More than Magic: Semester Aboard (51 page)

"If we can't end this tonight..." Charlie
hesitated. "Someone has to report this. Nathaniel has to be
stopped." He put a hand on each of our shoulders and gave us a
push. "Go!"

"I'm not going to-"

Charlie cut Mariana off. "And tell Ember I
love her."

Mariana's jaw dropped. "Charlie! Don't talk
like-"

"And you know I love you too, right? As much
as Danio does. Now get out of here and don't leave the room for
anything!"

Tears started rolling down Mariana's cheeks
as she gaped at him. "Are you crazy? I'm not just going leave you
here!"

"Mariana, you-" Charlie stopped and his eyes
widened. He flung an arm out in front of us and backed us up. He
wasn't looking at the fight, he was looking toward the snack bar. I
followed his gaze, but saw nothing. "You may as well stop hiding,"
Charlie snarled. "I see you." A fireball flared to life in his
hand.

And then, something appeared. At first it
looked like mist, gathering in the shadows by the bar. Then it
solidified into a shape. It looked like a cross between a dog and a
wolf. It was hard to see vivid colors with my night vision, but it
looked solid black. My heart pounded in fear as I stared at it. It
bared its' teeth and growled as it stalked closer.

"Damn fire elementals and your heat vision,"
the creature snarled. I shouldn't have been surprised that it could
speak; it was obviously a magic of some kind. But it was even more
frightening because I hadn't expected it.

"What is it?" I whispered.

"It's a jackal," Mariana said. She looked
around, clearly scared. "Who is it with?"

"One way to find out," Charlie said. "Jen?"
He gestured to my wand.

With a nervous gulp, I aimed my wand at the
jackal. "
Mar
!"

My sparks flared up with Charlie's help and
the jackal howled in pain. It rushed by us and into the rain, then
started rolling in the puddles on the deck. Charlie cursed as the
flames died down. The jackal staggered to its feet, snarling. And
then the vampire that Dani and TS had been fighting was there. He
hissed furiously and stepped between the jackal and us. The
jackal's growl turned into a laugh and it stood behind the
vampire's legs. The two glanced at each other. It was brief, but
the way they looked at each other reminded me of something.

"I'll kill you for that," the vampire
said.

"The witch is weak," the jackal said. "Her
wand even looks brand new. But the elemental controls the sparks
she casts."

"Shall I save her for you?"

The jackal's lips curled back into a cruel
smile. "Please."

They moved, the vampire edged one way while
the jackal circled the other. Their eyes met again and I realized
what it reminded me of: Thomas and TS. They weren't just looking at
each other, they were communicating. The vampire and the jackal
were bonded! Charlie moved in front of Mariana and me and raised
his hands, ready to fight. The jackal and the vampire stopped just
at the edge of the roof. As long as the rain was pouring down they
were safe. And then the bald dhampir appeared. Maybe we had had a
chance, but now that the dhampir was there I was worried. Charlie
wouldn't be able to hold off all three of them. I looked out into
the rain desperately. Thomas and Nathaniel were circling each
other, neither looked hurt, but neither looked eager to attack
again. Dani looked like he had his hands full with the white-haired
guy. TS and the other two dhampirs were in a standoff.

Just when I thought that nobody could help
us, TS lunged and caught the dhampir girl by the leg. She screamed
in pain and I was sure TS had broken it. The jackal turned and
raced across the deck.

"Tethys!" Charlie yelled.

He was too late. The jackal sprang into the
air and landed on TS' back, sinking its teeth into the back of TS'
neck. TS yelped in pain and released the dhampir girl. He started
twisting and thrashing, trying to reach the jackal. He couldn't
help us now. The vampire laughed and the dhampir moved to take the
jackal's place. It seemed like the white-haired guy wasn't done
with us. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him wave an arm. Wind
lifted Dani completely off of his feet and hurled him across the
deck. He hadn't even started to get up when the white-haired guy
appeared, just beyond the edge of the roof and safely in the rain,
grinning.

"This looks more fun," he laughed.

