All Things in the Shadows II

by B. D. Messick

  “You ready?” he asks.

  “Hell, yeah,” I reply, relishing the coming battle.

  The remaining demons leap at us, weapons ready to strike. I dodge to the right, firing a single bolt at one of the human-like monsters. He anticipates my move and adjusts, hitting my left arm with his sword, cutting me deep in the bicep. I scream out in pain, dropping my crossbow and drawing my sword in one fluid movement. Suddenly, Kateri appears out of nowhere, her dagger in one hand, her sword in the other. She plunges the knife into the eye of my attacker and severs his right arm with a vicious swing of her katana. He stumbles a few feet before falling face forward onto the ground.

  I turn just as another of the fur-covered demon rushes at me. He swings an oversized sword at me, but I slip to the left and bring my blade up, striking him in the neck. He drops his weapon, his hands fumbling at the mortal wound for a few seconds. I watch Dray out of the corner of my eye as he dispatches one of the other demons with a powerful strike to the chest, running him through. The final beast turns and retreats, but Kateri fades again, reappearing right in front of him and taking his head clean off with her sword.

  I stumble slightly, gripping my injured arm as blood runs down to my hand and drips onto the ground.

  “Eve!” Kateri screams as she rushes to my side. “Jesus.”

  I look at her and manage a small smile.

  “It’s not that bad,” I say.

  “Bullshit it’s not!” she says, tearing the bottom of her t-shirt off and wrapping it around my arm.

  I wince when she ties it off, and she looks horrified that she may have caused me any pain. Dray looks at me and shakes his head.

  “We need to get you to the hospital, now,” he says, lifting me up like I weigh as much as a stuffed animal.

  With Kateri alongside, he runs across the park-like area in front of the cathedral and around the side to the basement steps. He grabs Kateri’s arm and the three of us move through the wall into the underground base.

  “Get the doctor!” Dray bellows as soon as we’re inside.

  For a few seconds, no one moves, they just stare at us. Most of them had been too busy to take notice of our arrival, but as soon as they do, the entire room leaps into action. I can hear several of them making additional calls for medical assistance, while several others hurriedly clear a space on top of a desk for me. Dray sets me down and I sit on the edge, my legs dangling over as I cradle my injured arm.

  A young, female demon with gorgeous half green / half blue eyes and light green skin comes over and takes my hand gently in her clawed fingers.

  “They will be here any minute. My name’s Lyza,” she says, her voice gentle and loving.

  “Eve…” I say.

  “I know who you are. We all do,” she replies, smiling softly.

  I notice Kateri watching her hold my hand, but she says nothing. She simply stands by my side, her fingers resting gently on my shoulder, although I can sense how nervous and afraid she is.

  She’s not the only one.

  Every time my heart beats, I feel a small surge of pain from the wound, in perfect rhythm. Dray is pacing back and forth a few feet away, and I can tell his agitated state is putting everyone else on edge.

  Suddenly, a wave of intense pain flows through my arm, radiating outward from the laceration, causing me to become instantly nauseous. I grit my teeth and groan, trying my best not to let the pain show, but failing.

  “Just hold on,” the girl demon says, a worried look on her face.

  “Is it hurting worse?” Kateri asks.

  I just nod, trying to ignore the urge to vomit. I notice the girl give Dray a look, and he returns it with a small, secretive nod and an even more worried expression. Another demon, this one clearly a male with oversized horns sticking out of his head, walks up and offers me a bottle of water. He looks even younger than the girl, although who knows how old any of them really are.

  “I’m okay,” I whisper.

  He nods and takes a step back after setting the bottle on the desk next to me. Finally, two demons, one male and one female, come through the stone arch on the far side of the room. I immediately recognize one of them from the hospital when we found Reeva. They’re both dressed in medical garb and carrying a variety of supplies.

  “It’s about time,” Dray says, angrily.

  The male looks at Dray and shakes his head.

  “We have other patients. Calm yourself, Dray.”

  The female comes over to me and smiles. She seems nice enough, but the rows of shark-like teeth are still hard to get used to. Her yellow skin and blue eyes are beautiful, and she only has two small horns on her head that are mostly obscured by her trendy bob haircut.

  “Can I take a look?” she asks.

  I nod and move my arm toward her when another wave of pain rips through me. This time I can’t hide it, and I scream. Kateri grabs me right before I collapse backward onto the desk. I’m still holding Lyza’s hand, and although I know I’m squeezing the crap out of it, she doesn’t pull away from me.

  “What’s happening?” I hear Kateri ask, her voice frantic.

  “Poison,” one of the doctors says, although I’m having trouble telling who’s talking.

  “Kateri,” I utter, and I feel her hand replace Lyza’s.

  “I’m right here.”

  My vision is clouded with spots and my whole body feels like it’s on fire.

  “Don’t leave—”

  E ~ Oh God, my arm hurts.

  I force my eyes open and, as the light hits them, I wince. Fuzzy shapes slowly come into focus; demons, medical equipment and other patients in the infirmary. Kateri is sitting in a chair to my right, one hand on my leg, her head resting on the bed, eyes closed. I look at her, knowing that she probably never left my side.

