Beneath A Sinister Moon, page 10
part #3 of Demon Hunter Series
I exited the stone building and looked up at the muted sun. There was no warmth from the dim light, no vibrancy to the colors of this Realm—just eh. It made me long for our next trip to the Human Realm. I stretched my wings and took to the sky, soaring over Rya’s terrain, as demons below did whatever their queen commanded.
Rya had set me free, priming me to be her mate. My feelings for her took root the moment she had transformed me, and they only intensified when my last tattoo faded. My hatred for her had morphed into a passion, and my need to please her and make her mine consumed every fiber of my being. She was my addiction. What was it about this demon life that made everything so eurphoric? Even consuming the human soul was intoxicating. But like an addict, noticing themselves going further down the path of addiction, each day took me farther away from any fragments of humanity that clung to me.
And what about Jace? When I took my place next to Rya, what would become of him? Could he tamp down his feelings for Rya and obey the both of us, leading our demon army? Or would he forever try to cut me out of the picture as he pined for Rya?
Rya needed to hear my concerns and get on the same page as me for our future. I swooped down, retracting my wings back into my body before entering the fortress.
The main throne room was empty except for the few demon guards standing watch along the wall. “Where’s the Queen?”
A short and heavily muscled demon responded, “She has not left her quarters.”
“Thanks.” I stopped to grab a plum-like fruit from the dining hall before heading toward her room.
Rya’s large wooden door was cracked open, enough for me to see her standing near her bedside. Her back was to me as she was dressing. Silently, I pushed the door open and entered the room, enjoying the view. She worked at tightening and fastening her dark corset over her pale skin. Her subtle curves made my hands twitch with a need to touch her soft skin. Lost in my thoughts, I took a loud bite of the fruit drawing her attention.
“Tyler, I didn’t hear you come in.” She gave me a wicked grin. “Come here and give me a hand.”
Gladly. I crossed the room and set the fruit down on a nearby table. I winked at her and my fingertips skimmed along her pale and flawless skin causing her to shiver. I leaned down and nuzzled her neck, leaving a trail of kisses from her shoulder to her neck.
She tilted her head back releasing a quiet sound of approval, as she lost herself in the intimate moment. “Hmm, you’re supposed to be helping me get dressed, not undressed.”
“I got distracted.” I smiled against her neck as I continued kissing her, letting my hands roam her curves.
“You’re naughty, and I have a busy day.” She straightened herself and commanded, “Now, help with the corset, please.”
Releasing a frustrated sigh, I obeyed. “Right, so how does this thing work?”
Rya instructed me to pull on the laces until she said it was good enough.
I did as she instructed and cinched the corset to the point where is looked painfully tight. “Are you okay? Maybe I should stop.”
She snickered. “It’s supposed to be tight. Give another tug, and I think you’ll have it.”
“How and why do you wear this thing? I mean, not that I’m complaining. I especially like this part.” Peeking over her shoulder, I traced my finger over the exaggerated swell of her breast.
She batted my hand away. “It’s tradition to wear one when you become an adult female demon—it symbolizes power…and pain. Anyway, I’ve grown accustomed to wearing it.”
“Apparently not accustomed to putting it on,” I joked.
She raised her eyebrow. “Ask me what happened to the last demon who displeased me while putting a corset on.”
“What happened?”
“I tortured him for days and nights before taking his life. And then…we ate him. The hormones released during torture makes the meat sweet and delicious.” She grabbed my hand and lifted my pointer finger to her lips. Her long, forked tongue twisted around it as she looked at me hungrily. “I suddenly have a craving for tortured demon.”
I pulled my finger away and tied a bow at the top as she’d instructed.
“Rya?” I realized the door was still open, so I ran over and shut it. “Have you thought about what will happen after I become your mate?”
“Yes. I have big plans for us.”
I smiled at the sound of us. “What about Jace?”
“What about him?”
“You know he doesn’t like me.” This didn’t surprise her. “In fact, I’d bet he’s plotted a hundred different ways to kill me, so he could be with you.”