The vampire and the dhampir laughed too, then
all three of them stepped under the overhang and out of the rain. I
kept my wand raised, but had no idea what to do. I could only cast
sparks on one of them. But two of them were so fast that the other
one would be on us long before I could cast my spell again. Charlie
backed us up another step. And then, miraculously, the white-haired
guy cried out. Everyone turned to look at him in surprise as he
dropped down to one knee. With a cry that was part-anger, part-pain
he yanked a knife out of the back of his knee. He threw it with a
yell. Dani dodged the knife easily and sprinted right past him,
stake ready, to the vampire. Without his allies the dhampir hurried
back into the rain and stood still, watching in concern.

For a few terrifying moments, Dani and the
vampire fought. I was impressed and shocked at how well Dani kept
up with the vampire. But it was only for a few seconds. All too
soon Dani lost the advantage he'd gained from his sudden attack. It
was obvious when he changed from striking to blocking. And then he
missed and the vampire struck. His fist caught Dani right in the
stomach, exactly where Sandra had already hit him. Exactly where
Dani was most vulnerable. Before I could even cry out, the vampire
swung around and kicked Dani right in the same place. The kick was
so powerful that it sent Dani flying. He tumbled across the deck
before slamming into the snack bar, hard enough to crack it.

Heedless of the danger, I ran to Dani.
Mariana and Charlie had the same idea and the three of us reached
him at the same time. Dani was hurt. Seriously hurt. More, probably
a
lot
more, than he had been when Sandra had punched him. He
was coughing and gasping, but this time blood didn't spatter when
he coughed. It gushed. I fell back in horror and almost threw up at
the sight.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God," Mariana
sobbed. "He's going to bleed to death!"

She was right. There was so much blood. And
there had to be even more that we couldn't see. It was clear that
Dani was having trouble breathing too. For a few seconds his eyes
were open; pale grays churning with whites. Then they rolled back
and he went limp. I almost thought he was dead, but his chest was
still heaving and the blood was still running out of his mouth. And
then I felt an intense, blistering heat. I stared at Charlie in
shock; the flames in his eyes were so bright they were nearly
glowing. He slowly climbed to his feet, then turned and ran right
at the startled vampire. They burst into flames and the vampire's
screams of pain filled the air. At the same moment the jackal
started howling in agony.

Suddenly, the flames flared even brighter.
Larger. It wasn't just a small fire surrounding the vampire and
Charlie anymore. It was a spreading inferno. Everyone else stopped
and watched. It engulfed the injured white-haired guy and the bald
dhampir before either could run. I could still feel the heat from
the fire. Thomas and Nathaniel both backed away, as did TS and the
other two dhampirs. And still the flames seemed to be getting
bigger.

"Dani!" Mariana screamed. I turned, fearing
the worst, but he was still alive. "Dani, you have to wake up!
Charlie's erupting!" Mariana grabbed his shoulder like she was
considering shaking him. "
Please
! You have to stop him
before he sinks the ship!"

I looked back at the fire in horror. I knew
that she wasn't exaggerating. I'd seen Charlie lose his temper now
and again. I knew that fire elementals could snap, just like water
elementals. And, having seen Dani typhoon, I knew just how scary it
could be. But somehow, I had always been more afraid of Dani losing
it again than Charlie. When he had typhooned Dani's eyes hadn't
just been black, they had been completely devoid of sanity or
reason. He could have killed Thomas if he had wanted to. He could
have killed any of us. As much as I had grown to trust Dani, I
never forgot what he was capable of. But I had never thought of
what it would be like if a fire elemental lost it. Dani was only a
danger to people he could physically get a hold of. If Charlie
couldn't control the raging inferno he had caused, he could kill
everyone on the ship.

Mariana tried a different tactic. "Charlie!
Dani's alive! He'll be ok! You have to stop!"

Maybe he heard her. Or maybe he had burned
himself out. The flames flickered and seemed to stop growing.
Nobody moved as the flames slowly died down. When they were out I
stared in shock at the carnage. There was actually a circle on the
deck. A circle of blackened and warped planks. The vampire,
dhampir, and white-haired elemental were all dead, burned beyond
recognition. And in the middle of the circle was Charlie. He'd
collapsed and steam was rising off of him, so thick that I could
hardly see him. I gasped when I realized that he was in the rain. I
ran for him and dropped to my knees. I could feel the heat from the
deck through my jeans and it nearly burned me. I grabbed Charlie
under the arms and started dragging him out of the rain. He was
still so hot that I could hardly touch him. As I got him safely
under the roof I noticed Mariana doing the opposite with Dani. I
sighed in relief as she pulled him out into the rain. I could only
hope that we had both done it in time.

