by Rain Oxford
He shook his head and pulled. However, he didn’t get it off before a demon appeared behind him and blasted him with red lightning. He was thrown off his feet, and ended up letting go of the chain. It wrapped itself around him and instantly started fusing back into his skin.
I pulled out my dagger, ran to the demon, and slit her throat. She collapsed. That told me that despite their ability to do magic and turn to shadows, they weren’t any faster than a human. The instant another demon formed, I advanced on him, grabbed him, and slammed his head into the side of one of the broken bookshelves. They were made with solid wood and the demon howled with pain. Then I snapped his neck and he burst into shadow.
By then, the first demon had gotten to her feet. Her body was covered in her blood, but the wound was already healed. She had short black hair and dark purple eyes. She was also too thin without any loose skin, as if she had spent at least most of her life on the edge of starvation. “You fool,” she hissed. “We were only after Ascelin. Now you will die as well.”
“Where is Brandy?”
“Dead.”
“You’re lying.”
“I have no reason to lie. We killed her because we had no reason to keep her alive.”
“You’re still lying. If you so much as bruised her, you’ll wish you’d never even heard about this world.”
While I was distracting her, Logan stood and grabbed her from behind. Both of them collapsed into the circle. The demon immediately stood and tried to get out, but as if there was a wall around her, she couldn’t cross the line.
Unfortunately, neither could Logan. He went so far as to rest against the invisible barrier. “There’s no point in me taking off the chain now,” he said irritably. He didn’t like being out of the fight. There were two more demons to worry about, though, and both of them formed in front of me. They were both similar in appearance, probably brothers, with dark brown hair and black eyes. They were in better shape than the female demon.
“This is going to be fun,” the demon on the right said.
I started to gesture for Deimos and Phobos to divide and distract before I remembered that they were at home, healing.
Logan’s gun was terribly loud as he shot at one of the demons. Alas, it hit a ward and ricocheted, hitting the front window instead. “Don’t shoot in here!” Ascelin shouted. “I have things in here more dangerous than demons!”
One of the demons shot a blast of lightning, but I was fast enough to avoid it. Taking them by surprise, I rushed the second one and punched him in the face. His bones shattered. Magic didn’t fortify his bones.
Everyone had warned me how powerful demons were. Stephen had taught me not to let a wizard cast his magic against me. I was starting to think that without their magic, demons were no different than a human in a fight. And then I got struck with the red lightning.
My body burned with pain and collapsed. I could only see red for a moment and I couldn’t feel the ground I was on. I couldn’t even breathe.
The demon pushed me onto my back and smirked down at me. My eyes cleared enough to see him, but not what was going on around him. “Too bad I’m not in the market for a pet. You would make a nice one to look at once you were trained. It’s a pity, but I’m going to kill you anyway.”
He held out his hands to me, a dark red glow formed… and then he dispersed into shadows.
“I don’t think so. She still owes me a favor. Make that two,” said a voice I recognized. Standing in place of the dead demon was Langril, who also smirked at me. “Did I miss the party?”
I passed out.
* * *
I woke to the sound of a woman groveling. Langril’s voice followed, but I realized then that they weren’t speaking English. Slowly, I took account of my condition. I didn’t need blood, I had no broken bones or damaged organs. My body was somewhat numb, which was better than in agonizing pain. When I attempted to flex my fingers, I couldn’t tell if it worked or not, and I couldn’t manage to turn my head or even open my eyes.
“Where is the girl?” Logan asked.
“I don’t---” The female demon’s words were cut off as she shrieked with pain.
I opened my eyes and the numbness I felt faded. I was sitting in the reading chair. Logan, Langril, and my father surrounded the demon who was still in the circle. The iron shackles were around her wrists. Logan had an iron dagger and was carving magic symbols down her back. The first two, which he had finished, were glowing yellow as if burning. When he finished carving the third, it, too, started glowing.
The demon screamed.
“That is nice work,” my father commented. “Where did you learn it?”
“A wizard tried to use it on me.”
How did Logan get out of the trap?
“And it didn’t affect you because you’re not a full demon?”
“No, it did work, but I cut off the skin and what grew back was unmarked. She can do the same thing if she lives long enough and helps us find Rory’s friend.”
“You must really like my daughter if you’re willing to do all of this for a girl you’ve never met,” my father said.
“I do,” Logan said simply.
I was surprised. I was used to relying on myself and my wolves. Brandy always had my back, too, but she was human. Logan was strong enough to take care of himself, smart enough that he could accept help when he needed it, and he had my back.
He started carving another symbol into the demon’s back.
“I don’t know the address!” she cried. “We’re using an abandoned warehouse as our base. I can take you there.”
“Well, unfortunately for you, I don’t have time to waste,” Langril said. “Have you killed anyone?” he asked me.
I nodded. I had never killed anyone from feeding on them, but I just killed a demon, and I had fought paranormals and humans who hunted paranormals.
“Good. And you?” he asked Logan.
“Yes.”
Langril held out his hand for me. “I can take you to your friend.”
“Trusting a demon is never a good idea, and Langril is one of the worst” Ascelin warned me. “There’s always a catch.”
