Chapter 12

CHAPTER TWELVE

“ D o not touch me,” I warn, ready to blast my powers at him again.

Ignoring my warning, Amaros strides across the room toward me. I raise my hand and shoot a stream of white power at him, only this time he raises his hands, blocking my power with some sort of invisible shield.

Impossible…

No, not impossible. Well, perhaps for some, but not me, he says in my mind.

I try to blast him again, but his invisible shield blocks it.

And then he reaches me. He smacks me hard across my face with the back of his hand, sending me tumbling to the floor. I reach up with a shaky hand and touch the tender skin.

“I told you, I’m more powerful than you can possibly imagine.” He grabs a handful of my hair and hauls me to my feet.

I struggle and he shoves me up against the wall, his hand on my throat. His grip tightens until I can only suck in tiny gasps at a time. It’s not enough air. I’m fading. My vision blurs, and he loosens his hold slightly.

“No, I need you awake for this part. I’m sick of your disobedience. You are my mate, and it’s time we consummated it.” He drags me across the room and throws me onto the bed.

I scurry away from him.

He stands at the foot of the bed and slowly unbuttons his shirt as his hungry eyes focus on me.

“Don’t you fucking touch me,” I threaten and attempt to blast him again, but he anticipates it, easily blocking my powers.

He chuckles. “I love the fight in you. Always have.”

He tosses his shirt to the floor and starts on his pants, and I see a chance and take it. I run to the balcony doors and haul them open.

But before I even take a step outside, he’s standing before me. I gasp, backing away from the male. How in the gods did he get here so fast?

“There are many things I can do now, Zarla. In time, you’ll learn of them all.”

I make a beeline for the door on the other side of the room, knowing my feeble attempts to escape are probably useless now. Sure enough, he beats me there.

Gripping my throat once more, he slams me up against the wall, and my head smashes into it, almost causing me to black out. I fall to the floor like a rag doll, my body battered and bruised. He knows as well as I do that any harm he causes will begin to heal, if it hasn’t already.

Even so, I’m nothing more than a plaything to him. A toy. One he plans to break.

“Oh, you know me so well, my mate,” he says, crouching down at my side and stroking my face. “I will break you, and I will use you until you can’t take it anymore. Then I’ll wait for you to heal, and I’ll start over.”

I stare into his cold eyes, knowing what I’m about to say will push him over the edge. “Then do it. Try your best to break me. But know this. No matter how hard you beat me, I will never love you. I will die, whether that be now, or later, loving the only male I ever have and ever will. My true mate, Kyle, who is more than twice the male you’ll ever be.”

Fury burns in his gaze, and I can not only see it, but I feel it as his emotions crash into me, pouring in like from a broken dam, flooding my soul with his dark, venomous thoughts. I’m so caught up in his emotions that I don’t see it coming.

His fist slams into my jaw. My head jolts back, cracking into the floor. I blink, attempting to clear my vision, but it’s dark. His fist connects with my jaw again and again, and I feel myself slipping away.

The pain cuts into me, radiating down my neck until it’s too much to bear.

I pray for the sweet release of death because nothing can be worse than this torment. The Spirit Realm is a beautiful place. A place I long to be. I can almost taste the sweet, floral air. I lie there in the darkness, waiting for death to take me home.

But nothing happens.

Soon enough, my vision returns, and I blink, rolling onto my side as my body heals itself. Amaros is there, sitting on the floor, watching me from next to the foot of the bed.

“Ahh, welcome back, my mate. Shall we get started again?” He stands and saunters toward me.

“You”—I cough, barely able to speak—“bas-bastard.”

Knowing what’s coming, I curl my knees up and cradle my head as he slams his boot into my back. A scream rips form my throat as my bones crack.

“I warned you,” he says, then kicks me again. “But you wouldn’t listen. You never do.”

I will my powers to the surface, barely able to control them at all, and using the only strength I can muster, I fire them at Amaros.

He laughs, blocking them easily, as if he knew ahead of time what I was planning.

That’s because I did. I’m in your mind, remember?

I cough again, and blood spatters across the floor. “Just…kill me.”

He crouches next to me, and I flinch, half expecting him to punch me again.

“Aww, I don’t want to kill you, my mate. I only wish for you to suffer. Maybe once you’ve had enough, you’ll surrender yourself over to me.”

I snort, coughing and spitting blood. “Never.”

He harshly grips my chin and forces me to look at him. “I don’t require your surrender anyway. You are mine.”

