From the castle, the Dragons kept watch over the Elemental Plains, which in turn kept the Earth’s elements in check. Without Storm Castle, without the Dragons, the unbalanced magic on the plains of monsters would overrun the Earth and cause a calamity of natural disasters.
“If word gets out that one of the Dragons is dead and another is missing, there will be widespread panic,” Nyx said.
That explained the First Angel’s need for discretion.
“I will be leaving shortly for Storm Castle,” Nyx said. “I’ll fill in for the two missing Dragons and attempt to stabilize the castle’s magic for now. It is a short term solution at best. That’s where you come in. Your mission is twofold. Firstly, the safe return of Major Doren. Secondly, neutralizing Hugo Darkstorm. The rogue dark angel has set himself up as the Pirate Lord of the Sienna Sea.”
The Sienna Sea was not a sea of water. It was a vast, barren expanse where monsters roamed. Of all the wildernesses of Earth, the feral lands beyond the protected walls of civilization, the Sienna Sea was among the very worst. It was home to some of the world’s most deadly monsters—and to the world’s most vicious outlaws.
“Darkstorm has gathered together outlaw bands from all across the Sienna Sea, uniting them under his banner,” Nyx told me.
“What do we know about Darkstorm?”
“He is a rogue dark angel of the ninth level, a former colonel in the Dark Force of hell. Though he deserted the demons, he is no friend to the gods. Or to humanity. His operation specializes in thievery, assassination, and kidnapping. Major Doren is his latest victim. She is being held in Darkstorm’s fortress, dead center of the Sienna Sea.”
Nyx handed me a folder. I opened it and found a map that marked the location of Darkstorm’s fortress.
“Darkstorm is a powerful dark angel, surrounded by a vast army. Defeating him and rescuing Major Doren might just be impossible,” Nyx declared. “But you seem to have an uncommon ability to make the impossible possible. And you’re no stranger to fighting dark angels. Neither is your partner on this mission.”
“My partner?”
As if on cue, the door behind Nyx slid open, and a bronze-haired angel strode into the room. He was dressed to intimidate in commando pants and a fitted black vest that looked like it had been melted onto his body, cresting every curve, kissing every dip of his muscular torso. I wasn’t petite by any standard, but this angel looked like he could have easily snatched me up and broken me in half with his bare hands.
A shudder slithered down my spine at the thought, even as I reminded myself that I was an angel, a formidable warrior and powerful practitioner of magic. I did not cower before other angels—not even before this beast of an angel.
It was easier said than done. The angel moved forward in a smooth, powerful gait, each step that he took delivered with purpose, every movement of his body calculated, every flicker of his ocean-blue eyes deliberate. His gaze trailed down my body, sizing me up. As his cold eyes met mine, I suppressed another shiver.
His gaze shifted to Nyx. “First Angel,” he said, the tips of his inky black wings brushing against the ground as he bowed.
Unlike Nyx, he wasn’t hiding his wings. Glossy, black, and ethereal, they were both the most beautiful and the most terrifying angel wings I had ever seen.
He was trying to intimidate me. Well, that fit right in with his reputation. I’d never met the angel before, but everyone in the Legion knew his face. It was a face we all hoped we would never see in person. The face of Colonel Damiel Dragonsire, the Master Interrogator, head of the Legion’s very own inquisition squad. The Legion’s Interrogators hunted down rogues, deserters, and absolutely anyone suspected of stepping a toe out of line.
And Damiel Dragonsire was the angel my father had warned me to avoid at all costs.
5
Interrogation
Colonel Dragonsire’s magic pulsed out, filling the space between us, claiming it as his own. A preemptive strike before I tried to claim it myself? Angels were brutally territorial.
But his magic didn’t stop there. It washed across my skin like the rising tide, like a hot silk ribbon slipping over naked flesh, a perfect balance of pleasure and pain entangled inside a single delectable package.
Pulsing harder, more forceful, his magic wasn’t a wave anymore; it was a tsunami. It crashed against me, drowning out all else—silencing my mind, claiming my body, and possessing my soul. He was taking control over me, trying to bend me to his will.
Even as panic rose inside of me, I forced myself to remain still.
His magic lashed against my back. Pain blossomed up under my skin.
I gritted my teeth, even as my instinct to fight back rattled against the boundaries of my self control. I couldn’t fight his siren magic. It was too strong. Like quicksand, the harder I fought, the more I would become tangled inside his spell.
Seductive promises whispered in my ears, assuring me that this would all end if I only succumbed.
I couldn’t do that either. Neither fighting nor surrender was the answer. I had to endure. That was the only way.
The magic crashed against me once more—like a goodnight kiss—then it was gone. The sudden empty vacuum left by its departure left me dizzy, dazed. I stepped to the side, catching myself before I fell off balance. My vision cleared, and I almost wished it hadn’t. The two angels were staring right at me.
“She did well,” Nyx commented.
Colonel Dragonsire watched me, probably still waiting to see if I’d crash flat on my face.
“You pushed her a bit too hard, Colonel,” said Nyx.
He folded his arms across his chest. “That’s my job.”
“Indeed it is,” she agreed. “Well, now that that’s out of the way, let’s get started.”
“You were testing me,” I said, trying to keep the accusatory tone out of my voice. I tucked my hands behind my back, my pulse pounding hard and angry inside my clenched fists.
Nyx smiled. “Of course. I had to be sure.”
“Sure of what?” My body still burned from the aftershocks of Colonel Dragonsire’s magic. It felt like a thousand tiny explosions buzzing under my skin.
“That you are strong enough to resist the mind control of an angel’s siren magic—or a dark angel’s. Congratulations, you passed. You and Colonel Dragonsire will journey together to the Sienna Sea.”
I wasn’t thrilled to be working with the angel who’d just tried to rob me of my own free will, but I didn’t say a thing. The Legion didn’t let you pick your partners—or your enemies, for that matter.
“You are to rescue Major Doren and bring in Hugo Darkstorm,” Nyx continued. “Alive if possible, dead if necessary.”
The First Angel was usually adept at hiding her emotions, but there was no missing the fire in her eyes, nor the agitated swirl of her black hair. She was clearly upset that the dark angel had killed one of her angels and taken another one of her Dragons prisoner.
Colonel Darksire and I bowed to Nyx. She nodded at us, then pivoted smoothly on her heel and glided out of the room, the bottom of her cloak swirling at her heels like fog kissing the ground.
As the door swooshed shut behind her, I turned warily to the Master Interrogator, my heart hammering in my chest. It wasn’t his angelic good looks that sent my pulse into overdrive, but rather the cool, calculating way that his gaze slid over me. Like he’d pierced my defenses and was seeing through to my soul. Like he could read every wicked thought I’d ever had and he was now sorting through them under the microscope of his magic. Like he was trying to determine if I was a traitor, whether he should strap me down for a round in his infamous interrogation chair.