Chapter 6

An hour or so later I step back into my home. Judy had gone to get Cotton from daycare and to pick up things for smores tonight. I walk over to the corner where the trap door lies for my lab and pull back the carpets, not even bothering to grab my robe or fuzzy slippers. I have work to do and my time is limited.

"Ben!" I shout as soon as my paws touch the ladder and the candles and brazier below light up. "I need help."

Ben's eyes light up blue. "I'm not sure I'm qualified to give you the help you need. You know you're crazy for letting the rabbit stay here."

"She needs my help." I start moving toward my work bench as soon as my paws touch the floor of my lab. "Look, I need anything that can give me an edge against… Well I'm not sure what it is; I want to say a demon but…"

Ben huffs as much as a skull can do anything. "Fine; if you're that determined to kill yourself let me think."

"Just hurry; Judy's gone to get Cotton so time is limited."

"Well we could always make a love potion, have her drink it, and you both see sense and leave this city to its fate," Ben says.

I roll my eyes. "You know those only work if a mammal actually feels something for the other one. They never work as intended and always end in frustration, broken hearts, and disappointment."

"How do you know?" Ben asks.

"You told me as much!" I all but shout at the skull.

"Not that you dummy, I know how they work; who's the spirit of intellect here?" he asks rhetorically. "I mean how do you know she doesn't feel anything for you?"

I blink as I mull over what he said and then shake my head. I don't have time for this and it's not something I really want to think about. "Not going to help Ben; is there anything else?"

"You have the ingredients to make an invisibility potion; well, not a true one since you keep spending your money on extravagances such as food and that dump you call an office." He pauses for a moment. "You have the things needed to enchant a bracelet to empower your shield, as well as a ring that can store kinetic force, but that will take time that I doubt you have."

"Then the potion it is." I won't lie, I'm intrigued by the other two; maybe something I'll have to work on after this blows over.

Making potions is fairly easy. First you need a base, which is always a liquid of some sort. Water, alcohol, coffee, even energy drinks work well depending on what you're making. Then you need something for each of the five senses: sight, sound, smell, touch and taste. Finally, you need something that engages the mind and spirit. The combination depends on the mammal making them; it can take years to figure out one potion. That is, unless you have a way to cheat, which I do. Ben has been passed down through hundreds if not thousands of wizards, sorcerers, and sorceresses. There might be a witch or two in there as well, but he's been dodgy on that information.

"Mmmmm, I think for this you need eight ounces of water, two inches of plastic wrap, a rustle of wind, one ounce of your deodorant, a snipping of plain white cotton, a leaf of lettuce, a shredded piece of white paper, and elevator music," Ben rambles off the ingredients I need. A fairly cheap potion to make except for the rustle of wind. You won't believe how hard it is to trap a rustle of wind.

"You sure this will make me invisible?" I ask.

"Well, not fully invisible; in order for that you would need crushed stained glass from a Catholic Church…." he starts, and my eyes go wide.

"Never mind," I quickly move over to the storage shelves and start gathering the ingredients. Potions really are amazingly simple to make; it's really just a matter of mixing the ingredients, waiting, and pouring just a bit of magic into them to activate the ingredients. Given this, there's some down time while I wait for the ingredients to percolate together.

I keep a close eye on the potion as the Bunsen burner brings it to a slow boil. "Ben, if a mammal was at the center of that summoning circle what would happen?" Even though I know that this is vital information, I'm dreading the answer.

"Who would be stupid enough to do that?" The incredulity was clear in his voice.

"Judy's ex evidently. According to one of the weefolk he jumped in and exploded." I think back to when we first got to the site. "The center of it did look like a crater."

"Mammals," Ben sighs. "Well if he was inside another circle he could have been the focus for a rather powerful possession spell."

"Would something else have been able to be summoned at the same time?" I ask, once again fearing the answer.

"There would be enough magic in 91 souls to bring over a small army of nasty creatures," Ben explains helpfully much to my dread. "Or one very nasty creature and something lesser." Ben pauses. "Or something super nasty that dragged something else here kicking and screaming."

I think about it. "This morning I tossed a bull thing into a car; it turned into bats and flew away with the rising of the sun."

"Bats?" I can hear the surprise in his voice.

"Yes Ben bats as in plural, more than one," I answer.

"Was it able to change in any way?"

"Yeah, it was getting smaller to fit between the buildings. My wards seemed to keep it from damaging this one," .

Ben is silent for a while and my dread grows. "Sounds like one of the lesser demons then. Probably a Dehesa. But that begs the question: what did your rabbit do to draw that kind of ire?"