Still no reaction. I had hoped she’d understand this problem and want to eliminate it.
“I’m more concerned with you being worried about him. You want to be worthy of being my mate, right? Once you kill Cassidy and assume your full powers, do you doubt you’ll be able to keep him in line? Should I be worried Vygad hasn’t sent me a strong enough mate?”
“No, not at all. I can keep him in line.” I reassured her, but I worried because his power allowed him to dominate me and I had no way to counteract it.
She stepped closer, studying me. “Are you jealous of his affections toward me?”
Jealous? Hell no, I wasn’t jealous. Jace was like an annoying fly that kept landing and shitting on you, begging you to swat it with a magazine and end its miserable life. This was not jealousy! I slammed my hand down on the footboard of her bed, causing the damn thing to crack and make the bed unstable. Shit! I hadn’t meant to break her bed, but I hadn’t learned the extent of powers. “This is not something to be taken lightly. It will be your mistake to underestimate the desires of your pawn. He will be our ruin.”
Rya snatched me by my shirt and threw me against the black stone wall. I slid down and landed in a painful heap of broken stone. But she wasn’t done with me. “Kneel before me!” The thunderous command shook the furniture in the room. I looked up into my Queen’s black and violent eyes, but there was no sympathy or forgiveness. She exuded power and fury as she stood, lips drawn in a tight line, hands on her hips, demanding my obedience.
“My apologies,” I managed as I crawled over and kneeled beneath my Queen.
“Don’t ever question my decisions or ability to see what’s happening around me again! I earned this title by clawing my way to the top, destroying anyone that stood in my way. Don’t make me destroy you.”
“Yes, my Queen.” I bowed before her, like a positioned marionette. Was this part of her spell? I felt something deep within me, fighting against this subservient behavior.
“That’s better,” she said approvingly as she walked out the door.
Two things had become clear to me, Rya had me wrapped around her finger—and Jace needed to go…ASAP!
Chapter Sixteen
Tyler
“My love, it’s time to wake up!” Rya trailed kisses down my bare chest, an attempt to wake me. I inhaled her sweet, spiced scent and pulled her close to meet my lips.
I squeezed her soft curves, deepening our kiss. She was every bit female and knew how to use that to her advantage.
She broke our kiss, licking my lower lip with her forked tongue. “Today’s the day.” She stood and walked over to her ornate wardrobe where she opened it and picked out her clothes.
“What were you saying?” I stretched out with my arms folded beneath my head and watched Rya dress.
“Today’s the day you hunt for Cassidy.” She looked back at me and smiled. “Then we can begin our reign together.”
“I meant to ask you, why Cassidy? You said it needs to be someone I love. I could easily kill Tegan. He’s easier to find.”
She came over and traced her black finger nail near my heart. “Because I’ve seen you with Tegan and I’ve seen you with Cassidy. I know your heart better than you, my dear, and it is Cassidy’s death that will undo the last of the spell.”
I pulled her down to kiss me. “Sounds like a busy day. I think I’d rather stay in bed with you.”
Rya’s obsidian eyes brightened with her smile. “Come back to me as my King, and I promise we’ll celebrate by staying in bed all day.” She planted one last kiss on my lips, then pulled on her leggings and black skirt before heading out the door.
I took my time getting cleaned up. Who knew how long we’d be hunting before we found what we were looking for? I dressed in my black cargo pants, a tee, and my boots. Then I threw some necessities into a backpack before heading to the armory for weapons.
“Tyler, I thought you’d be with Rya still.” Jace had a leather bandolier with various small weapons attached and a belt with two daggers sheathed.
I didn’t feel like chit chatting with him. I grunted and went about equipping myself with short and mid-range weapons.
“Not much for words today, huh? Well, meet in the Great Hall in ten minutes—and take that last bag.” Jace pushed past carrying two large sacks of weapons.
Once equipped, I grabbed the last bag, shut the heavy wood door, and headed to the Great Hall.
