| |
Lazarus stepped into the building. It was dark, and he had to create a small glowing orb to show him the interior. Smoke was flowing out of the roof and a broken window. He heard a moaning sound. It was coming from the stage area. Lazarus moved his way through the main corridor and stopped. He coughed for a few seconds. Focusing his power, he sent the smoke outside and brought inside fresh air. He felt the interior was warm and filled with dark soot and burning wood.
Placing his hands upwards, he sprayed ice along the walls where he saw burning flames. He heard the sound of something else. The building was creaking and shuttering. He didn't like that noise, and he rushed into the main dance floor area. He smirked thinking that he stood here just 30 minutes ago with a crowd of people.
He saw on a charred staged a woman. It was Beth. She moaned.
Lazarus said, “Beth, are you ok? You need to leave. There was a fire.”
She turned her face him. Her hair was burnt and her face was covered with soot.
He said, “Can you get up?”
Beth didn't say anything but shook her head. Lazarus used his magic to prop her to her feet. She was still wearing her dress, but it was in tatters. He moved closer and grabbed her and placed one of her arms around his neck. He pulled her with his magic out toward the exit.
Near the broken wall, he saw a firefighter in all his gear came toward him.
The firefighter said, “I can take it from here, son.”
Lazarus nodded. The firefighter took hold of Beth. He followed the firefighter outside in the fresh air. An ambulance and firefighter truck was parked a few feet from the building.
A paramedic came close to him. “Are you hurt? Do you need anything?”
“No, go check on the others. I’m fine.”
Scattered along the road was people coughing and sitting. Another paramedic was tending toward the injured people.
Another firefighter came up to him and said, “What is your name? What you did was courageous?”
“I’m nobody,” Lazarus said. “Be careful in there. The building sounded like it was going to fall.”
The firefighter nodded and rushed into the maw of the charred building. Lazarus quickly moved away, walking fast and not looking back. He blended with the people watching the spectacle. When he found a deserted area, he flew upward and changed into a giant hawk. With a few swift flapping of his wings, he flew away into the night.
Using his magical senses, he felt the arcane throbbing feeling. The trail was not cold, and he knew he could follow it to its destination.
He flew and looked around the traffic below. A dark black SUV car moved took a turn down the PCH highway. Lazarus followed it. She was in there. He thought this magic user person had something powering her and maybe have a powerful talisman. He also thought this wizard didn't know what she was doing. She was strong but not that powerful.
***
THE BLACK SUV DROVE into the 710 freeway and was headed toward LA. He followed the car for almost 90 minutes. The SUV took an off-ramp in by Griffith Park. It drove down dark streets, moving in and out of traffic. Lazarus wondered when they were going to stop. He felt a spike of dark magic coming off the SUV in waves.
The SUV parked in a deserted area away from Griffith observatory. A door opened and several people moved out. Lazarus flew around the area and perched on a tree limb. He changed into an owl to see better at night. A large behemoth of a man dragged a person who was slumped and drugged against him. He saw the wizard direct them toward the woods. A flashlight appeared, and they moved up a small trail hidden in the underbrush.
They trail wound upwards toward a slope of a hill. Lazarus heard people grunting and puffing as they strained up the path. The light moved haphazard along the forest as the moved.
A man’s voice said, “We’re almost there.”
They moved up the last few feet until the trail widened and became a long grass plateau. Lazarus was confused for a second. He thought he had seen this place before, but it was in a different place. He thought it was the area where he saved Cindy from the monstrous creature who wanted to kill her in the Season of Fear time when he was a high school student. Yet, it was different.
There was a long rock altar in the middle of the clearing. The full moon’s light cascaded down up the area. Lazarus flew across the glade and landed on a tree close to the people. The altar had blood stains all over its surface. They placed a prone figure on the altar. It was a young teenager who was asleep or drugged. Lazarus wanted to swoop down and charge, attacking these monstrous people. They have been making blood sacrifices to something, but he stopped himself. He needed to find out who was at the middle of this.
A wind started to gather along the back area of the altar. Something was coming. The wizard and his people moved away from the altar. They bowed on one knee. A whirlwind was moving faster and faster. A large figure appeared. Lazarus couldn't see it at first until the wind dispersed.
Lazarus had seen horror movies before but the creature before him was more hideous and horrendous than anything a person could create on the silver screen. The only thing he could label this beast was a demon. The demon had ram horns on the side of his head and the face resembled a human reptile and a monster. It was easily over eight feet tall with hooves as feet and large talons as hands. The demon’s body was more muscular than the fittest body builder. Large bat-like wings were attached to its back. When the demon, struck the ground with its hooves flames appeared from the ground.
The demon said, “Mistress Elisa, you led the enemy to us.”
