!” Without a thought, I ran through the battlefield, evading both demons and vampires, steeling my heart to the number of bodies lying motionless on the soil. We'd lost more people during this battle and I would grieve for them, but not now - now I needed to stop Archangelo before he reached the small group of fifteen who still insisted on camping in the woods.

  “Charlotte, wait!” Lucas roared, but I was sprinting with a burst of adrenaline-induced speed. Anger swamped me, a murderous rage directed at the vampire who'd disappeared into the woods. This man had tried to kill me, he was my enemy. This man was the reason these people lay dead and dying around me. I had to stop him. I had to confront him and try to kill him. And I still had no idea how.

  I heard Lucas shouting, but I couldn't stop, wouldn't wait. Archangelo might be intending to make his escape, or would kill the fifteen innocent people residing out in the woods. A sliver of fear had me wondering if this was an opportunity he was creating to kill me.

  I narrowly avoided a youngling who reached towards me, but he was cut off by one of the panthers who leaped onto him, knocking him to the ground. Skirting around the last of the demons, I hurtled towards the woods.

  The sky progressively darkened as I entered the tree line. The sounds of the battle began to fade, the silence in the woods all-encompassing. Having never entered the forest before, I was disorientated, uncertain where the small group were camping and how to locate them.

  “It's a trap, Charlotte! Go back!”

  Mom's voice rang through my mind, making me jump. “I don't have a choice. I have to follow him, try and stop him.”

  “Go back! Wait for the others!” Mom sounded determined.

  “I can't, Mom.” I didn't have a choice, Archangelo had to be stopped. Somehow.

  The trees were thick around me, the ancient limbs gnarly and their branches reached out, catching my skin and clothes. The darkness of the woods deepened still further.

  Pulling the Hjördis from my pocket, I stopped for a short time to mark fresh sigils on my arms. I'd need every scrap of strength I could muster if I had to fight Archangelo and I knew that was what this would come to. He had to be stopped - he was responsible for the deaths of those I considered friends. Without him, the Council would lose their greatest strength. Niggling in my mind was the memory of Nememiah's words - only one of us could survive. It was going to be me.

  I almost fell over the first body, staggering back in horror, bile rising in my throat. It was a young girl, perhaps nine years old. A little girl with silky blond hair and pale blue eyes which stared lifelessly upwards, no longer seeing the leaves on the trees above her.

  Stumbling through the trees I came across others, the people who'd been living out here. Every single one was dead. I couldn't tell if they'd been murdered in the past few minutes or if their deaths had come before the battle had begun.

  Shaking with a combination of shock and revulsion, I knelt beside the next body I discovered and touched it gingerly. His skin was cold, the man had evidently been dead for hours. Wrenching myself to my feet, I yelled, the words echoing through the trees. “Archangelo! Archangelo! Where are you? If you want me so badly, show yourself.”

  “Over here.” His voice drifted through the woods, coming from somewhere on my left. I turned towards the sound, lurching through the darkened forest until I arrived in a clearing, evidently the former campsite of those murdered. It was a shambles, belongs and tents strewn everywhere, the gro
und littered with the detritus of people who'd called this home.

  I stopped at the edge of the clearing, sucking air into my oxygen starved lungs. Cautiously, I drew a Katchet from my belt and scanned the tree line.

  “I'm here.”

  Twirling towards the sound, I found him leaning against a large oak tree, arms crossed casually over his chest. He wore a weapons belt and pushed himself away from the tree, approaching me leisurely.

  “I knew you'd come.” He sounded smug, his voice calm and assured. “You couldn't resist, could you?”

  “Archangelo.” I stepped towards him cautiously.

  “I'm pleased you survived our last encounter.”

  This comment was so far out of left field, I stopped moving, wondering exactly what his plan was. “Only just,” I admitted. “But I don't see why you'd be pleased. You want me dead.”

  “Charlotte, I only wanted you dead because you were with the bloodsucker. But now you're here, with me.”

