The Connelly Curse

by Lily Velez

  I thought I heard Kai let go of a relieved breath. To be fair, I was immensely relieved right along with him.

  “And the favor you would ask of me?” Nuada prompted, reminding me of his promise to grant me whatever I wished.

  I was hardly surprised by how quickly a single desire rose above all others. “Are you able to break the curse of a demon’s mark?” I asked.

  “Scarlet,” Jack started.

  I pushed on before he could stop me, telling Nuada who Jack was, how he’d come to be Marked, and how it was prophesied that he would be the key to the Dark Lord’s ascension. Though we now had the means to stop Alistair from breaking the last seal, Jack’s debt would still hang over his head when it was all said and done. Demons could still come for him and drag him to the forsaken lands, where he’d be doomed to remain. Sealing the door shut on the Dark Lord wasn’t enough for me. I wanted to make it so that he no longer had any connection to Jack whatsoever.

  Nuada studied the brand on Jack’s wrist. The color in his eyes seemed to swirl. “A prophecy that demands to be fulfilled will always be so, no matter your efforts to forestall it.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “In the end, the light and the darkness must contend with each other in this. It is the nature of the forces at work in our world, forces against which not even a god can stand.”

  It was as if my very rib bones were cracking one by one. That was the extent of the sudden, sharp pain in my chest. I drew back slightly, unable to accept Nuada’s words.

  “But your labors have not been in vain, Daughter of Brigid. You have thwarted the Dark Lord’s rise on this occasion, and in doing so, have acquired a valuable asset: time. I urge you to use it wisely. Rally your allies, for war with the Dark Lord is inevitable, but rest assured that you will not fight alone. While I may not be able to dismantle a prophecy, I can grant you this: my fealty. I pledge it to you now, so that when you stand opposite the Dark Lord on that fateful day, you will have the strength of my entire army behind you.”

  For the second time in speaking with Nuada, I was speechless. I would’ve thought the deities of the Otherworld would wish nothing to do with our battle against the Dark Lord. Morrígan certainly intended on sitting it out. Though war with the very manifestation of evil and darkness was the last thing I could’ve ever wanted, Nuada’s vow managed to slightly bolster my spirits.

  “Until then,” the god continued, “I must settle affairs with the goddess of war. Should you so desire, I have the means to convey you back to the world of man. You need only think of where you wish to go, and you will be there.”

  I looked to Jack, then to Kai. I knew exactly where we were needed right now, time quickly slipping away from us. I nodded at Nuada, holding the sword close as I filled my mind with an image of the place.

  The god stepped forward and touched my shoulder. A golden light surrounded the three of us. The last thing I saw was Nuada giving me a final nod of gratitude before everything disappeared.

  46

  Scarlet

  We found ourselves on the outskirts of a familiar clearing. Up ahead, Alistair, in my dad’s body, stood before that lone menhir with its jagged edges. As I’d expected, twelve of the thirteen seals had already been broken, vicious cracks cutting through their centers like wayward surgical incisions.

  I glanced down at the Sword of Light, the blade glowing like the flame atop a torch. The sword continued to radiate power, as if it were ready to be employed, ready to strike down my enemies. It gave off a buzz of energy that surged up my arm and swirled in my chest, rallying me.

  Everything we’d been through came down to this one moment.

  “I have an idea,” I whispered to Jack, “but I’m going to need your help.”

  Minutes later, I crossed over the crisp, dead leaves that carpeted the clearing, their crunch louder than ever in the night. As I approached, the menhir grew taller, a black tower looming over me like an omen. My pulse thundered in my veins as I continued putting one foot in front of the other.

  “Daughter of Brigid,” Alistair greeted with his back still to me. I could hear the smirk in his words. Hands clasped behind his back, he didn’t even deign it necessary to face me. As far as he was concerned, I wasn’t a threat. His plans were nearly realized.

  His head was tilted back as he watched the moon. Its light glazed us in silver, giving the night a surreal feeling, as if I were only dreaming. When the wind blew, it rattled the leaves on the surrounding trees, and for a moment, it was as if the trees were whispering to each other, trading secrets or perhaps exchanging wagers on who would walk out of this clearing alive.

