The ground was rumbling. Why was the ground rumbling? It was like a stampede of horses. That had happened once. A long time ago. Tore through the village. Had caused so much trouble. Everything but the bar was shut down for a week. People actually came in a few times. It was nice and weird.
But this earthquake of a movement was infinitely worse.
Grunting Snow opened her eyes slowly and got off the ground slowly. Stumbling left and right she got her bearings and put her hands on her knees. It was dark and she felt the moon above her. The air was blowing on her face and she brushed her hair out of her face. Blinking slowly Snow looked around trying to find Ryza.
And that’s when she saw it. The large muscular thing stomping across the ground. It was covered in bristles and spines along its arms. It walked on its back legs and leaned on its arms almost ten feet tall hunched over. It had a long thin tail like a lizard’s, trashing against the ground. But it was the thing it currently had its mouth locked around that got her attention.
Ryza was in the demon’s mouth, her shovel conjuring a spirit around her for protection. Its glowing green hands kept the thing’s mouth wedge open. Even from where she was Snow could hear Ryza chanting a spell in an ancient language. Her spirit shoved the creature backward and she jumped free hitting the ground. In response, the demon roared frustration.
The roar echoed in Snow’s soul, almost driving her down to her knees. She pressed her hands to her head grinding her teeth together and felt something in her chest. Something burning or clawing at the inside of her, twisting her stomach into knots. The roar reverberated in her and she had to fight the urge to scream back. And then she watched a flash of green explode from the ground. Legions of spectral skeletons burst forward arms out to grab the thing.
It raised one arm and swept it down striking and shattering them into pieces. Ryza cried out but her chanting renewed even stronger. Eyes widening Snow stumbled forward and started running toward the fighting. The monster broke through another rank of skeletons when Snow jumped shoulder first and slammed into the back of the monster.
It stumbled forward and Snow rolled across the ground when its tail whipped forward and tossed her away. She crashed into a spirit and expected to go through it but it caught her. Looking up she stared at a shocked Ryza. Ryza walked over to her, helping pull her to her feet. “Good you’re awake. I was almost worried.”
“What happened Ryry? What is that?”
“A demon,” she said grimly. “Birthed down from the sky and attacked us while we were riding. You and the horse were blown away from me and I’ve been fighting it since. But it’s a losing battle.”
Snow nodded standing in front of Ryza but behind the spirits. She looked at the face of the demon and watched as it split open in five ways, the jaw splitting revealing no teeth but three tri forked tongues. Lining both sides of its head were rows of red eyes, small and bright. It stomped the ground and charged at them. The spirits faded and new ones replaced them, charging at it.
It reared back on its hind legs then came crashing down on top of them. it shattered the skeletons and sent their pieces scattering across the ground. A few skeletons managed to get close and beat at its legs stabbing with their broken arms. But they were just swatted again as the demon hissed.
“Your necromancer thing doesn’t seem to be working,” Snow said raising her arms. Again she felt something moving inside her like her stomach twisting in knots. She crossed her arms over her stomach and retched going down to her knee.
“Snow what’s wrong?” Ryza asked sharply trying to look between her and the demon. “Were you hurt?”
“I don’t know,” she mumbled. Her chest burned and she could hear the demon roaring in her mind. She screamed before holding it back, biting into her lip hard enough to taste blood.
Ryza watched her and then shook her head. She had no idea what was wrong with Snow but she was on her own here. The demon roared and surged toward the pair of women its arms spread. She swept her arm forward, scratching the shovel through the ground, and watched as a hand dug itself out of the ground.
It caught the demon’s claw and then another emerged from the ground punching the demon in the head. A translucent body manifested, a spirit surging forward and attacking like a trained fighter. But the demon was unfazed and swung back on its own. Every time the demon’s claws tore a chunk from the spirit Ryza winced.
It slashed and cut through the barely corporeal form of the spirit weathering blow after blow from its fist. It was like all it could accomplish was to piss the thing off. Finally having enough of the spirit, the demon lunged clamping its jaws down on its shoulder. When it bit down Ryza screamed feeling pain not in her shoulder but in her mind.
Stumbling backward she tried to hold onto her shovel but the demon attacked again, digging its claws into its sides. She grit her teeth together one of her eyes closing tightly. Her eyes glowed and she jerked her hand forward grabbing the shovel. The spirit grabbed hold of the demon and flashed with light.
Ryza screamed pointing her shovel forward and then the spirit exploded into light. She sank down to her knee and watched as the demon approached. Its chest was huffing and some of its spines were broken off but it was in one piece. Its tongues flicked and it darted forward closing in on the two of them.
Throwing her hand forward she conjured more skeletons throwing them in the way of the demon but they shattered on contact. Grasping her shovel, she pointed at it letting the runes glow to life. She didn’t imagine dying to a demon after everything she’d been through but she wasn’t going to go out easily.
And that’s when the roar echoed beside her and she was dragged backward. Not just dragged, thrown. She flew across the ground landing on her back and unable to get her footing. Grunting she reached for her shovel and then felt the ground shake as a mighty step was being taken.
Standing over her was what she thought could only be Snow. She was a great white wolf on two legs with long arms far bigger than Ryza had ever seen her before. She towered over Ryza, still shorter than the new demon but at least at eight or nine feet tall. She growled, gnashing her teeth together, and finally roared.
Snow lunged at the demon slamming into it and throwing it backward. Her claws tore across the flesh of the demon eliciting a roar from it. The demon snarled and lunged at her digging one claw into her chest. Spreading its mouth its tongues darting forward. They tried to find her but she moved like a blur of white.