Charlie was shivering violently, but his eyes
were open.

"Charlie?" I said, wishing there was
something I could do. I felt like an idiot when I realized that
there was! I cast my warming spell on him. But, it was yet another
spell I should have practiced more. It didn't look like it did much
good.

"W-w-wood," he managed to say.

I looked around, there was nothing. "I don't
think there is any!" The deck was probably wood, but it was so
covered in tar and resin I didn't think it would be much good.

"Then s-s-something. Fl-flammable."

The bar! Surely there was something there! I
ran over to it and pulled desperately at the cabinets. Locked. I
wanted to cry. There had to be paper behind the doors. I looked at
my wand. I hadn't cast any air spells yet, I'd been focusing on
fire. Not that it had done me any good. If I couldn't cast one now,
then I'd have to just give my wand to Charlie to burn. It certainly
wasn't helping me. I pointed it at the cabinets. "
Ahn
!" I
cried. "
Ahn
!
Ahn
!" I was nearly sobbing as I chanted
the word. I glanced up and over the bar at the others.

Charlie had, amazingly, given us the
advantage. TS and the two dhampirs were facing off again and Thomas
and Nathaniel were busy staring each other down. But what would it
matter if we won if I couldn't get Charlie warm again? And then, a
click. Hardly daring to believe it, I reached forward and opened
one of the cabinets. Not just any cabinet. One crammed full of
paper plates. I grabbed an entire stack and raced back to Charlie.
I set a few sparks on one and handed it to him. It flared up in his
hands and he sighed in relief. I started handing him plates as the
flames died down. The rain was still steaming up off of him and he
looked like he was drying off. I heard furious growling and looked
over at TS. My heart skipped a beat. The dhampirs had spread out.
They were so far apart that TS could only attack one at a time. And
if he did then the other was too close to Dani and Mariana. Mariana
was standing over Dani, clutching a stake with both hands. She was
coated in blue blood and I couldn't tell if Dani was even still
alive. I had to hope that she wouldn't be defending him if he
weren’t.

As if that wasn't enough, Nathaniel and
Thomas were fighting again. They were moving so fast I could hardly
see them, but one thing was clear: Thomas was getting tired. He
stumbled and regained his balance just before Nathaniel grabbed
him. Nathaniel lunged again. They fought for a few more moments and
then Nathaniel had him. He threw Thomas clear across the deck.
Thomas smashed into, and through, one of the glass-topped tables
and landed in a pile of chairs. He sat up, slowly. He was hurt.
Nathaniel laughed and crossed the deck in a flash. He stopped near
Thomas and thankfully not too close to Charlie and me.

"What's wrong?" Nathaniel said. "Having
trouble?" He turned and looked at me. "I'm so glad you stuck
around."

"Stay away from her," Thomas snarled.

Nathaniel laughed and took another step. An
awful, spine-chilling hiss rent the air. It hadn't come from him
and had been too powerful for a dhampir. It couldn't have been
Thomas. I knew he was a vampire, but somehow I had never thought
that he was capable of such a terrifying sound. But Thomas' upper
lip was still curled back and his fangs were still bared. It
had
been him. He stood, but he was breathing heavily. He
couldn't keep fighting for long.

"Are we really going to keep doing this?"
Nathaniel said. He sounded so calm. "It's getting dreadfully boring
fighting a sick vampire. You're not much of a challenge."

Underfed, yes. But sick? I looked at Thomas
in concern. He snarled softly, but said nothing.

"I'll still kill you anyway, of course,"
Nathaniel continued. "And the rest of your friends. I was told that
you haven't been feeding from the non-magics on the ship. I didn't
believe it at first, but clearly it's true. I still can't quite
believe you refuse to treat them like the cattle they are. I do
hope it's been worth it. It's going to be your undoing." He took a
step toward Thomas and crouched like he was ready to lunge. "Maybe
you should thank me. Starving to death must be rather
uncomfortable."