by Karen Swart
“I see Kasadya,” he replied, as he slid his swords back into their sheaths.
“Who are you?” the girl demanded, not moving from her attack position.
“We are Fallen, young one. May I ask, who are you, and where is your custos?” Chax questioned her.
The relief on her face was visible even from where I stood in the dark.
Crap! I already know the answer.
“You were separated and then got lost when the demons attacked, didn’t you?” I asked moving forward.
She was relieved alright, but she sure as hell wasn't ready for us to come anywhere near her. She lifted her swords, ready to fight.
“We will not harm you. Let us help you.” Chax said, at the same time he took an alarming step towards her.
“Yeah right! Where the hell have you been for the past two years?!” she exclaimed.
She was clearly pissed off. Understandable, given the fact that she had to survive alone all this time.
“We thought that all the young ones were accounted for. I apologize if we failed you. Give us a chance to rectify our mistake.” Chax continued on, but from my point of view it was pretty clear she was not going to.
“OK, look. I know you’re pissed off. I would be too, and in fact, I am. But we have a major freaking problem that’s about to spill into this world. If we have to chase around for a lost hellhound, we will be wasting precious time. And trust me, you don’t want to be a Fallen alone on earth when it goes down,” I interjected.
“Kasadya” Chax reprimanded me.
I just waved him off.
“Did it work on me?” I asked him instead. He shook his head.
“So why do you think it will work on her?” I continued.
He smiled at me and then looked at her. “Point taken,”
Feeling all giddy about what I had just done, I also looked at her. She dropped her swords and inhaled deeply, the evidence of her nerves finally showing.
“OK, I'm listening,” she said as she placed her swords into what appeared to be homemade sheaths.
I just shook my head.
I should go back and kick everyone's asses.
“Come on, it’s time for you to join your kin and start fighting the war,” I said, turning around and walking to the exit. I wasn’t going to beg her. Chax hesitated for a second but then started to follow me.
“Wait! Damn! OK, OK.” she sputtered behind me, as a small smile appeared on my face.
I had no idea where I had learned to deal with teenagers, but apparently I had.
“What’s your name?” I called out, not looking back.
“Raven,” she replied, right next to me.
I looked down at her, “How old are you?” I continued.
Chax was hanging back, letting me take control.
I really hope this is control.
“Eighteen. Where are we going?” she asked.
I stopped and looked at the club across the street.
“Hunting, Raven. Just stay quiet and let us do the work. If something happens don’t stab us,” I all but growled as I stormed forward, putting on a smile to get past the bouncer.
“OK, whatever,” Raven tossed back.
I stopped and glared daggers at her. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Chax trying to look away to hide his grin.
“Raven, if you want to live to see Exsilium, I suggest you listen. You survive this, and you get to serve,” I replied testily.
I almost slapped myself when I registered what I had said. I looked at Chax again, his wide grin was all I needed to throw my hands in the air and storm into the club.
“Is she always this uptight?” I heard Raven asked Chax.
“No, not really.” Chax replied.
I turned around and looked sharply at them.
“I am not uptight. I just don’t think this is a joke.” I bit off.
I turned around, not interested in their reply.
“Holy heck! Must be the leather,” Raven retorted under her breath.
Boy, I should have kept my mouth shut and let her and Chax sort it out.
“Perhaps.” He replied, all but choking on a laugh.
Argh! I grabbed the guy in front of me and pushed him out of the way as I looked around.
“Nothing!” I was irritated by Raven and the whole damn situation.
“In time Kasadya.” Chax said, at my side once more.
“We don’t have time.” I reminded him.
Hello! Demon, artifacts, big boom!
“The lords have never been ones for a show, unless they benefit from it.” Chax continued.
Oh just great! How do I kill them if I can’t find them?
“You call this hunting?” Raven complained to my right.
I gave her a Chax-like stare.
“Your eyes are going to pop out you know,” she said, meeting my gaze.
That’s it! I'm killing her!
Chax was between us in a flash, his hand on my shoulder. His feelings replaced my anger, but unlike before this was a feeling of joy. I frowned at him, not overly impressed.
“Come on, let’s get Raven to Exsilium and settled in.” Chax suggested.
“Fine.” I muttered, still irritated with her and Chax's exchange at my expense.
“Outside.” Chax ordered as he steered me into taking the lead while Raven fell in behind him.
Once outside, we walked into a quiet alley and stopped.
“Raven, you will have to take my hand.” Chax said as he held out his hand to her.
She looked at his hand like he had just touched something awful.
“For crying out loud!” I exclaimed as I stormed forward, grabbing her and, without thinking, shifted to Chax’s home and not the cottage were we had stayed.
Ah to hell with that too!
We landed at the front door and I let go of her, storming inside.
“What the hell did you just do to me?!” She gasped at me.
I whipped around to glare at her and found her on the ground, puking.
Yeah, my night just got a little better.
Chax shifted in, clearly unhappy with me.
