Page 40 of Destined for Eternity
Raguel nodded. “The air is tainted.”
It was as if a dark miasma thickened the atmosphere. No one smiled, and more humans were rushing toward the exits of the park than entering. People complained of stomach cramps and headaches as they walked past them. Whatever was happening, it couldn’t be good.
The two of them headed toward the zoo, finding the path empty of pedestrians. It was quiet—far too quiet. Not even the birds sang, and Bartol was hard pressed to find even an ant along the way. Only one thing would scare away the wildlife and insects in a place used to human travelers—powerful demons.
“There,” Raguel said in a whisper.
Just before the zoo entrance, two women and a man stood in a small circle with their hands held together. The wind whipped around them, and the sky started turning dark. Their eyes were closed, and they chanted words in grating voices.
“Ma ka fino jardum,” they said in unison.
Bartol had no idea what the chant meant, but Raguel stiffened. “They’re opening another portal here.”
“We have to stop them.”
The amount of power coming from the three was nearly overwhelming. They certainly weren’t lowly demons, but strong enough to nearly be princes of Hell. Bartol wasn’t certain he and his father could take them on by themselves after their hunt had weakened them so much.
“We should request help.”
Raguel shook his head. “There’s no time, but there is one way we can gain the advantage.”
“How?”
The archangel glanced over at him. “If we let them finish the spell, they’ll be severely weakened afterward. It would make it easier for us to fight them.”
“But then you would have another portal to close,” Bartol said.
“Yes.” Raguel sighed. “But I do not see another way.”
They relocated to a spot just out of sight of the demons and waited. It took nearly twenty minutes for The Trio to finish their spell. A loud boom sounded as the portal opened, and for a brief moment, Bartol could observe it. The outer rim was ringed in fire while the inside appeared like moving bloody water. It was about ten feet in diameter, much larger than the last one. Also, the previous portal had lain flat on the ground while this one stood upright. People coming to and from the zoo would walk straight through it and become possessed immediately. The amount of innocents the demons could reach…it would be untold.
“We need help,” Bartol said again, determined to get his father to agree to it.
“There is no time,” Raguel said, racing forward.
Why wouldn’t he allow them to get assistance?
Bartol rushed after his father, amazed at how fast the archangel flew into danger with no hesitation or even a plan. He had a feeling he was about to see how his sire had become famed for his battle skills against demons all those millennia ago. Raguel went after a demon in a middle-aged woman’s body first. Its eyes glowed red, and it sprouted claws from its hands. Not only could it open portals, but it could also shape-shift its human host? The power coming from these three was still strong even after casting a major spell.
As his father tore into his target, Bartol went after the male of the group. This demon inhabited the body of a muscular thirty-year-old. His teeth elongated into sharp daggers that stuck out of his mouth and nearly reached his jawline. He opened wide—much farther than possible for a human—and growled as he leaped forward.
Bartol spun around and kicked the demon as hard as he could in the head. A spray of blood splashed the air as the creature sailed away, landing ten feet from its starting point. It pushed up to its hands and knees and shook itself like a wet dog. Red eyes glared at Bartol. As it started to rise farther, he jumped on top of the demon and began slugging it with punishing force as hard and fast as he could. The male host’s head swung to the left and right with each swing. Blood and teeth sprayed the air as Bartol drilled his opponent into the ground, breaking through the cement and digging into the earth.
The demon screamed a harsh cry and started squirming and kicking with all his might. One foot got under Bartol and jammed into his ribs like a battering ram. He lost his breath, barely able to hold onto the demon’s arm to keep from sailing backward. Another kick slammed into his shoulder, shoving it out of the socket. This demon was stronger than anything he’d faced since coming to Los Angeles. He breathed against the pain, determined to not let go of his opponent.
Behind Bartol, the sounds of battle between his father and the two other demons raged on with nearby trees cracking as one or the other slammed into them. No one was holding back. From the corner of his eyes, he noted Raguel had blood covering him. He didn’t know if it was his own or that of his opponents, but they needed to wrap this fight up fast.
Ignoring his hurt shoulder, he took hold of the demon with both hands and slammed him into the already damaged sidewalk over and over like a rag doll. The creature clawed at his face and chest, leaving ribbons of fierce pain. Bartol didn’t let it stop him. He waited until the demon’s eyes were getting glossy with the agony of his injuries, then he turned it over and climbed on its back. It struggled to rise, so he forced the creature’s arms together under its chest and held them in place over its heart while straddling it tightly. With his target immobilized, he put a hand on the demon’s back and began pulling on the putrid essence from the opposite side he usually used. It didn’t come as easily as the others he’d executed in recent days, leaving at a steady trickle instead. At this rate, it could take at least five minutes.
Bartol closed his eyes and concentrated. He focused on the stream and trying to make it flow faster even as his opponent squirmed and bucked underneath him. It finally sped up, to his relief, and once he got it going it came out with a gush. The malevolence of it entered his body, filling him with terror and darkness. He shuddered and his throat closed. Not since he’d fought Haagenti had he felt such a terrible weight from demon essence. But unlike last time, he was better prepared for it now. He knew what to expect, and how to combat it without losing his mind.
In a harsh battle cry, he lifted his head and let the dark essence he’d gathered so far flow into the atmosphere. At the same time, he gathered more. Usually, he tried to hold it all inside himself until he’d gotten every last bit, but with powerful demons, that was too much to handle. That’s how he’d nearly lost the battle—and his mind—in London.
Not this time.
He pulled and released at the same time, draining the human host of its intruder. Of course, the man inside was long dead, but at least his body would finally be at peace. The demon’s flailing legs weakened until they hardly moved at all. It cursed in a language not of this Earth, but it sounded vile and bitter.
Bartol breathed a sigh of relief as the line of essence reached the end. He pulled the last of it out and sent it out into the air. Dropping his head, he watched as his opponent’s form slumped lifeless and still.
