Gilded Wings (14 page)

“Of course,” he said, then turned around and started back. “There is someone following us,” he said, and then held on tighter to me.

I turned back and didn’t see anything.

“If you can, you need to go invisible.”

I nodded then closed my eyes and concentrated, and soon felt the tingle. I grabbed Bane’s arm and he disappeared.

“They can’t see us now,” I whispered.

“How are you doing that?” he asked.

“It’s one of the powers of my suit. If I’m invisible, so is anything or anyone I’m touching.”

“I think we might be able to shake whatever is out there. I’m going to fly low. Just hold on.”

“How do you know something’s out there?” I asked.

“After centuries of war, you know when your enemy is near. It becomes instinct.”

“Okay,” I exhaled, holding on a little tighter.

Centuries? Every time they used the word according to their age, it rattled me. How could anyone live for centuries, especially under Lucifer’s rule? It was mind blowing.

I was cradled in his arms, and instinctively wrapped my arms around his neck for extra grip. His eyes snapped to me, and I quickly let go.

“No, it’s okay,” he answered. “I’m just not used to anyone’s touch. You took me by surprise.”

“I’m sorry,” I said.

“Don’t be. You should hold on because I will have to maneuver to try and lose whatever is out there.”

He flew a bit faster. Not nearly as quick as Ethon, but much faster than he was before.

A loud screeching sound suddenly alerted us something was there. Then swooping out of the sky, a huge dark creature with a wingspan, double Bane’s, came flying toward us.

“Shit,” he cursed, diving down toward the trees. He headed for the largest one and landed on a thick bough, then sniffed the air. We became visible.

“What is it?” I gasped, not being able to make out what it was.

“Gryphon.”

“A what?”

“Another creature from the Underworld used to bring death and destruction. But they’ve never been sent out into the mortal world.”

“Until now,” I said, holding on tighter to him. “Can it see us?”

“I don’t know. It has the head and wings of an eagle, and eagles have exceptional vision. It also has the body, tail, and legs of a lion, but there are eagle's talons as its front feet. Those are its greatest weapon, and what we need to stay away from. It can rip anything to shreds, including wings.”

“Who would be sending these creatures?”

“It has to be Lucian. He knows you are going to transform soon, and will do anything to try and capture you before you seal your bond with Lucifer’s son.”

“Maybe I should be caught. Then I wouldn’t have to seal any bonds.”

“No. Being with Lucian will be just as dangerous as being with Lucifer. He’s wild and has no restraint. There are no rules that bind him, and he has no conscience. All he cares about is revenge and ruling the Underworld, and will do whatever it takes to make that happen. I need to get you back to the house and into the barrier.”

“I know you’ve probably heard this before, but you will need to hold on tight, like your life depends on it. I don’t think this will be a simple flight home.”

He set me down on the branch, and I faced him. He was so much taller than me and his huge muscles bulged from under his shirt. I didn’t think I would be able to wrap my legs around his waist, but I would try if I had to.

“You ready?” he asked in his deep voice.

“I’m ready,” I whispered. “How much further are we from the house?”

“A few miles.”

“Oh God.”

“You should be praying to him about now. We could use all the help we can get.”

“What if we stay low, like down on the ground?”

“There are Hellhounds all over these woods. They’ve released at least a dozen, and who knows what else.”

“Alright. Well, I guess one big lion bird is better than a dozen Hellhounds,” I said, my voice shaking.

“Let’s hope,” he exhaled.

I tiptoed to reach my arms around his neck, but he put his large hands on either side of my waist and lifted me up, then locked his left arm around me. His right held his sword.

“Can you make us invisible? We need every advantage.”

I closed my eyes again, willing invisibility, and when I opened them, we were gone, and I could only see his outline.

“Hold on,” he demanded, “And try not to scream.”

“Okay.”

We shot into the sky, but Bane stayed low to the trees. He tried to a zig-zag to throw off our scent. Well, that was my best guess, and I wouldn’t question it. Whatever he was doing was trying to save our lives.

There was another loud, ear piercing screech. I turned to see the enormous black figure soaring right toward us. It was fast, and I could see its sharp talons out ready to strike.

Bane shot straight up, and even though we were invisible, the gryphon followed us.

“It can see us?” I panicked.

“Yes.”

The creature was huge, and Bane was right. Its body looked like a gigantic lion, but the rest was an eagle. It was completely appalling, and reminded me of the creature in hell, the one that burned Kade. Its wingspan was between thirty to forty-feet long, and its beak was razor sharp.

I’d heard an eagle call before, but the sound this creature made was not even close to that. It was more of a horrifying death scream.

“Can it blow fire?”

“No,” he answered, concentrating.

I wasn’t going to ask him anymore questions.

Bane banked left and I tightened my grip on him. As I glanced down, I saw the Gryphon still heading toward us, fast.

He tucked his wings behind his back and we began to fall hard and fast. I wanted to scream, but managed to hold it in. The weightless feeling was torturous, and felt like it was never going to end.

He finally unfolded his wings and we evened out, soaring right above the tree line. Because we were low he wasn’t able to see what was above him. He quickly did a roll, and as he did, I let out a yelp.

The Gryphon was right above us and came crashing down, knocking right into Bane’s right wing, sending him spiraling into a tree. Bane released his grip on me and caught one of the branches and pulled us up. My grip was so tight, he didn’t need to hold onto me. 

We heard loud growls in the distance, heading in our direction. The Gryphon screamed right above, soaring in a large circle, waiting for us to come out. It was also signaling the Hellhounds to our location.

