Elemental, Soul Guardians Book 2 Read online

  She turned to David, “The guy at the desk, who’s sitting still, is wax—it’s Gustave Eiffel—this is a replica of his office.”

  “That’s pretty disturbing.” David peered through the office.

  She looked carefully behind the office, her dagger at the ready. The long shadows of the metal beams of the tower created black webs along the floor. Kara couldn’t see past the office. Thor had smelled demons, but she couldn’t see them.

  Moaning—Kara scrunched her face and followed the sound.

  She made her way around to the other side of the office cautiously. A bundle lay on the ground. At first, Kara thought a tourist had forgotten their coat. But then it moved.

  Kara saw a face—a young woman, with a gash on her forehead, and blood trickling down her cheek. Her eyes were swollen and bruised. Someone had given her a serious beating. What was she doing here?

  Something shone in the corner of her eye, and Kara turned around. A white sphere hovered in a glass jar on the platform a few feet away.

  “MOM!” screamed Kara. She ran forward.

  “Kara—No!” David reached to grab her.

  A shimmer of black smoke appeared before Kara, like a wall of rippling black water.

  She jumped to the side, brandishing her blade.

  The wall glistened and cracked, erupting in swirls of black mist, like a maelstrom of shadows. A man stepped out of the moving wall. Kara had seen his white platinum hair and grey suit before.

  Chapter 13

  Making a Deal

  THE HIGHER DEMON GRINNED AS HE caught sight of Kara. His pasty white skin stood out in the moonlight, like a week old corpse. He lunged forward and took the beaten girl by the throat. He let her body sway like a plaything. In his other hand, he held the glass jar.

  The demon snarled, exposing sharp fangs. It laughed. “Looking for this?”

  He shook the jar, the soul bounced against the walls of its glass prison.

  “You are so predictable, Kara Nightingale. And very foolish. We knew you would come for your mother’s pathetic little soul.”

  Kara glared at the demon.

  “I thought we could have some fun with this one.” He squeezed his hand tighter around the beaten girl’s throat. Kara heard a faint whimper.

  Anger boiled through Kara. “Let her go,” she growled.

  In her peripheral vision she saw David step beside her.

  “Let her go—it’s me you want. Let’s make a trade. Me for the girl’s life—and my mother’s soul.”

  David’s eyes darted to Kara’s. “Kara, no!” he whispered.

  The Rift shimmered and cracked again, and two more higher demons stepped out of the shadows. They both grinned when they saw her. They separated and made their way around the platform. Their Death Blades left long trails of black-grey smoke behind them.

  Kara took a step back as one of the demons positioned himself to her right. The other, on David’s left, held his position.

  The higher demon threw back its head and howled. “You would trade your angel life for this pathetic soul—and this miserable little mortal? How touching.”

  Kara watched in horror as the girl’s face grew a darker shade of red as he strangled her.

  “Do you wanna trade or not! Last chance.” Kara took another step towards him.

  “Last chance?” the demon laughed.

  He dangled the girl like a rag. “You wish to make a deal? But what if I don’t accept? What will you do then? Please enlighten us.”

  The higher demon mocked her. Kara knew they were playing with her. The girl’s mouth twitched and trembled. Kara felt a terrible sadness for her.

  “If you don’t let them go, I’m going to kill every last one of you.” The words felt strange coming out of her mouth. But somehow she felt stronger. She could feel the elemental power flow through her, gaining in strength as it fed on her emotions.

  She reached out to it. It answered.

  Immeasurable energy of wild power inside her core waited, ready to explode. She took another step forward.

  “You are a stupid little girl. My master told me you would come. And now I’ll have the satisfaction of watching the reaction in your face as I tear this mortal’s little heart out and eat her soul.”

  He turned to the other higher demons and cocked his head. “Kill the angel and bring her to the master. Do not cut her too much—the master wants her unspoiled! Oh, and squish that damn dog, too, while you’re at it.”

  Kara felt Thor brush against her heels. He looked up at her with determination.

