Nocturna (A Forgery of Magic #1)(122)

She said nothing, approaching him with measured steps before she thrust her arm out and a pillar of stone jutted from the ground in front of Alfie, pelting him in the stomach with such force that he fell to his knees, clutching his middle.

“Alfie!” Luka cried out from Xiomara’s side. Alfie gasped in pain as he forced himself upright.

“Stay back, Luka!” he shouted. “Stay away.”

Finn didn’t even seem to notice Luka. She kept advancing on the prince. Alfie felt his heart leap when he looked down and saw a sliver of her shadow still clinging to her feet, dragging behind her. She had to be fighting it. Part of her was still there.

Finn thrust her arms forward and a barrage of flame followed. Alfie leaped out of the way, deflecting the flame with a weak wave of water. She followed him, still moving slowly. Almost hesitantly. She was fighting. Trying.

There had to be a way to pull the magic from her and back into the dragon without killing her. He would subdue her and try to pull it out of her somehow. If that didn’t work, he would have to go for her heart.

With a word of magic, Alfie raised sharp shards of glass from the shattered windows and grimaced at where he’d have to hit her—the places that would slow her down. Her knees, her stomach.

“Volar!” he said. The glass shot forward and dug into her skin. But they dislodged and fell away as she moved, her flesh closing over the wounds.

She was finally upon him, an arm’s reach away. For a moment she paused, her body shuddering.

“Finn,” Alfie said, his heart breaking. Her black eyes narrowed as her hand shot out and gripped him by the neck, raising him off the ground with ease. Alfie swung his legs forward and kicked her in the chest, sending her stumbling. She dropped the dragon necklace as she fell.

Alfie fell to the ground with a grunt of pain, and as she tried to rise, he tackled her and held her down. He grabbed the dragon where it fell beside her and put his hands on her chest, feeling the magic coursing through her, beating out of her heart. He focused and tried to pull it out. But the magic resisted, coiling itself tighter within her. His propio wasn’t helping. The core of this black magic couldn’t be tricked into listening to him just because he’d dyed his magic black.

He would have to kill her, there was no choice. His heart ached at the thought, but he knew it was right. For his people, for the world, he couldn’t afford to be selfish again the way he’d been when he’d saved Luka. He couldn’t afford to not think of the consequences of his actions. His eyes burning, Alfie wrenched the dagger from Finn’s own belt and made to plunge it into her chest.

Her black eyes leveled him with a glare as she gripped his wrist, stopping the dagger just before it grazed her chest. With her other hand she shot a stone at his chest. Alfie flew backward again, skidding to a halt a few strides away from her. His ribs burned with pain. He couldn’t help but scream in agony, his fingers curling with pain against the stone floor.

She stood up and walked to him slowly.

As she closed the distance between them, he formed a spike of ice in his hand. Now was the time, now he had a perfect shot. He had to do it. For his family, for his people.

Then Alfie heard fast footsteps. Luka stood between them, a globe of flame hovering in his hand.

“Keep away from him!” he shouted.

“Luka, no!” Alfie cried.

“Run, Alfie,” Luka said over his shoulder. “Get out now!”

Finn didn’t hesitate. She grabbed Luka’s arm with both hands, her eyes narrowed to slits.

“No!” Alfie screamed. Finn gave his arm a sharp twist and Luka screamed in pain. Alfie could only think that this was how he would die—at the hands of a friend while his best friend died beside him.

But death didn’t come. Finn stood frozen, then she dropped to her knees, and the black magic poured out of her open mouth like a thick, syrupy smoke. The dragon trembled in Alfie’s hand. He held it up and watched in disbelief as the magic flowed like a river of black into the silver dragon. And not just the core of the magic that had infected Finn but all its echoes. The black magic that had been plaguing the rings of the city crashed through the windows and domed ceiling of the palace. Shattered glass rained on them as the black magic flowed into the toy. In a mere moment it was all over and the magic was locked tight in the palm of Alfie’s hand. Finn fell onto her back, the magic wrung out of her. Alfie gasped with relief. Somehow, she was still breathing.

The stone hands lay beside her, completely still. With the magic trapped again without a host, without so many bodies to bolster its cause, the hands had fallen still once more.

And Alfie hadn’t even had to use his blood to do the sealing magic or use his propio to trick the black magic into the figurine. It stayed in the little dragon without a fight. His heart leaped in his chest. The magic was trapped in the dragon, but he was no longer connected to it. It would no longer be able to hurt him, drain his life into it.

He was free.

But how had it happened?

A groan of pain from Luka pulled Alfie back to the present. The prince bent over Luka and grimaced. His arm had been pulled out of its socket. “I’m sorry, this is going to hurt.” With a sharp twist, he shoved Luka’s shoulder back into place. Luka cried out. “I know, I know. You’re fine now.”

“Speak for yourself! That hurt like hell.”

“You’ll live,” Alfie said. Luka opened his mouth to ask another question, but Alfie knew that now wasn’t the time for explanations. He had dark magic to get rid of. “Wait here. Look after Finn. I have to take care of this first.”