He slams my face into the floor, and I almost pass out.

A loud crash sounds, but I can barely see. My head sways as I try to lift it, my vision blurry.

Who is that?

Someone’s here. They charge at Amaros, tackling him to the floor. It’s a male. I’m sure of it.

“You shouldn’t have come. But I was hoping you would,” Amaros says.

Who is it? I can’t see properly. I get onto my hands and knees and attempt to stand, but I can’t. Pain radiates down my spine, and I scream, falling to the floor.

My vision clears enough to see streams of power blasting across the room. One strong enough that it blasts a hole in the wall.

“The wards surrounding your Kingdom have failed, allowing me in.”

That voice… I know that voice.

“Kyle?” I whisper, blinking rapidly.

My vision clears, and then I see him. My mate. He stares at me with deep sadness etched into his features, and I know he wants to come to me. But he has to take care of Amaros first.

Images of Amaros killing Kyle enter my mind, and I glare at the male, who smirks at me.

That’s what I will do to him, in case you wanted to know. He chuckles in my mind, his evil plans clear.

But Kyle is strong. He will never fall to Amaros.

“I’m sorry,” Kyle whispers to me.

Amaros claps his hands. “What a reunion it is. I’m sure you can scent it, Kyle. She is no longer your mate. She is mine.”

Kyle grits his teeth, his perfect features twisting with rage. He blasts his black smoke-like powers at Amaros, and this time, he isn’t fast enough. Kyle’s powers send him smashing through the wall and out into the corridor, and then Kyle is at my side.

He scoops me up and releases his wings, and then he runs toward the balcony doors. He dives off, swooping high into the sky as I look up at him.

He briefly glances down at me and plants a kiss on my forehead. “I love you. I’m going to get you out of here before I take care of him.”

Tears flow down my cheeks as I cup his face. “I love you, too. I’m so sorry.”

Wind whips my hair around my face while we soar toward the clouds. I glance behind us at Amaros, who is following. His powerful wings cut through the air, but Kyle’s are larger, and he’s faster.

Amaros blasts his powers toward us.

“Kyle, look out!” I call, but it’s too late.

Amaros’s powers hit us with violent force. Kyle loses his grip on me, and I fall. I release my wings and manage to glide before tumbling to the ground below. Grass and dirt fly up at the impact, and I quickly right myself, searching for Kyle.

He’s lying not far from me, and I run toward him. Amaros lands between Kyle and me, and I skid to a stop.

“You really think he’s a match for me? I am one of the original gods, Zarla, in case you have forgotten.”

Kyle staggers to his feet, swaying before righting himself. “Get the fuck away from her.”

Amaros smirks and turns to face him.

I shoot my powers at him, but they ricochet off his invisible shield. Gods above, how are we to defeat him if we can’t touch him?

Oh, Zarla, don’t you understand? You can never defeat me.

He charges at Kyle, and they clash, throwing fists at one another. Kyle takes to the sky, and Amaros chases after him. I know what Kyle’s doing. He’s leading Amaros away from me. But Amaros thinks he’s running.

Kyle would never run.

I fly after them. I’m not about to leave Kyle to deal with this maniac on his own. The two of us should be able to take him down, and now’s our chance. We have to do it now. Amaros is preoccupied with Kyle, and although he’s in my mind, I don’t think he’s even considered the fact I would come after him.

He flies fast up ahead, shooting higher toward the clouds, following Kyle. Kyle disappears into the clouds, and I fire a stream of white power at Amaros. This time, he isn’t prepared. It hits him in the back, and he drops from the sky, his wing damaged.

He looks back at me and lets out a low growl as he falls.

“Zarla!” Kyle calls out, and I fly through the clouds to find him.

He wraps his arms around me and presses his lips to mine.

“I missed you. So fucking much,” he tells me with an intensity to his words.

“I missed you, too. Amaros is insane. He forced a mating bond on me, which overpowered my one with you. We need to get out of here.”

Kyle’s entire body tenses at that, and I can feel his fury, even through our diminished bond.

“You’re not going anywhere.”

Amaros emerges from the clouds and Kyle pulls me behind him.

“How sweet,” Amaros says mockingly. “Trying to protect you. But he can’t. Not from me. Come to me, my mate, and I will make his death quick.”

Kyle shoots forward at Amaros. They fall from the sky in a tangled mess of swinging fists. I shoot down after them, desperate to help Kyle, but I can’t get a clear shot at Amaros.

