They seem to have forgotten you’re even in the sky, Tora,Silke pointed out.I can distract them, keep them totally engaged with me, and you and Peony can do the honors.
Tora rode an elegant dragon adorned with peonies. The colors of a sunset, pink, purple and gold flowers made up the back and tail of the dragon. She was gorgeous—just like Tora. And just like her rider, she was lethal. Like the dragon Lily, Peony could easily be overlooked when anyone came to the garden to look at flowers. She lay still, her flowers real, yet they were part of her, making up her scales.
Peony moved in and out of the night sky shadows, blending in with her deeper, richer colors so that she seemed to emerge out of thin air when she attacked. Tora wore her long thick hair down, rolling like waves with the force of the wind as her dragon whipped around, banking and then swooping down like an arrow. The clouds of dark hair flowed behind her, strangely taking the shape of black birds, crows, several of them, as if they were caught in strands or flying in close formation to aid her.
Silke flew Dragon Lily through the sky above the porch roof. Three of the clones stood, chanting in unison, feet planted wide, arms outstretched, weaving patterns in the air. Their joined voices grew stronger and louder.
She could just make out the other three Castellos lying flat on the roof, close to the edge, ready to spring on her to knock her off the dragon. It was to be a concentrated attempt to kill her by all six of the clones. She nearly fell for the trap. The demons made it look easy to kill them, as if because they were replicas of Castello, they didn’t have his brains.
Watch yourself, Tora.She turned Lily away from the roof at the last minute.They’re up to something. I have to figure out who is directing them because someone is.
You’d better hurry,Tora cautioned.There are too many of them.
Isolate them; don’t take on more than one. Stay away from the roof. Those three are desperate for me to get close.
Lily opened her mouth and a steady stream of fire burst from her, incinerating a lone demon trying to climb a bush that would have allowed him access to the roof. Peony managed to corner a second one and incinerate him.
The buzz in Silke’s ears became louder as she managed to isolate another clone, and dragon fire incinerated him. Peony’s fire swept through the yard, catching two more demons who hadn’t taken cover.
The chanting swelled. Took on a different tone. The demons were building a spell. These demons had been programmed to a specific set of activities. Silke doubted if they could have predicted dragon fire as one of the weapons they would have to face, yet they were clearly casting and she understood the words for “dragon fire” in the swelling chant. Demons didn’t cast spells this way. Mages did. Vampires did. Not demons, not like they were doing in perfect unison. Not against dragon fire.
They are attempting to raise shields against the dragon fire,Silke said, directing her dragon to sweep fire along the ground where two more of the replicas crouched behind shrubbery. One screamed and rolled on the ground, while the other ducked down, and the fire illuminated around him for a brief second, clearly hitting a transparent barrier.
At once, the demons went wild with elation. They began to throw fireballs at the dragons, the missiles whistling through the air targeting Peony and Lily. The dragon scales were impervious to the fire, but Tora and Silke weren’t.
Stay low,Tora cautioned.I’m building barriers over us to keep their attacks from scoring. You’ll have to figure out how to bring down their shields fast, Silke.
Silke was well aware the tides could change quickly when they faced so many demons. They’d had the advantage with the dragons, but now that had been taken away. Her crystal sword wouldn’t kill them—in fact, it seemed to make the demons stronger. Dragon fire had been her ace in the hole. She had never considered that Castello would break apart and produce replicas of himself. So many.
Once Tora had woven the safeguards over Silke and herself, the fireballs became useless against the dragons, other than forcing them to maneuver continually through a maze of raining fire. The continuous pulling up sharply and moving constantly would eventually tire them out. It was a good strategy. Silke knew she had to find the one manipulating the battle.
Keep us safe, Lily,she told the dragon. She let her mind expand, touching each demon lightly, feeling their energy. Most of them were in what she considered the hot zone, running on frenetic energy, adding to the chaos of combat. She knew the head demon, the one housing her real opponent, the mage, wouldn’t feel the same. It took time to find each demon and check them. Most demons were hiding, although now that the dragon fire didn’t work against them, some were becoming bolder.
The demons on the roof of her porch once more called to her, arms wide open, taunting her. Again, she heard a soft voice, one that didn’t penetrate her natural shields, but she heard it as compelling. That disturbed her more than having to change battle tactics. Who was the mage working with the demons? He had to be one of them, taking the form of Castello, released when the others were.
She wiped at her face, shocked that she was sweating. She didn’t feel anxiety when battling demons, but a part of her was anxious.
Is that voice getting to you, Tora?
It is targeting you solely,Tora said.I don’t believe these demons or the mage see me as the real threat.
That’s absurd, they have to know you’re Carpathian. Any Carpathian would be a threat to them.Silke had to ask herself the question, why weren’t they concerned with Tora? Between a slayer and a Carpathian, the Carpathian, female or not, would pose the most danger to the mage. Why wasn’t he centering his attention on Tora? Surely, he knew Tora provided the barriers to keep the fireballs off them, not Silke. She didn’t have those kinds of skills.
Lily, find a place to settle where you’re protected to conserve your strength. I’m going to try to take on the demons a different way.
They will kill you.Lily made it a declaration.
Have a little faith. I’ll call you the moment I need you again, but I want you to be fresh, not tired.
Lily was a fairly young dragon. She and Silke were the best of friends, and Silke knew that the wisdom of the other dragons who had come before her had been passed on to her, just as Silke’s ancestors had given her their knowledge. She worried about Lily’s inexperience, and it was clear that Lily was worried about whether or not she could handle the many demons trying to knock Silke from her back.
She leapt from Lily’s back as the dragon swooped low. Immediately the dragon hovered, her great wings flapping, sending waves of turbulence so strong, several demons running toward her with sharp weapons tumbled over backward. Her body blocked all sight of Silke as she ran low toward the beds of shrubs she knew would conceal her. Even from above, the demons wouldn’t be able to find her among the plants. The grounds had been laid out in anticipation of just such an attack.
Can you get the fireballs to stop? They’re distracting.Silke was certain the stone house would prevent any fire, as it always had, but a mage was directing the attack. He was feeding her anxiety, and she needed to stop anything that allowed him to prey on natural emotions.
No worries. I’ve got this,Tora assured.
She dismounted as well, just as determined to conserve Peony’s strength. As the fireballs continued to rain down, she threw her hands into the air and wove a reverse spell. In midair, the fiery round balls paused and then streaked toward the demons. The weapons hit the barriers surrounding the demons and bounced off, falling to the ground and fizzling out.
