Page 278 of Sigils & Spells

Norm whirled around to face the source of the sounds that came from behind him.

The demon’s heavy hand gripped my shoulder. I stepped hard on his foot.

“Urgh.” His body flinched for a brief moment, but he didn’t move.

I twisted beneath his hand. The beast smelled worse than a vat of rotting fish.

“No,” screamed Norm. “No!” He threw up his hands to protect himself.

Three flying drones surrounded him, making clicking and beeping noises. A blade protruded from one of the drones and sliced Norm’s head off in one smooth swoop. It rolled to the side leaving his convulsing body to crumple onto the ground.

Horror and shock froze me for a moment, as the killer drone circled Norm’s body and snapped photos. The other two drones moved towards the demon and me. I gulped.

They circled us three times communicating with each other through odd squeaks.

The demon’s eyes blazed with hellfire, and his gurgling noises deepened. As they came closer, he pushed me away from him and swatted at the drones with his massive, clawed hands. But the robots predicted his movements and ducked out of his reach.

I stood still watching ... What else could I do?

If this was to be the end, I wanted to go on my terms—at peace with myself. A single tear trickled down my cheek, and I swiped it away. This was no time for self-pity. I had to face death, as I had life—head on. I took a deep breath and waited for the end.

As the demon reached out to grab a drone, it sliced his hand off. He howled loud enough to raise hell itself. Frantically he reached with his other hand to grab the other drone, but it moved out of the way at the last second.

The sour stench of demon blood burned my nose, as two drones moved in on me. They circled my shaking body three times, beeping like manic microwave ovens.

I was sure my time had come, but, as suddenly as the assassin drones arrived, they left, following the killer drone out of the room into the tunnels. It all happened in less than five minutes, and yet it felt like an eternity. The knot in my stomach that I thought could not get tighter, tightened.

Norm, the Fang Hunter was dead, and his demon was left without a master, roaring in pain. I let out a long slow breath. Would the drones return? I scanned the darkness and listened, but there was no sign of them.

What the hex had just happened? René must have programmed the drones to identify me and not kill me. But my fight for survival wasn’t over. I closed my eyes for a second to gather my strength. It was far from over.

The demon had survived the drone attack. I tried to swallow my fear but couldn’t as I turned to face the beast bellowing in pain.

We locked gazes assessing one another. His eyes blazed with hellfire.

As he reached his large hairy hand toward my neck, I called on my magic and screamed, “No!”

He gurgled and put down his arm.

I tilted my head. Could he understand me?

He stepped closer.

“No one steps into my space,” I said. Plasma bolts flew out of my fingers and hit him in his chest.

He jumped back and yowled so loud the hair on the nape of my neck stood on end. His preternatural eyes blazed even brighter.

I zapped him again. This time in his eyes.

He screamed in agony and staggered back, holding his face in his hands.

My body trembled with the exertion. The two acts of magic had depleted my energy. I had nothing left. “Go back to where you came from,” I growled.

The beast lunged at me. I had just enough time to raise my fae pendant to my heart, a desperate last move, that came to me instinctively. Much to my surprise it flashed a beacon of bright green light that flew through the air and zapped the demon in the neck. He dematerialized on the spot, leaving a pile of gray ash on the cement floor.

I gasped for air. The beast was gone. My pendant felt warm in my hand. What made me grab it at the last instant? I had no idea the talisman left to me by my fae grandmother had that kind of power. I considered it as a sentimental gift, a link to that side of my family. I never expected it to save my life. I held it to my heart once more. “Thank you, Grandma Queen Erynn the Fae high court.”

There was no time to digest the scene. There may never be enough time to comprehend everything that had just happened in those few minutes. Onyx was being held by a demonic spell. He needed me. I stared at the dead body of the Fang Hunter and shivered.

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