Panic floods my veins as the ground closes in on us. But they don’t stop. They hardly even notice they’re fast approaching it.

“Kyle!” I call out, but he’s too busy fighting Amaros.

The two males slam into the dirt, cracking the ground beneath them with the weight of their powerful bodies. I breathe a sigh of relief when Kyle stumbles to his feet. He’s hurt, but he’s alive. Amaros was flung farther away, and he seems okay, too. I land beside Kyle and help support his weight.

“You need to go,” he pants. “Open a portal and get away from here while you can. I’ll find you.”

I stare into his eyes, knowing he’s only saying this to protect me. But I can’t leave him. I won’t.

“I’m not going to leave you here with him! I’ll open a portal, and we’ll both go!”

He shakes his head and grabs my upper arms. “I’m not taking that risk. Please, just go!”

Amaros struggles to his feet. I blast him with my power, but he sees it coming and blocks it. Then several watchers land behind him.

Shit.

I glance around, trying to decide what to do, and then open a portal. I grab Kyle’s arm to pull him through it, but he resists.

“Kyle, please,” I beg, and then we lose our opportunity when Amaros reaches up and closes the portal.

Amaros smirks as the watchers stride toward us. Kyle and I prepare to fight them, knowing we’re outnumbered.

Kyle glances at me, a mix of emotions in his gaze. Love, fear, and strength.

“You should have gone,” he says.

I grip his hand. “No. I’m right where I need to be.”

“Kill him. But not my mate,” Amaros instructs.

The watchers approach slowly, narrowing their eyes at us, and then we charge forward. I leap up and kick one in the head, taking him down, and then smack my fist into another. I don’t have any weapons on me, so I blast my power at the watcher on the ground, killing him instantly.

His metal blade is attached to his hip, and I reach for it. Swinging it around, I slice the other watcher’s throat.

Kyle is a machine, powering through the watchers, taking them down one by one. I smile at my mate, knowing he can take care of himself.

Two watchers approach me, and I’m so distracted by them I don’t notice the one behind me. He grips me around my arms, restricting my movement. I thrust my head back into his, and he loosens his grip enough for me to wiggle out of it.

I slam my blade into his chest and kick the other watcher approaching me. He grips my foot and swings me to the ground.

I catch sight of Amaros watching the chaos unfold. His gaze locks with mine, and he winks at me. Weak male. Hiding behind his soldiers.

His laugh enters my mind. I am far from weak, my mate. But I do enjoy watching you fight.

He grips his crotch, rearranging himself, and I shudder.

Several watchers charge at me, and I throw my fist into the jaw of one of them. He growls at me but doesn’t go down. He’s one of the bigger ones, and although fighting him alone would be easy enough, the other two watchers circling me make it a challenge.

He advances on me, catching me off guard, and slams his fist into my face, knocking me down. I crawl across the grass, but he grips my ankle and drags me closer to him. His hands find my throat. I choke, trying to suck in a gasp of air as I claw at him.

“Easy. I want her subdued, not killed,” Amaros instructs.

The watcher narrows his gaze at me and loosens his hold, and I manage to knee him in his crotch. He grits his teeth, further loosening his grip on me, and I blast him with my powers, sending him flying off me and slamming into the ground.

The other watchers circle me. I breathe hard, ready for whatever they have planned as they close in on me. The male on my right makes a move, but I spin out of his way, slicing his thigh as I do. He grips his wound, and I slam my blade into his throat, spilling his warm blood over my hand.

The one on my left tackles me to the ground and pins me down by my throat. What is it with males and going for my throat? I’m used to the restricted breathing from Amaros’s torment, and I’m not fazed by it as he expects me to be. I smile up at the watcher and stab my blade into his eye.

Stupid male. Didn’t even restrain my hands.

Blood drips onto my face, and he rolls out of the way. I do the same, slicing the back of the other male’s ankles as I go, and he drops to the ground. The last one storms toward me as I struggle to my feet. I attempt to run, but he catches me. His arm slides around my neck, gripping me in a choke hold, and my blade slips out of my blood-soaked grip and falls to the ground.

Kyle notices and calls out to me, and the distraction is enough. Amaros goes for him, blasting him with his power and sending him flying across the field. Kyle crashes into the ground.

I struggle against the male holding me, panic clouding my judgement. My vision blurs while the watcher restricts my airway, and I claw at his arms.

He chuckles low in my ear. “Gotcha.”

