Twilight War

Trouble is back
and he’s looking really good—black hair, blue eyes, and blue
jeans—they didn’t warn her about him.

Flame can’t
deny her attraction to the man she’s supposed to kill and, he’s
coming on strong. In a war of darkness, her soul becomes the prize
when a haunting mist uses supernatural persuasion to try and mate
with her. If he succeeds, her soul will belong to the Twilight
Realm.

When nobody is
who they appear to be, Flame must utilize her elite skills to
resist the powerful incubus long enough to uncover the truth about
who is who. There is only one rule in Twilight War—win.

Will two souls
pitted against each other figure out how to defeat the master of
darkness?

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This book is a
work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either
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Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or
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Twilight
War

Copyright ©
2013 Storm Savage

ISBN:
978-1-77111-591-9

Cover art by
Scott Carpenter

All rights
reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or
utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any
electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter
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Published by
eXtasy Books

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Smashwords
Edition

Twilight
War

Burning Hearts
Two

By

Storm
Savage

For my readers,
thank you for choosing my books. My wish is that you escape reality
for a while and enjoy the experience I have created for you.

For Jay, thank
you for helping me get back on track. Your support and patience
have saved me many times. Never was there a better EIC.

For my cover
artist, thank you for the awesome covers in this series, for caring
about my preferences and your passion in capturing the feel of the
story.

For my editor
Kate, thank you for your honesty, your talent and your fast and
professional editing. You are awesome!

And always for
Austin, the love of my life. Never was there a braver boy, a
brighter spirit or a more loyal friend. I think of you every day,
miss you every minute and feel your spirit still lighting my way.
Thank you, my puppy angel.

Chapter
One

Flame watched
intently as the Supreme Lioness hovered directly over the pond
before her. She’d returned to Celestial Village as requested for a
private meeting with the glorious spiritual leader of her
sisterhood nation. The hazy apparition of her high ruler never
ceased to enthrall her. Long golden hair cascaded over flawless
skin and she stared back at Flame with warm green eyes. Flame
sensed the Lioness’s apprehension over what they were about to
address.

“Your prompt
return was necessary. You have done well and convinced me that you
are ready. Now we may discuss in depth your concerns and the
upcoming war.”

“Thank you, my
lady. I sense urgent matters at hand.”

“I feel your inner turmoil and I’m glad
you came back to share your distress with me. Your friend Ian did
not survive. I see sadness in your eyes. For this, I am sorry, but
he made his choice and you are not to blame. He ignored your
warning.”

“The evil side
fights dirty.”

“Now that you
have dealt with Twilight’s minions, war is imminent.”

“You told me
that the Twilight Realm is similar to what mortals call hell.”
Flame kept her voice soft and reverent. “What is Twilight War?”

“Twilight War
is a battle over souls. The master of that realm initiates war if
he finds a soul worth the risk.”

“And you
believe this has happened?”

“Yes. He sent
his favorite tool, the Satellite, to lure
you
into
battle.”

“Seems this
Twilight Master keeps a backup plan…he brought the Satellite back
from the dead. Guess I’ll just have to kill him again.”

The Lioness
smiled in open affection. “You show no fear as always. Yes, he is
very clever and deception is one of his greatest weapons.”

“Why
my
soul? There are millions of souls to choose from, why does he want
mine?”

“You are the
only one who has what it takes to destroy him and those who serve
him. And the only woman with the gifts he needs. The evil one does
not seek to kill you. If he can win you to his side then his power
over us will be disastrous. He would like nothing more than to own
our colony and use us to breed more of his evil fiends.”

Flame sat back
on her knees, aghast at the stakes of such a war. She had to win,
not only for
her
soul but also to save an entire breed of
elite females from extinction.

“Is his
weakness still the same? Will my flaming daggers still be
effective?”

“I believe they
will. Obviously, he still sees you as a threat or he wouldn’t have
risked bringing his Satellite back across the realm.”

“What risk is
there to him if he is so powerful?”

“In order to
increase his powers of seduction, he had to use a human body to
bring his Satellite back from death.” The Lioness arched one lovely
brow. “In doing so, the master of the realm has inadvertently
instilled a deeper sense of humanity into the Satellite. But he
probably doesn’t realize this yet. This one oversight might be the
tiny window you can use against him.”

Flame pondered
this for a few moments, then asked, “How does this pose a risk to
him if I am the target?”

“In a war of
souls, the winner takes all.”

“You mean?”
Flame’s eyes widened in shock as she slowly pushed to her feet. “I
can win the Satellite to our side? How?”

“You must
convince him to feel his humanity again and turn back away from
darkness without killing him…there within lies the risk to the evil
realm.” The Lioness paused, then added, “If you win then his
Satellite’s curse is broken and he belongs to you.”

“While that
sounds well and good, what am I going to do with him if I
do
win?”

“A soul such as
his could become a mighty ally to our nation.”

