Fairy Magic (9 page)

“I don’t know.”

“What do these prisoners of hell want?” she asked.

“They were draining us of life and magic.”

This was sounding more and more familiar, just like when she and Sera had fought the demon and freed the kidnapped children from Darksire. But why were adults being taken this time instead of children?

“Did you hear any mention of someone named Darksire?” she asked Cyrus.

He paled. That was answer enough.

“Darksire is behind this?” she asked.

“Yes.” The word looked like it hurt coming out.

“How many hybrids were killed down there in that basement while you were there?”

“A few dozen maybe. It was hard to keep count when I…” He shook his head. “But not all of the prisoners were hybrids. In fact, most of them were full-bloods. I heard the guards talk about needing to catch more people to feed on their magic. That’s why they threw the gala tonight, you know. They wanted to bring their food to them. Thankfully, you thwarted those plans.”

Only by chance, but that was good enough for her. As she and her team exchanged unfriendly fire with the guards, the guests had fled in fear. Crashing the gala just might have saved all those people’s lives.

“Darksire made a risky move inviting all those people to a gala,” she said. “A massacre at a gala wouldn’t go unnoticed. The Magic Council would investigate. They would find out that Darksire is here. He is one of the top names on their most-wanted list. They would send a team to deal with him.”

“Darksire is immortal, powerful, and above all arrogant,” said Cyrus. “He planned to make it look like some of the monsters going wild in the city tonight were responsible for the massacre.”

“And you learned all this while chained in their basement?”

“Darksire’s followers are as arrogant as he is. They bragged about their plans to one another right in front of their prisoners. They didn’t expect that any of us would live to spill their secrets. None of us did.” He chewed on his lip. “Except me.”

“So Darksire is building his army from the criminals of hell,” Naomi said. Sometimes, speaking the words made the terrible seem less terrible. This was not one of those times.

“Yes. When the criminals return from hell, they are weak,” Cyrus told her. “Hell drains the living of magic.”

Another thing Makani had mentioned. Maybe she wasn’t hallucinating after all. She had a sinking suspicion that whatever was going on with Makani in the spirit realm was linked to Darksire’s army. But how?

“Darksire’s new recruits need to regain their magic by draining the magic from others,” Cyrus said.

“That’s why they’re kidnapping supernaturals,” Xanthus said.

“Yes, and full-blooded supernaturals recharge them fastest. That’s why most of the prisoners weren’t hybrids,” Cyrus finished.

“Then why are they kidnapping hybrids?” Naomi asked.

“The hybrids were all for her.”

“Her?”

“Firestorm,” Cyrus said, his voice hardly above a whisper. “She has many names. Here in Europe, she was known as the Dark Angel. In the islands of the Pacific, they simply called her Pestilence. The people of Asia knew her as the Fire Monster. None of those names do justice to the atrocities she and Darksire committed together. Now she is back on earth, freed from the underworld. And Darksire is trying to build that monster back up to full strength by feeding her the magic of hybrids.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

The Demon War

NAOMI WATCHED CYRUS and Xanthus disappear into the underground station, then she returned to the car.

As she slid inside, Eva said, “We should go see Gran. She is in town for the summit.”

Gran, Naomi’s father’s mother, was one of the world’s leading scholars in fairy magic. The Magic Council had made her a consultant and often summoned her to their meetings.

“Good idea,” Naomi said. Maybe Gran knew something about Darksire and his magic—something that would help them defeat him.

She wasn’t optimistic that Gran would help them actually fight Darksire and his army. Long ago, before Naomi and Eva or their parents had even been born, Gran had been a graduate student in magic archeology during the school year and a treasure-hunting adventurer during the breaks. Like a younger, female Indiana Jones with fairy magic. During her travels, she’d met and fallen in love with the leader of a pacifist community of mages and fairies. Nowadays, she wasn’t supposed to fight or interfere in conflicts, but a few times Naomi had been able to convince her to share her knowledge when her grandfather wasn’t around. Which wasn’t that often. He was completely devoted to her and kept her close. He might also have had some idea of what sort of trouble Gran would get into if he weren’t around to rein in her wild side. Naomi and Eva definitely took after her.