"Can a Dehesa possess a mammal?" .

"I never heard of it,but I guess it is possible for it to make a bargain to fulfill something."

"It wants Judy and Cotton," I muse.

"Well, on the bright side I think you can take it," Ben says cheerily. "But… that is most definitely not all that came through. Oh, and your potion is ready."

"Thanks," I mutter as I turn my attention to the concoction in the beaker. It has turned a pale pink color and I press my finger to the rim of it, pouring a bit of my will into it. A small poof of blue smoke puffs out of the mouth of the beaker and the concoction goes clear. It's so clear, in fact, that I can hardly detect its presence at all.

I turn off the Bunsen burner and allow it to come to room temperature. I then sit down to take a look at my notes. Ben thinks I can take the bull thing that he calls a Dehesa. I'm not sure it looked like it shrugged off getting tossed into a car. But maybe something else will hurt it more than blunt force…

After a few minutes the potion cools and I, being the environmentally conscious wizard that I am, use a funnel to pour it back into the water bottle. Besides, I'm also too cheap to buy containers specifically for this purpose. Maybe I can get those sport water bottles in bulk somewhere?

After dousing the candles for the lab I head back upstairs and shut the trap door. I'm just getting the rugs pulled over it when I hear a key in the lock and a silvery grey blur comes into the apartment like a breath of fresh air.

"Mr. Nick! Mr Nick!" Cotton calls excitedly. "We got marshmallows and graham crackers and chocolates for smores! And Mama made sure that the chocolate was canine safe and, and, and we got skewer thingies to roast marshmallows on and, and, and SMORES!"

I can't help but smile as she dances around the space. Her joyous energy is infectious and causes me to smile regardless of my worries. Judy follows her in carrying a couple of grocery bags and pushes the door shut with her foot.

"Dinner will be in a little bit Nick," she says as she carries the bags over to the food preparation area.

"We got you chicken!" Cotton says with excitement, and I raise an eyebrow as I look over at Judy questioningly.

Judy smiles. "Well..." she starts. "You are kindly opening your home to us, and I just wanted to do something nice; besides I found this recipe at the supermarket and it looked easy enough."

"Thank you but you don't have to go through all the trouble," I tell her as Cotton drags me across the room. I sit the water bottle full of potion on top of the fridge as I pass by it.

"Hey, would you help her with her reading homework while I get dinner ready?" Judy asks.

"Uhh, sure," I answer as I'm pulled over to the couch. I'm honestly a little taken back by this, but Cotton is a good kit so I'm sure this won't be that bad.

I can honestly say sitting with Cotton and helping her as she reads The Little Engine That Could is the highlight of my day. She tries so hard and works so hard at it that even the simplest of praise is rewarded with a big beaming smile. She has as pure of a soul as any could in this world, yet untouched by the harsh realities of life; to her, nearly everything has an almost magical quality. It might also help that she is tucked right up against my side showing me the pictures excitedly.

Honestly, sitting here with this kit reading a book, watching her mother make us dinner…there's just something warm about it. My home for once feels warm, not hot or anything, but just comfortably warm.

"Ok Cotton, why don't you go wash your paws? Dinner will be ready in just a moment," Judy says from the food preparation area. I'm impressed; the grilled chicken breast smells wonderful and the plate she places in my paws looks outstanding. Grilled chicken breast, rice, mixed vegetables, and a side salad. I haven't eaten this well outside of a restaurant or my grandfather's house.

The chicken is a bit over done, but it doesn't seem to affect its overall deliciousness. I look from my plate to Judy thoughtfully as I eat my dinner. The other surprising thing is how much food the pair of them put away. Tofu, salad, mixed vegetables, and rice; I'm pretty sure that the pair of them ate more than I did, which was impressive.

I finish my meal first, then start doing the dishes. I feel it's only fair, as even after the day we'd had Judy took the time to cook all three of us a meal. She even spent a portion of what I gave her to get her and Cotton some food to get me something as well. I'm honestly unsure how to feel about this. The meal was scrumptious, easily beating any canned meal ever.

I sigh as I sit back down after the dishes are done. Cotton is coloring in front of the fireplace and Judy is writing in a notebook over in the arm chair. I watch the fire in the fireplace; it's relaxing and soothing. Fire was one of the first things 'd conjured, and also the first thing I'd mastered to the satisfaction of my grandfather. Some would probably say I like fire because the devil made me.

"Cotton," Judy says after some time, "go change into your pajamas; it's bed time."

