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Vanzir’s cords caught hold and drove themselves into the demon in a frenzied, hungry dance. I heard Delilah retch. She looked horrified, staring first at Vanzir, then at the demon, as if she didn’t know who to root for. I caught her gaze and shook my head, mouthing, “Knock it off.” We couldn’t afford to alienate Vanzir, nor could she afford to be squeamish. This was what the Karsetii had done to her. She should be grateful she wasn’t dead from its attack.
As Vanzir began to source energy from the creature, Morio raced in, back in his human form, silver sword drawn high. He landed a sharp stab on the back of the head, and the creature writhed. That seemed to shake Delilah out of her revulsion, and she joined Morio, her dagger out and plunging into the head of the demon. I couldn’t wield silver, but I landed a good solid kick under the eye.
The Karsetii lashed out with one of its tentacles, catching Morio in its fury. It didn’t grab hold of him but launched him back, sending him flying through the mist to land on the ground near Camille.
As she knelt to help him, Smoky bellowed out, “All clear,” and we all jumped back, Vanzir recalling his tendrils like a power cord rolling back into the vacuum.
Smoky belched, and a great ball of fire rolled out of his mouth, streaking down through the sky to land atop the Karsetii. The hive mother shrieked in pain as the clones shifted position and slammed back into the central demon, renewing her from the drain Smoky’s attack had inflicted.
“She’s healing herself,” I yelled out.
Roz threw another firebomb, and it landed on her as she whipped around in his direction. That one had to smart; he managed to hit her right above the eye. The noise was horrendous as she roared, charging him like a mad bull.
Delilah rushed forward, chasing the demon. The Karsetii’s head was pulsating. Something about music soothing wild beasts crossed my thoughts, but I pushed it away. I had my doubts whether Brahms’s “Lullaby” would settle the hive mother down for a nice long nap.>“There—another door!” Camille shouted. Delilah and I followed on her heels, the boys right behind us.
We entered another chamber, equally as large but bereft of any tables or signs of human intrusion. I felt something prickle at my shoulder and jumped, whirling around. There was nobody there except Delilah, and she was an arm’s length away.
“Something touched me,” I said.
“A shade? Ghost?” Delilah glanced around nervously. “I don’t feel the Karsetii. Either that or it’s just been ignoring me. Maybe you managed to sever its connection to my soul earlier.”
“I don’t know.” Again, a brush to my left, and I jumped. I backed up, moving toward her. “Something is in here with us. Camille, can you feel anything?”
She closed her eyes, flanked on either side by Smoky and Morio. “Demonkin. I can sense the Karsetii somewhere near.”
“More than that,” Smoky said. “I sense something from the Netherworld here. Undead—and whatever it is, it doesn’t feel happy.”
Shit. So we were facing an astrally based soul-sucking demon, a necromancer who was powerful enough to stop us in our tracks, and now—somebody fresh in from the Netherworld. Delightful. Lovely.
“We should just nuke this place and be done with it,” I grumbled as something brushed against me again. “That does it!” I whirled around and lashed out in the general direction that the touch had come from. “Show yourself, you fool! You want to fight, then come out and fight!”
But it was no demon nor shade that slipped out from the shadows. No, we found ourselves facing a throng of at least thirty young women, most of them Fae; some appeared to be human. Every one of them wore a haunted look, and they were all naked, with holes where their hearts should be.
“Oh cripes,” Camille said. “They’re victims of that damned bunch of perverts. Looks like Dante’s Hellions have been busy over the years.” She bit her lip, staring at the mournful crowd of spirits surrounding us.
“What now?” Delilah asked, a pained expression on her face. “Can we do something for them?”
“We can kill their murderers,” I said, growling.
“Doing that might set them free,” Morio said. “But first we have to take out the necromancer and the demon.”
“Okay then,” I said. “Let’s find the Karsetii and send it packing for good.”
Vanzir pointed toward a dark splotch against the opposite wall. “Look—the necromancer. He’s hiding behind a camouflage spell.”
Morio squinted. “You’re right.” He lifted his arms and uttered a loud yip, then something I couldn’t understand, and a green fire raced from his vulpine fingers. The fire enveloped the dark sphere cloaked among the shadows near the granite. As it sparked and dissipated, so did the shadow cloaking the necromancer. He was hunched against the wall, trying to hide, and when he realized we were looking straight at him, he straightened his shoulders and began searching frantically through his pockets.
“I don’t know where the demon is, but I know where my dinner is,” Smoky said, and with a roar, he streaked past us. Before the wizard could stumble or even shout, the dragon had slashed across his chest with one taloned hand, eviscerating him neatly and cleanly with one swipe. The wizard clutched at his stomach, his intestines spilling through his hands, as he looked up at the scowling white figure that towered over him. Slowly, he fell to the floor with one short grunt.
Smoky reached out with the toe of his sneaker and flipped him over. The necromancer didn’t react, simply rolled with the kick, and from where I was standing, I could smell the fresh blood, and my fangs descended.
“Now, for the demon,” the dragon said, returning to us, ignoring the body of the wizard. “I can feel the creature; it’s here, in this room, but on the astral, waiting for us.” He held out his arms. “I can take the girls. Rozurial, can you and Vanzir manage Morio?”
They nodded. Delilah, Camille, and I crowded into Smoky’s open arms, and again, I closed my eyes, partially to blank out the shift—which I was discovering made me queasier each time it happened—and partially to drown out the smell of blood, which was setting up an entirely different type of reaction in my stomach. Queasy and thirsty don’t mix that well.
As we shifted to the astral, I could feel the demon’s energy intensify. Smoky was right; the Karsetii was waiting for us. She must be smart, I thought. Or at least cunning. I’d been wondering if the hive mother was sentient or just some horrendous beast from the depths. Now I could feel a sense of malevolence that only comes with true intelligence and understanding.
We’d have to be ready to move, I thought. The minute we stepped onto the astral, that beast would be on our tail, and if this was the same one we’d fought before, she was back, bigger and stronger than ever.
