Chapter 73 - Stop Lying!

Echo sighed, "Here we go again!" Her instincts kicked in, and she gripped her sword with both hands.

Dark smoke seeped around the room, rendering Echo blind. She closed her eyes, and used her ears to guide her. She heard footsteps approaching them. A chill ran through the air. She heard a grunt, and bam. She dropped to the ground, with a metallic taste in her mouth. What was happening? Everything was silent. How did she drop to the ground?

Her ears rang, and for a moment she felt numb, until she coughed and her mouth tasted more and more like metal. She felt a warm liquid trickle down her stomach, which was eventually absorbed by her clothes. The next thing she knew, a sharp unbearable pain rendered her almost pass out. She was shot, but the bullet must have had something in it, because her body was reacting much differently than any previous time.

"Damon," Echo mumbled in her weak state. She couldn't stand to see him getting hurt. She needed to get back on her feet, and fight. She needed to help Damon.

With that thought in mind, she got up on both her feet. The pain intensified, almost as if something in her stomach was burning her. She coughed once again, and a prominent amount of red liquid sprayed out of her mouth. Echo used her sword to keep her balance, and stop herself from crashing onto the ground. This was exactly how her body reacted to the first time she was shot, but she was trained to get familiarised with pain, and she was usually able to keep her strength to continue the battle.

Ignoring her body's warning signs, she pushed forward. One small step changed everything. Her vision began to blur, causing her to no longer be able to stand. Giving her weight to her sword, she fell on her knees.

"EVERYONE! GET OUT!" Echo heard Damon's voice. A strong wind blew Echo to the ground.

"No! Hang on to something!" A demon shouted.

"We need to stick together!"

"It's too strong! We won't make it!"

Screams filled Echo's ears. She couldn't see anything in the thick smoke, but she felt a strong shift of energy in the room. It was something she couldn't explain, something she had never felt before.

The smoke finally started to recede. Echo pushed herself to her knees with the help of her sword. She heard Rose gasp.

"Damon! Are you okay?" Rose rushed to Damon. He was laying face down on the ground at the centre of the hall. "Damon!" she kept calling out as she shook him, but all her efforts were in vain. Damon was not budging at all.

Echo reached her hand out, "Damon!" her weak voice called out. She tried to crawl towards him, but her vision was darkening.

"This is all your fault!" Rose shouted at Echo.

Hunter hurried over to Echo. She lifted some of her master's weight. "What happened?"

Echo shook her head, "I don't know. The room filled with smoke, and then the next thing I knew I was shot."

Hunter pulled Echo down to the ground. She checked the windows, and then went to Damon. "I suggest we leave. More demons might come here once they find out what happened!"

Rose stood up, "No! We'll wait till the demons come! They'll protect us, and save Damon. I'm not so sure what would happen to you, and not that I ever cared." She crossed her arms, and stared at Echo. "If it wasn't for you, none of this would have even happened!"

Hunter held Echo's shoulder, and dragged her to the wall. Echo leaned on the wall, and turned her head towards Rose.

"Hunter is right! We should leave. If more demons attack, they'll kill Damon."

"How do you know?" Rose shouted at Echo. She approached Echo, and glared at her, "You've only been here for two days, and look at the carnage you've reeked. When the demons get here, they'll protect Damon. They would never hurt him. I've been in his life for a year, you just met him about a month ago. What do you even know about him."

Echo could not help but to laugh at Rose's remarks as she thought to herself, 'Human! I've known Damon for longer than you can imagine. I know enough about the demons to know that they will destroy him once they find out what happened here. Once they find out that he was protecting me.... once they find out that he betrayed them. How can you not see this? Are you the mole? But Damon trusts you too much, would you really go against him like this? Get rid of someone he loves? Would you let him die? Is that how well you've know him even after being with him the past year? Is this how much you trust the demons who almost killed you? Is this how all humans feel about Protectors?'

Rose kept glaring at Echo, "SAY SOMETHING INSTEAD OF LAUGHING!"

Echo coughed up more blood, "What's there to say?" her voice was a little louder than a whisper.

Rose was angered more, by her question, "What are you planning? Are you really a Protector? How are you even reacting like this to a bullet wound? Isn't the point of you existing Protect others? So why are you so adamant to destroy demons? What about the other supernatural creatures? Shouldn't you be attacking them too? You are a monster!" She turned around, and walked to Damon. With all her might she tried, but could not pick him up.

Echo blinked her eyes, staring at Rose, "Take him back to the mansion. I know someone who could help him out."

"Stop lying!"

"I'm not! Why would I lie now? What do I have to gain from lying to you? Even if you were correct, and I was just using him to get closer to the demons, wouldn't I need him alive?"