Jade nodded and gave her a soft smile. “I’d like that.” It felt surreal to her. She never imagined she would be welcomed, let alone wanted. Xander had accepted her, and on top of that, she’d found her mate. This was the moment she’d always dreamed about, and it had finally happened.
It took a moment for their wolf eyesight to switch over. It was like a desolate world of nothing. It was just darkness rolled into darkness. Reiya squeezed Hunter’s hand, which was still holding hers.
“Can you imagine being stuck in a place like this?” Hunter breathed out as he took it all in. “This must have been a lonely life, living here.”
Reiya bit her bottom lip and nodded her head. “So lonely.”
“Well, let's find this Endymion and get out of here.” He squeezed her hand. “Don’t let go of my hand. I don’t want to get separated from you here.”
“Not a problem,” Reiya breathed out. It was strange, walking on darkness. It was like an area void of anything. Each step forward was just a step on nothing.
As they headed deeper into the abyss of darkness, something happened with Hunter and Reiya. His red energy swirled around him as a blue one began swirling out of her. Together they started forming another color of their own. Almost immediately, their bodies were glowing with a shimmering purple energy.
Reiya looked at Hunter as the energy pulsed from them. It was almost like a warning to whatever was in front of them.
“Hunter …” Reiya held out her free hand, feeling the purple light around them. “They’re combining …”
“Not just that. Do you feel the tugging?” Hunter looked out into the darkness. “It’s leading us.”
Tick tick tick tick tick
The sound of scurrying feet raced toward them, and they could feel its icy, murderous intent.
Hunter tightened his grip on Reiya and pulled her under his arm. They both peered out toward the sound in the darkness, and two small, red orbs started getting bigger and bigger as the distance closed between them.
“Slayer!” Reiya gasped out.
It was blackness upon darkness, but somehow its shadowy outline was deeper. More sinister. And in the center of it were its two red, glowing eyes. It made a hissing sound as it approached them.
All of this would have been enough to stop them in their tracks. But the smell. The putrid, rotten smell that came off this creature was not the smell of a dark fairy. This was a smell they recognized. It was the smell of a demon. Slayer was a demon.
Reiya curled closer into Hunter as they both realized the same thing. If Slayer was a demon, then it would be like another original demon. They had witnessed the power of an original demon. The two of them together didn’t stand a chance.
An eerie, rattling sound came from this creature of darkness—like the sound of a rattlesnake, only louder and more menacing.
Hunter chuckled lowly, shaking his head. “We made it through everything only to meet with this now.” He gritted his teeth in anger. “I don’t care what the hell you are. You’re not getting the best of us.”
Reiya squeezed Hunter and nodded her head. She watched the red orbs shift from side to side as it sized them up. “We won’tgo down without a fight.” Their purple light pulsated from them, their clasped hands keeping their energy bound together.
The creature’s eyes flickered at them before a deep, throaty, gurgling growl shook the area around them. And then it lunged toward them, into the pulsing purple light.
Selene appeared in front of Ken, who was standing along the river in the distance. He hadn’t wandered too far, but far enough to escape listening ears. He had stayed near the water's edge, away from the battlefield, while the army was tending to their injured and losses.
He looked to his side at the goddess and snarled at her. “Selene, you crafty bitch. How dare you involve my life in your schemes.”
“You can now free yourself from the curse,” she said with a smirk.
“Of course I can. By forcing me to take the next fairy princess as my mate. I don’t want that forced on me. You linked her life to mine because of this damn black hole business. You’re using me as another anchor to this world.”
Selene only smiled. “So … you don’t want her?”
Ken frowned angrily. “Don’t try to force your will on me. I’ll determine my own fate.”
“You need to stay in the area in order for them to return. Otherwise, your mate will be born in a black hole of darkness,” Selene said.
He snarled angrily. “As if I could let that happen.”
Ken gritted his teeth. He couldn’t help the connection growing in his chest. He already felt the need to protect her. As soon as his eyes landed on Reiya, he knew. He could feel it. Hewould stay close in order to make sure his mate was born under the sun.
