Page 59 of Destined for Eternity
But that feeling didn’t last long. Gasps filled the air and tension overtook the joy. Cori’s stomach turned as the hairs on her arms stood up. There was darkness all around them, and it was closing in fast.
“Demons!” someone screamed.
How could they have found the compound? It was well hidden with protection spells all around it. And of all days to attack, the demons had chosen when the nerou were graduating? It couldn’t have been a coincidence, but Cori couldn’t imagine how they’d figured it out.
Bartol pulled her close. “Stay with me.”
The demons appeared at the perimeter fence, and one of them blasted a hole through it. They might have been in human bodies, but they were growling like animals and their eyes glowed red. Her heart leaped into her throat as she saw them. There had to be hundreds all around, and she could have sworn more were just out of sight.
“Get the weapons out of the armory,” Jeriel shouted.
The nerou and nephilim started running in every direction. The place was big, and there were so many areas to cover. Fighting began almost immediately with the sounds of battle surrounding her.
Bartol hurried her off the stage, and they ran into Melena.
“We have to get her out of here,” the sensor said.
“Agreed.” Fear shone in Bartol’s eyes, and his grip on Cori’s arm was tight. “But we’re surrounded.”
“You could flash her out quick,” Melena suggested.
A sharp cramp ran through Cori’s stomach. “Owww!”
“What is it?” Bartol asked.
She could hardly breathe and had to wait for the contraction to pass. “I think I’m in labor.”
Bartol’s eyes widened. “Now?”
She nodded. “Afraid so.”
Cori had been feeling some light contractions during the graduation, but she’d thought they were just more Braxton Hicks. Now the pain had amped up out of nowhere. She’d been in labor once before, and it had gone just like this with her daughter. One minute she was doing okay and the next she wasn’t. Last time, her baby had arrived in less than four hours.
“You’ve got to be shitting me,” Melena said, eyes wide. “This is really bad timing, by the way.”
Cori took a deep breath. “You think I don’t know that?”
Kerbasi flashed next to them. “I’ll take care of her. Bartol, they need your help right now.”
“I’m in labor,” Cori argued.
Kerbasi scrunched his nose. “Tell the baby to wait.”
“Yeah.” Melena rolled her eyes. “Because that always works.”
“I’ll flash you out of here if you let me,” the guardian said, aware she had to let her guard down for it to work.
“The hell you will,” Bartol growled. “I will take her.”
Cori fell to her knees when another contraction hit. “The doctor said I couldn’t be flashed while in labor. It’s too risky with the baby.”
The guardian shook his head. “This is not good. Not good at all.”
Bartol’s fierce gaze ran all around them. The sounds of fighting got louder as the demons came closer. The perimeter fence was halfway destroyed, and at this point, even the angels who weren’t supposed to fight were slashing their way through the demons with their swords and smiting them with bolts of electricity. Unfortunately, the possessed humans acted like zombies and even after being beheaded or limbs cut off, they could walk around tearing at anything they could reach. The amputated arms remained animated as well, clawing their way across the ground to grab people’s legs.
It was one big horror show, and only Bartol and his father could finish the demons off for good. Technically, sensors and angels could send them back to Hell, but they could always return. Executing them was the best method to keep them away forever.
“You have to stay,” Cori said, breathing through the pain. “Help them!”
