Pisces

by Kim Faulks

  Not until now.

  “No, we go in together,” Amaris commanded. “We stick together, and we survive.”

  Gabriel gave a curt nod. But underneath the icy facade I could see he was reeling. “Thank you,” he murmured.

  “We’re ready,” Parry growled. “If you’re all finished with your damn chat.”

  He handed Amaris two Sigs and three spare magazines, and then the same to me. But it was his leader he spoke to. “It’s all we have, so make every shot count. I’ll have the men take the left…Stone and the others can take the right. The rest is up to us.”

  “Whatever happens promise me one thing…” she whispered and shifted her gaze to the others. “Keep Oryn safe.”

  “I’ll keep her safe, don’t you worry about that,” Parry growled, stepped forward and pulled her against him. The old man’s rough growl turned soft and quiet. Her head lowered to his shoulder, a gentle nod.

  I shoved the firearms into the waistband of my jeans and glanced to Gabriel. “You said the others were coming…”

  “He knows,” the warrior answered. “Zadoc and Joslyn, they both know the Huntress is alive. They want revenge, but one cannot leave without the other, and seeing as though one of them doesn’t have wings…”

  “Alpha.” I looked to the sky.

  “When they do come, it’ll be hard and fast and you can bet your ass it’ll be terrifying. So you best be prepared, Guardian. Keep to your mate, make sure her and her kin are safe…and leave the demolition to the experts.”

  His eyes glinted with cruel malice as Amaris pulled away. Footsteps echoed as the men split into two groups. I looked to the skies and an ache raced through my chest.

  “By your side,” I murmured and fell into step beside her. “Always.”

  She reached out in the dark, brushed her fingers along my arm. Goosebumps raced. She turned her head to find my gaze. “When this is done…”

  I clung to that promise, and drew one of the handguns free. “When this is done.”

  We left the main road behind, fighters split away, melting into the darkness and the trees. Stone and the others took their leave, slipping away at my right.

  Are you ready? The words echoed inside my mind.

  And out of the darkness he came. Lava dripped from violet scales to pool at his feet. He lifted his head to find my gaze, and the connection was more real than I’d felt in a thousand years. I was born ready.

  Lights glinted through the trees high up on the mountain. They beckoned. They sneered. They dared…black on black moved at my right, and the stench of undead filled my nose.

  I whipped my gaze toward the movement as a deep, feral growl filled the air.

  The sudden crunch of bone filled the air. My gut clenched, but there was a rise in my chest…and a savage smile that threatened my lips.

  Hunger filled me, hunger with its sadistic need. I wasn’t like the others…not on any other night. But this night…this night I belonged amongst the dark. This night I belonged with her.

  The snap of a twig echoed. Another undead rushed forward this time from the left. The creature whipped through the trees, as another tore across the road in front of us. I surged forward, lengthening my stride, and then lunged into a run.

  “Bastian.”

  She called my name, and every cell in my body wanted to obey. But the foul taste of undead in the air made me desperate…made me weak—I didn’t like being weak.

  There were no gunshots here, not when my hands were weapons of their own.

  Muscles tightened, racing all the way into my shoulder as I cocked my fist and swung. The beast howled, stumbled, Claws raked my skin, but I was battle sickened, past the point of caring.

  Pain was a symphony, and I searched for every note. I gripped the creature’s neck and clenched, and this time there was no stopping…this time there was no denying.

  The Catalyst filled my mind, pushing and tearing against skin and bones.

  It was his power I used, his fire that filled me. The sickening squelch tore through the air. The undead’s head slipped from my hold to hit the ground.

  The thunder of my heart was deafening, racing…racing…racing... I wrenched my gaze from the carcass at my feet as the grunt of impact echoed at my right.

  Not my heartbeat…

  Not in my head.

  Twigs snapped around me like the rush of wildfire. Movement came from all sides, swamping Stone and the Cursed. I jerked my gaze straight ahead and then lunged, driving the soles of my boots into the ground.

