Gabriella and Li joined them with climbing shoes on their feet. Nick studied them, assessing what gear they had. “We’re doing this all wrong, but it is what it is,” Nick said. “We’ll essentially ‘boulder’ across the mountainside and then use the grappling hook to breach the wall.”
“Yeah, but in bouldering,” Justin added, “you can typically jump to the ground without killing yourself.”
Gabriella shrugged. “Tell yourself you’re only a few feet above the ground and don’t look down.”
The four of them walked silently though the forest edge closest to the side of the castle they wanted to scale. Nick double-checked the grappling hook. It was attached securely to his waist. He chalked his fingers and studied the shrubs that grew in staggered splotches along the mountainside. He’d use those shrubs as points of reference during the climb. He darted out of the forest. The others followed silently behind.
When Nick reached the craggy mountainside, he looked for hand and footholds to use for climbing the mountain. He gripped the cold stone and pressed his body against the rough mountainside. Nick paused at the shrubs and calculated their location in relation to the castle. The others followed in his path, using the same hand and footholds that he’d used. Occasionally small pieces of rock broke free and tumbled down the mountainside. Nick didn’t bother looking down to see how far the rocks fell. Instead he pressed his body closer to the mountain and prayed that the darkness of night would help conceal their position. If a guard heard them now, they’d be easy prey.
Nick kept his eyes focused for handholds and calculated his position in relation to the back side of the castle. When he was at the right spot, a little crevice that jutted out, he looked over his shoulder. The valley spread out before them. A few lights shone on the blanket of green below them, but the night sky twinkled beautifully.
Nick prepped the grappling hook. He eyed the distance to the castle wall and prayed the grappling hook would make the flight. He really didn’t have a better place to shoot the grappling hook from. The others clung to the mountainside, watching and waiting for him. “Here it goes,” he mouthed.
The grappling hook whistled softly as it sailed through the air. It skimmed perfectly over the edge of the wall. The hook popped open on its descent, and the claw caught on the edge of the wall. Nick closed his eyes in relief and said a prayer of gratitude. He tugged hard on the sturdy line and attached the base of the line to the mountainside where he clung. The others gave a nod. Nick climbed hand-over-hand up the line. He moved quickly. He knew the whistling of the hook may have drawn attention and was ready for anything when he reached the top.
Nick pulled himself over the rock wall and dropped silently to the stone floor. He pulled his knife from his leg strap and looked around. Everything was quiet. He was on a patio. He looked over the wall and saw Justin scurrying up the line. He turned back and crept to a table and chairs that were nearby. Nick opened the bag attached to his waist and double-checked the weapons. Everything was where he had easy access to it. He was ready.
Justin pulled himself over the edge of the wall. He crouched on the stone floor and noticed Nick hiding behind the table. The castle was so well fortified that it seemed odd that the patio looked like a scene from a magazine featuring outdoor furniture. A well-crafted, iron-wrought table and chairs sat in the middle while lounge chairs with beautiful cushions encircled them. It was weird to think that Daevas, a Nephilim monster, shared so many similarities with Asteri and humans. The way Nephilim thirsted for blood and suffering, it was bizarre to see a dignified side of them. Daevas probably ate meals out here and enjoyed the view.
The sound of tiny rocks tumbling down the mountainside caught Justin’s attention. He reached over and felt the line. Gabriella gazed up at him as she continued her climb.
Muffled voices approached. Justin dashed across the patio and hid behind a large potted lemon tree. Nerves bubbled within him. If Daevas was one of the approaching men, they’d be dead before they even started a rescue attempt. He still hadn’t figured out how they would defeat Daevas. How do you kill someone who’s protected by a magical ring?
“Hey, what’s that?” a gruff voice called out when he noticed the grappling hook along the castle wall.
The soldiers came into view, and Nick remembered just how easy it was to kill those ugly monsters. In this realm, the Nephilim didn’t even try to hide their hideous nature.
