Page 112 of Galen
As I started to ask what he meant, he shot us into the air. I squeaked again as my stomach dropped, and I tried not to look at how far the ground was beneath us. The silver lining? At least the demons were down there.
“Goddammit,” Raiden hissed as a dark shape attacked from the right.
So much for them being on the ground.
Why did I jinx everything?
He fought the thing off with his free arm before diving back toward the ground. If I would’ve had anything in my stomach, I would’ve just emptied it all over everyone below me. Once my feet were back on solid ground, I stumbled a little before finding my balance. Not even three seconds passed before demons spotted us and sprang into action, some attacking with swords while a few charged toward us with only their long, sharp claws.
“Get back!” Raiden told me before a wave of them reached us.
My ass hit the grass with athudas he pushed me farther away from him. I rolled to the side before standing again.
The sword felt awkward in my hand, and my arm was too weak to lift it too high. I had to use both hands to swing at a small demon that lurched at me. The wrapping on my left hand—and the loss of my fucking index finger—made the grip even more awkward. Blood seeped through the cloth, but my adrenaline was too high for me to feel the pain of the wound.
I stepped back when two more demons spotted me and sprung forward. The back of my shoe slid a bit, and my insides coiled when I turned to see the large black pit behind me. Growling and grunting sounded from inside, as did the sound of metal hitting metal.
A flash of vibrant red hair caught my eye.
“Castor!”
He held a battle axe and hacked away at a demon twice his size before glancing up at me. “Simon?” Hope filled his voice.
He sliced the head off another demon before flying up out of the pit. Cuffs were still around both his ankles, but the chains had been cut loose. He threw his arms around me, and the stench of blood and dirt hit my nose. I didn’t care though. I was just so damn happy he wasn’t dead.
“Si?”
Only one person called me that. The voice sounded all wrong though. Not to mention, the person in question had no business being in the underworld.
I pulled away from Castor, my heart beating ninety to nothing as I came face-to-face with what looked to be some kind of reptilian creature. He had the form of a man, but blue-green scales covered his skin, and his eyes glowed burnt orange. Horns curved back from his black hair, and his nails were formed into sharp points, like claws. Blood dripped from them, like he’d been using them to slice people open.
I lifted my sword, unsure if he intended to slice me with those claws too.
“Hey! Wait,” the reptile said, holding his hands up. “It’s me. Kyo.”
“Kyo?” I blinked at him, then squinted, trying to get a closer look at his face. “Look, I know I don’t have my glasses on, but the Kyo I know doesn’t look like baby Godzilla, okay?”
“I donotlook like Godzilla. You take that back.”
“You two can argue that later,” Castor said, facing the quickly approaching demons. “We have company.”
I’d like to say that I was brave and stood beside the three of them as we fought off demons like total badasses. When really, I held my sword in a death grip and screamed as I swatted at the air like a madman each time something came even remotely close to me.
Alastair dropped down beside us, clutching his bloody left arm. His wings were cut in places, the feathers matted and shedding.
“You couldn’t defeat me a thousand years ago, and you can’t defeat me now,” Belphegor said, landing in front of him. He was bloody too, but not nearly as beaten up.
“Then why did you run away like a dog with its tail between its legs back then?” Alastair straightened his stance and readied his sword.
“If not for that out-of-control beast of yours, I would’ve won,” Belphegor growled before swinging his sword at Alastair’s head.
Alastair brought his weapon up just in time, blocking the blow. As they fought, more demons gathered around us. Big, muscled demons. The smaller ones had either retreated or lay dead in the grass. For some reason, I thought of demon chef Sven with his little wiggling antennas.
Was he still in the kitchen chopping vegetables and trying to decide which way he wanted to cook me?
Raiden and Castor both paused, as if listening to something. Were the warriors speaking to each other telepathically? I didn’t like the way their expressions hardened. Then they turned toward me and Kyo—who I still struggled believing wasactuallyKyo.
“We need to get you to the portal,” Raiden said before kicking a demon in the chest. Something had clearly unsettled him.
