A Battle of Souls

by Bella Forrest

  One by one, my crew disappeared. Poof. Like clouds blown away by a sudden gust of wind. I lost all sense of time and space. For a split second, everything went dark.

  I’d been decomposed into the tiniest of particles, soon to be reassembled elsewhere.

  I was out of Azure Heights. Away from the war.

  Harper

  I stayed by Caspian’s side after we were helped up to the seventh level. Hundurr circled around Colton’s lifeless body, occasionally growling at Rowan and Farrah. Patrik had put them both inside a Druid mandala-type of chalk drawing, a spell designed to keep them from running off.

  Zane was right next to us. His breathing was even, and he was slowly recovering, drifting in and out of consciousness just to check on the two Mara Ladies. A part of him refused to let himself rest. There was so much death and devastation around us that tears kept streaming down my cheeks—my heart burned for every life we’d lost along the way.

  Arrah’s body had been laid next to the other Imen. The ones we’d managed to rescue had huddled inside Emilian’s mansion. Despite the ravaged front wall, it still provided them with cover. I heard them gasp whenever an explosion tore through the lower levels. The daemons’ catapults weren’t able to hit the sixth and seventh levels. Not yet, anyway. I had a feeling that they would, provided they were angled properly.

  Caspian sighed, most of his body still covered in horrific burns. But he was calm, and he was healing. In a day or two, he’d be as good as new. I dropped a kiss on his tender forehead. He groaned softly.

  It killed me to see him like this. Most importantly, the damage that Shaytan had done to my soul hurt even more. I had to do something to make that pain go away, or at least simmer down. I instinctively pulled my combat suit zipper down, revealing the medallion that Serena had given me before I left Calliope.

  I spent a minute staring at it. I pressed my lips against it and closed my eyes.

  The world around me seemed to vanish. Matter warped into a different setting. I wasn’t on Neraka anymore. I was back home in The Shade, with Mom, Dad, Serena, and Phoenix, during our first family dinner after we got both of my siblings back from Luceria. We laughed. We were happy. We talked about building a GASP base on Mount Zur. I begged Dad to let me get on the Calliope detail. I wanted to be close to Serena.

  That was my fondest memory. Dinner with a complete family. We were all at peace, smiling at one another and looking forward to the future.

  I shuddered, opening my eyes and realizing I was still on Neraka. There were still daemons below, laying siege upon the city. My lips were soft and warm against the cool medallion that Serena… I started sobbing like a little girl. I missed them. I needed to see them again. But, deep down, I did feel a little better. I had something to look forward to.

  Any minute now.

  “There is some water in the kitchen,” a young Iman girl said.

  I looked at her as she stood in the broken doorway of Emilian’s mansion. She was shaking like a leaf, her aura beaming in red and yellow—a mixture of pain, grief, and fear. Despite what she was feeling, however, she sounded calm and reserved. She held it all inside, most likely so as not to startle or worry the others.

  I gave her a weak smile. “I’m okay, thank you. But I think our pit wolf here would appreciate some,” I said, nodding at Hundurr.

  The pit wolf stilled and stared at the Iman girl for a minute. She was fearful of him, but still, she nodded, went back inside, and then came back with a large pan filled with water. She placed it at the bottom of the porch stairs, then stepped back, watching Hundurr as he trotted over and started lapping away at the water.

  She smiled. “He’s so… different.”

  “That’s because he’s an Adlet,” I replied. “Pit wolves are not inherently evil or savage. They’re merely the result of the corrupted swamp witch magic that they were subjected to. Once you take off the charmed collars that the daemons made them wear… Well, you can see for yourself.”

  “Is it over?” she asked, giving me a hopeful glance.

  I shrugged. “I don’t know. I don’t think so.”

  I looked around. Ramin was definitely gone. Whether I’d dreamed it all or he was actually real was something I would dig into later. For now, I focused on keeping the survivors in one place and, hopefully, seeing my family and friends again soon. I’d seen the light cut through the sky.

  They were down there, somewhere.

  “Harper,” Zane muttered, blinking several times as he came to again. “Where’s Fiona?”

