Page 177 of Angels Adore Astrology

The gum had a potent scent, earthy and damp, and it wasn’t exactly pleasant.

“What are you doing?” Seymour shouted. “We gotta?—”

Shiloh blew a bubble, pulled it out of his mouth, and threw it up into the air.

The bubble expanded, passing through and then around Shiloh and Seymour to create a giant pink force field. A winged creature, maybe a gargoyle, dove at the force field and promptly bounced right off.

“Holy shit.” Seymour stared. “That’s some fuckin’ gum.”

“Don’t ask.” Shiloh looked around quickly. “Shit, where the hell is Izba?”

“Eh?” Seymour searched the ground by Sariel and the other fighting monsters. “Don’t see ’em.” He cringed as the gargoyle dove again at the force field. He could see Sariel getting overwhelmed and stumbling, and there was no immediate sign of Day. “Got any magical stuff to get us the hell out of here?”

Shiloh grimaced. “Not right this second. I can’t portal outta Faerie. We gotta go back the way we came, but we’ll get jacked up the second I drop this shield!”

“Hey! They’re about to get jacked up!” Seymour pointed angrily. “We gotta do somethin’!”

“I’m thinking, okay?” Shiloh pleaded.

“Fuck this!” Seymour had no idea what he was going to do, but he kicked at the bubble.

“No, don’t?—”

“Fuck you! I’m not standin’ here, watchin’ them die!”

Okay, technically Day was already dead, but details.

As if called by the mere thought of her, Day scampered up to the bubble. She was panting hard and covered in blood, blue fluid, green fluids, and lots of other fluids that may have alsobeen blood. She put her paws on the bubble, looking Seymour over worriedly. “Seymour! Are you all right?”

“I’m fine!” Seymour dropped to his knees, pressing his hands against her paws. “Tryin’ to get the hell outta here so I can help you!”

Sariel let out a roar of pain, and Seymour watched in horror as his left wing was ripped nearly in half. His blood glittered like molten gold, gushing across the stone, and he snarled as he hurled the assailant—some kind of purple fuzzy demon—off the path. Just as quickly as that threat was removed, more monsters attacked and Sariel stumbled again, nearly going down.

“Fuck! No!” Seymour screamed, pounding at the bubble and trying again to break it. “Sariel! Fuck! Just hang on! I’m comin’!”

“No! Stay here! You have to summon them!” Day pleaded. “Quickly! Use the Inro! Thechochin-obake!Kocchi koi yo, chochin-obake!”

“Huh?” Seymour could not have been hearing her correctly. “The chocobo what now?”

Day growled. “Repeat after me.”

“Okay—”

“Cho.Chin.”

“Cho. Chin?”

“Oh. Bah. Kay.” Day’s eyes flashed. “Got it?”

“Wha—”

Day raced away, leaping into the air and biting the head off one of the monsters swarming Sariel. She spat it out, perhaps getting full, and went for the next. “Come on, Seymour! Hurry!”

“Fuck me runnin’.” Seymour fumbled for the Inro in his back pocket. “Uh, uh, uh, coochie coo, yo, uh, chocobo-chin-ah…” He cringed. “Oh… backy?”

God in Heaven, that was fuckin’ horrible.

Something tapped Seymour’s arm.