He didn’t deny that, watching the road ahead. Damn.
“You’ll see everything now. That will help. But always keep Rule Number One in mind. You can’t give away the Hidden.”
“I know, I know.”
He parked at the curb and jumped out. She met him as he came around the front of the car. The harbinger demon wasn’t out front. Cyn pushed open the door, holding it for a second while he scanned the lobby.
Glesenda stood at her post behind the desk, talking to a man about their classes. All seemed normal, except her eyes flared something fierce. The man’s, as he turned to follow Glesenda’s dire gaze, did not.
Mundane.
Not so mundane, the four demons lounging in the lobby. Three of them were humanoids, she thought Cyn had called them. One stood at Glesenda’s shoulder, licking at her ear. She flicked it away, trying to appear normal. Another was involved in a stare-down with Allander, the Elemental Cyn had shown her earlier. The harbinger lounged in the waiting area eating from a dish of hard candy. Suddenly, all four demons focused their creepy red eyes on Ruby, making her take a step closer to Cyn without even thinking about it.
She felt her Dragon stir against her skin. God, that was weird. Okay, not as weird as, say, four demons looking like they couldn’t wait to sink their fangs into her.
Glesenda gave the man a genuine smile. What self-control. “We’re about to close, but you’re welcome to come back tomorrow, try a class even.” She came around the desk and put her hands on his shoulder to guide him to the door.
He gestured to the same room where Ruby had first seen Cyn. “Can I watch—”
“Sorry, that’s a private class.”
One of the humanoids slid up to the man, reaching its rubbery hands toward his neck. Ruby started forward. Cyn grasped her wrist, mouthing Rule Number One.
The demon gripped the man’s throat, its long fingers digging in. On the way to the door, the man tugged at his collar, obviously feeling it. Ruby strained forward again, and Cyn jerked her back.
“But we can’t…”
Her words lodged like sharp rocks in her throat at his fierce look. As the demon and man passed Cyn, he swiped at the demon. It fell back, releasing its hold on the man. He quickly left, obviously feeling something ominous here.
Cyn locked the door, and Glesenda made her way over, the demon still close by.
She nodded toward the room. “Class full of Mundanes.”
“Yeah, I thought so,” Cyn said.
“One demon, I could handle. Two, doable.” Glesenda flicked the one whose long, pointed tongue was reaching for her ear like a snake. It flinched.
Another one moved closer to Ruby, and Cyn snarled. It backed up, but not much.
He said, “They know we can’t Catalyze.” His hand still holding Ruby’s, he led them back to the Obsidian Room.
Obsidian, like the kind of Dragon Cyn was.
“I thought this was a safe zone,” she said, meeting the gaze of the demon who followed close behind and trying not to shudder in revulsion. That’s what it wanted, she realized, to toy with them.
“It’s a courtesy rule that churches and other designated places like this are considered safe. That no one should enter with violent intent. Whoever’s behind this doesn’t feel he has to obey the rules.”
Allander followed them, making to grab at the back of one of the demons.
“No,” Ruby said, remembering that poor creature at the library. She shook her head. Allander paused, its brows furrowing. “Please don’t get involved.”
“Ouch!” Glesenda whirled around and stomped on the foot of the demon who’d scratched her, looking like she was stamping a bug. The demon backed away, hissing. Four blood-red lines materialized on her arm.
Cyn opened the door to the mysterious room. It looked like the one in his home, but the walls were padded. Like for crazy people.
Which she now was.
No, you’re just part of a crazy world.
She followed Cyn’s lead, filing to the side against the wall. Glesenda locked them in, the click tightening Ruby’s chest and clawing at her throat. The demons were now locked in the room with them. Good for the Mundanes. Bad for the Dragons.
Cyn stripped out of his clothes and faced Glesenda, who was doing the same. “She’s not ready for this. She’s newly Awakened with one short session of training. I was going to send her to my office, but leaving her alone doesn’t seem like a good idea now.”
“I am ready,” Ruby said, realizing she, too, would have to strip.
“I can take her out of here,” Glesenda said. “But that leaves you alone. Even you’ll have a tough time dealing with four at once. So no, not doing that. She’ll have to hold her own. I’ll watch her back.”
“I’m right here,” Ruby said, shoving down her pants and kicking them aside. “Don’t act like I’m such a neophyte that I can’t even hear you. I can handle this, now that I see the damned things.” They were all looking at her. I’m their target. She pulled off her shirt and bra.
Then all hell broke loose.
The first demon launched at her, the others following. Cyn shoved her to the side and Catalyzed. She hit the floor as Glesenda, already a deep yellow Dragon, blocked another demon. Ruby’s Dragon strained to be released, and then she Catalyzed. Power surged through her, along with a general pissed-offedness. Like hell they were going to keep her out of the fight when the damned things wanted her.
A smack drew her attention to a demon flying through the air right past her. It hit the wall and slid down, grimacing in pain. Then it jumped back to its feet, no worse for wear. Cyn’s Dragon sent a burst of black smoke at the horrid thing. It dodged it, then reached for Cyn with its unearthly long arms. Cyn shot it again, the smoke like an arrow this time. The damned demon was fast, but not fast enough. Spike after spike lanced the demon’s shoulder, its leg, and finally plunged into what might have been its heart. It dropped to its knees where a final arrow disintegrated the creature.
Fight. Kill.
Would she ever get used to hearing a separate entity inside her?
The harbinger still looked like an old man, but it sure didn’t act like one. It leaped high into the air, aimed at her. Claws sprouted from the toes of its bare feet, claws that slashed down her scales. She bumped it, sending it skidding across the floor. It darted for her tail, and she remembered how the demon in the library had gotten hold of Cyn’s neck by skittering up his back. She lashed just as it reached her tail, leaving a welt across its face.
It lifted its upper lip, revealing an even set of pointed teeth. She sent a blast of fiery Breath at it, burning off its clothes and pushing it back. Before it circled back to her, she flicked a glance at Cyn, who was facing off with another demon. He lunged, his fangs cutting into the demon’s shoulder. It screamed and shot away, dark red blood pouring from the wound. Immediately it readied itself to attack again.
The third demon jumped on Glesenda. She whipped her spiked tail up and lanced it as it scurried along her back. It screamed, falling to the floor where it gained its footing and darted forward to bite Glesenda’s leg.
Ruby’s focus shifted back to the singed harbinger, its mouth curled in a macabre smile. Naked, it looked less human and more demonic. Its corded thigh muscles tightened as it readied to launch at her.
Ruby acted first, charging with her teeth bared. It stood defiantly until a second before she would make contact. Anticipating that it would dart to the right, she changed direction. Her teeth connected with flesh. It howled in pain. Before she could go for another attack, its rubbery fingers clamped her snout closed. She jerked her head back and forth, but the thing clung like a leech. Even crushing the demon between her and the wall didn’t dislodge it, though the attempt gave her a screaming headache.