Langril grinned, not at my father but at me. “He’s right; I am one of the worst demons, and probably the most powerful person you’ll ever meet. I’m also the person who can get you to your friend.” He retracted his hand with a shrug. “But if you would rather let her die, I can just go back to what I was doing.”
“No,” I said. “Take me to her.”
He smirked. “That would mean you owe me three favors.”
“Just do it.”
“I’m going as well,” Logan said.
“I figured as much,” Langril said, offering his hand to me again. I took it cautiously. I knew I had the strength to bust his face in, but his magic could kill me much faster. “Are you ready?” he asked.
“I don’t need to be touching you?” Logan asked, gesturing to my hand.
“What? No, why? Oh, this? No, I just wanted to piss off Ascelin and make you jealous.”
Before I could take my hand back, darkness engulfed the room. Once again, I felt the gravity grow heavier, the hardwood floor gave way to something soft and rubbery, and the air was cold and stale. It was just as dark as the previous time I was in the shadow pass. Langril didn’t let me go. Instead, he guided me forward.
“Where are we?” I asked. My words sounded strange, as if we were in a wide open space and a confined space at the same time.
“Hush,” Langril said.
I didn’t feel like we were in the presence of a powerful creature, but I took his word for it. As we walked, I lost track of time, which had never happened to me before. A part of me was always aware of the sun’s position, so I could only assume that this realm or dimension or whatever, never got sunlight.
Something grabbed my boot, but I jerked my foot away and slammed it down on the offending appendage, earning a shriek that was completely inhuman. Unfortunately, it sounded
like surprise rather than pain.
“Don’t do that,” Langril admonished. “They’re curious and hungry, and you’re alive and delicious.”
I opened my mouth to tell him off, but the darkness suddenly broke away in a swirling mess. Langril, Logan, the female demon, and I were now in a warehouse, surrounded by five demons. They weren’t terribly distinguishable. One of them had a red eye and a brown eye, one had dark green hair, one had a pierced lip, one of them had long hair, and one of them had a scar over his left eye.
All of them reacted instantly. The female demon pushed me, but I braced myself instinctively and punched her in the jaw.
She was knocked out. Red Eye shot a blast of lightning at me, but Logan intercepted it and it did nothing to hurt him. “Why is that the only attack they’re using?” I asked.
“We’re not known for our creativity,” Langril said. “Personally, I like melting eyeballs and paralyzing people, but lightning is easy because it requires anger and no real thought.”
At that point, Green Hair drew a sword… except he drew it from thin air. The handle of the sword was secured in a harness at his side, but there hadn’t been a blade on it until he pulled the handle out of the harness. A black, curved blade appeared. As he raised it to strike, the blade glowed red.
I wanted one of those. “You don’t happen to have one of those for sale, do you?” I asked. He ignored my question. I would have pulled my knife, but that would have been embarrassing. “We’re here for Brandy. Release her and you don’t all have to die,” I said.
“That’s the fun part,” Langril argued. The demon swung his sword at Logan, but I easily pulled him out of the way in time to avoid injury.
Pierced Lip motioned towards Langril, so I grabbed his arm and snapped it. He shrieked. “Cover me,” I told Logan. He nodded. I met the demon’s eyes and released my thrall on him. He wasn’t expecting it and fell into it as easily as a human, which surprised me enough that I almost broke my concentration. When I felt his thoughts slow to a crawl, I embedded a new one. “Bring Brandy out here.”
I released him and confusion filled his eyes. “I can’t. He’ll kill me.”
“Who?” I asked. He shook his head, fighting to push away my power. I grabbed him by the arm again, making him cry. This time, however, he closed his eyes. I put power behind my words as if I had eye contact anyway. “Open your eyes,” I demanded.
To my shock, he did.
“Who will kill you if you release Brandy?” I rarely asked questions while thralling someone, as it was easier to order them to answer me, but I didn’t have much time.
“The Shadow Master.”
Kea. “Why?”
“We had to take her to make you lead us to your father, but he decided he wanted to keep her afterwards.”
I couldn’t say another word before Logan crashed into me, shoving me into the ground. A second later, a sword blade was thrust through the ribcage of Pierced Lip. The demon reverted to shadow while Green Hair, his killer, sneered with disgust. He had tried to stab me, but Logan got in the way, and since he had magic protecting his heart, Green Hair was unable to kill him. I made a mental reminder to tell Logan to put the same protection spell on me.
Way too many humans tried to stake me.
At that point, I realized Langril had killed Long Hair. Three remained. Langril was fighting Red Eye with a combination of magic and swords, but I got the feeling he wasn’t even trying. I hadn’t been paying attention, so despite the volume of the gunshots, I wasn’t sure how many shots Logan had fired.
Scar faced Logan and me and drew a sword identical to Green Hair’s. Red Eye ran away. Scar raised his sword to swing down on us, but I rolled myself and Logan out of the way in time. A second later, I heard a familiar shout. “Brandy!” I called. I got up and ran towards the door. I only got halfway across the room before Logan grunted with pain. Once again, Logan intercepted an attack, and it actually hurt him this time. He dropped to his knees and coughed up blood.
