19. Livy

CHAPTER NINETEEN

LIVY

A raucous bang accompanied a crescendo of vivid colors. Light bent and broke around me as the dark dimension I fell through seemed to come undone.

My yells competed with the rushing wind. A portal opened up beneath Malek and the mage, appearing like a circle of white light in a sea of darkness. The men continued their battle as the hole sucked them in like breath through lips.

I waded downwards for a little more than a minute and electricity nipped at my skin. Soon, I was sucked through the threshold as well.

Strong arms caught me the second I fell through the portal. I thrashed about, my heart calming the instant I saw that I was safe in Malek's warm embrace.

His jaw cracked, and his eyes squeezed in pain.

"Are you injured?" I stroked his chin, and he knelt, swaying himself as close to me as possible.

"The mage bolted the instant we arrived. He could be anywhere now." His teeth clenched muzzling his anger as his eyes scanned the bookshelves that surrounded us.

We were in the library in the palace.

"How did we get back here?" I asked.

"The mage had opened the portal, intending to take us off somewhere I don't know. But I was able to use my magic to divert the path back to the palace." He rubbed the ache from his shoulder. Malek seemed a little banged up from the fight but thank the gods that none of his injuries looked serious.

"Good plan. Here at least we have the home field advantage. Plus, now it's him against you, me, your sister and all your guards." I said and he grazed my palm, smoothing it over his cheek.

"Not entirely good. The spell that keeps intruders out only works from the outside. Now that a mage is here in the palace, he can open his portals from inside. If I don't find him quickly, he can let any number of his comrades in. I knew that when I brought us back here, but I had no choice. His magic is strong. I was only able to get us back here because of the strong anchor I have to the palace." Something dangerous swam across his dark gaze, the desperate instinct to kill or be killed had been awakened in him.

"Go find Ferina. Then the two of you must search for a good hiding place and stay there. I'm going after the mage." Rising to his full height, he set me to stand.

"Wait, you might need me. What if he's already summoned back up? What if the mages swarm you?" I fisted the back of his shirt.

"Then we'll swarm them back and snap their cowardly spines!" Ferina strolled up, looking fierce in her high waisted jeans that stuck to her curvy body like paint. "Now, who are we talking about? And if you guys came back early, why did I have to sniff you two out? Didn't you miss me?"

Hurt thrummed in Ferina's voice, her expression mouthing, ‘what the fuck?' .

"Mages. One of them followed us into the castle. There may be more coming. I'll alert the palace security and go look for him. Take Sunny and go hide." Malek reeled off the info like a laundry list before handing me off to Ferina like I was a sack of diamonds that needed to be guarded.

I spun round, finger raised and primed to argue.

Malek gave Ferina a look. One that seemed to convey a secret message that meant something to the siblings. Because before I could utter a peep, Ferina snagged my arm with bionic strength, ushering me through the library's science fiction section at top speed.

"Hey!" I grated. "I get that you're from another time and place. But in this century women don't run. We stay and fight."

"Well here in Demon City, when our king gives a command, we follow," She made a hard left, pulling me along.

"Since when do you care about his commands? From the minute I met you, you've defied Malek at every turn." I stumbled around a shelf's edge.

We entered an older part of the library with few lights and cobwebs draping most of the books. It looked like nobody had ventured over here in years. Seeming to find this spot to be as good a place as any to hide, Ferina installed herself on the floor at the base of a dusty bookshelf, getting comfortable as she bunkered down.

"This is different. I've never seen Mally this worried," She whispered, pointing at the ground, gesturing for me to sit with her.

I plopped down beside her, folding my legs. "Did it even cross your mind that we might be of help to Malek? What if he gets ambushed by ten or twenty mages? Even a demon of his strength could use our help then."

"Any help he needs he'll get from his guards." She tenderly feathered her fingers over my shoulder as her eyes landed on the damaged books in front of us. "Hey, I don't know if you noticed, but you're not just any wolf shifter to him. If you died, he would die. Mally can't risk losing you. That's why he needs me to keep you safe. "

A slight hint of sadness rebounded in her voice, and it gave me pause. I'd only just remembered my childhood and Malek's place in it. He'd spend the last decade mentally revisiting the past and longing to see me again.

His longing for our past lives together drove him to want to control the world and make it as safe as possible for us to live happily together, just like we did as children before my village was attacked and I was taken by Prometheus.

Still I couldn't help but think there was more to the story I was missing. A missing piece to the puzzle, the reason why a thousand year old demon from the underworld would need to be reborn on Earth.

"Sunny, get down. I think I heard something." Ferina warned, urging my head down by tugging on my shoulder. The smell of burned rubber wafted into my nose from above, apprehension quickening my pulse.

