As the familiar energy of my family drew closer, the darkness that lay under my sorcery energy started to swell. Soon it boiled and churned within me. The light I used to fight the sorcery darkness was almost gone—whatever the demons had done to me since I got here and the loss of my normal power and resilience had all but obliterated my control. The final straw was possibly losing my only family.
One demon had remained close, and in its distraction—watching the others—it drifted into my space. My hands brushed through the specter, and I didn’t hesitate to connect our energy.
Everything went misty then and I embraced it, allowing the power of this demon to fill me. I was basically draining it, which was very different to allowing it to possess me. If I’d been in my body, I’d never have been able to do this, but since I was only a soul as well, it worked.
As more of the mist filled me, rational thought faded. I didn't care. This was what I needed to save them. As I let more of the darkness rise up through my soul, it released a power and energy that I hadn't felt in a long time. Light was stronger, but darkness was willing to do anything to succeed, and it was not weakened by this world. Or by demons.
My strength returned.
Once I’d drained the demon, I threw it away, the wispy remains of its power flickering on and off. My soul started to expand; the chains holding me rattled as my energy destroyed them. In this moment, I couldn’t remember why I’d always shied away from darker magic. That had been a stupid rule to follow, because now I’d have the power … the strength … to make sure that no one was ever taken from me again.
I would be a god. If I’d been this strong when Regina was alive, she’d still be here with me. Another roar burst from me, deep and guttural, and echoed around the fire pit with enough force that if I’d been in my physical body my eardrums would have burst. Silence descended over the entire area; the demons even stopped their chattering to move closer to me,
The final clank of my chains hitting the ground was extra loud in the silence.
“How?” a demon hissed, rushing toward me. It hovered over the one I’d drained for a beat, and then flames appeared within the center of its dark cloud. It was one of their favorite weapons: a cloud of pain.
Only I was not vulnerable any longer.
The darkness of my new energy pushed forward, and I let it go free. The demon dissolved in an instant, whatever fire it had been holding going with it. The others halted their downward trajectory and immediately tried to go in the opposite direction, sensing their impending doom.
I gave them exactly what they expected. Instant death.
The remaining souls in here belonged to supernaturals, and they were all chained down. Each cried out weakly, asking me to free them, but it was not in my interest to bother. I didn’t need them; therefore there was no point in wasting time or energy on them.
They should think themselves lucky I didn’t require their energy to escape, because I would have just taken it. It was my right to take whatever I needed.
Everything was mine now.
5
Elizabeth Teresa Montgomery II
My focus on Louis’s energy was so strong that I barely noticed anything else around me. The only time I was remotely distracted was when we encountered small pockets of demons. The closer we got to the light, the more demons there were. But with three dragons and my own power, we were easily able to overcome them. I had no idea what dragon fire did to them, but it certainly made them scatter when it started to spew in their direction.
Eventually we found ourselves huddled on the edge of a large stone building. Turned out those unnaturally bright lights were hiding a bunch of buildings. “He’s in here,” I murmured as we moved closer, just on the edge of a section where the light didn’t touch.
“There’s a lot of energy here,” Braxton replied in a whisper of husky tones. “A lot more than I've felt since we arrived. I'm going to shift again.”
“Should we all shift?” Jacob asked, pushing back a few strands of white-blond hair.
“Three dragons is going to draw a lot of attention,” Jessa said, her gaze landing on mine. “But … maybe that’s what we should be doing. Distract the demons with dragons, so the rest of us can sneak in and save Louis…?”
I thought on it for a moment. “The idea has merit,” I said with a nod. “I can’t think of anything with less risk. The dragons are at least very resistant to dark energy, and their fire scares the demons.”
Tyson's face darkened. “I'm not comfortable leaving you all here without the power of our dragons. What happens if there’s an entire army of demons inside? You'll be dead or possessed before you know it.”
“We’re not without our own skills,” Grace reminded him, and of all people, he paid the most attention to her. “The four of us carry jewels and powers from our lands, Lizzie is as strong as Louis, and you know better than to discount Jess and Misch.”
Maximus snorted. “What about me?” he grumbled. “Am I just the token guy in this situation?”
Mischa reached out and patted his thick biceps. “Don’t worry, hon, I’ll keep you safe.”
He shook his head. “Our women definitely rule this pack. But let’s not forget that I have some skills.”
Grace waved a hand in his direction. “Yes, we also have Max and his … skills.”
I wanted to chuckle at their gentle mocking, because the very powerful men they were mated to probably did need to be pulled down a few pegs at times, but this was not the sort of situation for laughter.
