Demonic

18 | INTO THE DARK

SOLDIERS FROM THE Fortis Royal Guard seemed to appear out of the shadows to meet the night children, war cries echoing out on all sides of the ballroom. Figures surged from every corner, meeting with a clash at the center of the room. They stampeded across the sleeping party guests, guns and fists colliding as blood began to spill.

A hand wrapped around my shoulder blade, pulling me back away from the battle. One of the soldiers pushed by me, running straight into the fray with his gun drawn as a voice that sounded straight from hell echoed in my ears. "Get the girl!"

"Take her to the jet!" One of the Fortis Guard yelled over the screams and shouts of the fight, and two men in Holy Order armor came to my sides. They looped their arms around mine, yanking me straight off my feet as they guided me out of the ballroom while the rest of the soldiers fought back against the pixies.

I was drug into the hallway, the horrible sounds from the other room still resounding in the air. Looking at the two soldiers on either side of me, I cried, "where's Xavier?"

"His Royal Highness was evacuated as soon as he fell unconscious." The man on my left said, "your helicopter is waiting on the roof, Princess Cybele."

I clenched my jaw, closing my eyes as my heart beat out of my chest. It was happening: I was leaving Opulentia, leaving Bella and Georgio, leaving the Sylphs, and leaving Parisa. My world was going to change forever as I stepped into a new life without having a chance to say goodbye to the old one.

As growls and shrieks echoed in the air and pulled me back into reality, I opened my eyes and wondered if I'd even make it out alive to the helicopter.

Around the corner I nearly screamed in horror, three pixies tearing apart a dead soldier's flesh with their canines. As blood ran down their lips and stained the carpet, they lifted their heads in unison to stare at us before one smiled, letting the flesh fall from between its teeth.

"Found her. Found her." It snickered, grinding its long canines as the other two rose to their feet. Blood caked their clothing, and they stepped forward, kicking away the dead soldier's hand that laid in their path.

The men on either side of me drew their weapons, pushing me behind them. They charged at the night children, their guns catching the light. The shrieking of the pixies filled my ears and I covered them with both hands, my blood like ice as my body refused to move.

I couldn't breath as I watched the fight, my entire being in shock at the battle raging inside my home. Tonight was supposed to be a party like any other I'd attended my entire life, but now it was a bloodbath. I'd been taught to handle every situation a ball could throw at me, but this was one I was never prepped for.

The man on my left had managed to shoot one pixie through the chest, the lights dying in the horrid creature's eyes before it collapsed to the ground. This sent the other two into a frenzy, their hisses strained as they fought back with more vigor. Both Fortis guards stood strong, their skill making up for their lack of speed like the winged creatures they struggled against.

Only lasting a few moments, the altercation seemed to stretch on for hours before the knot in my stomach finally began to loosen. Another pixie fell to the floor with a fatal wound as both men turned their sights on the last remaining threat. Together they cut the pixie down with bullet after bullet, and I took my hands off my ears, finally able to suck in sweet oxygen.

I'd been holding my breath for them and for myself; those two men deserved to beat the night children, and if they hadn't have, I didn't know what I would have done against three pixies without a bow.

"Lady Cybele, we must continue." One of the men said, coming to my side as the other stood a few steps forward to investigate the rest of the hallway around the corner. "We have her and we are coming to the roof." He said into the device on his ear, most likely talking to the pilot waiting for us.