  “Come to wallop me with that stick?” Alistair asked.

  My eyes fell to the stick in question, which was more the size of a walking staff, but I supposed to a demon of Alistair’s might, it might as well had been a toothpick. I’d retrieved it from the ground before stepping out to face him. I certainly had no intentions of confronting him unarmed, and the last thing I wanted to do was show my winning hand by exposing the Sword of Light too soon.

  Besides, there was no way to know if Alistair had allies hiding amongst the shadows, creatures that could easily snatch the weapon from me. No, better to start off like this and catch Alistair off guard. When I needed the Sword of Light, Jack would intervene at my signal.

  “This ends now, Alistair.”

  Finally, he turned to face me. Though I knew he’d be wearing my dad’s face, it was still unnerving to see it so changed. The unkempt clothing, the disheveled hair, the gaunt face from lack of eating. Not to mention those unsettling red eyes and that sinister grin. It all made me sick. I hated that my dad had been dragged into all of this, and my grip on the stick tightened. Maybe I would wallop Alistair with it after all.

  “I’m not going to let you break that final seal,” I told him.

  He laughed, the sound like tiny crawling things on my arms. “I’m afraid that’s hardly for you to decide.”

  I drew my shoulders back, held my chin high. “On the contrary,” I said. “I’ve decided something recently. I plan on taking things into my own hands from here on out. If I don’t like a certain path, I won’t follow it. And if there’s no other paths left to take, I’ll make my own.”

  Alistair’s eyebrows rose as a smirk slowly crept across his mouth. “Such a pretty little speech. A shame that it means absolutely nothing. You’re too late.” He pointed up to the moon just as a gauze of clouds sailed past its pale face. “The hour is nigh, and with the breaking of the final seal, everything changes.”

  Unfazed, I took the remaining steps that separated us, my eyes hardening to iron. “Like I said, I’m not going to let that happen.”

  “You know your powers are no match for mine,” Alistair reminded me. “Whatever magic you could hope to wield against me would be sadly ineffective.”

  “Maybe,” I countered. “But who said anything about using ordinary magic? Jack, now!”

  The glamour with which Jack had spelled the stick I held instantly fell away, revealing none other than the Sword of Light itself.

  Seeing it, Alistair’s eyes widened. His weight started to shift as he tried to rear back, but I was quicker. Before he could retreat, I gripped the sword’s hilt with both hands to better lift the heavy weapon and shoved the blade deep into Alistair’s chest.

  The scream that escaped his mouth was animalistic and gruesome. Gritting my teeth, I maintained my stance, knuckles white to keep the sword steady as it slid through Alistair as if cutting through melting wax. I tried not to think about the fact that I was essentially spearing my own dad. If the sword worked the way it was supposed to, the way Kai assured me it would, then this act of violence against him wouldn’t matter.

  From where the sword entered Alistair’s body, light as bright as a high noon sun bloomed. The light was hot as well, as if the legendary flame inside the blade had escaped, scorching Alistair from the inside out. From the way the demon thrashed and continued to scree
ch, I wouldn’t have doubted it.

  Within seconds, the light rushed out of the entry wound until it had encased Alistair from head to toe like a golden sarcophagus. Beneath us, the earth shuddered and cracked, the crevices alight like veins filled with molten lava. Gusts of wind blew powerfully into the clearing, carrying away a stream of leaves and blowing my hair into my face until I was blinded by it.

  I jerked my head to the side to clear my vision and spit out a few strands from my mouth. Both Alistair and the sword were convulsing, and I feared losing my hold on the weapon. I doubled down, widening my stance and tightening my fingers on the hilt until I thought I’d break the bones in my very hands.

  The gusts of wind quickly evolved into a whirlwind that towered the menhir and the trees themselves. The clearing darkened as the whirlwind continued to grow, reaching tall enough to cancel out the moon and stars, its gilded edges glowing, as if it were fashioned from golden threads. I craned my neck back as I gazed up its seemingly unending height, not sure what was happening.

