CHAPTER 29
Panic washed over me, confusion holding its hand.
What was happening?! More screams of terror made their way to my room.
I couldn’t just sit idly by while people were in danger, and then my thoughts instantly jumped to the one person I cared about most. Maya!
I had to help Maya! A pulse of energy radiated from the swords leaning against the wardrobe, so I ran to them and grabbed them, but as I turned to run back out, my dress caught in my heels.
Fuck this fucking dress. Reaching a sword down, I gathered the loose fabric just above my knees and sliced it off.
I unstrapped the heels and tossed them aside, finally glad to be free of them; now I could run.
Exiting my room with a sword in each hand, I jogged down the hallway, trying to make as little noise as possible; my bare feet barely made a sound on the marble floor.
I was nearly to the end of the hall when a cloaked figure appeared, holding a party guest by the neck, no, not holding, using its power, to drain their soul. How the hell are they inside the manor!
Save them! The voice demanded.
My feet were moving before I could comprehend what I was doing.
I used the slickness of the marble floor to slide behind the monster and slice through its ankles.
It let out an ear-piercing scream as the guest dropped to the floor, gasping for air as they scrambled away on their hands and knees.
The monster was writhing on the floor, turning this way and that until it noticed me.
Its skin was grey, and there was no color left to it; the decay had set in, and the muscles and bones peaked from underneath the paleness of its skin.
I stood up quickly as black, gooey blood poured from the creature’s legs.
It stretched its hand out towards me, trying to pull itself closer.
Now. Kill it. Stab it.
I did not need to be told twice, and without hesitation, I raised the sword and struck down.
The tip of my sword pierced the back of its head and emerged from its eye socket; a black eyeball was stuck to the blade.
I pulled the sword out, and the motion released the eyeball, causing it to roll across the floor, leaving a black mist in its path.
Maya! I had to get to Maya. I peeked around the corner to make sure no other Soulless were waiting, but the upstairs halls were empty.
I carefully made my way down to the main floor as party guests were fleeing out the front doors.
Staying close to the wall so my back was covered in case of a surprise attack, I inched closer to the room.
I could hear the cries of people and the ear-piercing screams of monsters coming from the ballroom.
Blood and black mist covered the floors, overtaking the white and gold marble patterns, replacing them with new ones.
Growls and snarls mixed in with the dreadful noises, and I hoped that Ulric was okay, knowing he was the owner of one of the growls.
I peeked into the room, praying that Maya was unharmed, but a Soulless was already in the room searching for its next meal.
I couldn’t see anyone. The bathroom door clicked and locked into place, and the Soulless shot its head in that direction.
It strode over to the door and scratched its jagged, yellow nails down it, hovering over the lock until it clicked.
What the fuck! The door swung open, and screams of terror came from inside.
Without thinking, I moved and raised my sword to attack, but at the last second, it turned and spread its hands out in front of it.
I was hit by an invisible barrier that pushed me backward to the ground, knocking the wind out of me, sending my swords flying across the room.
I coughed, trying to catch my breath as the creature moved towards me.
I rushed backward on my hands, using my feet to push myself farther away from it.
With each anxious inch, I tried to reach my swords or anything that could be used as a weapon.
Taking another step towards me, it stretched its hand out and growled.
Wait! That growl didn’t come from the creature!
A large black wolf had grabbed it by the ankles and was dragging it away, as the creature's talons reached for me.
I jumped to my feet and grabbed my swords.
A path of claw marks was left by the creature's nails that dug into the marble floor while trying to escape Ulric’s jaws.
Lifting my sword, I brought it down on its neck, separating its head from its body.
The black mist sprayed from its body, and as it stopped twitching, black blood ran from the spot where its head used to be.
I looked to Ulric to make sure he was unharmed, and he lowered his head in a warning growl.
“Oh, stop, I wasn’t going to sit around.” I wiped my blade on the creature's robe.
Turning away from him, I rushed into the bathroom to find the lady’s maids huddled in a corner together.
“Avyn?!” Maya jumped up. “What is happening?” Tears ran down her face.
“I’ll tell you later. You need to get to safety. Ulric! Take them to a safe place, please.”
I turned back, and he was in his human form, slipping on a pair of pants. Where the hell did those come from?
“You need to come with us.” He demanded.
“No, I need to find Zendryk.” I retorted.
“Zendryk can handle himself. We need to move, now!” He demanded as he buttoned up the top of his pants.
One look at the terrified group of women was all it took for me to shut my mouth and help the others up and out of their hiding spot in the corner.
“Stay close and keep your back to the wall as much as possible,” Ulric ordered.
I took the spot at the back of the line, making sure they were in between us, and we promptly made our way out of the servant’s entrance, taking twists and turns until we were in the kitchen.
He led us outside and across the garden, using the cover of darkness to hide away from any Soulless lurking around.
“We will go to the willow tree; you’ll be safe there!” He whispered just loud enough for us to hear.
The group of ladies broke into a run as Ulric led the way, but something out of the corner of my eye caught my attention.
The stables were on fire! Smoke plumed from the roof, and flames climbed towards the sky.
Ares! Artemis! My heart stopped, and I only reacted.
My feet were already leading me towards them before I had a chance to even think about what I was doing.
I stumbled over something hard and fell to the ground.
I got to my feet, and, to my horror, it was a body.
The ringmaster. The Soulless had gotten him in his panic to run.
His face was no longer its normal jovial self; it was frozen in horror, in desperation.
I had to keep moving even though I wanted to throw up the contents of my stomach, so I pushed forward.
The front doors were completely engulfed in flames, and I had to cover my face with my arm as the smoke billowed out towards me.
Around back!
I didn’t argue and ran around, as the panicked cries of the Pegasus trapped in their stalls shrieked above the powerful flames.
The back of the stables hadn’t caught fire yet, so I burst open the doors and ran in, my arm still covering my face, protecting me from the smoke as best I could.
The stalls were all occupied except for a couple; their occupants were out on patrol with the guards.
I rushed to each stall and tore open each latch, freeing the panicked horse inside.
Each one barged past me, running through the doors that I had left open, spreading their wings and taking flight as soon as they were clear of the building.
Artemis was next. She frantically danced on her feet as I opened the stall door, and she pulled on what was left of my dress as she pushed by, trying to take me out with her.
“No! I need to get Ares! Go!” I slapped her on her rear to encourage her to run.
She only had a moment of hesitation before turning and running out the doors, spreading her wings the moment they hit the grass.
I had to get to Ares; hoping it was not too late, I ran down the small corridor to his stall, only to find his head peering out, shrieking into the smoky air, snorting as it wafted into his enclosure.
“I’m coming, Ares!” I yelled as I sprinted down the corridor.