A smile tugged at the corner of Stella’s mouth. “I knew it. My angel will change the world.” She pointed down the hallway behind her. “My daughter is in a room down that way. It’s at the very end. I don’t know who you are or who’s after my babies, but please, save them.”
Hunter looked at her, seriousness in his eyes. “We will. I give you my word.” And with that, they were off down the hall, sprinting for the Princess’ life.
The hospital’s aura seemed to change around them, darkness seeping in all around. It left them feeling as if they were the only ones left, locked in a hollow shell of what was.
“I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore, guys,” Cedric said, glancing over his shoulder.
He was right. It wasn’t quite the same hospital they walked into. Hunter looked around. “Ry’ell’s people must have done something.”
Raven nodded. “They must be drawing on his Darkness to influence reality around us.”
Cedric turned; a horrified look on his face. “Are we still even in the same reality as the Princess?”
Frowning, Hunter started down the darkened hallway. “There’s only one way to find out.”
They continued on, the atmosphere growing thicker around them. The hallway stretching farther as it did; taking up more room than the building had any right to. They kept moving, afraid to stop and be too late. The hallway opened through a shadowed corner and then revealed more hallways leading off it. They led in all different directions.
“Great,” Cedric said, looking around. “Now which way do we go?”
“There,” Raven spoke suddenly, pointing as a shadow moved quickly down a hallway. It wore a cloak and the hood was obscuring its face.
“I guess we’re not so far removed after all,” Hunter said, taking off after the shadow.
The cloaked man stayed ahead of them. They’d only catch a glimpse of fluttering robe as he rounded corners or changed hallways.
“How do we know they aren’t leading us on a wild goose chase?” Cedric asked as they switched to yet another hallway. “They could be stalling for time.”
His wife turned her gaze on him. “What other choice do we have?”
Hunter shook his head. “No. This is the right way.” He could feel it. Something was pulling him forward, leading him to where he needed to be. His Princess was close and her soul was calling to him, he just needed to reach her in time.
Raven saw the look in her brother’s eyes and nodded. “We’ll make it, Hunter. We won’t lose her.”
Nodding, he quickly glanced away as he felt Cedric’s hand on his shoulder. He knew they were just as invested as he was. She was their family, too. “Let’s go save our Princess.”
Cedric and Raven raced ahead of him, giving him some room to collect his thoughts. His mind wandered to the thought of the world ending because of him. No. He wouldn’t let it. He would not fail to save her again. Even if it was the last thing he did, she would live this time.
Quickly moving forward, he followed behind his sister and brother-in-law. Suddenly a whisper cut through his mind. It left a jagged slice across his thoughts, causing him to freeze mid-step.
“Hunter,” the voice called out to him. Enchanting and haunting in the same breath, it begged him to stop with that one single word.
His body instantly gave into the command. He watched as the others disappeared around the corner out of sight. He let them go. That wasn’t the direction he was headed in any longer. What he needed was right here. He could feel her at the edge of his mind, drifting through like a cool breeze on a hot summer’s day.
He spun around, air escaping from his lungs an instant after he did. There, leaning against the wall, was his Princess. His heart raced as he took in her beauty. She looked the same as the last time he saw her alive. She had come back to him.
“Sweetheart,” he breathed, the word escaping his mouth like a prayer.
She smiled brightly at him. The hall seemed to lose its gloom where she stood. She motioned for him to come to her before disappearing around the corner with a giggle.
Hunter’s heart pounded in his chest. She was here. Really here. He would happily oblige her request. He would follow her anywhere. Here being no exception. He turned the corner, following his love down the hall.
She waited coyly as he moved closer. He felt as if he was in a dream. The one thing he had been chasing for so long was suddenly here for the taking. “Baby,” he whispered when he was close enough he could almost touch her.
Giggling, she disappeared around the next corner in a blur of red tresses.