  I raise my arm, but a quick stab of pain takes my breath away, and I set it down on the bed again. White and tan bandages cover the limb from wrist almost up to my shoulder. The pretty, yellow skinned doctor looks at me and smiles as she makes her way toward me from the other side of the room.

  “It’s good to see you awake,” she says.

  “Thanks,” I reply, my voice raspy.

  “Here.” She hands me a short glass filled with water.

  I take a few small sips before handing it back.

  “Thanks again,” I say, my voice sounding more normal.

  “How’s your arm feeling?”

  “Hurts like a mother,” I reply.

  “Yeah. I’m not surprised.”

  “What’s your name?”

  “Alixa,” she says.

  “What happened?”

  She picks up a chair from next to the adjacent bed and sets it down next to me, turning it around so she can lean on the backrest.

  “You mean after you passed out?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Well, as it turns out, the blade that cut you was coated with a poison. It’s designed to kill demons, so I’ll be honest; I’m surprised you’re even still alive.”

  “So you have an antidote or something?”

  “Sort of.”

  “What does that mean?” I ask, becoming instantly worried.

  “It means that we’ve gotten the poison under control, but I don’t know of any human…or Shayd, for that matter, who has ever been exposed to this toxin, or to the antidote.”

  “Am I going to be okay?”

  Alixa nods her head and frowns.

  “Yes, as far as we can tell,” she replies, but she seems less than positive.

  “That doesn’t sound great.”

  “It’s the best I can do, for now.”

  “It still hurts like hell.”

  “It’s probably going to for a little while. The procedure for administering the antidote isn’t pleasant. It’s probably good you weren’t awake for it.”

  I sigh and look down at Kateri.

  “How long was I out?”

  “Two days.”

  “What! Two days? Dammit!�
�

  Alixa places her hand on mine.

  “It’s okay.”

  “No, it’s not okay. Oh my God. Father’s going to kill us.”

  “I’m sure he’ll understand.”

  E ~ Maybe, but what about my mom?

  I shake my head and then look down at Kateri again.

  “Has she been here all this time?”

  “She never left your side,” she says. “You’ve got a good one there.”

  “I know,” I say, reaching over and stroking her hair gently.

  Kateri literally jumps up out of the chair, her sword out and at the ready.

  “Get away!” she yells before she sees me. “Eve!”

  She drops her weapon and embraces me, wrapping her arms around my neck, being careful to avoid my injured limb. When she finally releases me, I can see her eyes are watery.

  “Are you okay?”

  “I think so.”

  “Oh my God, I was so worried about you.”

  “I’m okay,” I say, smiling at her.

  Alixa sits silently, just watching us, but not in a creepy voyeuristic way. It’s more like someone watching two friends reunite after being apart.

  “Don’t do that shit, okay?”

  “I didn’t plan it, ya know,” I say, laughing, even though every chuckle sends a jolt of pain shooting up my arm.

  “I know. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

  She hugs me again, leaning over the bed and placing the smallest of kisses on the side of my neck. The contact sets off a wave of goosebumps that cascade across my entire body and collide with the fading ripples of pain, quickly overwhelming them.

  “I can leave you two alone, if you like,” Alixa offers.

  “No, it’s okay,” I reply, taking Kateri’s hand in mine.

  “When can she get out of here?” Kateri asks.

  “I guess when she’s feeling up to it.”

  Kateri looks at me and I grin at her.

  “Give me a few minutes,” I say. “I just woke up.”

  “That just means you had plenty of rest.”

  “Funny.” I look at her and shake my head.

  “I’ll be back in a minute,” Alixa says as she heads down the aisle between the rows of beds.

  “Hey. Did you get a chance to talk to Kyuki?”

  “No,” Kateri replies, shaking her head. “She came by a few times to check on you, but she said she wanted to talk to you.”

  “Okay.”

  “How’s your arm? The truth.”

  “Hurts like hell, but we have to get on with this. We’ve already wasted too much time.”

  “I know, besides, Father’s going to kill us,” she says, half frowning and half smiling.

  “Not to mention my mother.”

  “Yeah. I think that scares me more.”

  “You and me both.”

  Chapter Six

  “You need to watch for complications,” Alixa says.

  “Like what?”

  I’m up and moving around, my sword and bow hanging from my belt. Kateri is sitting on the bed as we listen to my discharge orders.

  “Anything out of the ordinary, like dizziness, pain, or anything else odd. We think we neutralized the poison, but like I told you before, no human or Shayd has ever been exposed to it before, so we’re not sure about lingering effects.”

  “I don’t like the sound of that,” Kateri says, frowning.

  “Seems par for the course for me lately,” I say, grinning.

  Alixa looks at me for a moment, her blue/green eyes almost glowing.

  “You’re a strong person, Eve. One of the strongest I’ve ever met. I think you’ll be okay,” she says, “but like I said, if you feel anything out of the ordinary, you need to get back here, right away.”

  “We will,” I say. “Thank you for everything, Alixa.”