"Aww Mo-ooom…" Cotton says as she gets up and slowly starts to put away her crayons.

"If you get ready for bed, I'll tell you a story," I say kindly, and Cotton looks up at me with surprise.

"Really?" she asks, and I nod. Judy looks over at me and raises an eyebrow.

"I will, and I promise it will be a good one." Then I grin and lean forward. "You won't find it in any book either."

I lean back on the couch as Cotton rushes off to get ready for bed.

"Just what, pray tell, are you going to tell my daughter?" Judy asks me.

"You'll like it Fluff; strong female character and a good moral at the end of it," I say, shooting her a wink.

Actually, I'm not really sure what story I'm going to tell the young rabbit; it's just that it seems to have aborted a confrontation between the two, and honestly I'm not sure I'm prepared for a titanic struggle of wills.

"Mr. Nick! Mr. Nick! I'm ready for bed."

"Brush your teeth?" Judy asks.

"Uh-huh," Cotton answers.

"Wash behind your ears?"

"Uh-huh; see, they're even wet!" Cotton says excitedly as she pulls down her ears so we can see the backs of them. "Can we please have story time now?"

Judy sighs then turns to me expectantly. "Ok Mr. Storyteller, let's see what you're made of."

I flash Judy a sly grin. "Ok Cotton, sit down and I will tell you a very important story, one that happened a long, long time ago…"

Judy rolled her eyes. "You need to do better than retelling Star Wars."

I roll my eyes at Judy as I draw subtly on magic. "On a long forgotten hill beside a long forgotten forest…" I expel the energy, shaping it, and a vivid green hill with a vivid green forest springs between us.

"Whoa…" Cotton says, and I can hear Judy suck in a breath.

"A small clan of foxes made their homes." Suddenly doors and barns sprout on and around the hill. "They were a quiet clan; they farmed berries and raised chickens and were happy." Foxes could be seen now, tending fields and chickens and going about their business.

I smile as Cotton bends forward to watch the little foxes.

"They lived there contently for many years, tending their fields and tending their families in peace, until one day a pack of wolves marched into their village." Wolves in what looks like medieval battle armor march into the center of the village. "Their leader was a mean greedy wolf who thought just because they were stronger and had figured out how to work metal that they could take whatever they wanted." The wolves could be seen taking chickens from the foxes and marching off again.

"No! That's mean!" Cotton exclaims at the wolves. I can see Judy leaning forward to watch herself and smile to myself.

"The wolves would leave, but they always came back, always wanting more and more, and soon the fox village was left with just scraps of food to feed their families." The wolves could be seen marching in and taking more and more and the village starts to look progressively more run down. "Some of the villagers left hoping to find new homes where there were no wolves. Some stayed because they had kits that couldn't make the journey to a new home. So the wolves kept coming back."

Cotton looks from the sad looking village to me then back again.

"One day the wolves came marching into the village and a snow white vixen stood in their way. She was tired of the wolves preying on her village and had concocted a plan." A snow white vixen in a light blue dress with bright orange eyes stood before the wolves. "She challenged the wolf leader to a race through the forest. If she won the wolves would leave them alone; if he won she would go with the wolves instead."

"She won right? She has to win Mr. Nick!" Cotton looks up at me, her eyes wide.

"The route the vixen took through the woods was tricky and difficult for the wolf in his heavy armor, but still he kept up with her," I say as we watch the vixen and wolf run through the trees and through a stream. "But she had explored much of that forest, because she would hide there every time the wolves came. She knew there was a cave, and that inside the cave slept a dragon."

Cottons eyes go wide as the vixen and wolf dart into the cave.

"The wolf's armor was noisy and he woke the dragon, who threw him out of the cave." We watch as the wolf in armor is thrown out of the cave. "The dragon was angry at being woken up and knew the vixen was still there." The dragon could be seen stomping around his cave. "The vixen apologized to the dragon and explained about what the wolves had been doing to her village. The dragon's anger faded and he agreed with her that what the wolves had been doing to her village wasn't fair. But he had long since grown too big to leave his cave, so he taught the vixen to use magic instead."

Cotton's eye light up as the vixen throws her first fire ball.

"When the vixen returned home, she found the wolves stealing all the food in the village." The illusion changed to wolves going into homes and coming out with baskets of food. But some of the wolves were just standing to the side trying not to get involved. "The wolf leader said the vixen cheated and demanded that she go with them."

Cotton gasped. "She can't go!"