A grin tugged at the corner of his lips as he felt himself slipping into predatory mode. It brought back old memories of when they were both new to this world. Oh, how he loved those moonlit games of tag and how there was never really a loser at the end. He quickly followed her, turning the corner with almost inhuman speed.
She waited with her back against the wall and smiled, her eyes sparkling as he neared once again. “Hello, my love.”
Hunter’s legs went weak at her words. How he had longed to hear her voice. “Hi,” he responded, stopping in front of her. His eyes drifted over her and began to brim with unshed tears. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. “How can this be?” he asked softly.
“Hunter,” she spoke, placing a palm to his cheek.
He closed his eyes, a sharp exhale escaping his lips. “I’ve missed you so much.”
She smiled again, dimming the darkness around him. “I know you have. But it’s okay now. I’m here.”
A whimper sounded in his throat as he leaned forward, breathing in the scent of her. She was here. His soul mate was where she belonged. “How did this happen? How could it happen?”
She looked up at him, her eyes adoringly taking him in. “I fought my way back to you. You were the lifeline I so desperately clung to. I wasn’t going to let them keep me this time.”
“But…”
“Hunter,” she spoke, interrupting his worries. “I fought so hard, I’m free of the curse now. This is my reward. Here and now. Come with me, baby. We can have the life we always wanted.” She looked at him, her eyes pleading. “We can settle down, start a family. Nothing else will get in our way. Just come with me. Let’s leave this place.”
He closed his eyes, tears falling down his cheeks. This was all he wanted. It was all he needed. Sharing a life with her was what he was meant to do. Taking a deep breath he looked at the beauty before him. His Princess. “This can’t be real. They wouldn’t let us go that easily.”
“But it is real,” she said softly, wiping a tear from his cheek. “Don’t I deserve this? Don’t you deserve this?”
“Sweetheart,” he murmured, as a sob escaped his chest. They did deserve this. They had fought so long, given up so much. They deserved their happy ending. Reaching out, he slid his fingers along her cheek. Pain seared through them on contact. He pulled back in shock, staring down at his fingertips. Red angry welts lined them. “What?” he whispered in horror as his eyes slowly returned to the girl in front of him. What had he done? What had they done? “You’re not her.”
Pain flooded through her eyes as she watched the doubt dance across his face. “What are you saying, Hunter?”
“I don’t know what you are,” he told her, ice coating his voice. “But you are not my wife.”
Throwing her head back, a scream of rage poured from her lips as she reached forward, her fingers sinking into his arms. His flesh burned at the contact.
“Let go of me, demon,” he snarled shoving his palms at her. They shone with a brilliant white light which slammed into her, knocking her into the wall behind.
Slowly sliding down the wall, she laughed with glee at the horror on his face. Her laughter grew as her form cracked and peeled, revealing the creature beneath.
Hunter stared at the bald white thing in front of him. His
chest heaved with the pain which had taken residence there. How could he have fallen for this? Was he becoming so blind in his old age or was it sorrow that made him see only what he wanted?
The creature smiled at the confusion clouding his eyes. “Face it, Knight; you aren’t what you used to be. You can’t stop us. Not this time.”
Hunter shook off the doubt, letting certainty fill his heart. “Wanna bet?” he growled as he blasted the creature again with the searing white light. It slammed into it, raising it off the ground, pinning it against the wall.
The thing stared back at him; its eyes flashing silver, as anger boiled in its body. Shaking all over, it desperately tried to break free of the hold. But it was no use; it couldn’t move.
Hunter moved closer, the white light still pouring from his hands. He wanted to rip the creature apart, tearing it from limb to limb for making him feel the way it had. The creature deserved it. They all deserved it. A blood bath of epic proportions was what he wanted to deliver. But no matter how much rage he carried inside, he could never bring himself to become a monster, to lower himself to their level. And he wouldn’t now. He whispered a few words and leaned forward, blowing lightly on the thing before him.
