Authors: M. R. Merrick
“You can’t go hopping around from dimension to dimension. It’s a risk I’m not willing to let you take.”
“This time it’s not up to you. Unless you’ve had some vision you’d like to share.”
Marcus ran a large hand over his smooth scalp and shook his head. “I haven’t.”
“Then we’re going.”
“Rayna is not ready for that, and neither are you.”
“Excuse me?” Rayna’s voice came from the stairwell.
Marcus sighed. “You two are listening anyway, so why don’t you join us?”
Rayna and Tiki came back up the stairs. Tiki looked slightly ashamed, but Rayna was angry.
“I’m going,” Rayna said.
“You’re not,” Marcus commanded. “I won’t lose anyone else.”
“We can’t let Chase go alone. Not with those…
things
.”
“What things?”
“Pureblood vampires,” Tiki said.
“Purebloods? Okay, none of you are going.”
“Riley’s out there right now, trying to get everything together to invoke Ithreal. If he succeeds, we all die,” I said.
“We’ll find another way.”
“There is no other way; don’t you see?”
“Chase, I promised your mother I wouldn’t let anything happen to you. I’m in charge of this, and until that changes–”
“Then maybe it’s time for a change.” I felt guilty immediately, but using my mother as leverage wasn’t going to work. Someone had to stop Riley, and that someone was me.
“Chase, we can find another option. I can’t let you continue to throw yourself in harm’s way. I won’t.”
“Nobody is trying to get themselves killed here. Serephina said if we don’t destroy the ring, Riley
will
get it. Once he has it, he can start gathering the soul pieces. I have no choice but to destroy it, and I need all the help I can get. I need your help.”
Marcus stared at me with his empty expression. His dark eyes moved over each of our faces before he uncrossed his arms and sighed. “Start by telling me about Serephina, then show me what we’re dealing with.”
Once we’d given Marcus the rundown, we went to the training room and the arsenal of weapons it carried. I always had my daggers, but I loaded up on throwing knives and a sword. If Tiki was even half right about the purebloods, I wasn’t going in light.
“Everyone have what they need?” I asked.
“Yes,” they all said at once.
“Good. Tiki, you’re up.”
Tiki shook his head. “I cannot do it here.”
“Why not?”
“I’ve been trying to focus my power, but it’s not working.”
“Why are you telling me this now?”
“You never asked.” Tiki shrugged.
“So, what now?”
“We need to get away from the city. There is too much interference here. It’s preventing me from teleporting. I need an open place, away from everything. Preferably a place of magic.”
“The sanctuary?” Rayna offered.
“Before we get ahead of ourselves, do you know where the temple is, Tiki?” Marcus asked.
“I don’t know of its location, and even if I did, I couldn’t take us directly there. It is hard enough to transport this many people. If I can get us all to Theral, where we end up is not in my control.”
The buzzer sounded through the condo and we all jumped.
“Also…” Tiki trailed off looking guilty.
“Also what?” I asked.
“I may have told Willy what was happening.”
“You, what?”
“He is a shifter. If there is a small chance his abilities will work against the vampires, I thought we could use more than one.”
I shook my head. “Willy isn’t designed for things like this.”
“Tiki might be right,” Marcus said. “It can’t hurt to have more than just Rayna with us.”
“Why don’t we just call all the shifters and see if they want to tag along then?” I asked sarcastically.
The buzzer rang again; this time Willy pushed it repeatedly.
“Fine. But you invited him, so he’s your responsibility.”
We pushed past the last line of undergrowth and stepped into the clearing. The sun had set and the moon was high. Rai disappeared off my shoulder, flying into the bluish light that hung on the air.
“This place is incredible.” Tiki’s voice reveled in amazement, gliding his fingers over the bark of the tree.
“We don’t have time for appreciating the scenery; every second we waste is another second Riley could be getting closer,” I said.
Tiki looked up at the colorful flowers that always seemed to be in bloom and smiled. “Gather ‘round.”
We all stood in a circle around him, and as his power started to wrap around us, a white light flashed, washing his magic away. Elyas stood in the middle of the clearing, her long blonde hair flying up in wisps around her body. A white glow encircled her form and vibrant blue eyes stared at me. She was beautiful and perfect, yet plain all at once.
“Your adventure begins,” Elyas said. Her lips moved, but no sound came from them. Her voice moved around me in every direction. It made me feel warm, confident, and unstoppable.
“Nice of you to show up. I’ve been trying to contact you.”
“I am quite aware, but I am not a magic eight ball. You cannot summon me as you wish. I appear only when directed.”
“Serephina sent you?”
“Who sent me is not of your concern, Protector. I am here to aid you in your travels to Theral.”
“But we have Tiki.”
“He is not a pureblood, so he cannot take you all. If he does this alone, you will be scattered throughout the dimension. I shall aid him, and with my help, I can get you closer to the temple.”
“He’s taken this many of us before.”
“Yes, but you need more help. The wolf and cat will not be enough.”
“We don’t have anyone else. This has to be enough.”
“Don’t be so sure,” she said, and her figure started to fade. “When you are ready, I will assist.”
“Wait!” But it was too late; she was gone. “We don’t have anyone else…” I whispered.
The snapping of branches sounded and Vincent stepped out of the woods with a small group of vampires behind him. His pants and dress shirt were torn, with dirt and leaves stuck to them.
Rayna stepped forward. “What are you doing here?”
“We came to assist you of course.” His cool gaze watched me and a destructive smile pulled at his lips.
