by Ashley Meira
I threw a wind-packed punch at Gadot’s face, not letting up until I felt the cracking of bones under my fists. He may have been the Emperor of Earth, but he was in a human body. I continued raining blow after blow upon him. I wasn’t sure if he needed to keep casting to summon Trixie, but there was no way killing him was a bad thing.
A knee slammed into my gut, breaking my rhythm. The fist that connected with my jaw shattered it, and black spots clouded my vision. Gadot flipped us so he was on top and began repaying me for my punches. Except he was an earth mage, and he’d conjured jagged rocks to cover his fists. Well, if I ever made it out of this, I had a new trick in my arsenal.
It took two punches for my snarky optimism to fade. The third split my lip and nose. I’d have lost an eye if I hadn’t blocked the fourth. My arms took the brunt of the blows after that, each more painful than the last. A scream ripped from my throat as a spiked knuckle pierced through my leather jacket and sliced through my flesh. I flailed underneath him, bucking and kicking, but he wouldn’t budge. It was like having a mountain on top of me, which I’d have found ironic if this wasn’t such a shitty situation.
A blast of pink slammed into his back, but he didn’t budge. Over his shoulder, I saw Fiona charge forward. Her elbow collided with his back, and he staggered forward long enough for me to catch my breath. I wanted to flip us back over, but I couldn’t find the strength. My arms felt flayed to the raw nerve, and the sight of them through my blurred vision told me that wasn’t far from the truth.
Fiona threw a punch, and if I hadn’t already broken Gadot’s nose, she would have. I reached for her, letting out another cry when she grabbed my arms and pulled me out from under him. Her hands hovered over me for a few seconds, but without healing magic, there was nothing she could do.
I made a noise as Gadot stood. She turned and rolled away from the spear he’d thrown. It landed next to my ear, covering my face in dust. Guess he knew I was Fireborn, because he had no problem using magic on Fiona.
She sprinted forward but was knocked off her feet by the earthquake he summoned. He sent sharpened rocks flying toward her. The projectiles shredded her arms and legs, the magic powerful enough to cause the brand on her thigh to appear. Fiona’s glamour only fell when she was seriously injured. She fell beside me, firing off a Fairy Blast at the approaching demigod.
He sidestepped the attack and called magic to his hands. The stench of blood and dirt hit tenfold, pulling bile up my throat. Despite our attacks, his magic’s rhythm remained steady. I couldn’t see a way to Break it.
Deciding to turn up the heat, I threw a fireball at him. Gadot dodged this one, too, but it didn’t feel deliberate. The flames grazed his shoulder-length hair as he turned to throw a spell behind him. I saw Adam hit the ground a moment later and realized he’d been approaching the altar. Following his lead, I threw a fireball toward the glowing Wreath.
Dirt spewed from the earth, forming a thick wall before the altar. It splattered across the ground when the fireball hit, but blocked the blow regardless. I tried again and was rewarded with a kick to the gut for my efforts. Great. The one time I could absorb magic without anyone noticing, and my opponent knew not to use it on me.
Gadot cracked his neck and stepped back toward the altar. Adam rose and threw a ball of wind at him. He took a step back and launched a rock spear. Adam dodged and returned the attack with another gust of wind. Sweat drenched his brow, and hair was plastered to his glistening skin. His chest heaved with exertion, mimicking mine and Fiona’s.
My arms felt like freshly smelted iron, but I fought through the pain and pushed myself up. The remaining golems had circled around the altar while Gadot was dealing with Adam. I wasn’t sure who to handle. Killing Gadot would get rid of the golems, but destroying the golems would be easier — and would give us direct access to the Wreath. But if I destroyed the golems and Gadot was still alive, he’d just conjure more.
Frustrated, I threw a fireball at Gadot’s back. Surprisingly, it hit, reducing the ratty trench coat he wore to ash. He looked over his shoulder, his impassive stare dropping slightly as annoyance seeped into his golden orbs. We were getting a rise out of him, but his magic hadn’t unraveled enough yet.
“Impudent children,” he rumbled, the earth shaking at his words. “I’ve met vermin less persistent.”
“Vermin?” I said, though it came out muffled thanks to my swollen mouth. “You need to keep better company.”
Adam rolled his eyes at my dumb joke before throwing a fireball. We took turns, launching spell after spell at Gadot while making sure to stand on opposite sides. The longer we could keep him turned around, the better.
Our attacks didn’t seem to hurt him, but they tickled enough to occupy his attention. He countered our attacks, but we still had the energy to dodge. Or Adam did. Gadot hit me hard a few times, but since he wasn’t using magic on me, his attacks were relegated to the physical — punches and kicks. It hurt like hell, but I’d been in the middle of enough brawls to stay on my feet.
