A Night without Stars

by Sabrina Albis

“And so the old adage goes, we pay for the sins of our fathers,” she said curtly. “Revenge is a dish best served cold. I could go on, but you get the idea. Now that story time is over, you need to go or else,” she trailed off before grinning wildly. “Well, you know the rest, I’m sure.”

  “Or else what?” Eric asked, feeling his jaw tighten. He wasn’t dense. He had no way to stop her should she decide to attack him, but he wouldn’t go down without a fight. If losing his parents had taught him anything, it was to be courageous even in the face of impending death.

  “Eric, I know the fate of your parents,” she said grimly. “I also know you thirst for revenge, much like me but I can’t let you ruin this.”

  She outstretched her arms indicating the cave walls surrounding her.

  “I have built this empire of darkness and pure, perfect evil. I don’t intend to give it up until this town is nothing but a rotten, festering hole in the ground. So, you can take your friends and leave willingly, or I can pick you all off, one by one, starting with you.”

  Eric hadn’t forgotten. Arabella was watching from the scrying bowl but even her magic was no match for Bianca’s. This was his battle and his alone. So he did what his mother and father would have wanted him to do. He fought against every instinct that told him to run and never look back. He ignored the voice of reason that said Bianca was too powerful, and she would end him.

  Then he looked her in the eyes, not one muscle in his face betraying him, his voice unwavering and his head held high.

  “I’m not going anywhere Bianca,” he said firmly.

  Bianca looked surprised for only a mere second before a sinister smile spread across her lips.

  “Well then, let the games begin.”

  26

  Autumn watched with terror as one of the creatures crouched and sprang upwards, leaping at her, eyes feral and venomous. It glided at her through the air, snarls escaping its throat.

  “Autumn, watch out!” Rick bellowed.

  “I got this!” she reassured him.

  She positioned herself. Feet rooted to the ground. Her scythe gripped tightly in her hands.

  She swung at the beast, hoping to slice it when it landed, but she missed and it clawed at her, nicking her armor but not penetrating it.

  Autumn glanced around her. The three monsters had suddenly become eight and Rick was fending off two by himself, slashing at them with his sword. Mandy was being cornered by another and Nathaniel was firing off shots at the one nearest him.

  Autumn swung her scythe again, this time connecting. The scythe slashed through the creatures arm, carving through scaly skin and muscles.

  The demon screeched, eyes glowing with rage as dark liquid spewed from the gash in its arm. She pulled her weapon back, and it lunged at her, its mouth foaming, ready to sink its teeth into her but she was ready for it, and she jumped. She landed to the side, crouched, as the monster rushed past her.

  It looked around, its head whipping side to side. It spotted her by the cave wall and charged at her.

  Autumn stood up and swung her leg out sharply. She kicked, slamming it into the stony cave wall.

  As her monster struggled to move, Autumn checked on the others.

  A creature slugged Mandy in the jaw, but she was tough as nails. She could take her licks.

  “You little shit!” she barked, swinging her nunchucks, letting them gain momentum before she flicked her arm out and whacked the beast in the face. Its head whipped sideways from the impact, and the creature growled.

  “It stings doesn’t it?” she said before landing a roundhouse kick in its guts.

  Nathaniel had already managed to put one monster down, showering it with bullets until it was nothing but pulp.

  Rick slashed at two slobbering monsters with his glinting sword. He moved like a whirlwind, his blade dancing back and forth quickly, cutting them lithely and fluently.

  The monster Autumn was fighting stood up, cracking its muscles and adjusting its neck. It stared her down, shrieking with rage, and it charged at her again. Its sharp claws struck her, shredding her in the side.

  Autumn felt the sharp, rigid, talons tear through her armor and into her flesh. She let out a yelp as the creature kicked her with its clawed feet. Autumn tried to dodge, but it hit Autumn in her guts, sending her flying into the cave wall.

  She felt the stones jutting into her body and the impact as she hit the solid rocks, hard and fast. Her body slumped to the ground with a thump, and her vision became hazy.

