We Shall Rise

by J. E. Hopkins

  After a flash, they landed in a room several floors up. There were twenty or so demons stood with guns and knives standing between two long stairwells. Kaden watched as Reysa confidently approached the demon hoard. Considering they were outnumbered, she didn’t seem the least bit worried. He was worried for her safety. He tried to restrain her from stepping any closer, but she shook him off. He reached for her again, but this time Alejandro stopped him.

  “Let her handle this. Trust that she knows what she’s doing.”

  Kaden’s instincts were to grab her and get her out of this place. He could not care less about Christian, but he knew Reysa would not leave without him and Kaden couldn’t leave without her. He was forced to play this her way, but he would protect her whether she liked it or not.

  “You should leave while you have the chance,” one of the demons warned. A stocky demon with beady black eyes who wore his arrogance like a badge of honor.

  “We will leave when you return Christian to us.”

  The demon laughed along with his friends. Kaden wanted to incinerate them all, but he would let Reysa handle this for now.

  “Look darling, take your band of whores and pimps and leave here while I’m feeling generous enough to let you go alive. However, if your girls want to service us, they are welcome to stay.” He grabbed himself crudely as his fellow demons laughed.

  Kaden wanted to burn this pig’s balls off, his anger increasing the temperature of the room, forcing the demons to break out into a sweat.

  Reysa spoke in a lethally calm voice that indicated the dam would soon burst. Either the demons complied or there would be hell to pay. “Last time, demons. Give me back my Christian or I will not be held responsible for the carnage that results. It’s your choice.”

  The demon perused her closely, openly admiring Reysa’s body. “I choose you on your knees with my cock in your mouth. If you whores do a good enough job, maybe I’ll let you see your boy one last time before I kill him.”

  “Oh no, he didn’t,” uttered one of the female warriors standing next to Kaden. “Reysa’s going to go ABW on his ass,” she warned Kaden.

  “ABW?” Kaden asked completely unfamiliar with that term.

  “Angry Black Woman. An ABW human is scary, but nothing is more terrifying and lethal than an ABW immortal. This is going to fun.” Kaden watched as the woman licked her lips barely hiding her excitement. She wasn’t alone. All the women seemed oddly excited about the impending bloodshed.

  Kaden focused his attention on Reysa. He could see the ire reverberating off her skin. As much as he wanted to protect her, he knew that these demons were the ones in serious trouble. Reysa was in full ABW mode.

  “You chose poorly,” Reysa responded as her blades extended from her jacket. With a menacing sneer, she suddenly disappeared.

  The startled demons searched for her. A sudden screech from behind and they turned around in unison only to see the severed head of their leader rolling at their feet. They unsheathed their weapons, holding them tightly in their trembling, sweaty hands as they searched for the warrior who had seemingly vanished. They could not fight what they could barely see.

  Within a blink of an eye, another demon fell to the ground slain by Reysa’s blades. She repeatedly disappeared and reappeared in a stunningly mystical swirl of death as she severed demon heads with speed and lethal efficiency.

  After several minutes, the screams were replaced by a haunting silence.

  Reysa skidded forward, her blades puncturing the stomachs of the two demons who stood by the railing. She stood up, pulling out her blades and quickly sliced off their heads as they fell over the railing landing in front of more demons that stared up at her with terror in their eyes.

  “Save some for us Rey,” one of the women complained.

  “Yeah what are we supposed to do now?” Anastasia asked not hiding her disappointment that she had yet to shed blood.

  Reysa turned to them, her eyes a wicked shade of red that meant death to anyone foolish enough to cross her. “Finish them.” Reysa leapt into the air. She spun around like a tornado and landed at the bottom of the cave where demons fled from her. There was no escape. Too late for mercy now. She tried peace; now she would use force.

