Page 90 of The Tracker's Dawn: Sunderverse
“Good.” Nodding, Damien levitated the bowl into the pentagram.
As soon as it crossed inside its boundaries, Velthgrek went nuts, its essence practically doing calisthenics, its edges jutting out from every direction, forming all kinds of shapes that could put an inkblot test to shame.
Lucia started breathing heavily, air hissing through her clenched teeth.
Damien deposited the bowl on the floor, then focused on my sister as if by scrutinizing her he could help, but he’d explained his magic would only interfere with Lucia’s abilities.
“Keep it steady,” he said, inclining his head to better judge the distance between the demon and the bowl. They were about three feet apart.
“The demon will need some time to eat the curse out of Jake’s blood,” Damien explained as my sister took another step back and her fingers twisted inward, making a claw. “That means you’ll need to hold it in place somewhere inside his body, a safe distance away from his heart. The more control you have over it, the better. Let’s try this, give it some slack. Just a couple of inches.”
Lucia inhaled audibly and let her fingers stretch forward. The demon advanced several inches toward the blood.
“Ah, ah, not so fast,” Damien warned. “Hold it... hold it. Okay, a couple more inches. Good, good.”
Sweat broke over Lucia’s brow. Her face was twisted in near pain. I wanted to help somehow, but there was nothing I could do. Throughout all of this, I just felt useless.
Suddenly, the demon’s essence coalesced into the smallest shape it had yet. It became as compact and smooth-edged as a bullet, and it began vibrating in place as if it contained the power of a nuclear weapon.
The shape jerked forward, cutting the distance to the blood by an entire foot. Lucia was jolted along with it, her feet skidding along the smooth concrete floor and taking her within inches off the pentagram. I lurched forward to grab her, but Damien put a hand up.
“Don’t touch her! She’s fine... she’s fine,” he said as Lucia’s resolved expression hardened. “You got it?” the mage asked.
My sister gave a single nod, her eyes never leaving her target, her fingers curling back into claws.
“Steady, steady,” Damien said.
The demon pitched forward a few more inches. I grabbed my head. My heart pounded like a drum, its quick beats loud in my ears. Lucia pulled back her hands. The demon retreated two inches.
A smile stretched on the mage’s lips. “That’s it. That’s it.”
Again the demon pressed forward, gaining some room, but my sister—my stubborn, stubborn sister—pulled it back even further.
For a long minute, the battle of wills went on. My hope soared. Jake and I glanced toward each other, and I could see the same hope in his eyes.
“You’re doing great,” Damien praised. “Do you think you could hold another minute? It might be all it takes for the demon to eat the entire curse.”
Lucia nodded, a small gratified smile appearing on her face. Her satisfaction hadn’t finished materializing when the demon broke free and slammed into the bowl shattering to pieces and sending blood splattering everywhere.
She staggered forward, her converse hitting the edge of the pentagram. Her arms windmilled as she tried to stop herself from crossing into the inner circle. Acting on instinct, I fleeted over to her, snatched her hoodie, and pulled her back. She crashed into me, and I wrapped my arms around her and held her tightly.
“I got you. I got you,” I said, letting out a huge exhale of relief.
She stayed in my arms for a long while, trembling slightly. We all stared, eyes wide, as Velthgrek sucked at the blood like a vacuum cleaner.
Damien snapped out of it and spoke in a quick breath. “Velthgrek, to the depths of hell, I command you to return!” With a snap, the demon disappeared.
Silent tension hung in the air.
“I’m okay,” Lucia said after a minute, her voice steadier than I would’ve suspected. She disentangled herself from me and straightened her hoodie.
Jake moved into her field of vision. “You all right?”
“I’m fine. Perfect. Let’s try that again. I wasn’t expecting that. I’ll be better prepared now.”
I opened my mouth but Jake spoke first. “There won’t be a next time.”
“Bullshit!” Lucia protested. “Of course there will be. I can handle that fucker.”
