From the Ashes (The Elder Blood Chronicles, #3)(182)
Jala now is not the time to test such theories. Drain my power and let Seth deal with them, Marrow’s voice was desperate as he tried to force his strength through the bond toward her.
It wouldn’t be enough Marrow. And despite my wishes, Seth will never reach them all in time. There are too many, Jala said softly as she stretched her hand up above her head toward the distant sky. “I wish I could save every man woman and beast that fights on my behalf today,” she whispered as her outstretched magic reached her target. Pain ripped through her entire body as she drew power from the Barrier surrounding Sanctuary. She felt the Magebreakers desperately trying to pull back from her and latched onto their magic, refusing to let them escape. Roaring filled her ears as she channeled the raw power through her. The pain reached agonizing levels and she felt the Magebreakers fall one by one from the force of the magic she channeled into them. A scream burst from her lips, as the agony grew and she struggled to regain her focus through the blinding pain. With sharp gasps she extended her sight over the battlefield and sent healing magic pouring over her people and allies. The pain lessoned as her spell drew some of the power from her body then returned two fold as the full strength of the Barriers magic crashed down on her once again. In essence the Barrier itself was like Barllen and the power it held had been building since the creation of Sanctuary. Laughter bubbled in her throat as her mind frayed from the pain. “You will not win!” Jala screamed her defiance as the pain became blinding. Calling on her magic she lifted her hands before her and sent death hurling down on the Rivasan forces. Dimly she noticed the ragged breaks in her skin and the bright light shining just beneath. Her body was failing and she didn’t have long left. She was channeling more magic than her flesh could contain.
“Jala!” Valor’s voice rose above the roar of magic in her ears and she watched as Noble and Havoc struggled to restrain him before he could reach her. “Jala!” He screamed again.
“Valor,” Jala breathed as the pain rose again and her body convulsed as the power ripped her apart from the inside. Raising her hands once more she cast a final spell over her people urging the souls of the fallen to rise once more. “Sorry, Finn, but they aren’t done here yet, either.” She whispered the final words as her world dissolved into blinding white light.
Jala had expected to find herself in Finn’s hall once more. Instead, the world around her was bright with light and nearly blinding. Echoes of voices rose around her and she stared in wonder at the countless threads of magic that wove through the air surrounding her like thousands of spider webs. Hesitantly, she brushed her mind against one of the threads and felt an instant connection with a mage struggling to master his spells in Faydwer. His thoughts, ambitions, longings, and dreams filled her like a flood until she knew every desire and fear the man held.
“I’m in the barrier,” Jala whispered, her eyes scanning over the threads of magic once more. She moved from thread to thread, her spirit reaching out to touch the strands until the understanding of how they worked settled in her mind. “Marrow was right. It does depend on what you wish for,” Jala whispered as she sent her mind racing through the webs to settle on the threads that represented the Blights plaguing the world below her.
Jala was about to send her magic coursing down to destroy the creatures when a faint longing for safety reached her mind through one of the strands of magic. Focusing on the thought, she scanned the creatures mind and realized with dismay that Emily was not alone in her rebellion against the Blight instincts. Slowly, Jala pulled back the destruction she had been about to unleash on the creatures and examined their minds closer. It was not her right to perform genocide on the creatures and the realization of what she had almost done sickened her. The Blights were a part of Sanctuary now and there was nothing anyone could do to change that fact. Just like everything else in the world, they existed in shades of grey. All she could do now to help her people was cleanse the darkest of them from Sanctuary and hope they could find peace with the Blights she spared. Her attention rose past the Blights and she studied the countless threads before her. The Blights weren’t the only monsters on Sanctuary and she wouldn’t limit her cleansing to just them. She apparently had all of the time in the world to work, though.
“May you return from the life stream to a better life,” Jala whispered as she began the first of the cleansing with the Blights. Her magic coursed down through the strands of magic in bright lances that would kill the creatures instantly. She had seen enough suffering in Sanctuary and despite the turmoil that had dwelled in her chest while she still breathed she no longer wanted Vengeance. All she wanted now was peace.
With a deep sigh of contentment, Jala turned her mind to her task, her magic searching for the darkest strands that touched the barrier. Within what seemed like only a breath, her magic faltered as it traced across strands buried far beneath the other webs. Her curiosity peaked, she moved closer and gazed down at the tangled strands that lay so well hidden. Brushing her mind against them, she tried to find the souls they belonged to but the minds were blank as if those attached were dormant. Even a sleeping mind held thoughts, but these were simply blank. Jala’s confusion grew and she brushed the strands again trying to determine what lay behind them.
“Momma,” The single word shattered her concentration and Jala pulled back from the threads, her mind desperately seeking where Legacy’s voice had come from.