Demon guards swarmed the bags Jace had set down, sifting through the collection within and adding to their arsenal.
“The plan is to draw out as many Hunters as we can, so a smaller team can go in and grab Cassidy. It’s important to remember our goal is to get Cassidy, not destroy the whole Clan. She needs to be extracted ALIVE. Since Tyler and I are the only ones able to affect the spells on the binding chamber, we’ll free as many imprisoned demons as we can and get the Hunters to pursue us. Meanwhile, you seven...” He pointed his blade at several demons standing before him. “You enter the Hunter lair and get Cassidy. Then cross back to the gate in the black mountains. The Hunters should have no knowledge of that gate and won’t be able to track you if you have enough distance between you and them.”
I didn’t like Jace, but he commanded Rya’s army confidently. “Did I miss the memo? How exactly am I able to affect the binding chamber spells?”
“Because true demons, half demons, and those with extreme powers, like myself, have the ability.”
Hopefully the asshole wouldn’t get us killed with his latest plan.
“Jace.” Rya stood from her throne and descended the steps. “A word—in private.”
He instructed one of the demon guards to divvy up ammo and provisions amongst the others before following obediently behind Rya out of sight.
A pig faced guard kicked the largest sack over to me. “Take this.” The sack contained two canteens of a what I assumed was water, various food items, small vials of strange glowing liquids, and bandages. “Master Jace wants you to carry it.”
I looked at the other two packs that Jace had brought, both now looked lighter and less full than the one assigned to me. “Of course he does.” I didn’t miss that these guards held no ties or respect toward me, but they referred to Jace as Master. I wondered if that would change once I unlocked the last part of the demon within.
“Okay, let’s go.” Jace announced as he came around the corner, his face flushed. He glanced at Rya once more, and while I couldn’t see his face, hers curled into a seductive smile as she held his stare.
I knew in that moment, that once he led me to Cassidy and she lay dead, the first thing I would do with my new power was drain the life and power from that asshole.
Chapter Seventeen
Killian
Sean’s fatherly instincts had kicked in with the approaching battle. He asked to officiate Skylar’s initiation and requested we add some of Tehya’s blood to the ink instead of a Hunter’s, as it would be more potent. The Elders agreed, deciding that since our angel blood supply had been replenished, we’d add two drops of the pure blood to the ink in all initiations for this next generation of Hunters. It didn’t seem like much, but the results would be noticeable, and the future generations of Hunters would have an advantage.
The Harvesters had decorated the Center with garlands of fresh flowers and lit candles. A trio of Harvesters played a quiet melodic tune on hand carved flutes as the invited guests took their place around the altar. I took my place beside Lena and Jackson and scanned the crowd that had assembled.
“Something wrong, Chief?” Jackson leaned into me.
“Cassidy. She’s supposed to be here. I wanted her to witness an initiation.”
“Want me to go check on her?”
I didn’t want any unneeded attention drawn to this. The initiation pertained to Skylar and the Clan, not Cassidy. “No. Leave her. I’ll check on her later.”
Jackson looked down at my clenched hands, “Might wanna relax a bit. You look like a Krevarian crawled up your bottom.”
He could always get a laugh out of me. “Is that right? Where do you come up with this stuff?”
Jackson shrugged, and the music changed from melodic to rhythmic as a drummer beat a pattern signaling the beginning of the ceremony.
Skylar appeared at the Center entrance, dressed in all white with a crown of leaves from our grove.
Sean proudly came around to meet her in front of the altar. “Skylar, please kneel.”
She dropped to her knees before him.
“We are here to initiate Skylar into our Clan of Hunters. Does anyone object to her becoming a member of our Clan?” he asked the crowd.
Silence.
“Very well, Skylar, repeat the Oath of the Hunter after me. Blade in hand, courage in heart, in the name of our Father, I swear.”
Skylar cleared her throat and lifted her dagger to the sky. “Blade in hand, courage in heart, in the name of our Father, I swear.”
