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When Vance’s foot connected, Cain flowed forward and swung down, catching the demon in the chest and ripping it open. Another one dead, too many to go. It had only been minutes since Sadie left, but he began to tire. “Think we can make a run for it?” While Sadie might have taken his talisman, Vance had another.
“I mean, we could try?” Vance didn’t sound so certain.
Given the lull as the demons held themselves back and formed a ring so as to better rush them, Cain dug into his pocket and pulled out a three-inch silver dagger.
“Here, this is better than nothing.” He handed it to Vance, who gripped it and activated the hilt, turning it into a foot-long knife.
“Thanks.”
“You might want to talk to Dustin”—their armorer—“about having some kind of backup weapon.”
“Or I could ask Cecily to shrink a bunch of ammo clips instead so I can stuff more than a pair in my jacket,” Vance countered.
“Real reapers fight with the blade,” Cain argued as he swung and took the head off a demon that came barreling on hands and feet.
“That toxic mentality is going to get you killed one day.” Vance snorted. “Get ready. Here they come.”
The demons moved forward in a wave, a circle of slavering and feral-eyed monsters that closed in, ready to feast on flesh.
Not if he had a say in it.
Cain bellowed as he rushed them before the noose tightened. Claws scraped at his coat, and a few managed to scratch his hands as sheer numbers overwhelmed. He sweated and strained, his arms screaming with the effort. He might have fallen if the cavalry hadn’t arrived at that moment.
Reapers charged in from both ends of the street, men he knew from the castle whom he’d trained with, armed to the teeth and raring to fight. The tide turned quickly, especially since they brought combat witches with them.
But did the monsters run?
Nope. These demons didn’t behave like normal. They remained to fight. Remained despite the number of adversaries they now faced.
Nova barked, “Helen, shield the street from looky-loos. Cecily, help me electrocute them.” The head witch then flung a ball of pure electrical energy. It hit a demon, and it squealed.
The tide turned. The sheer number of reapers decimated the demons that dared confront. When a few fled to the buildings, the reapers followed. They’d have to go room by room to clear them out. Although, given the level of suspected carnage within the apartments, it might be better if the whole block suffered a gas main explosion. Burnt and exploded victims would be easier to explain than ripped-open ones.
Cain and Vance stuck together as a pair, like they used to in training until they went their separate ways because of a witch who, in the end, chose another witch. At times, Cain regretted the fact they’d let a woman get between them. The time to apologize and renew their bond of friendship had long passed, though. While they might not be friends anymore, in a battle, Cain had no trouble trusting Vance to have his back.
The demons died and evaporated. A strange quirk that no one had yet been able to explain. Nova, with her hands planted on her hips, frowned.
“What’s wrong?” he asked as he approached.
“There’s something not right.”
“Like the fact demons decimated an entire city block with no one noticing?” he said sarcastically. Blame his annoyance at getting so handily caught by the ambush.
“That would be because of the daemessorum. Most likely it cast a spell to keep people away from this area until they could spring their trap.”
“Speaking of the demon wizard, has anyone tagged it yet?” Cain asked.
“No. Because it’s no longer here.” Nova’s lips pursed. “One moment I felt it, weaving its dark magic. The next…” She snapped her fingers. “Gone.”
“Gone where?” Vance asked as he joined them.
“I don’t know, but we’d better find it. We can’t have a daemessorum roaming this world.”
“No shit,” Cain muttered.
Vance pointed to the end of the street and Helen with her arms outstretched. “How long can she keep people from wandering in?”
“An hour, maybe two.”
