Meghan's first breath inward was cut short. She felt it happen, not just in their shared mind connection, but in the change of the magic's pulse below her fingers. Her father was tapping into the power and he was going to dismantle his son's magic, mind, and body if she did not finish what she came here to do.
All at once, the battle spilled into the courtyard. Jasper flew around a corner followed by a mix of his army and Stripers, dueling it out with full magical ferocity. Fazendiin's eyes flinched ever so slightly at the sight of the Projector.
"I admit, it perplexes me, how you're still alive."
"A mystery you'll go to your grave not knowing," Jasper responded.
"And where is my dear, dear mother?"
"Busy fighting against you, as always," Jasper replied. She was with the Tunkapog with part of his army.
"Pity. She won't get to say goodbye to her grandson." Fazendiin's flicked his arm and Colby's body lifted into the air, the Grosvenor making a motion meant to move him closer to the Stones. But his body did not obey, it stayed hovered in the air.
Jasper grinned. "I can't touch you, Fazendiin. But I can protect your son." He was using every bit of magic he dared to fight for control over Colby's movement toward the Stone.
Fazendiin growled and pushed out another blast of power, but Jasper fought back.
And Meghan Jacoby closed her eyes and breathed in her first intake of the Immortality Stone.
CHAPTER 51
Aloyna nodded at Nashua from a distance. He returned in kind, but looked no less relieved. He ordered his own army to reform their battle lines and prepare for attack. Aloyna ordered Jasper's group of fighters to join the others, who welcomed them graciously to the ranks. They were fresh and ready to fight, unlike the Svoda who were already tiring and struggling to reach out far enough to secure new magical energy to perform spells. And theirs and the Tunkapog's stored magic and premade potions would only hold out for so long.
Unlike them, Jasper's fighters had come prepared for war. They had clearly trained for this much more so than any of the rest. Not only did they use magic like the Svoda did, but they each wore belts with potions, as well as various weapons—knives—swords—axes—things the Svoda didn't even know the names of. Each rugged and deadly as the next.
The surface of the river was pulsing with the hideous bodies of the Salt Spiders as they pushed upward and toward the banks and dry land.
Whispers spread from the Svoda outward to the rest of the fighters. "Viridatas," the spell for fresh water, which was the only weapon that repelled the spiders. And something the Tunkapog could not just magically create like the others since their magic came in the form of potions—but it wasn't going to stop them from using their shifter forms to attack. Or using the potions they did have, to try and blow them up.
While reforming the protective line around the medical tent, Ivan had found Catrina wandering about. At first, she seemed a bit confused but when she saw familiar faces, had become herself again and headed into the tent to assist Maria and others, in calming the young children. Ivan located Noah Flummer and let him know they'd found her and she was fine. For now, at least.
They'd tried putting up a protective barrier around the tent, but there just wasn't enough magical reserve to keep it in place, and they needed every bit of magic for the battle.
Inside the tent was a frightening sight to behold. The outer most edges of the inside of the tent were the sick and injured Svoda still unable to join the regular population, but nonetheless, sat on beds, in chairs, determined to fight if anyone broke through.
In between them was the older children… too young to be permitted to fight, even though most of them would have volunteered. But each in position to fight if it came to it. And then inside of them, the very middle of the tent, were where the youngest children and the most vulnerable Svoda remained—the very young, the aged and ailing, and those too sick to defend themselves at all—people like Sheila and Irving Mochrie.
Maria and another woman Catrina did not recognize were in the midst of that group, doing their best to smile, and calm. It even brought a smile to Catrina's face—Maria was quite good at it. Her ability to pass on a sense of peace was a natural gift she used well. She'd make a wonderful teacher or caregiver, Catrina thought. If they survived this, that is… and she was suddenly overcome with great sadness. At times like these she could do without her gift as a Song Spinner.
The music of this war dance was becoming too loud for her to tune out. But this was something else… some thought, some feeling, something it felt like she'd forgotten and needed to remember. Something she thought she should be hearing in that music, but didn’t. And yet she had no idea what it was. Just something missing. It was an odd sensation and not one she'd ever experienced before.
She did her best to shake it off as nerves. They were all on edge. She assumed this must be messing with her gift and let it slide.
Maria's smile widened to near impossible levels, which meant only one thing. Catrina twisted to see Ivan stepping inside the tent. At his heels were Isabella, Sebastien, and Nona. The Catawitch was licking a decent sized gash on Sebastien's arm, while he held her in the other.
"What's going on out there?" Catrina asked them. It had gotten eerily quiet, but for the war music that would not stop.
None of them wanted to say for fear of scaring those stuck in the tent even more than they already were.
"It's um—" Ivan had no words. War was brutal. And what was building on the riverbanks was even more so. Maria understood and turned the conversation.
"How about we bind up that wound?" she suggested to Sebastien. "Give yourself a quick rest, Nona." Her efforts were working slowly anyway. Isabella assisted. "Are there more wounded?" Maria questioned softly, so the younger children would not overhear.