The two soldiers raced over to the grappling hook, unaware they weren’t the only ones on the move. One soldier wrapped his long-clawed fingers around the hook while the other went for the knife on his belt. But before the two soldiers had time to react, cold blades slit their throats.
The awful stench of sulfuric blood burned the hairs in Justin’s nose as he held one of the demons against his body. Nick checked the hook with one hand and kept the other demon upright with his other hand. Then he carefully lifted the Nephilim’s body and tossed him over the edge, away from the grappling hook. Justin lifted his kill and threw him out too. The sound of rocks tumbling down the mountainside echoed as the monsters’ bodies crashed against the rocky terrain.
Justin knew their silent assault was over. Noise draws attention. He looked at the blood that stained the wall and puddled on the stone floor. There would be more Nephilim, and they would know they were under attack. Li needed to get over the wall quickly. Their time was limited. They’d soon be discovered.
As Gabriella crawled over the wall, Justin extended his hand in order to help her avoid the bloody puddle. She raised an eyebrow at his blood-stained hand. “You don’t waste time,” she said with a cocked brow. Justin shrugged as her heel landed on the edge of the pool of blood.
She hated that smell. The sulfur seemed to bombard her senses. It had been a long time since she’d killed, and as she saw the Nephilim tumble past her, she realized that she would have no problem slipping back into the role of killer. There was something about wickedness that just needed to be dealt with. The longer those monsters lived among the innocent, the more innocent blood would be shed. She was created to protect those who couldn’t protect themselves. She couldn’t hide from her destiny. That would make her worse than the monsters she was sent to destroy.
Justin wiped his bloody hand on his pant leg. He looked over his shoulder just in time to see a group of three Nephilim headed his way.
“Hey,” one of them shouted. He pointed a claw at Justin. “You’re on private property,” he sneered. He licked his lips with his forked tongue. “Is that fresh blood I smell?” A cruel smile revealed his razor-sharp teeth.
The other two Nephilim spread out in order to flank Justin and Gabriella. Gabriella’s pulse quickened. These Nephilim were big. They were strong. She suddenly felt tiny and delicate, which was ridiculous. She was strong. She was Asteri. She drew a xiphos from the belt on her waist and firmly gripped the handle. This double-edged, short sword had always been her favorite. It had balanced the scales of justice many times, and it was ready to deliver justice once again.
“You’re mine,” the Nephilim closest to Gabriella said. He leered at her, slowly taking in her body. The other two raced towards Justin.
Gabriella attempted to get into his head, but he blocked her out. If she couldn’t use her powers to her advantage, she’d have to rely on her skills.
A wicked smile played on the lips of the one focused on her. “You’re gonna have to do better than that. You’re not getting in here,” he said, tapping his temple. “You’re pretty,” he said with a wink.
“The sentiment is not returned,” Gabriella replied with narrowed eyes. All of her life she’d been underestimated because of her looks. She was tired of it. Pretty things could be deadly too.
He paced towards her. She didn’t see a weapon, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t carrying one. She slipped her hand into the bag around her waist and gently pulled out the bead. She rolled the soft pink bead between her fingertips. When he was just a few feet away, she threw the bead and directed it
towards his face.
The fire powder puffed like a cloud and drifted onto his skin. As he inhaled, the tiny particles entered his body and burned his mouth and throat. He clawed at his skin and face, trying to brush off the powder, but then he fell to his knees in weakness.
Gabriella stepped behind the downed Nephilim and raised her sword. She quickly drove the sword downward into the space between his neck and shoulder until she reached his heart. He froze as the sword traveled through his body. As she withdrew the blade, blood seeped from the wound. She kicked him in the back, and he fell flat on his face with a puddle of blood growing around him.
Li couldn’t imagine his life without Gabriella. He hated that she was fighting while he climbed helplessly up the wall. He’d known the moment he opened the door to Nick and Justin that his life would change, and he had a bad feeling about the change they’d foist upon him.
Gabriella looked around. Nick and Justin were finishing off the other two while Li slung a leg over the wall and lowered himself to the floor. She jogged towards Nick and Justin. “How many more guards do you think he has?”
