Page 8 of Dark Hope (Dark Carpathians #38)

Chapter 8

Silke Vriese Reinders was absolutely beautiful. In his long existence, Benedek had never once considered what was beauty in a woman. They came in all sorts of forms and sizes, with various hair and eye coloring. To him, they had all been the same. He lived in a gray world, so he’d never really seen the differences other than in height and shape.

He had never expected to find his lifemate attractive in the sense of physical beauty. Above all else, he valued loyalty and intellect. Looks didn’t matter in the least. There was just something compelling about her that drew his attention. She was truly fascinating to him.

There was no question that she was suspicious. He could feel her reaching out, extending her senses in an effort to locate the watchers. Somehow, as impossible as it should be, she knew they were there. He had wanted a chance to observe her before he introduced himself to her. Nicu, Lojos and Tomas, like him, struggled with the continual whispers tormenting them to kill while feeding. As if the bloodlust weren’t bad enough, the cravings grew around the close proximity of the villagers. Mataias fed and brought the necessary blood to each of them. It was the only way to ensure they could keep the villagers safe.

They had entered the home of a fisherman when a woman opened the door and invited the healers inside. As she didn’t specify who she was inviting, the Carpathians were free to enter as well. Silke and Tora greeted her warmly, calling her Imka and asking after her husband and daughter.

Benedek and the others were adept at concealing themselves in the air itself. Tora hadn’t been in the least aware of their presence in the house. His lifemate, on the other hand, had acted suspicious from the moment they had gotten close to her home. Now that they had followed her into Imka’s home she was doubly suspicious. That was unprecedented. They were ancients, and no one should have been able to detect their presence. Was the lifemate pull that strong? Had she sensed they were close to her because she carried the other half of his soul? That didn’t make sense to him.

Silke looked cautiously around the room. Benedek could feel her reaching out, trying to ferret out if they were alone. The ancients remained very still, becoming part of the room they were in. Settling into cracks in the fireplace. A knot in the wood panel. On the ceiling fan blades. It should be impossible for his lifemate to be aware of them, but he knew they were the ones making her uneasy.

Benedek admired her for that ability. She was a warrior. A fit partner for someone like him. She understood duty.

“How was Raik last night?” Tora asked Imka.

“He was very quiet and is still sleeping,” Imka confirmed.

“That’s good. That’s what we hoped for him,” Tora said. “We’re going to do another healing session with him. Come with me into the other room.”

“Tora.” Silke stopped her. When you go out, safeguard them. Close off all access to every part of the house from this room. I feel very uneasy, as if something got into the house when we did.

Tora looked around carefully, all the while chatting with Imka about her husband.

Silke warned Tora that she is aware of our presence, Benedek told the others. He was very careful to keep his energy low and use the ancient path. We are being hunted, ironically by my own lifemate.

The first time Benedek heard Silke’s voice, his world had turned upside down. She had spoken to Tora aloud at her home when they were leaving, her voice clear and musical. Soft and sweet. Colors blinded him. His stomach had lurched, his vision completely disrupted. He had to tone down the colors, until they were nearly nonexistent, to see around him.

Emotions, unfamiliar and useless as far as he was concerned, crowded in until he couldn’t distinguish one from the other. He shut those down as well. Not only did they serve little purpose, but the craving for blood he couldn’t shake increased tenfold.

Tora gave Silke a slight nod and accompanied Imka out of the room. Silke moved into a more defensible position. Benedek thought it significant that she didn’t go near the fireplace or the wooden panels with the knots in them. She stayed across the room from the overhead fan.

How is she aware of us? Mataias asked the question each of the ancients was wondering.

She must be very sensitive to energy, Nicu guessed. But is she more so than a Carpathian woman?

That can’t be, Lojos said. Yet Tora would never have known we were present if Silke hadn’t warned her.

She doesn’t know for certain, Tomas said. She is wary but unsure.

Benedek didn’t believe that to be true. Inexplicably he felt pride in Silke’s ability to detect their presence. She might not know exactly what they were or where they were, but she knew something or someone had entered the house when she did. The more he observed her, the more he found himself fascinated with her.

It was very clear she and Tora often worked together. Their interactions were smooth. Neither seemed to have an ego that insisted one was the leader and the other the follower. He admired that trait as well, although he found it interesting that Tora, a Carpathian woman, would give deference to a human.