I smile at her and see the concern in Judy's eyes. "The vixen called the wolf leader a coward, saying how he'd left her alone with the dragon and that she wouldn't go with anyone who would cower the way he did." The illusion changed again to the vixen standing up to the wolf leader. "The wolf leader raised his fist to strike the vixen but she lit his tail on fire, since she truly didn't want to hurt the wolf leader, she just wanted them to go away."

"Did he go away?" Cotton asks.

"He did; he ran away with the wolves that followed him and never bothered the village again." The illusion slowly changed back to a happy village. "The vixen knew she had a powerful tool, but also knew what it felt like when the not so powerful didn't have the same tool, so she taught all that came to her what the dragon taught her in the cave." The illusion changes to the vixen surrounded by all sorts of mammals: wolves, zebras, hyenas, rabbits, mammals of all different shapes and sizes. "She came to understand that everything has to balance, the good with the bad, as it all has a place in our world."

Cotton looks up at me, her big brown eyes wide, as I lean forward. "But sometimes the good has to fight the bad, and that takes brave mammals, in order to stand up for what's right."

"Like Mama?" Cotton asks.

I nod and confirm, "Like your mom."

"What was the vixen's name?" Judy asks.

I grin and look over at her. "Karma."

Judy nods as she stands up, and I wave a paw to dispel the illusion. "Ok kiddo, time for bed; say goodnight to Mr. Nick."

"Aww…." Cotton looks up at Judy and then me. "Good night Mr. Nick!" she says as she hops up and gives me a big hug. My eyes go wide for just a moment before I wrap an arm around her and hug her back.

"Good night, Cotton," I say softly.

I lean back on the couch as Judy puts Cotton to bed. I can hear her straightening out the blankets on it. I try hard not to listen as Cotton says her prayers and tells Judy good night. I am somewhat surprised when I hear my name muttered in with them. I try not to look too far into the prayers of a kit. My eyes drift across the room to my staff sitting in the corner by the door.

"She likes you," Judy says quietly as she sits down beside me on the couch. There is still a respectful distance between us, but it's the closest that she's gotten to me all evening.

I smile and tilt my head down to look at her. "She's a good kit; you should be proud."

"I...am." She looks up at me and smiles. "Thank you."

"Thank you for dinner."

She smiles. "You already thanked me for that. Was the story true?"

I pause for a moment. The story had been told to me by Karma herself when I was cowering under the bridge, so I have no reason to doubt its validity; I just changed a few of the details to be more kit friendly. "As far as I know."

"You tell a good story Nick, and the images? Wow," she says quietly. I can hear a tinge of wonder in her voice.

I smile; it's not smug, but it is full of pride. "Thank you."

"Do dragons exist?"

"I have not yet met one but yes," I answer quietly.

"There is so much…" I hear her voice fall off as if she's thinking about something. I decide not to pry and just enjoy the company of another mammal.

"Is it going to come back tonight?" she asks.

"I dunno," I stretch; more than likely it will. If it doesn't then I fear to think about what will happen.

"I'm going to get some rest," she tells me as she stands up. "Good night Nick, and thanks."

I smile up at her. "Good night Fluff" I say, watching as she walks past.

After a few minutes I walk across the room to the door and retrieve my staff. I walk back to the couch and lay down, sitting my staff down on the floor beside the couch. I reach out with my will and extinguish most of the candles in the apartment.

I slip off to sleep and for once my dreams are not haunted. I don't know why; maybe it's the closeness of another mammal. I mean Cotton and Judy are asleep maybe less than five feet away from me.

I have no idea how much time has passed, but can tell dawn is still a ways away. Something in my head is screaming at me to wake up. My apartment is silent as my paw reaches down and takes hold of my staff on the floor.

"Akkkk…" I hear Judy coughing as I sit up. "That was foul tasting water."

"WIZARD!" booms a voice outside, "I KNOW THEY ARE STILL IN THERE!"

I sit up and look toward the fridge just in time to see the door shut. I see the bottle that I had put the potion in float over to the sink and upturn, dumping the rest out.

"That wasn't water," I say as I stand up, rubbing my left paw down across my face. "It was an invisibility potion; just how did you get your paws on it?"

"A what!?"

"I put it on top of the fridge for a reason!"

"Mama?" Cotton asks sleepily.

"WIZARD!" booms the demon thing once again "COME OUT OR GIVE ME WHAT IS MINE BY RIGHT!"

"I thought it was a bottle of water and put it into the fridge last night while you were washing dishes!" Judy exclaims. "Sweet cheese and crackers Nick, you need to label these things!"

