Page 95 of Rising Out of the Darkness (Divine Guardians Duology #1)

The blood beneath my skin boiled. When I finally got my hands on Alastor, I was going to destroy him. Slowly. Painfully. Until he begged for mercy that I would happily deny him.

“I fear, if we do not stop Alastor, our entire kingdom will be consumed entirely by this darkness and the evil that lives inside of it. He’s destroying the Kingdom inside and out.

You and Elena are the only ones capable of stopping him.

” A gurgled cough rattled from my father’s chest. “Son, I don’t think I have much longer. ”

Every selfish act that he had committed over the years had led this kingdom to where we were now.

For a long time, I’d assumed that something was going on with my father, but anger and rage had blinded me, stopping me from confronting him about it.

The main reason I’d stayed for so long was to see if he would have a change of heart.

Remorse welled inside my stomach. Perhaps, if I had intervened sooner, we wouldn’t have been in this predicament. As I was about to respond to my father for possibly the last time, the sound of a slow clap floated down to us.

“Well done, Alaric. You always did have quite the flair for dramatics,” Alastor scoffed. “Now that you’re both done with your happy little family reunion, I’d like you both to join me.”

With a snap of his fingers, two hooded creatures descended upon us.

Black claws extended out of the sleeve of the being that was closest to me.

It waved its repulsive hand, and the vines ripped free of my flesh at an excruciatingly painful rate.

Both creatures’ faces were shielded inside the dark void of their deep hoods, but I could feel their gazes burning my skin.

My father yelled beside me as the creature pulled him out of the ground and wrapped its clawed hands around his arms to hold him upright. It was pressing straight into the broken bone protruding from my father’s arm.

“Get your claws away from me!” His words thundered as the creature next to me pulled me to my feet as well. The dark being next to my father growled, digging its claws deeper into his arm, silencing him with pain. The color left in his face dimmed as he tried to endure it silently.

“We don’t have all day. Get them up here!” Alastor roared from above.

Claws wrapped tighter around me, and my feet lifted off the ground. The hooded creatures floated us out of the sunken tomb we’d been in.

As soon as my feet touched the ground, my breath hitched at the sight that lay all around me. Thousands of these sunken holes spread throughout the cavern as dark beasts and more of the creatures behind me roved around.

How many others did Alastor have down here?

Alastor stepped directly into my eyeline. A malicious smirk spread across his face. “Welcome to Hells, Declan.”

B efore I could snap back a response, the creature kicked my legs out from under me, sending me crashing to the rock.

Gravel embedded itself into my ripped flesh.

I winced as the creature pulled my arms above my head and began to drag me away.

A dark rumble of laughter bellowed from Alastor as he stalked ahead of us.

The smell of sea salt and the crash of waves brushed against my senses as the creature continued to drag me.

Icy water flooded my back and continued to coat the rest of my body as it was drug through it.

A hiss slipped from my father behind me as they wrapped chains around my father’s wrist and connected them to the black rock behind him.

Whimpers assaulted my ears, and my gaze landed onto the mangled body chained against the rock in front of me.

Only a few specks of her auburn hair showed through the blood that stained it.

Pieces of my heart shattered as my eyes rolled over every cut, bruise and burn to her beautiful body.

The radiant glow of her freckles had dimmed, and my Wildfire’s eyes were swollen shut.

The rise and fall of her chest was barely noticeable.

Footsteps splashed behind the rock. The chains behind her sagged and pulled backwards. My eyes followed the chain, which ended in the hands of a familiar Elysian. Will .

Rage bubbled and boiled beneath my skin. Though I still couldn’t feel my dynamis, the overwhelming need to avenge Lena gave me strength.

The hooded creature was still standing directly behind me.

A sadistic grin grew upon my face. I kicked my feet around the creature’s, pinned it with my thighs, and bit down hard on its leg.

An otherworldly shriek fled from the creature as its thick, foul-smelling blood coated my mouth.

While it was distracted, I threw it over my shoulder into the water, holding its head underneath with the weight of my body.

Alastor hissed a command in another dialect at the creature near my father, and in seconds it was on top of me.

Its claws dug deep into my shoulders as searing pain peeled at my flesh.

The other creature flailed beneath me as I repeatedly jabbed my elbow into the chest of the one latched onto my back.

Underneath me, the movements slowed until there was nothing.

Twisting my body on top of my other assailant, I slammed its head into the same position beneath the water.

All at once my breath left my body as lightning struck through the both of us. Through the current of fiery light, Alastor’s eyes glistened with fury as he unleashed blow after blow of his dynamis.

The roar that exited my body shook the entire lair. It even caused Alastor to stumble, wide-eyed, before he extended his arm to launch his dynamis again. A flash of light—no, fire—flashed before my eyes.

Will stood in front of me, taking the full blow of the lightning strike. With a grunt, he fell to his knees. Alastor stomped towards us both.

“Remember, you can’t—” Will paused, trying to settle his breath. “You can’t kill him yet.”

The glare that Alastor unleashed on Will could have easily burnt a hole.

Will regained his footing just for Alastor to send a right hook to his jaw, sending him crashing back down.

My lips twitched up at the sight. Even though Will had just shielded me, it didn’t erase all the rage I had pent up against him for what he had done to Elena.

“Oh, you think this is all funny?” Alastor glanced at the two dead creatures underneath me. He extended his hand and hissed another command.

A scream filled the cave. I watched in horror as Elena flew across the water straight into his clutch. He wrapped his fingers around her neck, and another scream fled her lips as her feet dangled in the air.

“STOP! Leave her alone. Do your worst to me.” I stumbled to my feet and ran towards him.

With a flick of his wrist, another bolt of lightning thrashed against me, shoving me backwards.

Pain assaulted my body, but I didn’t back down.

I couldn’t, not until I had her safe inside my arms. Shallow breaths rasped from my mouth as I continued to make my way towards him.

Blow after blow of his dynamis knocked against my body.

“Son! Stop!” My father’s exasperated cries echoed against my ears. Ignoring his pleas, I pushed my body further.

Alastor’s eyes began to widen as he took a few steps back. His lips twitched and beads of sweat began to fall down his brow. All at once, his dynamis stopped, halting me dead in my tracks as I paused for a much-needed gasp of air. Alastor’s gaze had shifted…onto my father’s.

“Let’s see who you’ll choose.” Alastor grinned as fear sliced through my gut as I watched him begin to drain the power out of my father.

My eyes locked on my father’s. No words passed between us, just a silent nod and a teary smile. I began my sprint towards Elena, who had already been launched into the air.

No dynamis meant no zephyring. Pushing my body to its limit, I ran with everything I had to catch the woman I loved.