“You were taking too long,” I said as I eyeballed him.
Shaking his head, he bent down to help Raven up.
“Did it ever occur to you that she might never have shifted? No one has taught her Kasadya.” He replied, disappointment clear in his voice.
He picked her up in his arms and walked into the house.
Crap, I didn't think about it.
I followed them into the house. He went straight in to the lounge and placed her on a couch.
“Yo! What’s up?” Nanini asked, goggling at Chax and the girl in his arms, who was currently the color of milk.
“She met me tonight.” I announced, flashing a smile at Nanini who promptly burst out laughing.
“Kasadya!” Chax exclaimed.
Yeah, I know! Stop it!
Max came walking down the stairs and stopped dead when he saw me at the bottom. My mood came crashing down much like a plane falling from the sky. Max. I looked at Nanini, who was currently scolding him, then back at him. He stood there, as if unsure as to what he should do
Weird doesn’t even cover this. Oh, hell, what now?
Chapter 4
“Vulcan said I couldn't kill him,” Nanini mumbled next to me.
I looked at her, shocked by her words.
“I know its hard Nanini, but Max is a good guy,” I whispered to her.
She rolled her eyes at me then walked into the lounge to join Chax, who was trying to help Raven. Max continued down the stairs, finally meeting me at the bottom.
“How are you?” he asked with a touch of concern lacing his voice.
“I'm ok, considering the circumstances. But, alive is good,” I replied.
He nodded and peeked inside the lounge.
“It’s hard. She doesn't want anything to do with me,” he murmured, rubbing his hand over his face.
Only t
hen did I notice his exhausted appearance.
“It’s going to be alright. She just need time to get used to it,” I said as I placed my hand on his arm, trying to give him some comfort.
He shot me a tight smile.
“Who's the kid?” he asked, making his way to stand in the doorway, stopping only to observe them.
“A lost hellhound we found. She was left behind during the attacks. A real pain in the ass,” I replied, walking over to lean against the door frame.
His eyebrows shot up at that.
“That’s not good,” he said, moving closer to look her over.
I hope he was commenting on the pain in the ass part, because then I would have to agree. I stayed where I was, watching them all fuss over Raven. Chax and Max were bombarding her with questions. Apparently, her dad told her to run, and so she did. When she finally returned home, it was to discover that they were gone. All alone, she lived off the streets, until she ran into a demon. Her hellhound responded and she had become a Fallen. From there, she pretty much kicked ass until we found her.
“You!” Raven exclaimed as she pointed at me.
I just looked at her without any regard to her fury. Now, in the light, I could see her clearly. She was a small girl with a black bob haircut and pointy nose. But, what had me sucking in my breath, were her eyes. Emerald green eyes, shone with anger.
Wow, now that is freaky.
“You suck!” she continued her rant.
“Nothing new there,” I replied with a smile.
She flew up and Max grabbed her, holding her back.
“I'm going to kick your ass!” she all but screamed at me.
Clearly we are not going to get along.
“Great, another feisty one,” Max said, pushing her down.
Chax nodded while Nanini beamed.
“I like her,” Nanini commented, smiling at me.
I have a feeling I am going to regret finding this girl.
“Calm down, Raven,” Chax soothed her as he shot a disapproving look my direction.
Why is he being so nice to her? He wasn’t gracious to me.
Some weird feeling slammed into me and before I knew it, I had taken a step in her direction. Chax's head whipped around then he flew up to block my path.
“Calm down. Go and see where the others are,” he said tightly, dismissing me.
Glaring at him, I turned around and stormed out.
How dare he be so nice to her when he was a total jerk with me?!
Reaching the hallway, he slammed me with a feeling of peace.
Argh! I hate this!
He would always be stuck somewhere inside me. I reached the kitchen and stopped, my breath catching in my throat. Caim and the hellhound that killed Ryan, were standing at the counter and laughing while they made sandwiches. Her dark, red hair was dangling down her back, swaying with her movements.
I felt fury begin to mix with guilt. They roiled around together in my stomach, leaving me slightly nauseous.
I wasn’t ready for this.
I turned around, trying to make a silent escape.
“Kas,” Caim said from behind me and I stopped.
Crap, so much for the escape.
I turned back towards them slowly and found them looking at me. The female’s eyes spoke volumes. Her gaze was filled with malevolence, as if she wanted me dead.
“Hi,” I all but croaked back at him.
Caim looked at the female, placing his hand on her arm. Her dagger-sharp eyes fell soft and she gazed at him, a smile spreading her face.
Okay, clearly I need to leave.
I moved to leave the room once again, when Caim spoke, stopping my progress once more.
“Kas, let me introduce you to Zurita. You haven’t met properly given the whole-” he said, his introduction sputtering out at the end.
Given the whole I was responsible for Ryan's death and the now doomed earth.
Yeah, that’s me.
Putting on a brave face, I turned to face them again.
“Hello,” I greeted her, but made no attempt to shake her hand.