The creature cracked, turning instantly into sand. Its body broke apart, drifting down the hall, turning into nothing more than a sandstorm in the distance.
Shaking his head, Hunter tried to rein in his anger. Returning to the Earth was too good a death for that thing; but he refused to dwell on that right now. There was another battle being fought here tonight, and he sure as hell was going to be a part of it.
Turning, he sprinted back down the hall, desperately praying he was headed the right way. Changing to several different halls, he slid to a stop, nearly colliding with Raven and Cedric.
Cedric turned and looked at him. “Where have you been?”
“Sorry,” he told him. “I got sidetracked. Won’t happen again.” He took in the sight around them. There were several bald white creatures lying on the floor nearby. “Friends of yours?”
Raven glanced at her baby brother. “Glamours. Nasty things. They can make you believe just about anything.”
“They sure can.” Hunter glanced at the shadows dancing on the wall ahead of them. “Why are we just standing here?”
Cedric motioned him forward. He led him to the corner and peered around it. There, in a line like the guards to hell, was a row of some kind of canine.
They were larger than regular dogs, their angles sharp and irregular, almost like a Picasso painting. Flames poured out of empty eye sockets and huge talons grew where their toenails should be.
Hunter looked at his brother-in-law in shock. “Soul Suckers? They’re using Soul Suckers? Are they out of their minds?”
“Now you’re seeing the dilemma we’re having,” Raven told him.
“Why are they just standing there? Why aren’t they attacking?”
Cedric shook his head. “I guess they’re only meant to keep us from moving forward, not to take our souls.”
Hunter was quiet for a moment, his mind racing. “Isn’t there something we can do?”
“Soul Suckers can’t be killed. You know that,” his sister told him. “We’re out of options here.”
He stared down the hall. “They’re down there, right? The baby will be born down that hall?”
They both nodded.
“And all we need to do is protect the Princess until she’s born, right?”
“Yes,” Raven confirmed. “She’s only in danger during the transition. Once that’s over, the threshold her mother’s love creates will be enough to protect her until she comes of age.”
Taking a deep breath, Hunter looked at his family, a slight smile spreading over his lips. “Then I’ll go do what I do best. I’ll go be her White Knight.”
Fear grew in Raven’s eyes. “No, Hunter. Don’t”
He stared at them a few moments longer, then turned, sprinting down the hall as fast as he could.
“Hunter, stop!” Cedric called after him.
He ignored him, his feet pounding along the floor as hard as they could. He turned the corner and realized Raven and Cedric were sprinting after him. It didn’t matter. They’d never catch him. He was faster and they knew it.
He pressed on, speeding up even faster as he went. His eyes never leaving the hideous hounds in front of him.
They snarled, flinging globs of red slobber as he neared. They pawed the ground in anticipation of their attack.
Hunter’s legs never slowed as the space between him and the hounds diminished. When he felt the heat from the fire in their eyes, he sprang, shimmering in the air as the dogs growled below him, changing instantly. He hit the floor of the hall behind them hard, sliding on all four of his furry feet and rolled to a stop.
“Hunter, get up!” Raven yelled to him.
He rose, looking at the row of hounds, and at his family behind them. Shaking his head, he cleared his thoughts. The human was gone, in its place stood a silver and black wolf. This was his second skin. The one he could do the most damage in and he was ready for it.
The hounds moved forward; their large shapes practically dwarfing the wolf before them.
Hunter stood his ground, a growl rumbling in his furry chest. They were moving quickly, murder burning in their empty eyes. He just hoped he was fast enough to out run them. Tensing his muscles, he prepared to turn and give it his all. He couldn’t let them sink their teeth in him. It couldn’t end this way.
The Soul Suckers sprinted forward, readying themselves for the kill. They moved quickly and ran face first into nothing, throwing them backwards with cries of rage.
Hunter glanced past them. Raven and Cedric were weaving some kind of spell
“Hurry,” Raven called to the wolf. “I don‘t know how long these barriers will hold. Go. Save the Princess.”