I changed my direction, ran to Scar, and punched him in the stomach. He was ready for it; pain tore through my abdomen as if I had punched myself. I was propelled backwards and crashed into Logan, who groaned.
Then he rolled us over and covered me when an explosion shook the other room. “Brandy!” I shouted, trying to lift my head. Logan pushed my head back down until the warehouse stopped shaking. It reminded me of watching my house burn down, except Brandy meant much more to me than a cat.
When it was quiet, the room was full of smoke and the wall dividing us from the other room was gone. In its place was Brandy… who was on fire. Orange and yellow flames lightly engulfed her body, especially her arms, but it didn’t seem to be hurting her. Her corset was torn, her skirt was burned beyond recognition, her boots were gone, and her feet were cut and bruised. Her white hair had turned orange and her previously blue eyes were gold.
I stood and she focused on me. The shock and fear on her face faded a little, and the flames faded with it. I went to her, sidestepping debris, and there was no sound. Everyone was frozen until I reached her. I tried to touch her, but she stepped back. “I killed him,” she said.
“The demon?” I asked. She nodded. “Good.”
I reached for her again, and she took another step back. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Look at me.” She met my eyes and let my magic in without hesitation. She trusted me explicitly. “I’m going to count down from ten. Imagine a winding staircase. For each number, you’re going to take a step down. With each step, you’re going to relax a little more. With each exhale, you’re going to expel your fear and stress and anger.”
I put my hands on her shoulders and she relaxed a little bit.
“Ten… inhale. You can only hear my voice. Nine… exhale all your fear. Eight… inhale. I’m the only one here with you. Seven… exhale all of your stress. Six… inhale. Your heartbeat is slowing. Five… exhale all of your anger. Four… inhale. The muscles in your arms and shoulders are relaxing. Three… exhale all of the tension in your shoulders. Two… inhale. The relaxation is spreading throughout your body. One… exhale.” The flames flickering across her body died and she collapsed against me. I hugged her.
At that point, I realized Langril had killed Green Hair and the only demon remaining was Scar on the ground, still debilitated from my punch. Langril snapped his fingers and that demon disappeared.
“Did you just kill him?” Logan asked.
“Sort of,” Langril answered cryptically. “I could teach you demon magic, if you’d like,” he offered to Logan.
Logan shook his head. “That would require taking off my chain, and unleashing my power isn’t worth the price.”
Langril smirked. “It’s rare to meet someone who understands the balance of magic. I can teach you to work with the balance.”
“I might take you up on that someday.”
Langril shrugged. “Suit yourself. I have to get back now.”
“Wait, what about Kea?”
“Don’t say his name,” Langril insisted. “Many powerful demons can eavesdrop on your conversation if you say our name.”
“I know. My father told me about that. I was going to use the name he used.”
“Did your father tell you about the tower?”
“Only that it’s the doorway to Dothra.”
He nodded. “That’s all you need to know about it. I’m going to go through the tower to Dothra and destroy the tower on Dothra. Then my accomplices, including your uncle, are going to force Kea into the tower. Without a way out, he should be destroyed.”
“Should be?”
Again, he shrugged. “I didn’t build the tower. I don’t know for sure because none of the towers have been destroyed before.”
“Can’t you defeat him here?”
“Your father didn’t tell you about my curse?” He showed me his palm, which had a sinister-looking design burned into it. “I can’t win as long as I have the key to Dothra. If Kea isn’t destro
yed by being forced into the tower, I will activate my new portal, return here, and fight him.” With that, he vanished.
I carried Brandy to Logan. She was conscious, but not responsive. Fortunately, her hair was slowly fading back to white-blond and her eyes were reverting to their normal blue.
“Is she okay?” Logan asked. I nodded. “You had no idea she was fae?”
“Fae? No, she’s human.”
“I’m more human than her, Rory. She’s definitely an elemental fae. I’m not sure what type of fae exactly, but pyrokinesis isn’t a human ability.”
I knew he was right, but Brandy was so innocent. I didn’t want her to be a paranormal. One of the reasons I was confident in my ability to protect her was because she was human. I would have to talk about it with her, because it was going to be an even bigger shock to her.
“Let’s get out of here.”
Logan pulled his phone out of his pocket. “It’s fried from all the magic.”
I checked mine and found it was dead as well. “It looks like we’re walking.” We left the warehouse and saw that we were on the outskirts of a city. We started walking.
* * *
“So, when the boys heal and Brandy is back to her normal self, what do you plan to do?” Logan asked after a while.
“Since Astrid is still missing and the paranormal world can’t seem to function without people like us saving it, I guess I’ll be waiting for another call… probably from your sister.”
“Being jerked around by you, watching you break a demon’s face, and taking a hit for you… aside from turning me on a lot, told me that we are good for each other. You don’t need me, and I don’t need you, which is good, because dependence is a terrible base for a relationship. However, I want you and we can make each other more efficient by working together. Plus, I really enjoy watching you break people’s faces and make them shake with fear.”
“I think if we didn’t have a case to work on, we’d fight each other.”
“Or we can just have sex all the time.”
“That’s where most of the fighting will come from. You want to tie me up and I can incapacitate you with a single hand.”