“Hello, Kas. It’s nice to finally meet you under better circumstances,” she said, returning the greeting.
Yeah, like that was supposed to work.
“Nice to ... um meet you too,” I replied.
Caim looked between the two of us, clearly lost at what to do next, so I saved him.
“I have to go find the others,” I said after an uncomfortable silence, then I turned and walked away quickly.
I could hear the two of them speaking quietly, but didn’t really care what they were talking about. I reached the lounge again, finding Lada and Lotan standing there, watching the girl. Lada turned and when she saw me, rushed over and grabbed me in a hug.
“Oh, Kas,” she whispered. I hugged her back.
“I'm okay, “I reassured her, looking over at Lotan.
I gave him a huge smile in my attempt to pull off the lie.
I was far from okay.
He smiled back at me and nodded. Lada released me and peered at me closely.
“Are you sure?” she asked with concern.
I nodded. Just then, loud footsteps could be heard behind me and had me stepping back, whipping around to determine who, or what, was making all of the noise. When Caim and Zurita came into view and joined us, I relaxed slightly.
“What’s going on?” Caim asked once he drew even with us
“Kas and Chax found a lost hellhound girl,” Lada said, pointing to Raven, who was currently sitting on the couch talking to Nanini and Max.
Chax was standing in a corner, arms crossed and staring at me. I lifted my chin in defiance, just to remind him I was still pissed off at him. His gaze never wavered, his eyes boring into mine.
“What?” Zurita asked, stomping into the lounge followed closely by Caim.
She went over, sat next to Raven, and began introducing herself and Caim. The air shifted behind me and I turned to find Vulcan standing there.
“You said you got all of them,” I bombarded him.
“We thought so too,” he replied, walking past me to enter the room.
With a scowl, I stalked inside and leaned against a table with my arms crossed.
“Salve, young one. I am Vulcan,” he greeted her.
Raven proceeded to give them the short version of what had happened to her, and when she finished they stood gaping at her.
“Well, I thank Chax and Kasadya for finding you and bringing you home. Now, you are safe and ready to start your apprendo training” Vulcan said, patting her on the arm.
She beamed up at Vulcan, including the others in her smile, relief all over her face. Guilt ate away at me yet again. It must have been hard on her, all alone with no explanations.
“You did good Kasadya, regardless of your tactics, she is safe now,” Chax whispered in my ear from behind me.
He would have scared the crap out of me, but for some reason, the moment he started talking, I was at ease.
“Chax, safe is the last thing she is now. I just brought a girl into a war that might kill us all. She is far from safe,” I whispered back.
His hand came to rest on my shoulder.
“That may be true, but now she has a change of surviving and she won’t be alone,” he replied, attempting to assuage my conscience.
I nodded, not wanting to argue with him. She was about to get the crash course from hell, as learning to survive in the world of the Fallen was no easy task.
“Did anyone find anything?” I asked, twisting around to look at him.
His face gave away his answer.
“No,” he said, confirming my thoughts.
Suddenly the whole house shook with a force that felt and sounded like an explosion. Grabbing the table, I braced myself. Everyone snapped to attention and steeled themselves to act. Chax, however, frowned and glanced around the room. He then got that pissed off look he always had, well at least when I was around.
“Abby!” he yelled, storming out of the room. I followed closely behind, wondering what in the hell had just happened.
He marched to a door in the hallway and yanked it open. Smoke billowed out into the hall.
Oh, that doesn’t look good.
Ben and Abby suddenly came crashing out of the door, running right into Chax, slamming him against the wall. As Abby knocked Chax to the floor, I grabbed Ben and steadied him. He was covered in black ash and swiftly scanning Abby, she appeared to be covered in the stuff herself.
“Abby, what in heaven’s name have you done now!?” Chax bellowed.
She cringed and rolled off him.
“Um.... we tried something and it kind of didn’t work,” she explained, grabbing the hand Lotan held out to pull her up.
“What did you try?” Chax asked, climbing to his feet.
Abby tried to dust off her clothes and looked at everyone now standing around staring at her.
“We tried to build a small bomb,” she admitted, dejected.
I burst out laughing, while Chax’s expression revealed he was about to explode. He glared at me and then back at Abby.
“What?” Chax demanded, clearly upset with her.
“Before you cuss her out, I can explain,” Ben said, moving between Abby and Chax.
I smiled at the determined stand he had taken. I also noticed that he was very protective. Intrigued, I kept my eyes on him.
“We used some of the Fallen elements and infused them with napalm. As you can see, it works. We just didn't think to test it outside,” he admitted, looking to Max for support.
I looked over at Max to find he was smiling back.
“Why would you want to create a bomb?” Chax asked, walking over to the door and looking down; his face fell even more before he scowled.
“To make sure we can take down as many as possible, when the time comes,” Ben answered.
Chax stood there looking down at what I expected was chaos and sighed.
“The house is never going to survive them,” I heard him mutter, before he turned around and looked at everyone.