When Darkness Ends (Guardians of Eternity #12)(102)

The demon, however, wasn’t an Oracle just because he could seduce the unwary. He lifted his hand, shooting out a fireball that hit Cyn in the middle of the chest.

Cyn grunted as he flew in a backward arc, slamming into the wall of the cavern with enough force to break a rib.

“I told you to wait,” Viper muttered, swiftly at his side. “Damn berserker.”

Cyn grimaced, forcing himself back to his feet. His gaze remained locked on Recise who remained standing by the table while the other Oracles continued with the spell. The demon’s face was blank, his eyes burning with a strange inner glow.

“The damned druid must have cast a secondary spell to make sure the Oracles protected the amulet,” he ground out, his hand pressed against his rapidly healing wound.

Styx silently joined him along with Dante and a scowling Fallon.

They all studied the Oracles who seemed unaware of their presence as they continued their low chanting.

“I wonder if only the Zalez demon is programed to attack?” Styx muttered.

Cyn glanced toward the king. “Do you have a plan?” The grim warrior gave a shake of his head. “If we all attack at once, then one of us can surely get to the amulet.”

Viper lifted a brow. “That’s your plan? Everyone attack?”

Styx shrugged. “I’ll admit it lacks subtlety, but we don’t have time for an elaborate strategy session.”

Dante smiled. “Works for me.”

It worked for Cyn as well, except for the whole “everyone” attack.

“Fallon, you need to stay outside the cavern.”

Predictably she was shaking her head before he finished speaking.

“You need my help.”

Styx sent him a regretful gaze. “It’s true.”

Cyn was prepared. “We’ll need her to destroy the amulet once we get our hands on it,” he pointed out in perfectly reasonable tones. Not at all like his usual berserker self. “She can’t do that if she’s in the middle of battling some Oracle or injured.”

Styx gave a slow nod. “Good point.”

“But—”

The king held up a slender hand. “He’s right, Fallon. We need you to be safe long enough to destroy the amulet.”

She clearly wanted to argue, but perhaps sensing that Styx wasn’t a vampire who was willing to negotiate when he gave an order, she turned her attention to Cyn.

“Fine. I’ll wait here,” she grudgingly conceded. “But if you get yourself killed—”

He moved to halt her angry words with a short, wholly possessive kiss.

“You’re not getting rid of me so easy, princess,” he murmured, allowing himself to savor her heartrending beauty. “Just be waiting with whatever magic you need to get rid of the amulet.”

She gave a slow nod, her expression somber. “I’ll be ready.”

“Cyn,” Styx murmured.

He reluctantly turned to find his fellow vampires waiting for him, their weapons drawn.

“Let’s do this.”

Styx lifted his hand, gesturing for them to spread out.

In silence, Viper and Dante slid through the shadows, reaching the far end of the cavern before Styx slashed his hand through the air, giving them the signal to attack.

Cyn waited for the king to circle toward the side of the table, before he moved to capture the attention of Recise.

He grimaced as the demon shifted his appearance again, this time going from the typical image of a fairy to looking specifically like Fallon. The bastard. Logically knowing that the Zalez demon’s self-protection was looking like his opponent’s deepest fantasy was considerably different than coming face to face with his soon-to-be mate.

Ignoring the false façade, as well as the tug of sexual awareness, Cyn darted forward, slicing his dagger toward the demon’s face.

Recise instinctively twisted to the side, the movement making his golden hair swing over his shoulder, just as Cyn had expected. He’d obsessively watched Fallon’s every movement. He knew exactly what was going to happen.

Reaching out, he grabbed the silken strands, yanking the demon close enough to sink his fangs into the bastard’s throat.

There was a screech of pain as the demon struggled to get away from Cyn’s iron grip, his shape changing back to his original form.

Continuing to drain the flaying Zalez, Cyn glanced toward the table where three more Oracles had risen from their seats to meet the vampires.

A Darcole demon was using its tentacles to force Dante against the wall of the cavern, while Viper was dodging the whirling sword of a Mogwa. Styx, meanwhile, was trying not to be burned to a crisp by Phyla, whose slender body was covered from head to toe in flames.

And still the rest of the Oracles continued to chant, the amulet in the middle of the table humming louder and louder.

Recise began to weaken in his arms, but even as he prepared to shove him aside and make a leap for the table, the bastard was placing his hands against Cyn’s chest to hit him with another fireball.

Cyn was forced back. Shit. Two more ribs broken and his chest seared to black.

He ripped off his sweater that was smoldering from the burst of flames and grabbed the demon by the throat, squeezing his scrawny neck with enough force to crush the fragile bones.

Recise struggled, his eyes still dull with the force of the Compulsion spell as he used his claws to shred Cyn’s arms down to the bone.