Forged in Magic (Dragon's Gift: The Protector Book 5)

by Linsey Hall

  Whoa. That was weird.

  Aerdeca did the same. Oddly enough, her blood was a pearly white. If it even was blood. And it seemed that their color preference didn’t extend just to their clothes.

  The two sisters joined hands, letting their blood mingle, then began to recite an incantation. Their low voices vibrated with power. Wind—coming from nowhere—blew my hair back from my face. My veins began to sparkle with energy. It flowed through me, making me shiver.

  Was this what the dragons felt?

  I hoped so.

  But nothing happened. The dragon continued to slumber.

  “We’re going to check out the other one,” Cass murmured.

  I nodded absently, watching the dragon as the Blood Sorceresses’ magic flowed through me, stronger and stronger. They were giving it all they had.

  Come on, come on….

  Finally, Aerdeca and Mordaca stepped back, their gazes disappointed.

  “Not going to work,” Aerdeca said.

  “That’s never happened before.” Mordaca huffed. “You’ve got some stubborn dragons.”

  “They’ve been asleep centuries,” I said. “According to the Valkyrie, they’re low on power. That may be part of it.”

  “We can try another dragon,” Ares said.

  “It’s our only shot.” I turned to find Cass and Del. They’d said they would try another. I spotted them by the black dragon, about one hundred yards away. Roarke and Aidan were with them. They circled the dragon, no doubt looking for a clue.

  Please find one.

  A scratching noise from above caught my attention. I looked up, searching the black wall that rose toward the mountain’s top.

  They were moving. The rocks weren’t rocks at all.

  I pointed. “What the hell is that?”

  Everyone’s gazes went toward the shifting black wall. A few rocks tumbled down from the side. Tension tightened my muscles.

  “Cass! Del! The wall near you is—”

  Demons leapt from the wall above, black as obsidian and camouflaged like the stone. They landed with a thud between Cass and Del, who stood near the dragon’s tail.

  “No!” I shrieked, racing for them.

  Del drew her sword, but before it was fully out of the ether, one of the stone demons was upon her, wrapping strong arms around her waist. A half second later, she disappeared, transported elsewhere.

  Another demon was on Cass a moment later. I was still fifty yards away. She hurled a massive fireball at the demon, which knocked him out. But a millisecond later, a large rock plummeted from above, hitting her on the head.

  Time slowed as I ran, watching her get swooped up by a demon and transported away. And Roarke and Aidan were nowhere to be found. Had they already been abducted?

  “No!” I sprinted for them, as if I could find them even though they’d disappeared.

  A hard arm wrapped around my waist, dragging me to a stop. A second later, the ether sucked me in.

  I gasped, stumbling.

  My vision cleared, revealing the interior of Potions & Pastilles.

  Ares stood next to me.

  “What did you do?” I shrieked.

  He was gone a moment later. Mordaca appeared then, Aerdeca and Claire with her. I stared, stunned. A second later, Ares appeared with Connor.

  “The rest are gone,” he said. “Abducted.”

  “I know that!” I shrieked. I sounded crazed to my own ears. “We have to rescue them!”

  “We can’t do that while trapped,” Ares said. “They were gone, and more demons were coming.”

  “Live to fight another day.” Mordaca gripped my shoulders and shook, her dark eyes intense. Promising. “We’ll get Cass and Del back.”

  “And Aidan and Roarke,” Claire added.

  “If they’re even still alive!” Fear spiked in my chest, and I began to pace, vibrating with rage and fear. “Drakon has them! Everything we’d tried to avoid is coming true.”

  “We grew lazy,” Ares said.

  “The dragons made it feel safe,” Claire said. “And we were too distracted by them.”

  She was right. That home feeling that the dragons emitted had influenced me too. I’d felt safe there. Protected. Cass and Del too. We’d let our guard down.

  I shook my head, tears smarting my eyes. “I’ve never seen demons so well camouflaged.”

  “I didn’t even know they existed,” Claire said. “Not truly. Not more than myth.”

  Connor sagged into a wooden chair, resting his hands on his head.

