by Emma Glass
“They share a dream,” Asarra replied calmly.
“A dream?” I looked at the thrones.
“Yes. They have all descended into the witch’s dream,” Griswold went on, showing the telltale signs of exhaustion from maintaining a spell for hours. “Clara’s dreams are the key to everything; the vampire lords entered them to save her, and to find a way to stop the fall of the Calamity.”
“That’s grand. So, how do we make them stop?”
“We don’t,” Vayne eyed me curiously. “Why?”
“Because if they don’t wake up soon, we are probably all going to die,” I replied as calmly as possible. “The spike of chrysm energy is driving the wildlife mad. I don’t know how long we have until it comes here.”
Wilhelm nervously chuckled. “What? You’re afraid of some wildlife now?”
One particular creature? Yes. I growled out my irritation. “I don’t mean some of it, you moron. Every last predator within a thousand kilometers is coming.”
“Wot? You tell us this now?!” Kierra gasped.
“You weren’t easy to find,” I snarled in reply.
Viktor shared a look with Asarra. “What should we do, Arch-Magister? Can we bring the barrier back? Are there other defenses left for us to rely on?”
All eyes turned to her; she stared out over her citadel.
“No, Viktor. I am afraid that we are out of options.”
Chapter 28
Elliott
My sister tumbled down the staircase as I lunged towards the sorceress. As she slid to a stop in a crouch, I bounced onto her shoulders as a step and leapt into the air, bringing my sword down hard.
Sabine lifted up her hand in a flare of green fire.
The blade separated her scorching spell, but it was still strong enough to suspend me in the air for a moment, my boots kicked out wildly to either side.
...Leaving more than enough of a distraction for Nikki to rush out on all fours, delivering an incredible punch straight to the traitor’s jawline. With the spell collapsing, I dropped down to the stairs, darting after them again as Sabine latched to Nikki, sending them both careening over the side, plummeting to the sand below.
Perfect. Finally, an opening—
But I froze in panic when I turned around.
Wrapped in a swirling barrage of red and purple light, Clara Blackwell descended upon me. Barely missing her at the last second with my stalwart sword, I fell back a step. The witch’s eyes glowed red with seething, magical hatred as she stood before me, her clothes rippling with power.
“Clara? What are you…?”
She lifted her hand—the motion was so swift and fluid, my eyes didn’t even register it. “Silence, Traitor.” Far above, Tzavos Tzovac stood defiantly, a layer of black dust lifting up off of her body. Bit by bit, it seemed to be falling apart. Though she stood still, the old witch held both her palms straight out towards us.
The puppetmaster finally trots out the strings…
“Fight it, Clara!” I pleaded with my beloved. “Fight her from within! You’ve got to still be in there, somewhere… if you let her win, she’ll—“
Her hand caught my throat. I didn’t even see her move!
My sword clattered uselessly down the stairs towards the sand. I struggled to peel her fingers off of my neck, but Clara raised her arm as if my weight meant nothing. While her burning glare stared into mine, her fingers tightened. Her retinas were like dark flames—beautifully terrifying.
“Elliott!” Nikki called out from below in panic.
I heard her trying to ascend after us, but Sabine was already unleashing everything she had to offer. The sound of ricocheting spells told me my sister was in no position to help.
The air choked at my lungs. I struggled to breathe...
Wait a minute. I don’t have to breathe—though, I learned quickly that this was, in fact, not much consolation. She was still crushing my windpipe, and air might be the least of my problems if she kept at it.
I tried desperately to separate her grip from my neck.
“You have done well,” Clara noted, her voice as apathetic as Lorelei’s on one of her bad days. “But this must end. Your prison awaits, my defiant progeny…”
My eyes widened. Progeny? Oh boy…
Under her grip, I choked a word: “Tz… Tzavos?”
Clara smiled malevolently. “Not yet, child. But soon.”