  I stared at him, hardly able to believe what I was hearing. “I'm only here because I want to kill you, you God-forsaken piece of shit.”

  Archangelo circled warily, fingering the Katchet on his belt. He wore a white shirt and blue jeans, his startling green eyes never leaving my face. “I don't think you do,” he announced quietly.

  “You're delusional,” I spat. “Besides, my friends will be here soon and we're going to ensure you die.”

  “No, they won't. The minute you raced off, there was a surge of demons arriving. You're on your own, Charlotte.”

  A trickle of fear wrapped itself around my heart. “What do you want from me? Why drag me out here?”

  He looked smug. “I believe you followed me, Charlotte. I wanted to talk to you, get you to see reason.”

  We were pacing the outskirts of the clearing, eyes focused on one another, resembling lions preparing to attack. “I will never see things from your point of view, Archangelo. You're killing innocent people back there!”

  He sighed, fingers caressing the Katchet's engraved handle. “Why must you be so stubborn? Why can't you see that they're worthless? It is you and I who are important.”

  “Like I said - delusional!”

  “You have to admit - we are the only two of our kind. That makes us more important than any other being on the planet,” he continued calmly.

  “No, I think I'm the only one of my kind on the planet. You're a vampire, remember?” My senses were on high alert and I was listening anxiously for any sound of assistance, but the woods remained intensely silent.

  “I like you dressed like this,” Archangelo said, scanning my attire. “Red suits you. Pity it's covered in demon blood.”

  “I don't really care what you like me dressed in or not dressed in, quite frankly.”

  Without any warning, he was in front of me, only inches away. “Mmmm. Not dressed would be a much better option.”

  I stepped back. “You're crazy.”

  He remained motionless, eyeing me thoughtfully. “You may be right. Perhaps I am. It's crazy to be in love with you, when you act so foolishly.”

  I laughed nervously. “You are crazy. You don't even know me.”

  “Ah, but you forget. I've seen you, Charlotte. I've been watching you for weeks now and I still want you as much as I did the first time I saw you.”

  “Keep dreaming, buster,” I stated angrily. “It's never going to happen.”

  He was in front of me again, squeezing my wrist until the Katchet dropped from my fingers. “I think you're here because you want me. Sure, you've been sleeping with him, but you came straight out here when you saw me. To me.” He dragged me roughly into his arms and dropped his mouth over mind, forcing his tongue into my mouth.

  “Let her go!” Lucas's voice reached my ears and I used the opportunity to pummel Archangelo's chest with my fists until he released me. Before I could make an escape, he grabbed me, the Katchet pressing firmly against my jugular vein.

  “Vampire, you've tried my patience once too many times,” Archangelo snarled. He threw his free arm forward and a spirit orb erupted from his fingertips, flowing swiftly towards Lucas.

  Lucas lunged, narrowly avoiding the orb as it swung past him and hit one of the ancient oaks surrounding the clearing. The power of the orb cracked the trunk of the tree and it crashed to the ground. Lucas ran towards Archangelo, barely visible to my eyes and slammed into him, throwing him off balance. The sound of their bodies colliding echoed loudly through the forest.

  They battled against each other, Lucas's natural fighting ability keeping him one step ahead of Archangelo's youngling strength. Their movements were incredibly swift and there was nothing I could do but stand and watch.

  Despite his superior fighting skills, Lucas didn't have Archangelo's angel abilities and I was horrified when Archangelo flung Lucas away. Lucas crashed onto the ground, the force of his landing creating a deep furrow through the dirt. Lucas got to his feet almost instantly, but it was too late. Archangelo had created a second orb and hurled it with unswerving accuracy towards Lucas.

  I screamed as Lucas was blasted backwards, his back slamming into a tree. The sound of bone crunching reached my ears and Lucas slumped to the ground, his body laying at an awkward angle.

  Before I could react, Conal hurtled through the woods in his wolf form. He ran towards Archangelo, the look in his eyes crazed as he launched at the vampire. Archangelo slipped a Katchet from his belt and when Conal landed over him, the vampire stabbed the Katchet deep into Conal's chest. Conal collapsed on top of Archangelo and I screamed as Archangelo plunged the knife into Conal's body over and over again.