  At least not until I heard the chorus of ungodly shrieks. They were the sounds of tortured, miserable beings. Furious beings. Defeated beings.

  The Vanquished.

  One by one, large shadows zipped past me, getting caught up in the whirlwind that the Sword of Light had created. Once inside the whirlwind, the shadows clawed at and raged against the golden bars of their new cage, but the Sword of Light’s prison was impenetrable.

  A horse whinnied, and in the next moment, the Dullahan and his horse blazed across the clearing in reverse, struggling against the winds that sought to ensnare them. No matter how hard the horse pumped its legs, however, it was no match for the Sword of Light. Rider and mount rose into the air, and the whirlwind easily sucked them in, as if they were light as feathers.

  The Sword of Light’s hilt began to burn, its power steadily mounting. I didn’t know how much longer I could hold on, but I wasn’t about to let discomfort of all things get in the way of finishing this. The runes along the inside of my arms glowed like stars, my god-touched status the only reason I could even wield the weapon. Brigid had chosen me for a reason, and Nuada had given me his favor as well.

  I can do this, I told myself.

  But not just because two separate deities had given me their blessing. Even without it, I could do it. I could do it because I believed I could, because I wasn’t going to back down, because I’d give everything I had until it was done.

  I cried out, partly in response to the pain and partly as a battle cry, calling forth every bit of fight in me to stay rooted in place lest the sword’s power be extinguished the moment I let go.

  More and more terrible, red-eyed creatures soared through the clearing and into the Sword of Light’s web. They were awful to look at, the stuff of nightmares. There was a wraith that looked like a cloak of shadows, a beast with multiple curled horns sprouting from its head, a pale female with a mouth full of pointed teeth.

  Many tried to seize me in passing, but Jack had posted himself at my side, and he guarded me against their attempts like a shield. It wasn’t the first time we fought beside each other, and I knew it wouldn’t be the last. We would stand by each other always, and the knowledge made me dig my feet into the earth even further as the sword’s power reached its peak.

  Moments later, I counted twelve inside the whirlwind, every last prisoner accounted for.

  The trap sprung and The Vanquished caught, there was only one last enemy to deal with. As if understanding my thoughts, a thread of gold from the whirlwind reached out to Alistair, attaching to his spine. With a mighty yank, a shadow was pulled out from the back of my dad’s body. That body fell back, freeing itself from the sword and sinking to the ground like a lifeless doll, but the shadow remained standing.

  Alistair, in his true form. He was hideous, drenched in an inky black substance that was thick like tar, with swelling boils all over his body that burst and spilled pus. He bared his fangs at me, snarling, and then he lunged off his feet and sprang for me, black talons extended.

  Just as one of those claws would’ve cut a fine scratch across my cheek, the whirlwind snatched the demon out of the air and yanked him into its grip. The moment it did, the air around me burst, and a jarring impact blasted into my body, sending me flying several feet across the clearing until I landed hard on my back. Somehow, I’d still managed to keep my grip on the sword, and its power infused me with a boost of strength.

  No, not the sword…

  My heart pounded like a mallet against a war drum, each reverberation making my entire body pulse. Something exploded open inside of me, storming through a door that was no longer locked. Heat raced through my veins and ignited several points throughout my body, which flickered to life and blazed so brightly I felt like a universe filled with a thousand suns.

  My magic! Alistair had said it would remain sealed within me as long as he walked this earth. Now ripped from the earth by the Sword of Light’s might, my magic had been set free. I rushed to my feet and gazed down at one palm as it crackled with a blue current of magic. I clutched the fabric at my chest, sure my heart would burst from joy.

  It was incredible, the wholeness I felt. With my magic back, I was complete, like I could finally be my truest, most powerful self because every authentic part of who I was had finally been restored to me. Like Jack had said, it wasn’t the magic that made me a witch. But the magic contributed to my arsenal as a witch, and I would never take that for granted again.

