Page 46 of Fallen Demon

With Levi.

Which brought something else to mind. “What will we do with Ylena?”

“You tell us,” Rage said.

I frowned. “I don’t know. The right answer would be to kill her."

“But it’s not that easy,” Farrah said.

I knew she meant it wasn’t easy for me.

It wouldn’t be easy to kill her even if she was a stranger. She was the most powerful archangel ever, the oldest one.

“We’ll cross that bridge when we get there,” Lacey said.

I nodded, thankful they understood the conflict inside me. “As much as I think Elysium would be safer with her gone, Ylena was the mastermind of this whole thing.” I was grasping for another angle. “She has answers we need. That’s the only way to undo the damage she's already inflicted.”

“True,” Zad said. “We need her alive.”

Imprisoning her would be hard, but one thing at a time.

First, we needed to find them.

A shriek echoed from the sky and in a fast swoop, Ylena flew to us.

She crashed into me, almost driving me to the ground, but she closed her arms around my waist and carried me away.

I struggled and called my magic, but my magic refused to obey. I started on my wings, but Ylena knew what I was up to. She pressed a hand to my back and sent a jolt of magic coursing through me that made me dizzy, heavy. I could barely move my head, much less my limbs.

I looked down at my friends as they became smaller and smaller.

“Ariella, no!” Lacey shouted.

Rage prepared to send a darkfire bolt, but Farrah stopped him. “You might hit Ariella.”

Zad's wings erupted from his back and launched him after us.

Ylena twisted in the air, sending a spray of light bolts at Zad. He dodged all but the last two. They hit him in a wing and in the chest.

He went down.

“No!” I cried, though the words stuck to my tongue.

With a snarl, Ylena sent another jolt of magic into me and I slumped over her shoulder.

I fought to stay conscious. If I fainted, I was afraid I might never wake up.

After I don’t know how long, Ylena landed and dropped me on the rough ground like a sack of potatoes. I grunted in pain and rolled to my side, glad I was recovering my senses and movement, though too slow for my taste.

Ylena tucked her dark wings behind her back and circled me, like a bird of prey teasing its food.

Sitting up, I took in the surroundings. The rock formations were spread out, creating wider paths and clearings.

Ylena snarled at me, and I looked back at her.

“If you’re going to kill me, just do it,” I said, pushing to my knees. My strength trickled into my limbs.

“Who are you?” she asked in a shrill voice.

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