1 | Gods & Monsters ✓

Chapter 5

There were streaks of crimson all over the receptionist desk, but no bodies left behind. Ava was all too aware the enemy might be lurking in the shadows, but there was no time to pause. She needed to get the backup generator working.

A holler broke from the Hub's core room. Ava's instincts told her to hightail it out of there, but the fighter in her won over logic.

"Ava, wait up." Mika headed her way. "It might be a trap. We should stop and think about this first!"

"There's no time. We need to get the generator working. Now!" She picked up the pace and ran down the dark corridor.

Her shoes were covered in blood by the time she reached the Hub's core. Rocks and salvaged brick collapsed into the room, and broke the panel controlling the barrier. As she stepped closer inside, it looked like the chimney's glass tube was okay, sparking at random as it tried to re-ignite.

Ava quickly searched the perimeter. Quiet. No workers manning the equipment. No shoes or clothes ripped by the demons, yet there was a putrefying smell by the corner. Ava gagged. She couldn't see past the tube, the sparks barely lit the room.

Quick movement caught her eyes.

A tall figure stepped away from the shadows, shrouded in a dark cloak. They pulled out a crystal sword. The blade glistened off the sparks. But it was the black rabbit mask that had Ava stunned silent. It grinned a fearsome cut like someone took a knife and carved into skin. She wasn't sure if it was the fatigue or sparks dancing off the shadows, but she swore the smile moved across the mask.

She shifted the Bō into its sword form and took off towards the villain. They held a gloved hand to its grin and let out a childish snicker. Ava swung the sword straight for their neck. It sliced through, cutting wisps of an image as if they were only a mirage, and disappeared without a trace.

"What happened? Did you kill them?" Gio asked. He entered the room, along with Sam at his side.

Ava was about to respond when Mika answered. "No, they escaped before she could."

Was he standing there watching the whole time and not going to fight? The thought irritated her, yet reconfirmed the poor decision of bringing them to Earth.

She pulled out her phone and called Josh. He answered on the first ring.

"Hey, I need you to put out a search for someone dressed in a black cloak and rabbit mask, body type is tall, gender unknown. Their weapon is a crystal sword," Ava said, re-tying what hair had fallen out of her ponytail. "Also, where's the second switch for the backup generator, again?"

Voices and shrills screamed into her ear and created static interference as she waited for him to respond. "To the right of the goddamn glass tube," Josh yelled.

Damn. She was afraid of that.

He grunted into the earpiece. Ava imagined he cut down another demon dog. "You guys need to get that barrier backup ASAP. We can't hold off these mutts for much longer—watch yourself!"

Metal clang as Josh shouted. "You fucking academy brats are fighting like newborn babies. What the hell are your trainers teaching you? How to shit your pants—"

Ava hung up the phone.

"So, what did he say?" Gio asked, impatiently waiting. He tapped the flat part of his scimitar sword against his leg.

Josh reconfirmed her suspicions. The box was located in the far left corner, around a fallen wall, exactly where the rocks and bricks laid. With Ava's curvy body and baggy sweatpants, no way would she reach it.