Li joined them where they huddled. Nick replied, “Not sure.” He wiped his sword clean on a cloth that he’d pulled from his belt, and then he handed it to Gabriella. She wiped her blade clean also. “He could have a whole army here. There’s no telling.” Nick clenched his jaw and added, “Let’s see what waits for us inside.”
They entered a hallway. Sconces lit the space. Voices approached from the left, so they turned right. They crept quickly along the passageway.
Nick stopped short and held up his hand. The others stopped. A Nephilim dozed on a chair outside a door. With each intake of air, a faint whistle came from the Nephilim’s nose, and when he exhaled, a hiss slithered from his mouth.
Nick wondered what was behind the door that required a guard, even if the guard was inadequate. Anything worth guarding was worth obtaining.
Back in his day, a guard found lacking was quickly dealt with, and Nick intended to take full advantage of this guard’s failings. He needed to remove the threat the guard posed without alerting any of the other residents of Daevas’s castle of their presence. Nick knew exactly which weapon he’d use.
Since the guard was asleep, Nick could easily get into his head and keep the guard from waking. As Nick approached, he used his powers to slow the guard’s breathing. The guard’s head lolled to the side. Nick reached into the pouch on his waist and pulled out the awl. The smooth wood handle fit perfectly in his hand. The sharp point would do the job with little blood. Nick stepped beside the guard and eyed his target. Concurrently, he gripped the Nephilim’s head and jabbed the awl into his brain stem. The Nephilim’s eyes bulged open and his mouth gaped, but no noise escaped. Nick repositioned the awl and stabbed him again in the back of the head. The Nephilim’s eyes closed. A light trickle of blood dripped from the wound. Nick readjusted the guard’s shirt to cover the blood and repositioned him in the chair. He looked just like he had earlier, an incompetent, sleeping guard.
Nick pressed his hand to the lock on the door and felt the pins fall in place as he picked the lock. Ready for anything, he opened the door.
Gabriella’s heart clutched. She wasn’t prepared for this. She’d expected a stockpile of weapons or wealth. Exotic animals or perhaps books containing magical spells even crossed her mind, but she never expected to see another Asteri.
Confusion, relief, and a glimmer of hope blossomed within Michael’s core. Were the Asteri before him a dream, hallucination, or reality? He’d been captive here for so long that he’d given up hope.
Nick had been wrong. He wasn’t ready for anything. He wasn’t ready for this. Of course he’d seen worse in his lifetime, but he wasn’t prepared to see Michael Bradford, an Asteri, helplessly chained to the castle wall.
Nick instantly recognized Michael. They’d been sent to claim him in Charleston during the Civil War. Nick had forever associated the man with the loss of Hayden. And now, to see Michael being held prisoner under such horrific conditions caused fire to pulse through Nick’s veins.
Michael’s rags barely covered his body and provided little comfort against the elements. His light red hair was long and matted, and a scraggly beard covered his face. He sat on a worn, stained mattress. A chamber pot sat in the corner of the room, and its stench wafted through the air. Was this how Hayden lived?
Michael stood and slowly stumbled towards the vision of hope before him. The chains scratched against the stone floor as he stretched their length. “Are you real?” he whispered, stretching out his arm. He stopped short when the chain around his leg allowed him no farther progress.
Nick closed the door behind them while Justin moved to Michael. “Yes,” Justin said, placing a hand on Michael’s shoulder. “We are real, and this nightmare is ending right now.” Justin knelt at Michael’s feet and examined the chain. Michael’s skin around the chain was red and raw. Yellow goop oozed from sores around his ankle.
Tears pooled in Michael’s eyes at the warmth of Justin’s touch. Freedom was so close, but he was afraid it would slip through his fingers. They didn’t know how hard this was going to be. They faced impossible odds. Michael had no powers, and if they stayed, they would lose their powers too. “You must go,” Michael warned. “Leave before they find you, or you’ll end up like me,” he whispered, his voice low and shaky. He pushed Justin’s hands off of the chain that encircled his foot.