  I can’t fade away when they need me, she thought to herself.

  Still, her body didn’t want to cooperate, and when she tried to get up, it felt like she weighed tons. The wind had been knocked out of her, and she gasped, hardly breathing as her lungs struggled to take in air.

  “AUTUMN!” she heard Rick’s alarmed voice.

  Her head was spinning now. He sounded like he was miles away.

  She blinked, waiting for her vision to stabilize. When it did, she saw Rick was trying to get to her but the demon he was fighting wasn’t making it easy. It blocked his path, swinging at him ruthlessly.

  Autumn tried to reply, to let him know she was alright, but no words came. She was still gasping for air while trying to stand up.

  The sound of growling shifted her attention and she saw the creature that had kicked her was coming to finish her off. Another demon was next to it, watching her ravenously. The first one rushed at her, its forked tongue flicking out. It was thirsty, for her blood, for her essence, for her life.

  “NATE!” Rick called out. He was blocking the creature clawing at him with the steel of his sword.

  “HELP HER!”

  “I got it Rick!” Nathaniel said. Then bullets rang out. The monster took one to the head and collapsed to the ground limply. Nathaniel shot at the other beast but missed. It continued charging at Autumn who had managed to get some air back into her lungs. She was standing up now, bracing herself for another round.

  The demon kicked at her again but she dodged this time. She used her free hand to punch it, using as much force as she could muster in her weakened state. The beast took the hit as Autumn swung her scythe, aiming for its head.

  The dazed demon tried to move, but it was too late. Swiftly, the scythe came at its neck, and Autumn watched as its head was severed against the razor-sharp blade. She slashed repeatedly until the cranium finally toppled to the ground. The headless body stood in front of her, unmoving, before crumpling onto the rocky surface.

  Autumn breathed in and out deeply, her heart pounding. She wanted to collapse onto the ground and call it a day, but she couldn’t.

  She wasn’t done yet. Not even close.

  “Aut?” she heard Nathaniel calling out to her. “Are you alright?”

  He was headed towards her, gun at the ready, sweeping the path as he moved.

  “I’m fine!” she said, when out of the corner of her eye, she saw movement.

  Another demon appeared, seemingly out of nowhere.

  This one moved faster than any of others, and Autumn was in its line of destruction. Swinging at her wildly, a mix of limbs and claws came at her in all directions. She dodged and blocked as best as she could but the fury of blows struck her. She felt her arms, hands and face getting slashed.

  Mandy struck a final blow to her monster, whipping it in the back of the head with her deadly nunchucks. Rick, who had finally killed his two creatures, rushed over to Autumn.

  Autumn kicked the monster swiftly and sharply in the chest sending him far back enough to stop the onslaught of blows. It moved towards her again and punched her, growling and spitting.

  Autumn took its punch in the shoulder and swung her scythe, missing. The demon whacked her again, this time nailing her in the mouth with a mighty uppercut.

  Autumn’s teeth rattled from the power of the blow, but the
pain was nothing to her now. She was running on adrenaline.

  She tasted blood and looked at the monster.

  “Is that all you got?” she asked, her eyes steely.

  She hacked her scythe at it, nailing it right in the chest. It screeched, stumbling backwards while clutching its torso. Autumn swung again, slashing its stomach. Dark black fluid spurted from its belly, and the creature went down, twitching for a few moments before it stopped moving all together.

  Autumn doubled over, hands on her knees.

  All the demons were dead.

  Everyone looked at each other wordlessly, like if they spoke, they might wake the dead lying scattered at their feet.

  Mandy cleared her throat.

  “Is that it?” she asked, breathing heavily. “Weak.”

  Perspiration dripped all over Autumn’s body and her wounds throbbed, stinging as the sweat trickled into them.

  “I think so,” Autumn offered, taking time to catch her breath.

  Nathaniel wandered a few steps ahead to investigate with his gun pointed and ready. Rick went over to Autumn.