  The first wave was brutal. I dropped my head and charged. Cold, dead flesh slipped through my fingers. Some of the creatures tore free, others bounced, stumbling backwards as the Catalyst unleashed.

  The faint lash of violet spilled free. I sucked in a hard breath, dragging the heat deep in my body. Lights shone from the windows above us, silhouettes shifted. I could feel them up there…laughing, goading…waiting.

  Flames consumed me like a fever. I swallowed a shudder as the darkness came alive. Grunts and blows echoed around me. I’d killed seven…eight…but there were more…hundreds more.

  “What the fuck…” Stone gasped, and sucked in a breath “…are they waiting for?”

  His white shirt was drenched with black. The fabric glistened, stuck hard against his skin as he turned and looked behind us.

  I could hear them behind me, hear the grunts of the old man as he fought and won…but I could feel Amaris as she took a step and then stilled beside me.

  A drop of foul blood slipped down her eye. She blinked away the mess and lifted her head to the windows. Shadows moved inside, the outlines grew clearer the closer they came to the glass.

  “Why are they waiting?” Parry sucked in a hard breath and murmured. “They’ve got the numbers…I don’t understand.”

  But it was that window that held her…the sharp intake of her breath stilled the night. I followed her gaze to the woman in window as she pressed her palms to the glass.

  “Kalliste,” Amaris whispered.

  She took a step, and then another as her sister clenched her hand and struck the glass. The dull blow echoed through the dark. Fear widened her eyes as a male neared the glass.

  Blaze clutched her throat, drew her head backwards, and in one fast motion drove her face against the wall. The room erupted in a frenzy of motion. Kalliste lunged forward and broke his hold.

  She screamed and thrashed, hands sliding against the glass, desperation twisting her beautiful face. But the bastard wasn’t done. He dragged his hand across his chest and swung. The blow cracked the Queen’s cheek; she stumbled, slipped, and fell.

  “You fucking bastard!”

  Amaris’s rage was a siren in the dead of night. She dropped her gaze to the horde of undead and lunged. But I was already moving, as were the others.

  Gunshots shattered the silence. Muzzle flares lit up the night. But the sky was silent…so goddamn silent. Even if they came now, it was far too late.

  Amaris sprang into the enemy, driving claws deep.

  I punched forward, grasping hold of the undead who charged toward her. Bones cracked under my hands as violet flames spilled from my lips. Pale skin split and bled. The beast’s dark eyes held no fear of death as midnight mingled with mine and raced across the others.

  But the obsidian firestorm knew neither friend nor foe, lashing Stone’s arm as he took aim and fired. Orange flames danced in the Cursed’s eyes. He whipped his gaze toward me, and beat the darkened flames.

  The undead’s head snapped backwards, and then was sliced from his body with the cut of a blade. Annabelle spun, dragged the blade high and then lunged. Gabriel was close behind her as they carved a path through the chaos.

  “Kalliste!” Amaris screamed, but her cry was swallowed by the roar.

  I had her in my sights; if I reached out I could graze her shoulder, until the mob swelled higher. The army of undead shoved and pushed, scrambling over one another to be fed.

  The blow came throug
h the wall of ebony flames to catch her off-guard. She was hit in the throat, once, and then twice before she stumbled and fell.

  “No!” Panic plunged an unseen knife into my heart as the black flames flickered and then went out.

  26

  Amaris

  “Amaris! Amaris!”

  Through the fury I heard him.

  “Get off her! Get the fuck off her!”

  I held onto that voice as the blows came. Feet rushed, knees hit like fists, catching my cheek. Pain flared, blinding me under a sheen of tears. I shoved against the wall of bodies, clawing for a hold on anything and drove my boots into the ground.

  But there were too many.

  Too many to fight.

  Too many to kill.

  Lights glinted above me before they were gone. She was up there… The thought cracked through my mind as the undead kicked and punched.

  The lash of agony stole my breath.

  Blows came from everywhere and nowhere.

  I bounced against cold undead until my shirt was yanked. Fabric strained, pulling tight against my throat. Stitching couldn’t hold, tearing as I swung my fist, landing against a muscled forearm.