I started trying to beat her arm with my fists, but it was no use. Enhanced by her unearthly magic, my lover stood cloaked in an aura shield that defied our archetypes… and even if it didn’t, I wasn’t willing to harm her. She’s still only human. If I actually penetrate the shield, it could kill her…
To my horror, Clara Blackwell stepped down, a hand still wrapped around my neck. My boots kicking uselessly at the stairs, I was helpless to prevent the possessed witch from leading me towards to my doom. Twisting my head, I tried to see what she meant to do. At the bottom stair, the rotating circles started to throb with glowing magic…
Oh no. “C-Clara!” I tried to squeeze out the words.
Her hand tightened. “She can no longer hear you.”
My brain worked a hundred laps a second. If I don’t do something, and fast, she’s going to send me back to that bloody trap—and this time, I don’t know if I’ll be able to get back out…
“I think I… get it... now…”
I clutched at her fingers to widen her grip. Silently, she took one step after another as she led me down towards the dunes. “All these years… you wanted her… not merely to… empower your amulet… not only to… break free…”
My foot finally caught something.
Sand! It’s already too late!
Half-dragging me into the center of the glowing circles, she ignored my broken, snarling revelations. Although my fingers clenched her own, it was as if I tried to move stone. Defiance pushed me onwards. “…Should have… known… should have… seen it… when Sabine… returned…”
Oof! She slammed me down hard into the sand, putting me flat on my back. Her hand tightened around my throat; the face of the woman I loved stared down into mine. Well, if this is the way I have to go, I can’t say that it’s the worst…
Clara glared into my eyes, her own burning bright red. There was no love for me in her scorched gaze. Her retinas flared just as richly as fresh, untainted blood on fire.
When she opened her mouth, Tzavos Tzovac spoke.
“They destroyed my body. They imprisoned me between the worlds. My return means nothing without a vessel of power… it had to be one of their descendants, a sacrificial lamb, so that I might rise once again and rescue my beloved world…”
“She said… the Calamity fell… with her… death…”
The witch lifted her chin slightly, holding my back into the sand. As she watched me in disdain, I felt the magic of the circle throbbing around me—and the sand underneath me began to sink. “Death comes in many forms, my misguided child. Her mind shall die, but her flesh is mine.”
Fighting her, I turned my face. The sorceress held my sister down into the sand nearby, choking her in the dirt as she, too, was being swallowed back towards the spell that would enslave us both in the vortexes. I don’t think either of us are gonna get a second chance at this one…
My head slowly twisted back towards Clara.
Holding me down by my throat, she callously watched as my body sank beneath the earth. The rings glowed with their incredible power, drawing us back down to the abyss from before—already, the sands beneath me became more like thick water than dusty earth. I felt as though I slowly sank in a pool, a great weight against my neck pushing me down onto my back…
I choked out: “I… will not… let you… take her…”
With both hands, I desperately grabbed her by the hair and yanked her face down towards me. Her eyes flared in surprise; she didn’t think to restrain herself in time—
And my lips planted hard against hers.
* * *
Energ
y crackled across every sinew and nerve. I felt it in every ounce of my body, flooding me with the familiar sense of warmth and love I experienced when I kissed her. And Clara Blackwell felt it too.
Her eyes widened, lips held pressed to mine.
Despite all odds… I felt them break into a smile.
Ripping me from the sand, she flung me to the ground nearby. I landed on all fours, grasping briefly at my neck... and I turned on Sabine.
“What?” She stared in horror. “How did you—“
Before she could react, my body collided hard with her own, sending her sailing over to the bottom of the stairs. Landing on my feet and a palm, I quickly steadied myself and grabbed my sister by a wrist, just as her head nearly disappeared beneath the sand…
Planting both boots, I tugged Nikki free.
“NO!” A bellowing yell roared from above.
My sister coughed up a storm on all fours at my side—but she collected herself, shaking sand from her hair as she took a stand. “Yeah. Okay.” She glowered at the witch atop the stairs. “Don’t care how. But you get to die.”
