Page 1 of The Angel's Kiss
Prologue
The Night of the Angel’s Kiss
Azazel
December 12, 1912
Ilooked at themale Guardian standing before me, the one who was rude enough to interrupt my fun. I happened tobe dealing with a miserable lot of humans who thought it would be smart to double-cross me on a transaction for guns. I didn’t appreciate this Guardian’s intrusion. I swiftly broke the neck of the worthless human I’d been holding to give my full attention to the pest.
Like all other Guardians I’d faced in the past, he was bonded with his angelic Champion and donned the celestial armor the Champion provided. This was white and gold and stronger than any steel, I was sure, based on my experience. Oh yes, he would get my undivided attention.
“You must want to die tonight,” I said as I let the corpse fall to the ground. I stepped over his remains like the trash he was.
“Is there anything you filthy demons won’t steal? That’s my line,” the Guardian said, then smiled.
He was holding a revolver with a fancy handle and a sword with a curved blade. The hilt’s handguard was intricate in its design. Both weapons glowed a soft blue light. Yes, celestial weapons indeed. Of course, I’d never seen one that glowed before. Was he what his kind called the “Divine Weapon”? If so, then the Guardian who threatened my life was stronger than the other two I’d faced in the past. They had been easy to kill.
“The last of your kind I killed warned me that a Divine Weapon would come for me. Are you he?” I asked. I had no idea what made a Divine Weapon, nor did I care.
He smiled and nodded.
I welcomed this challenge.
I looked up at the sky to see the moon undergoing an eclipse. Ahhh, what a fitting setting in which I would kill my third Guardian. I let my gaze zero in on my target and smirked. “What is your name?”
“Why should I tell you?” he snarled. His blue eyes remained steady on me, which was smart.
“Do you know who I am?” I asked.
“Azazel, The Demon of War and the most powerful Knight of the Round Court,” he replied, and the disgust in his expression gave me a bit of satisfaction to know that I was so loathed by these pompous assholes.
“You say that with such disdain.” I snorted.
“Evil is disdainful,” he replied.
I sighed. Humans—because that was what he was—were so hypocritical and self-righteous. “I’ve killed two of your kind already. It was so disappointingly effortless. Aren’t you Guardians supposed to be God’s last defense?” I taunted.
“Azazel, I, Guardian Jean Dubois of the Celestial Guardian Guild, will end your existence for all of your heinous crimes against mankind. Demon, your horrible reign ends now,” he declared.
Well, at least now I knew the name of the Guardian I’d be killing.
“If not for the evil of humans, my kind would not be here,” I told him.
“Your kind’s only purpose is to breed discontent and hatred. You feed on the weakness of humans like parasites. Your kind—”
I rolled my eyes and waved my hand dismissively. “Yes, yes, I’ve heard it all before,” I interjected. “Let’s dance, shall we?” I beckoned for him to come at me.
He charged at me, swinging his sword with a skill that outmatched the other Guardians I’d faced off with. He was fast and powerful and it took some effort for me to dodge his attacks. I conjured my own armor and sword, the blade was black, the silver hilt had an intricate design with pointed edges, and it glowed red as it was infused with my power. My armor was just as impressive, black with glowing red razor-sharp edges to each layer of metal. But what was most impressive were the spikes on my pauldron, couter, and gauntlets. My armor was wicked enough to bring demons to their knees in fear, and it was metalnot found on Earth. No, my armor and sword were forged in the deepest levels of Hell using metals created with damned souls.
The Guardian’s gaze took in my full form, my face morphing into something hideous, my true demonic form. My tanned skin turned black and thicker like leather. My eyes glowed bright indigo, the pupils slitting to mimic a reptile’s. My fangs elongated, and my nails extended to claws as the tips of my ears grew pointed. The Guardian braced himself as he held his defensive stance, waiting for me to attack. I came at him, our blades clashing against each other. The look of sheer determination in his fierce expression excited me. I knew our battle would be an epic one. Those other Guardians I faced paled in comparison to this one. My heart raced in my chest as our swords clashed. I could not hold back, not with him.
He shot his gun, and the glowing blue bullet whizzed past me, just grazing my cheek. That tiny cut seared my flesh so painfully, I could only imagine what it would have done to me had it hit a vital area. He shot again, and I leaped back and he followed, not allowing any time or space to separate us. I needed to use my other abilities to counter him. I teleported behind him and sliced his armor, my blade splitting his celestial steel, but I wasn’t able to reach his skin. My blow wasn’t deep enough. I blocked one of his moves, but he countered quickly, slashing me in my arm. His blade did penetrate my arm and the wound in my arm stung even worse than the cut his bullet had inflicted. I spun to dodge another slash and release my fire from the palm of my hand that he blocked with his blade, the fire split as the blade parted it.
Impressive!
He fired his gun at me and I had to move quickly, using my demonic teleportation to dodge the bullets as they hissed through the air past me. This Guardian was making me work for my victory. My state of arousal had peaked and I felt wild with the sense of exhilaration that pumped through my veins. I wouldhave to push myself past my limits if I wanted to defeat this Guardian. His thirst for my blood seemed to match mine for his.
I teleported and, this time, I used the shadows surrounding us, wrapping them around me to conceal myself. He felt me, I was sure, but could he see me? I moved slowly, taking careful steps toward him as he looked around. I played with the shadows, controlling them to throw him off. When he turned to slash at one, I clawed his face, ripping into the skin. He cried out, blood gushing from his wound as shredded flesh dangled from bloody strands.
