Sasha was off in the darkness alone, fighting in wolf form, trying to keep as many away from them as he could, while they were pinned down, unable to go anywhere near the cave they had to reach really soon, or all of this was for nothing.
Provided that was actually the cave they needed. There was still some debate about the exact location of where the mural was. Without Ren ... Yeah, this night might not have the best ending.
She shot her last arrow at a demon that was flying straight for Sundown. "Nick! More ammo!"
They appeared instantly in her quiver. Okay, Nick was better than Hollywood. Except he couldn't conjure C-4. Well, he could, in theory, conjure it. The problem was, none of them knew how to use it.
"Thanks."
Nick went back to fire-balling their attackers. He shot so many so fast, it looked like a Fourth of July celebration.
Jess continued to shoot at the raven mockers and demons as fast as his shotgun would load, cock, and aim-which was surprisingly fast in his hands. The barrel of that thing had to be hot enough to raise a blister.
But for every demon they destroyed, it seemed like ten more came in to replace it.
Sundown cast an irritated glare at Nick. "Can't you command these things to die, or something?"
"Yeah. Sure can, but, here's the big green pickle ... if I use those powers, they'll pierce through the weakened gates, and open them instantly. I'm the top tier, Jess. That power tends to draw out other demons like Mardi Gras beads to naked beasts, and depending on the demon's level, can even strengthen them. Think of me like a homing beacon of the damned."
Jess reloaded. "That don't seem like a whole lot of fun."
"It's a jolly fucking Barrel of Monkeys." Nick sent more fireballs to the demons.
Amused by Nick's acerbic nature that could make light of a very dangerous situation, Kateri blew air across her wrist that was stinging even with a guard on it. Her fingers were numb and she was sure if she survived to sleep again she was going to have nightmares about ghostly fanged things screaming at her as they died.
This is hopeless. She didn't say it out loud, but she felt it. She was sure they did, too.
None of them could move forward toward the caves. She was so exhausted from fighting that all she wanted to do was lie down, and let them have her. In fifteen minutes, it wouldn't matter anyway.
It'd be too late.
Fifteen minutes.
Strange how, as a student, especially in a boring class she hated, fifteen minutes had seemed an eternity.
Now ...
It wasn't even enough time for her brief life to flash before her eyes.
She ducked as something that reminded her of a flying monkey went over her head, spitting at them. It was acidic saliva she realized as it hit the rock a few millimeters from her hand and dissolved it like sugar in hot water.
Jess stood and shot it three times. It recoiled as it was hit, but it didn't kill the beast. "Didn't your mama never teach you no manners? You don't spit at no lady." He knelt to reload. "Flipping animals."
"Demons, Jess," Nick reminded him.
"Damn flipping demons." He narrowed his gaze at Nick. "Holy water work on them?"
"Only some. Remember, I still take Communion on Sundays and was an altar boy as a kid."
"Yeah, that ain't right."
"Couldn't agree more." Nick shielded her just as she would have been hit by another wave of flying uglies. Then he stood to open fire, literally, on the ones who'd almost killed her.
Nick would have teleported them into the caves, but since he knew so little about them, and absolutely nothing about their interior, he could slam them into a wall, and kill them by attempting it. Not to mention, they would be trapped inside, which made it easier for the demons to kill them.
She nocked another arrow. But what she really wanted to do was crawl into a hole and wait for all of this to end.
C'mon, Kateri. This isn't just about you. She glanced around at the men who risked their lives to protect her. Jess with his new baby. He didn't want to be here. But here he was without a single complaint. Nick who, well according to him, was only living to piss certain entities off. Sasha who had a crush on someone he wouldn't name, but who'd sworn that if he lived through this, he was going to ask her out. Fear be damned. Cabeza who would say nothing about his life.