  Claire leaned over him. “Are you all right?”

  “Bit woozy is all.” He smiled weakly at her. “Fine though.”

  Now that he said it, I felt it too. In fact, everyone looked like they were swaying on their feet.

  “We’re exhausted,” Aerdeca said. “Not beaten in spirit, but we need to rest a short while. Gain our strength. Then we get more allies, and we go for Cass and Del.”

  “We can’t wait.” I started to pace again, but my muscles trembled, weak as noodles.

  “The dragon’s magic has affected us,” Ares said. “Along with our trek. And Aerdeca is right, we need allies when we go back.”

  “We can’t wait!” Panic welled in my chest. I’d lost Del and Cass. They were in Drakon’s hands. I couldn’t leave them there!

  “It has to wait.” Ares gripped my arms, his touch grounding. Comforting. “Just a few hours to regain our strength and increase our numbers. And remember—it takes time for Drakon’s spell to work. It took days—probably would have taken weeks—to steal the magic from your town. It’ll take longer to steal the magic from the dragons.”

  “Much longer,” Mordaca said. “That’s probably why the army is there. To defend the spell while it works.”

  “That means we have time,” Ares said. “We’ll rest a short while, gather allies, and make a plan. It was impossible to wake the dragons, so we’ll have to fight.”

  “It’ll be a death sentence,” I said. “You saw the size of that army.”

  “Then we just need more fighters. And they need to be stronger.”

  I nodded, swallowing hard. He was right. We just had to be smart. Prepared. “All right. We’ll each try to muster troops. Roarke and Aidan made inroads with the Order of the Magica and the Shifter Council. We can use their names when we contact them. Tell them that they’ve been abducted. I’ll see what I can do with the League of FireSouls and my mother’s people. The rest of you…gather who you can. And rest. We’ll leave in ten hours.”

  Chapter Eleven

  It didn’t take me long to contact the FireSouls or my mother. Both agreed to meet at Factory Row in ten hours, ready for battle. They’d bring everyone they could muster, and we’d all go through a portal to Svalbard.

  Fortunately, Mordaca had proven that we could return via transporting once we’d been permitted access by the primordial gods. Hopefully a portal would be allowed as well.

  Ares was still in the Vampire Realm, gathering as many troops as he could. Jeff was nowhere to be found, but I wasn’t worried. Not about him, at least. He’d show when I called. Claire was trying to find mercenaries from the Order of the Magica to fight, while Aerdeca had gone to the Shifter Council.

  Now, it was time to sleep and regain my energy. The fight was coming, and I needed to be ready. But anxiety for Cass and Del clawed at me, raking my insides. Though it was physically painful, I didn’t try to ignore it. My negligence had gotten them caught. So I had to be better. I had to use this one chance.

  But how?

  The question rolled through my mind as I made my way toward my bed. Though I needed a shower, there was no way I had the energy or the time. Everyone had been right—the dragon’s magic had been such a shock to the system that it had weakened us. Added to that, I couldn’t remember when I’d slept last.

  I fell face-first onto the bed, hoping that a genius plan would come to me in sleep. Something epic and amazing.

  If I was still going to save the d
ay, I’d definitely need something along those lines.

  The dream slammed into me, short and fast. I was in the dragons’ mountain, standing at the edge of the pit. Around me, the dragons slept. At my side, strangely enough, stood the forest spirit from Elesius.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked.

  “Helping.”

  “How?” She was just a pale wisp of a thing, a person with hardly any substance at all. Still a ghost, pale and white. There was a bit more substance to her than before, maybe because I’d poured some of my life force into her, but she wasn’t a real person.

  “The answer is obvious, isn’t it?” She pushed her leafy hair back from her face. “You are life. The dragons need life.”

  “But what does that mean?”

  She shrugged a slender shoulder. “I think you know. You must become one with them. Like I will.”

  Her magic pulsed and she glowed. Then she began to break apart, her form turning to mist that drifted up and swirled on the air, mingling with the light that rose from the pit and sustained the dragons.

  Within seconds, she was gone.

