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110 pages

English

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The rogue Hermessi are spiraling out of control. But GASP might have finally found the key to their demise... The problem? It might mean tracking down Death herself.And with the Hermessi birthing monsters from the literal bowels of the earth-and stepping up their game with a sinister side plot... let's just say GASP's to-do list is filling up.

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Publié par	Distributed by eBookpartnership
Date de parution	01 juillet 2022
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781795032407
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	2 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0000€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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Copyright © 2019
Hot Pancakes Ltd
www.hotpcakes.com
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
MAIN CAST LIST
Amelia (daughter of Erik and Abby Novalik - vampire)
Eva (daughter of Azazel and Tamara - druid/lamia/vampire)
Herakles (creation of Ta’Zan - Faulty)
Raphael (creation of Ta’Zan - Perfect)
Riza (daughter of Horatio and Aisha Drizan- jinni)
Taeral (son of Sherus and Nuriya - fae-jinni)
Varga (son of Ashbik and Ruby Goode - vampire-sentry)
TAERAL
T hree days had passed since our turbulent return to Calliope. Three days since we’d avoided death-by- Hermessi and since we’d learned to keep Devil’s Weed sprigs hidden in the lining of our clothes at all times, like Inalia had advised us shortly before our escape. We’d lost Inalia on Cerix, though she was still around-as a Fire Hermessi, one of the very elements that were determined to destroy us all.
I carried a lot of grief and anguish in my soul. Inalia had been a good friend and ally, even though we’d spent only a few days together. I had a feeling there could’ve been more between us, had she not abandoned her body to save her planet. Her sacrifice would never be forgotten.
In the meantime, we had a world of trouble to deal with. The Hermessi’s influence was growing, despite GASP’s multiple efforts to stop the cults’ activities. Somehow, they kept sneaking around, cutting fae and whispering an ancient Hermessi spell that allowed them to kick the souls out of the fae’s bodies so the elements could take over once they hit five million. We were at 2.5 million fae now, and the number would continue to rise. The best we could do was try to keep the other fae safe while caring for the affected ones, each of whom were kept in charmed crystal casings-the witches, the warlocks, and the Daughters of Eritopia helped with that.
The rest of GASP continued its efforts on two fronts. Countless teams were dispatched across the In-Between and the Supernatural Dimension to hunt down as many cult members as possible and bring them in for questioning, while my crew, along with Phoenix, continued to work toward the next step in our mission: finding Death. Friggin’ Death.
We didn’t know where to go or where to find her. Our best bet, after hours of debating the topic, was to find one of the ancient Hermessi that had been around four million years ago and get answers from them. However, that also came with problems of its own. From what Harper had gathered during her encounter with Ramin and the rebel Hermessi, the ancient ones were most likely all in favor of the ritual and therefore had zero reason to assist us- except Firr, the Fire Hermessi of Calliope, who’d secretly sided with the rebels. All roads led us back to the cult members we kept locked on Mount Zur, while Field, Aida, and the rest of the Calliope GASP unit dug deeper into our notes from the Lemnos Woods Library, hoping they’d find something we might’ve missed.
“Do you think these cult members know something about the ancient Hermessi?” Eira asked as we walked down one of the GASP base corridors of Mount Zur.
Raphael and Amelia had joined us. Jax had told us that they’d begun to make some progress in the interrogation of Hermessi cult members, using a combination of mind-bending and magic.
“They’ve got four individuals who seem like they’re about to crack,” I said, stopping in front of the main interrogation room. Five chambers had been set up for this, and GASP agents worked round the clock with new methods, constantly pushing and prodding the three dozen cultists that had been brought in. The main room belonged to Jax and Heron, reserved for four individuals who had finally begun to break down.
“It’s worth a shot,” Raphael said. “If they’re able to point us to some inside knowledge about the ancient Hermessi, we might at least get a lead. It’s been three days of nothing so far. We’re stagnating, while they’re gaining ground.”
Eira nodded, expressing her agreement. In Inalia’s absence, she’d proven herself to be a fascinating and equally competent… surrogate. I’d learned a few more things about her recently, and about her thought processes. Eira was strong and valiant, noble and ambitious, smart as a whip and rough around the edges-unlike Inalia, who’d been a skilled and sensible diplomat. However, I welcomed what Eira brought to the table. The time for subtleties had passed, anyway.