Tora came back into the room, bringing a man with her. He was a big man and clearly in bad shape, moaning and rocking and holding his head. His eyes were by turns flickering with red embers, appearing cunning and sly, and then he would look sorrowful, filled with despair. Benedek didn’t like the way his head would turn in a slow scrutiny of the two women when his eyes flickered with those low red flames. There was menace there. Intent. He wanted to put his body between the man and the women.

Benedek didn’t move, mostly because Tora turned toward the entrance and began weaving safeguards. What was most interesting was that the weave she created was one he had never seen before. He could see that it was effective and would keep out vampires and anything else trying to get into the room. Had the ancients not made it into the house when the door was opened and Imka invited them inside, they never would have been able to unravel that weave.

“Tora, be ready. I’m going to draw the demon out. You’re going to have to safeguard Raik and yourself if I’m successful,” Silke said.

“What if he has immunity to the crystal sword the way the parent demon did? You could be in real trouble, Silke. The serpent was fast and clearly designed to attack you specifically.” Tora made her protest, but she did so low-key, her tone more interested than objecting.

I don’t like the sound of that, Nicu said.

Tora clearly believes Silke is up to the task, Lojos said.

Not sure if that is true, Mataias ventured. She’s worried but hiding it. I can feel her reluctance.

Benedek could feel Tora’s concern as well. She tried to conceal her worry. Her demeanor was serene. Her expression, composed. To look at her or hear her speak, she appeared to believe Silke had everything well in hand. She just didn’t feel that way.

“I had last night and most of the day to, hopefully, solve the problem. You know I manage the medicinal plants in the forest as well as check in with the current residents. I’ve studied the dragon lily and spoken many times to the dragon. It occurred to me that the lily itself, when the petals are rolled before it opens, fits like a sleeve over the sword’s crystal beams. The plant is quite poisonous, a natural poison. The scent is rather horrific for us but would be appealing to demons. At least I believe it is so.”

“You’ve really thought about this?”

“I would never take a chance on your life or Raik’s until I had a plan I believed would work.”

There was confidence in Silke’s voice. In her demeanor. Benedek could feel steel in her. Determination. She had already visualized every move she would make in her mind, going over and over the battle until she felt she could defeat the enemy. He wanted to merge his mind with hers and learn everything there was to know about her. The parasite the vampires had left behind was a problem in that none of the ancients could find it, which meant they couldn’t remove it. Benedek couldn’t take a chance on infecting his lifemate. Until they discovered what the vampires had implanted in them, they had to be extremely cautious.

Just being this close to his lifemate set up an even worse craving than had already been there. Whispers grew in his mind. Take her blood. The others crave her. They are desperate for the taste of her blood. They are conspiring to take her from you.

The whispers were loud, amplifying the cravings he’d awakened with. He was grateful for the centuries of discipline that allowed him to compartmentalize. He allowed the whispers to grow louder to try to analyze them.

Nothing will ever taste as good as that woman. Her blood belongs to you.

The thoughts couldn’t possibly be his own, not even to magnify. He trusted the other ancients. He absolutely knew Nicu was a man of honor and would never conspire with anyone to take his lifemate. Mataias had no parasite in him. He would fight them to the death to protect an innocent woman—particularly an unmated Carpathian woman. No, the thoughts weren’t his. They had to be coming from the parasite.

Benedek, Tomas said. The temptation to take the women’s blood is extremely loud in my head and getting worse. I shouldn’t be in here.

The same goes for me, Lojos confessed.

The voices grow louder in my head as well, Nicu said.

It is the parasite the vampires injected into us, Benedek said with conviction. These are not your thoughts. A vampire is attempting to control us using compulsion. This was a well-thought-out plan. Even the master vampire and his minions, the ones we fought, were pawns, sacrifices to get the parasites into us.

Nicu was thoughtful as he speculated. Humans made certain we couldn’t use our private plane. They had to have known we would take the fastest route to get here.

Essentially, Mataias said, you’re saying we were herded like cattle right into their trap.

That’s what I believe, Nicu replied. They set us up with a couple of easy battles with lesser vampires so when we ran into the trap, we wouldn’t be suspicious. They expected us to defeat Frisi and his followers. Frisi didn’t realize he was expendable and that his one purpose was to get those parasites in us.

I have to agree with Nicu, Benedek told the others. This attack on us was planned far in advance. The voices we hear are not coming from any of us; rather, they have been planted in us to get one or more to turn vampire and join their ranks. What they don’t realize is we are men with a strict code. We’ve been following that code for centuries. We aren’t going to turn because they amp up our craving for blood.

