Her eyes saw something glittering in the corner. She darted for the multiple swords she saw and grabbed one that appeared to be a short sword since she figured she’d be better at wielding it than the others.
Reia then ran back outside, choking out a cry when she saw the Demon bite into Orpheus’ side. It took a chunk of him as she screamed and swung her sword sideways.
It jumped, flapping its wings to dodge her. She chased it around the yard, carelessly swinging her sword any way she could to attack it. It squeaked and squawked as it backed up, jumping to swoop forward before dodging again. She refused to give it any room as she attacked without any skill or training whatsoever.
Its back met the invisible barrier, instantly halting its progress, and it allowed her the opening she needed to slice deeply into its side. It wailed, writhing desperately to be free, but the pressure of the wall and her sword kept it from moving as she began to hack into it. Over and over, Reia swung. The blade dug into its side again, then its shoulder, then its wing as it tried to shield itself.
Only when it was wheezing on the ground did she start stabbing it from above until it was lifeless. Giving a war cry, she stabbed it through the head to make sure it stayed dead since she didn’t know if it would heal or not.
It oozed putrid, acidic-smelling blood, and she was covered in it.
Her hands trembled at what she had done, but she couldn’t allow her trauma to settle.
Another Demon had flittered to the edge of the salt circle. It was small, having only two arms that it used to walk, and its form was disgusting as it had no torso or legs.
Still gripping the sword, she sprinted for Orpheus and dragged him towards the house, needing to get him inside where he would be safe, where they both could be safe. She knew Orpheus was bleeding heavily due to the trail of blood behind him.
The Demons were moving, but the medium-sized one was crawling around the circle with determination, sniffing along the ground as it tried to figure out a way in. It was more dog-shaped than anything, its human arms and legs bent like that of an animal with a stout muzzle on its face.
She didn’t even know it had found the weak spot in the barrier until it grabbed her around the ankle and yanked as she was dragging Orpheus up the porch steps.
Claws cut into her calf, and she swung as it turned her around. The sword embedded into its side, making it yelp and jump back.
She knew she had to fight it before she could get Orpheus inside.
Limping, Reia walked in a circle as it stalked her. The Demon seemed to wait to attack, which made it all the more terrifying. Was it sentient enough to think to corner her? It didn’t say anything to her, but it was barking and frothing at the mouth. Its red eyes were riveted to her, unwilling to remove them from its prey.
It jumped forward to tackle her. She stabbed upwards at the same time and pushed the sword through its chest in one go. It clawed her shoulder before yelping once more.
It whined and tore at its chest in pain. When she sprinted forward to attack, it whined louder and bolted away with its tail between its legs. She almost wanted to laugh. The Demon was afraid of her, of her sharp, pointy blade.
She went back to Orpheus, dragging him up the stairs slowly, only having to stop occasionally to present her sword to the injured Demon before it scuttled away.
It didn’t want to die, but it clearly wanted her as it teetered on the edge of the porch steps.
She would have rested at the top of the stairs, knowing he was safe, but she thought if she stopped moving she’d permanently collapse. Reia dragged him, little-by-little, all the way to his room.
“Why are you so damn heavy!” she yelled as she tried to push him onto his bed.
After multiple attempts, she managed to hook him on enough that she could throw each of his limbs onto the mattress. He lay on his stomach, partially on his side, but he was finally there – a place where he could rest.
“This has been the most stressful day of my life.”
She sat on the ground with her knees to her chest, facing his bed with fingertips digging into her forehead.
For a little while, Reia sat there, feeling the burning in her tired legs and arms as she tried to calm her breathing. It took her a long time to notice the stench of Demon blood on her, and she hissed in a breath when she touched her shoulder to examine her wound.
She looked at her blood on her fingertips, worried that she’d gotten Demon blood in her wound and it would become infected.
We almost died.
She wanted to wash away the smell and evidence of what she’d just been through. Reia headed for the dining table where she’d seen the large bucket of water he’d obtained for her.
After she grabbed a smaller bucket and dipped it inside to fill it, she carried it to the washroom, peeling her blood-stained gown away from where it grotesquely clung to her skin, the urge to dry-retch heaving her diaphragm. Sitting inside the tub, she used a cloth to wipe down her naked body, dipping it inside the water before wringing it clear.
It took her a long while to clean her body enough that she was satisfied, rubbing the oil Orpheus usually used on her to help wash her skin. It soaked into her flesh, helping to erase the smell. She knew she had just wiped away Orpheus’ spell, but she didn’t care.
She hoped that she could do the spell herself, that maybe he lied to her and had just wanted to touch her. Sympathy at the thought sailed through her; that perhaps he had just wanted to touch because he felt alone.
Guilt also clutched her throat heavily, refusing to ease or lift away. She’d fled, and now he was injured and forced into a sleep state.
Why did I even run away? H-he’s really not that bad.
Reia’s cries echoed against the walls as she wiped at her skin with the oil. This had been a traumatic day, for anyone, but especially someone who had never wanted to be placed in this position to begin with.
I’m so freaking stupid.
Her tears didn’t stop as she tore one of the gowns to bandage her ankle and shoulder before she grabbed another bucket of water, leaving very little behind, so she could take it to him.
Placing the bucket and cloth on the ground, she cut away his shirt with a dagger, thankful he hadn’t been wearing his thick jacket which would have been harder to cut through.
Bit by bit, as she sliced the long-sleeved shirt from his torso, she revealed his body. Maybe, in the beginning, she would have been disturbed by what she saw, but her mind barely cared about their differences as she searched for his wounds so she could clean and bandage them.