Ferina and I dipped so low, we were almost sprawled out on the carpet, holding our breaths so as to not make a sound.

Concern dulled the shine of Ferina's striking blue eyes and by the way her fangs now protruded from between her lips, her beast was rising to the surface.

Several minutes went by and the strange scent passed us by. The silence of empty space greeted us, calming my nerves and tempted me into thinking everything would be alright.

Ferina poked her head up, taking a look around to see if the coast was clear.

"I think we're safe for now, but maybe we should find another hiding place, deeper in the library's interior." She whispered, hunching over onto her hands and knees. Sticking her butt in the air, she crawled on all fours.

"Okay, I'm right behind you." I rocked myself forward following her a few inches across the shaggy carpet.

"My, my, what a nice view. I thought they said demonesses were androgynous." A mellow voice trickled down from above. It was male and unfamiliar, but not particularly threatening.

Ferina and I looked up to see a handsome young mage, around his early twenties. His glossy blond hair sparkled in the faint light as he pleasantly smiled down at us from the top of the bookcase.

"No need to be alarmed, ladies. We're here for the Demon King, nobody else. Now why don't one of you be a dear and tell me where he's run off to? I promise not to hurt you if you do," he winked flirtatiously.

"We? Who is ‘we'?" I raised to my feet, staring him down. Ferina's glare shifted from him to me and back. You could cut the tension with a knife as she slowly stood.

"Yes, we've got several portals opened in the library, every minute that passes, another four or five of my brethren arrive."

"If you touch just one hair on either of our heads, King Malek will have you skinned alive." Ferina's jaw twitched angrily, and the mage's face brightened with amusement and delight.

"The monster couldn't care that much if he'd leave you lovely little ladies all alone." He ran his tongue over his upper lip as his eyes invaded my body from face to chest, lingering on my hips.

Lecherous plans involving my body were plastered all over his face.

"You don't know the first thing about him!" I snapped.

"Wait a minute," his eyes popped, his jaw going slack with realization. He jumped down from the bookcase snaking himself closer to me. "You're no demoness. You're the she-wolf that's got the Demon King pussy whipped, aren't you?" He squealed like he'd uncovered a dirty secret.

"I see my reputation precedes me." My glare went venomous in a warning for him to not come any closer. "Now here's how this is going to go down. You're going to turn around and pretend like you never saw us while we go on our merry way. Or, you can find out what it feels like to be ripped apart by demon and wolf fangs simultaneously. How does that sound? "

His head cocked back, a smug look scrawled on his face. "No mage male would turn down a chance to be touched by two beautiful women at the same time, not if he were straight. Do your worst."

Pain lit up my spine as the shift began, a series of cracking sounds let me know that Ferina's transformation had also been triggered.

"They're over there!" Four mages in dark purple cloaks blocked off the path in front of us, the blond one making five.

The memory of the incredible energy blasts displayed by the first two mages I'd encountered made me pause the shift.

"We can't take on that many of them, Ferina." I looked at her, my face pleading with her to run.

A thin layer of black fur had already sprouted on her face and arms, but her full beast form had yet to sprout. She peered over at the mages murderously.

The five mages didn't flee, instead they came barreling towards us.

Snatching my hand, Ferina turned and ran.

"Careful pretties, running only excites me." The blond mage purred.

His fingers dragged through my hair as I sprinted away.

A frightful roar busted from Ferina's mouth as she shifted. Gaining a foot of height, a furry black creature towered beside me. With a bear-like bulk, and a leather face with an elongated jaw and fierce red eyes, she reminded me of the demi-god's monster form. But instead of all fours, Ferina stood upright, and she was somehow more menacing than the demi-gods were.

Three mages hovered around us, the pattern of approaching footsteps alerted us to the fact that there were more on the way.

Where was Malek?

"Run, Sunny!" Farina's voice broke into my mind telepathically, setting off a flame that made my brain ache like a migraine.

She dug her claws into the mages on her left and blood soiled the ground.

Agitated and injured, the blond flung himself back, bringing his palms close, funneling blue energy into his palms until a tightly spooled orb formed.

I summoned the shift, desperate to help Ferina. My bones didn't rearrange, and I felt no part of my wolf come to the surface.

At least not until Mellow's voice seeped into my mind.

" No. I told you to stay away from the demon and now look what's happened." Mellow said curtly. " You never let me out for fun runs anymore. You only call me when your neck is on the line. Well, I'm tired of it. You're on your own this time. Show these mages' the power of your human form."

She said what she'd come to say and she was gone. Not caring that I was weaponless in a sea of enemies without her.

