Within minutes they had their coats and warm hats on and were trudging across the heavy snow to the edge of the woods in the rapidly fading light.
“You sure about this?” Jake asked Olivia.
She breathed out a deep, misty breath in the freezing air. “I’m sure.”
Jake looked across to Theo and nodded. They both drew their weapons, and with a gun in one hand and a knife in the other, they headed into the tree line.
Mac watched from his vantage point as the three of them trudged into the woods with weapons drawn. His eyes narrowed suspiciously, and he drew his own weapon, flicking off the safety before following them silently into the dark woods.
“We should’ve brought flashlights,” Jake mused as they moved quickly but warily through the trees.
“It wouldn’t have done much good,” Olivia replied. “You need your hands free to be able to defend yourselves.”
“That won’t do us much good if we can’t see them coming,” Theo observed.
Olivia stopped and turned to face them, looking up at the sky. “We’re losing the light quicker than I thought,” she murmured thoughtfully.
Theo and Jake watched as she pulled off her gloves and shoved them in her pockets. She cupped her palms together, and a bright golden light appeared between her hands. Her skin pulsed and glowed, and her whiskey-colored eyes deepened to gold. The light pulsed and grew bigger until it lifted out of her palms and separated into two. On each ball of light, wings made of pure flame unfurled, and suddenly hovering in the air were two giant dragonflies made entirely of flames.
Theo watched in wonder as they beat their gossamer wings and hummed against the cold air. He’d seen one of her dragonflies the night she had been injured in the woods, but it still didn’t diminish the awe of seeing it again. One of them hovered at Theo’s shoulder and one at Jake’s.
“They will stay with you,” she told them. “As long as my heart is still beating, they will remain at your side, lighting your way.”
“This is so cool.” Jake tried to poke his with his finger.
“Will it not weaken you to have your attention divided?” Theo asked in concern.
Olivia shook her head, searching for a way to explain. “It’s kinda like breathing while eating, it’s automatic and doesn’t require conscious thought. This is the same. I don’t need to concentrate on them.”
“We should get moving,” Jake urged them onward, glancing anxiously at the sky.
They headed deeper into the woods, toward the clearing and Boothe’s Hollow. The closer they got, the more Olivia could sense the demon’s presence. It was stronger than it had ever been and flexed and strained against its bonds, angry and impatient. It knew it was so close to freedom.
“Did you hear that?” Theo asked suddenly.
The sound came again, a kind of shriek and the sound of beating wings. They looked up at the darkening sky, and through the gaps in the branches, they could make out black shapes.
“Bats?” Jake raised his gun.
“Those aren’t bats.” Olivia sucked in a sharp breath as she raised her hands. Much as she had done when faced with the hellhound, she pulled her fists apart, and as she did, a bow appeared and burst into sapphire-colored flames.
The black creatures dove lower, and as they came into view, they realized she was right. Those things sure as hell weren’t bats.
“What the hell are they?” Jake shouted.
“I have no idea.” Olivia aimed at one of them and let loose a black arrow. The creature shrieked and burst into ash, which rained down on the snow. “You need to use the knives.”
“Just how are we supposed to do that?” Theo asked as one swooped and dove straight for him.
Jake let out a couple of shots and one of the bullets tore through its black leathery wing, sending it crashing to the ground in front of Theo. Diving forward, he plunged the knife straight into its body and it exploded into the same black ash.
“Aim for the wings and take them to the ground,” Jake yelled above the harpy-like shrieks.
Olivia took out another one with a pure black bolt from her bow as Theo raised his gun, managing to wing two of them for Jake to finish off as they hit the snowy ground.
Mac heard a strange shriek and glanced up, his heart pounding as he watched a cruel looking, leathery creature. It let loose a shriek of triumph and plummeted toward him. He involuntarily stumbled back in shock, his heel catching a gnarled tree root and he toppled back, his gun thrown from his hand. He tried to edge away, but the creature flapped above him, snapping at him with a strangely bird-like beak filled with dozens of needle-pointed teeth. It bit down on his hand, causing him to cry out in pain as blood sprayed across the pristine white snow.
Suddenly the creature exploded, showering him with blackened soot, and as he looked up, he saw Olivia standing against the white woodland with a bow of pure blue fire aimed at him. He lay there slightly dazed at what he had seen before rough hands grabbed him and hauled him to his feet.
