Horde of the Demon Priest (Demona Book 3) (10 page)

“I see,” Molony said.

Ezekiel continued to fiddle with the artifact in an attempt to discover how to use it. No matter what he and Molony did to try and trigger a response from the artifact, nothing happened.

“Did your prophecy about the artifact say that only a light being could get it to work?” Kerrick asked. “I could give it a try.”

Nobody said a word, but Ezekiel and Molony moved aside. Ezekiel handed the artifact to Kerrick, who took it, flipped it over, and stepped forward. He attempted to do similar actions that Ezekiel had tried. Instead of praying to
Aleph
, Kerrick muttered some sort of incantation. He moved the artifact around the possessed’s body. He triggered his
kataphraktos
in the hopes that maybe the change in him would trigger a change in the artifact. Still, nothing worked.

Kerrick handed the artifact back to Ezekiel. “I’m at a loss,” he said. “I’m not sure what I’m going to tell Darius about the progress we’ve made. I suppose that at least we’ve ruled out some possible ways of triggering the artifact. But, how many more things can we possibly try before we exhaust all of our ideas?”

“We can’t give up,” Demona said.

“Nobody said anything about giving up,” Kerrick said. “I just said, how many more things can we possibly try? At some point soon we’re going to run out of ideas and then what?”

Demona shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll need to continue working no matter what; even if some of the ideas seem downright ridiculous.”

Chapter 10:

Through The Barricade

Demona was startled awake by a ruckus taking place somewhere in Roost Haven. She heard Ileana’s squawking snores emanate from the cot beside her. She was still tired, so she decided to close her eyes again. Her body threatened to drag her back into a dreamy sleep, but the noise outside kept her mind wide awake.

“Wake up, Mona,” Felix yelled into the tent. Demona almost fell off of her cot with the boisterous sound of Felix’s voice.

Rowena sat up in her cot. “What’s going on?” She asked, as she rubbed her sleepy eyes.

“We need Mona. The town is being overrun by demons. Ezekiel and Molony are rounding up as many people as they can to go into town and help control the situation.”

“Oh no!” Rowena said.

Felix’s eyes seemed to glow in the darkness. “I thought you’d want to go with us,” he said to Demona.

Demona nodded vigorously. “Did anyone call Itzig yet? We’ll need to get through the road blocks.”
Maybe I’m crazy, but I almost feel like this is my job, my responsibility, to protect everyone.

“Yeah. Barty’s on the phone with him right now. They’re trying to figure out a way to get as many of us through the road block without too much attention being drawn to the fact that we are moving in to and out of the quarantine zone,” Felix said.

Demona quickly threw on her jacket and slid her feet into her Doc Martens. Rowena tossed her covers off and readied herself as well. Demona was ready in minutes. She grabbed her cell phone and bag then exited the tent. Demona followed Felix as he made his way toward Kaleb and Hannah’s tent. By the time they got there Kaleb was already dressed and ready to go. Hannah followed the three and went to stand beside Rowena, who now stood outside of her tent in her fluffy down coat.

Rowena hugged Felix and Demona. “Be careful guys. We’ll head over to the hospital wing in case any injured people decide to seek refuge here.”

“We’ll do our best,” Kaleb replied. He bent down to kiss Hannah. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck and almost refused to let go, but she did reluctantly. Kaleb, Felix, and Demona made their way toward the growing crowd at the entrance of the headquarters. They waited as the rest of their group gathered in preparation to leave for town.

Ezekiel exited the church and waited for everyone’s attention before he began to speak. “Things are not looking good in town right now. Our night patrolmen ran into a horde of demons. They’re feeding on the chaos that has been occurring since the townspeople began to panic over the quarantine. The fear is drawing them in closer.

“We don’t know how many there are at this moment. This is why we are sending as many of you into town as we can afford. There has already been one casualty reported, a TGHC field-agent who was on patrol with our members. The agent was killed during an altercation with a demon,” Ezekiel said. “The rest of the group barely made an escape. Don’t get distracted from the task at hand. You go in as a team; most chances are that you’ll all come back in one piece, if you work together and stay focused.”

Murmurs broke out. Many of the defenders preparing to go on the mission were holstering weapons and trying to psych themselves up for battle. Some were ready for a stealthy entrance into town, with camouflage or black clothing that would allow them to blend into the night’s surroundings. Other defenders and a few volunteers were slipping pouches onto their belts, which contained a variety of items to protect themselves. Some people grabbed vials of holy water and a few grabbed crosses, which they believed warded off evil.

Ezekiel waited for it to grow quiet again. He readjusted the glasses on his face. “I want each of you to keep your phones on hand with a direct dial to one of our numbers. Barty, Molony, and I will be on standby. If you’re confronting a demon that you do not know how to handle, find a safe location and call us immediately. If our phone is busy, seek safety and text us. We’ll get you as much information to aid you in defeating it, exorcising it, whatever it takes! We’ll also have prayer teams sending continuous prayers to
Aleph
for your safety,” Ezekiel said.

They packed into two of the RVs and headed towards town. It was a good thing that they had made the new connection with Eli Itzig, because if it had not been for him they would have been unable to enter town. They met Itzig just outside and he instructed them to park their RVs off-road before reaching the road blocks. The defenders and volunteers spilled out of the vehicles and waited for Itzig’s instructions, which would aid them in getting into town unnoticed.

“This is going to be a little tricky,” Itzig said, while the GLC members gathered around him. “I have a temporary pass for each of you. They’re fake… Since we have such a large group going in at once we’re going to have to sneak you in while my coworkers are distracted. Unfortunately, in order to get back out of town you will have to split up and leave at different locations. Too many of you leaving through the same road block during quarantine will draw attention.