Sean nodded, then continued, “To keep the balance between good and evil and protect and preserve human life.”
Skylar looked at each of the Hunters standing near the altar as she repeated, “To keep the balance between good and evil and protect and preserve human life.”
“And I shall stay strong in body, wise in mind, and faithful to the Clan and its allies.” Sean set his hand holding his dagger across his heart and nodded toward Skylar encouraging her to do the same.
Skylar mirrored Sean’s actions and echoed, “And I shall stay strong in body, wise in mind, and faithful to the Clan and its allies.”
“This I swear on my life.”
Skylar paused, then said, “This I swear on my life.”
The entire audience answered, “This I swear on my life.” Symbolizing our renewed Oath and united front with each initiation ceremony.
Sean stepped aside “Now that the Oath has been spoken, Skylar will receive the mark of the Clan.” The crowd cheered, and the Harvesters played a lively tune as Lena began tattooing our symbol, a dagger with a snake curled around the hilt, on her left forearm. The rest of the group mingled as they enjoyed food and drink.
Anchor, my heavily scarred and tattooed weapons expert, leaned over as he spoke animatedly to someone. When he took a step back, I saw Cassidy standing beside him. When had she come in? She listened to Anchor while watching Lena intently.
I joined them, resisting the urge to ask Cass where she had been. “Hey, Anchor, can you grab us some Marrow Julep?”
“Sure, Boss.” He headed to the table of food and drinks.
“Can’t come to an initiation and not make a toast with Marrow Julep—it’s bad luck.” I tilted my head to Cass. “I’m glad you came. Since you weren’t exactly conscious when you were initiated, I wanted you to see an actual ceremony.”
Anchor returned with the drinks and handed one to each of us. “Are we toasting?”
Cass raised her cup. “Sure. To Skylar?”
Anchor raised his cup. “To Skylar being a badass. May her kills and captures outnumber her dear ol’ dad’s.” We clanked our cups together and drank the sweet drink.
“I don’t really remember my initiation. Did you guys toast mine?” Cass asked.
“No, actually, we didn’t. Your initiation was nothing like this.” It felt like so long ago since she had fallen into our world. “We initiated you under different circumstances.”
“Yeah, that was a crazy time.” Anchor shook his head. “Maybe we should toast Cass now—you know, for good luck.”
“Why did you initiate me?” There was a challenge in her question.
“We did it to uphold our oath to protect and preserve human life.”
Her lips were thinned into an angry line.
“We did it to save you,” I added.
She sucked her lips in. Her energy vibrated with a dark intensity for a moment but then it returned to normal as she took another drink and offered a smile. Anchor must have sensed it too as he shot me a worried look.
“Well,” Cass tilted her cup and drained the last of her drink. “I’m going to wish Skylar well before heading off.”
I watched her walk toward the altar, watched her still-shifting energy.
“What the heck is wrong with Cass?” Anchor stared after her, obviously noticing what I did. “Her fluctuating energy is making me motion sick.”
“I don’t know. Did I say something wrong?”
Anchor shrugged. “Beats me. ’Course I’m not really good with the girl stuff. You should ask Jackson. He’s the pro in that area.”
“I’ll check in on her later, make sure she’s okay. Hey, how’s the cell coming along?” Anchor had been working with the Harvesters on a holding cell where we could put Tyler once we caught him. I needed him contained until I could figure out if we could restore him back to his human self.
“It should be done by morning. But I gotta warn ya, if he’s full-fledged demon, I’m not sure what we have would be enough to hold him. Might need a Plan B.”
My Plan B involved us throwing him in the binding chamber. “If Tyler is full-fledged demon, I’m not sure we can save him.”
“Noted. Oh hey, I’ve been workin’ on a new weapon for you.” He held up his hand covered in scabs and red bumps.
“Whoa, what happened to you?”
“Blister berries, potent little suckers. The pain and blisters…” He shook his head. “I’ll bring it by later. Just be careful loading it.”