Gran had come alone to Munich at the Magic Council’s summons. With no one to watch over her shoulder, she would help them figure this out. Naomi knew she would. Maybe together they could figure out what Darksire was planning and come up with a way to stop him. If anyone could figure it out, Gran could.

“Let’s go see Gran,” Naomi said.

Her apartment, built over the bakery she owned in Munich, was only a few blocks from here. In addition to being the world’s leading expert in fairy magic, Gran was the world’s best baker. And like any good grandmother, she always had cookies.

* * *

Naomi wasn’t even a minute into her visit with Gran when her mind was ripped back into the spirit realm. She found herself at Makani’s camp. Piles of weapons lay at her feet. The scent of ripe oranges hung spicy and sweet on the hot breeze that cut through the trees. Silver-blue leaves rustled before an enormous blood moon. The air was sticky and hot. Within seconds, sweat beaded up on her skin.

“What are you doing walking around?”

She turned to find Emma standing before a tent, one hand on her hip, the other holding to her sword. She was a mage, Naomi realized for the first time. Her magic had faded, but the essence of her aura could not change. It was so weird being able to sense magic.

“You’re supposed to be tied up in Makani’s tent,” Emma said as Bruce and Troy closed in on Naomi from behind.

The three of them were a regular group of commandos. Sera had named Kai’s guys the commandos. Perhaps Naomi would name Makani’s team ‘hell’s commandos’.

“He said he chained you to the wall,” Emma continued.

“He did,” Naomi said, frowning.

“Then how did you escape?” Bruce asked.

Naomi grinned at them. “I’m just that good.”

“No one can best Makani. Except a demon.” Emma lunged, swinging her sword.

Naomi drew her own, parrying Emma’s strike. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not a demon. Demons don’t live in this circle. The conditions don’t agree with them, remember?”

“You don’t have to be a demon to be working with one,” Emma growled with fierce hatred. “The demon could have given you powers. Which one was it? Bael?”

Emma waved the other two forward, commanding them to close in. Naomi turned in a continuous circle, trying to keep them all in her sight. A streak of movement danced across her peripheral vision, and she spun around, blasting Bruce with Fairy Dust. The vampire stumbled back and tripped over a rock.

“She has magic here,” Troy said, gaping at Naomi. “No one has magic here except Makani.”

“And those kissed by demon magic.” Emma’s dark eyes narrowed, trying to burn Naomi with pure hatred. “You are foolish to reveal your true nature, demon slave. We will cut you down.”

She and Troy moved in from either side. Naomi’s magic was stronger here, but not that strong. She couldn’t take on two seasoned fighters, not if they attacked her from both sides at once. And Troy had a bow. His arrow could strike her down before she could stop it.

“I don’t want to fight,” she told them.

“Demons’ slaves are cowards,” Emma taunted. “They never want to fight unless it’s a rigged match.”

“This match is pretty rigged,” Naomi pointed out as Bruce rose from the ground. Her Dust must have only just grazed him. “There are three of you, and just one of me.”

A smile twisted Emma’s lips. “I like those odds.”

An arrow sprang from Troy’s bow. For once, luck was on Naomi’s side. She darted aside, and jumped up in front of him, blasting him with Fairy Dust. It shouldn’t have worked on another fairy, but hell must have drained his resistance like it had his magic. As he fell, Naomi turned to blast Bruce again. And this time he went down for real.

Naomi pivoted, darting around the flurry of knives Emma threw at her. Naomi was faster here. She felt more alive in hell than she ever had on earth. That was true irony. Emma rushed forward, knocking the sword from Naomi’s hand. She swung her own sword toward her—

“Stop!” Makani’s roar shook through the trees.

As if by magic, Emma froze, her blade just inches from Naomi’s throat. Makani strode forward. The very trees seemed to split before him, cowering in his presence. The air grew thick with magic.

Makani stopped beside Emma. His dark gold eyes burned like the hot inferno of hell. He looked at the two guys waking up on the ground. “Don’t you have better things to do?” he demanded, his voice quaking with authority.

The two of them ran like they couldn’t get away fast enough. Then he turned his dark glare on Emma. “Lower your weapon.” The cold fury in his eyes was nothing compared to the savage outrage of his magic. It was pounding against the hard wall of his control, slowly but surely cracking away at it. It wouldn’t be long before that volcano erupted.