“I, for one, am grateful we’re at least doing something,” Amelia replied. “I was getting bored holed up in Luceria. Don’t get me wrong, the castle is superb and all, but if I can’t do anything to stop it from becoming a mass grave along with the rest of Calliope and the In-Between, I can’t really enjoy it.”
“It’s a good thing Shayla’s ‘truth serum’ is working, then,” I said. “Now let’s see if it’s getting us what we need.”
I pushed open the doors to find Jax and Heron already inside, accompanied by Hansa, Avril, and Shayla. One of the cultists was already strapped into a chair, his hands covered in the same crystal casing that had been used to keep the affected fae safe and under control. The charmed mineral was designed to stop them from using their elemental abilities, and it had been fitted on all the cultists’ hands.
Heron turned his head and frowned at us. “Where’s the rest of your jolly crew?”
“They’re trying to get an action plan together,” I replied. “Covering all possible scenarios and so on. We’re a bit lost here, since we don’t know where to start looking for Death. Hence why we’re here.”
Lumi, Riza, Herakles, Eva, and Varga had taken over one of the council rooms in Luceria for this, poring over stellar maps of the In-Between and copies of their library notes-what they’d gathered from both Silvergate and Lemnos Woods.
“I’d hoped Lumi would get some insights from the Word,” Avril grumbled, her arms crossed. Her father, Lucas, was in a crystal casing back in the Shade sanctuary, along with the rest of the Novak fae-Ben, Grace, Caia, and Vita. Their clan had suffered the most, and valuable members of GASP were now comatose. Avril had every reason to want to get things moving here. Her father’s life depended on it.
I shook my head. “Lumi has been trying. She’s sought the Word’s help, but it’s like it doesn’t want to get involved, or something. Personally, I find it strange and disheartening. It’s not the end of the road, though. We’re here for a reason, aren’t we?”
“You think he’ll talk?” Jax asked, raising an eyebrow as he nodded at the captured fae in his secured chair.
“We should give it our best,” Safira said as she walked in and joined us. My stomach hurt a little in her presence. I hadn’t been able to look at the Daughters of Eritopia the same way after I’d learned they’d been created from the same primordial pink waters that spawned the Shills… those wretched monsters. The Daughters were the product of Wei, Calliope’s Earth Hermessi, and they were fundamentally good people. Nevertheless, I held on to the sliver of doubt in my soul where they were concerned, mainly because no Hermessi’s allegiance was set in stone. I worried Wei might turn on us eventually, and force the Daughters to do his bidding. They’d said they would oppose it, but they’d never had to deal with his coercion before, so I couldn’t be sure. Until that day, however, the Daughters were still our allies, so I offered a polite nod to welcome her.
“It’s what we’re hoping for as well,” I said.
“Now Fez, get ready,” Shayla said to the fae as Safira handed her a delicate glass syringe with a long and sharp tip. The end was fitted with a crystal cylinder that was used to push the glowing violet liquid into Fez’s neck. He squirmed as the tip pierced his skin. “We’ve been perfecting the serum, changing it based on the results so far. I think this version will help us more. I’ve increased the dosage of some of the ingredients.”
My mom was back on the Fire Star, where she personally watched over my dad. It was only a matter of time before someone slipped past security and hurt him, too. I was anxious, while mentally preparing myself for that particular call from my mom. In the meantime, I had to be here and do everything in my power to stop the Hermessi’s ritual. I was terrified for myself too, but I couldn’t stop. All I could do was keep my guard up at all times-thankfully, my crew was there to watch my back, in case someone might try to cut-and-spell me. I’d made it my mission to keep going for as long as I could, knowing that I was one of the 1001 fae who had helped with the Blackout and, therefore, I was also a target for the cults.
We waited for a few minutes while the serum worked its magic on Fez. Avril turned on the video camera, while Hansa locked the doors behind us. The room needed to be secured and the interview recorded, as per GASP protocol.
“Where was he captured?” Raphael asked, looking at Heron and Jax.
“On the Emerald,” Heron replied. “He’s part of the cult chapter there.”
“And likely one of the mooks we saw in the forest there, before we got the Cerixian soil samples,” Amelia muttered, her brow furrowed as she glowered at Fez.
His expression began to soften, his shoulders dropping as the serum rushed through his veins. He looked up at Jax, pursing his lips. “You keep trying… You’ll fail again,” he said, slurring his words.
Jax smirked, then glanced at me. “He’s one of four who were most susceptible to our mind-bending. The serum is definitely working, but, like Shayla said, we need to strengthen the formula. It differs from one fae to another, too, so each of these syringes is custom made.” He pointed at the glass syringe, which had been discarded in a box beneath a corner table.
“What sort of intel have you been able to gather from them so far?” Eira asked.
“Their hiding sp