  The rest of the women sprinted after the retreating demons. It was time for their much anticipated slaughter. Kaden followed close behind, trying to track Reysa. She didn’t need his protection, but there was no way he would let her fight this battle without him. He still couldn’t believe she managed to gut all those demons barely breaking a sweat in the process. She really was his African warrior princess. That display of swordplay was the sexiest sight he had ever seen. It left him so very hard and hungry for her as if he wasn’t already about to burst from his unfulfilled need for her. When this was over, no more excuses; he was going to have her. She was his. Deserving or not, he would take what belonged to him.

  Temporarily distracted by his plans for the night, he didn’t immediately notice the demon creeping up behind him. He felt the heat of the demon’s presence and dropped to the ground rolling out of the way of the demon’s machete. Kaden quickly got back on his feet and faced the toothless demon, who was wildly waving that machete in the air. Even with one hand, he could defeat this demon with ease.

  The demon swung the machete with all his strength at Kaden. Unfortunately for the demon, his aim was way off the mark. The demon lost his balance and stumbled into the railing. Pathetic, Kaden thought. There was no challenge in this. That was probably a good thing. He needed to get to Reysa and this demon was becoming too much of a bore.

  Kaden sent a small flame towards the demon who jumped back so wildly that he fell over the railing. Kaden rolled his eyes. He would end up with the wimpy demon whose balance issues led to his demise. A disappointed Kaden tried to find Reysa’s sweet jasmine scent, but the stench of blood overpowered his senses.

  He turned the corner and discovered one of Reysa’s girls straddling atop a struggling demon ripping his flesh with her claws. She looked up to Kaden and grinned to show off her tiny fangs. Her fangs may not be as large as a lycan or vampire, but no doubt they were just as deadly.

  A demon sprang from behind to attack the woman. Kaden raced forward and caught the demon in midair with his left hand. He used his claws to shred the demon’s throat. He dropped on the ground next to the woman and her demon cutting board. She paused for a moment, winked, and then continued filleting her pet.

  These women were odd if not a little crazy, Kaden thought. He continued to search for Reysa in the sea of black blood that had filled the cave. There had to be hundreds of demons living here, but they were no match for these warrior women, whom had fought with a ruthlessness that few men could match. They were relentless. With each kill they seemed to grow stronger. They were feeding off the deaths. These women were clearly not human, but Kaden could not figure out their origin. Their eyes matched the eerie red that he saw in Reysa’s. Whatever these women were, Reysa was one of them as well.

  There was no time to worry about this now. He needed to find her.

  II

  He was alive. Reysa could scent Christian’s presence. She had tasted enough of his blood that his scent was such a familiar part of her. She could always track him. She followed his scent to a hidden lower level of the cave. Three more demons were waiting for her. She easily dispatched of them and found Christian strapped to a bed with silver bindings burning his flesh. He was unconscious. His body had been viciously sliced. Burn marks tarnished his usual perfect golden skin. They had tortured him. He must have passed out from the pain.

  Reysa removed the restraints and gently stroked Christian’s face urging him to wake. He stirred but his eyes remained closed. “Please wake up, Chris,” she begged. As she motioned to lift him up, she felt a sharp sting in her right shoulder. A bullet had pierced her flesh. Fortunately, not silver so it wouldn’t cause too much damage, but she was losing too much blood and would need more soon to replenish.

&n
bsp; Reysa turned to face the demon that had pulled the trigger. It was the little bastard that had caused all of this chaos. She had forgotten about him assuming he died in the blood bath upstairs. She would make sure he didn’t get another chance to cause them trouble.

  He prepared to shoot again, but Reysa had vanished only to reappear in front of him a moment later. She disengaged the gun from his grasp. He stepped back trying to flee, but Reysa thrust her hand though his heart and clutched tightly.

  “This time, demon, I’m going to pull.” She yanked out his heart with minimal effort as she watched him fall to the floor. She sensed the presence of another on her left side. This one had no weapon and backed slowly away from her, begging for his life. She approached him cautiously, momentarily stopping as she heard Christian begin to rouse.