  I held out my hand in the whirlwind’s direction, aiming my palm at Alistair. Before the Sword of Light returned him and The Vanquished to the forsaken lands, I had one final piece of unfinished business to take care of.

  A separate consciousness immediately sparked to life around the edges of my heart, beating in sync with it. I dispatched a pulse of magic, and our bond strengthened, becoming magnetic. Alistair writhed within the whirlwind, struggling to contain something, but I tugged harder, tenacious, and finally, a glowing orb burst through the center of Alistair’s chest, flew through the torrents of the whirlwind, and sailed across the clearing until it slammed into the center of my palm with sparks of magic.

  The Hallowstone.

  My chest swelled with pride to hold it once more, and the star fragment brightened as I beheld it, acknowledging me and perhaps expressing its own gratitude for our reunion. I quickly pocketed it and marched across the clearing to regard the whirlwind and its captives, somehow knowing in my bones what I needed to do.

  The protests of Alistair and The Vanquished reached a deafening crescendo as the whirlwind spun faster, reached higher, glowed brighter. Gripping the sword’s hilt with both hands, I lifted my arms high above my head, and then with all the fury I could summon, I brought the blade down in a rush, stabbing the earth before the menhir.

  The ground rumbled, as if thunder rolled from underneath. From the point of the Sword of Light’s blade, a cavity began to open, quickly expanding. Jack grabbed me by the elbow and yanked me back, sword and all. By the time we reached the edge of the clearing, the cavity had quadrupled in size, an angry mouth ready to devour. Fire lashed out from its depths, flickering tongues that blazed in blinding yellows and oranges.

  “A portal,” I said to myself. The Sword of Light had created a new one by which to send our enemies straight home to the wasteland that waited for them.

  “This isn’t over, witch!” Alistair roared as the cavity in the ground began to consume the whirlwind from the tail up. He and the creatures spun in dizzying revolutions as the funnel of magic twisted over and over, like waste being flushed down the drain.

  “You think you’ve won? You have no idea! The war has only just begun! Your world and everyone you love are doomed. You will be—”

  He didn’t get to finish. The cavity hungrily wolfed down the last of the whirlwind, the entire woods shaking as the earth convulsed violently. Golden light shone everywhere—from the portal, from the cracks in the ground, from the Sword of Light,
and soon, we were awash in it, painted in its hue as Alistair and The Vanquished bellowed into the night one final time, their screams a riotous cacophony that deafened me.

  Then, utter silence. The cavity in the ground was already stitching itself back together, the whirlwind completely consumed. With a shudder, the menhir bearing the seals of Balor’s prisoners cracked in a hundred different places. A second later, it fell to the ground, reduced to small, black rocks that looked like nothing more than a pile of rubbish.

  A toppled ruin to match the Dark Lord’s toppled kingdom.

  47

  Scarlet

  Jack wayfared my dad, still unconscious, back to the house.

  As Kai had assured me, the Sword of Light hadn’t inflicted any injuries on my dad, only targeting the demon that had been within. Where there should’ve been a gaping wound from where the sword had lanced through him, there was nothing.

  “The sword honors the intentions of the one who wields it,” Kai had explained.

  It had taken an enormous amount of faith to put my trust in that claim, and discovering there’d been truth to the assertions after all made me so weak in the knees with relief it was any wonder I hadn’t dropped to the ground with tears of joy in my eyes.

  Standing in the clearing alone with Kai, however, my thoughts were still stuck on my dad’s appearance. He’d lost so much weight in the short time Alistair had puppeted him. His haggard face looked practically skeletal. He’d shriveled like drying fruit, and my chest flared with both anger and sadness over it.

  He was the only family I had left, and I couldn’t stand to see any further harm come to him. Once he was well enough, I’d have to tell him the truth about everything. That I was a witch, that he was a witch, that there were demons out in the world against which we’d have to regularly protect ourselves.

  Of course, this was all assuming he didn’t already know all of that. Had he still been aware while Alistair had piloted his body? Had he seen and heard everything?