Emma must have seen that too. She sheathed her sword and stepped back, bowing her head.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he said, his voice thick with anger.

Emma shifted her weight, obviously unsettled by his dark gaze, but she held herself together. “My job. You put me in charge of security. That right there is a big breach.” She pointed at Naomi. “A demon’s spy. She’s trouble.”

The firestorm in Makani’s eyes simmered down. “Yes, she is, but she’s not a demon’s spy. You will not attack her again.”

Emma opened her mouth, but the protest died on her lips.

“I will take care of things from here,” he told her. “Go see to the preparations for tonight.”

She bowed her head. “Yes, my prince.”

Makani watched her leave, then turned to Naomi. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine.” She picked up her sword from the ground. “Funny you should ask, though, considering you were the one to chain me to your tent.”

“It was just a test.”

“A test,” she spat back, unable to contain her annoyance. “What kind of test?”

He didn’t answer. “Come.”

After a few steps, she realized he’d done it to her again. How was he able to pull her strings like that? She was the one who pulled strings.

The look he was giving her rivaled the glare he’d set on Emma earlier.

“Like what you see, Your Highness?” she teased.

“Oh, yes.”

The look in his eyes was intense, promising of dark and wicked things. Now, usually she was all for dark and wicked, as long as she was in the driver’s seat. But she had a feeling she couldn’t tame him. The thought was as exciting as it was scary. No, bad idea. Pick another subject, she told herself. Anything. The weather even. She looked around for a topic less obviously evasive.

She pointed at the backpacks on the ground. “You are preparing to move camp?”

“Yes, we will be leaving tonight.”

“Where to?”

“To infiltrate a castle.”

“Why?” she asked.

“The castle is a stronghold of a warlord named Valin, the warlord of Bael.”

“Bael?”

“A demon.”

The icy fingers of death crept down her spine. “I thought you said we were in the second circle.”

“So we are.”

“And that demons are confined to the core three circles of hell.”

“They are,” he said.

“Then what’s going on here?”

“War,” he said, looking across the camp.

“Between you and the demons?”

“Between all of the demons. For millennia, they have been fighting by proxy for control of the spirit realm. Remember the beast men you met on the Fire Plains?”

Like she could forget them. “Yes.”

“They are soldiers in Bael’s army, spies for his warlord of the second circle. Even ghosts obey his command. The demons use them to relay orders to their warlords. War is raging in every circle of hell, Naomi. Everyone is taking sides. It’s the only way to be safe.”

“Everyone but you.”

“I will not serve a demon,” he growled fiercely. “No matter how much they hunt me. No matter how much they try to make me suffer.” His voice dipped lower, laden with ice. “They will not break me. They will not break any of us.”

“Emma, Bruce, and Troy,” she said. “Are there others?”

He shook his head. “No. It is not easy to convince people to take up arms against a demon’s army. The four of us are a small group, but we stick together. We survive together. We will stand against the demon. I will protect my people until the fires of hell swallow me whole.”

“That’s pretty noble.”

“Maybe.” A crooked smile twisted his lips. “Or maybe it’s just my own stubbornness. I will not give ground to the demons, not now, not ever. Even in hell, there’s a line that must be drawn between good and evil, a line that must never be crossed. When I first came here…” Pain flashed in his eyes. “I didn’t understand. I was too caught up in my own suffering. I tried to stay out of other people’s business. Usually loners get picked off by the packs here, but I was too strong and too good at hiding. Until the day I stopped hiding.”

“What happened?”

“The demon problem got worse. People died. People I cared about. I befriended a group of rebels. They were so kind, so good, so selfless—everything that I was not. They were helping me heal my broken spirit. One day, they went up against a demon’s warlord. They asked me to come, but I wouldn’t, too caught up in my own grief. They died.”

The pure agony in his voice, the torment of his regret, almost brought tears to her eyes.

“After killing them, the warlord returned to the camp. He killed everyone. Every adult. Every child. I returned from my walk of self-pity in the woods to find nothing left of my friends but a pile of burning corpses. I followed the warlord’s trail. I hunted him down and killed him. After that day, I dedicated myself to fighting the demons who are tearing the spirit realm apart. I gathered supporters.”