Dark Hunger

The portal expanded as Edyrm ran towards it. 

"Hurry up!" Laurel shouted when she saw that Neal was chasing them. She waved her hands for Edyrm to lunge inside.

"Edyrm!" A voice sounded from behind. The demon stopped in his tracks. He swirled around and saw Caleb. Shock mingled with anger exploded through him. He hissed at him as his fists balled and his claws dug into his palms. 

"You!" he growled in a deep voice filled with hatred. 

"Don't you fall for him, Edyrm!" Laurel yelled from behind. He is going to trap you. "Come fast!" Laurel knew that the only way to be safe was to get into the portal and meet her brother who was waiting for them outside Ixoviya. This was just an emergency measure. Urhan had said that as soon as they finished the work at the hospital, they should go to Nessa and Owen. However, he also had a fallback plan just in case things didn't work out. He had asked them to come to Ixoviya in case of an emergency. And this is what she was going to do. "Come on!" She urged Edyrm. Shadows leapt behind Caleb. She tilted her head and saw Daryn and Elize walking right behind him. Fear skittered down her spine when her gaze met Elize's. her heart beat like a galloping beast. A tremor passed through her body and she backed up a little. 

Edyrm was in a frenzy. All he wanted to do was to gut the sorcerer who had pulled the magic out of his body and transferred it to his wife's body. Not only that, she controlled his magic to the extent that it didn't recognize him. First, he was going to kill Caleb and then he was going to murder his wife. He disregarded Daryn whom he didn't know. "I will kill you, you bastard!" he lunged at Caleb. 

Caleb scowled. He flung his hand forward and a gust of wind whooshed out, sending the demon back. Caleb closed his fist to stop his magic. "You don't go around trifling with people like me," he growled dangerously. 

"Are you insane?" Laurel shouted. Her portal was still whirling. They needed to leave. She needed to leave. "We have to leave now!" The fucking demon was such a liability but she was holding on to him because Urhan had said that he knew a way of getting his magic back from the queen. It would eventually result in the death of the vampire queen. And that was the only purpose why she had kept him alive. Now seeing Elize in front of her, she wished that Edyrm didn't do something foolish. 

Caleb narrowed his gaze towards Laurel. "You can't get away," he snarled at her. "And you certainly can't take him from me now!" 

Laurel's body trembled. The sorcerer king's threat could never be taken lightly. He was a powerful man in front of whom her sorcery was like that of a child playing with his first toy. So, she had to trick him. She had to stall him in some way. "I am not sure why you are after us," she replied. "But we are living a peaceful life, away from Ixoviya. We mean no harm, so please let us go." 

"Not happening," Caleb hissed as he walked closer to Edyrm. 

Laurel gritted her teeth. There was very little distance left between them. Her gaze flitted to Neal who was standing behind Elize and Daryn and watching them with his wolfy eyes. In one last attempt, she called Edyrm. "If you are not going to come, I will leave you Edyrm!" 

The demon growled at Caleb. He knew that at the moment Caleb was just too strong to be taken down. Yet his blood boiled. He wanted to beat the shit out of him. It was his pride that was not letting him go. 

"You fool!" Laurel shouted. "Why don't you listen to me?" 

Edyrm clenched his teeth. Then with an inward shake, he turned to leap inside the portal. Just as he leaped, he saw red tendrils of magic flowing past him like vipers on drugs and hit the blue ring of the portal.

"Noooooo!" Laurel shouted as the ring blasted into a thousand blue wisps. But what happened next, froze her with utter disbelief. Everything turned into slow motion. 

The red tendrils swirled in front of Edyrm who was still running. They got mixed blue mist that swished past them and formed a portal. Edyrm couldn't stop his momentum as he leapt inside the portal. A roar of protest rose from his chest as the portal sucked him inside and collapsed instantly. Laurel was left with her mouth fallen to the floor. She stared at the place where the portal shut down in front of her, where she had created one and it got replaced by another. No one had that kind of power except… Caleb. Her mind became numb as she staggered back. 

When Elize had sent her magic flying towards Edyrm, she had full intentions of killing the demon once and for all. But Caleb saw it. He sent his magic that blasted through hers. It forced her magic to swirl with him and form a portal. Edyrm leapt into it. Caleb had shunted him to the outskirts of Galahar, the land of the demon king Rolfe Aramaer. 

Though Elize was angered and shocked at what Caleb did, she didn't question his judgment. Right now, she focused on Laurel—the bitch with a black mark across her face. The magic in her hands spiraled with force. It wanted to leave her and attack the entity she hated. It wanted revenge like now. Elize bared her fangs and walked past her husband to reach Laurel. "We meet again," she said as she came to a stop in front of her. Laurel was quivering with terror. "I know it was your plan to trap Owen and Nessa." 

Laurel shook her head as she took a step away from Elize. 

"You used my brother's greed to trap me." 

"No," Laurel stuttered. "H— he wanted to take revenge against you," she lied through her teeth. 

"Really?" Elize narrowed her eyes. "And how did he collaborate with you when he didn't know who you were?" 

"N— Nessa c— called Daryn's office. She found us. Sh— She is the one who planned against you." Laurel's stomach plummeted to the floor. Her knees were shaky. She clasped her hands at the back and snapped her fingers, but they were too shaky. In order to create a portal again, she needed to steady herself and use her magic. And she needed time. 

Elize tipped her head back as she laughed at Laurel's foolish talk. "You are such a dimwit!" Elize said. "And a thorn in my eyes." 

"Please Elize," Laurel said. "You—" 

"Queen Elize!" Elize snarled. "I am Queen Elize for you!" her hands were straight beside her with tendrils flowing out like fingers, like asps, like vines. 

"Yes, yes. I am sorry. You are my queen," she said and looked behind towards Caleb for help. Tears streamed down her eyes. She snapped her finger behind her, willing the portal to appear. She saw that Elize took one more step towards her.. "Please don't kill me. I was doing all this at someone's behest!"