“Stop talking. Or if you have something to say, show yourself. Don’t hide.” Silke’s voice was low and compelling—compelling enough that for a moment Benedek thought to show himself.

Benedek was certain Silke was speaking to the demon she was determined to extract from Raik Bootsma. All the ancients fell silent. No one moved. Like Benedek, they assumed she was talking to the demon.

Benedek studied Silke’s expression. Pure concentration. Weirdly, her features seemed softer than ever, not at all stern or warrior-like. She faced Raik, feet shoulder-width apart, one foot forward, on the balls of her feet, ready for action. In one hand she had a large tube with clear liquid in it. In her other hand she had what appeared to be a small sword.

Benedek had been around other slayers. He knew they used crystal swords with various shades of light produced from the different crystals embedded in the sword. This sword had five long dark maroon tines coming off the main blade. Each prong closely resembled the velvet petals on a large lily not yet unfurled.

He felt the power of her mind as she sought the demon within the fisherman. It wasn’t just Raik. Her entry into his mind was so subtle, so delicate, the energy so low, he wasn’t aware of her immediately. His first inclination was to throw her out, to erect a barrier so strong it would be impossible for her to penetrate. If he did that, she would be very aware of his presence. As it was, she didn’t seem to realize she had touched his mind when she sought Raik’s. She simply reached out, merging ever so gently with everyone in the room. He didn’t dare warn the others to stay still. He didn’t want to call attention to the ancients or distract her.

Demons were incredibly dangerous, even the lesser ones. Silke didn’t try to invade or push her way into his brain. She didn’t look at his memories. Instead, she kept her energy low-key. She was searching for something, but it wasn’t him or any of the ancients. It wasn’t even Raik.

Benedek found himself growing tense. He had a bad feeling, and it was increasing. His gut reaction always heralded a bad scenario. Tora had woven strong safeguards. It wasn’t as if a vampire could get into the house, so what was coming?

He felt the change in Silke. All of them did. He was connected to the other ancients, and each of them had a visceral reaction to the flow of energy moving through their minds. This was still low and barely felt, but being so connected to her, Benedek felt power moving through him. Through all the ancients. He knew by their reactions they hadn’t expected a human woman to wield that kind of power when she stayed low-energy. What would she be like when she used every bit of power she had stored in her?

The ominous feeling grew in direct proportion to that subtle flow of energy. It took some time before he realized her energy filled his mind. Filled every space in the room. That was how slow and low-key she was. At no time did she try to hurry. When the ancients fought in battle they could be still and patient for hours, if need be, but they preferred a direct confrontation. Just get the job done and move on.

Benedek wished he could chance reading her mind. He already found her intriguing. Different. He didn’t want to distract her, and she seemed sensitive to their presence.

Without warning there was a swell of nearly overwhelming power. The energy engulfed and targeted the prefrontal cortex of his brain. He felt the other ancients’ shock. Like him, that part of their brain was completely surrounded by her power. It was as if she’d thrown a golden lasso and captured each of them. He still wasn’t certain what she was doing, so he stayed quiet and waited.

“Come to me,” Silke commanded in a whisper. Her voice may have been low, but it was authoritative and seemed to blast through his brain, rocking him. “Leave your host and come to me now.”

He felt a curious wrenching at the prefrontal cortex, as if she had hooked a piece of his brain and was slowly reeling it in. Her demeanor hadn’t changed in the least. Her facial expression appeared soft, serene even. He couldn’t hear an elevated heartbeat. She could have been drinking tea and chatting with her friends.

Whatever she pulled at in his brain tried briefly to fight her. He wasn’t doing that, and it alarmed him. Had she managed to call to the parasite the vampire had placed in his body? If so, she was doing the same to every ancient who had been infected. The revelation hit him too late. Not a vampiric parasite. They had expected the vampires to infect them with parasites. It was normal during a battle, but something else had slipped in with the parasites.

Demon . They each had a demon inside of them. Silke was calling to the demon in Raik, not realizing that there were four other demons responding to her command. He couldn’t warn her. That would distract her and possibly get her killed. The only thing he could do was wait until she dragged the demons from their brains and the creatures were out in the open. Only then would he be able to aid her.