“There are four points where you can exit the quarantine zone. Each is located on a road that leaves town,” Itzig said. “I’m sure most of you know your way around Melville enough to know of which locations I’m speaking about.”

The defenders all nodded their heads in agreement.

“The passes read that you are members of the Department of Homeland Security. If asked, your cover is that you were sent to look into an incident involving two health officers of the CDC. Remember these IDs are fake, so if they actually run your identifications they will know,” Itzig continued. “I won’t be able to help you if you get caught; it’s a federal offense to impersonate an employee of the government. You’d be looking at a few years of jail time if found guilty. Fair warning… do you all understand?”

The members of the group nodded again with understanding.

“Last but not least, our current orders are to prohibit any unauthorized personnel from leaving or exiting town. Right now that means that the guards are to use non-lethal force as a warning,” Itzig continued. “Our orders were updated not long ago to include using lethal force if a civilian fails to heed the warning. Don’t get caught crossing the barricade or they will not hesitate to shoot.”

He handed a pass to each person. They clipped their false identifications to their clothes. Others shoved it into their pockets, out of fear of dropping them.

“Don’t lose them, because I won’t be able to get you out of town if you do,” Eli said.

Itzig took small groups of three or four and made their way closer to the barricade. Each time Itzig had to distract the guard on duty, and each time he did so meant that the chance of getting caught increased. Demona picked at the skin around her fingernails. The knot in her stomach made her more anxious the longer they waited and her group had volunteered to go last.

The plan was that after crossing everyone was to wait on the other side of the barricade a short distance into town. They were then going to move into Melville as one large group, in order to face the threat. Demona hoped that the plan would work, but a lot of factors would determine the outcome.

Itzig returned and it was Demona, Felix, and Kaleb’s turn to sneak into town. They followed the detective a short distance and he signaled for them to keep hidden as he made his way closer alone. He listened to his walkie-talkie and waited a few more seconds before signaling for them to inch their way closer.

“Wait here till I distract the guard. Then, quietly make your way through the barricade. Make it quick though,” Itzig said. He casually walked, with his hands in his pocket to hide his shaking, towards his coworker that stood guard by a police car. Itzig struck up a conversation, which provided enough of a distraction for the officer on guard that he turned from the barricade to focus on Itzig.

Demona, Felix, and Kaleb scurried through the barricade as quietly as their feet would allow. They paused to hide behind a concrete barrier and check to make certain that the officer was still distracted. Once they were on the other side Demona felt like she could breathe again and sighed with relief. Her relief was short lived; this was just the beginning. The three of them traveled into town a few blocks before spotting the remainder of their group. Kearne was standing among them.

Kaleb slapped Kearne on the back. “I didn’t know you were coming. How did you get here?”

Kearne winced. “I was in the other RV.”

“It’s nice to have you with us,” Demona said. “Just remember you don’t have your fairy abilities anymore.”

“I’ve got myself covered.” Kearne held up a sword and a pouch full of small vials of holy water.

The group stood in the center of an intersection looking down each roadway trying to determine which way they should travel first. A large explosion followed by the smell of smoke came from the road to the right. Without hesitation the entire group began to travel in the direction of the sound, sticking closely together.

Demona’s apprehension grew with each step they took towards their new destination. She could have sworn that the shadows seemed to watch them and would flee into the darkness when she turned in their direction. The knot Demona had had earlier was much worse now; she knew a battle awaited them. She worried for Felix, who held her hand tightly as they quietly walked down the center of the street.

Aleph, guide us and keep us safe as we fight your battles.

Other than the previous explosion the town was quiet, eerily quiet. The group felt on edge as they walked forward, toward the gray smoke that billowed up against the blackened sky. They inched their way farther ahead and found that the source of the smoke was coming from several car fires that dotted the sides of the road ahead. The fear that attempted to engulf Demona was thick and suffocating. She choked, breathed deeply, and tried to fight the overwhelming emotions that threatened to consume her. If she did not control herself, the anticipation of the upcoming fight would cause her to panic. Panicking was not good; it meant a lack of focus and mistakes that could not only cost her life, but the life of her loved ones.

The high pitched shrieking of a person’s screams sounded from a house ahead. Suddenly, flames burst from a car as it exploded a half block ahead of them. The fire billowed upward into a giant rolling cloud. The heat from the explosion reached Demona’s skin and she was thankful that their group had not been any closer when it had happened. They would have lost too many before they even had a chance to face the demons.

They grew closer to the car that had exploded and discovered that the windows had been blown out leaving shattered glass glistening on the road around them in the firelight. The explosion had rocked the car several feet from where it had been parked along the curb and had severely damaged some of the other vehicles around it. Several people in their group made their way closer to the car, attempting to ignore the heat of the flames, and peered into the vehicle. Demona saw the look of relief on their faces when they found no one inside.

The GLC members looked around franticly for the source of the explosion, since nobody had been in or near the vehicle before it had exploded. Demona quickly glanced around at the large brick single homes that stood along the road. She looked for anyone, any sign of movement, any sign that anyone had been there recently, but there was none. All she saw were the eerie shadows, which the fire cast on the ground around them.

A demon is nearby.

Demona saw curtains moving in the houses around them as residents peeked outside. They were trying to be subtle about it, but Demona knew they fearfully hid in their homes.
Who can blame them?
They were terrified of whatever illness was supposedly spreading through town and the havoc that it seemed to bring. Little did they know that even within their homes they were not safe from the demons, which could easily slip below their doors and straight into their bodies.

The sound of breaking glass came from their left. A small wooden coffee table landed with a crack on the ground in front of the home. A couple burst through the door of the house and raced down the steps and off into the darkness. They did not stop to acknowledge the large group of people standing in the street.

We probably look like a mob about ready to loot their homes.