by Linsey Hall
“Okay,” I whispered. “I’ve got a plan. I think.” I looked at Lachlan. “The weakening spell that you made—you said it has to be ingested, right?”
“Right.”
“Can they smoke it?”
He frowned just briefly as he thought, then nodded. “That’d work. I like how you’re thinking.”
I grinned and pointed toward the table that sat next to Cronus, the crowned Titan. There was a big pot of tobacco on it. “I’m going to sneak in and pour the weakening potion into the tobacco. Once that’s done, get in position to cast the binding spell.”
We’d already discussed this. We each had a part to play with that, but we’d need to be positioned strategically around the room to deploy the spell. It was like an energy field that would bind them, but we needed to hit them from all directions for it to work.
Maximus squeezed my hand. “Be careful.”
“Always.” I rubbed the three little heads of the Menacing Menagerie. “And I’ve got a distraction if I need one.”
The dumpster divers nodded.
“Okay, I’m going.” I pressed a quick kiss to Maximus’s lips, then squeezed my sisters’ shoulders.
The Menagerie disappeared from my lap, and I peered out from behind the curtains, spotting the Titans. They were still smoking away, and staring into space.
Were they smoking tobacco or something else?
I sniffed the air, but it didn’t help much. I’d never smoked, and certainly not a pipe, so I couldn’t really tell. But there was a chance they were smoking magical hallucinogens to have visions. Plenty of people did it, and the Titan whose eyes I could see the most clearly looked a bit weird.
Holy fates, were they stoned?
That’d be the best gift ever. Slow, stoned villains were the best kind.
Once I determined that none of the Titans were looking right at me, I shimmied down the wall behind the curtain. When I reached the floor, I crouched and peered out from behind the heavy fabric.
The furniture looked huge from down here. The seats of the Titans’ chairs were almost twenty feet off the ground. Bree could have flown over and delivered the potion, but then she’d have been at their eye level. Too dangerous. And I could have thrown it into the pot, but there was no guarantee the potion vial would break on impact, since the tobacco wasn’t a hard surface.
Carefully, I dug the tiny potion vial out of the zippered pocket of my bag and tucked it in my pocket. I also withdrew the little pot of magical dust for the binding spell. My friends each had identical pots. I shoved that one in my other pocket for later. There was nothing between me and the table with the tobacco, but if I could just get to the base of the chair, I would be out of their eyesight.
When the Titans weren’t looking, I sprinted across the floor, my footsteps silent due to Lachlan’s magic. My heart nearly burst from my chest when the horned Titan shifted in his chair, but he didn’t look down.
Panting, I squeezed myself against Cronus’s chair leg, hiding from their sight. Being so close to their dark magic made my skin prickle as if giant spiders were crawling over it.
I shivered, then looked up at the table.
Fates, that’s high up.
From down here, I couldn’t tell if the Titans were looking at me or not, so I glanced back toward my friends. Bree gave me the thumbs-up, and I tucked the tiny vial into my pocket and began to climb up the table leg. Fortunately, it was intricately carved, which gave me great handholds.
Which I needed, since I was majorly stress-sweating. As I neared the top, it only got worse. This was like climbing into a cage full of hungry alligators, and I did not have iron courage. Though I liked to think of it as a well-developed sense of self-preservation.
When I reached the top of the table, I peered up. My heart thundered. I was so close to Cronus’s arm that I could spit on it.
I kind of wanted to.
Nope, dumb.
He was looking into the distance, fortunately. So were the others.
Quickly, I scampered up onto the table. The pot of tobacco was big, but it was still only three feet tall. Not big enough for me to hide behind. There was a big glass, though, and I slipped behind it, crouching down. Carefully, I tugged the little vial of potion out of my pocket and uncorked it.
Only four feet to go to get to the tobacco pot.
I crept out from behind the glass, and one of the Titans shifted toward me.
Shit!
I froze.
A squeaking sound echoed through the room, and the Titan shifted away without seeing me. I caught sight of the Menacing Menagerie standing near the wall.
“Rats,” said one of the Titans.
I was briefly offended for my friends, but grateful as hell.
While the Titans glowered at the Menagerie, who scampered away, I raced toward the tobacco and sprinkled the potion in, trying to liberally coat the tobacco.
As soon as I was done, I sprinted back to the table leg and shimmied down. Panting, I tucked myself against the back of the chair.
The Titans hadn’t gotten up to chase the Menagerie, which didn’t surprise me. Kings didn’t chase rodents.
I looked up toward my friends. Bree peeked out and gave the thumbs-up. I hurried back toward the curtain near the wall so I could get a better view.
Tucked behind the curtain, I held my breath as I waited for the Titans to smoke the poisoned tobacco.
When Cronus reached for the tobacco pot, my heart leapt. He refilled his pipe, then his friends’.
And they smoked it.
I wanted to do a little dance as I watched each one inhale the smoke and puff it out.
Jackpot.
Their magic would stop growing. Soon, they’d be weak enough to be susceptible to our binding spell. I looked up toward the windowsill where my friends sat.
Bree was already lowering herself down the wall, followed by Maximus. Cade stayed up there to do his part of the binding spell, but the others joined me on the ground.