An explosion broke the sound barrier as the blond mage's energy blast took out five shelves at once. Ferina's quickness got her out of the path of the blast in time to avoid being killed, but by the twin streams of blood that trickled from her left arm, she'd been winged by the blast.

Dirty hands trapped me as four more mages rushed in trying to take the two of us prisoner so they could use us to get to Malek.

Ferina howled in pain as another energy blast, this one only slightly smaller than the last, bounced off her leg.

Her fur was singed, and the smell of burning flesh made my heart squeeze.

"You'll kill her!" I insisted, and the mages cackled boisterously.

"We only need one hostage to lure out the king. Your friend should have been smart enough to surrender instead of shifting. Did she expect to win against so many of us?" The blond mage said .

"Ferina!" I tried to get to her as she continued fighting off the mages' attacks. But I couldn't help as three mages restrained me by my arms and hair.

Two more orbs struck her, she swiped her claws in every direction but there were too many mages, and they were too powerful. More of her fur singed, accompanied by more blood.

I refused to stand here on the sidelines, watching Ferina die. Even without Mellow I still had one weapon at my disposal. I hadn't used my element since I'd been taken by Alpha Prometheus. It worked miraculously then, summoning unicorns who trampled Alpha Brock to death and allowed me to escape Prometheus' grasp.

But my powers were dangerous. Once unleashed, my chaos can never be controlled. Summoning it is like opening Pandora's Box. Once opened, the worst curveball the universe can possibly throw at you is sent your way. I only prayed that this time it helped and didn't make matters worse.

"Chaos unleash!" I cried loud enough for the gods to hear.

The mages who restrained me exchanged puzzled glances but as a few seconds passed without anything happening they sighed, seeming to figure there was nothing to fear.

A buckling sound emitted from overhead and I whispered a silent prayer that Pandora had sent something that even the mages would fear.

The mages muffled their talking as small fissures appeared in the walls and ceiling of the library.

The ground shook and the shelves began to sway violently as a large portion of the library roof lifted, as if ripped off by a hurricane.

Pieces of roof including cement blocks, wood planks and heavy debris came raining down on our heads bringing devastating destruction to the library.

Panic stricken, the mages ran in all directions trying to avoid being crushed or injured by the debris. I flew to Ferina's side, tucking myself under her arm, keeping her on her feet as she continued to lose blood.

"We have to find cover!" My voice met the loud rumbling that engulfed us.

"Leave me and run, I'll be okay. You'll get farther without me slowing you down." She coughed.

"I'm not leaving you." I pulled us to the left away from the cinder blocks that pummeled the shelf a few feet to our left.

The mages' shouts turned to a chorus of screams as a pair of eyes, the size of monster truck tires peeped in through the gaping hole in the ceiling.

"What is that thing?" A random voice shrieked as a giant hand infiltrated the library through the opening in the ceiling.

I froze and Ferina gasped as the hand seized one of the mages and plucked him through the hole. The mage screamed, going silent right as we heard a munching sound.

Ferina shifted back to human form, but she didn't say a word, the astonishment in her round eyes speaking on her behalf.

"Okay. I think It's time to get out of the library." I shuffled in the door's direction, helping Ferina along.

The giant hand tucked inside once more, this time grabbing a mage armed with a sword. The mage stabbed the hand frantically, seeming to aim for its wrists.

The giant hand shook the mage like a saltshaker. Whatever beast was outside must have seen the mage as a toy or something no more significant than an ant.

The mage vanished through the opening and the same terrible munching sound ensued, cloaking the once vibrant library with the ominous feel of impending doom. What hell had my chaos summoned?

Mages ran past Ferina and I, scrambling to find the exit, not giving two shits about capturing us anymore. Although this wasn't what I was expecting, at least now Ferina and I had a fighting chance to get out of this alive.

Ensuring we stayed as low as possible, we searched for the doors, ignoring the fact that the hand continued dipping inside. It picked off the mages one by one like potato chips in a bag. If we weren't careful, we might be next.

The redwood double doors came into view, and I took a grateful breath. We stretched closer as a flesh-colored wall blocked the overhead lights. The hand had found us.

Ferina hadn't seemed to have noticed what was happening. I shoved her toward the door as the hand grasped me in its clammy fingers.

Ferina shouted for the creature to let me go. Her pleas fell on deaf ears as it yanked me through the damaged ceiling into the chilly outside air.

I wasn't sure what I expected the hand to be attached to, but I hadn't pictured this.