Avoiding whatever it attempted to do she was suddenly on its flank. Her claws struck like lightning tearing through its arm. She lunged biting down at the wound she made and pulled, ripping the demon’s arm from its socket. Its blood sprayed across the ground and she threw her head back in triumph.
Its jaws went back and it roared back at her, warbling as it leaned on its remaining arm. Snow padded around revealing rows of her teeth and snarling. But Ryza saw it at the edges of her mouth. Saw the tears starting to form in her jaw wishing to spread. Ryza looked closer at her eyes and saw them both split from one to two and then to four.
The demon surged forward at an awkward gait without its arm. Snow almost seemed to sneer and avoid its clumsy bite. Her hands surged forward, grabbing it by the throat and pulled. Her claws dug into its neck and she snarled, her jaw splitting open just like the demons. With a vicious tearing echoing in her ears Ryza watched as the demon’s head was ripped from its neck.
Its body came forward slowly and then fell to the ground with a meaty thud. Ryza leaned against her shovel and then took a breath getting her bearings properly. Snow huffed her shoulders rising and falling rapidly.
Ryza stared at her back and could see Snow within this form. She was in there, eyes closed like she had been previously. But when she turned around to face Ryza, she saw her multiple eyes in the wolf’s face and the jaw spread into parts. Growling she started walking toward her.
“That was certainly impressive. I think I’ve figured out your ‘curse’ now,” she said but paused. She stared at Snow’s real body and noticed that it was different. Instead of floating outside the wolf’s body, it was within it. Like this new demon had grown out of her and now she was lodged within it.
Snow started to move faster and Ryza didn’t have time to think twice as Snow was suddenly charging at her. Ryza grabbed her shovel and raised it high. A skeleton appeared from the ground not fast enough as one of Snow’s claws slashed across her cheek. Her skeleton finally appeared shoving Snow back giving Ryza time to dart away and touch the wound at her face.
Snow snarled and slashed tearing bones from its torso and shattering an arm. “Snow wake up! The demon’s dead!”
She just roared back ripping and tearing at the skeleton driving forward. She dug both her hands through the ribcage and shattered it to pieces. Stomping forward she leaned back roaring and the noise gave Ryza a migraine that almost dropped her down to her knee.
“Eyes up Ryza. You can’t let your guard down.”
Ryza raised her head, eyes going wide. The voice in her head echoed like a ghost and her heart wrenched to mirror the ache in her head. But she had to know. She had to know if it were real. “Is that you brother?”
“Something like that. But right now you need to avoid being killed,” the voice of her brother said. “You have all of my magic and abilities. You know what to do here.”
She did know what the voice was suggesting but before that she shouted, “Snow! I know you’re in there!” She snarled finishing off the skeleton and turned her gaze onto her, zeroing in on her. “Please don’t make me hurt you.”
Snow took a step forward and hissed. She leaned forward and hesitated, blinking at her. But then she roared and started running again. “It’s now or never Ryza!”
The silver filled her eyes she gripped the shovel. Spinning it around she stabbed the blade deep into the dirt like a spear. She could see Snow closing the distance between them but stopped. Even she, in whatever state this was, could feel the change. Feel something shift in the air.
“I raised you from the dead. My will gives you life. I am the conduit to your existence. Now answer my call. Descend from the sky and serve your new master!” Raising the shovel to the sky she shouted. “Come!”
The magic shot into the sky and tore it open, illuminating it like the sun rising for a moment. The wind picked up and lightning flashed above their heads. A screech split the air as a great bird descended from the sky, wings covered in silver magic. Snow turned to stare at it and howled spreading her arms like a challenge. It crashed into her driving her to the ground. She was blown back almost knocked unconscious.
But she wasn’t.
Swiping with her claws she cut at the risen demon’s leg and underbelly. It screeched buffeting him and ascending backward. It spread its wings and dove down again raking its claws across her chest and arms. Snow howled as the talons tore open her arm. But she managed to grab its leg and drag it out of the sky. It crashed into the ground and Ryza ran after them.
She slid in front of Snow as the zombified demon turned to face the wolf. It spread its wings and screeched as the skies above them lit up but Ryza ignored it. She stood in front of Snow and stared her down, earning the gaze of all eight of those eyes. She pressed her hands together and stared at Snow.
“Finish it off Ryza. The woman you met is gone.”
“I can feel you in there, Snow,” she whispered. “You may be cursed but you’re not gone. I’m not going to give up on you.”
Her fingers tips glowed and she pointed at Snow’s chest. She chanted and watched as a symbol began to carve its way onto her chest. The wolf scratched at the symbol but it wasn’t physically there. Ryza continued to draw and chant but Snow started to move. She stumbled forward, gained her bearings, and attacked Ryza. Her claws scratched her, scoring a deep cut across her other cheek and near her throat but she didn’t flinch away.
She stood there rigid and frozen in place as Ryza swiped her hand to the side. The wolf’s form began to shimmer and then fall apart. It faded and crumbled leaving Snow suspended in the air. Once it was gone, she fell and Ryza rushed forward catching her. She collapsed to the ground holding Snow close.
She stared at her back and saw the symbol again. The vines were frayed and broken entirely. The circle was torn apart as if by a set of claws but the flower looked healthy. Brighter. She touched it lightly and Snow began to stir as she looked down at her.
She was barely breathing, her body was shaking, but to make it worse Ryza stared at her soul. Stared into her and she saw the wolf. She saw the demon. It was lurking around inside of her except this time its true colors were present. Its multiple eyes and four pronged mouth. “What did your family do to be cursed by this?”
The Harlequin Library 