Hunter chuffed, giving a quick wag of his tail, grateful to them. Turning, he sprinted down the hall looking for some sign of the Darkness plaguing their lives. He caught a glimpse of the cloaked figure. When it saw him, it ducked quickly down the hall.
Hunter loped towards him, rage quickly building in his chest once again. Shortening the distance between them, he lunged at its back. His weight came down on it, causing them to crash hard into the floor.
The cloaked man rolled with a snarl, shoving himself away from the wolf.
Hunter’s teeth came within inches of his throat before he tumbled sideways.
“Stop!” the man yelled as he threw the hood back from his face. Dark smoke formed around them, growing into hands that reached out and pinned Hunter to the floor.
Hunter howled in rage as he fought against the vise-like hands.
Quickly the man stood up, swiping a hand through his blond hair, glancing down at the wolf. “You stupid Druids. You think you can stop my Master?”
The wolf shimmered again, taking back his human form. He lay there, pinned down by the ghostly black hands, glaring at the man, calculating his next move.
“Oh, God,” a woman cried out from somewhere down the hallway. “I can’t do this.”
“Yes, you can, Kathy. You’re doing great,” a man’s voice answered her.
Hunter stared down the hall and then back at the cloaked man. “I don’t have to stop him. I just have to delay him.” A bright white light poured out of his entire body, coating the hands which held him. They dissolved, quickly turning to nothing.
The man’s eyes grew wide, his fear of losing becoming evident. Turning he ran, following the sounds of labor.
Hunter moved lightning-quick, hissing a word under his breath.
The man instantly rose off the floor, hanging there like a rag doll.
Hunter stepped in front of him, staring up into the eyes of evil. “You and you’re God will not lay a finger on that baby.”
The man laughed as he hung there. “She’s not o
ne of your kind, Knight. Her soul is one of ours.”
Hunter shook his head. “You’re wrong about that. I know that soul better than anyone and there is no darkness in it.”
A wail of pain shook the hallway as once again the woman cried out.
“You’re doing great, sweetie. The baby’s almost here,” the man’s voice once again encouraged her.
The man dangling in the air glanced towards the voices. He could feel time slipping away. “Not yet,” he yelled, rocking against the hold on him. It broke, dropping him to the ground. He darted up, sprinting down the hall.
“No!” Hunter yelled. The walls around them started to shake, rattling uncontrollably as doors around them slammed themselves closed.
The man paused, afraid of what might be coming.
Hunter used this to his advantage, tackling the man, slamming him into the floor. Pinning him there, Hunter shook with fury. “You are not taking her from me. You hear me? You’re not,” he growled, fire blazing in his eyes. Energy crackled around them as power flowed into him.
The cloaked man held his breath, waiting for the deathblow he was sure was coming.
Hunter took a deep breath, letting it out slowly, letting the energy dissipate around them. A tear leaked out as he blinked his eyes, dousing the fire in them.
The man watched him, smirking at the weakness he had shown. “You don’t have it in you. You can’t kill me.”
Hunter stared back at the man. The anger was still there, but he knew it didn’t matter. Not anymore. “Listen,” he told him.
They’re both grew quiet as they listened to the new sound drifting through the hallway. A baby crying. It grew louder as it announced its arrival to the world. Cheering mingled in as the ones with it rejoiced the birth.
Both men stayed still, fascinated by the scene they heard unfolding down the hall. Hunter glanced down at the man and smiled. “I don’t have to kill you. It’s over. The Time of Transition has passed. That baby is protected now.”
The cloaked man snarled in rage, shoving Hunter away, rolling to his feet. He glared venomously at the knight. “This isn’t over. He will get her.”
“Just go,” Hunter told him, weariness settling into his bones. “And if I ever see you again, I will kill you.”
The man replaced his hood, quickly disappearing the way they had come.