  “Thor! Get out of here!” Kara shoved the bulldog with her leg. He waddled towards the higher demon barking loudly.

  “Do it!” yelled the demon.

  The demons launched their attack.

  David yelled out a battle cry and ran to hit the demon head on. The other higher demon threw a death blade at Kara. But she was ready. She knocked the blade to the side easily and readied herself for the next onslaught. The demon pulled out another death blade and sliced the air above Kara’s head. Her hair lifted with the current of air. She ducked and rolled on the metal platform. With her soul blade ready, she jumped up, sidestepped and struck at the demon’s chest. But the demon had anticipated her move. It flew in the air, avoiding her blade, twisted, and landed in front of her. A mischievous smile spread across his pasty white face. He blew her a kiss.

  A scream pierced the night air. Kara’s attention went to the mortal girl—the demon’s mouth was stretched abnormally long. Razor sharp teeth gleamed in the night. It brought the girl closer to its mouth.

  A flash of pain erupted in Kara’s chest. She stumbled back and fell. A death blade protruded from her abdomen. Rolls of black smoke spilled from it, its poison already spreading through her body.

  She clasped the blade with her hand. It burned. She screamed in pain and ripped it out. But she could feel her body weaken. Kara shook as the poison ate away at her core, like a cancer destroying the healthy tissue.

  But there was something else inside her. Kara felt a warmth rise up from inside and wrap around her, like a warm blanket. She looked first to the jar with her mother’s soul, then to the girl. The demon was taunting her, dangling her body inches from its large mouth, feeding on her fear as thought it were a drug. Kara could hear the clash of weapons behind her. David still held on.

  Kara pushed herself up. With her soul blade clasped tightly in her hand, she let the flow of elemental energy surge through her. Her power fed on her absolute hatred of the demons like a ravenous animal. She reached out to it, like the light at the end of a tunnel. A golden emanation blurred her vision. Her body shook.

  The demon laughed. The girl screamed.

  And then a flash of golden light spilled out of Kara’s outstretched hands and hit the higher demon straight in the chest.

  Wailing, the demon let go of the girl and collapsed to the ground. He dropped the glass jar containing Kara’s mother. It hit the floor and rolled on the platform near his feet. His body convulsed, twisting in on itself as the golden light wrapped around him. It shone like rays of yellow electricity around him. Then, with a loud crack, he disappeared.

  Another bolt of golden light shot out of Kara’s hand and struck the other higher demon. He was lifted in the air, his limbs contorted, as brilliant tendrils lashed out and wrapped around his body like a golden mummy. The higher demon screamed and burst into millions of sparkling pieces, like dazzling fireworks.

  The blade’s poison burned in Kara’s chest. She wrapped her arm around her open wound. She looked over and saw David standing over a dead demon. Kara rushed over to the girl. She lay crumbled on the floor. Blood spilled from her mouth and nose. Dark bruises painted her face. Her eyes were closed, and Kara wondered if she was dead.

  “Hey,” said Kara gently. She caressed the girl’s cheek.

  “Can you hear me?” She said more urgently.

  The girl’s lids fluttered. A mixture of fear and confusion spread on her face. “W—what
?” she croaked.

  Relief washed over Kara. “You’re going to be okay. It’s finished. You’re safe now.”

  David knelt down beside Kara. “It’s going to be okay.”

  The girl’s eyes widened. She stared absently, then grimaced with pain. She studied Kara’s face for a moment. Then as though remembering what happened, she recoiled back. “They were monsters! They weren’t human!”

  “It’s okay. They’re gone.” Kara held the girl by the shoulders and searched her face. “No one will harm you anymore. It’s over.”

  The girl’s body trembled under Kara’s touch. “I want to go home. I just want to go home.” She wept.

  David reached out and lifted the girl’s chin delicately. “I’m David. This is Kara. What’s your name?”

  The girl blinked. Tears rolled down her cheeks. “Christina.” She wiped her nose with the back of her hand.

  Kara forced a smile. “Well, Christina. We’re going to get you home. Can you stand up?”

