Dag had approached the Corruptor with rage and with caution. The one he could not help, but the other he had to work hard to remember.
Every instinct he possessed wanted him to throw himself on the vile Demon and rend it limb from limb, but he recognized the impossibility of victory. The body of the Hierophant was simply the host for Nazgahchuhl, not the Demon itself. Destroying the host would merely inconvenience the Demon, and with all the death already filling the hall, that action might provide the last bit of strength needed to return the Demon to its natural form.
Knowing this, he forced himself to stay back, to give the Demon a wide berth even as his claws stretched and ached to feel the tearing of muscle from bone. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Kees approaching as well. The other Guardian moved in from the opposite side, keeping the Demon in front of and between them as they closed the distance across the stage.
Dag did not fool himself that the Corruptor didn’t feel his presence, didn’t know down to the last inch where each Guardian in the room stood or flew at that very moment. It knew Dag and Kees approached from the sides; it knew Spar and Knox waded through the bodies on the floor of the auditorium while battling the evil creatures that had poured through the portal, the nocturnis had managed to open.
It knew where the Wardens stood, knew how fiercely they fought to vanquish the cult’s magic users and turn the tide of the battle. It knew about Kylie.
“Yes, Guardian, I know all sorts of interesting things,” the Demon purred, its voice reverberating in a range a human could never have achieved. The host’s vocal cords would never be the same. Not that it mattered; no human could survive the taint of hosting one of the Seven for more than a moment. “I know you and your brothers think you can win this little war of ours, so of course I know that you have found these females you call mates.”
It laughed, a sound that scraped against bone and tooth, pinging against exposed nerve. “Poor fools. Do you not see that the thing you so value is your greatest weakness?”
“Weakness?” Kees hissed, baring his fangs. “Our Wardens are standing against your precious servants and fighting the battle we all know we will win. You cannot triumph, Demon, not while the Light exists.”
“Oh, your precious Light is already growing dim,” the Demon said dismissively. “In the end we will devour it, just as we will devour this pitiful little world and every soul in it.”
It lifted its head, stretching the human neck to unnatural lengths, then closing its eyes and sniffing the air like a pig scenting truffles. “Mm, so many tasty, tasty souls, falling like a banquet before me. I must remember to thank my servants for the feast.”
Suddenly its eyes snapped open and its head whipped around to stare at Kees with a malevolent smile. “Though what was that you said about your Wardens ‘standing,’ Guardian? Because I think that if you’ll care to look, you’ll see one of them very much off her precious little feet.”
Kees looked immediately to the floor, his black eyes searching for the petite form of his mate. Dag looked as well. His gaze flitted over Fil, her pale hair easy to spot in the crowd, and he thought he saw Wynn as well, but the glimpse was fleeting. He told himself not to worry because his gaze failed to find Kyle; she was so tiny, she could easily become lost among all the taller and larger humans. And Ella might be a bit larger, but her sweet, unremarkable looks could also get lost in the chaos below.
Kees growled, and Dag turned to glare at him. “Calm yourself, brother. You know better than to listen to a filthy, lying Demon. Your mate will be well. They will all be well.”
“Such optimism, Guardian,” the Demon taunted. “Are you so certain your own little female is not one of the souls that already fills my belly?”
“I am certain,” Dag snarled. “Her power is such that it would catch in your accursed gullet and choke you, filth of Darkness.”
“Ooh, that flavorful, is she? Maybe I’ll save her for dessert, then. I could even let you watch while I suck her body dry.”
Kees thundered, “Shut your mouth, Demon scum. My brother is right. Our Wardens are too much for you or any of the loathsome pit crawlers called the Seven to deal with. In fact, if I were you, I would turn my attention away from baiting the ones who will destroy me and fix on the depletion of my forces by the little females you choose to dismiss.”
For a moment, the Demon’s smile slipped and his gaze flew to the floor of the auditorium.
Dag had heard a shift in the chaotic noise of battle, but he stood angled too far away from the floor to see what had happened. Kees had a much better view and had begun to appear grimly satisfied.