Gathering her courage, she turned her head slowly, her eyes searching the dark room. Behind where Joey and Patrick sat in their chairs, behind the shelves with all of their goods, shadows hunkered amid the darkness. Though they were still mostly hidden, she could discern their hulking shapes and reddened eyes as they glared across the room. She could make out eight of them, but there could be even more in the back, or still down below. A pulsating hunger and excitement radiated from them, seeming to fill the room, though she was the only one that had noticed them so far.
Afraid that any movement would immediately draw their attack, Cassie remained frozen, barely breathing. They had weapons gathered by the windows, but she didn’t think she would have enough time to get her crossbow, let alone fire it, before the creatures were upon them. She wasn’t even certain she would have enough time to warn the others first.
Taking a steadying breath, Cassie remained unmoving as she whispered to Annabelle. “How are they doing?”
Annabelle didn’t look at her, but she could feel her confusion over the fact that Cassie was no longer watching. “Another one has arrived, but they’re ok.”
The creatures would probably keep sending one or two in at a time in order to keep three of the stronger fighters occupied. Though she knew now that these monsters had enough sense to realize it was probably a suicide mission, they would do what the larger group wanted. They would sacrifice themselves in order for the others, more than likely the leaders, to feed and murder. Cassie shuddered at the organization, the brutality of it, and the thought process that had led them here.
Patrick had said that they did react, but only when murder, mayhem, and feeding were involved. Apparently even he had underestimated these creatures, to what might be all of their ultimate downfalls. They shifted slightly but did not attack. She didn’t know why they were waiting, they knew that she could see them, knew that she was watching them, but they remained immobile.
What were they doing? She wondered frantically, trying to get into their thought processes, trying to understand what was going on. But she could not understand them, it was impossible.
“Ok, ok good,” she breathed. “Annabelle, get away from the door.”
Annabelle shot her a look, and then froze. She turned slowly, her hand resting against the door as she moved on the chair. Her strawberry curls fell around her shoulders, her rosebud mouth parted in surprise, but she did not move. Beside her, Chris froze, his hand tightened around the curtain to the point that Cassie thought he was going to rip it from the window. Luther stiffened, but did not move. Melissa turned slowly, her onyx eyes, as dark as the room, widened in shock.
Though they were all aware of the monsters now within the room, the creatures still did not move. Patrick and Joey had turned in their chairs, their mouths dropped; terror was etched onto their features. Where was Dani? Cassie’s gaze darted past the creatures. She could not see the bathroom that Dani had bolted into, Cassie didn’t know if she was still in there, or if these monsters had gotten to her first. Though Cassie still did not trust the girl, her power would come in handy right now.
Very handy.
“What are they doing?” Melissa whispered.
Cassie had no answer for that. She found it more terrifying that they weren’t moving, then if they had already attacked. And then two more emerged from the dark. Cassie’s heart flipped, panic gripped her hard. She could barely breathe. Ten on seven. The seven of them were strong fighters, if Dani was still alive, but these odds were far worse than she would have ever wanted.
And yet they still did not move.
“There’s more,” she breathed in horror. “They’re waiting for them.”
Chris cursed violently; he finally released the curtain as he spun toward them. Patrick and Joey began to make horrified sounds as they bounced their chairs back, all pretense’s at trying to stay unnoticed forgotten in the face of these numbers. Cassie spun, they could not wait for them to attack their numbers would only swell if they did.
Hefting the crossbow, she slid a bolt expertly in as she heard the sudden explosion of movement behind her. They were coming, and they were coming fast. She spun back around, taking aim at the first one coming at her. She fired swiftly; the bolt was off target as it slammed into the creatures shoulder, barely knocking him off of his onward rush.
Annabelle leapt off of her chair, lifting it quickly she used it like a lion tamer as she slammed it into the chest of the one rushing at her. It fell back a few feet before lunging forward again. Cassie managed to get another bolt into place, taking aim she fired it, finding satisfaction as the bolt hit home. The creature made no sound as it fell back, its hands clenched its chest as it began its death wither upon the ground.
Cassie froze; her mouth dropping as the creature continued its silent death throes. “Jesus,” Melissa whispered, stunned into immobility too.
They were being silent, even in death, they were being silent. They wanted to keep this attack as quiet as possible. The thought process that went with that fact was staggering. For a moment no one moved as they tried to blend this new information in with what they had thought they’d known. Even Joey and Patrick had frozen; their mouths were wide as they stared at the creature that lay upon the floor, silenced forever now.
What were these things? Cassie wondered, trying hard not to completely unravel. Were they more human than they had all originally thought? Or were they even more demon? If they were more human should they even be killing them, or should they be trying to save them?
She didn’t have time to weigh those questions out; these creatures would not give her that time. Fear for her own life far outweighed the guilt, and doubt, that flared through her as the rest of the creatures raced toward them. Shocked into immobility by the creatures silent death, Cassie had not thought to reload her crossbow. Lifting it high, she slammed it hard into one of the monsters chests as it reached her. Using the crossbow as a barrier, she held it off of her as she struggled to regain control of this awful situation.
She punched another hard in the cheek as it reached for her. He fell back from the force of the blow, but the one with the crossbow in its chest continued to claw and swipe at her. They may have had the sense to plan this silent ambush, but when it came to fighting, the bloodlust took complete control of them. They had no reason, no sense, as the desire to murder and destroy overtook them. Cassie slammed the crossbow harder, shoving the thing further back as the other one launched at her again.