I elbow him in his side. He loosens his grip, allowing me to gasp in some air and giving me the opportunity to slip from his hold. Falling to the ground, I shuffle away from him and snatch up my blade as I do.

Kyle gets to his feet, but Amaros blasts him again.

“Kyle!” I cry out.

The watcher before me laughs. I glare at the male as heat surges through me, and I leap to my feet, blasting him with my power. He flies back and cracks his head on the ground, but he gets back up as if nothing’s happened. This is a strong one.

“You can do better than that,” he taunts, striding toward me.

I throw my blade at him and hit him in his chest. His expression twists as he grits his teeth.

“Fuck!” he grunts.

I smirk with satisfaction and charge at him. After I kick the blade in deeper, I leap up and wrap my legs around his neck in a vise hold. I squeeze hard, and then I reach down and yank my blade from his chest. He grips my thighs in an attempt to pull me off him, but I’ve trained for this many times during my years at the Academy.

I slice my blade across his throat, and his blood spurts all over my legs. Satisfaction courses through me as I flip back and land on my feet before his body hits the ground.

All the watchers are down, and my focus shifts to Kyle.

Where is he? Panic floods my veins as I search the area, and then I spot Amaros flying away, holding Kyle by his arm. He’s injured. Badly.

I release my wings and fly after them as fast as I can. He’s nearing the edge of the Kingdom boundary. Gods above, what is he doing?

It’s time for Kyle to die, Amaros says in my mind, his voice thick with venom.

He drops Kyle, and he plummets to the ground and lands hard. He’s not moving.

Amaros glides down and lands next to him. He grips his throat and hauls him to his feet.

Shit, what has he done to him?

I swoop down.

Kyle turns to me. “Go, Zarla. Leave.”

His voice sounds weak, and it tears at my heart.

“I’m not leaving you again! Amaros, please. Let him go. I’ll do whatever you want!”

Amaros walks Kyle to the edge of the Kingdom and dangles him over the cliff. The sea laps at the jagged rocks below, violent and rough.

“Please!” I beg.

Why is Kyle not fighting him off? He’s stronger than Amaros. I know he is.

“No. He’s not good enough for you, my mate. Let the sea gods claim him.”

Sea gods? What is he talking about?

Kyle attempts to scratch at Amaros’s hand, but it’s useless. He’s weakened somehow. Something’s wrong.

He meets my gaze, his eyes conveying so many unsaid words. Despite our diminished bond, I know what he’s telling me.

“I won’t leave you. I can’t.” Tears flow down my cheeks, and I glare at Amaros. “Let him go!”

“As you wish…” Amaros releases him.

“Go, Zarla! Go now!” Kyle’s screams echo as he falls.

My stomach sinks as I rush forward, helplessly watching him disappear into the sea. The rough waves claim him, and he doesn’t resurface. My mind reels, and I know there’s nothing else I can do.

A deep warning sounds from within me, urging me to escape. Now’s my chance.

Kyle is okay. He has to be.

Go. Get out.

Amaros stares down into the water, satisfaction etched into his features.

I have to go. I may not get another chance like this again.

Alaron drifts to the front of my mind, and I vow to get his powers back when I can.

I open a portal without a thought as to where, and I dive through it. Amaros finally takes notice, but it’s too late. His eyes grow wild as he rushes toward the portal, but I snap it closed. I scan my surroundings as sobs wrack my body. I’m somewhere above the sea, and I can’t see land anywhere.

I have to hurry, or he could open a portal and find me.

Something inside guides me, and I listen to the inner voice and fly.

Kyle has to be okay. He just has to be. Maybe he was pretending. He knew he had to distract Amaros so I could escape. There was no other way.

I fly for what feels like hours, surprised when I don’t come across another Kingdom. Where in the gods am I?

I’m about to open a portal into Zarquon when light catches my eye. I squint at it. What is that?

Drakon’s words enter my mind. If one wanted to visit such a place, one would look for a white light over the ocean. One could then pass through the invisible barrier and into Gallerria. But be warned, only descendants of gods, or gods themselves, can pass through it. Anyone else will be incinerated.

That’s what he said of Gallerria, the so-called Kingdom of the Gods.

With no other choice, I fly toward the light. It grows brighter the closer I get to it, and soon, I can’t see anything at all. I keep flying, trusting in the warm, tingly sensation that sweeps over me and seems to be guiding me. There’s a sudden flash, and then the light is gone, and I’m in a place that is arguably the most beautiful I have ever been to, more so than the Spirit Realm.

Is this Gallerria?