Battle With Fire

by Breene, K. F.

  “He wishes for me to inform you that the unicorn lands have been created. Tatsu is able to communicate directly with them and had the Great Master fix it up to their specifications. He regretfully informs you, however, that they will likely join his side. He thanks you for sending them his way.”

  “Super. Way to rub it in,” I muttered.

  “He’d like me to relay the news that he will be marching on the elves within two days. His goal has not changed—he’ll seek to annihilate them. Given how vast his host has grown, he foresees their complete destruction. He respectfully requests that you do not stand in the way.”

  “Denied,” I responded.

  “In the event you deny, he would like to remind you that you and your silly friends are not enough to stand in his way. It would put you and them in danger. He urges you to reconsider.”

  “No.”

  “The Great Master would like to mention that he will extend the offer a second time during the battle before forcing the issue. If you go quietly at that time, it’ll give him the opportunity to save your dearest friends. If not, you will likely deplete his resources, and he will only be able to skirt you and Archion to safety. Your friends will likely perish, stuck between the two opposing forces.”

  “He sure thinks highly of his situation,” Charity murmured, her sword still held up, ready to kill at a moment’s notice. “He lost last time, though, right?”

  I nodded grimly, but this time would be different. He had more resources than the last time he’d fought the elves, and the elves had less. The power scales had tipped, and he knew it.

  I wondered if the elves did.

  The demon gave me a somber look. “Forgive my impertinence, your heinous, but you have a duty to your kingdom and your friends,” the demon said. “You cannot change the outcome of this war, not with how it is shaping up. You will see the truth of that assessment when on the battlefield. At that time, I urge you to really think about this offer. Save yourself, and save your friends. You will then have a chance to help Lucifer lead our people to greatness. It is an opportunity a great many would die to have.”

  Part of that greatness this demon spoke of would be obtaining the Realm; any idiot could see that. Lucifer wouldn’t just wipe them out and walk away, not with the grudge he clearly held. He’d claim it for himself and expand his kingdom. That was what conquerors did.

  “Thank him for thinking of me,” I told the demon, its words punching me in the gut. My old man was good—he knew dangling my friends in front of me would have an effect. It did. If it turned out that he had the forces he claimed, would he truly be able to stomp on us?

  The demons stared at me with unblinking eyes. “The Great Master requests that you send me back, using the circle provided, or create another one. You have a mage within your employ who can manage such things, correct?”

  I slid a glance at Dizzy. How did my father know about that? Someone had clearly been talking, and it wasn’t a big stretch to guess who.

  “He needs to know what you said,” the demon went on. “You can send the others back or kill them—your choice.”

  “Jesus,” Charity said softly. She clearly didn’t know how cutthroat demons could be.

  Dizzy moved around the five demons, giving them a wide berth. He bent, studying the ground. Callie watched them as she trailed him.

  A moment later, Dizzy pointed down with the chalk. “Yup. There’s a circle right here.” He bent a little more, examining. “Decent work in a shaky hand. Inexperienced, probably. The runes are a little shoddy in some places and the lines aren’t totally straight. That aside, it is a very effective circle, I would think. I haven’t seen this in any of the books I’ve been researching.”

  “Ja was here not that long ago,” I said. “She’s proficient in circles, right?”

  Dizzy rubbed his chin. “Yes, but hers tend to be ancient and neat, I recall. Well drawn. She has a certain few that work well, and she uses them often. I’ve never seen this one before.”

  Someone in our camp would’ve had to draw that circle, Darius thought. If not Ja, then who?

  That was the million-dollar question.

  “How many people would it have taken to bring those demons up?” I asked.

  Dizzy turned to me and blew out a breath, thinking. “These demons are high on the power scale. They’d need very little power to beam them up. Callie and I could do it ourselves, I’d imagine. Maybe just me, though that’s more doubtful.”

  And someone summoned the other group, as well, Darius thought.

  “Unless the others were brought up first, then the person zipped over here and called up these guys,” I said. “An elder vampire’s blood would make it easy. The circles could’ve been made in advance.”