The Gryphon was much too large to come down into this area. The trees were too tight and pressed together.

“What do we do now?” I asked.

“We can’t stay here much longer. We have about a mile left before we reach the barrier.”

A mile could have been a thousand miles, especially with creatures and Fallen surrounding us.

“What do you want to do?” he asked.

“You’re asking me?” I shrieked.

“Yes. You made it through the levels of the Underworld and survived. You have what it takes to survive within you. Do you have any suggestions?”

I thought about it. “Does the Gryphon have any weaknesses?”

“Its chest, but you’d have to pass its razor sharp beak and talons first.”

“What if you threw me? You could toss me hard, directly at it, and I would hold my dagger out in front of me like an arrow. It probably would never expect us do to anything like that. Those things are probably used to chasing and ripping things apart. But if we attack it unexpectedly, I think we could do it. I have this super suit which has kept me protected, and this dagger is magical. I know if it reaches its mark, it will get the job done.”

Bane looked at me with narrowed eyes, and I couldn’t read his expression.

“What?”

“You are something,” he said, shaking his head. “I don’t think anyone would have thought of meeting a Gryphon head on in an attack. What you are saying makes sense. It would never expect it because it has never had its prey attack. Maybe on a few rare occasions, but it knew when an attack was coming.” He looked like he was seriously considering it, but then shook his head. “No. It’s much too risky. We have to consider everything. What if you aren’t thrown fast enough, or miss the mark, or get injured? I don’t want to take a chance.”

“But we can’t hang in this tree forever. If we go now, and try, we could be on our way to the house in no time. I think it’s worth a shot, and I trust you. I think you should trust me. I have a feeling it will work.”

Again, he paused and I could see him battling within himself.

“Alright,” he finally agreed. “But only because I need to get you back to the barrier.”

“Good,” I said, my stomach began twisting.

“We will fly straight up, as high as we can before it gets too close. It will be coming up from below us. That’s when I’ll quickly turn and throw you at it. Just make sure you don’t drop that dagger. Keep a strong grip on it and aim straight for the chest.”

“Sounds easy enough.”

“Let’s hope it is easy.”

I took hold of my dagger, and he sheathed his sword and held onto me.

“You can do this,” he said.

“So can you,” I answered.

He called his wings and folded them behind his back. He took in a deep breath, and jumped, his wings flapped once, carrying us up quickly. I glanced around but didn’t see a thing, then my skin crawled as I heard the loud screech of the Gryphon. It was already above us.

Plan A was out the window, and I wasn’t sure of plan B. Instead of going straight up, Bane flew at an upward diagonal, heading toward the house. The Gryphon screeched again as it headed in a course for collision.

I closed my eyes and concentrated, making us invisible. I knew it could still see us, but maybe if it saw us change it would throw it off. And that’s exactly what happened. As we disappeared, the Gryphon paused and flapped backward for just a moment. As its eyes adjusted again, it screeched and continued directly after us.

Turning invisible did throw it off, but I needed to be sure.

As it barreled toward us, I willed visibility, and its course remained straight. But as soon as I willed invisibility, the Gryphon paused for a brief moment. It was confused. Its head shifted slightly to the side, its eyes trying to adjust to the change. After a few blinks, its eyes refocused on us again.

“I have a new plan,” I told Bane.

“What?” he asked.

“I am going to count to three, and when I say three, you turn and throw me.”

“No,” he replied.

“Bane, trust me. Just throw me on three, and aim me straight for its chest.”

He exhaled loudly. “I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“I do. I promise.” I just hoped it would work again. It seemed like whenever we were visible and disappeared, the Gryphons eyes needed to adjust. I knew eagles could see seven times better than humans, and I wondered how much better this creature could see. It was obviously way more than seven times if it could see something invisible.

“One,” I said, grasping tightly to my dagger.

“Two.” My heart and pulse began to race, and as I looked at the horrifying creature chasing us, my mind began to second guess. No. I couldn’t wimp out now. I willed visibility and held out my dagger ahead of me, while Bane adjusted his grip to toss me.

“Three!” I shouted.

As soon as Bane started to turn I willed invisibility.

The Gryphon stopped and I was thrust forward like a rocket, the wind whipped in my face. I held out the dagger, aimed at its chest, but then the Gryphon did something I hadn’t expected.

It dipped.

No! I struck its wing and was tossed in the air, but before I fell, I pushed the dagger into its side. It screamed, dropping quickly, which allowed me to fall directly onto its back. I withdrew my dagger and pushed it into its skull. Bone splintered as the blade entered, going straight through like butter. The Gryphon screeched and thrashed its head wildly, but I held onto the dagger, slipping down to its side. The dagger was coming free, and I was now hanging at its front. It was frantic, thrusting its talons, but I was in a position where it could barely touch me.

The dagger was coming free, and as I was slipping I noticed the Gryphon raise its front leg. I pushed off of it, using it as leverage, completely dislodging the blade from its skull.

As soon as its leg dropped, I fell but managed to plunge the dagger into the Gryphon’s chest. It clawed at me, its talons hooking into my back and tearing. I screamed in excruciating pain, pulling the blade and holding it in my grasp as I kicked backward away from it.

The Gryphon was dying, sustaining major injuries to its brain and heart, but in its last moments, it dove after me. Its sharp beak and talons ready to tear me apart before its end.

Then, out of nowhere, it was hit from the side, and tumbled away from me. Bane had come to my rescue. I watched the Gryphon’s wings tangle as it spiraled downward, crashing into the trees which were instantly leveled as it hit and tumbled to the ground below.