Justin faced the others. “This chain’s been cursed… or spelled.” He shrugged. “I can’t break it.”
“No, you are wrong,” Michael whispered with frightened eyes. “It’s not that the chain can’t break. It’s that you lose your powers when you touch the chain. The longer you’re in contact with the metal, the longer it takes for you to regain your powers.”
“What magic is this?” Gabriella asked, stepping closer to Michael. “How is this done?” She’d never heard of anything like this before. “What element can strip an Asteri of their powers?”
“Fire powder,” Nick said.
“Of course,” Gabriella whispered. “They will stop at nothing.”
“So they’re using our weapons against us,” Li added. “That’s not a new concept.”
Nick nodded. “But it works both ways,” he said. “How did they put it on you without harming themselves?”
“They overwhelmed me,” Michael said. “Attacked me with the beads. When I went down, they chained me. They wear special gloves whenever they handle the chain or anything laced with the fire powder poison.”
“So it’s not just chains that we need to be wary of?” Justin asked.
Michael nodded. “Daevas has an entire arsenal of weapons laced with fire powder.”
“That means he has a large supply of those gloves,” Nick added. “What do they look like?”
“They fit tight,” Michael said. “They pull the gloves up to their elbows. They’re leather.”
Nick had to think. Every problem had a solution, and he intended to find it. What animal was not affected by fire powder? “Wait, does your guard wear the gloves?”
“Yes,” Michael said. “He should have a pair stashed somewhere on his person.” Michael’s heart beat quicker now as he realized that freedom was a real possibility.
Nick put his ear to the door and listened.
Silence.
He opened the door and looked at the guard. Death hadn’t improved his looks. Nick knelt and searched the guard’s pant pocket. Nothing. He leaned across the body and searched the other pant pocket. Nick’s fingers brushed against something. He pulled out the gloves. The leather was soft and supple, but he couldn’t place the source. There were only a few animals that weren’t affected by the fire flower. Most animals knew to stay away from it.
He checked the guard to make sure he still looked like he was sleeping, and then Nick went back into Michael’s room.
Nick slipped the gloves onto his hands. He pulled them up his arms, and the leather
fit snug against his skin. “Now let’s free you,” Nick said. He knelt by Michael and examined the chain. He slipped his fingers between the leg cuff and Michael’s leg and looked for the seam. Then he pulled it apart. The leg cuff popped open, and Michael stepped free.
Tears streamed down Michael’s dirty face. The chain that stripped him of his powers was gone. Suddenly he believed that his life would continue again outside of this prison. He would feel the warmth of the sun on his skin and the gentle kisses of the breeze as they whispered over him. The pleasures that he’d always enjoyed but taken for granted would return to him. He’d live his life with renewed focus. Even though he didn’t feel any different, his faith gave him hope that his powers would be restored.
“We need to get some of those weapons,” Nick said. “If we battle Daevas without them, we don’t stand a chance.”
“We need more gloves,” Justin said. He looked at Michael. “Do you know the floorplan of this castle, or did they always keep you in here?”
“I know my way around,” Michael said. “They used me for… experiments. They’ve been perfecting their fire powder recipe since they captured me.” He was ashamed to admit it, but he’d been powerless against them. He couldn’t stop them from subjecting him to various machinations.
A shiver ran through Gabriella. Experiments. What horrors had they perpetrated on Michael? She looked at Nick and thought of Hayden. Nick’s hands were clenched in fists at his side as his breathing quickened.
Nick decided that he’d give Hayden’s captor a slow death. He was an avenging angel, not an angel of mercy. Hayden’s captor would receive no mercy from him. “Take us to the armory,” Nick bit out through clenched teeth.
Michael nodded, and Nick slowly opened the door. Their small group stepped into the hallway.
Michael never looked back. There was nothing in the prison cell that he needed. It could keep the horrors and secrets. He didn’t want them anymore.
Synchronicity (Scintillate Series Book 3) Page 9