When I looked at her, she wore a grim expression. I steeled myself for her to tell me someone else I cared about would die if I opened this door.
“Nothing you do now can keep someone you love from going through a life-altering change tonight.” Her voice was ominous.
My brow furrowed.Huh?
“Someone else dies?” I asked, hand stilled on the knob, heart smashing against my breastbone.
“No one dies. Well, their old self dies metaphorically I guess, but—”
“Skye!” I hissed. “I open this door, I don’t open this door, does it matter?”
She shook her head. “You can’t stop what’s coming now.”
A chill broke out onto my arms and then she was gone.
No one dies. Focus on the no one dies part, Tatum!
Turning the knob, I yanked the door open and took in the scene before me.
It was absolute chaos, a war zone with so much going on my brain couldn’t process it. The four portals at the corners of the room were still open. Aurelia hadn’t closed any of them and now I could see why.
Shades.
A pair of Shades stood in front of each portal which allowed the demons to filter through unfettered while they fought off the master Lumens. All these demons were ugly looking level sevens and eights, not the lower levels I was used to. This was going to be a bloodbath.
I needed to help.
Charging into the room, I raised my two light daggers and made a crisscross motion, slicing one of the demon’s backs, which caused him to hiss and spin toward me.
“Tatum, no! Run!” Aurelia growled.
“Not a chance!” I yelled back as the demon before me raised his serrated claws and prepared to slash my face.
Not today, pal.
I faked a move to draw his attention toward my right hand and then slammed the dagger in my left hand into his hairy throat, shoving it all the way in to the hilt. His hideous muzzle-like mouth popped open in surprise and then he dropped to his knees as I pulled out my weapon.
I didn’t wait for the demon to disintegrate. I needed to close one of these portals.
Running to the one nearest me, I skidded to a stop before the floor-to-ceiling windows and stared past the pair of Shades guarding the red and black swirling circle. Sparks and black smoke spit from the portal’s open mouth, and I crinkled my nose at the overwhelming stench of sulfur.
Will I ever get used to this sight?
Part of me hoped not.
Holstering my daggers, I lifted my hands, readying myself to hammer the wretched gateway with my magic, when I locked eyes with one of the Shades protecting it. My heart fell into my stomach.
Indigo.
“No,” I whimpered, lowering my hands.
My Shade friend had just recognized me as well and stared back at me with a slack jaw. The Shade next to her, a male I didn’t recognize, was locked in a battle with Theo, as a demon started to step out of the portal and into the room.
Indigo faltered, lowering her sword. I wanted to hug her, and apologize for going MIA after Gage disappeared, but now wasn’t the time. A blur moved to my left and I didn’t have time to warn her. One of the master Lumens came out of nowhere and cracked Indigo in the side of the head.
“No!” I screeched as she went down like a sack of rocks.
I spun to snarl at the Lumen and tell him she was with us, but he was already engaged in a fight with a vicious looking demon with three horns and a set of bat wings.