I turned to glare at the menacing form above—only to realize that she’d almost completely fallen apart. The black dust whipped around wildly as it worked to reverse the magical decay. The effort spent on controlling Clara must have strained her too much to maintain a second body. That meant we have just a bit of time left…
Time to deal with her servant.
Nikki stood to one side. And now, on the other…
Clara Blackwell, finally of sound body and mind again, fell into step beside me. With the reddish glow leaving her eyes, she turned to stare into my own, a powerful smirk on her face. “You… came for me. And you found me…”
“You say that as if you would ever doubt it.”
Her smirk widened. “I love you, Elliott Craven.”
“And I love you, my darling Clara.”
“Aw, how sweet,” my sister mockingly rolled her eyes. “Small suggestion—we leave all the hugs and kisses until later, eh? Perhaps after we show this ancient witchy bitch what happens if you dare to attack the Craven family…”
“Or Clara,” I added insistently.
“Yeah. Like I said. The Craven family.”
Clara paused at our side. “…What?”
Nikki kept her eyes firmly on our enemy high above. “You and I are sisters now, Clara. We fight. We disagree. We stab each other in the back—but you are family to me. And, until my dying breath, I defend my family.”
“Nikki…” Clara stared in open shock and adoration.
“Uh, girls?” I reminded. “Wicked witch? Sorceress?”
The two stood at either side, eyes forwards. Clara held her chin high with a defiant smile. “Right. Let’s end this.”
Sabine rose from the bottom stair, glaring over at us all. At the sight of our united front, the sorceress hesitated to attack us so willingly now. The three of us advanced upon her in our unified fury, eager to finally settle the score.
And we were about to make a grave mistake.
Chapter 29
Nikki
Sabine stood her ground. She was no coward.
That was fine by me. Of all her flaws, the traitor couldn’t be faulted for her courage. We closed in on her, and I found myself very willing to put her down again. Choose. Die on your feet, or die on your back. Once upon a time, I took you out of this world—and I am dying to do it again.
“Master!” Sabine pleaded. “What do we do now?”
The elder witch steadily rebuilt herself far above.
I smiled mirthlessly. “Oh, what’s this? Mommy’s gone! Now, it’s just you, us, and no more distractions…”
The sorceress straightened her posture. “For the greater good of saving the worlds, I have failed to hold a grudge, considering what you two did to me. But I think it’s about time I changed my mind…”
Sabine raised her hands to cast a spell—
And I immediately dove forwards, planting a boot into her solar plexus. The sorceress was flung up the stairs, just far enough to let Elliott retrieve his sword in a daring roll. Sabine caught herself and flash-stepped backwards, lifting both hands at her sides.
“Revoco… Acinaces!”
Bursting from red smoke into her hands were a pair of curved black swords. The sorceress span them in her grips, brandishing the dark blades like a master swordswoman. Her grin widened with bloodlust; she stared down upon us as wildly as a vicious animal that had come unchained.
“Clara, stay back,” Elliott warned. “This is our fight.”
“This is my fight as much as yours,” she retorted.
I snorted. “Then cast something!”
“Fine. Kick her arse.”
Elliott and I shared a look of war. And we pounced.
* * *
And I thought beating the traitor once was cathartic.
Sabine dove towards us with both blades spinning, but Elliott and I were prepared. He brought down his sword on her as I lunged from an angle; blocking both our strikes at the same time, she was staggered a step upwards.
I glanced over her shoulder. The witch is nearly back…
“Nothing flashy,” I told my brother, nodding upwards.
“Fine. Simple and clean. We end this fast.”