Flame began to
comprehend the bigger picture. “This war isn’t just about me
defeating another one of Twilight’s evil bastards…this war involves
everyone, doesn’t it?”

“That’s why
they call it
war
, my brave one.”

“I see.” She
stared into the mist as her thoughts churned. “Not only must I stop
the evil realm from taking me, but I have to find a way to seize
his best weapon.”

“Yes. If the
Satellite is killed, he can be brought back with increased powers.
Twilight cannot create a new Satellite without tapping into the
energy of an existing one. If he is
stolen
then Twilight
loses its most significant tool and the chain would be broken.
They’d have very little strength against us after such a
destructive blow to their realm.”

“I now
understand the danger you spoke of.”

“You may still
pass on this mission. There would be no shame. Our women are very
good at remaining hidden and working undercover.”

Flame looked up
into the Lioness’s face. “He knows of me now. Every trip I make to
the village increases the risk of danger. How can I turn away? I
was born and raised as a warrior. What would my mother do?”

Kindness
flooded those warm green eyes. “Like you, your mother was a
prodigy. She would have fought if she was a warrior but she was
not. Her purpose was of another kind.”

The sudden
longing to know her mother filled her. How she wished that she had
at least a visual memory of the woman who birthed her. Yet her
beloved mother had crossed into the spirit world shortly after her
birth, so she’d been told. The sisterhood did not save photos or
keep records that could fall into enemy hands so the only thing she
knew of her mother was that she was very beautiful with golden
blonde hair and eyes like water, and carried the lovely name of
Tahira
.

“Her name means
pure
,” the Lioness said as if reading her mind. “Try not to
feel sad over the empty space of not knowing. Feelings as these
will make you vulnerable to the enemy.”

“I try. I know
so very little about her.”

“There was
another Twilight War, Flame.”

A peculiar
sense of dread settled over her as cold shivers slid down her
spine. She didn’t ask. Something inside instinctively sensed a
disturbance in the spirit world.

“It’s not as
bad as you’re thinking,” the Lioness added.

“What cannot be
as bad as the Twilight Realm taking my mother from me?”

“They did not
win.”

“No disrespect,
my lady, but how can you say that if what I feel is true?”

Intense sorrow
shadowed her heavenly face. “Your mother was a gifted spy. She
volunteered for the assignment of exposing Twilight’s weakness,
which essentially placed her in serious danger. Back then, the
original Satellite was still in place. He tried to lure Tahira into
the evil realm and she did her best to seduce information from him.
As a result, they conceived a child.”

“My father is
an evil fiend? That’s even worse!” Her muscles tightened in agony
and her thoughts raced.

“I’m sorry,
Flame. I did not want you to know but your intuition has become
very strong. I feel you should hear it from me before you discover
it on your own. I had hoped you’d be able to let go of the past,
yet I see the anguish in your heart over the unknown.”

“What happened
to her?”

“Tahira had
just given birth when the Satellite took her into hiding. They were
locked in a heated battle of wills. She was determined to win him
to our side. She was on the verge of victory when the master of the
evil realm uncovered their whereabouts. But
he
…your
father…helped your mother get you into the arms of a sisterhood
warrior despite the risks of incurring a worse fate.” Deep emotion
swept across her face. “Sadly, Tahira did not survive. Twilight’s
ruler was so enraged over her near triumph that he, himself, killed
her to stop her from trying again.”

“Why didn’t she
return with me when she had the chance? She would’ve survived.”
Tears threatened to burst forth but she held them back.

“Your mother
wanted to finish what she’d started and she knew living here would
place our entire nation in harm’s way. Twilight wanted the child
and was watching her every move. We were very lucky that she
managed to sneak you out from under his evil eye. Once your
identity is exposed, you know the risks. She could not have given
you a normal life under those conditions. She made the selfless
choice as any appointed woman in our sect would do…you of all
people should understand this.”

Flame hung her
head. “Yes…I guess so.”

“Don’t let your
mind go there, child. We won a battle but not the war.”

“Won?” Flame
swung away. “I lost my mother to the evil realm and just found out
my father was the former Satellite.”

“The
information Tahira gained helped us prepare you for the future.”
Sudden heat touched her shoulder. Slowly she turned to find the
Supreme Lioness extending a physical touch for the first time.
“Everyone in the sisterhood grieved the loss of such an amazing and
courageous woman. We still do. She was the first one to deal a
significant blow to the evil realm. Now the torch has been passed
from mother to daughter.”

“If the first
Satellite joined with a woman of the sisterhood, why wasn’t his
curse dispelled?”

“Tahira was not
a warrior. She went in to try and steal him or gain information on
how to destroy him. Her death was not in vain. She enabled us to be
prepared.”

“Which warrior
met with my mother? May I speak with her?”

“I’m sorry,
child, Fiona has passed on with age. Tahira relayed everything she
knew about the Satellite the night she handed you over to Fiona. We
kept the information tightly guarded.”