The Last Harmon [Complete]

Chapter 42

"Curtis! Are you down here?"

None of the candles are lit, and when I try to breathe fire into them, the spark doesn't last. I cling to the edge of the wall as I walk slowly down the steps into the artifact chamber. I've spent hours down here, but this is the first time it feels. . . eerie.

"Curtis," I call. "This isn't funny."

My foot hits the flat pavement and I scroll my eyes around the large room, I conjure light to all of the candles, and the room becomes brighter. It's clear that Curtis isn't here, and I don't have time to search the entire castle for him. I approach my mother's spell book that he left open on a table, when I go to grab it, the pages start flipping. The book closes itself. And then a soft wind travels around the room, blowing out the light. It's silent and my heartbeat starts to accelerate. There is suddenly a small creak from the corner of the room and in the shadows of the corner, I see the outline of something terrifying. I move backwards towards the steps as the creature stares at me. I begin shaking as I relight the candles, but the shadow is gone.

I walk around the room slowly, keeping my eyes on that corner as my trembling hands reach out for the spell book. When I look back, I am greeted with the inhuman face of a demon. Its eyes are giant holes with no colour, its skinless jaw breaks as it expands to the entire width of its head, letting out a low frequency growl that impales my head with pain. Black blood drips from its muscle-torn mouth as its razor-sharp teeth of hundreds snap at my face. I scream. The creature's claws, with thin, bendy nails, wrap around the book and it drags it along the table. It's then that I realise I've seen the creature before, weeks ago in the library. It attacked me and I believed it was a hallucination, a product of Vienna's reach. But I can feel how real it is. Even when I resurface my demon side, the creature doesn't fade. It springs itself over the table and leaps at me.

I fall to the floor, scurrying backwards. The creature's back snaps as it stands straight, its head starts twisting in a sinister set of notions when my hands turn blue. The creature halts its attack, breathing shallowly at my hands. And then the lights turn out again.

I am plunged into blackness, and I can't see anything. It grabs my legs and pulls me along the floor on my back. I squirm and scream, trying to kick my way to freedom. Its claws dig into each of my shoulders, impaling me to the floor. Even in the darkness, I can see into its eyes. It sticks them directly over my face, forcing me to look inside. It growls at me again, louder this time. Inside the creature's eyes, I see the burning bodies of millions. Their cries of agony, their hopeless attempt at trying to survive, their souls banished to a world of darkness and misery. I scream so loud that I fear I'll lose my voice. It is a scream of pure terror, and the creature likes it.

I am trapped in that state for what feels like years. There is no escape from it, it feeds off of my fear, my power, I cannot close my eyes, no matter how hard I try. A bright green light suddenly lights up the room and the creature releases me, its head twisting towards the steps. It squeals at something and then vanishes.

I pat down my whole body in a frenzy, feeling violated and powerless. I manage to sit up, with sweat dripping down my skin, and I meet the eyes of a pale white Curtis who holds up the amulet in a state of shock.

"Curtis," I whisper. "Thank god."

"That was a demon," he says quietly, his eyes fixated on the air. "That was. . . a demon."

"Yeah and he wasn't very friendly," I say. "Did the amulet do that? Scare him away?"

"I. . . I think so."

The light returns around the chamber and I slowly get to my feet. Even though I know it's gone, I still check the corner.

"They can't be in our world for more than a few seconds," he says. "And they're not strong enough to physically attack in their own form. But it did. What happened, Theresa? Why are you here?"