Page 107 of Huntress

The demon shifted slightly, throwing weight onto his outside leg. Elsie adjusted the angle of her daggers as she prepared for his inevitable attack. He bolted to the center of the barrier, where she was ready for him.

Taking a smooth step back, Elsie brought up her weapon, but his reflexes were faster than anticipated. He dodged to the side, avoiding the worst of her strike before dipping back into the outer circle of smoke he thought was keeping him safe.

She had already deciphered his plan. He was testing her perception and speed, figuring out her capabilities. He’d come again. This demon was the type to wear his opponent out rather than take them head-on. A strategy she’d employed many times.

Elsie straightened, noting the droplets of blood splattered in the dirt as she deliberately relaxed her muscles once more. As predicted, the salamander increased his speed on his next attempt. Elsie ducked low and attacked his legs, but he dissipated into smoke. She grinned. This beastie had skills similar to her mother’s shadow wolf.

Elsie kept watching him, but something else caught her attention. The scent had changed. It wasn’t just smoke anymore. The demon had gotten serious and was filling the space with a toxic gas.

“Fuck,” she muttered. Pulling at the extra fabric sewn into the neckline of all her tops, she used it to cover her nose and mouth, quickly snapping it into place. She’d have to end this fast.

Gripping her dagger, she vaulted across the burning field, straight into the ring of gas. Elsie ran directly into his path, leaving the demon with no choice but to deflect and leap into the center to avoid her aggressive attack. Elsie followed closely. She wasn’t going to let up on the creature, but her body was actively betraying her.

Tears streamed down her face from the gas and smoke, and she coughed long and hard enough to leave her lightheaded.

Taking advantage of her moment of weakness, the demon circled once more, then arched back to the center. Her dagger sliced out to meet him, but at the last second he swerved, slowing long enough for Elsie to get her first good look.

The salamander was in his half-human form, his appearance a twisted deformation of amphibian and man, with wide-set eyes and a mouth so wide and deep it almost split his head in two. His shiny wet skin looked sticky to the touch.

“You couldn’t wait for me?” Saint growled at her shoulder.

“You should have been faster.” She coughed.

“There were cows.” He frowned, and she laughed, which immediately devolved into more coughing. “You need to get out of here.”

Elsie made a rude noise and descended on the salamander before he disappeared into the smoke. The slippery bastard had changed his skin again, becoming damned near invisible.

The fire demon’s eyes were hard as they flicked toward her, then he raised his hands as Elsie closed in. This was it. She skidded into a turn, then tackled Saint to the ground, wrenching a crude barrier into place.

Curling her body over his head and bracing for the impact, she watched their opponent snap his fingers. His claws clicked together and created a spark. The gas exploded.

Elsie’s barrier cracked, then shattered, and she was thrown several feet, knocking the wind out of her, but at least they’d been protected from the worst of it. Saint rushed over and pulled her off the ground.

“Why do you insist on being so reckless?” he demanded.

“Oh, come on,” she coughed, “that wasn’t so bad.”

Everything around them was on fire, and the heat was searing, starting to burn their skin. If the smoke didn’t get them, the heat would.

A cold gust of wind burst through Perrie’s barrier, and all at once the air around them was pure and breathable. Morgan had arrived. Elsie got to her feet, taking shallow breaths and letting her lungs clear themselves a little at a time as she searched for her target.

The salamander had found good cover. Elsie almost missed him as she scanned the fire, which was brighter than his magic. The slightly off color barely gave him away. The flames were bright yellow with licks of orange, while the magic swirling around in his body was closer to an orange-red.

Elsie continued looking around, feigning ignorance of his location while keeping her senses locked on his every shift in direction. She deliberately put distance between herself and Saint, inviting the salamander in.

When her back was turned to him, she palmed her dagger and pivoted, slamming the blade into his shoulder as he made his move. Blood soaked her gloves as she twisted the blade. The creature snarled and hissed, his skin going soft and moist. That moisture would be toxic, too.

She yanked the dagger out, about to drive it into his throat when Saint grabbed her wrist. “Wait, Mistress, please. Let me reason with him.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yes! I know he’s proven himself dangerous, but if he’s had this much power the whole time, why has he been toying with these villagers?” Saint asked. “He could have burned this whole town down by now, but he didn’t. We can take him out of here, relocate him somewhere far away from humans.”

Elsie chewed on her lip, then nodded. “Okay.”

“You know you can’t be doing this shit, right? Terrorizing peaceable humans is trash behavior,” Saint scolded the salamander. The fire demon’s eyes welled with tears.

“They killed my daddy! He’s here somewhere, I know it.”