The silence of the city was broken by an inhuman roar, sounds of broken wood and glass, and… screams.

  Screams of terror, screams of anger, screams of helplessness; blood flowed in the streets tonight.

  I was the first to react, jumping to my feet. Blankets tossed to the side. My parents were nearly as fast, grabbing their weapons. The priest stood with a grim frown. Everyone looked towards the door. It was not here, not yet.

  The door burst open. A terrified mother covered in blood carried a small child as she sprinted into the church. Behind her, a shadow loomed.

  It crouched through the door as it stepped into the dim light of the church, a creature that should not exist in this world. Straightening its back, it stood three times taller than any normal man. Its long arms stretched, dragging on the ground, with far more joints than any arm should have. At the end of each of its long fingers glistened a blade longer than my forearm. The most striking feature however was its face, or more correctly lack of a face.

  The creature had no eyes. Two holes on its face, but no nose. Stretching from one ear to the other was a massive mouth filled with pointed needle teeth. Every breath the creature took released a noxious red gas.

  It was a Demonkin.

  “it’s a Brute!” Luther shouted. “Watch its reach, its arms are longer than they look.”

  “Charly, look after your sister.” My mother said in a grave tone. She raised her silver sword towards the creature, and a crackle of lightning appeared. In a flash of electricity she vanished, only to reappear instantly behind the Demonkin. This was my mom’s innate talent, Lightning Step.

  My mom swung her silver sword, the air crackling with electricity. The blade struck the grey skin of the creature’s neck. The sound of metal striking metal rang through the church. The brute was completely unharmed.

  Without turning its body, the brute’s arm twisted, stabbing towards my mother behind him. A flash of lightning, and my mother dodged the claws. The claws missed my mother, but they struck the wall of the church. As if made of wet paper, the claw tore the stone wall to shreds.

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  Mom appeared next to my father and nodded towards him about something only they understood. A stack of papers appeared in my father’s right hand as he held his sword with his left. Two pieces of paper began to glow, then disintegrated. A soft silver glow enveloped my parent’s swords.

  Another flash of lightning. My mother appeared to the monster’s left. Striking with her blade, she aimed for the back of the creature’s leg. This time, her sword cut flesh. The wound was not deep, barely more than a scratch, but it was there.

  Simultaneously, my father rushed forwards. Another page in his hand disintegrated. Silver light covered his arm as he stabbed his blade into the creature’s thigh. This time the blade was able to go slightly deeper.

  With a guttural roar, the brute’s arms twisted at strange angles. My mother flashed away, but my father was not so lucky. Multiple pages in his hand disintegrated simultaneously, as five silver shields appeared in front of him. The claws stabbed into the ethereal shields. The first shield popped like a balloon. The second and third shields shredded like paper. The fourth shield held for a moment before shattering. Only at the fifth shield did the claws finally stop.

  The brute moved to strike my father again. This time it was Luther who stepped forward. He barreled into the creature’s knee at full speed, forcing more strain on the creatures injured leg. Both claws stuck at Luther simultaneously. There was no time to dodge. He did not have any shields to protect him, but unlike my father, he did not need protection. The claws struck him with a dull thud. They drew blood, but were less than a centimeter deep. Luther smiled, grabbing hold of the two claws still embedded in his skin.

  My mother appeared beside the creature again. She stuck out three times, each slash faster than the last. Each strike hitting the same wound she created the first time.

  Bellows of rage echoes through the church. The creature opened its unnaturally large mouth and red smoke poured out of it. For the first time, we could see the creatures’ eyes. They were actually inside its unnaturally large mouth. Bright red eyes that glowed in the dim light of the church.

  With one swift motion, the creature bent over and bit down on Luther’s shoulder. This time, the wound was not light. Its teeth were much sharper than its claws. Its jaws much stronger that its arms. Flesh was ripped and torn as blood pooled on the ground. Still, Luther did not release the creature.

  All the papers in my father’s hand disappeared simultaneously. His whole body glowed like a silver deity. My father struck down at the monster’s neck with a mighty blow.

  Once.

  Twice.

  Three times the sword cut the monster’s flesh.

  The silver glow faded. The brute had stopped moving. Even giving everything he had, my father was only able to cut through half the creature’s neck, but it was enough.

  Luther pried himself from the locked jaws of the creature. Despite his blood loss and injuries, he did not collapse. Instead, he stared to the door of the church.

  Outside, the screams continued. This Demonkin was not the only one.