  I woke with a gasp, heart thundering. It was dark in the room.

  My gaze sought the clock.

  Four a.m.

  If I hurried, I could beat them. That dream made it clear—I could do this without risking any other lives. I had to try. And I had forty minutes before everyone was meant to show up.

  “What is it?” Ares’s groggy voice sounded from beside me.

  I jumped. In my panic, I hadn’t realized he’d snuck into bed with me.

  “You’re back from the Vampire Realm?” I asked, knowing the question was stupid. But he’d startled me. I wasn’t at my best.

  He sat up and clicked on a light, scrubbing his hand over his face. “Yes. Thought I’d get some sleep.” He looked at the clock. “Not much left of that to be had, though.”

  “No.” I shook my head and climbed out of the bed. He looked so handsome. I couldn’t believe this would be the last time I’d see him. Tears smarted my eyes. I leaned down and kissed him hard, then straightened.

  A confused grin tugged at his mouth, then he was all business. “I rallied a hundred soldiers. The best in our ranks. Along with some volunteers, plus Doyen and Magisteria.”

  “We won’t need them.”

  His eyes sharpened. “What do you mean?”

  “Exactly what I said.” I swallowed hard. “I know how to wake the dragons. But I can do it alone. I must do it alone. And I need you to take me.”

  “How?”

  I couldn’t tell him. Not when I was pretty sure it meant my death. Because I needed to give the dragons all of my magic. All of it. Could I even survive that?

  “There’s no time. But I do need to get there. Take me, please.” Something frightened thrummed in my chest. Maybe it was the dream, maybe it was fear, but I was manic.

  His jaw hardened. “No. Not without the army.”

  “Scared?” It was a low blow, and I knew it. But panic thundered through my veins, making me low and stupid.

  His gaze softened. Of course he wouldn’t rise to that bait. Not his style.

  “No.” He climbed out of bed, his broad chest shirtless, and stood towering over me. He gripped my arms, holding me close. “I won’t take you. Not alone.”

  “Why the hell not?”

  “Do you recall when Aethelred the Seer predicted that I would lose what I loved most?”

  My extremities tingled. Slowly, I nodded.

  “That’s you, Nix.” His gaze turned fierce. “You are what I love most. I can’t lose you.”

  My heart felt like it cracked in two. The ache was fierce. Tears stung my eyes.

  Ares really loved me. I’d believed it before when I’d told him, but somehow—this was worse. It was so real. What could we have had, if I didn’t have to do what I had to do?

  But I wouldn’t risk all those people’s lives if I could help it. We shouldn’t take an army if we didn’t need them. No need to waste the life. My fate was sealed either way.

  But I couldn’t stand here with Ares, dreaming of what might have been. Not when I had to wake the dragons.

  I pulled away from him. “I’m getting dressed. If you’re not downstairs with me in five minutes when I need to go, I’ll find a way to get there myself. Mordaca will take me, for the right price.”

  He scoffed, as if he didn’t believe it. I stiffened my shoulders. He’d have to believe it, because I had to do this.

  In the dim bedroom, I didn’t look at him as I reached blindly for my clothes. I pulled on a Lil’ Bub T-shirt, unable to take any joy in the goofy cat.

  Should I go look at my trove one more time?

  No. It would be harder to walk away.

  I tugged on my boots, keenly aware of Ares’s presence as he pulled on his shirt. He hadn’t said he would help me, but he wasn’t saying no. Not yet.

  I left the room, not looking at my apartment as I went to the door. I couldn’t look at my life as I left it behind. After slipping on my warm jacket, I took the stairs two at a time, hurrying down to the green door. I called to Jeff and the Pūķi as I went, hoping they’d meet me on the street.

  I pushed the door open, stepping out into the cold night air.

  Dozens of people surrounded me. I stopped still, shocked. Jeff and the Pūķi sat in the back of the crowd, as I’d expected. But the crowd itself—they shouldn’t be here yet.

  “You’re early,” I said. I still had thirty-five minutes before they were supposed to meet.

  My mother stepped forward, eyes on mine. “We’re going off to battle. Doesn’t hurt to be a little early.”