  “I’ve got you. Amaris, I’ve got you.”

  Bastian! Blows turned to a grapple. Clutching for a hold. He was my anchor, my salvation. I gripped hold of that arm as he fought and burned. Violet flames spilled over my head, but none burned…none hurt.

  He wrenched me higher, shifting his hold to under my arms to pull me against his chest. “I’ve got you. You’re okay…you’re okay.”

  I sucked in a breath, coughed and stumbled. Weakness found me, weakness and pain. My gaze blurred, pain throbbed an unmerciful beat along my cheekbone and ran down my spine.

  Gunshots rang out on either side of us. But it was that doorway that held me…that doorway almost in reach. My knees shook, my will unsteady. Flames ended as the Guardian’s gaze met mine. “You okay?”

  “The…door…I need to get to the door.”

  He jerked his gaze to the swarm of Vampires and then stilled. His hands tightened around my shoulders, drawing me closer as he lowered his head.

  Dark eyes glinted with rage and power as he curled his spine and shuddered. The sickening sound of tearing flesh filled my ears. The tips of his wings skimmed my arm as wings tore free. Talons speared from the tips driving into the undead at his side.

  My boots left the ground as he moved. The infernal creatures lunged, landing on long bones as he carved a way through the crowd.

  “Run.” He shoved my shoulder, pushing me under the span of long bones as he drove his body forward.

  Talons pierced undead flesh as the Guardian charged. The mass parted, leaving a space where there’d been none before. I shoved forward, raised my gun, and opened fire. The doorway waited…it was all I could see, all I could feel.

  Ivory fangs glinted in the dark. I aimed, squeezed the trigger and lunged. My shirt was yanked, fabric ripped. Fire lashed my shoulder with the sting of fangs. I kept moving, kept firing…until the sea of undead ended and I punched through.

  The muzzle shook, bouncing around as I hit the doorway. One guard stood at my right. Firearm in hand, muzzle pointed to the floor. It was all about timing as I lifted my gun and fired.

  The shot hit him in the center of his chest. He stumbled, eyes wide with confusion. But clarity was mine as a merciless roar consumed the screams behind me. The guard hit the ground as I lunged for the stairs.

  “Amaris!”

  My legs trembled as I clutched the banister and stepped. The echo of gunshots quietened. I glanced over my shoulder as shadows descended. Bastian spilled into the foyer, raised his weapon and scanned the space, and then settled on me.

  His shirt hung in tatters. Black blood splattered his neck and dripped down his chest. Drops flew from his fingers as a roar ripped through the air behind him.

  Parry shoved through, stumbled, raised his gun, and collapsed to one knee. Others punched through, one after another—Stone, Ezre, RyKor…and then no one.

  My chest tightened. Panic flared. “Oryn…where’s Oryn?”

  Parry jerked his gaze behind him and shoved to his feet. “She was right behind me…” He stumbled for the door. “She was right behind me!”

  Movement burst through the opening. Kane held her in his arms, gun shaking, eyes wide, shining with fear. He took one look at the others, and then relaxed his hold. Hard breaths cleaved his words “Remind me next time…to think twice…before following you into battle, Princess.”

  I glanced to my sister and then shoved my boots against obsidian steps. He didn’t understand…for my sisters I’d fight a hundred thousand more…I’d fight to the end.

  Movement came from above me.

  The gunshot rang out, bouncing around this stony mausoleum of death. The guard hit the bannister and then fell. I didn’t care about the fall, barely heard the brutal thud as he hit the ground.

  That dark power in me was hunting, finding familiar amongst the weak. Sister to sister. Blood to blood. We were our mother’s daughters…and that was what I searched for now…that was what I found.

  A whisper of power found me on the stairs…a Hellhound’s power…a Queen’s power, pure and good. And underneath that good was the darkness that called to my soul…the darkness that whispered…closer…closer. I clutched the rail and heaved my body higher. Stairs blurred until there were no stairs left. Footsteps echoed behind me as I searched for that power.

