blue flames flickered but didn’t shift into any other form. Bela hoped like hell the elemental barrier would keep those two demons incorporeal. If they made it into cat-monsters, that many would be strong enough to blow through the barrier and eat her before she could get off a good swing of her blade.
The creature let out a howl that burned through Bela’s bones. She felt its intent through the earth it touched. Killing. Blood. And … pleasing its master.
An image of the white tiger-demon flashed through Bela’s mind.
“Get away from my quad.” The words wheezed out of her mouth as she swept earth energy under its clawed feet and let the earth shake. The demon danced, but got its balance back fast. She caused another quake, as powerful as she dared without risking setting off a cascade reaction that would open a fault straight down Broadway.
No luck.
The demon had the hang of that trick now.
Bela slammed dirt left and right at the same time to make a pit, but the demon jumped clear of the hole in the ground.
The Rakshasa raised its big paws and hammered against the barrier.
Bela felt each blow like a punch to the chest. Air mashed from her lungs and she stopped stirring the earth around the creature. It was all she could do to keep the base of the energy barrier steady. She was barely tracking Camille and Andy and Dio now, and she couldn’t hold her sword up much longer.
Andy fired once. Twice. The darts hit the demon’s armor and dropped to the ground.
One of Dio’s three-pronged African throwing knives whistled past Bela and dug itself into the thing’s forehead.
It howled once, then ignored the knife in its brain, charged toward Dio, and beat on the barrier in front of her. She faced it down, snarl for snarl, and drew back with another knife.
The demon’s massive, clawed paw punched through the barrier.
Bela yelped and stumbled from the fracture of her earth energy.
The creature grabbed Dio’s leathers, jerked her forward, and twisted the neckline tight around Dio’s windpipe. She choked. Tried to kick at the thing. It raised its other paw to slice her with its claws.
A blazing rush of adrenaline drove Bela forward. “Not happening!” She ground her teeth and poured her focus into hoisting her blade. Before the Rakshasa could so much as breathe on Dio’s face again, Bela lunged and hacked its arm off at the shoulder. It reeled away and howled, swiping at the space where its ugly paw had been.
Dio shoved the severed arm away from her and bent over, massaging her throat. She still had a knife in her other hand, but her shoulders were shaking too hard for her to throw it.
Water blasted the wounded Rakshasa, knocking it sideways as the columns of blue flames that came with it moved north and south, to either side of the quad.
Camille started toward the demon, shamshir at the ready, but Bela called her back. “The barrier! Help me now!”
Her quad pulled in, weapons facing out, as Bela drew on the earth and built a new wall of energy. Andy’s water power laced through hers a split second later. Dio’s wind energy came next—but still no fire.
“ Damnit! ” Camille shouted from Bela’s left. “I—I can’t!”
The blue flame columns circled the new protective wall.
“They’re testing it.” Dio managed to get to her feet. “And here comes that other bastard again.”
The Rakshasa Bela had wounded was charging toward them—with two good arms.
Bela glanced at the ground. The beast’s severed paw was still bleeding on the grass.
“Fuck me,” Andy said. “Guess that’s what ‘reconstitute’ means.”
Dio hurled her throwing knife through the barrier and took off one of the demon’s cat ears. It kept coming.
A second knife and then a third hit the thing’s mesh armor and fell useless in the grass. The blue flame columns flickered on either side of them.
“They’re surrounding us,” Dio shouted. “Kill it now. Right now!”
Andy and Camille surged forward, and
The creature let out a howl that burned through Bela’s bones. She felt its intent through the earth it touched. Killing. Blood. And … pleasing its master.
An image of the white tiger-demon flashed through Bela’s mind.
“Get away from my quad.” The words wheezed out of her mouth as she swept earth energy under its clawed feet and let the earth shake. The demon danced, but got its balance back fast. She caused another quake, as powerful as she dared without risking setting off a cascade reaction that would open a fault straight down Broadway.
No luck.
The demon had the hang of that trick now.
Bela slammed dirt left and right at the same time to make a pit, but the demon jumped clear of the hole in the ground.
The Rakshasa raised its big paws and hammered against the barrier.
Bela felt each blow like a punch to the chest. Air mashed from her lungs and she stopped stirring the earth around the creature. It was all she could do to keep the base of the energy barrier steady. She was barely tracking Camille and Andy and Dio now, and she couldn’t hold her sword up much longer.
Andy fired once. Twice. The darts hit the demon’s armor and dropped to the ground.
One of Dio’s three-pronged African throwing knives whistled past Bela and dug itself into the thing’s forehead.
It howled once, then ignored the knife in its brain, charged toward Dio, and beat on the barrier in front of her. She faced it down, snarl for snarl, and drew back with another knife.
The demon’s massive, clawed paw punched through the barrier.
Bela yelped and stumbled from the fracture of her earth energy.
The creature grabbed Dio’s leathers, jerked her forward, and twisted the neckline tight around Dio’s windpipe. She choked. Tried to kick at the thing. It raised its other paw to slice her with its claws.
A blazing rush of adrenaline drove Bela forward. “Not happening!” She ground her teeth and poured her focus into hoisting her blade. Before the Rakshasa could so much as breathe on Dio’s face again, Bela lunged and hacked its arm off at the shoulder. It reeled away and howled, swiping at the space where its ugly paw had been.
Dio shoved the severed arm away from her and bent over, massaging her throat. She still had a knife in her other hand, but her shoulders were shaking too hard for her to throw it.
Water blasted the wounded Rakshasa, knocking it sideways as the columns of blue flames that came with it moved north and south, to either side of the quad.
Camille started toward the demon, shamshir at the ready, but Bela called her back. “The barrier! Help me now!”
Her quad pulled in, weapons facing out, as Bela drew on the earth and built a new wall of energy. Andy’s water power laced through hers a split second later. Dio’s wind energy came next—but still no fire.
“ Damnit! ” Camille shouted from Bela’s left. “I—I can’t!”
The blue flame columns circled the new protective wall.
“They’re testing it.” Dio managed to get to her feet. “And here comes that other bastard again.”
The Rakshasa Bela had wounded was charging toward them—with two good arms.
Bela glanced at the ground. The beast’s severed paw was still bleeding on the grass.
“Fuck me,” Andy said. “Guess that’s what ‘reconstitute’ means.”
Dio hurled her throwing knife through the barrier and took off one of the demon’s cat ears. It kept coming.
A second knife and then a third hit the thing’s mesh armor and fell useless in the grass. The blue flame columns flickered on either side of them.
“They’re surrounding us,” Dio shouted. “Kill it now. Right now!”
Andy and Camille surged forward, and
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