Brianna and her friend stayed quiet as we traipsed towards the church. The clouds moved to reveal the bright full moon, the light illuminating the stone angel who stood proud on the nearest grave to the iron gate. The eerie stains that streamed down the angel’s cheeks made me shudder.
“Be on guard,” Brianna whispered to her friend as he brought Florian beside us.
Nodding, the man grinned as he shoved the witch through the gate, indicating that I follow.
My feet were slow as I trotted onto what was supposed to be holy ground. The equinox had come upon us fast, the day disappearing, even though we couldn't see the sun from underground.
“You won’t get away with this!” Florian pushed against his captor as we were forced up the path.
The ground beneath my feet hummed but not pleasantly. Heat pulsed from the concrete under my boots, the scorch of it tickling the soles of my feet. This place was not pure, unlike its original intention. I had heard rumours that the priests had committed unspeakable crimes against humans in the name of religion inside the walls of the church. The blood that had poured from the innocent had stained the stone tiles leading up to the altar.
“We're doing what's right for our kind.” Brianna shoved me when I paused, my gaze reaching up to search the graveyard. “You have lived a life of luxury, secreted away in paradise, but in reality, we've had to put up with torture and discrimination.”
“You drink human blood, you kill them,” I spat, spinning so hard, Brianna scrambled to keep her hand on my arm.
Thrusting against her, I managed to dislodge her but not before her friend grasped my shoulder in an iron-tight grip. “Stop it!” he pushed through his clenched teeth. “You're not getting away from this.”
“What do you plan to do?” Florian asked. “I know my father wants me to take the line for him, but what have the PFF got to do with it?”
The door to the church creaked open as we neared it. Stone walls rose above us, the holes where the stained glass used to be now dark pits of emptiness. My heart thudded loudly in my chest as they pushed us closer.
“We’ll summon the demons of Hell into this church. Once they are here, we’ll tether them so we can control what they do. We’ll starve them of their hellfire, which will make them crave human flesh...” Brianna shuddered. “Something they're quite keen on, apparently.”
Trying to get her to look at me, I twisted my arms out of her grip. “You're planning on unleashing demons on humans so they can eat them?”
Clicking her tongue, Brianna opened the church door further and shoved me inside.
My mouth dried, and I fell silent as the foreboding darkness of the inner sanctum brightened when the moon's rays shone straight through several gaping holes in the ceiling.
“Welcome to your final resting place,” Xvair murmured, almost conversationally.
My gaze traced the stone altar. The hard rectangular shape was adorned with candles, the flames flickering with the barely there breeze. The pews were still intact, their rows a stepping stone up to the main pulpit. The walls were bare, all that was once decorating the grand church stolen by thieves.
“Isn't it beautiful?” Gesturing for Brianna to move us, Xvair closed the church door with a thud.
My skin itched intensely as we were propelled up the aisle. The evil contained within the walls seeped into my pores, making my own magic curdle in my stomach. I had encountered evil as an agent many times, but this place was beyond repair.
“This doesn't feel right, please,” Florian begged. “Let me go! I won't do it!”
Trying to get free of Brianna's friend, Florian thrust back and forth, his eyes wide as they landed on his father. Xvair scowled low in his ancient throat, his gaze narrowed on his son.
“You shall do as you’re told. What makes you think that you have a choice?”
Without waiting for a reply, the old man used his cane to climb up the steps to the altar. There, he waved his finger towards a salt circle laid on the ground in the middle of the church aisle. I had been so transfixed on the altar, I hadn't even noticed that we'd wandered through the space where he obviously intended to trap the demons.
“This is too dangerous,” I said, genuinely worried for human society. “I can't allow you to do this!”
Brianna laughed, her head thrown back. “Please don't try and be all high and mighty. You'll never defeat what's happening, Gemma, so you might as well accept that maybe...” Her sentence trailed off as I looked her square in the eye.
“Maybe what?”
Her throat moved as she swallowed, her gaze dropping for a second before she looked up again. “Maybe you're better off not being here to see it. You're too... pure.”
Tears filled her eyes as she took hold of my arms and pushed me closer to the altar. Shaking my head, I gave her my most disdainful expression. She might have everyone else fooled, but there was something deep within her that would regret what she was doing.
Gripping hold of her with my tied hands, I managed to get close to her face. “Keep telling yourself that what you're doing is right. We'll see who survives. I'll walk on my own, thanks!”
Pushing her away from me, I turned to the altar. If I could get a moment without them pawing me, there was a chance I could reach the glass in my pocket. As soon as I was cut free from the binds that restrained my magic, I would be able to take the lot of them down. I just had to be smart in my tactic.
“Hello Reverend,” Xvair said suddenly.
My feet froze on the steps as a man in a long traditional robe came out from behind a column. His gaze watched me as