  “Oh yes, sure, using a vampire’s blood would greatly help.” Dizzy bent further. “The light is too low for me to tell, though.”

  I took a deep breath. “We have two days. Let’s get everything in motion.”

  I shoved the demons back with air and fed magic into the circle. I sliced my finger, walked forward, and crouched down, letting a droplet of blood feed the circle.

  “It was an honor, your heinous,” the demon said.

  “He is calling you your heinous, right?” Charity asked. “I’m not hearing things?”

  “Yeah. It’s my title of choice. Soon they’ll realize how well it fits me.” I sent them back to the Underworld with a thrust of power. Nothing to it. That circle was ideal for easy travel, as perfect as if Lucifer himself had designed it.

  And he just might have.

  “We got problems.” I turned and held out my hands, using my magic to force a path through the gathered crowd, careful not to smack anyone or send them flying. “Where’s Roger? We need to talk.”

  Fourteen

  Penny stood to one side of the large, rustic table in what looked like a spacious conference room stolen out of the seventies. The orange Formica countertop at the back, housing a coffee pot and a few sandwiches, matched the strange shag carpet that ran wall to wall. A dusty plant took up residence in the corner, and no one used the spindly chairs positioned throughout the room in little clusters.

  Instead, they gathered around the conference table, all eyes on Penny’s mom, who alone sat at the table. She had her cards spaced out in front of her, her crystal ball to one side. The Red Prophet sat cross-legged on the surface of the opposite end of the table.

  Roger stood across from Penny’s mother, his hands loose at his sides and hard lines etching his face. The muscles on his large torso bulged beneath his white T-shirt, his whole body channeling his anger at the revelation that at least one person in his camp was working for the enemy. Given they’d had a problem like this when Penny escorted Charity to the Flush for the first time and they’d never found the perpetrator, it was clear he needed to clean house. Hard to do that with the sudden time constraints, however.

  Romulus and Charity stood beside Roger, and the rest of their strategists were positioned around the room, ready to take notes or just absorb the new information.

  Reagan exhaled slowly, and Penny could tell she was trying to keep her composure. She hadn’t wanted to come and see the Seers at work. Darius had pushed, though, wanting her to get the information firsthand and ask questions if need be. He stood behind her, with Emery, the dual-mages, and Cahal close at hand.

  Magic swirled through the room, prickling Penny’s skin.

  “Two days seems right to me,” Karen said, her eyes fluttering. The mists in her crystal ball whirled and spun. She slapped her cards down, seemingly at random, then opened her eyes and looked them over. She nodded. “Two days. The elves…” She paused, her gaze flicking from one card to another. She laid down three more cards, two in front of her and one to the side. The third card to hit the table was Death. Her lips tightened. That wasn’t a good sign. “The elves are not ready.”

  “You must take the deal.” The Red Prophet stared straight at Reagan, who definitely hadn’t wanted t
o be there but needed to. It was time for big-girl panties. If Penny had had to go to a demon sex club, Reagan could deal with Seers.

  The Red Prophet’s eyes twinkled. “Take the deal and holster your magic. Make the call.”

  “She’s doing it again.” Penny’s mom rubbed her temples, breathing in through her mouth and out through her nose. “Before you ask, no, I don’t know what that means. I am not getting any of that. Also, no, I still don’t know what the villain’s crown is crooked from yesterday means. She’s talking gibberish half the time. I think the stress is addling her brain, I really do. She simply cannot keep up.”

  “She can be eccentric, but she does have power,” Romulus said. “She has never let us down.”

  “Just so I have this straight.” Reagan held up her hand. “You want me to take the deal to save myself…and put everyone else in danger?”

  “Put everyone else in danger, yes. That is the ticket.” The Red Prophet gave her a grimace-smile.

  Reagan narrowed her eyes but didn’t respond.

  Penny spoke up. “That wasn’t the choice the demon gave, though.”

