The Demon and the Elf (Book 1)

Chapter Seventeen pt 4

Weaponless, Vrona held up her fists.

As if in slow motion, a woman raised her arm to throw a blanket of dark magic. A man reeled back to swing his dagger. Vrona stepped forward, thrusting her fist.

Before any strike hit a single target...

All the researchers fell, a pile of limp bodies scattered on the floor. Well, all except for Vrona and Mon, who stood in the sudden silence.

"I'm offended you'd doubt me, Vrona."

"What—"

"They've only fainted. I've been drugging the food of everyone in this lab just in case with a poison that only reacts in contact with this." Mon raised a hand. In between her fingers stuck out barely visible needles dripping with a sort of liquid. "Of course, this includes me and you."

Sharply moving her head back down, Vrona noticed that pierced on the backs of the researchers' bare necks were the same needles. "Why?" she asked, completely perplexed.

"Is that what you ask someone who just saved your life? The others may not notice, but I know you. I know you've been adding pain relievers to the magic suppressants. I know you've been trying to have everyone off guard with your obedience. I know you have intentionally excelled in the experiments to raise ranks, to lessen suspicion, to gain access. I know you're not one to just give up."

A lopsided grin creased a side of Vrona's face. "Oh darling Mon, you know me the best. But just to be clear, you're not planning to stop me?"

Mon glanced at the pile of bodies below and sighed gravely. "You can't be this idiotic."

Vrona's grin widened and her eyes glowed full of life. "You said you didn't want to be involved."

Rolling her eyes, Mon then looked straight into Vrona's glowing gaze, the faintest of smirks tinging her lips. "Don't forget, you promised liberty of research." Before another word was spoken, the sharp point of a wet needle in Mon's hand faced Mon, herself, only millimeters away.

"What are you—"

"I know today wasn't in your plans, but it's the only chance you're going to have. I've cleared the area. So, hurry."

"What about you?"

Albeit subtle, an actual smile draped on Mon's lips. "I'll come visit sometime."

In the next moment, a corked vial was tossed in the air and just as Vrona caught it, another body fell upon the rest in the room. Opening her hand, she viewed the vial filled with soaked needles. Walking carefully past the bodies, she came to Mon's side and kneeled down, her mouth hovering above the ear of her companion. Thank you, the words drifted in the wind and she set off.

Away from the room, she ran past the bodies that lay seemingly lifeless in the hallway, all pricked with needles. Impressed, she was to say the least, added with the discomfort of the eerie silence of the corridors the situation left her in. An unmarked door stood in front of her, and with a preparing breath, she took the key she was granted with thanks to her promotion and unlocked the door.

Inside, the elf was well sedated, the up and down of his chest the only sign he had life. Nearby, Vrona grabbed a piece of parchment and wrote a note on one side, drawing a spell circle on the other. A drop of blood from a prepared vial splattered on the paper for it to vanish on contact, later to show up wherever her brother had been.

Unlocking a drawer to the side revealed tools, some of which were a mallet and chisel. Grabbing both, Vrona came beside the elf, placed the chisel on his metal chain bindings, and hammered with might until one of the chains broke off.

As soon as it did, alarms started to ring around the building. Swearing within her breath, Vrona continued with precision. Although all the fainted staff nearby would buy some time, there were staff from other sections of the lab who would certainly claim their visit at some point.

By the time she had started to work on the last ankle binding, she heard the metal door clank open. But as soon as it opened, an explosion caught fire, sending the first set of new visitors backwards. The result of a spell Vrona had quickly prepared on the door in advance. Quickly, Vrona rushed over to throw needles from the vial Mon had given her at all the fallen beings, into their revealed skin, instantly immobilizing them. The demoness whispered in gratitude.

Back to work, and with a deep thud, the last chain broke. Grabbing the elf by an arm, she drew him away from the examination table and placed his large, flaccid body onto her back. Walking just one foot and then another, her steps grew slow, heavy. Eventually, he ended up draped over a small wheeled cart that was used to carry materials.

Pushing away bodies on the way, Vrona, very un-heroically, dragged the small cart with the dangling body across the halls, his limbs occasionally hitting into walls. The clicks and creeks of the wheels echoed in the open space and the lanterns slid multiple shadows of their movement. Reaching the exit, she walked up stairs to an overhead door. But—

The door was locked. And her key didn't work.

However, she had expected as much. And had prepared for such. So, within the blink of an eye, she had drawn a spell circle on the lock with charcoal. When the last of the line connected, the circle melted through the lock, letting her open the door with moderate ease.

Pulling the elf off the cart, she placed him on her back and walked steadily back up the stairs. Her heartbeat thudded hard, fast, as she took her first breath of fresh air— and this time, with the elf.

It's happening. It's happening. It had finally caught up to her the reality of the circumstance. Without wasting anymore time, bursting with adrenaline, she had started to run as fast as she could past an abundance of trees, finding an open space where she could freely reveal her wings and fly.

Rushed as she was, she had suddenly felt a surge of energy on her back, a power so strong her pores rose instinctively despite her lack of sensing magic. And then, she realized. The lab was filled with anti-magic rooms or otherwise magic suppressing walls. Which meant, despite the sedatives and suppressants injected into his body, the elf's magic was now free of external constraint.

On reflex, she dropped him and took a step back, examining the situation. One more step back, the crushing of a fallen leaf. And in the moment, a blast. When the debris fell, revealing vision once again, the ground had crumbled in the diameter of a crater. Trees in their surroundings had uprooted or broke off.

A deep breath in, coughing, Vrona gathered herself from being lunged backward with an invisible force. What she saw ahead was the elf, eyes bulging, bared teeth grown the size of a beast's, a carnage on his face. A heavy energy surrounded him and his fingers clawed into the ground, his veins thick and visible. A monstrous sound grated through his teeth, silencing all the creatures around.

Off in the distance, she saw a pair of deep indigo demon wings making their way towards them in the now open area of the once tree filled field. The indigo wings, like her own two. The demon swung his wings grandly to ease the landing, dust and small rocks bouncing off the rubbery membranes from the gust.

"Are you okay?" The demon's soft voice whispered in concern, in confusion, as his hands steadied her shoulders..

"Y-yeah. I think he's overwhelmed with his magic—" Vrona started to explain to her brother.

But just as he turned his head to face the subject of her words, the elf's eyes met his and in that instant, the world held its breath. Both the men's eyes widened and the roaring waves within their bodies could fool not even nature.

Slowly, the air around the elf eased, his teeth shrank back to a normal size, his eyes softened, although still bewildered. The sunlight eased past the clouds, reflecting a glitter, an odd warmth in both of their eyes.

Finally, Vrona's brother awkwardly turned to face her, his brows upturned and smile shy with a weak, puzzled laugh. He walked up carefully to the elf and kneeled in front of him, lowering his face to look up. "First of all, let's get you out of here, okay?" The spell of his words eased into the elf and the elf collapsed once more. While he was still unconscious, the two demon siblings lifted their wings and flew off, the elf snug within the arms of his newly bonded demon.