  The demon watched her closely while his eyes shifted toward Christian who was now standing. “Please, don’t hurt me. I have information. Valuable information that could help you.”

  Reysa did not have time for this demon’s desperate negotiation to prolong his life. She needed to get Christian safely back home. “Don’t waste my time demon. Your death could be quick or slow depending on what you say next.”

  Reysa could feel Christian’s eyes on her. She wanted to go to him, but she needed to deal with this demon first.

  “I can tell you the truth. The real reason we took your friend.”

  Reysa rolled her eyes, quickly losing interest in this demon. “I know that already. You took him because that now heartless demon crumpled on the floor wanted revenge for his sisters’ murders. I get it, but we had nothing to do with it and now all of this pointless death for nothing.”

  “No, you don’t know. We didn’t take your friend in retaliation. Do you think we would have sacrificed all these lives for three dead demon whores? We could care less about them. We needed him. We’ve been watching him for weeks. Waiting for an opportunity. He’s a rare lycan and vampire hybrid. He could be the key…”

  “The key to what?” Reysa demanded.

  “Promise me that you won’t harm me and I’ll tell you everything.”

  Every instinct was yelling at her to hear this demon out. The information he had could be valuable. His words made sense. Something did not feel right about this operation. Why would these demons go to so much trouble to avenge three dead prostitutes form Las Vegas? Something was amiss. Reysa needed to find out, but time was of the essence. She could feel that Christian was not himself. His rage was growing as he stood lurking in the background watching her like a hawk. She needed to calm him before he snapped, but she had to deal with this demon first.

  “Fine. I promise. You tell me something worthwhile and I won’t kill you. I won’t stop you from leaving this place in one piece.”

  Christian yelled behind her, a sign that his transformation was starting. The demon’s petrified eyes were focused on Christian.

  “Demon Talk! I don’t think you want to still be around if he shifts.” Reysa turned to Christian imploring him to stay calm. His dazed, unfocussed eyes were turning a brighter shade of gold.

  The demon noticed the changes in Christian. That motivated him to spill his guts as fast as he could. “There’s a movement. Creatures like us are banding together. We are going to take down the pureblood vampires and lycans. We will no longer live in their shadows. We will be equals. Hell, we will surpass them. We will be free. In order to succeed, we need to know their weaknesses. We need to test our weapons against them. We need a subject. Your friend was perfect. He is half of both. We thought if we could figure out something that would disable his lycan side and vampire side, then we would have the weapon we need to stop the purists from hurting us again. Don’t you see? We’re on the same side. You’re one of us. You can help us stop them.”

  Reysa was trying to process his words when she heard Christian collapse to the ground. She turned to face him. His eyes completely amber. “You bleed,” he growled pointing to the blood oozing down her right arm. “They made you bleed.” The tone of his voice sent a chill down her spine.

  Before she could calm him, his body started to convulse as his bones splintered.

  “I have to get out of here,” the demon yelled as he ran toward the stairwell.

  Reysa grabbed him. “No. Tell me more. Give me a name. Who are you working with?”

  The demon’s fearful eyes were focused on Christian whose body continued to distort as his claws ripped through his flesh. “Please,” he begged trying to free himself from Reysa’s steel grasp.

  “I need names first.”

  “I don’t have any names. I swear. We communicate through a secure line on the computer.” He pointed to his laptop on the desk in the corner.

  Christian’s arms bashed the ground beneath him as he let loose a roar that fractured the glass in the room. Both Reysa and the demon watched in awe as Christian’s golden hair turned a greyish black covering his entire frame. Within moments, Christian, the gorgeous carefree blonde had shifted into a seven foot menacing beast.

  Reysa let the demon go. He attempted to flee but Christian was too quick. He grabbed the demon breaking his arm in the process.

  “Help me!” The demon begged Reysa. “You said you wouldn’t kill me.”

  “And I won’t, but he’s another story.”

