Jordyn (A Daemon Hunter 1)

I was still smiling when the first Daemon made his move. He was quicker than the Daemons I had taken out on the beach. The hosts they were using were a fraction of the width but at least a foot taller. Their bodies weren't bloated with embalming liquids either, but instead were lean and fit from the souls that the bodies rightfully belonged to. It was obvious the Daemons had hijacked the bodies the instant the souls had left them.

My leg snapped up in one fluid movement before the Daemon could reach me. His head reared back from the impact of my foot hitting him square in the face. He growled at me and spat out a mouthful of teeth. The other two Daemons came at me as one, closing in on both sides.

I could smell their rank breath as they laughed at what they thought was their advantage. Waiting until the last possible moment, I finally reached out with lightning-quick reflexes and grasped one of them by the forearm. Twirling him around so his arm was twisted behind him, I felt the bone snap as the arm became limp. I used his body as a shield as he thrashed against me, trying to break my hold.

"Let go of me, you bitch," he snarled, bucking harder.

"As you wish," I said, releasing his arm abruptly. My arms were around his throat before he even realized I released his arm. Using gravity against him as he stumbled against me, I snapped his neck. I smiled as his useless body dropped to the ground in front of me. Knowing my touch would reduce him to ash in his regular form, he burst into a ball of flames after snarling at me one last time.

Taking advantage of my distraction with the fallen Daemon, the other two moved in on me together, hoping to use brute force against me. I laughed darkly as one of them wrapped his arms around me from behind. His strength was greater than a normal human, making it hard for me to wiggle around. His toothless friend stood in front of me, grinning crookedly, thinking they had the advantage.

"You must like Matterhorn a lot," I said, oozing sweetness.

"Matterhorn?" he asked, clearly confused.

"Yes, Matterhorn. The maker of my boots," I said, kicking up with all my might. The blow caught him in the chin, snapping his head completely back and breaking his neck like his fallen soul sucker friend. The Daemon fled his human host before the body he had hijacked had even hit the ground.

Without pausing, I reared my head back, catching the Daemon behind me full in the face. I heard the bones in his face break as his hold on me slackened. Twisting around before he was even aware of it, I placed one hand on his face that no longer had any bone structure and the other on the back of his head. With one twist his neck snapped and he landed in a heap at my feet.

"You're dead," the Daemon that had been holding me hostage only moments ago snarled at me, breathing heavily in his natural form as god knows what oozed from ruptured pores on his body.

"Gah, ever hear of a breath mint?"

"Who are you anyway?" he asked, blowing a large breath of rancid air in my face.

"I think you have bigger problems to worry about than who I am," I said, grasping his face in my hands, working not to grimace at the boils beneath my hands. "Like how you're going to explain to your boss that someangel scum took you out," I added as flames licked up his face where my hands had been.

"You won't always have that advantage," he snarled, looking at my offending hands.

"Whatever helps your burning time in hell," I mocked. "You can also tell your boss this village has protection now," I added just before he disintegrated in a ball of flames.

Cheering and clapping erupted behind me.

Taking a bow, I grinned at my audience as they strolled into the village.

"Are you okay, Jordyn?" Krista, ever the worrywart, asked, checking me over for injuries.

"Well, I broke a nail," I said, holding up my pinkie on my right hand to show her the damage.

"Show off," Mark said, ruffling my hair with admiration.

"What? My nail almost hurts," I pouted.

"You are one badass," Shawn said, giving me a mock punch in my arm. "Those were some impressive moves. That last kick, I bet your foot got this high," he said, holding his hand up near his chin.

"If my legs were longer, it would have been here," I bragged, moving his hand up several more inches.

"Truth, sista," Lynn said, slinging an arm around me. "That was amazing, my friend."

"Thanks."

"Well done, Jordyn," Haniel said, stepping into the circle of well wishers. "Almost flawless," he added, eyeing me critically.

"Almost flawless? Dude, she nailed it," Shawn championed for me.

"Nah, he's right. Flawless is no injuries," I said, holding up my hand again.

"What's a broken nail? You just trashed six Daemons single-handedly," Shawn grumbled, clearly aggravated on my behalf.