Blackbird Broken (The Witch King's Crown #2) - Keri Arthur Page 0,89
“Ready?”
Fuck no. But I nevertheless raised my daggers. Lightning shot from the tips of the blades and angrily snaked back and forth. “You want me to clean out the shadows?”
“Worth a shot, though I daresay there’ll be other problems deeper inside.”
He was altogether too calm about this whole matter, but then, I guess this was his job.
I crossed the blades and directed several bolts of energy into the cavern’s mouth, sweeping them back and forth in an effort to get anything that might be hiding in a crevice beyond our line of sight. The thick stench of burned skin and hair stained the air, and my stomach turned uneasily. I’d certainly gotten something … and I wasn’t looking forward to discovering what.
The cracks above the cave’s crown were growing larger and the rain of dirt and stone heavier. Mo’s efforts weren’t stopping the witch, and I had to wonder why.
Luc moved on, keeping to the right while I went left. We paused again in the cave’s mouth, just beyond the reach of the increasingly heavy curtain of debris. The stench of burned hair was now so thick I could taste it. I swallowed heavily and tried breathing through my nose. It didn’t help much.
“Hecate, burn,” Luc said softly.
A deep and bloody light radiated from the sword’s blade and quickly burned away the shadows. Ash stained the air, but beyond the immediate circle of death were the burned remnants of the demons the lightning hadn’t quite reached. They were grossly misshapen dogs with razor-sharp talons and leathery tails spiked with barbs. Beyond them, much deeper in the cave, were a number of humanoid shapes; Hecate’s light wasn’t strong enough to reveal anything more than that, unfortunately.
But between them and us stood at least two dozen demons.
“So much for Darkside not being able to move around in daylight,” I muttered.
“There has to be a gate nearby. It’s the only reasonable explanation.” He glanced at me, one eyebrow raised. “Shall I do the honors?”
“Luc, you can’t—”
“I can. You need to find and stop the witch before she brings the whole damn cavern down on top of us.”
As much as I hated to admit it, he was right. There were only the two of us, and the earth witch had to be our priority.
“Fine,” I muttered. “But if you get dead, I’m going to be seriously pissed.”
He laughed, then raised Hecate and, with a roar that echoed through the shadowed stillness, charged at the waiting horde. The demons immediately came to life, their screams echoing through the chamber, a fierce and hungry sound. Luc plowed into the middle of them, using Hecate like a scythe, sending limbs, torsos, and heads flying.
I sucked in a breath and darted to the right, leaping over a line of rocks into what appeared to be a small water channel. It hugged the wall and swept away from Luc and the horde, allowing me to get past them without being seen—
A bloody scream quickly shattered that illusion. Deadly claws slashed through the shadows, forcing me to jump sideways in order to avoid being carved in half. My shoulder smashed into the cavern wall, and pain slithered down my arm. I ignored it and, as the demon’s bitter stench filled my nostrils, did a one-two slash with the daggers. Vita’s sharp edge sliced through the talons reaching for me even as Nex’s lightning crawled up the demon’s arm, incinerating his flesh in the process. His scream of fury became one of pain but was quickly cut off as his face disintegrated. I leapt over what remained of his body and ran on, using Vita’s pulsing light as a guide.
With a loud crack, a huge chunk of rock fell from the ceiling. It hit the floor close to the channel and splintered into hundreds of needle-like shards that sliced through the air with deadly intent. I swore and threw myself down into the trickle of water, using the rocks lining the channel as protection. Splinters snagged my hair, but for the most part I escaped major damage. But the flickering, pulsating light coming from the daggers highlighted the growing number of dangerous cracks. If I didn’t stop the witch soon, we’d all be in deep trouble.
I pushed up and ran on.
There were nine figures ahead; three were kneeling, their hands pressed against the cavern’s stony floor. The pulsing energy that surrounded all three told me they were earth witches. No wonder Mo was making little headway; she might be a mage,