Benedek was never tense going into a battle. He had every confidence after centuries of taking on master vampires and their lesser pawns. He found himself, for the first time in two thousand years, with his gut in knots and his lungs deprived of air. It shouldn’t have mattered to him. He didn’t know the slayer, but something about her drew him, compelled him to protect her. More, he was becoming proprietorial of her. He wanted her safe. Slaying demons wasn’t the safest of occupations.

—

Silke centered her attention on Raik, determined to pull the demon out without allowing it to harm its host. The serpent thrashed and snapped as she drew it from the delicate brain, keeping it completely surrounded so its vicious bite couldn’t kill Raik or cause brain damage. The pull on her strength was draining. Seriously draining. Worse than anything she’d ever experienced. That didn’t bode well for the coming battle. The serpent was exceptionally strong.

She took a breath and began to pull again, keeping her energy consistent despite the fierce resistance. It took her several deep breaths to realize, as she relentlessly extracted the demon from Raik’s brain, dragging it toward the man’s mouth, that the serpent wasn’t the only one. She felt the fierce fight from several directions in the room. At least four other points. For just that moment when the realization hit her, her heart accelerated. Automatically she slowed it.

She should have trusted her instincts more. From the moment she had stepped to the front porch of her home, allowing Tora to enter, she had known eyes were on them. She’d felt the taint of demon. She hadn’t been able to locate the watcher or watchers, but she knew they were there.

Entering the Bootsma home, knowing something stalked her, she had thought to take every precaution. She had no idea how other demons had managed to sneak in unless they were already present in Raik’s residence. She would have to fight five demons at one time if she managed to pull them all to her. Where were they coming from? How had they gotten in?

“Tora, there’s a small problem.” She kept her voice exactly the same, not sounding in the least alarmed. Even as she spoke, she continued to pull on the demons, carefully keeping each one surrounded to prevent them from harming their hosts. “Raik is not the only one infected. I have no idea what type of demons I’ll be facing.”

“Silke, your weapon is untried.”

“There is no choice. I’ve started the process. The host bodies are protected as long as I keep the demons surrounded. You need to build layers of protection around you and Raik.”

Tora shook her head. “I won’t be able to get to you if I’m inside the weave.”

“I know you’ll be safe. I won’t have to look out for either of you.”

She kept up the steady, unhurried pull on the demons. It felt very much as if she were pulling at a freight train that had reversed itself and was heading in the opposite direction. She breathed steadily and concentrated on each of the demons, not just the one in Raik. She could pinpoint their locations now because the resistance was much more evident in the four concealed in the ceiling fan, the knots in the wood panels and the cracks in the fireplace.

Silke concentrated on the demon in Raik, ensuring the serpent couldn’t harm him. She did her best to surround the others, unsure of who or what their hosts were, but Raik was in front of her. A man she knew. A family man. A good man.

“Come to me, serpent of the sea. Slave to Lilith. She hurt you over and over. I feel the pain you’re in. Let me help you.” She continued in her persuasive, compelling voice.

The demon really had no choice but to be drawn to that enthralling voice. She kept the pull on all five demons relentless. There was a vague connection now with someone else, a male. She felt something dark and sinister in his head. The demon fought her command as she dragged it from where it had been safely secreted. Its body was forced to dislodge from the hiding place in one of the crevices in the stranger’s brain.

The five demons thrashed and snapped as she extracted them from their hosts, but her energy was powerful and the walls she’d erected around them prevented them from harming their hosts. Four of the five demons were the same, not at all built like the sea serpent. As she drew them toward an exit, they seemed, like the serpent, to grow.

“We aren’t alone, Tora. Be ready to protect yourself and Raik. There are at least four others, all males, in this room with us.”

“Vampire?”

“Doesn’t feel like vampire. More like demon.”

“Carpathian,” a male voice corrected.

The explanation came from the direction of the fireplace, but there was no one that she could see there. She knew Tora was quite capable of secreting herself in a room with several people in a way that she would never be discovered.

The voice sent a chill down her spine. She didn’t have time to think about the implications. Her full attention had to be on the demons she was bringing out into the open.

“Stay concealed,” she said, pouring authority into her voice. The little information she had managed to pry from Tora had been that these men answered to no one. They went their own way and did what they thought best. “If you distract me, I could easily die. So could every other occupant of this house.”

Silke dismissed them from her mind. Either they were who they said they were and meant the women no harm—although she was very suspicious of anyone spying on them—or she and Tora would be in the fight of their lives. At the moment, she had no recourse other than to continue along the path she’d already started down.

