While the world carries on unawares, Stryker, who leads an army of demons and vampires, is plotting an all out onslaught against his enemies―which, unfortunately for us, includes the entire human race. To avenge his sister, Stryker prepares to annihilate the Dark-Hunters. But things go awry when his oldest enemy returns. Enter his ex-wife. Zephyra. Just when he thought nothing could stop him, he's now embroiled in a centuries old war with a shrew who gives new meaning to pain. “An engaging read.” ― Entertainment Weekly on Devil May Cry “Kenyon's writing is brisk, ironic, sexy, and relentlessly imaginative. These are not your mother's vampire novels.” ― The Boston Globe on Dark Side of the Moon From #1 N ew York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon In the world of the Dark-Hunters, all hell's breaking loose… Stryker has sent word and is gathering his forces. While the world carries on unawares, Stryker, who leads an army of demons and vampires, is plotting an all out onslaught against his enemies―which, unfortunately for us, includes the entire human race. To avenge his sister, Stryker prepares to annihilate the Dark-Hunters. But things go awry when his oldest enemy returns. Enter his ex-wife. Zephyra. Just when he thought nothing could stop him, he's now embroiled in a centuries old war with a shrew who gives new meaning to pain. It's Christmas Eve and new battle lines are being drawn as the Dark-Hunters rally for a final showdown on ONE SILENT NIGHT. "Brisk, ironic, sexy, and relentlessly imaginative."― Boston Globe "This series puts a contemporary spin on classical mythology…irresistible."― Publishers Weekly www. sherrilynkenyon.com www.Dark-Hunter.com www.yearofacheron.com New York Times bestselling author Sherrilyn Kenyon is a regular in the #1 spot. This extraordinary bestseller continues to top every genre in which she writes, including manga and graphic novels. More than 70 million copies of her books are in print in more than one hundred countries. Her current series include The Dark Hunters®, The League®, Deadman’s Cross™, Chronicles of Nick®, Hellchasers™, Mikro Chasers™, and The Lords of Avalon®. Her Chronicles of Nick® and Dark-Hunter® series are soon to be major motion pictures. One Silent Night By Sherrilyn Kenyon St. Martin's Press Copyright © 2008 Sherrilyn Kenyon All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-0-312-94706-4 CHAPTER 1 Stryker paused as he looked around Tartarus. His father, the Greek god Apollo, had brought him here once, eons ago, when he'd been a small child to meet his great-uncle Hades, who ruled the Greek Underworld and oversaw the ancient dead. On that day his father had also bestowed a rare and beneficial gift on Stryker. The ability to come and go from the Underworld so that Stryker could visit his uncle. As a child, Stryker had been terrified of the dark god whose eyes had only softened when he looked at his wife, Persephone. Luckily, Persephone was here with Hades now and the god was too occupied by her to notice the fact that there was an uninvited demigod in his domain. Hades could be extremely temperamental over such insults. Especially when the uninvited demigod carried a vial of potent blood with him. More to the point, Typhon's blood. The son of the primordial god Tartarus, whose name was given to this very part of Hades' domain, Typhon was deadly and lethal. His power enough to take down even Zeus, the king of the gods. At least until the Olympian gods had banded together to trap Typhon under Mount Aetna. "Thank you for not being able to kill him," Stryker said, holding the vial up so that he could see the luminescent purple blood he'd taken from the trapped Titan. With this, Stryker could wake the dead and bring back the most potent of scourges. War. Gripping the vial tightly, Stryker headed to the lowest part of Tartarus. This level was relegated to the beasts and gods that the Olympians had defeated. To the ones they feared above all others. But it was the tomb in the back Stryker had accidentally found as a child that drew him now. In the darkness around him, he could still see the look of fear in his father's eyes. ... "What's that, Father?" Stryker had pointed up at the statues of two men and one woman. Apollo had knelt down by his side. "They are what's left of the Machae." "The what?" "The spirits of battle." Apollo had pointed to the tallest in back. Huge in stature and built like a warrior, the statue had made a seven-year-old Stryker gasp in fear of his coming to life to hurt him. "That is War. The fiercest of the Machae. He was created by all the gods of war to kill the Chthonians. It's said that he and his minions pursued them to the brink of extinction. In one final battle that lasted for three full months, War held the last of the Chthonians down until they tricked him. Beleaguered, he screamed mightily as his powers were bound by spell and then he was cast into his current stasis. Here he remains until som