Victory and tension shined on my friends’ faces. I pointed to Lachlan, then toward the far side of the room. He nodded and went to take up his position. I did the same with everyone else, making sure we were evenly spaced around the Titans. There was a window for each of us to climb onto, fortunately.
I went last, heading to the farthest part of the room. On silent feet, I hurried toward another long set of curtains, tucking myself behind them.
Once I was safely concealed, the Menacing Menagerie appeared. I bent down to whisper to them. “Good job. Now, can you guard the door and let me know if the Stryx come?”
The three nodded, little eyes bright, then disappeared.
Okay, this was it. My heart thundered with excitement and fear as I climbed back up the wall and perched myself on another window. We were lucky that there were so many windows here. The spell would work better if we were up high.
If I looked carefully, I could see the curtains rustling as my friends climbed up. Hopefully the Titans actually were high and not very observant.
Once everyone was in place and had given the thumbs-up, I reached for the tiny container of powder that was shoved in my pocket. When combined with the right incantation, this would bind the Titans tightly.
I opened the little container and held my breath, not wanting to ingest any of it. The powder itself wasn’t supposed to be deadly—it needed the incantation to turn it into something that would kill a human in a heartbeat. Still, I didn’t want to take any chances. I counted to thirty to give my friends a chance to get ready, then stepped out from behind the curtain, the little container held in front of my face.
Maximus, Bree, Ana, Cade, and Lachlan all stepped out from behind their curtains.
Go time.
I blew on the powder, sending it flying into the air. My friends did the same, and the glittery potion sparkled in the light.
I caught the gaze of one of the horned Titans, and fear iced down my spine. There was no time to hesitate, though. I raised my hand
and sliced it down, the signal to start the incantation.
“Of myth and dark, we give the spark. Binding three, our will shall be.” Everyone spoke in unison, imbuing the powder with magic. It lit up a brilliant blue, forming streaks of blue lightning that caged the Titans in a glowing dome.
It was weak, though, and the Titans surged to their feet, anger creasing their faces.
“Of myth and dark, we give the spark. Binding three, our will shall be.” We kept chanting, giving the binding spell power. It’d need more time, though. Lots more.
Which made this the hard part.
Panic exploded within me as the Titans roared in unison. Cronus raised his hands, and dark magic filled the air. While the binding spell was still growing in strength, the Titans would be able to fight.
We’d just have to hold them off until we were finished.
The Titan sliced his hand toward me, and the stone windowsill upon which I stood shattered. The stones tumbled, and I fell, my stomach jumping into my throat.
At the last second, I caught the stone ledge, dangling. My voice became squeaky, but I never stopped chanting, keeping it up as I scrambled down to the ground. My friends’ voices filled the air, loud and sure. Now that we’d started the spell, we could move around. We just couldn’t stop the chant. The words helped our own magic give the powdery potion strength, and with Titans this big, the spell needed all the power it could get.
Once on the ground, I turned to face the Titans. My heartbeat roared in my head as I braced myself for attack. Bree flew through the air above their heads, distracting the horned Titan. He shot massive bolts of lightning at her, but she dodged them elegantly, chanting all the while. The thunder that accompanied the lightning made my head hurt like hell. She was careful not to touch the glowing blue light that caged them, however. If any of us touched it, we’d be dead.
The Titan who’d broken my windowsill flung out his hand toward Maximus, shattering the sill upon which he stood. Maximus leapt gracefully to the ground and landed in a crouch as the stone tumbled down behind him.
“Of myth and dark, we give the spark. Binding three, our will shall be.” The words echoed through the room as the same Titan broke Ana’s windowsill. The entire room shook from the force of his power, and I stumbled to my knees. Ana fell, not daring to take on her crow form since then she couldn’t chant. At the last minute, Lachlan caught her.
If he kept that up, he’d bring down the building around us. It was already half full of rubble.
The third Titan roared, her eyes shooting flames that barreled into the curtains by Cade. He leapt off the window and swung down to the ground using the drapes. Smoke filled the air as the Titan lit up all the textiles, and the heat made my skin burn.
The Titans were trapped, but they weren’t down. Not even close.
Oh fates, we could die before we finished this.
I shouted the chant, and the blue light of the binding spell grew brighter. Next to me, the wall exploded, sending a huge chunk of rock right into my side. I plowed into the ground, pain flaring as the words were forced from my lungs. I gasped, trying to catch my breath and start the chant again.
Broken ribs.
The pain was sharp, making it hard to speak, but I kept it up. In agony, I climbed to my feet.
At this rate, we weren’t going to succeed. We could barely fight back since we couldn’t touch the blue light.
I needed something that would hurt them from afar.
Lightning.
Except, when Bree had thrown lightning at one of them during the last battle, he’d just laughed as he’d absorbed it. I needed something good and pure to throw at them. And strong. Something they would hate.
Warmth began to fill me, as if responding to my need. It glowed through my limbs, as hot as the sun. All around, the room glowed brighter.
Wait, was that coming from me?
Hit them.
I blinked, hearing the voice in my head.
I was getting a new power.
Blind them. Use the sun.