  Christian grabbed the demon’s other arm and pulled. He pulled until the demon’s body split in half leaving a pool of black blood around Christian’s feet. He threw the remains on the ground and let out another ear piercing roar as he turned to face Reysa.

  She should have been afraid, but underneath there, somewhere was her childhood friend. She would not fear him.

  The beast growled and turned away, racing for higher ground. Reysa chased after him hoping she could stop him from accidentally killing one of their friends. Christian may be in there somewhere, but right now, the beast was in control.

  III

  Kaden stood beside Reysa as he launched another fire ball in the cave burning the last evidence that a demon hoard had lived there. The ball of fire lit the night sky. It was almost beautiful, but the death that hovered around them was a reminder of what a dark night this had become. There was no beauty in what took place here.

  Fortunately, they had achieved their goals with no casualties on their side. All injuries would heal with time. They had even managed to recover some computer equipment and files that would hopefully provide some leads as to who was responsible for this war against the vampires and lycans.

  Alejandro moved to Reysa’s right. He tilted her chin so that her eyes locked on his. Kaden could see his amber irises swirling in a mesmerizing manner. He could feel a wave of serenity pass through him.

  Reysa must have felt it as well. Her red eyes returned to their sexy shade of emerald. Alejandro released her taking a small step back.

  “Thank you.” Reysa turned to face Kaden as Alejandro walked away. “He eases the rage, the bloodlust.”

  “It’s an amazing gift he has. Can he fix him?” Kaden motioned to Christian who was still imprisoned by the beast. He was dismantling demon pieces while everyone stood watching and waiting to see what he would do next.

  “No. I think I’m the only one here who has any chance of helping him.”

  Reysa walked over to Anastasia and Alejandro who were watching Christian squash an already dead demon into a pile of dust. This beast was nothing like the laid back golden boy who seemed remiss to kill a bug, yet he had single-handedly dismantled nearly forty demons with his bare hands and extra sharp teeth.

  “It’s a full moon,” Alejandro whispered to Reysa. “He will be even harder to contain. I fear everyone here is in danger. Especially the women.”

  Reysa nodded in agreement as she looked up to that bright orange moon that signaled danger for anyone who crossed the path of a lycan. Unmated lycans during a full moon were the deadliest of creatures. Most stayed hidden, locked in chains and kept away from innocents. Few could control their beasts when the po
wer of the moon called out to them beckoning them to hunt. What they hunted for was a release, the release that only sexual ecstasy could provide. They would seek their pleasure by force.

  Christian was like no other lycan. He was stronger than most—an alpha supreme. He certainly had the strength to dominate any lycan clan and serve as their alpha, but he lacked the control necessary to lead. Unlike most lycans, his beast controlled him when he transformed. All his humanity seemed to be lost to the beast which is why Christian rarely shifted. He never mastered the ability to force a shift back. Savannah had encouraged him to keep trying as a child. The more he practiced, the easier it would be for him to find the strength necessary to overcome his beast. Unfortunately, he did not have a lycan around to help him find the source of the control. He tried to learn on his own, but gave up when he attempted a shift during a full moon and nearly destroyed Reysa and Savannah. Fortunately, Broderick had been there and was able to restrain a fourteen year old Christian from causing permanent damage, but even Broderick had struggled. That was the last time Christian shifted until now when his rage unleashed the beast within.

  Reysa watched Christian circle the carcasses around him clearly losing interest in this game. He looked up to her. Time was running out. She had to get her friends to safety while she tried to help Christian find his way back to her.

  “Stasi, I need you to gather your girls together and stay close. I’m going to lead Christian away from here. As soon as we are gone, leave immediately.”

  Anastasia agreed.

  “What are you planning?” Alejandro asked.

  “He is full of so much rage. I need to focus his attention on me. I’m going to run him as fast I can and as far as I can. That should give the girls enough time to flee while I try to help Christian come back to us.”

  “I don’t think so,” Kaden interrupted. “I am not leaving you alone with that thing. He is too dangerous.”