  Christina checked herself and nodded.

  “You think you can walk?”

  With Kara’s help, Christina stood up and steadied herself. She took a few uneasy steps, wincing at every move.

  Kara caught Christina by her side and helped her. “Don’t worry. We’ll help you.”

  Thor appeared between them. He paced back and forth, sniffing the air. “I’m sorry to interrupt—but I still smell something.”

  “The dog just talked? That ugly dog just talked!” Christina’s eyes were filled with fear.

  “Who you calling ugly? I’m a pure bred. I’m beautiful.” Thor gave Christina a huge smile under all his folds. Spit flew out of his mouth.

  Kara glanced at David.

  “Don’t worry,” he whispered, “her memory will be erased. She won’t remember a thing.”

  “Thank God,” said Kara. “Okay, let me get my mother’s soul get out of here.”

  Kara let go of Christina. Her mother’s soul still hovered inside the glass jar, unharmed. Kara had done it. She had saved her mother’s soul. She moved towards the glass sphere.

  “Hurry up people,” urged Thor. He ran to the edge of the platform towards the rift. The black shimmering wall still towered before him. He lifted his head. “Wait a minute. Why is it still open? Something’s not right—”

  A loud crash exploded, and Thor was propelled back into the air. A horrendous creature stepped from the Rift and into the moonlight. Its wet carapace shone in the soft light. Hundreds of wiggling insect-like legs propelled its long slippery body twitching and coiling towards her, scraping the iron floor with sharp claws, like a giant centipede. Two disfigured human heads glowered at her from each end of the creature. It curled its body, so both heads were facing Kara. Their distorted mouths opened and steaming black acid spilled to the floor. Their eyes glowed red, and Kara saw intelligence flash in them.

  Christina let out a scream and fainted to the floor.

  The new breed spotted the glass jar. It bent down and picked it up before Kara had a chance.

  And then it charged.

  “David! Take Christina and get out of here!” Kara brandished her Soul Blade and stepped towards the new breed. “Over here you filth!” she waved her arms and caught the demon’s attention.

  David ran to her side. “Kara what are you doing? Are you crazy!”

  Kara kept her eyes on the creature. With her free hand she pulled out a Moonstone. “Maybe I am—but right now, you need to get the mortal to safety.”

  The creature howled a horrendous deathly shriek.

  “No. I’m not leaving you!” David pulled out a blade and held it in front of him.

  Kara shook her head and pushed him. “You have to. This is my battle. You shouldn’t even be here. Save the girl! I don’t want any more blood on my conscious. Go!”

  David stared at Kara.

  Kara stepped forward. “Go David. Now!”

  With one last look, David ran over to Christina and slipped her body over his shoulder. He bolted down the spiral staircase. Kara watched silently as he disappeared into darkness. Thor lay in a lifeless heap near the edge of the platform. Kara frowned.

  She stared at the new breed again, “It’s just you and me, ugly.”

  Kara searched inside for her elemental power. She felt it lurking inside her. She called to it. Nothing happened.

  Oh, no not again! She strained once more. Come on! Don’t do this to me now!

  Maybe the Death Blade’s poison had hindered it. She focused harder.

  The creature sensed Kara’s struggle and attacked.

  Kara rolled to the side. She jumped up and threw her Moonstone at it. It exploded in a cloud of brilliant white light, blinding Kara for a moment. But when the light dispersed, the demon stood unharmed. It wailed as it launched another attack.

  Kara pivoted and jumped around the demon, slicing it with her blade. The creature howled. Black blood spilled from its gaping wound. Kara saw another chance and took it, cutting away at the demon’s shoulder. Its arm fell lifeless to the ground.

  The demon spit out green ooze that Kara hadn’t seen before. It missed Kara by an inch and turned to flames as it landed on the metal floor. Kara clasped her blade and threw it at the creature. It hit straight into the left eye socket of one of its heads. Startled, the creature wavered for a moment. Kara recognized her chance. She ran towards Thor. She picked up the limp dog and cradled him in her chest. Then she turned on her heels and leapt down the spiral staircase.

