Crazy demon dude was still busy tending his hell fire. At least that meant he wasn't standing right over us preparing to snatch my child the moment she entered the world. Which was strangely reassuring. I felt I could deal with anything as long as he didn't touch her.
A lot of wetness was coating my legs now and I was praying it wasn't blood. Because it felt as if I'd dumped half my fluids out. The contractions weren't really stopping now; my daughter was coming for real.
"I wish Max was here," I choked out.
Jessa nodded, coughing a few times as she tried to breathe through her pain. A wind blew up then, inside of the house, whipping around and whistling through the hallway. I thought it was the portal, but then Kristoff-demon whipped around and fell into a defensive pose.
Blackness descended as I screamed again and the need to push came over me.
Waves of power swept in with those winds, and a rush of relief hit me. I recognized that power.
"Mischa!" Maximus' roar was the best thing I'd ever heard in my life, but I also feared for him. This demon would let no one stand in his way, and I wasn't sure the boys could fight him. He was a king of their kind. Extremely strong.
I wanted to call out a warning to them, but every ounce of my energy was occupied with having a baby.
The boys filed into the room, and with a blast of energy Kristoff shot some sort of spell at them while at the same time trying to lunge for me and Jessa. Thank the gods that stupid ass hadn't wanted to see the mess of childbirth. That gave the boys enough time to reach us before he did.
Louis moved to the center and shot some return bolts of energy, deflecting Davind's spell. Even in my half-conscious state I noticed how drawn and worn out the powerful sorcerer looked, nothing like his usual unruffled state.
He was our best bet for this demon, but it looked as if another spell would do him in. With Tyson by his side, the pair managed to keep Davind from crossing the room to us, trapping him behind a barrier. It was at this point Braxton, Maximus, and Jacob raced to us.
The vampire skidded down beside me and tried to gather me closer. I screamed and pushed him away, the pains in my stomach intense. The movement sent it roiling, and I had to turn my head so I could vomit everywhere.
"What did he do?" Maximus' black eyes cut into me and there was true fear there. His hands were gentle on me, but he didn't try to shift me again.
I wiped at my mouth and cried softly, managing to string a ragged sentence together: "He wants the babies – sent out a spell to send us into labor. The demon has completely taken over Kristoff. He said the power of our young was enough to open a portal from his realm to this one. He's going to kill them."
My body locked down again; the pain was ripping me in two. My eyes met Maximus'. "It's time. She's coming."
He leaned down and kissed my cheek. As he pulled back I saw his fear strongly for a second, before he masked it behind a wall of calm. "Okay, baby, you can do this. You've done amazing so far." He cupped his hands for a moment and Jacob filled it with fresh water. Some of it trickled into my parched mouth before I had to get back to pushing.
"How's … Jess?" I huffed out.
Maximus turned his head for a second. "She's doing okay. Braxton's with her and their little girl is almost born."
Shit. This was so bad. They needed medical help. We needed a hospital. Jessa and I had talked about supes having babies before, and she said generally they were birthed in your own home with the help of a healer. But I wasn't sure what happened with premature little ones.
"You need to push for me, Misch. I can see her head. Just a couple of big pushes."
I sucked in deeper, drawing on a strength I didn't even know I had. Gritting my teeth and bearing down as hard as I could, I felt the movement of my daughter through the canal, and I continued pushing right up until there was a final burning pain and then the pressure disappeared.
Blackness descended across my vision for a moment and I realized I hadn't breathed for a long time. As I sucked in deeply I heard a beautiful sound, the twin cries of babies being brought into the world. Seemed as if Jessa and I had birthed our girls at the exact same time, and they both sounded strong and healthy.
With that thought, fear ripped through me so strong it almost crushed my chest. My daughter was here. She was crying, and alive, and perfect. We couldn't let the demon near her.
Maximus' face appeared above mine wearing an expression I'd never seen before, complete and total awe.
