bedeviled & beyond 07 - beset & bewildered by Sam Cheever

Author:Sam Cheever [Cheever, Sam]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: fantasy & futuristic romance, books futuristic romance, Romantic Comedy, books romance angels & devils, science fiction romance angels & devils, Demons & Devils urban fantasy, humorous paranormal romance
Publisher: Electric Prose Publications
Published: 2016-09-05T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWELVE

A Cost too High

I thought I was seeking a path to life,

But instead found death on every route.

Despite Dialle’s dire warning, we made it to the edge of the castle grounds without further mishap. But trouble waited between us and Morta’s fortress. When we first climbed onto flat, solid terrain, I thought we’d gotten lucky. The ice-covered grounds between us and the spiny black form of Morta’s castle appeared empty. But Slayer grabbed my arm when I started forward.

“Wait.”

Our party spread out along the edge of the cliff, all eyes on the base of the strange, summit-shaped building that hugged the mountain. What I’d thought was just a castle Morta had built into the actual rock of the crest, was instead a building shaped like a mountain peak, complete with arched black holes in the sides that no doubt represented windows and turrets shaped like smaller peaks. The broad base of the fortress sat on a series of wide rock steps, glossy with ice. High above our heads, nearly obscuring the very top of the castle, the Nightwhiffs swayed and danced in agitation.

Clearly they knew we were there.

“How do we get past those?” I pointed toward the iron-gray sky. At some point, as we climbed the face of Morta’s mountain, the meager light of day had given way to near dark. I shivered as I realized how hard it was going to be to see her forces coming at us in the dark.

“They’re the least of our worries.” Slayer jerked his chin toward the fortress. I squinted in that direction and finally saw what the others must have seen right away. The darker patches along the base of the stronghold weren’t rock as I’d assumed. They were advancing slowly toward us, their movement smooth and ethereal.

One by one the tall, stooped creatures whose forms were mostly covered by hooded robes the color of night, moved clear of the shadows. Each of them carried a long weapon with a hooked tip as long as my arm on the end. The harsh white of bony fingers wrapped around the scythes just beneath the deadly blades.

I sucked back with a gasp. “Ghouls.”

Slayer nodded grimly. “Don’t let the scythes touch you. They’ll suck your soul faster than you can blink.”

“Avoid the blades. Got it.”

“And if the ghoul gets its teeth into you you’ll wish you’d met the blade first. They crave the darkness inside you and will discard anything good they encounter.”

“Frunkin’ awesome. This just gets better and better.”

A harsh, discordant cry sounded high overhead and Slayer’s head jerked up. “Yeah, well It’s about to get worse.” He turned to the spot where Dialle and Astra stood, energy sizzling in their hands, and opened a line of internal communication between the four of us. I’m going to get Darma inside. Can you handle this?

I shook my head. No way. I’m not leaving them with this mess while I duck safely inside.

There’s no safe here, Darma, Slayer told me. Only differently dangerous.

He’s right, Astra told me.

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