The sea serpent shot out of Raik’s mouth, its body swelling to double its size, almost to the thickness of Raik’s arm. Savage teeth glistened with venom as the creature rocketed toward her. With practiced skill, Silke sent the tube of sacred water spinning into the air over their heads. At the same time, she pointed the tip of the crystal sword directly at the demon. A dozen crystal lights, wrapped in the dragon lily centered on the creature.

The long tube of water spun in the air, acting much like the spray from a showerhead, dispersing the liquid in what appeared to be gentle raindrops. They fell around the room as the clear tube continued to spin. Each drop that landed on the serpent pierced the scales, leaving behind a smoking hole. The insides of the demon glowed orange-red through the pinpoint dots. The demon screamed hideously, its mouth wide open, teeth dripping long strings of yellowish poisonous saliva as it hurtled itself straight at Silke.

A dozen prongs on the sword sprang to life, the colors vibrant and blinding, wrapped in the long, soft dark maroon petals of the dragon lily. The spectrum of light was changed significantly by the wrapping. The lights from the prongs hit the shrieking demon from various angles, but the hapless creature continued to charge forward, unable to stop its momentum. Or, she decided, it was programmed to try to kill her at any cost to itself.

Silke didn’t attempt to sidestep or try to elude the demon, not even when four more demons, a completely different type, came at her from all directions.

—

Benedek’s breath caught in his lungs as he watched the demon slayer standing her ground in the face of an all-out attack. The dark craving was gone from him. She had pulled the demons from every ancient, but now she was alone, facing them. His first thought was to put his body between her and the vicious killers seeking her death. There was no doubt in his mind that their every thought was to destroy the slayer.

Two things allowed his discipline to kick in. The urge to put himself between Silke and danger was strong; it was a compulsion. He didn’t trust any feeling or emotion that intense. He didn’t believe that he could be the one originating that strong of a need. That meant an outside source was attempting to control him for their own purpose. Secondly, he had seen demon slayers at work. Interfering with one could upset the delicate balance of power they wielded and place the slayer in more danger.

He could feel waves of power emanating from Silke. She didn’t appear to be looking at or acknowledging the four demons she’d extracted from the Carpathians. She seemed to be focusing her entire attention on the serpent, yet he knew the energy she put out into the room had somehow created a barrier between her and the other demons. They seemed frantic to get through or around it. He would have felt better had he been able to test the strength of that invisible wall between his lifemate and the demons so eager to tear her apart.

Benedek could feel their vicious intent. The desire to kill Silke permeated the entire room. It was sickening to feel the hatred in such strong waves coming at the slayer from every direction. His respect and admiration for her grew as she stood her ground in the face of such relentless, determined enemies.

The crystal sword wrapped in dragon lily petals converged on the demon as the creature shot forward toward her. The tube overhead continued to spray drops of sacred water just as if it were raining down on the demon. Hundreds of tiny holes appeared in the scales. Smoke spewed from the holes along with a noxious smell.

Various colored lights from the crystal sword struck the serpent head-on, right in its open mouth. The shriek was high-pitched, shattering an antique etched mirror in the room so that the glass fell in shards all over the floor. Just as Benedek was certain the serpent would strike Silke, orange-red flames shot from the dark maroon–wrapped prongs as if the dragon lily were spitting fire at the serpent.

Silke waited until the last possible moment, so her aim was absolutely true. The steady stream of flames shot down the serpent’s throat, igniting the insides of the creature so that a roaring fire instantly swept through it. The flames were so hot and wild that they shot out of the multitude of holes the sacred water had created. The air fed the fire.

Above their heads, close to the ceiling, the spinning drops of water had ceased over the serpent, raining instead on the four demons who continuously charged at the invisible barriers in an effort to get at the demon slayer. The smell of the burning demon was vile.

Benedek could see that Silke refused to cough or show any sign of discomfort, although she felt it. He had cautiously merged with her, staying very quiet in the background. The only thoughts in her head were to protect those in the room and destroy the demons. She didn’t once allow a thought to enter her head that there were too many enemies to take on alone.

He could find no ego in Silke. No desire for accolades. She thought of herself as the demon slayer. This was her sworn duty, and she took her job seriously. She didn’t think in terms of danger to herself, only of ensuring the protection of her village, the Bootsma family, Tora and now the Carpathians. As far as she was concerned, she needed to make certain everyone around her was safe.