"Misch, you did so well, sweetheart." He started kissing me and running a hand over my face. A wrapped bundle was placed into my arms, and then with one last kiss on my lips he pulled away. "I need to help Braxton. Jessa is struggling with her second little one. He's breech and we have to try and turn him. The healer is on the way. Hopefully they'll make it in time."
Fear for my sister and her son was strong. I waved him off, my other hand clutching my daughter closer. I took a moment to stare at the amazing miracle in my arms. I examined her beautiful face, perfect olive skin, her mess of black hair, her curls, and her huge blue eyes blinking at me as she tried to take in the new world around her. She was so perfect. The most perfect thing I could ever have imagined. At that moment I knew a love like no other, a love that could never be replicated. The love of a mother and her child was the first completely unselfish emotion I'd ever had. A love so strong and pure it was almost crushing in its intensity.
I reached across and gripped my sister's shoulder, giving her my strength, whatever I could spare. I sent it through our bond.
"You got this, Jess."
Jacob was sitting close by, a small bundle cradled in his arms. He was holding her daughter. He started to sing the low haunting melody he always sang to Jessa. It was their song, and it was a birth song for the fey. He was helping her welcome the little boy into the world. Braxton was crouched down in front of her, his hands trying to ease the baby around. Footsteps sounded and a male magic user dashed into the room.
"Out of the way!" He was abrupt, and despite being quite diminutive for a supe, didn't seem to fear Braxton at all as he pushed him to the side.
The dragon growled but didn't retaliate. The healer began to mutter something, Jacob's song still ringing out. Relief crossed Jessa's face then and I figured he'd helped with her pain. "I'm going to turn him now," he said. "Your children were not quite ready to be born. We must hurry, he's distressed."
Jessa started outright sobbing, her face crumpling. Braxton had his arms wrapped around her, and I thought a tear or two might have been sprinkling his dark blue eyes. I could tell he felt helpless, and that was not something the dragon handled very well. He wanted to fix this, but there was no easy fix.
A shout sounded from across the room. Kristoff had advanced and was in some sort of magical showdown with Louis. The two of them exchanged fiery spells while Tyson hurriedly mixed something into a few glass jars.
Maximus was close to me again, one hand tangled in my hair, the other resting on our daughter, who had fallen asleep on my chest. "I need to help him, he's losing." Maximus said, his voice low.
"Yes, do whatever you can. We can't let the demon near our girl."
Maximus kissed me fiercely, his expression both soft and scary as hell. Then he was gone across the room to take on the demon. I tried to lift myself up a little; some of the numb pain in my lower half had eased and I was starting to get feeling back in my body, but it was still hard to maneuver with the bundle on my chest. She had her mouth open now, pretty little rosebud lips moving as she suckled for milk.
My eyes switched between her and Maximus in a constant rotation. He was helping Tyson, the two of them standing close together, each holding a jar.
"Throw it now," Louis shouted. "He's breaking free. The demon's too strong."
Tyson and Maximus both threw in unison, and the three of them started chanting, odd words I'd never heard before but which rang with power.
Cresta demonica turnitalia reform.
A huge fire blew up then. It was odd, definitely magical in nature. It surrounded the demon-touched sorcerer and he took an involuntary step back.
"Not strong enough," Kristoff scoffed. "You needed at least three more spells."
The boys ignored him, chanting louder, magical weight behind each word. The fire started really blowing up, but it didn't seem to get any closer to the sorcerer. He laughed, stepping into the flames.
"Which one of you wants to die first? Your souls will bring forth a huge army, and then with the children's souls, I'll permanently open the doorway."
Maximus' entire face locked down into predator mode. His vampire was in control, but before he could react, Louis stopped him with a hand on his chest. He threw it off, but paused long enough to hear the next words.
"I don't have the magical power left," Louis said. "There's only one other chance to end this. It's not an option I wanted to take. It's far too dangerous, but I'll not let him touch the young, I promise you."
Maximus was silent and still, before finally nodding. Braxton shifted then. He hadn't moved from Jessa's side at all, but the boys must have called for him. Jacob crossed to me and placed Jessa's daughter down in my free arm. She looked a lot like my little one, only her hair was a shock of very white blond.