  “The plan has changed.” My voice was stiff. It hurt to look at her, knowing I wouldn’t see her again. Like I wanted to memorize her features, every line and curve. My father stood next to her.

  To the left, Aerdeca and Mordaca stood, their battle gear on, along with a contingent of folks from Darklane. A motley crew, all dressed in black. Behind them, the League of FireSouls. Not all of them, not yet. But the rest would come, I was sure. Each was dressed in burnished red armor, and their faces were set, hard in the glow of the streetlights. They were ready to fight.

  Beyond them stood a dark-haired man whom I hadn’t seen in months. Our old friend Emile, the Animus Mage. His rats, Ralph and Rufus, sat on his shoulders. Black and white with their whiskers twitching in the wind. Del’s hellhounds stood at his side. Though they normally lived with the League of FireSouls, they’d no doubt been drawn by his ability to speak to animals.

  “The Order of the Magica agreed to send fifty of their best mercenaries,” Claire said from my side. “Fifty more volunteered to come.”

  I turned to look at her. She was dressed in her fighting leathers, brown hair pulled back from her face. Connor wasn’t with her. “Where’s your brother?”

  “Late.” She grinned.

  “Not yet.” I looked at them all again, catching sight of an unfamiliar bunch to the right. Their magic smelled like animals. Shifters. “You’re all early.”

  “Why were you trying to sneak out?” my mother asked.

  Ares stepped up behind me, his chest warm against my back. I ignored him, my heart breaking.

  “I’ve had a dream. I know how to wake the dragons, but if I can do it alone, I should.” I raked my gaze over the crowd, desperate for them not to come. “There’s no reason to risk your lives.”

  “Not when you can do it for us, is that it?” A feminine voice sounded from my left.

  I turned. Bree, her dark hair pulled up in a ponytail, shot me a challenging look. Something was different about her, weaker in magic, but she was here all the same, dressed for battle. Next to her, Ana’s gaze was hard. She was the same—slightly different, as if the great expulsion of power had weakened her somehow.

  “We’re coming with you,” Ana said. “I didn’t get my chance to see the mountain of dragons. And I’m not going back to the valley until I do.”

  I
shook my head at her, flabbergasted, then looked at the crowd. “There is no point. Once I wake the dragons, the battle is over. They can defeat the demons.”

  “Can they?” Claire asked. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes. They were huge.” The memory flashed in front of my mind’s eye. They’d been monstrous, terrifying even in sleep. I had faith in them. But more than that, more than anything—I didn’t want all my friends and family to die. There were too many demons, and Drakon was too strong. If I was going to lose my life, it was just salt on the wound that they might lose theirs.

  “You’re being stubborn, Nix,” Ares said.

  “And also a bit crazy,” Mordaca added.

  “I’m not.” Was I? Panic still raced through me, the knowledge of what I had to do sending me on my ass—figuratively, at least.

  “Without a good plan or a way to get in, you can’t guarantee you’ll reach the dragons,” Ares said.

  “I’ll have Jeff and the Pūķi. They come when I call.”

  A fair number of the people in the crowd nodded appraisingly. My dragons could get me through to the sleeping ones below. Then, from there, the dragons would take over.

  “We want to fight.” My mother’s voice was firm, lecturing. “It is our choice to risk our lives and defend our magic, not yours to protect us. That is not your role, Nix.”

  I stepped back slightly, shocked. But I was the protector. It was what I did, and what I wanted to do now. But this was the harshest tone she’d ever taken with me. And she was right. I was trying to decide for them.

  “And alone, you can’t guarantee that you can save your deirfiúr,” Ares said. “I don’t know what dream you had or what you need to do, but you’ll need help to save them. I know you have faith in the dragons, but hedge your bets.”

  Save my deirfiúr. He was right. Both of them were right. I was being crazy. Stress and fear were getting to me.

  “It’s the nature of a hero to try to sacrifice themselves,” my father said. “To protect others. But Nix—you must accept our help. Because we will come anyway. Better as a united front, with a plan in place.”