  “Stop! You're killing him!” I shrieked, throwing myself at Archangelo to try and get between Conal and the blade.

  He shoved me, throwing me through the air to land some ten feet away, before returning to his vicious attack. Conal yelped helplessly and blood flowed in streams from his battered body.

  Again I stood and ran towards Archangelo, pitching an orb at him. It blew him away from Conal's battered form and slammed him back through the dirt.

  “You bitch!” Archangelo snarled, getting to his feet. “I'll have you, whether you want to be had, or not!”

  Reaching me with preternatural speed, he held me against him, the blood soaked Katchet pushed tight against my spine. He ground his hips against me as he sought my mouth again, the blade of the Katchet slicing into my back.

  I twisted and clenched at the Katchet, ignoring the agony as it sliced through my fingers. “I hate you! I hate you!”

  “You're lying.” His eyes were cloudy with the desire for both blood and sex. “You want me. Just as much as I want you.” He dropped his mouth to mine again and mauled me. I lowered my hand and focused creating an orb. I centered all my energy on it, trying to entrap as much power as possible into the small sphere.

  Archangelo groaned and his lips trailed a path down my neck, licking salt from my skin. It was only a matter of seconds before he'd bite and I focused on the orb growing against my fingertips.

  “Archangelo - look at me,” I demanded.

  He raised his head and stared into my eyes, his own crazed with lust. “What?”

  “You've killed both the men I love,” I stated coldly. “I hope you're going to enjoy life as a eunuch, you sick son of a bitch.” I swung my arm with all the strength I could muster and slammed it into his groin, the orb leaving my fingertips and exploding against his body.

  He screamed, shrieking in agony as he hit the ground, clutching his groin with both hands. The orb didn't have the strength to kill him, but I hoped I'd done the next best thing. He'd killed Conal and Lucas and I wanted revenge with every cell in my body.

  Snatching up the discarded Katchet I ran to him. I wanted to stab him, kill him and see his dead body lying on the ground before me. He was rolling around in the dirt and I leaped on to him, prepared to pound the Katchet through his chest and into his heart as many times as it took to stop it beating. He would never take anoth
er breath.

  As I plunged the Katchet towards his chest, Archangelo caught my wrist, squeezing until I heard the snap of breaking bones and the knife dropped uselessly to the ground. Sobbing with frustration, I scrambled to grab it with my other hand.

  The sound of people crashing through the undergrowth reached my ears as I groped helplessly for the Katchet. Gunfire reached my ears as I was again tossed through the air. I hit the ground hard, all breath squeezed from my lungs by the impact.

  There was yelling and shouting all around, as more of our people arrived in the clearing. Archangelo was gone, vanished into the woods.

  The scene before me was horrifying - Conal, lying in a pool of blood and Lucas, motionless on the ground.

  “Charlotte!” Matt dropped the gun he'd been wielding and dragged me into his arms. “Baby! Are you okay?”

  Numbness crept over me incrementally and I sagged against him.

  I'd lost the two most important people in my life.

  And I'd failed to kill Archangelo.

  About the Author

  Wife and mother to four demanding young adults, D.S. Williams started writing at the age of five, when life was simpler and her stories really didn't need to make sense. When you're five, 'happily ever after' always ends the story and how you got there? Well, that didn't matter so much.

  An extreme introvert, D.S. Williams has created her own worlds to exist in, found friends among her characters and traveled the Earth from the safety of her laptop keyboard.

  D.S. Williams enjoys writing (obviously), reading (voraciously) and making lists (obsessively). She's enjoyed a lifelong addiction to foods starting with 'ch' - cheesecake, chocolate and chips - and when it comes to books, she loves a multitude of genres and authors.

  She shares her life with her beloved husband of twenty nine years, the Gang of Four and the current furry residents, Tuppence the Groodle and Angus the Bull Mastiff.