Lidia glared at the restored demon. It hovered in the air facing her, not even pretending it needed its massive bat wings to fly. While she expected neither honor nor fairness from a demon, Lidia didn’t know her enemy could simply drain one of its own kind like a vampire to regain its strength. That fact put a whole new twist on the current battle. Why were things always so complicated?

A pencil-thin beam of golden energy lanced out from thin air. The attack shattered on the demon’s shield. It didn’t even bother to move. Arrogant thing.

Streams of hellfire burst through the air all around Lidia. She flew at full speed, weaving and dodging, trying to stay alive. One of the blasts burned the eagle construct out from under her. She kept going without it. Flying on her own made her a smaller target anyway.

Lidia hurled a pair of disks made of compressed soul force at the demon. One struck low from behind and the other high in front. The attacks hit the demon’s shield, but instead of exploding they spun, grinding away at the shadowy shield.

She sent more power to the blades while avoiding unending streams of hellfire. If she could just cut through, there was enough power in those blades to at least crack its shell again. Even a single dent would give her a place to focus her attacks.

A wave of corrupt energy obliterated her disks and sent Lidia tumbling out of control. She sensed the attack a moment before it arrived and dropped like a stone. The demon’s claws swiped through the air where she’d been an instant before. The proximity of the creature sickened her for a moment then she was clear.

Lidia sped away, her opponent right on her heels. A wall of hellfire appeared in her path.

She pulled up, spun and sped straight at her pursuer. Darts of soul force streaked from her fingertips and bounced off its carapace. Its shield was down.

The demon shrieked and swiped at her as she flew by. Lidia ignored it and fired lances of compressed soul force. Without its shield she might get in a lucky shot.

All but one lance bounced off its shell. The last found a chink at its elbow and pierced through.

Lidia detonated the energy in the lance, blowing the demon’s right arm off at the elbow. It roared.

A pillar of hellfire fell toward Lidia. She darted away and strengthened her shield at the same time.

The skin of the arm and side closest to the flames blistered and blackened even through the barrier. She clenched her jaw against the pain, then she was past.

Lidia spun, ready to resume the battle. A black talon shot out and grabbed her by the throat.

How had it closed the distance without her noticing? She shifted all her power to the shield around her neck.

“I’m going to pop your head off, witch.”

The shield weakened as the demon sent corrupt energy through its talons. This was it. Lidia hadn’t imagined dying in the grasp of a demon, but then who does?

Her shield cracked and shuddered.

A few seconds more. Lidia wished she had strength enough to counterattack, but if she drew even a drop of soul force from the shield she’d die in an instant.

A blade of dense soul force appeared out of nowhere and sliced the demon’s arm off at the wrist. The pressure on her throat vanished.

Lidia blasted the stunned demon with everything she could muster. It was nowhere near as much as she would have liked, but the demon’s black shell cracked in four places.

A powerful blast struck the cracked shell, blowing it open and exposing its gut sack. A stream of golden blades sliced into the creature’s innards. Its shriek almost deafened Lidia. She still had a little power left. Golden flames rushed from her outstretched hands and into the demon’s shell. Power surged into a stream of flames then more yet.

Flames burst from the demon’s eyes and mouth. They didn’t let up until it had been reduced to ash.

Strong hands grasped Lidia’s shoulders and a platform appeared under her feet. Just as well as she doubted her ability to remain in the air on her own.

“Apologies for the delay, Archmage,” Zahara said. “It took me a while to escape that thing that grabbed me.”

Kat joined them. “I got here as quick as I could. Are you okay, Archmage?”

“Thanks to you two.” Lidia winced when Zahara brushed her burns. “How fares the battle?”

They swung her around so she could take a look. Sorcerers and demons chased each other through the sky. Gold and black flames clashed. Lidia tried to count the survivors, but so much movement made it difficult. She decided thirteen demons and thirty-five sorcerers remained. Not especially good odds.

Healing energy flooded her side and arm, bring blessed relief to her burns. Her power was slowly returning, but there was no way she’d return to full strength without a long rest. Somehow she doubted she’d get it any time soon.

“What are we going to do?” Kat asked.

Lidia clenched her fist. “The only thing we can do. Fight.”