Sunlight. Somehow, I’d been given the power of sunlight. It filled my soul with brightness. Battle exploded around me as I raised my hands, calling upon the new magic.
Then I hesitated.
No. I couldn’t just hit them with light. It needed to be more than that. They were evil and I was not. No matter the darkness within me, I chose differently for myself. I chose good.
So I called on all the goodness within my soul. Whatever kindness and generosity I possessed, I tried to stuff it into the sunlight within me. It was a weird process—and I had no idea if I was doing it right—but I imbued the sun magic with my own light.
Then I raised my hands and shot it right at the Titans, keeping up the chant the whole time. The light blasted from me, so bright white that I couldn’t see.
The Titans roared, sounds of rage and pain. The light dimmed, turning from white to a bright, golden yellow. I could see again, and the Titans were lit up like gold Christmas tree lights. They stood frozen still, my light and goodness binding them.
My friends, all of whom looked like hell, shouted the chant even louder, their words filling the room along with the smoke. The blue cage grew brighter and smaller, shrinking to wrap around the Titans.
We were nearly there!
I shouted the chant, continuing to send my light into the Titans. It froze them solid, and if we were lucky, we’d finish the binding before we died in their apocalyptic sitting room. We were almost there. So close.
Romeo appeared in front of me, pointing to the door. Incoming!
My gaze widened as I turned to look. The Stryx charged into the room, their purple eyes wide with horror. Their black hair floated around their heads, and they spun to search the room.
I didn’t dare let up on the sunlight that bound the Titans, but my friends charged the Stryx. One of them turned to Maximus, raising her hands. She threw a bolt of lightning at him, but he dodged it, sprinting right for her, continuing to chant the whole while.
He plowed into her, taking her down to the ground.
The others converged on the second Stryx. They’d be on her any second, too many for her to fight. Her head flew as she looked at each of them, then a determined glint entered her eyes.
Oh, shit.
I didn’t know what that meant, but I didn’t like it.
She raised her hand and threw a single blast of lightning, right at Maximus. It blew him off her sister.
Before the others reached her, she shouted, “For the Titans!”
Then she charged into the blue light of the cage. It caught her, holding her within the light, her body lighting up like a cartoon of someone being electrocuted. Her sister followed, throwing herself into the light as well.
They began to chant, shouting their own spell.
What the hell?
Then I caught the words.
“Unto me, I take the spell from thee!” Over and over, they repeated it, their voices shrieking over the roar of flames that enveloped the room.
It worked quickly, and the blue light faded from the Titans, flowing into the Stryx.
Holy fates, they were killing themselves.
To save the Titans.
Horror opened a hole in my chest.
The last of the blue light flowed into the Stryx, who glowed such a bright blue that I could no longer see their human forms. Then they exploded, poofing away in a blast of blue light.
Rage and fear fought a battle within me. We’d failed.
There was no time to mourn, or we’d all die.
I turned to the Titans, throwing every last bit of goodness and sunlight that I could manage. It exploded out of me again as a bright white light, stronger than ever before. I dropped to my knees, so weak I couldn’t stand.
Looking at the three Titans was like looking at a trio of suns. My magic was too much for them. But how much did I have?
I kept pushing it toward them, eventually falling onto my hands, unable to stay on my
knees.
The three Titan-suns moved toward each other and smashed together.
Then they disappeared.
I collapsed, too weak to move.
Shit.
They’d run.
We’d failed.
And the room was going up in flames all around us. Wracking coughs tore through my chest as I tried to stand, to escape. But I couldn’t. I’d used up everything, and I was too weak to move. Rubble and smoke surrounded me. Where were my friends? Were they alive?
“Rowan!” Bree and Ana screamed.
“I’ve got her!” Maximus’s shout cut through the smoke, then strong hands grabbed me and pulled me up. He cradled me to his chest and sprinted through the smoke, leaping over piles of rubble. My broken ribs ached, but I didn’t care as long as he got me out of here.
“Is everyone okay?” I coughed.
“Yes.” He sprinted faster, racing into the cool air of the outdoors. I sucked it into my lungs, looking around frantically for everyone else.
I spotted the Menagerie first, looking charred and smoky, but fine. Ana and Bree stood next to Lachlan and Cade, and they all looked like hell. Ana’s arm hung at a weird angle, clearly broken, and blood poured down Bree’s face. Cade was leaning heavily on one leg, while Lachlan had a nasty burn on his shoulder.
Slowly, the worshippers left the temple and stared at us, standing in a circle. When Maximus turned to look at them, they shrank back like frightened rabbits.
We’d driven off their Titans. They might be pissed, but they were afraid of our power.
Good.
I dropped my head against Maximus’s shoulder and looked at my team. “We failed.”
“No, we didn’t.” Bree shook her head. “We took out the Stryx.”
“And we permanently weakened the Titans,” Ana added.
Cade grinned. “We learned what their final goal is. And now that we’ve seen them, we can probably identify them. Find their weaknesses.”
“And we destroyed their headquarters,” Lachlan said.
Maximus met my gaze. “We know that they’re terrified of you.”
I looked up. “Terrified?”
“They ran like cowards. They know you can kill them.”
