Her Darkling

Chapter 9.

"What is it, Eldrion?" I asked as soon as he stood to his feet, looking around frantically.

"They're here."

Amidst the crackling of the wood, as it burned, the crunch of stones underneath Eamon's boots was heard as he stood to his feet. He immediately drew his sword, wielding it as he looked around, eyes wide in alert.

Then he turned and trained his eyes on Eldrion, a puzzled look on his face. I could see the question running through his mind.

I stood to my feet, my satchel dropping to the floor and I pulled out both of my knives, ready for combat as my ears twitched for any strange sounds.

A high-pitched noise tore through the foggy night air, sending goosebumps rising over my skin. Eldrion's claws jut out and he began to sniff as he moved away from us. Moving towards him, I gave him a hard look before snapping through my teeth.

"What the f**k are you doing, Eldrion?! He doesn't know, you know that?!”

Eldrion sighed and moved out of sight. It was to hide his identity from Eamon but that didn't change the fact that he had risked getting noticed by Eamon who was already starting to suspiciously look at him.

Eamon, before he left, rushed to my side. "Are you going to be okay? This just happened out of the blue. You can decide not to join in if you don't want to."

Scoffing, I brushed the edges of both knives in my hand and spread out my arms and legs, ready for combat. "I did not come here for a s**t show or to play like a kid, did I?"

"Very well then." He retreated and broke into a run, over to the northernmost part of the plateau. He let out a battle cry, summoning his fellow soldiers who all began to pour out of their respective tents, metal clanging and boots thudding against the ground.

The first demon to appear tore through the woods, running with inhuman speed as it ran up the plateau, glowing red eyes narrowed evilly. We were suddenly thrust into subduing this demon before the others followed.

I and Eldrion faced a demon, tearing through its scaly skin and plunging weapons into every part of its body in a feat to vanquish it.

With every piercing, each demon dropped at our feet, burning with a fiery orange glow before it crumpled to the ground in a heap of black ash.

The sound of wood splitting and jute ripping apart as sharp claws tore through tents, followed by growls and screeches, reminded me of desolation. They were coming in throngs and destroying everything in their path and the air had been permeated by burning sulfur, a stench that I tried hard not to inhale.

Eldrion and I had just fought off a demon and he was running to save a warrior from being killed by a demon when I heard the light thud of feet on the ground.

"Well, well, who do we have here?" A feminine voice, tethering at the edge of becoming a s****l demonic whisper spoke behind me and I turned to see a lady, a few inches taller than me.

I took a few steps backward, soles crunching rocks and my fingers tightening around the butt of my knife as my eyes narrowed.

There was something offstandish about her physical features. Though she bore the unmistakable traits of a demon; glowing red eyes, sharp claws, and saber-toothed canines, she was entirely different from the other demons. She had obvious traces of a human. Her frame, olive skin already smeared with blood, did not deter me from the fact that she was very much attractive. With a long mane of hair falling down her back in thick, wavy tresses, outlining and enhancing her facial features. She was gorgeous, with the face of a goddess. Her lips were slightly full and lush and her eyes, slanty, giving her a feline look. She had curves that could send any man to their knees. Her slender figure gave her an advantage when it came to her movements. She was fast.

One thing I'd learned about demons that could speak was that they were extremely rude, cunning, and capable of riling anyone up. She was edging.

I was the first to attack. I didn't have the time to get into a crappy ass conversation with her that would end up getting me distracted and giving her an upper hand over me. I threw out my right hand, aiming for her guts. She moved one leg behind her and I missed.

Long fingers wrapped around my arms before pulling me back and tossing me over to the other side. If I didn't have much stamina in my core, that heavy push would have had me hitting the ground and getting severely wounded.

But my feet remained rooted on the ground as my boots scraped rocks. I huffed angrily and threw my hand back before launching another attack.

She dodged every one of my moves, laughing and hitting me like she was toying with me. Like she was mocking me. Her intent on riling me up was working.

"You don't give up, do you?" She said as she pulled my hair and sent a punch flying into my guts. I groaned as pain spread through my scalp and guts and pulled out from her hold. "That's an admirable trait. I am not surprised. I recognized that as soon as I saw you."

"I don't care what you think," I gritted out and threw out my arm again and this time, I was lucky enough to scrape her arm with the edge of my knife. It sliced through her skin and she began to bleed immediately. I moved backward, watching the gash I gave her bleed out. Blood trickled down her arm and dropped to the floor.

Gasping, she looked down at her hand before bursting into laughter. The wound closed up immediately and she looked up at me, an evil smile creeping up her face, her eyes turning sinister. Her heeled boots scratched the ground and she walked back to me with graceful steps.

"I see why he's so interested in you. Smart and quick. Precise and calculative. You've got the skills for a human. I am impressed." Then she cackled. "But do you know who you are playing with?"

"I don't play with anyone and I sure as hell aren't playing with you, demon!"

I threw my arm out again, this time, lowering my body and slicing through her thigh this time, giving her a deeper cut. She gasped loudly and grabbed her thigh and the wound closed back up immediately and her boot-clad foot grazed the ground before she sent a kick flying into my jaw.

"Humph!" I groaned, kneeling over the ground as pain shot up my head. But I was on my feet the next second. Flexing my jaw and trying not to let the pain control me.

She broke into a run, catching me by the arm when I threw my hand out again. She twisted my arm all the way to the back and her claws pressed into my neck, threatening to slit my skin open.

I trembled as I struggled to remain unmovable in her hold. She tried forcing me to the ground but I remained steadfast, painfully aware of her great strength, groaning as my knees threatened to give away underneath me. She grabbed my left arm and twisted it too. I winced in pain as my joint was moved into an unnatural position.

My eyes fleeted over to Eldrion. He was doing pretty well warding off the demons. The other warriors were fighting them off and a few were either dead or wounded. The air had been smeared with blood, dirt, and death.

"Why be a human when you possess so much strength? So much fighting prowess and skill? Why not be a demon?" She whispered, her lips grazing my earlobes.

Something ticked inside of me when she made that statement. It was like a release clause, once again, reminding me of what her fellow evil creatures had done to my mother and brother years ago, bringing back gory images of a night at a particular moment in time. There and then, I knew I'd rather die than become one of them.

From my insides, I felt an energy surge, moving through my blood vessels, charging my whole body up. Energy crackled at the tip of my fingers, wanting to leave my body. It felt strange but I welcomed it with all alacrity. I was done hearing her speak.

Twisting my body underneath her, I gritted as I tried to free a hand. I successfully twisted my arm out of her stronghold, my fists clenched and just as I was about to release a bone-crushing blow to her jaw, a hiss was heard behind me, whistling through the air. I turned with wide eyes, early enough to see an arrow coming towards me. It was painfully close and before I could move out of the way, it pierced through my sides, sending my knees to the ground.

I groaned in pain, trying to get a hold of myself as I struggled to get back on my feet. But I was weak. It started from my feet, crippling me before it traveled up my head, sending a wave of cloudy dizziness.

I blinked once and for a fleeting second, I could make out a masked male figure, standing at the other side with a bowstring in his hand as everything began to blur out.

All I wanted to do was go after that archer. I wanted him dead or he was going to do that to someone else... I pushed my body forward, against the ground, not realizing I had gotten to the edge of the plateau. One more move, and my body was sent tumbling down jagged rocks before I could grab onto anything. Something about this moment felt familiar. Like I was re-experiencing a moment in the past.

Like déjà vu.

I collided with a jagged rock, hitting the side of my head really hard before I blanked into oblivion.