  “She’s down on the second level with Hansa and the others,” I replied. “Are you okay?”

  “I feel like I’ve been hit by a mountain. Other than that, I’m great. You?”

  I let out a long, tortured sigh. My lungs were weak. My heart wasn’t pumping as fast as it should. My body temperature was even lower than usual. I was weak and cold, holding my knees up to my chest. My wounds had closed, but something was missing.

  “Tired,” I replied. “I now know what it’s like to have your soul eaten. I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone.”

  Farrah scoffed. Rowan was still unconscious, but Farrah had her eyes wide open. With one arm left and a shoulder wound that would take a long time to heal, she was also extremely bitter and mean.

  “You should try eating one,” she said. “Once you’re on the other end, trust me, it’s an incredible feeling. The power surge… It’s like being constantly weightless and—”

  “How about you shut the hell up and focus on what your life will be like inside a cage, with only one arm and a string of failures and murders tied around your neck, instead?” I shot back, my tone clipped. “No one’s interested in hearing how ‘cool’ your addiction is. You’ve done enough harm as it is.”

  “I only speak the truth,” Farrah retorted. “Just because you refuse to see it—”

  She yelped and went quiet all of a sudden. In a split second, Hundurr had gone back to her, towering over her with his fangs out, eager to tear her to shreds.

  “I suggest you keep your mouth shut, unless you want the pit wolf to rid you of the other arm, too, and make you even,” Zane replied, chuckling. He then looked at Caspian. “How is he?”

  “I think he’ll be okay,” I said. “Provided the daemon army doesn’t make it up to this level. In which case, we’ll be a little screwed.”

  Viola appeared out of nowhere, right in front of me. I gasped. My heart nearly stormed out of my chest. She smiled.

  “Hi, Harper,” she murmured. “Sorry I’m late.”

  “Whoa,” Zane breathed, looking up at her in awe. His jaw was close to hitting the ground.

  “Viola… How… When… You made it!” I croaked, then jumped to my feet and instantly lost my footing. I was still so weak.

  Viola giggled and caught me in her arms, breaking my fall. I hugged her tight, thankful to hear her, to see her, to feel her in my arms. Her presence here meant that it was all over, and I could truly breathe again, for the first time since I’d left Calliope.

  “You’re not well, are you?” she asked, helping me stand on my own as she measured me from head to toe.

  I shook my head slowly, then pointed at Caspian and Zane. “None of us are,” I replied. “But hey, we’ve made it this far.” I chuckled.

  “No, I mean, there’s a part of you that’s missing,” she said, as if she could see right into my crippled soul. There was no way for me to describe the emptiness I was feeling. On one hand, I was thrilled—or should’ve been thrilled—to see her… and yet, I felt desolate. Nothing felt right.

  “The daemon king ate chunks of my soul, if that makes sense,” I muttered.

  She caressed my cheek and gave me a soft smile. “It will be okay. We’ll figure something out.”

  “What are you doing up here? Where are the others?” I asked, looking around and hoping to see my parents and the rest of our family.

  “They’re waiting for you. I’m here to get you and everyone else out,” Viola replie
d, carefully checking out our surroundings.

  Zane managed to get up, then offered her a curt bow. His reverence made me smile. I had a feeling he’d realized just how powerful Viola could be as a Daughter of Eritopia.

  “This is Zane,” I said. “He’s our friend and ally. This is Caspian,” I added. “Also our friend and ally.”

  “He’s more than that, isn’t he?” Viola asked, wearing a half smile.

  I nodded. “Good grief, your intuition scares me sometimes,” I murmured.

  She took a deep breath, then exhaled. “Okay. We need to go. The dragons are coming.”

  “Yes!” I squealed, momentarily energized. “Wait, how do we… Never mind, you literally popped out of nowhere. I’m guessing we’re all getting out the same way.”

  “Indeed.” She chuckled softly, then handed me one of the pouches she carried on her dress belt. It was filled with tiny gemstones that glimmered in a variety of colors. I looked at her with my eyebrows raised, waiting for an explanation. “Hand one to everyone you need to get out of here safely. Once you’re done, I’ll get us out. It’s a little trick that Corrine employed for mass evacuations.”

