Beneath the Darkness by Harley Jane Rose

Author:Harley Jane Rose [Rose, Harley Jane]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781543408577
Publisher: Xlibris AU
Published: 2018-04-27T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 21

Bianca

I could feel my legs complain as they held me close to the ground. We moved through the darkened streets, our eyes darting around, rapidly searching for the dangerous threat we could hear ahead. Our patrol consisted of the top ranks of our intake—Sam, Seraphina, Elora, Dwayne, and me. We neared the corner, and I looked around the wall for us and was greeted with the image of a nine-foot skeletal hellish creature. I turned back to the group as they stood there, unknowing. Amid all the chaos, we missed out on the normal mentor who would take our team around. The experienced hunters were all busy relearning and focusing on everything else.

“It’s a demon,” I told them quietly as we all huddled.

“Steel weapons, everybody,” Sam commanded, and we all responded quickly, reordering sheaths so the steel weapons were most accessible. When we were geared up, I flicked my fingers forward in a sign of onward, and in our formation, we advanced.

It spotted us, and its wings brought it up out of most of our weapons’ reach. Elora and I were the ones with steel bullets, and we loaded up in sync, opening fire. It made only a small amount of damage, and the demon did not attempt to dodge. He went for Elora. Her panic caused her to shoot faster.

“Elora, fall back!” I yelled, hoping she’d listen. I could see her starting to try between shots until her clip ran out. She floundered compared to the demon’s speed. “Elora! Fall back!”

It was too late. The demon had the speed and would catch up with her regardless. She was screwed if we didn’t come up with something. I reloaded my clip quickly, watching its claws open for an attack. I shot desperately as Elora tried to escape. I could feel the screams moving up my throat before I even allowed myself to. The demon swiped its clawed hand at Elora and caught Eric in its path. He’d saved her.

I expected him to be blown to the side by the impact, but a single claw pushed its way into Eric’s chest cavity, carrying him back to the monster’s mouth as skewered meat. The crunch flipped my stomach and made everything fuzzy and vague. I fought to keep my grip on my last meal but could feel the hold slipping.

“All units fall back!” Sam yelled. Dwayne moved, though, pulling a sword from his back and swiping it into the demon’s leg, slicing the black muscle.

It screeched in response, sending spikes through my brain and forcing me to cover my ears in pain. It retreated and flew up and away, its dark body blending into the night sky. When I was sure it was gone, I found myself slumping as tiredness weighed on me, and I saw the rest of the patrol do the same.

“Return and rest. Remember to report ASAP,” Sam said finally.

I need to be strong, I kept repeating in my mind. Somehow, pulling that off seemed impossible, and it proved even more so as I thought about what had happened.

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