Spider, Cordelia thought, backing up with Cortana held out before her. The demon was indeed arachnoid: its row of six eyes gleamed as it leaped to a dangling iron hook and swung out into the open space, chittering wildly. Its front four legs ended in claws with long, curved talons. The additional legs protruding from the back each ended in a hook. Mandibles jutted from either side of its fanged mouth.

The demon sprang from the hook.

“Anna!” Cordelia screamed.

Anna ducked just in time. The demon flew past her, landing atop the broken loom. Anna came out of her crouch into a full spin, sending her whip whistling toward the demon. It reared up to avoid being hit, its back four legs clinging to the loom as the whip slashed through the air.

“Ourobas demon!” James called. He flung his knife, but the Ourobas had already scuttled down from the loom and under a piece of broken machinery. The knife buried itself in the opposite wall.

“You know it personally?” Matthew had his blade at the ready. Lucie was beside him, her axe out, clearly waiting for an opportunity to engage the creature at close quarters.

James leaped atop a nearby pile of rusted metal, flicking his gaze over the factory floor. “Never had the pleasure, but they’re meant to be fast and agile. Not too clever, though.”

“Sounds like some people we’ve met,” said Anna.

James yelled a warning. Lucie lashed out with her axe as the demon hurtled past her, barreling straight for Thomas. He was ready with his bolas: the flexible leather thong shot out and doubled back, emitting a deafening crack as it encircled one of the demon’s legs and pulled tight. The leg was wrenched off: with a spray of ichor it fell to the ground, where it twitched like a dying insect.

The demon howled and leaped for a dangling hook, catching it and swinging away fast. James swore, but there was no point chasing it; it had already pushed off one of the gantries and was flying, ichor dripping from its injured leg, directly at Cordelia.

She raised Cortana, the arc of the blade golden and beautiful in the ugly factory light—

A sudden, blinding pain shocked her palms. With a gasp, she dropped the sword. The demon was nearly on her: she could see its ugly black mouth, its glittering, nested eyes. She heard Lucie scream, and her training took over: Cordelia flung herself to the ground and rolled, the Ourobas’s claws narrowly missing her.

The Ourobas yowled, dropping to the debris-strewn floor. Lucie’s throwing axe had buried itself deep in the demon’s side, but it didn’t even slow down. It sprang toward Cordelia. She could smell the stink of ichor as she scrambled backward, fumbling at her belt for a seraph blade—