Page 55 of The Demon Mark

Some of them he positioned in front of the portal. They would be the last line of defense to keep her safe if necessary.

And last, Orphe flew in through the balcony with panic in her eyes. She must have seen what was coming for them.

“A chimera?” he asked, then scoffed as though it did not make him uncomfortable. “They send a chimera after me?”

“They wish to kill you,” she croaked. “Many people came here, but they did not enter the castle. I do not know where this circus master was holding a creature so powerful, but he released it not long ago. Already it searches the lower rooms.”

“Soon enough it will find the higher ones.” He shrugged. “We will meet this creature head on and together, we will all destroy it. They think I am merely a man, but they do not know how much I hide within my flesh.”

Orphe looked back at him with an almost fanatic pleasure. She wanted to destroy. Her ambition knew no bounds and part of who she was enjoyed making other people whimper and scream.

“You will join me,” he said, reaching out his hand, and she knew what he wanted.

A single touch of his fingers made her grow. Her wings spread wider, stretching to either end of the room. She became a raven the size of a golden eagle, large and powerful and deadly. Her beak turned to hardened silver and her talons became longer blades that clicked against each other as she moved.

He made her a weapon. Not just a spy and certainly not just a raven. But a creature who could murder and maim.

“Fight with me?” he asked.

“Every time you ask.”

He turned toward the door and out they all went. His own personal army of magical creatures, but for fuck’s sake, he didn’t have a chimera yet. Didn’t this circus master know he’d always wanted a chimera? At this rate, he should pay the man for delivering these rare creatures into Envy’s hands.

He could hear it before he saw it. A giant tunnel went all the way down into the depths of his realm and it echoed with the clacking of claws. He knew what it would look like far before he could see it.

Chimeras were lion-like. Their entire body and head were that of a male lion, but larger. Its eyes saw through the dark better than any other creature. Its feet were the talons of an eagle, and a goat’s head grew out of its back so that no one could ever sneak up on it. As if these were not dangerous enough, the lion tail itself was replaced with the long body of an extremely venomous serpent.

There was no easy angle to attack a chimera. There was no easy way for him to kill it. He could tie it down, but that would take time. And the chimera was incredibly fast.

“My lord?” Orphe squawked before wheeling into the open air beside the stairwell. “It comes.”

He summoned his weapons. One he pulled straight out of thin air. The sword gleamed with a blue flame that sliced through flesh and left the wound sizzling. He enjoyed fighting with this blade. Creatures died so quickly when there was blood loss. He preferred the wounds to sizzle and bake while the creature smelled its own burning flesh. A prolonged fight was usually his choice.

Not with this creature. Not when he had such wonderful plans for it.

Setting his serpent on the ground, he summoned the last weapon from his armory. The shorter knife was coated in a glistening clear material that was venom of his own making. The poison would spread fast throughout the body of the chimera if he could cut it even with the tiniest of cuts. That was his plan.

It was the only plan. And he could admit, it wasn’t a very good one.

A sound echoed throughout the tunnel, beating against his ears and flooding the room with a thunderous clap. Fuck. He’d forgotten they had wings.

Envy watched it rise out of the depths of his home, breaking through the clouds with a roar, and he could not believe he’d forgotten that fucking chimeras had wings.

Like a dragon, the leathery appendages brought it out of the depths with ease. The moment its yellow eyes settled on him, Envy knew he was in trouble. It opened up its mouth, drool spilling over its teeth, and another roar echoed through his home.

He squinted his eyes, trying to ignore the sudden pain in his ears at the noise. If he could stay above it, then he had the advantage.

Or not.

With two beats of its wings, the chimera was already far above him. The beast latched onto the stone walls and with an ear-piercing shriek, it was upon him.

Envy rolled down the stairs, ignoring the pain in his shoulders before sinking his blue blade into the stone and catching himself against the wall. He had the thought of raising the blades, but his head was already spinning from the sudden tumble.

Talons flashed in front of his face and he barely jolted out of its reach.

His panther leapt upon the creature’s back, but that did very little. The chimera merely reached back and tossed his shadow creature into the pit beside it.

Envy reacted. He thrust out a hand and summoned his creature back before it could hit the ground and die, but that movement cost him. The chimera latched onto his arm and repeated the motion. It threw him out of the way and into the pit.

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