“He’s not here to help.” I put my hand on Rayna’s shoulder and pulled her back. “He’s here for the ring.”
“Nothing gets past you, does it, hunter?”
“Why are you doing this?” Rayna asked. “We were friends.”
“We were never friends, my sweet, and to question me shows just how little you know about me. I’ve offered you an opportunity to join me. I thought you’d eventually come to your senses, but now I see you will not. I can show no more charity. I have a name to uphold.”
“And upholding your name means coming after us?”
“You are a naïve little girl. And self-centered too, it would seem. Not everything is about you.” Vincent walked towards us, colored leaves rolling at his feet. “At first, I wanted the ring for the power. To have an item crafted by the gods on my finger would do wonders for my family. Then when the Underworld came calling, I realized I could sell it to the highest bidder and make a nice little profit. But now I realize I can have it all. I can keep the ring for myself, and rent it to Underworlders, a single use at a time.”
Vincent tilted his head up and basked in the moonlight, his pale flesh illuminated in the glow.
“That’s not going to happen,” I said.
“And the barbarian speaks. Don’t kid yourself, Mr. Williams; your macho act is tiresome. You’ve seen but a glimpse of what I can do. Don’t think I won’t kill you if necessary.”
“You talk about that a lot, and to be honest, I've had enough of you and your games. If you're going to kill me, stop talking about it and do it.” I didn’t wait for him to respond. I pulled my magic to the surface and let the power crush him. Vincent’s body flailed into the air and surprise tore across his features. I pushed my magic into him until his body disappeared into the forest. The sound of branches breaking and leaves rustling echoed through the clearing. Birds and bats scattered from the shadows and then there was silence.
The vampires surged forward in response and Rai fluttered into the clearing. Like nails on a chalkboard, she rubbed her talons together. After a few sparks, a bolt of lightning came down and blew one of the vampires into pieces that quickly turned to ash.
The vampires’ pale skin faded and transparent counterparts came to life. The color left their skin and black veins pushed against the clear flesh, revealing their muscles and inner workings of their face. Long bonelike claws shot out of their fingertips and ivory fangs dropped from their gums. The color of their eyes receded until all that was left were shiny black orbs. They all roared unanimously and the battle began.
Blurs swirled around us and I brought more power to the surface. Fire shot from my hand and screams barreled through the air. Blue and silver flames engulfed a vampire and his screams stopped when his body exploded in a blaze.
Each demon chose its target and was quickly swept away. Rayna’s magic plunged forward. She swung her fist out, and a stream of earth shot from the ground, smashing into the demon.
A rapid assault of dirt and rocks blasted him back and Rayna brought her dagger down into his chest. The transparent skin bubbled, steam rolled off his flesh as it cracked, and bright light exploded out of him.
Marcus unleashed his power like an invisible hand, wrapping it around the neck of the nearest vampire. His head jerked painfully to the side and the sound of his spine breaking was bone chilling.
Willy backed away as Tiki picked up the last two. Black filled his eyes and he released only a portion of his demon. Claws so fierce they made a vampire’s look gentle shot from his hands. With a single swipe, their heads rolled off their shoulders. Ashes littered the moist grass around the tree and the clearing went silent.
“That was too easy,” Rayna said.
Marcus nodded. “Vincent wouldn’t plan an assault like this with only a few soldiers.”
I felt more magic stirring within me, but this time it had a strange familiarity to it. The forest came alive around me. The leaves rustled and rolled over the earth. The smell of the woods was stronger than ever, and the hundreds of footsteps that were trying to be silent trampled in the distance.
“Chase…” Rayna said.
“There are more,” I said. “Vincent’s brought an army.”
“Chase, I know that magic. It’s earth magic…and it isn’t mine.”
“It’s his.” Elyas appeared behind us. “Look at the Mark.”
I didn’t fight Rayna as she lifted up the back of my shirt.
“There are more glyphs,” Rayna said. “Earth, Air, Fire, and Water.”
“What?” I tried to look over my shoulder.
“Does this mean he’s getting all of them?” Rayna asked.
“You have many enemies approaching; I suggest we get you to Theral.”
“But you said we didn’t have enough peo–”
Rayna was silenced by Elyas’ hand.
“She’s right,” I said. “There are five of us and an army of them. We need to leave.” I pulled the magic back inside me. “Tiki, are you ready?”
“I am,” he said, the black of his eyes fading and the orange returning, white triangular pupils spinning in the middle.
We circled around Tiki and each placed a hand on him. His power shook around us, stronger than before. Elyas was adding her own magic to the mix. The air wrapped around us when hands grabbed my shoulders and tore me from the huddle. Vincent held me down, his yellow eyes gone and swallowed by black.
“Don’t stop!” I yelled.
“We cannot leave without you,” Tiki replied.
I struggled against Vincent as dozens of vampires pooled out of the trees.
“You won’t, just keep going,” I said through gritted teeth.
I pulled both the earth and air magic up at once. The demons ran towards us and the ground rumbled in a violent quake. Earth exploded and towers of thick rocks jutted from the ground. One by one, square pillars of solid earth shot up around us, blocking the vampire army out, and locking Vincent in. Dirt rained down and I pushed Vincent away. Air wrapped around him and pulled him from my body, breaking his grip. My magic paralyzed him and held him at an arm’s length away.
Tiki’s magic came in a wave and a black hole opened beneath the group.
“Let…go.” Vincent struggled against my magic, his eyes wide with panic.
“No,” I said, “you’re coming too.” The ground below vanished, and I jumped towards the group as they fell into a pit of darkness.