Move fast. He hoped his wolf listened to him.
These are the creatures you and Kendrick eliminated two hundred years ago. How are they back?
If I had to guess, I would have to say Kendrick has brought them back.
His wolf made a harrumph noise. Bad wolf.
He is indeed.
The black smoke above their heads did nothing to improve Cullen’s sense of direction but at least he could smell the way. Tristan always smelled of the woods, most of the wolves on the island did, but he was Cullen’s Alpha, and Cullen felt as though he’d been genetically predesigned to always locate his Alpha, wherever the man was.
Cullen’s nose told him he was close. He rounded a corner into Rex’s part of the Institute. The doors were gone from their hinges and a bright blue light illuminated Rex’s bedroom. The blue light was one of the signature trademarks of the flying demons. If Tristan and Theo were still alive they’d be in there trying to get Braden back
As he entered the blue-lit room he saw that two of the flying demons floated in the room and one of them held Braden in his arms. The toddler wailed which brought relief to Cullen’s mind. He recalled suddenly that those held captive in the creatures’ arms were protected from the flames by whatever magic the demons possessed. Tristan and Theo each held onto the legs of the creatures. Cullen realized it was sheer force of will alone that allowed the two shifters to keep the hell-dimensioned entities from taking off into the sky.
He hadn’t seen flying demons in two centuries but they looked exactly the same. Black, scaled wings were the largest part of the creatures’ bodies spanning the length of the ceiling to the floor, almost eight feet. The un-winged part of the beast held a total height of no more than three feet from head to toe. Although it looked tiny, the creatures were as strong as anything Cullen had ever encountered. They could lift a dump truck. Not to mention its body was the most grotesque sight Cullen had ever seen in his entire lifetime.
Colored like a russet potato, the black scales on its wings were brown and slimy. He knew from personal experience that its face, a mixture between a lizard and a fish, melted every four minutes only to be re-grown moments later. The only time you could kill it was that very second before re-growth. That was the only moment it was vulnerable. But you still had to be careful, because one touch from a gland on the top of its hand and you would be permanently scarred by the acid it secreted. Not even a shifter could heal from that substance. He needed to make sure it didn’t end up on Braden’s skin.
Cullen leapt into the air, all four of his paws coming down on the demon who didn’t hold Braden.
Cullen! Tristan’s voice in his head.
Both of you on the other one. I’ll hold this one off until I can kill it. Just keep yours here. I can’t attack it the same way, it might harm Braden.
You know these creatures? Theo’s voice.
Cullen growled and tore at the neck portion of the spawn. He knew it wouldn’t kill it, but he needed to incapacitate it until its face disappeared then he could destroy it.
Working here. He snapped at Theo. He’d apologize to the royal later.
He tore, bit, and clobbered the creature. The demon swatted at Cullen but didn’t manage to touch him with his acid coated hands.
He needed to hang on long enough until the creature was forced to shed its face. From the twitching and grunting sounds he heard it start to make, he knew the face would be gone in a moment. Then he could tear it to pieces.
I want to destroy it. I want to see it die
Yes, so did Cullen. His wolf, usually the less blood thirsty of the two of them, craved the demon’s death as much as he did.
The creature let out a wail and Cullen attacked its head. He tore it into small pieces. When it stopped squirming beneath him, he knew he’d succeeded in eliminating it. He jumped off the carcass and spun around.
In the hallway behind them, he could hear the groans of the metal and the sounds of the fire that still raged in the rest of the building. As soon as he killed the second demon, and the creature’s magic disappeared from the room, they’d have to run like hell to escape the flames.
Cullen!
Tristan’s voice sounded desperate in his head. He whirled around. The demon had gained momentum and was up further in the air. Tristan and Theo screamed as they started to lose their grips on its legs.
Tristan, Theo—don’t let it touch you or Braden with the top side of its hands. They have an acid-secreting gland and it can burn in a way you’ll never recover from.
He’s getting away, Cullen, and he’s taking my son with him.
Tristan sounded desperate, not at all the calm, steadfast Alpha he’d come to know over the last three years. This was a father’s despair.
The creature lunged upwards one more time, pounding a hole in the ceiling and Tristan lost his grip. He fell to the floor with a thud. Theo grabbed harder onto the monster, getting his hands onto Braden as Cullen leaped onto the creature’s chest.
Braden threw his arms around his uncle and held on as Theo tugged on the creature. Cullen bit down on its leg to free the boy from his captor. The creature swung trying to get either of its attackers with his acid coated hand. Cullen whirled his wolf-head to the left when it came at him from the right. He was lucky. But, Cullen was horrified to see that Theo was not.
Theo let out a yell of pure agony and fell to the floor. He gripped the side of his face and rolled back and forth on the ground. The creature still had a grip on Braden but fortunately it held him with its palms. It would just take one slash with the topside of the hand and Braden was done for. A sudden thought struck him: those creatures wanted Braden alive, they’d been sent with instructions not to kill him. They were being far too careful for it to be anything else.
Cullen shifted out of his wolf form and grabbed Braden as Cullen let himself fall to the floor. It was a desperate move, but Cullen was not surprised it worked. The creature was already weakened so gravity and Cullen’s body weight succeeded in removing Braden from his grip.
He hit the floorboards hard, deliberately taking the fall on his back so he could keep Braden upright and unhurt. The wind knocked out of him, he was stunned for a moment, but conscious enough to see the flying demon take off to the sky.
Damn. They only had seconds to get out before the flames reached them. He had to get up. Braden screamed, now in the type of rage Cullen had only seen in young children
Finally free of the burden of the child on his chest, his lung capacity returned to him. He leapt up. Theo lay on the ground, unconscious, and Cullen could see the side of his face was blood red with layers of skin peeling away. They needed to get him out.
Cullen picked Theo up and swung him over his shoulder. He wouldn’t be crawling through the hallway as a wolf this time. He’d have to get through the fire on two legs.
He shot a glance over his shoulder and was relieved to find the Alpha right behind him. “Follow me.” He turned and ran towards the smoke.
Can you help me? He wasn’t used to asking his wolf for help but he didn’t want to die being a stubborn mule.
Let me in your eyes, I’ll direct you.
Cullen blinked and felt his wolf take over his sight. He sniffed the air. It was the best arrangement he could come up with. He had to stay in his two-legged form to carry Theo but he could see and smell as his wolf now.
He ran forward toward the black smoke and tried not to breathe. Several metal beams fell in front of him and he leaped into the air, barely making it over without burning himself.