The serpent’s scaly body was entirely engulfed in flames, burning so hot that white and blue ash fell to the floor in a fine powdery substance as the outside scales dissolved. Even as the creature died, it made one last effort to fling itself at Silke. She followed the motion with the crystal sword, the spiky end of the dragon lily petals blasting a volcanic red gel-like substance much like magma. The material was thick and coated the entire flaming serpent, stopping the forward momentum instantly. The gel formed a cocoon around the burning serpent, the substance acting like a fuel so that the demon burned hotter and faster. The thick accelerant didn’t allow for the creature to move. As more and more of its body turned to that peculiar ash, the slayer lifted the sword high and severed the head, spilling the serpent open so the fire swallowed it entirely.

She didn’t hesitate but turned toward the demon nearest the fireplace, who was smashing at the barrier surrounding him. It was only her powerful energy that kept all four demons from rushing her. Benedek found no sign of her strength waning. She didn’t look at the other three demons, who had gone wild; she only focused on one of the demons.

Each demon was a wicked-looking creature with four horns and what appeared to be two serrated saber-like teeth protruding from their mouths. Benedek had never seen a demon like these. They were tiny when they emerged, but growing larger now that they weren’t confined in a tiny crevice of the brain. The one nearest the fireplace was already approximately eighteen inches. The others were close in size right behind it and still growing.

The demons stood upright on two clawed feet. Spikes covered their torsos, arms and legs. Their hands were claws with long, very thick curved nails that appeared to be razor-sharp. Despite their fearsome appearance, Silke didn’t seem fazed.

Benedek felt her mind moving against the demon’s. Once again, his lungs burned for air. With the gentlest of touches, she drifted into the demon’s memories, sifting through them, looking for his origin. Her touch was so light the demon was unaware of her presence. She had already been in their minds; it was how she hooked them to drag them from their hosts. Benedek was amazed at her skill, at her ability to be so low-key that the demons—and even the ancients—hadn’t felt her entering their minds and moving through memories to get to what she wanted.

Silke sifted fast through the memories of the demon. There were very few. The demon had been a recent creation, a mutation wrought by mage, vampire and Lilith. Benedek found it interesting that the origins mattered to her. When he went into battle, no matter how dangerous or expert his opponent was, he simply destroyed it, even at great cost to himself. Despite the other three demons growing larger and becoming more agitated, she remained serene, didn’t hurry, merely sifted quickly through the demon’s mind until she found the exact moment when the creature became aware.

Benedek recognized the two mages. Xavier and one of his brothers, Xayvion. The two stood over a vat of noxious, steaming liquid. Crystal lights played over and through the liquid continuously. Along with the lights, repetitious chants played on a loop.

You crave fresh blood. You need to kill when you feed. The desire is strong and grows continually. Each rising the craving is more. Impossible to ignore.

The demon was being programmed from birth to target hunters, to amplify the dark whispers of temptation. The tiny microbes in the vats were designed to get hunters to join the ranks of the undead. The idea was clever. After feeling the effects on the ancients, hunters with centuries of experience and with the inability to hear those whispers of temptation for centuries, to hear those commands had been nearly overwhelming. They had been fortunate that all had taken vows and had such a strong code. And that Mataias hadn’t been affected. He was able to get the blood they all so desperately needed so none of them had to get near a human while feeling the curse.

Find and kill the slayer. Find and kill the slayer. Find and kill the slayer.

Not only was the demon programmed to hide in the brain of the hunter once injected into his bloodstream, but his goal was to get the hunters to seek out the demon slayers and kill them. Benedek knew his lifemate would have that knowledge now. She knew the ancients had been tainted with demon, and that they’d been programmed to kill when feeding and to find and slay her. That wasn’t the best way to start a trusting relationship.

Methodically, one by one, Silke faced each demon separately. It didn’t seem to matter that the last two were larger and more powerful than the first two. Something in the origins had clued her in on how to slay them. Just as she had done with the serpent, she took her time, using sacred water and the crystal sword that was wrapped in the dragon lily petals. How she was able to use it to spew fire and the gel that was all too reminiscent of magma, Benedek had no idea.

Having watched slayers before, he had expected to understand her methods, but this was all new to him. When she destroyed the last of the demons, she sank onto the floor, pushing with her heels until her back was to the wall. Immediately, Tora opened her protective weave and rushed to her. The fisherman didn’t move, remaining under Tora’s command while she attended to Silke.