The Council (Darkness #5)(26)
Too late.
Pop.
“What the—”
“Oww. Ow. Ow! Oh shit! Oh shit!” The guy with the busted tooth slapped at his skin. Like a hive of insects biting his flesh all over his body, he wriggled and writhed.
Pop. Pop pop pop.
“They’re sparking!” The platinum blond shielded his face.
“I’m trying to kill it! It’s too complex,” the leader yelled.
I sent shots of pure black fashioned in strings. The magic wrapped around the chests and arms of the challengers. At first it just secured them as the popping spell blasted them with balls of fire. After that, though, the fire started to seep in. Magical acid coated their body and burned away their clothes. Their screams drowned out the sizzle of their skin.
“What is that?” Ann asked quietly.
“It’ll eat through their skin for a while. It’ll never heal, either. They’ll scar badly, but it won’t kill them. Then it’ll switch to cold and turn to ice. They may get magical frost bite. Then back to heat. It’s a revolving spell and truly nasty. It messes with the mind as well as causing intense pain. Not only does it send a message to those wanting to challenge that I have the balls to use a gruesome spell, it also lets the experienced mages know just what I’m capable of. That wasn’t the most complex spell I know, but Toa assured me there are only a handful of people here that could duplicate it. I am either ending the feud, or starting a war.”
“We are,” Tim said in a firm voice. “We stand with you. And with Stefan. These guys were sent here to finish Stefan off right before you walked down this corridor. They wanted you to see him dead. That shit is just wrong.”
“What were you doing down here anyway, bro?” Charles asked, turning to Stefan.
“Got a summons from Dominicous. Said he’d been in a meeting here. When we got here, and asked about it, we learned that the time wasn’t right. The challenge came immediately.”
“I bet Dominicous doesn’t make it to this meeting.” Tim set his jaw.
“Bet not.” Stefan took a steadying breath. To me he said, “Put them in a box and tie them off. If you’re sending a message, let everyone see it.”
After I took care of it, we walked slowly down the rest of the corridor until we got to the door at the end. This was the side entrance Tim was told to use. The others would enter through the front, which was around the hall.
Tricky.
I wondered who knew about this. Who was in on it.
“I’ll wait outside,” Stefan said with a tight jaw. “Call me if you need help.”
Jonas had left a line of blood on the wall where he’d dragged himself along. And while Stefan stood straight and tall, with the strength and power he was known for, I could tell he was hurting. The pain in his eyes, and the will it took him not to fall, was etched clearly in the stress lines on his face.
“We stick together,” I said in a firm voice.
“They won’t let me stay in there, Sasha,” Stefan said in a soft voice. “I’ll be okay out here.”
“We can walk you back to your room,” Tim said. “Screw this Council—we can be late. They need me more than I need them.”
“Just—you guys, shush for a minute.” I pinched the bridge of my nose and thought back to that invisibility spell I’d unraveled. It wasn’t all that much different than a concealment spell—a bit more solid, and a bit more complex, but the principles were the same. Unfortunately, there was a great many places I could actually invert my magic and blow the spell up, but by now I had a pretty good handle on that side of things. I can do this!
“Okay,” I put out my hands as if to steady Stefan. “Stay still. I’m going to make you disappear.”
“Don’t blow me up, sweetie,” Stefan chuckled, completely unafraid of his crazy girlfriend trying something she’d never done before. Hell, Toa always got nervous in these situations.
“What is she doing?” Charles peered around Jessie to hone in on me. “What are you trying, Sasha?”
“Making him invisible,” I opened up to my magic again, immediately bombarded with the rush. Stefan was there immediately, having unmasked the link and stepped in. I staggered with the rampant pain lancing his body, so fierce I didn’t know how he was standing. Tears filled my eyes.
“Maybe just don’t try this, Sasha.” Charles shifted so he could see.
“She’s got this. She never fails when it really matters.” Jonas closed his eyes and let his head drop against the wall.
I pushed away Stefan’s pain. I squeezed my eyes shut, remembering the feel of the spell I picked apart. Remembering that lazy structure. The way certain parts held hands with other parts. The way it looped under and around each other.
One last breath to still my head. I mixed the elements, letting intuition guide me when things got sticky. I worked the spell together, needing a chant or two when things got dicey, and threw a little wrench in there for anyone trying to rip this spell off of Stefan. “Charles, link with Stefan.”
A boost of energy flowed through the link to me, and then directly into the spell. I tied it off, settled it onto Stefan’s frame, and held my breath. I opened my eyes… to emptiness.
“Oh good. That’s a relief.” I braced my hands on my hips. I turned to Jonas’ grim face and raised my eyebrows.
K.F. Breene's Books
- Natural Mage (Magical Mayhem #2)
- K.F. Breene
- Chosen (The Warrior Chronicles #1)
- A Wild Ride (Jessica Brodie Diaries #3)
- Hanging On (Jessica Brodie Diaries #2)
- Back in the Saddle (Jessica Brodie Diaries #1)
- Butterflies in Honey (Growing Pains #3)
- Overcoming Fear (Growing Pains #2)
- Lost and Found (Growing Pains #1)
- Jonas (Darkness #7)