"Yes. But they're being treated in the field of battle," Ivan replied. His lingering stare told her they had another medical triage set up so as not to frighten anyone in this one. There was a long string of sighs and groans from those stuck in the tent—the older folks, too ill or weak to fight. Their inability to help more so than they were was a heavy weight.
Maria's father limped his way to the entrance and swiped the canvas open just enough to see what was transpiring. Ivan joined him while Isabella fixed up Sebastien. She used a potion from the Tunkapog which sealed up the wound, but it would still take time to heal completely.
The skyline was getting lighter, not quite sunrise yet, but close.
"What are they waiting for?"
Ivan eyed Maria's father. "Hoping they'll frighten us to death?" he retorted in grim humor. The truth was, none of them had any idea.
The spiders were still pushing themselves upward out of the river, crowding the banks. Their spongy bodies creating a deadly horde.
"Have we lost anyone?" Catrina whispered timidly to Isabella and Sebastien.
The only answer was a long sigh—it was answer enough.
"We just need to hold on long enough for Meghan to destroy the Stone," Isabella reminded firmly. "Once she does that, the Stripers will weaken and lose their immortality."
"And Meghan will not fail," Sebastien stated.
"She doesn't do failure," Ivan added, returning.
Although they believed those words, they'd still rather have been by her side. But they were needed here. Isabella smiled weakly at her son. "I'm going to return to the field triage. Be careful."
"You too." He refused to let her leave without a forceful embrace. He made it quick so as not to let his emotions release. It was not the time for that. He needed focus.
Isabella left them. Sebastien and Nona headed back out to join the ranks. Ivan stalled for a moment, there so many things he wanted to say to Maria. If he did though, it was like he was giving up. Surrendering to an inevitable ending.
As always, Maria knew what he was thinking. She had a way of reading him easily.
"Don't say anything," she whispered to him. "Whatever it is, you can t
ell me when this is over."
Ivan gritted his teeth trying to keep to that. "I love you."
"I love you too. Now go. I'll see you soon. And when I do, there's something I want to tell you, too."
Ivan bit back the desire to hear whatever she had to say, right then, and not later. But her point was clear. Come back to me so I can. He left without kissing her, he didn't have the wherewithal to do it and think he could still leave. He took a final glance as he strode out of the tent, he saw the resolve of the old to protect the young, with their lives if necessary. He sure hoped like hell it didn't come to that.
He flew out of the tent, eyes searching out for Sebastien. He was off to the right, speaking to his parents. They were part of the protection detail for the medical tent. When Sebastien saw Ivan approaching, he bid them farewell and they and Nona jogged toward Aloyna.
They wanted to ask what was happening on the island, but held their tongues and asked, instead, where they could help the most. She lifted her arm to point out a spot she saw as weak and in need of coverage when a series of gasps, curses, and general cries of shock, had them running to see what was going on.
The Stripers were fanning out along the riverbank, which wound its way around the village. The spiders were doing the same, but in massive droves that only proved how outnumbered they all were. But this wasn't the most frightening part. Something else was rising up out the river. Something so giant that the spiders broke rank to clear a path.
The location of the shouts and gasps changed directions. Everyone spun around to look behind them, far off in the distance. The enemy had been spreading out all around them, using the river. They were surrounded on all sides.
Behind them and in front of them, two enormous heads were rising upward out of the river.
The Stripers had brought more than just the Salt Spiders.
"Even with Jasper's army, we are not enough to fight this." Ivan gawked at the impossible foe they were supposed to fight. It was equally impossible not to despair. Not for themselves, but for everyone they loved and cared about.
The Amphivena's knife-like scales glistened ominously in the twilight of the morning as the water fell down off its thickly scaled skin.
Ivan spun back to the portal side of the river when Sebastien cursed.
"You've got to be kidding me…"
Massive, jagged spikes were pushing upward, displacing the water and flooding the banks as impenetrable shells surfaced like doom bringers. And if this was not enough to spell out certain disaster, from in between the monstrous Slopikes, four sleek-winged bodies exploded upward releasing a series of gut wrenching shrieks that had all eyes roaming the twilight sky.
Shriekers. Slopikes. Salt Spiders. And the Amphivena.
This would have been battle enough.
But add in the immortal Stripers and…
"We can't win this…" No one was sure who said it, but they were all drowning in the reality of it. Fazendiin had no intention of taking them hostage. No intention of using them to harvest magic. He'd sent his armies to destroy them all.
The first attack came from all sides.
The Amphivena slammed its heads downward, pulverizing the earth below it. It was going to tear apart the land, bit by bit. Then, thunderous shakes split outward as the Slopikes took stride, the spiders at their heels, some using them as springboards to hurtle themselves into the field of battle.
Nashua began to shake violently, shifting into his wolf form and wrenched his head into the sky with a howl that had only one meaning—fight! Fight hard, or they would not live to see the sunrise.
The first spells were cast. The first potions thrown.
It was not enough. Not nearly enough.
But there was no retreat. Or surrender.
Shriekers bellowed high overhead.
Any in Nashua's service who sprouted wings were airborne to fight these birds of prey.
