Page 4 of Phoenix Academy: Mayhem

Chapter 2

They're everywhere.Worm-like demons. Spider demons. Things with five tongues and a thousand teeth. Others that ooze.

Their bodies overwhelm the hedges all around us, goo and acid burning away at them. I shudder despite myself, and reach out with my naturalistic powers, pushing them away. With my powers I form a protective barrier around myself and immediately move to bring the guys into it. I don't want a single demonic tentacle to even so much as touch the edge of my ankle.

Ezriel snaps a smile at me and laughs. "Disgusted? How very human of you."

I ignore him as I grab onto Xavier and pull him to his feet, tug Reggie out of the hedges, urge David up, and gather them all to me. I even manage to find my mom's spirit marble and slip it into the pocket of my Phoenix Academy blazer, internally setting the spell the demon spoke to memory, hopeful it'll help my mother escape as well.

Staring him down, I vow aloud, "You may have release those demons into the Spirit Realm, but you won't release them onto the school's campus. I won't let it happen. That door isn't going to open, no matter what."

"Oh?"

"Yes, oh. I have my mother's spirit now." My hand instinctively slips into my pocket, and I hold the marble close, afraid he'll get his hands on it somehow. "I'm not going to open that door for you."

"You poor, stupid human. You have no idea what you've done."

His forked tongue flicks against his lips.

"What I've done? Tell me."

"You'll see."

I see chaos, but so far it's contained. All around us, the lower level demons he brought with him surge through the garden, destroying the hedges and rose bushes, attacking each other but never getting close enough to attack me or my guys—because I keep the barrier up, using my witch energy to protect us. At the demon's back, the door stays firmly closed. Nothing is getting in or out.

"I see that you've lost," I tell him, tugging on our connection and narrowing my eyes at him. "Give up already, Ezriel. You won't get through me."

"I don't need to. You've given me the key to everything. You just doing see it yet."

He darts forward lightning fast, knife in his hand. I step back and raise my arms to protect myself. David goes for him, teeth out, but the demon just kicks him in the head. Then he looks at me, evil cleverness in his eyes, and shouts out: "Come to me willingly, Ariana Wolfe!"

A shudder goes through me.

Power snaps along my spine.

Blue energy—my own power, reversing back and controlling me.

All at once, the barrier I formed between us and the demons drops. They start attacking my guys. Xavier and Reggie both shift into their panther forms and attack back. David is set on by two, three, four demons—and there's nothing I can do to stop it.

Because despite all my power and strength of will, my body is obeying the demon's command.

I walk towards him willingly.

He commands, "Give me your hand."

My fingers unfurl, and I pass it over, horror and nausea rolling in my gut.

"Good." His smirk is evil and frightening. Grabbing my wrist, he lowers the knife and slashes across my palm, a red line of blood rising where the blade passes over. I wince at the pain. "Oops. Went a little deeper than needed. Oh well—what's a little extra blood in the end? Come with me."

He leads me through the demons. My familiars try to leap at him and push him away, but his demons hold them back, thousands and thousands of them. Strange beings of all shapes and colors, like animals or beasts, barely sentient but capable of attack. My heart cries out at the sound of Reggie being hurt, of Xavier getting thrown onto his back and attack, of David being overwhelmed by a dozen demons all at once. The only thing I want is to fight for them, protect them, but my will has been completely subsumed by the demons.

I made a very big, very stupid mistake.

I assumed my witch magic went one way.

With this demon, I should've known better. I should've realized anything was possible. Including a two-way connection that gives him control of me.

"This is fun," he says as we reach the door, turning and pushing me towards it. "Who knew it would be this easy? I thought I needed your mother's spirit to make you come willingly, but no—all I needed was your own stupidity."

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