Ordained by Devon Ashley

“I don’t even know what happened. It was so quick. Some lizard looking thing. Abby’s taking care of it.”
    “Alright. Stay here a few minutes and I’ll take you the rest of the way. I just need to check on Abby.” She better not be injured!
    “Yeah, sure.”
    Darby and Mira settled down in the dirt, happy to rest. Emily continued to stand, alert to everything around them.
    It only took two minutes for Noel to find Abby. She stood above a small creature dead on the ground. She was frustrated, trying repeatedly to secure the knot in the muffler around her wound with one hand. Unsuccessful, Noel did it for her.
    “Thank you,” she said, clearly stressed.
    Trying to lighten her mood, he teasingly said, “I thought we agreed you wouldn’t go looking for trouble while we were here.”
    “If only I could.”
    Noel took a closer look at the creature.
    “Is this – ?” he trailed off. He recognized it but was unable to remember what it was called.
    “Yep. Long way from home,” added Abby.
    “I’ve never seen one in person before. It looks young, only a few weeks maybe.”
    “Tell me what was so important that a demon indigenous to deserts would travel all the way to Austria?”
    Noel began to scan the forest around them. “Even better question for the moment: Where’s its mother?”
    “I guarantee you she won’t be far.”
    “We need to find her. I’ll take care of this and catch up to you.” He swept kindling from the trail and gathered it around the dead body.
    “Don’t worry about me. Just make sure Emily and the other two make it back to the manor. They could come across the mother before I do.”
    Don’t worry. Yeah, right . He couldn’t help but think of Valerie’s comment to him less than fifteen minutes ago. Three fights left her seriously injured, one he had yet to witness.
    “I think you should wait for me.”
    Abby was surprised. The two of them commonly worked solo and had always turned out okay - mostly.
    “It’s not exactly a high level demon, Noel,” she rebutted.
    “No, but once it smells the baby’s scent on you it’s going to be incredibly ticked off.”
    Abby looked to her clothes and hands. The look of realization on her face told him she had indeed pressed the demon’s body into her own.
    “Find it, but don’t engage.” He picked up the dagger in the snow and passed it to her. Then he gathered a bundle of twigs from the ground and waved them in front of her. She wasn’t amused. “Got a light?” he asked.
    Firmly, she replied, “Weren’t you the one worried I may visit the dark side while I’m here?”
    He sighed. They had had this conversation more times than he could count. Knowing what could happen in the days to come, he was more determined than ever to make her see reason.
    “You’re a good witch, Abby. You were given a gift that allows you to conjure the elements. Fire is an element.”
    “It’s also a power most commonly found amongst evil-beings. I’m not using it.”
    She pulled a lighter from her pocket, tossed it to Noel and left silently. Sighing, Noel surrounded the creature with more brush and tried several times to set it on fire. The debris was too wet to do the job without an accelerant. Frustrated, he left the body to attend to the huntresses waiting up the hill.
    After getting Emily and the other two safely back to the manor and successfully burning the demon with lighter fluid, Noel went in search of Abby and the creature’s mother. Unsuccessful in finding either in the nearby mountains, he was forced to retreat back to the safety of the manor. Dawn was approaching fast. He and Abby had made a pact the moment he turned her into a pure vampire. Regardless of what the mission was and the stage they were in, they would return to the designated safe house before dawn - no exceptions. Never had they failed to do so. Therefore, he had no doubt she would be heading in as well.
    God, it’s sad we consider the manor a safe house .
    He entered