  She called to me…her pain, her fear. I shoved forward along the hallway. The door at the end was closed. I lifted my gun and tried to still the shake. The first round went wide, slide locked open. I fumbled for the waistband of my jeans and dragged the magazine free.

  A second was all it took…the longest second of my life. I shoved the fresh magazine home and racked the slide. The blast hit the handle. The wood cracked, blowing the door wide.

  Her muffled whimper of pain was all I heard as I righted the muzzle and took aim. The black leash around her throat was a stab to my heart. I stared into her eyes, and there I stayed. Her pain was mine. Her degradation…mine. I took a step, and then another, until the tether pulled tight. Her eyes widened as the burn hissed, and the stench of searing flesh followed.

  “That’s close enough,” Blaze murmured.

  He gripped the end of the leash with one hand and a whip with the other. Seven black strands that danced with power…like a fistful of deadly snakes. A smirk curled the corner of his mouth as I centered the muzzle on his face. “Amaris…Amaris…Amaris…”

  His tongue snaked out, licked his lips as he glanced to the others behind me. “I have to be honest…this is making me hard.”

  “Fuck…you…you sick sonofabitch!” My finger trembled against the trigger.

  I wanted to squeeze, wanted to splatter his brains across the wall.

  But it was that whip that held me…those seven strands that called the dark power inside me. A feral sound slipped into the room. I wanted to cower from that sound, wanted to turn and find the owner.

  “The Cursed,” Blaze whispered and malice glinted in his gaze.

  Seven leashes…for seven Hounds…

  I was taken from this room to the story Oryn loved so much…

  Seven Hellhounds guarding the Gates of Hell…seven Hounds wielded by one…the Dark Lord. No one would stand against them…not even the mighty Zodiac Dragon Guardians.

  Movement surrounded me. Stone snarled and that threatening sound grew. Ezre stumbled forward…RyKor paled as he stepped closer….unable to tear his gaze from the leash in Blaze’s hand.

  “The Gate…” I flinched as the words slipped from my lips.

  I looked to Kalliste as tears slipped down her cheeks. There was a resignation in her gaze as Blaze yanked the tether around her neck. She flinched, pain roared across her face as she stumbled.

  “Such a fool.”

  I jerked my gaze to the foul beast behind her. The Huntress was barely recognizable. He
r entire face had slipped, like a waxed statue near a blaze of fire, melting eyes into cheeks and chin into her throat.

  There was a tremble in her spongy flesh. She turned her head toward the whip and whispered. “I waded through the bowels of Hell for that, and I’d do it all again…” She turned to me. “To watch you all fall.”

  A whimper ripped through the room. Kane stumbled forward and then fell to his knees. Blaze held the whip up high as the first strap lashed out. Power rippled, racing along my skin as Kane shuddered and shook. Skin gave way to midnight fur as his body morphed. But it was the yellow flames that held me, faint yellow blending into black as he left the man behind…for the Hound.

  “One,” Blaze whispered as a guttural roar tore free.

  RyKor shuddered. Fists clenched, swinging in the air. He fought and clawed, terror filled those honey flames. Long hair lashed the air as his knees buckled. The second lash sliced the air curling around his throat.

  “Two.”

  I squeezed the trigger and the shot rang out. The air hummed, rippling with power. The bullet slowed, and went wide, hitting the wall behind Blaze’s head.

  I took a step, fired again as heavy thud of flesh hit the ground.

  “Stone!” Ezre howled.

  But the guttural snarl slipped into a whimper. I fired again and again, as the roar of power shuddered the walls.

  “Three.” The ragged word slipped free as the third tether lashed out.

  Steel slipped from my grasp as I drove my boot into the ground.

  Wind whipped across my face as Bastian leapt into the air.

  But the power in the room was a beast of its own, catching, holding, forcing the Guardian backwards as Stone fell to his knees.

  “Four!” Blaze cheered as he wound his fingers around Kalliste’s neck.

  Her cheek was swollen and red. There were darkened marks from his grip already on her throat. But he hadn’t really hurt her, not yet. “Take me…” I took a step, fighting against the beast of power. “My life…my life for hers.”