"Mama!" shouts Cotton, fear evident in her voice.

"Hold her and stay inside; she's not going to be able to see you so you'll need to keep a hold of her," I tell Judy as I walk toward the door.

"Nick! Wait! Just how long is this going to last?!" Under different circumstances this could be amusing. The building shakes above us as something is smashed into it.

"I'm not sure," I answer truthfully. It really depends on her metabolism and how much of it she drank. "Maybe an hour, maybe more."

"Mama?" Cotton asks. "You're invisible, cooool!"

I pause and take a breath as I place my paw on the door latch.

"Nick?" Judy says behind me, and I look over my shoulder at the bed. I can see just the faintest outline of her and smile at Cotton's bright brown eyes peeking over the edge of the dresser drawer at me. "Be careful."

I nod as I open the door and step outside. My heart is hammering in my chest. I step outside and into what can only be described as a disaster area. The building adjacent to mine is smoldering; car alarms and distant sirens split the night air with their shrill warbling.

"AHHH, THERE YOU ARE…" I look up into a smoldering eye of the bull demon. "COME TO GIVE ME WHAT I WANT?"

"Craig Furgonson!" I shout as I slam the butt of my staff against the pavement. A sudden crack of energy ensures that I have the thing's attention. "I know about your deal…"

"SHE TOOK HER!" the demon shouted. "SHE TOOK MY PROGENY AND LEFT ME TO ROT IN THAT CELL!"

"That's a lie Craig!" I hear from behind me and sigh. "You lied! You cheated! You stole!"

"YOU…" seethed the demon. "I ONLY STOLE FROM SCUM. I ONLY STOLE FROM THOSE THAT HUNTED US, LIKE HIM!" the demon rears back with a light pole in its hoof and swings it down toward me.

I raise my staff and my shield pops into place at the last second, the light pole bending around it, but I'm still driven down to my knees from the weight of the blow.

"Judy!" I shout as I get back up on my feet. "Get back inside!" The demon shoulders its way into the alley and the adjacent building collapses in on itself. I can feel the strain it's putting on my wards.

I gather up my will and thrust the head of my staff at the demon as I shout, "Forzare!" causing it to stagger back a step or two.

"Mama?!" I hear behind me and sigh; it seems neither of the rabbits could listen to me and stay inside.

"MY CHILD?" says the demon. "SHE'S GROWN!? SO MUCH TIME HAS BEEN STOLEN FROM ME!"

"Judy, get Cotton and get inside now!" I shout.

"NO, YOU SHALL NOT HIDE THEM AWAY!" the demon bellows as it rears back with the streetlight. "I SHALL HAVE WHAT IS MINE!"

My eyes go wide as I dive and wrap my left arm around where I think Judy is and quietly thank Karma that I was right. I pull both Judy and Cotton close as I lift my staff over us and a shield pops in place and anchor it to the pavement under us. The demon bats at the rubble of the fallen building and I grunt as it pelts against and over the shield.

The demon bats at the rubble repeatedly, roaring in frustration. I feel the weight of the rubble piling over us and grit my teeth against the weight. "Why couldn't you have stayed inside?" I ask.

"If that…thing is Craig then I don't want you fighting my battles for me…." Judy starts and I glance toward my door only to see nothing but rubble.

"Well unfortunately I don't think there is any amount of bun fu that that will help you defeat a two story demon." I wince as said demon slams something into the rubble above us. I can hear the sirens getting closer.

"I''ll have you know…" Judy starts and she jams her finger into my ribs.

I wince from that as well. "Look, I don't doubt you can wipe the floor with my tail, but I need you to get your daughter to safety."

"Mama, I'm scared," Cotton says, sounding like she's on the verge of tears.

"IF SHE'S HURT I WILL GRIND YOUR BONES TO DUST WIZARD!" the demon bellows, slamming against the rubble and my shield once again.

"It's ok baby," Judy soothes Cotton. "Ok Nick, I take it you have a plan."

I nod. "I'm going to blast this rubble off of us and you're going to run, run and don't look back."

I see Cotton shift as Judy gathers her daughter to her chest; I can see the mixed look of awe and sheer terror in her eyes as I draw on the natural magic around us. I release the energy by forcing my shield to rapidly expand, clearing the rubble off of us. "Go!" I shout as I stand and turn to face the demon.

I can hear Judy's near silent retreating paw steps behind me as the demon and I eye each other. It swings an entire traffic pole in a downward vertical slash aimed at my head. I side step and shout "Forzare!" with a thrust of my staff, releasing a blast of force into its face.