A balding giant, ten stories high stared me in the eyes. It was naked with a plump round belly and it had two buck teeth sticking out from between its lips. An unnaturally tight smile expanded across it's some-what human looking face. I say somewhat because no human I'd ever seen looked half this ugly.

"Are you crazy or something? Didn't your mother teach you how to treat ladies? Now put me down!" I roared, scratching his skin with my nails.

Something shiny glinted at the corner of my eye. A sword was lodged in the giant's hand, near the wrist. It had been left by one of the mages before he was eaten.

"Wait, you are not like the others. You are the one who summoned me." His voice was slow, deep and rough as gravel.

"Yes, I'm the one who summoned you. You're welcome. Now you can thank me by not eating me and putting me down by those rose bushes." I pointed down at the lush garden. "Please and thank you. "

"Ha! Summoner or not, you're small just like the rest of them. You are worthless, worth nothing more than the pebbles beneath my feet." His lips slid open, showing yellow stained teeth.

Resisting the urge to fan away his foul breath I said, "You're not going to make many friends with that attitude."

"I don't need the friendship of puny shifters or mages." His jaw gaped, his tonsils staring me in the face. I grasped the sword by its handle and worked it loose.

He drew me in closer to his crater sized mouth and I swiped the blade across his upper lip, splitting it into two.

"Ouch!" he cried, stomping his feet in a childlike tantrum. "Why'd you do that?"

"If you don't like your food spicy, you should have dined elsewhere." I punctured his thumb with the sword, cutting through the flesh.

"Stop it. That hurts!" His other hand sprang forth. He drew it back as if to swat me like a fly.

My eyes squinted closed, bracing for the heavy blow. Twin swishing sounds followed the crack of what sounded like two hard objects colliding. My eyes broke open.

Malek in demon beast form, daggered his claws into the approaching hand, slicing it like a cut of meat.

The giant sobbed as his hand fell to the ground.

"How dare you capture my bride! Release her now." His voice was low and teamed with deadly menace.

Malek leapt to my side, taking me by the waist as he was trying to pull me free of the giant's grasp.

"I'll eat you both for this!" The giant stomped his feet again, bringing Malek and I towards his opened lips.

"Malek, hurry!" I yelled, now inches from his gaping lips .

I saw the back of its throat as we neared its mouth, the giant's foul breath making me want to gag. Fangs first, Malek jumped for the giant's neck.

With two determined slashes of his claws, Malek removed a triangle shaped lump of flesh, depriving the beast of his throat and voice box.

Realization struck too late for the beast as his eyes turned all white. Unable to breathe, he released me and began tumbling backward.

I fell several feet before Malek captured me with his arms. Using the giant's hip as a springboard, Malek jumped us onto the side of the building.

The giant connected with the ground with a deafening thump, and we climbed back inside the library through the destroyed roof.

We found Ferina near the door, and Malek set me down beside her.

Teams of demon guards scurried to the library, pushing aside the damaged bookcases. They attempted to unearth anyone who may have been trapped underneath the fallen rubble.

"Thank the gods you guys are alright." Ferina sat on a concrete block, gripping her injured side.

"We'll track down the remaining mages. Take Ferina to the infirmary and wait for me there." Malek pressed a kiss on my lips before handing Ferina and I into the care of three demon soldiers.

Joy brimmed in Farina's eyes at the sight that I was okay. But blood coursed from wounds on her torso and thigh. She had to be in considerable pain.

"Come on, let's go." I said, and before I could take Ferina's arm, one of the soldiers scooped her up princess style and bussed her to the door.

I followed behind, stopping as I noticed something.

The library looked like it was hit by a devastating twister. But more than just the books and shelves were damaged. The door to the restricted section had been bent open like a tuna can lid. The lock was still somehow in place, but it wouldn't stop me from creeping under or over the crushed door.

Inside promised the answer to so many questions about Malek's past and possible clues about how to get him off the war path.

"Lady Sunny, we must clear the library. It's still not safe here." One of the soldiers said as he and one other flanked me.

I nodded, deciding that helping Ferina was more important at the moment and I could come back later to get the information I needed.

We left the library, climbing a small flight of stairs to the wing that housed the infirmary. I was covered from head to toe in dust, dirt and gods knew what.

I prayed Ferina wasn't hurt too badly and wouldn't need to be admitted for as long as Malek had been. Because if there was one thing I learned from living amongst demons, it was how much they absolutely hated staying in one place for long.

First monsters, then mages, and now a fucking giant wanted to eat me alive. Things were getting out of hand. At every turn, our peace had been stolen and our lives put in danger, and why was that?

It was all for the sake of stopping Malek from starting a war. Yet Malek somehow thought this plan of his made me safer? Demon logic. I'll never understand it.