any spell of mine or any other’s. But with you and Kernel by my side, I won’t have to worry about that happening again. If demons make another move on the cave, I’ll know. Now, are you coming or not? And before you answer, don’t forget the Lambs are still after you.”
I sneer. “They frightened me once—not any longer.”
“Aye. Because you have a more powerful enemy to face now.”
I nod slowly, reluctantly, then take the ancient magician’s hand. “I’m scared,” I whisper. “More scared than I’ve ever been, and that’s saying a lot.”
“I know,” he replies quietly. “You probably always will be. If it’s any comfort, I’m scared too, even after all these centuries.”
“How do you deal with the fear?” I ask.
He shrugs. “I fight.”
“Is that enough?”
“It has to be.”
And on that dubious, dark note, we walk to the monolith, the magician and his assistant, saviors of the world, slaves of the universe. We lay our hands on the smooth black slab. There’s a surge of magic. Our heads tilt back like Kernel’s did, for one final look at a beautiful, twinkling, star-studded sky. I think of Dervish, Bill-E, all I have to leave behind. The battles to come, the loneliness and pain. I want to run away from it all and hide. But I can’t. No—I won’t.
Beranabus tugs gently. I take a breath, hold it, then willingly step forward with him to face my destiny in the universe of all things foul and demonic.
The horrifying adventures continue in
DEATH’S SHADOW
Book 7 in THE DEMONATA series
Coming October 2008
THE door to the study crashes open. A wild-eyed Meera bursts into the room. She slips, but grabs the handle and keeps her feet. “We’re under attack!” she screams.
Dervish and I stare at her wordlessly.
“We’re surrounded!” she yells.
Dervish’s face clouds over. “Demons?” he growls, stepping out of his seat, fingers bunching into fists.
“No,” Meera gasps. A howl fills the corridor behind her. “Werewolves!”
There’s a moment of total, frozen disbelief. Then Dervish grabs a sword from the wall and pushes past Meera. I follow close behind. While Meera hurries to get a weapon of her own, I step into the corridor after Dervish, working on a spell, not sure if it will work—there’s so little magic in the air to draw on.
I hear panting. It comes from the far end of the corridor. Something growls and something else yaps angrily in reply. No sight of them yet.
Meera steps out behind us, swinging a mace. She’s stuck a knife in her belt. No trace of the gentle woman who was applying makeup a mere matter of minutes ago. She’s all warrior now.
“How many?” Dervish asks without looking back.
“At least three. They entered through the kitchen. I’d been snacking. I was just leaving, so I was able to jam the door and stall them. If they’d burst in when I was at the table . . .” She shakes her head, angry and scared.
The first of the creatures sticks its head around the corner. Recognizably human, but twisted out of normal shape. It has unnatural yellow eyes. Dark hair sprouts from its face, and its teeth have lengthened into fangs. They look too large for its mouth—it must have great difficulty eating.
It skulks into the corridor, growling. Long, sharp fingernails. More muscular than any human. Hunched over. Covered in stiff hair. A male. Another two creatures appear behind the first, a male and female. The second male is larger than the first, but follows his lead. His left eye is a gooey, scarred mess. Maybe that’s why he’s not the dominant member.
As the once-human beasts advance, I step ahead of Dervish and Meera. I try draining magic from the air but there’s virtually nothing to tap into. In my own time, these creatures would have been simple to deal with. Here, it’s going to be difficult.
The lead werewolf snaps at the female. With a howl, she leaps. I unleash the spell as she jumps. It’s a choking spell. If it doesn’t work, I won’t know much about it—she’ll be on me in a second, and I’m defenseless.
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