One man shook himself into his animal form, which turned out to be miniscule biting insects that swarmed one of the Shriekers, digging in under its feathers to reach skin, biting and stinging until the beast could not control its wings and fell to the ground taking out a few of the Salt Spiders with it.
On the ground, things were not faring near as well.
Spiders were catching prey and imprisoning them in their rubbery cocoons.
Slopikes were demolishing anything they connected with, and there was nothing strong enough to stop them.
The Amphivena was, foot by foot, tearing apart the land the Tunkapog had so peacefully called home for hundreds of years.
The largest of the animal shifters were the bears. And the moose. Not nearly strong enough to match such strength.
Daveena, Mireya, and Joseph, were back to back to back shooting off as many water spells as possible at a wall of spiders closing in on them. They were soaked through and Joseph had already taken a harpoon to the arm and was bleeding profusely. A roar broke into the horde. A mighty jaw snapped and snarled its way through to the three. The spiders left them and swarmed the bear as if it was some last meal to fight over. The three took up their palms and all together rained down fresh water—the spiders recoiled and screeched and fell back.
The bear shook itself and raced over to them, shifting into its human form.
It was Micah. The fourth member of their team.
"Smug idiot," Daveena mumbled. "Almost got yourself killed."
"Aren't we all," Joseph retorted.
Micah just smirked, snagged the last potion bottle in his magical belt and tossed it over his shoulder into the center of the recoiling spiders. A second later a ricocheting explosion blew up the malevolent doily imitators, but unfortunately, the fearsome foursome was poised too close.
An exploding spider bath was possibly the grossest thing ever.
Micah twisted his head to look at his backside with an unpleasant twitch of his nose.
"Those spiders really stink! Like raw fish that's seen too much sun."
"I'd have thought that a gourmet meal for a bear," growled Daveena as she smeared the spider off her face. Micah held back a grin. Daveena did not hold back her famous don't mess with me scowl.
And the moment was short lived.
More spiders were coming, with Stripers right behind them. Micah wasted no time in shaking himself back into his bear form. And the others returned to their back to back to back fighting position.
Kanda and Arnon stared at the menace coming closer, and their fighters being packed in tighter and tighter. In minutes, they'd reach the medical tent and the field triage.
"You'd better go," Arnon told her. He paused. "I'll make you some room." He started ordering people to back up and make enough room for Kanda to shift.
Ivan rushed through the crowd balancing Sebastien against him. His arm wound had reopened and he'd taken two harpoons to the gut. Arnon and Kanda saw them and rushed to Sebastien where they placed him on the ground and told him to scream if he had to, but then without ceremony, yanked out the barbed harpoons. Arnon used magic to seal the wounds.
Nona popped in, searching for Sebastien. She'd promised Meghan she'd look after him, but he sure was making it difficult. The Catawitch's white eye widened and the future flashed in front of her. As it did, the warning escaped her lips before it even ended.
"Kanda! Shift now!"
Kanda stood up to see one of the Slopikes careening toward them.
She stared it down and took off running to meet it head on. With each of her steps a great light broke out of her, blinding everyone. But what came out of that light roared to life like a steel mountain, which the Slopike punched into with incredible force. The soundwave alone sent a shock that slowed the battle. But when the Slopike flew backwards, airborne, the battle silenced. The enemy watched as it touched down with great violence, its unconscious form sprawled in a new crater.
A throaty growl split through Kanda's shifting light.
A scaly shimmer slicked forward, a fiery outline piercing through t
he fading brilliance.
All eyes, friend and foe, stared in awe as the light dissolved, revealing the pearl white dragon underneath. Her body, an impenetrable shield of protection. She pounded her front foot on the earth and snarled at the enemy, daring them to come for her. And with a push that shook the ground, her wings outstretched and she tore into the sky with a roar that reignited the battle.
Arnon shook his head and let out the breath he'd been holding. He took over Kanda's work of healing the wounded. He almost laughed at the awed stoned faces of Ivan and Sebastien as they watched Kanda Macawi's dragon take flight.
The Shriekers didn't stand a chance against such a force, and they banded together to attack the dragon. She took them down in a single minute. Her teeth ripping into their necks, wings, feet… and then she turned her sights to the Slopikes. Killing them was not nearly as easy, and there were too many to fight all at once. Something the Stripers were already using to their advantage. They were too clever at quick adaptations.
Not even Kanda's fire was going to help. She was just as likely to maim her own, as the enemy.
What a terrible view this was.
Her beautiful home overrun with such horror.
Kanda flew hard, looking for the perfect strike. She shoved her head straight into a Slopike on the rampage. One of its jagged horns punched up into her neck, almost breaking through the scale. She lifted herself to try again. If only there was more room to land, but she didn't dare. Instead, she dove again, digging her claws into the beast's head. And when that did not stop it she lunged for one of its spikes, chomped down until she got a good grip, and tossed the beast back into the river.
She snarled in the satisfaction of it, and deftly twisted her pearly form with the intent on taking out the Amphivena. It saw her coming and darted its deadly head, their mouths and teeth meeting up in a mashup of gnashing and snarling.
The Queen, The Mirror, and The Creation (Fated Chronicles Book 5) Page 35