  “No problem,” she replies with a little smile.

  I smile back at her.

  “Can you tell us how to get to Kyuki’s office?”

  “Sure, you just—”

  “I’ll take you,” Dray says as he lumbers into the room.

  “Dray. How are you?” I ask as he makes his way over to us.

  “I think the more important question is, how are you?”

  “I’m okay.”

  He nods, but I can see something more in his expression. He looks at Alixa and they give each other polite nods.

  “Take care of her,” she says.

  “I will,” he replies.

  As we’re leaving the infirmary, I reach out and touch Dray’s arm, his rough skin feeling like sandpaper under my fingers.

  “What’s the matter?” I ask.

  He sighs quietly before answering.

  “I’m sorry you were injured,” he answers, not looking at us now.

  “It wasn’t your fault,” I reply, shaking my head.

  “Perhaps not, but you two were under my protection, and I failed in my duties.”

  I shake my head again.

  “You didn’t fail, Dray. We’re in a war. People get hurt, it’s the way things are,” Kateri says.

  I have to admit that I’m surprised at her words. I mean, they’re absolutely true, but this is Kateri we’re talking about, being nice to a demon. Who would have known?

  “That’s kind of you to say, but I know better. I broke my promise.”

  “To who?” I ask.

  “Radik.”

  I feel a wave of sadness pass through me when I think about our fallen friend.

  “What promise?”

  “He made me swear I would look after you and your friends if anything happened to him.”

  “You didn’t break your promise, Dray. Kateri’s right. We’re all still here.”

  He sighs and growls; the sound rattles my bones. It’s obvious that we’re not going to convince him, so I let it drop. We make a few turns in the narrow hallways on our way to see Kyuki. This time, many of the demons we pass say hello, pat us on the shoulders, and a few even do fist bumps or give us high-fives. When we reach the door to the waiting area outside Kyuki’s office, Dray walks right in. Another sad reminder of Radik’s absence is the lack of a guard since Dray has obviously been promoted. He lowers his head as we walk into the small room, and even though I can’t hear his thoughts, I can still sense his sadness.

  He knocks once on the office door and then enters without waiting for permission. Kyuki is sitting behind her desk, papers scattered about on the top. She looks tired, and worried, and perhaps a little sad. When we walk in, her expression changes, a toothy smile coming to her face. Jumping up from her seat, she comes around to our side of the desk and takes my uninjured hand in hers.

  “Eve. It’s so good to see you up and about,” she says warmly. “Are you well?”

  “I’m better, thank you.”

  She looks over at Kateri and grins.

  “Your devotion helped her recover,” she says.

  Kateri smiles back and gives her a little nod but says nothing.

  “Please sit,” she says, gesturing to the two chairs.

  We sit while she leans back on the desk.

  “I heard that you came to see me several times.”

  “I did.”

  “I wanted to thank you for that.”

  “There’s no need for thanks, Eve. I consider you a friend and ally, and you were injured fighting our common enemy.”

  “Yeah,” I say. “That’s what we need to talk about.”

  “First though, I think we may need to clear the air,” she says.

  “What do you mean?”

  “When we last saw each other. I don’t think you were very happy with me,” she says, standing up straighter now.

  I purposely try to keep my thoughts to myself as we talk.

  “That’s probably true,” I reply, being as honest as I feel I can.

  “As I said then, Radik knew the risks, as we all do.”

  I nod slowly.

  “I know that now. I realize
that what happened, happened because of Sirix, not you.”

  She nods without speaking, but I sense no self-satisfaction or pride at my admittance. She looks at Kateri and tilts her head to the side.

  “And you? Do you feel the same?”

  “Since you can read my thoughts, there’s no point in lying, so I’ll be blunt. I don’t trust you, but like Eve, I know that Radik was a warrior, and he died fighting, something that I hope will happen to me, when the end comes. I also realize that it wasn’t your fault…directly anyway.”

  Kyuki remains silent, just standing and listening to Kateri. I try to pick up her thoughts, but there’s nothing to read.

  “Maybe you are what you say you are, and maybe you’re not,” Kateri continues.

  “But?” Kyuki says, obviously aware that there’s more to come.

  “But…you did help save us back at the tower, and as far as I’m concerned, we’re allies until you do something that changes that, and then I’ll cut you down as easily as I do our common enemies,” she says, before crossing her legs and staring straight at her.

  E ~ Wow.

  K ~ Thanks.

  “You are the fiercest warrior I have ever known, Kateri. You are honest, strong and loyal, all qualities that make for a great friend or a powerful enemy. I hope we can remain the former.”

  “For now, we can.”

  “That will do.”

  Kyuki turns her attention back to me.

  “So, did you have a chance to discuss our proposal with your people?” she asks.

  “No,” I say, shaking my head. “We haven’t had much of an opportunity to talk about it, except in generalities.”

  “How do you think it will be received?”

  “With skepticism,” I reply.

  Kyuki frowns and I sigh.

  “I’m just trying to be honest with you. There’s a lot of distrust.”

  She nods and sits and thinks for a moment before looking at me again.