Chapter 144 - The Chase

Hem'ran turned and flapped his wings with vigor. He had to get as many demons as he could. The dark wizard wasn't easy to handle and he didn't know to what extent the fae princess' magic had started working. Gusts of wind coming from behind him meant that the others had entered the cave. He hurried to get reinforcement.

Anastasia ran as hard as she could to cover the maximum distance between her and the demons. However, she knew that once she reached the end of the cave, where would she go. It was so dark in the cave that she had stumbled twice and fallen on the floor, bruising her knees and hands. Slowly as she moved forward, her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Panting heavily, she looked back as she ran forward, narrowly missing a stalactite jutting from the low ceiling. The path became narrow. This meant that it would slow for the demons to come after her. But what was she going to do in that much time? Where was Ileus? 

Anger rose in her chest when her mind went back to what the demon had said. Maple had sent them. How did Maple know the winged demons? Were they rogues? Suddenly she hit a wall on the side and groaned at the pain. As she balanced herself, she craned her head around to see if this was the end. It wasn't. She sighed a breath of relief. She had to create as much distance between them as possible because she wanted Ileus to come. She wondered if she could find some crevice or a loft where she could hide. From what they had said, they would come in numbers, and if that happened, she would be dead in no time. She had read in the library at Vilinski that the winged demons had bane blood. The moment it touched your skin, you would get killed. 

The cave sloped down and the ground became slippery. Was there water trickling down? Her worst fears were realized as she slipped on the ground. The slippery ground would cause her to slow down. Each mess like this would set her back and she was running out of time. She could smell the stench of the demons. Her chest plummeted to her stomach as panic set in. Frustration marred her mind and all she wanted at that time was to kill Maple. She could feel magic pulsing in her veins at the thought. She wanted to strike Maple with her magic and bore a hole in her head. Anastasia rose to her feet and cautiously treaded the ground. She had to do something to buy time. She wasn't defenseless. Her heart thrummed with the energy that she felt in her chest and that was it. Despite her speed on the slippery ground, the demons were gaining on her. She heard them raking their nails on the walls, their wings had stopped flapping but their sickening smell was closing in. 

Anastasia was running for her life, for a future she had dreamt with Ileus, for her parents. 

As she ran faster, the cave broadened a little and it allowed her to increase her speed. When she heard them hissing and calling her, she glanced over her shoulder. Her front foot landed in the… air. "Ah!" she cried as her body pitched forward into vacant space and she fell on the ground. Anastasia tried to grasp onto anything—rocks, stones, even wet floor, but she continued to roll down. A rock projected from the side and she held it firmly to stop her motion. She stopped moving for some time as she caught her breath. She was feeling dizzy. Her hair was open and sticking to her back and neck and face. Her skin was splashed with dirt all over. She swallowed her saliva and then managed to rise on her feet. There were way too many bruises on her arms and legs. She started walking slowly, knowing very well that the way she had slipped, it must have caused noise. The demons were gaining. 

With a limp, Anastasia moved forward as fast as she could, and then— 

The cave came to an end. Breathless, she came to a stop. The end of the cave was rounded, but she found a space, a corner where she pressed herself. She wasn't going to go down so easily. Let them come and she would give them the best. So what if her wings were shackled? She knew how to fight like a warrior. She thanked Iskra on the inside for her training. 

"Anastasiaaa," a demon hissed. Slowly they came in, their red flinty eyes beaming in the dark. 

That was the only part of their anatomy she could see and that was the part she was going to attack. 

"Surrender to us," he said. "We know Ileus is not with you."

A pair of red eyes moved forward as other pairs remained in behind. 

The hell she would surrender. 

Her hand went to her dagger. In a split second she removed it from the strap of her thigh and flung in between the pair of the red eyes. 

"Ahhh!" The demon let out an excruciating scream and fell on the hard floor. She moved her hands forward to get her dagger back. 

"You can go to hell!" she said in a menacing voice. "And take your Maple with you!" Her chest was heavy with anger. Energy in her, rippled, wanting to come out…. Trying to find a release… 

After a moment of stunned silence, a demon said in a low, dangerous voice, "Come with us. Killing one of us is not going to stop us. You are badly trapped and outnumbered. If you think you have a chance of getting out of here, then know this—one of our men has gone to get backup. I feel it was unnecessary because we thought that the dark one would be with you." Others laughed. "But you are alone and useless. Your wings are shackled and your magic is repressed. So why don't you simply submit to us? We are going to take you to the crown prince and you will get married to him." 

Anastasia narrowed her eyes. They way they talked about Aed Ruad, it was as if they knew him well. Did he also have an army of rogues? "You must be dreaming!" she growled and sent her dagger flying in between his eyes. She twisted her hands making the dagger twist, hoping the demon died most painfully. And he did. He didn't even have the time to cry out. His body convulsed after falling on the ground and he died soon after. 

She could smell the blood flowing. The bane blood. 

All of a sudden, the others rushed to attack her simultaneously. Not knowing what to do, she just let the energy out. A blinding beam of light broke from her and her body glowed with it. She felt floating off the ground. Her hair curled up. Her arms spread open as she allowed the light to flow from her body. 

The light struck the demons and the next she heard were screams of immense pain. She smelled flesh burning, bones cracking and body piling over each other. Her anger simmered on the inside. "Take that!" 

Little did she realize that she had attracted a horde of winged demons.