Page 96 of Coven of Corpses

Off in the woods, the demon thrashed wildly. Baron’s body contorted in ways no human body should be able to move.

“No!” it screamed, the sound audible over the roaring wind and their group chanting. “You cannot bind me again! I will not return to the darkness!"

"By the blood of the five, we command thee," Tracey screamed.

Cody and the others echoed her words.

“We need the blood to consecrate!” Tracey shouted.

Clarabell went to each of them, pricking their fingers as they extended their arms down to her. Demmy had to fight to pull Cody down far enough for her to reach his finger. He flinched, then squeezed out several drops of blood that fell straight to the ground, despite the brutal onslaught of wind.

Physics had nothing on witchcraft, apparently.

The demon's screams grew louder, more desperate. Smoke rose from his body, the wind grabbing wisps of black mist and tearing them apart.

"By our blood and by our will," the descendants chanted together, "we cast you out and bind you down!"

A blinding flash of light erupted from the center of their formation, and they all cried out. The vortex within the clearing collapsed, and Cody dropped to the ground, landing beside Demmy. A wave of energy pulsed outward from the center of the circle, knocking them all off their feet.

Cody felt a strange sensation washing over him—like being pulled through water backward. Heat and cold alternated across his skin in waves, making the hairs on his arms and neck stand on end. Every cell in his body seemed to vibrate at a different frequency, creating a discordant hum he could feel in his teeth and behind his eyes. For a moment, he couldn't breathe, his lungs refusing to expand as if compressed by an invisible weight. His ears popped painfully, and the taste of copper flooded his mouth. The world around him blurred, images smearing together. Then, with a jolt like an electric shock that started at the base of his spine and shot up to the crown of his head, everything snapped into place with an almost audible click.

He blinked, disoriented by the sudden shift in perspective. The world seemed both taller and more familiar. His limbs felt heavier yet more responsive, like returning to a well-worn pair of boots after wearing someone else's shoes. He realized he was on the ground in a different position than before, the soil beneath him pressing against different pressure points. The aches and pains of his own body greeted him like old friends—the familiar twinge in his knees, the slight tightness in his lower back. He looked at his hands—his hands, not Demmy's—with their broader palms and thicker fingers, dirt embedded under the nails. He patted his chest, feeling the solid muscles beneath his shirt, then his face, the rough stubble of his beard scraping against his palm, confirming what he already knew.

"I'm back!” He grabbed Demmy who lay beside him and pulled him up into a sitting position. “We’re back!”

“What?" Demmy said as he blinked slowly. Then he looked at Cody, looked down at his own hands, and back up, eyes wide. "We're back!"

Cody got up, so grateful to be at his full height once again. He pulled Demmy to his feet and into a fierce embrace, lifting him slightly off the ground. "I've never been so happy to be tall!"

Demetrius laughed, wrapping his arms around Cody's neck.

Around them, the others were getting to their feet, looking dazed but relieved. Clarabell was helping Amelia. She appeared shaken but unhurt. Tracey got to her feet, one hand pressed against the small of her back. Jugs was flat on his back, staring up at the night sky. The ground covering the graves looked undisturbed, showing no sign that skeletal hands had pushed up from beneath.

“Jugs?” Cody said. “You all right?”

Jugs rolled to his side and got up on all fours. He looked between him and Demmy. “That you?”

Cody smiled and put his arms out to his sides. “I’m back, baby.”

Jugs smiled. “Welcome back, Bonker.”

“Don’t call me that.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Margie stood looking around, still holding the St. Christopher’s medal. “Where did he go?”

“There,” Clarabell said, pointing.

Cody noticed a large stone just outside the circle, close to the blackened and splintered oak tree that had once imprisoned the demon. The rough surface of the stone looked gold in the light from the candles that had somehow remained lit. Had it even been there before? On the other side of the clearing, on the outer edge where the grass gave way to the trees, Baron lay very still, head canted to the side at an unnatural angle, skin pale.

"The demon's bound," Tracey said, cautiously approaching the stone. "It worked."

"So that thing is in there now?" Jugs asked, pointing at the stone.

"Yes. Trapped in the rock. For good."

Cody stood with his arm around Demmy. The woods were dark and quiet, but the moon was higher now. As Tracey and Clarabell extinguished the candles and gathered their things, pale moonlight flooded the clearing. Things felt calmer now, peaceful.