  “Okay. Okay, got it,” I replied, then started distributing the gems around the seventh level, while Viola waited patiently.

  I handed one to Zane, then slipped one into Caspian’s hand. I put one in Rowan’s dress pocket, then gave another to Farrah, who scowled at me. I responded with a low growl.

  “You’re going to pay for all your crimes, Farrah,” I said. “I’m going to make sure of it.”

  She tossed the gemstone away. “Go to hell. I’m staying here.”

  I scoffed, then grabbed her by the back of the head and shoved another gemstone down her throat—in a most literal sense. She coughed and gagged, but she ended up swallowing it. She cursed under her breath and bared her fangs at me. I chuckled.

  “You still don’t get it, do you?” I replied, then got back up. “You lost. We won. Now, take it like a big girl.”

  I walked over to Hundurr and offered him a gemstone.

  He looked at it, then at me with big, curious red eyes.

  “I think you need to swallow it, buddy. You’re coming with us,” I told him. Hundurr groaned, then briefly glanced back at Arrah and Colton, before looking at me again. “We’ll take them with us, too. They deserve a proper burial.”

  He nodded, then licked the gemstone out of my palm and swallowed it. I put one in Colton’s mouth and another inside Arrah’s short tweed jacket. I ran my fingers over the bloodstains, then brushed a few loose strands from her face.

  I couldn’t help but burst into tears again. “I’ll find your brother, I promise. You fought well, Arrah. Hopefully, there’s something better waiting for you on the other side.”

  Five minutes later, I’d shared my gemstones with all the surviving Imen hidden inside Emilian’s mansion. I made sure to mark all our fallen allies as well. They all deserved a ceremony. They were all heroes.

  “What now?” I asked Viola, while the Imen gradually came out of the mansion.

  She smiled. “Now, we go,” she replied, then snapped her fingers.

  One by one, all the Imen and our fallen allies vanished like wisps of smoke in the evening breeze. Hundurr was next. Then Rowan and Farrah. Zane gasped before he disappeared. Caspian followed.

  Next thing I knew, I was weightless.

  I, too, was gone.

  Harper

  It felt like only the blink of an eye.

  I found myself transported to the field, about a mile away from the mountain.

  “Harper!” My mother’s voice cut through my consciousness. “My baby!”

  Before I could register what was going on, I was wrapped in my mother’s and my father’s arms. I burst into tears as soon as I saw their faces. They, too, were crying—mostly with relief and the joy of having me close again.

  “Sis!” Serena yelped and joined in the group hug.

  I laughed. From the bottom of my heart, I laughed. Phoenix’s long arms seemed to bring us all even closer, tighter than ever. Despite the hole in my soul, I was happy. I was free. I was with my family again.

  We stayed like that for a while, while more of us appeared out of nowhere—both from our team and from our allies’ ranks. Corrine, Ibrahim, Shayla, Arwen, and the Daughters did a stellar job of rescuing everyone we needed from Azure Heights. Adlets and Manticores, Dhaxanians, Imen townspeople and rebels, surviving Exiled Maras, and Peyton’s fighters, too.

  All of a sudden, we’d all been transferred off the mountain and into the field, while the daemon army continued to push through the city.

  “You’re okay! Thank the stars that you’re okay,” Mom breathed, covering my face with feverish, loving kisses.

  “You know me, Mom. I’m not easy to kill.” I chuckled, resting my head on my father’s shoulder. I then gave Serena and Phoenix a warm smile. “Now I know how you two felt when we found you in Luceria.”

  “Best feeling in the world, isn’t it?” Serena asked, grinning like the Cheshire cat. She came in closer, holding me tight.

  “Thank you for this,” I murmured, holding up the medallion for her to see. “It definitely helped. Nothing like the vivid memory of your loved ones to keep you going.”

  “You’re okay. It’s going to be okay,” Serena replied.

  I nodded slowly, then glanced around once more. We’d all made it back.