  “Leave it,” Reagan said softly. “She’s putting on theatrics. She can’t hang out at a person’s house for a while, terrorize the neighborhood, and expect the shifts in her personality not to be cataloged.” Reagan paused for a moment. “She’s fucking with me. She knows a secret about what will happen, and she’s not telling.”

  “What kind of secret?” Roger asked roughly.

  “I have no fucking idea, but given her level of nuts right now, it’s a doozy.” Reagan stared at the Red Prophet for a long, tense moment and then tilted her head. The Red Prophet was clearly communicating with her by thinking. “I would not have guessed that, no. So you’re playing both sides too?”

  “I am on all sides,” the Red Prophet said with a knowing smile. “And so are you.”

  Reagan retied her ponytail, something she did when she was readying for battle. “Keep your secrets. I don’t need them.” She turned and walked toward the door. “Don’t worry so much about turncoats, Roger.” She paused when she neared the door. “The Red Prophet made those circles, and it’s a safe assumption Ja called the demons. If you see Ja, kill her.”

  “Now I get why my mother is beside herself annoyed,” Penny said, catching up to Reagan as she pushed out of the conference room and went down the hall, heading outside. Penny’s watch said dawn was just around the corner, but deep night covered the area. Reagan had really come along with her magic.

  “This is bigger than just a war between the worlds, somehow,” Reagan said, turning toward the open fields and clear sky.

  Darius hadn’t followed them, and neither had the others. They were clearly going to stay behind and hear what Penny’s mom had to say, in the hopes her Seeing was more coherent. And reliable.

  “That won’t change my role, I don’t think,” Reagan murmured, walking out to the edge of her magical night to peer up at the budding dawn. “I miss my quiet life. This has all gotten to be too much.”

  “I don’t miss mine,” Penny said. “This is a lot, I grant you, but it is a means to an end. It will be worth it. I can feel it.” She patted her pockets, where a couple of her power stones were nestled. Her Temperamental Third Eye had a moment of clarity, the clouds parting to show the way forward. This was right, this path. This was the way of the fates.

  That didn’t necessarily mean it would lead to a happy ending, though. So the feeling wasn’t incredibly helpful.

  Thanks, Temperamental Third Eye, as always.

  Two hours later, they were walking within the patch of magically darkened sky to meet up with Darius and the others.

  “Don’t want to know,” Reagan said as they approached.

  “You don’t need to,” Darius replied, taking her hand and threading his fingers with hers. “Ms. Bristol had a lot of helpful predictions for how the battle would line up, but she kept running into holes. The Red Prophet refused to fill them, if she even could have, despite Roger asking nicely and Romulus demanding. There is something in the works, and Ms. Bristol isn’t seeing it.”

  “The Red Prophet might not be seeing it either,” Callie said, wiping her forehead free of perspiration. Her lime-green velvet sweat suit seemed to glow in the low light. Campfires burned sporadically throughout the area, surrounded by benches and chairs, the heat pushing back on the chilled air. Very few people were making use of the areas of respite, though. Many of the mages, who might’ve enjoyed the comfort, had wandered to the sunny areas outside of the spell, and the other creatures who’d gathered were not as prone to the cold. “She has gone completely loopy. She probably just wants to be noticed.”

  “I’d hazard a guess that she wants to be forgotten,” Reagan murmured, stopping near one of the fires and looking around. She seemed troubled and anxious, but she wouldn’t share what had her so wound up. Probably because she’d have to admit to her fears, and that was never any fun. “She liked hanging around Mikey and Smokey, who didn’t want to hear any predictions. She was the most normal around them, and when terrorizing the neighborhood. She needs to get out of here.”

  “We all do,” Emery said.

  “Where are you all headed now?” Dizzy asked, and it was clear fatigue was dragging at him and Callie. It was dragging at everyone, Penny wagered.

  “Roger wanted to get some practice in fighting the magic of the dragons’ roars,” Darius said. “It’s a good idea. It can be done sitting down.”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Dizzy replied. “Penny’s dragon always makes me think I’m going to soil myself. I’m so tired right now that I might actually do it.”

