Page 11 of My Demon Teacher

I look around the room as everything fades. The music, the lights, the drinks, the people.

The only one left is Ryan.

What.

The.

Actual.

Fuck?

“This…is…brilliant!” Ryan flexes his muscles, and the creature copies each of his moves.

“What the hell are you gonna do to it? Are you gonna walk around the rest of your life with it beside you, copying your every move?”

Ryan smirks and finally looks at me.

The eldritch creature looks at me too, though it doesn’t share Ryan’s amusement.

“Who cares? I’m going to be so powerful with this thing attached to me that no one can stop me.”

If he thinks I’m just going to sit back and watch him enslave a creature, he’s got another think coming.

I glance around and spot a bloodied knife on the floor. I bend my knees and jump toward it, rolling on the floor as I land and wrap my hands around the sharp object.

I push back up and rest the tip of the blade against my palm, and look at Ryan.

“If you don’t stop this madness I’ll stop it myself,” I warn him.

He laughs.

“Please do. Summon another. The more I add to my collection, the more powerful I’ll become. So please, do go on. Give me the best gift of my life.” Ryan circles me, the eldritch creature towering behind him doing the same.

How did he do this? What kind of illusion magic does he have to be able to shroud this entire gym with fake people, fake…everything?

How can I stop him even if I summon another creature?

And what if I do and he just enslaves yet another one?

I’m stuck. I’m stuck, and there’s nothing I can do to help me or save the creature he’s already enslaved.

“Go on,” Ryan says.

I breathe in and out, but I don’t give him the pleasure of a reply. I know I don’t have any options. No options whatsoever. If I don’t cut myself, they’ll do it for me and repeat whatever incantation they’ve found. I’m stuck. I’ve once again found myself without any agency or freedom.

Am I doomed to always be a victim? What is wrong with me?

There’s a noise behind me. Glass breaking. I don’t need to look behind me to know what’s happening. Just a glance at Ryan’s and the other lackeys’ faces, and I know my savior is here.

Lucian.

“What the hell is going on here?” his voice booms.

CHAPTER FIVE

“YOU REALLY SHOULDN’T HAVE DONE THAT.”

His shadow grows bigger in front of me until I’m certain he’s right behind me. I slowly turn to face him.

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