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“Hell yeah,” Jaden answered as she squared her shoulders. The air around her body began to shimmer as her jaguar made noise. “But let’s make this quick.”
She ducked as one of them flew at her.
“I don’t want to miss the Buffy marathon that starts at midnight.”
Chapter 3
Jaden leapt over the sofa, hissing in pain, as droplets of the demon’s blood burned into her skin. She swept the dagger across the fabric, cleaning it as she flew over, and twisted her body so that she landed to face the two demons that broke away from the others.
Her skin was on fire with the need to change, and mist was already crawling up her legs.
One of the demons followed her lead and jumped over the sofa, his stench seeping into her nostrils. The dude had some serious hygiene problems.
He landed in front of her, mouth agape and dripping saliva everywhere.
“Christ, you boys don’t exactly win the prize for best-looking,” she snarled as she charged forward and leapt up at him. The demon met her in the air, and they slammed together with such force that her breath was knocked from her body.
Her fingers barely held on to the dagger as she went down and landed on her back, hard, with the demon on top of her.
He stared down at her, smiled viciously as he licked his serrated teeth. “You jaguars are weak, pathetic creatures,” he said.
Jaden wrinkled her nose. “Yeah? Buddy, you’re strong. I’ll give you that.” She tightened her grip on the dagger and prayed that the charm still carried enough power to inflict damage. “But body odor isn’t something to be proud of.”
She hissed loudly and swiped the dagger up toward the demon’s throat. He grabbed her hand just in time. and the two of them struggled for the blade. The demon rose from the ground and brought her up with him, as she poured all of her strength into her grip.
He laughed, and inside, her jaguar erupted into a fury. Jaden’s eyes flashed, and she lashed out with her right leg, kicking hard and fast.
When in doubt, aim for the junk.
The monster roared in pain as she connected with his demon jewels, and she yanked the dagger from his hand. He lunged toward her, blind with fury, and Jaden used every bit of strength she had as she arced the weapon in a perfect line. It was a large dagger, razor-sharp.
The change was already falling over her frame as the demon fell at her feet, his cleanly severed head landing a few inches away.
Bones popped and elongated, muscles stretched, and a thick black pelt rippled along her flesh as her jaguar burst from inside. Her clothes were ripped to shreds as the large cat erupted from her body, and they fell in pieces at her feet.
Jaden growled loudly, her mouth open and panting as she reveled in the power of her animal. The cat heard the sounds of battle, of Julian and the others, but she concentrated on the suddenly wary demon in front of her.
He glanced down at his fallen comrade and began clacking his teeth in a strange sort of sequence, moving his head slowly. The clack, clack, clack, was raw, ragged, and she circled as the demon began to change.
Jaden had seen this before. She knew if the demon had time to morph into his true form, she was pretty much screwed.
Her hind legs dug in, and she jumped up onto the sofa, using it to propel herself upward. Her claws were fully extended as she attacked the demon. He was beginning to stretch. His human shape began to morph and distort while his colors changed from flesh tone to a shit brown green.
She hit him at shoulder height and ignored the pain as his arms went around her body, crushing her to him tightly. He roared loudly as her claws dug in, and when he bit into her shoulder, the pain was immediate and intense. Jaden had never felt anything like it.
Liquid fire burned across her shoulder.
She held on and clawed her way upward, loosening his grip, and with relief she felt his mouth give way as she zeroed in on her target.
Jaden growled loudly as she anchored her body and dug in. She opened her jaws as wide as they could go, then clamped down on his skull. Her large incisors went deep, ripping into bone and tissue, and she fought the urge to let go as the taste of the demon flooded her mouth.
He screamed in pain and began to twist violently. Jaden held on; she could not let him win. Her shoulder was on fire and she feared the demon’s poison would be too strong for her.
Her vision blurred, and a wave of dizziness fell over her, but still she gripped hard. The demon moaned loudly and began to wobble as he struggled to stay upright, and, with a loud crash, the beast fell forward, pinning Jaden beneath his heavy weight.
She released her hold and fought the red haze that danced in front of her eyes. The pain had spread from her shoulders across her back, and it felt like a thousand tiny teeth were slowly peeling back layers of her skin, from the inside out.
The demon was a de