“Fast, huh?” Sabine laughed, slicing her blades against each other. “You think I am going to be so easy to depose? I have only gained greater power since we last fought. You will be fools to underestimate me this—“
Moving together as if we shared the same mind, he and I lunged into an offensive flurry of attacks. Her eyes flew wide as she grit her teeth and held her ground. Deflecting the faster strikes and dodging the slower ones, she tried to force us further back down the stairs—away from Tzavos. But Elliott and I built a natural rhythm that came with the luxury of experience and the bond between siblings.
And she knew not the intricacies of wielding a blade.
As her hair matted with sweat and her eyes flared with burning rage, a lucky attack drove Elliott to stumble down a few steps. At his back, I saw the tactical opportunity; in a quick leap, I planted a palm against his shoulder to launch over him, one dagger in my teeth, spare in my other hand. I landed on her other side, a few steps upwards, dividing her attention between two positions.
She fought spread, constantly diverting her attention to her front and flank as we took advantage of the dynamic, but Sabine dispelled the blades and leapt straight above, forcing us to miss our strikes and nearly collide. With both hands above her head as she descended, she conjured and flung down a flare of purple fire—
Elliott and I darted apart, narrowly missing the burns.
Sabine landed between us, unkempt as I had ever seen her. With her fists held powerfully at her sides, she glared at each of us in turn, calling her blades back in a spell.
“This must end, Cravens. I cannot allow you to further fight the salvation of the worlds. Can you not see? Do you not realize what Tzavos speaks is truth? We stand on the same side! We all want the same thing!”
“You want to feed Clara Blackwell to her!” Elliott spat.
“One life! To save many!”
“No,” I corrected. “One death to sacrifice billions…”
“Some must perish—or all will perish! We craft an ark, Elliott Craven! The reunion of the world shall be the barrel of salvation! Without her to bring them together, we—“
My shoulder collided with her back. Sabine’s weapons clanged against the steps, falling on either side to the sand. She glowered up at me as I held a dagger pointed down at her, the other held back. Elliott approached from behind as her Sabine’s flicked between us, calculating her options.
“Nikki, that was too easy,” my brother glared.
“Yes. I know. I’m sure she’s going to do something—“
The sorceress laughed, flinging out her hands towards me. Both my daggers came up as I planted my feet, just in time to deflect the swords she’d thrown at m
y face, but her weapons didn’t deflect away.
“—Stupid like that. How obvious can you be?”
Instead, they exploded on impact.
Burning, reddish dust clouded the area, blinding me in a heartbeat. I staggered a few steps, tripping and falling off the staircase towards the sand. “Bloody hell! What sort of trickery was that!” Landing hard on my side, I tried in vain to wipe the dust out from my eyes. It took a moment to get halfway decent visibility going again, and then I had to fish around for my daggers…
Meanwhile, Elliott was caught in a vicious one-on-one fight with the traitor. I listened to the rhythmic clanging of their weapons with rising tension as I retrieved my dagger, then spotted its sister not too far away. I dove for it just in time to hear Clara weaving powerful Fortification magic—aiming to support him from behind.
That’s my girl, I smirked. Help him put her down.
I leapt up onto the lower steps before her and started to run up the stairs. But there was a small problem with that.
Mostly reformed and lunging towards us in a cloud of dust, it came in the form of a very furious elder witch…
* * *
Sabine’s eyes flourished with red light as she lifted her hand, propelling Elliott away to crash into me. Crumpling together, we rolled several stairs down before stopping. As we righted ourselves and brandished our weapons…
“Wait… where’s Tzavos?” I groaned, looking around.
“You will submit,” Sabine snarled. “Or you will burn.”
The sorceress suddenly burst into a purple glow. At her back, the robed figure of the witch hovered, unfurling her cloak back into her large wings. Moving in tandem, Sabine flash-stepped backwards—with Tzavos practically joined at her back and defensively flapping them, the only part of her that moved for now. Suspended protectively behind her wicked servant, It was as if the elder vampire reduced herself to a stationary corpse.
Atop the stairs, Sabine lifted her hands. “Begone.”