  Fiona was sandwiched between Yelena and Benedict, as expected. Lucas and Marion held Avril in their arms, while Pippa and Jeramiah showered Scarlett with loving words and kisses. Vita, Bijarki, Grace, and Lawrence had Caia, and Jax, Hansa, and Patrik were all surrounded by their people.

  Blaze had flown away from the war zone and had just landed in the field, just twenty feet away from Heath and the other dragons. They all rushed to greet him. Heath was beside himself, as expected. My heart swelled to three times its original size once the last batch of Dhaxanians was brought back from the mountain.

  Nevis, Tobiah, and Sienna were severely injured. Neha and Pheng-Pheng were okay. Peyton and Wyrran, too. We’d lost plenty of people out there, but we were now surrounded by some of the most powerful supernaturals to come out of The Shade, and Eritopia, as well.

  Derek and Sofia were with us, too, going around from one group to another, to hug us and to express how grateful they were that we were still alive. Rowan and Farrah were restrained, as were the other Exiled Maras we’d captured from different levels. There was an overall feeling of weight still pressing down on our shoulders, though.

  “We didn’t know,” Derek said as soon as he reached our side. “We had no idea this was going on.”

  “You couldn’t have,” I said. “I know, don’t worry about it,” I added, then nodded at the mountain. “What about them? It won’t be long before they figure out we’re all gone.”

  Derek glanced over his shoulder, then gave me a confident smile. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. We brought dragons.” He winked and shouted at Heath. “Come on, you grumpy old lizard! Get out there and show these daemons who they’re dealing with!”

  Heath scoffed, the shadow of a smile fluttering across his face. “You don’t have to tell me twice,” he said, then looked at Blaze, who’d already been given an extra pair of pants. “You ready to let loose, Son?”

  Blaze smiled. “Thought you’d never ask,” he replied, then gave Caia a brief wink.

  The dragons lined up on the edge of our group, slipping out of their clothes and stretching their arms, as if getting ready to run a triathlon. My cheeks caught fire at the sight of so many naked butts, but I couldn’t look away, as the ice dragons were the first to shift and fly out.

  “What are they doing, Grandpa Derek?” I asked, watching the majestic creatures cut through the early evening sky.

  “Well, first we need to isolate the daemons and stop them from getting off that mountain,” Derek replied.

  We all gathered behind him, as if we were about to watch one hell o
f a show. Knowing the dragons’ flamboyant theatrics in battle already, I knew we were in for a treat. Caspian stayed back, still unconscious and in the care of Corinne, who’d already started applying some of her proprietary healing potions to speed up his recovery.

  “You know we’re going to have to talk about him at some point,” Mom said gently. She, too, was watching Caspian while Corrine administered some of the good stuff in her healing arsenal. Mom could read me like an open book, anyway. It didn’t come as a surprise that she’d already figured it out.

  I rested my head on her shoulder, then sighed. “Soon, Mom. Soon.”

  “I know, baby,” she replied and dropped another kiss on the top of my head.

  We were all still on edge, somehow. It was as if none of us could rest and relax until the mountain was purged of daemons. There were still thousands of them, now roaming freely through the city’s levels. I used my True Sight to follow some of them around. They were looking for us, for the Exiled Maras and the allies. Their red eyes glimmered with the hunger for violence. They wanted us all dead, after all. They’d been indoctrinated to the point of no return.

  “Rush, Amina, Laughlan, and Vesta have brought us up to speed,” Derek said, keeping his gaze fixed on the ice dragons as they approached the mountain. “They told us everything, from the beginning of the daemon and Exiled Mara alliance to the present day. Based on their accounts, we’ve concluded that the only way for us to push the daemons into submission and force them to agree to a peace treaty is to beat the fear of GASP into them.”

  “Therefore, we need to set an example,” Field added, standing next to him and Sofia. “The remaining daemon cities will now see who they’ve messed with.”

  Zane chuckled softly, lying on his side in the tall grass. “They’ve been asking for it for millennia. It’s about time someone put us back in our place.”

  He briefly exchanged glances with Fiona, who was just ten feet away with her parents, before they both resumed watching what was about to unfold.

  “First, we need ice,” Derek muttered.