  She could hear the creature thumping down the stairs behind her. Ignoring the pain in her chest, she pressed on. The second platform came into view, and Kara rushed towards it. She jumped the last step and landed on the platform with a loud thud. The iron vibrated beneath her feet.

  The entire lookout area was empty and dark. No tourists wandered around staring at the view. She could see the new breed’s legs wrap themselves around the metal railing up on the next floor. It pulled its grotesque body forward. Her mother’s soul was still in its claws.

  Kara jumped into the second elevator. She pressed the down button frantically. With a jerk, the elevator started to descend. She felt a slight relief.

  BOOM!

  The tower shook as the demon landed on the second platform. The lift swayed and Kara was thrown hard against the side. The cables wouldn’t withstand another powerful blow like that. Kara looked up. A horrendous human head stared back at her. Its face was torn and twisted, as though it had been caught in a blender. Its sharp claws wrapped around the edge of the platform. Its red wet eyes were fixed on her. It wailed. Giant insect legs moved forward. The other end of the creature appeared. It opened its mouth. Black liquid vomited out of its mouths and hit the edges of the lift. Kara jumped back. She knew if the blood touched her skin she would be in big trouble. The black liquid sizzled and started to melt away the metal.

  The elevator was melting away. Kara knew she would have to jump to avoid being melted herself. The first level of the tower came into view. She saw her chance. Before it reached the bottom, Kara jumped off and sprinted across the first floor platform and searched for an escape. She looked down over the ledge. Tiny cars the size of ants crawled along the streets. The street lamps looked like glowing blueberries. She was too high to jump.

  A loud wail cut through the stillness and the ground shook beneath her as the demon landed on the terrace.

  Kara would have to climb down. Her M suit was more powerful than a normal human body. She hoped she could pull this off.

  She jumped onto one of the iron ladders. Clutching Thor in one hand, she used the other to climb. Before she knew it, she was half way to the ground.

  Suddenly she was hit in the face by something hard. She lost her grip and fell. She landed on her back against a metal railing ten feet below. The wound around her stomach ripped, and she cried out in pain. But she held on. The new breed was a few feet above her. It beat the air with its legs. Her mother’s soul bobbed up and down in the glass jar, still in t
he demon’s possession. With her right arm she pulled herself up and started to climb down again.

  She reached the bottom and jumped down onto the concrete floor. She quickly looked up—but the demon had vanished.

  “Huh? What the—”

  She turned around. She stared into the face of an angry middle aged man in a black flat top hat, black combat boots and navy pants.

  Kara recognized the French police badge on his light blue chemise.

  Chapter 14

  The French Police

  “UH…BON SOIR,” SAID KARA remembering her mother’s French lessons. “Ca va?” she smiled, giving him her best nonchalant attitude. She batted her eyelashes.

  The policeman was not impressed. He hit her with his baton on the arm. “You are a foreigner,” he said in perfect English. It wasn’t a question.

  “Boy, you have no idea,” whispered Kara.

  “What did you say? Are you making a joke? What are you doing in the middle of the night…climbing down from la Tour Eiffel? Visiting hours are over. What were you doing up there?”

  Kara did her best to hide her injured stomach with Thor. “Nothing, sir—I swear…I was just…sight seeing. That’s all.”

  The policeman looked up and spoke as another police officer jogged towards them. “Je l’ai trouvé, Francois. Une gamine.”

  With his baton, the policeman poked at Thor. “What is wrong with your dog?”

  “Uh” Kara looked down at Thor. “He’s just sick. I was on my way home to get him his medication…so I’ll be on my way now…see ya.” Kara took a step forward, but the policeman stood in front of her.

  “Your identification please,” he said in an aggressive tone. Kara didn’t move.

  “Your passport, please,” he repeated getting annoyed.

  “I don’t have any.”

  The policeman side glanced at his partner. “You are a foreigner—and you are telling me you have no identification? How did you get into the country without a passport? Do not play with us, young lady.”

  This situation was getting worse by the minute.