The Ascended (The Saving Angels 3)

"So, this may have been our destiny all along?"

He nodded his head.

"Okay," I said, climbing off the boulder. "I still want to save him even if he no longer belongs to me. Not to mention the missing Links, taken from our band so long ago," I added.

Haniel nodded his head and together we worked out a strategy for the upcoming night. An hour later, we had a solid plan in place.

"We should convene with the others so we can help them prepare," Haniel finally said after we had exhausted every detail possible.

"Sounds good," I agreed as I brushed the debris off my bottom from my makeshift seat.

Haniel and I arrived back at the campsite and saw that the guys had been busy taking all the tents down and packing our gear. They had taken the oversized tarp that our tents had sat on and strung it over the fire pit, creating a shelter for all of us. I looked up at the sky and noticed it had become even more ominous while Haniel and I had been chatting.

"Everything okay Krista?" Lynn asked as I joined her and the others under our temporary shelter.

"Yeah, Haniel and I were just ironing out the details for tonight. He has agreed to let me come with you guys."

"What?" Shawn asked, shifting into his big brother role. "I thought we all agreed it would be too dangerous for her to join us," he said, drilling Haniel with a glare as if I wasn't there.

"Hey, I'm standing right here, Shawn. You can direct your questions to me," I said, using a voice of authority that suddenly seemed second nature to me.

I could tell by the shifting and sudden change in the emotions around me that my friends could clearly see a difference in me. By accepting the role as an Ascended, I had left the status of Guide behind and changed my Heavenly ranking. I could feel the difference and knew without a shadow of a doubt I had been created to lead the individuals in front of me.

"Okay then, so what's the new plan?" Shawn asked with all traces of anger gone.

I glanced at Haniel. He nodded his head, giving me his approval to continue my new leadership role.

"We'll proceed as originally planned with one exception. Now we'll split off into two groups. Jaime, Paul, Jenna, Keith, Lynn and Robert will go with Haniel. The rest of you will be with me. Haniel and I believe that the majority of the Daemons will be protecting the two Links Victor has kept hostage. Our plan is simple enough. Get in, grab them, and get out. Haniel says the Daemons Victor is using this time are the real deal. They'll no longer be using humans as hosts, so they may be harder to defeat."

"How do we do that?" Robert interrupted. "Are they like ghosts or something?"

I turned to Haniel so he could answer Robert's question.

"No, they will have substance to them; however, they will not resemble anything you have ever seen before. Their outward appearance to an angel is appalling and grotesque. They come in all shapes and sizes, just as humans, but that is their only similarity. Daemons will use any means necessary to bring you down, they will try to gauge out your eyes, bite through your flesh and use their claws to rip through your skin. They will sneak up on you and attack when you least expect it. Your Guides will use their skills to pinpoint the Daemon's locations for you; however, this is far more difficult when there are multiple Daemons in the vicinity."

The panicked looks on my friends' faces was evident as they digested Haniel's somber words.

"That's why we're splitting up," I said, trying to reassure them. "My powers will help deflect the worst of the attack towards my group, same goes for those of you that will be going with Haniel. The difference will be that your group will 'destroy and conquer,' while mine will be on more of a 'rescue mission.'

"How come Victor doesn't need to use human hosts anymore to carry out his dirty deeds?" John asked, standing behind Kieran with his hands on her shoulders.

"The Light believes that Victor has offered The Dark One something he deeply desires?"

"And what is that?" Sam asked.

"A part of a broken link," Haniel said quietly.

I kept my face impassive as all of my friends looked at me horrified. "Yes, they believe Mark has also Ascended or I guess you could call it Descended," I said, looking at Haniel for confirmation.

He nodded his head in agreement.

"So, you think Victor has promised Mark to The Dark One? Why doesn't he just create his own Descended spawn?" Sam asked, clearly disgusted.

"Even The Dark One does not have such abilities. The Protector-Guide link, and subsequent Ascension for some, is an ancestral inheritance from one generation of Links to the next, not something that The Dark One can emulate. Control of a Descended soul would be a valuable treasure," Haniel explained.

"Why doesn't he just use Victor?" Kim asked in her usual soft voice.

"Victor has his own agenda which is a possible explanation as to why he did not have complete support from The Dark One when he originally kidnapped Krista and Mark. The Dark One demands complete loyalty, without freewill. Had Victor already offered himself as a Descended to the The Dark One, Krista would not be standing here today."