  “Is everyone alright?” he asked, touching Mandy’s shoulder tersely as he passed by her.

  “I’m all good,” Mandy said, keeping her eyes fixed on Nathaniel.

  Rick stood next to Autumn, his eyes tracing over her wounds.

  “You were amazing sweetheart,” he said, touching her face gently. “But you are hurt. Drink the healing potion.”

  Autumn examined her boyfriend. He’d taken a few hits himself but nothing too serious.

  “No way. These are minor injuries. It’s a waste.”

  “Take mine then,” Rick said, reaching into his Kevlar bodysuit, but Autumn refused.

  “I’m fine. When Nate gets back we should go check on Eric and see how he’s doing.”

  “Aut, come on. Take it,” Rick pleaded.

  Mandy sighed impatiently.

  “I love you both but this is no time for a lovers quarrel,” she said. “We need to rest up quickly and keep clearing the cave out.”

  “Guys!” Nathaniel’s voice interrupted, echoing down the passage. He ran towards them, wiping sweat from his brow. He looked like he had just seen death itself.

  Autumn’s stomach tightened into knots.

  “They’re coming,” he whispered. “Listen.”

  Autumn listened carefully. She could hear it. The distinct sound of thudding and pounding against the cave walls, footsteps coming towards them and claws scrapping against stones.

  More were coming.

  An army of demons was on its way.

  A bolt of lightning formed in Bianca’s hands, and she hurled it at Eric. He used a blocking spell to create a barrier and it disintegrated.

  At this moment, Eric was thankful his nagging but protective sister had taught him some useful instantaneous spells, or else he wouldn’t stand a chance of surviving.

  “Clever boy,” Bianca said, eyes glimmering with excitement. “Let’s see how well you handle this next one!”

  She raised her hand, and the cave lit up with bright, intensely burning fire. The flame rested in her palm and in its glow, Eric saw Bianca’s face staring at him, eyes maniacal, grin wide.

  She closed her eyes, focusing and Eric watched with a mix of awe and horror as the flame became bigger and bigger until it was a huge ball of fire ready to swallow him whole.

  “Don’t worry Eric. I will be sure to tell your friends, before they meet their maker, how you were incinerated to death,” she said cruelly. “Or should I let them discover your ashes before I kill them?” she chuckled hysterically. “So many choices!”

  Eric knew well enough that his magical barrier wouldn’t block flames of that capacity. It could barely handle the lightning shots. He just wasn’t strong enough.

  He couldn’t dodge it. It was too huge, and he wasn’t going to beg her for mercy. He only hoped someone would save his friends when he was dead, that Autumn would be spared. His precious, darling Autumn.

  “Give my regards to mama and papa King!” Bianca screamed. And she launched the fireball at him.

  He would be with them soon, his parents, his uncle, Renee and Caleb. He would be with them, wherever they were, and he could finally find the peace he had been seeking.

  He closed his eyes saying a silent prayer as the fireball hurtled towards him.

  He could feel its heat, growing stronger and closer, like he was a candle made of wax, about to melt under the flames. He prepared himself for the anguish and the pain. He felt the sweat trickling down his neck and face.

  Suddenly, he heard a whoosh, like a strong wind blowing around him. His hair whipped wildly, and he felt his face cooling down.

  Unexpected but powerful energy overtook the air around him. He recognized it as surging and throbbing magical prowess.

  It enraptured him, and he opened his eyes just in time to see someone standing next to him.

  Her hair was long, waved and white blonde. Her eyes were large and blue, her skin porcelain. She was clad in a white lace dress and for a moment, standing there, she looked almost angelic.

  Angel or not, this woman had just saved his life.

  27

  Autumn and the others were being hit by an onslaught, a full-on assault.

  Dozens of demons marched towards them, almost rhythmically, like militant soldiers, ready for war.

  It was an eerie and nightmarish sight. Autumn had to fight to keep her eyes open as she watched with horrified fascination. She could feel the goosebumps spreading across her arms, the shivers emanating down her spine.