  “You guys go back—”

  Reagan froze, her gaze snagging on a vampire who was chatting with two others across the way. He had the usual flawless face and good looks. His shirt and trousers were pristine but didn’t quite look high fashion. Penny hated that she now knew the difference. Marie had cursed her.

  “What is it?” Darius asked, clearly feeling something through their bond.

  “Nothing,” Reagan said, taking a step to veer away from the small group of vampires.

  That wasn’t normal. When did Reagan veer away from anyone?

  As though feeling an entire group of people staring at him, the vampire glanced over. His gaze skimmed everyone before snapping to Reagan. His eyes widened slightly, and hunger sparked in them immediately, his body tensing before going loose and fluid.

  Shivers coated Penny’s skin—a reaction to the new predator suddenly in their midst. That vampire wanted more than just to bite, too, evidenced by the sensual way he licked his lips and let his gaze drift down Reagan’s front.

  “What is this?” Darius asked in a low, rough tone.

  The sensation of danger flared within Penny, yelling at her to run. Or fight. Or throw a spell.

  Emery curled his hand over her shoulder and gently pushed her behind him.

  “It’s nothing,” Reagan said quickly. “It was a long time ago. Let it go.”

  “Wait…what was a long time ago?” Penny asked Callie and Dizzy, who’d stepped up with her.

  “It seems we have found my surprise,” Darius said, and the sheen and polish of his handsome exterior fell away, leaving a beast in its place. Menace curled through the air. His claws extended from his fingertips.

  The breath left Reagan in a whoosh. “She brings up your past to me, and now she is flaunting my past in front of you.”

  “What’s happening?” Penny asked, knowing there was some drama and not getting it.

  “Ah.” Dizzy patted Penny’s arm. “Yes. The vampire from Reagan’s past. She mentioned him once. After her mother died, she went slumming, as it were. She walked away and forced him to let her.”

  “Oh.” Penny’s breath came in short bursts as Darius turned slightly, facing the other vampire, who wasn’t nearly as built, handsome, or put together. There was really no contest between the two. Darius needn’t have any doubts that he was the obv
ious catch.

  Except…the way he was gearing up, his shoulders rolling and his jaw firming, told Penny that simple logic wasn’t good enough.

  The other vampire pulled his gaze away from Reagan with great effort. His stare hit Darius, and given he was clearly less powerful and definitely lower in the vampire hierarchy, he should’ve walked away very quickly. Any shifter or mage would have. Probably any demon or other semi-intelligent creature. You didn’t pick a fight you were surely going to lose.

  But this vampire squared up, his body starting to change shape despite his clothes. He clearly didn’t have the sort of control Darius did, which suggested he was quite a bit younger. Darius would wipe the floor with him.

  “Are they basically going to fight over Reagan?” Penny asked in a harried whisper, a bit scared, a bit weirded out, and a bit excited for some reason.

  “No, they are not.” Reagan waved a hand, her magic rushing between the two vampires. The magic whispered, Stay apart. Barrier. She’d put up a wall.

  “Oh, interesting,” Dizzy murmured. “That other vampire must have an addiction to Reagan’s blood. Usually it’s the human that develops the addiction.”

  “It was probably on the younger side when it met her,” Callie whispered. “She made an impression and obviously didn’t kill it when she should have.”

  “How’d she manage to get away, though?” Dizzy asked. “It didn’t seem to know she was here. Any vampire worth his salt wouldn’t have lost sight of her.”

  “Youth.” Callie said it like Dizzy was dense. “Younger vampires don’t know their ass from their heads, you know that. That’s why their makers govern them well past their middle years. She still should’ve killed him, though. On the sly, obviously, so she wouldn’t have the maker breathing down her neck. Now it’ll just cause problems. It obviously can’t control itself—look at him. No self-preservation. Darius will rip him apart.”

  “Probably for the best, though,” Dizzy replied.