The demon staggers back, the traffic pole making a hideous racket as it drags along the pavement. I'm not sure if I've hurt it or just put it off balance as it slams into the building across the street. That's when I did something I will regret for the rest of my life.

I open my third-eye, my wizard sight, and peer into the swirling blackness of hate and despair that is the demon. I'm hoping that there's still something of Craig in there, something that might be able to be saved, but I'm not seeing it. The demon is starting to move again and I step up onto the pile of rubble at the end of what used to be the alleyway. My resolve hardens; if Cotton and Judy are to be safe and free of the beast then I must destroy it.

I switch my staff from my right paw over to my left. My right paw erupts into flame. The demon's head turns and seemingly tracks what I can only assume is Judy's progress with Cotton up the next street over. It stands and I let it take two steps down the street before I punch the head of my staff forward and shout, "Forzare!"

The kinetic blast strikes it behind its left knee and its weight comes down onto that leg. I grin in satisfaction as the thing sprawls across the street crushing a medium sized sedan, its face ending up in the windshield of a large SUV.

The fire around my right paw condenses into a ball of swirling flame. I rear back with my right paw, my left coming in front of me with my staff parallel with the ground. I pour my worry for Judy and Cotton into the spell as I fling my right paw forward like I'm throwing a 90 mph fast ball as I shout, "Fuego!" The fireball shoots from my paw and into the back of the demon's head as he starts to get up from the ground.

I am rewarded with a roar of pain as the fireball burns into the writhing mass of darkness and then struck with the thought, So it can feel pain. I grin and thrust my staff forward as the runes light up, casting the area in a pale eerie light as I hit it in the back of the knee with another kinetic blast as it starts to rise. The blast doesn't send it sprawling this time, but does keep it from fully rising to its hooves.

My eyes widen and I have just enough time to produce a shield but am unable to anchor it to anything before the demon swings its arm back and strikes my left side. I feel the ribs on the right side of my chest crack as I strike the building across the street. The pain in my chest is so bad I can barely focus as I slide down the wall to the sidewalk.

I groan as I get up to my paws and knees and close my eyes, mumbling a few phrases in quasi-Latin. The spell I cast will postpone the pain and allow me to breath just a bit easier; the downside is that I'll feel the pain ten fold later. But that is a problem for later.

I look up just in time to see the demon pull the SUV off of its face in a symphony of stressed metal and glass. I'm forced to roll out of the way, holding my staff tight to my chest as the demon tosses the SUV at me in hopes of finishing me off. I keep rolling and only stop when my back hits a parked truck. A good thing too, as a split second later the demon swings its traffic light club down and I am showered in glittering fragments of shattered safety glass.

I roll to a kneeling position and peek through the rent in the pickup truck's cab at the demon. I can see its indecisiveness as its desire to chase after Cotton and Judy conflicts with its self preservation instincts about turning its back to me. The thing is fully on its hooves now and I skirt up the side of the truck to the next car parked in line.

It roars and smashes the traffic light club over and over again into the truck, and when that breaks it stabs the broken bit into the cab, skewering it like a toothpick through something delicious and bacon wrapped. I peek over the edge of the car I'm hiding behind and see it huffing before it turns up the street. I can now see flashing red and blue lights at the end of the block and see that the cops have shined spot lights on the demon, blinding it.

The police open fire and the demon laughs as dozens of green and red fletched tranquilizer darts appear in its chest. I stand from my position behind the car and thrust my staff at the demon once again with a shout of, "Forzare!" sending another blast of kinetic force into its right knee. I quickly follow it up with a ball of wreathing fire and a shout of, "Fuego!" The ball of fire slams into its knee as well, causing the demon to roar in pain as the stressed joint explodes.

I'm forced to dive back as the demon spins around and slams a clawed fist into the car where I just was. And then again as its other fist comes down, trying to skewer me where I stand.

I shove my right paw forward into the demon's face as I scream again, "Fuego!" and a gout of fire pours from my paw into the demon's face in a steady stream. I grit my teeth in a snarl as I pour everything into the stream of fire and the demon's face melts away with a sickening smell.

Suddenly the demon erupts into a cloud of black smoke and seemingly disburses into the wind, leaving behind the destruction of our confrontation. I lean heavily on my staff, spent, and then slip as all strength suddenly leaves my body. I come crashing down hard on my already injured right side and my eyes roll back up in my head with the pain.

The last thing I hear before blacking out is a startled and worried scream of, "Nick!"