  Autumn looked to Rick. He looked back at her, jaw tensed, eyes determined. If he was scared, he wasn’t showing it.

  “Rick,” she began but a scraping noise from above shifted her attention.

  Demons, moving on all fours were crawling along the cave ceiling above her. Their eyes glowed red and yellow in the darkness, taunting her, tempting her to flee, but she wasn’t going anywhere.

  She was going to see this through to the end, even if it killed her.

  “Guys we need a plan fast!” Mandy said.

  “Incoming!” Autumn said as a swarm of bats with deformed, scabbed wings soared through the air. Enormous, furry spiders boasting more than eight legs scurried along the jagged cave rocks, their beady, black eyes alert.

  “The plan is, don’t let them overrun us!” Nathaniel snarled as he cocked his gun.

  “There are too many!” Mandy bellowed as Nathaniel began letting out shots, trying to spray them with bullets. Some hit the ground but for every demon he took out, five more seem to come out of the woodwork.

  “We can’t just give up!” Rick roared as he got his sword ready. “We fight!”

  Autumn knew Rick well enough to see through his fearless façade. Even he couldn’t deny the cold hard facts. They were outnumbered. As always, Rick was tenacious. He wasn’t going down without a fight. He stood back to back with Autumn, a technique he taught her. Together they moved, working their way through the mass of demons.

  Fighting is like dancing, Rick once told her. You need to find your own rhythm, your own style, and own it.

  Autumn remembered this when they separated. She used her scythe to chop at a huge demon who was trying to run her through with a pike.

  She missed and the creature tried to stab her, but she managed to knock the pike from its grasp with a hearty kick. It clanked to the ground, and with the demon caught off guard she swung her scythe at it again. This time she sliced through its side. As she got ready to swing again, she heard a gunshot. The demon collapsed to the ground, and she headed over to help Rick.

  He was tangling with a beast so tall its head grazed against the cave ceiling. It thumped along, trying to stomp Rick out with its mammoth feet. Rick dodged it with ease, jumping up and slashing his s
word upright through its throat.

  It gasped and stumbled backwards, blood gushing from its gullet, as it crashed into the boulder wall, sending rock debris flying everywhere.

  Rick waited for it to get back up, but it didn’t. Instead, it lay still and lifeless, buried under the pile of rocks.

  Nathaniel shot at the monsters on the ceiling and the ones directly around him. Autumn knew when it came to targets, Nathaniel rarely missed.

  Another creature from the ceiling jumped to the ground, and Mandy captured it in her grasp. This time she bypassed her nunchucks, instead grabbing the creature by the head and breaking its neck.

  They went on like this for what felt like hours but when Autumn looked around she saw the steady stream of hell beasts wasn’t slowing down.

  They were coming in droves now. As they overwhelmed them, Rick pushed Autumn back out of harm’s way. He looked at her and she saw it, for the first time, in his ice-blue eyes.

  She saw the fear.

  He was scared now and in a last bid to save her, he would stand in front of her and die first.

  They weren’t going to survive.

  This was the end of the line.

  “The spell! Now!” The angelic beauty was speaking to Eric, as though in slow motion. He was still in awe.

  In awe of her saving his life, of her power, of her presence.

  Bianca was shooting off spells. Her hands created fire balls and lightning shots alike but to no avail. There was a barrier blocking them, keeping Eric and the angel safe, like they were in their very own protective bubble.

  This angel was indeed a sorceress.

  “Who are you?” Eric asked, instantly realizing that this wasn’t the time or the place.

  Still, foolishly he yearned to know. He wanted to know everything about her. He never betted on anyone in Whitan saving his ass, especially a powerful sorcerer. Anyone who could go toe-to-toe with the demon queen had to have some serious magical prowess. Eric could practically see the waves of energy, radiating from this woman.

  “My name? That doesn’t matter,” she said, smiling ever so slightly. “What matters is that you complete your spell.”