The sound of crumbling rocks drew my attention back to the altar. Fiona was Fairy Blasting her way through the golems, but didn’t appear to be making much progress. Even shrunken down, the golems were an impenetrable, regrowing wall. She grew back to normal size with a frustrated growl and joined us in fighting Gadot.
The four of us danced around, throwing spells and the occasional punch. Unlike us, Gadot didn’t seem to be tiring at all. We were drenched in sweat and gasping for breath after another twenty, seemingly futile, minutes, but he stood between us looking like, well, royalty.
We continued our attacks in a mishmash of our personal styles. Fiona hit fast, darting around in miniature form and using portals to dodge his attacks. I hit hard, relenting for only a few brief seconds to catch my breath before resuming the assault. Adam was more cautious, appraising the situation before throwing his powerful magic around. It wasn’t particularly elegant, but we made it work.
Gadot clenched his fist and roots sprung from the ground, their gnarled fingers clawing for a victim. I stumbled away as Fiona flew up, but Adam wasn’t quick enough. The roots wrapped around his legs and slid up his torso before wrapping around his neck. Fire flared around his hands, causing the roots to spasm.
He ripped himself free but was quickly pulled back. This time, Gadot wrapped the roots in sharp rocks like he’d worn around his fists. The rock condom protected them from Adam’s fire, and he struggled against their hold. The sharp rocks cut into him, causing blood to spurt from his skin.
I ran for him, missing the rustling behind me. A thick root wrapped around my ankle and yanked me back. The force made my ankle pop, and I bit back a groan of pain as I tried to free myself. Sprained. Fucking great.
Fiona remained in miniature form, preventing the roots from grabbing her. I watched her flit around as the roots pulled me and Adam toward the trees. They tethered us to the thick trunks, tightening the more we struggled. My jacket absorbed some of the sharpened rocks covering the roots, but I could feel them piercing through the already shredded leather.
Fiona threw a Fairy Blast at my binds. The roots shriveled, but new ones quickly wound around my wrist. Stray sparks of her magic hit me, causing adrenaline to rush through my veins. Before she could charge me up more, Gadot raised the earth beneath her.
Dirt spewed up like a geyser, covering her miniature form. I tried calling her name, but all I could do was cough up blood.
I couldn’t see Fiona through all the dirt, but the results of Gadot’s attack became clear soon enough. Fiona crashed to the ground and rolled toward me, her limp body twisted at an odd angle. Relief stemmed my panic when I saw her chest move. She was breathing, but she wasn’t getting up any time soon.
I struggled against the roots with renewed vigor. They tightened with each movement to the point where I felt my ribs crack. My breathing came in short gasps as I continued, the sharp rocks pressing into my chest.
Adam was having less luck than I was. His
larger form meant he couldn’t struggle as much before the roots’ constriction caused serious damage. The rocks tore more of his skin with each movement until they were more red than brown. After a few more seconds, he had no choice but to stop moving. We were screwed.
“Fiona!” I cried. “Wake up! Move!”
She remained prone at my feet as Gadot stepped forward, the corners of his thin lips twisted up. His mouth opened, and I prepared to spit blood in his face before he could speak. Both of us were interrupted by a burst of green magic. It flew toward him, smelling of moss and tasting of grass.
He stepped back, glaring at the spriggans that pulled themselves from the trees. They’d destroyed the golems around the altar before turning on Gadot. I had to hand it to them, they didn’t lack for timing. Or spirit — it must’ve been difficult to remain sane with all the corruption Gadot was spreading through the earth. Their cousins in Goliki certainly hadn’t handled it well. Then again, these things could just be attacking everyone in sight.
Their magic made my Fire cry out. It hadn’t stirred much for Gadot’s, but after all the magic I’d spent and the trauma to my body, it was growing hungry. My stomach joined the growling, nearly drowning out the rumbling of the earth as Gadot grew angrier. His sickly cheeks were flushed with a ruddy hue as he attacked the spriggans.
I tried to Break his magic but the other magic being flung around the field was riling up my Fire too much. I growled. If the damn thing wanted to eat so much, it could burn through these bindings. I’d run right in the middle of the magic if it did. But it didn’t, and if I struggled any harder, the roots would likely cut me in half.
I watched the earth spirits fight to defend their home. They weren’t doing well. Since Gadot had dominion over everything earth-related, he ripped them apart with terrifying ease. His magical attacks didn’t hurt them since they were earth spirits, but a clenching of his fist caused their wooden limbs to snap and their leafy heads to wilt, leaving nothing but gnarled branches and dead leaves.
What they lacked in strength, however, they made up for in numbers. There were so many of them for Gadot to fight that he hadn’t had a chance to conjure more golems around the altar. If I could just get there, I could destroy the Wreath, and this would all be over.
“Fiona,” I whispered. “Wake up. I need you to free me — or get to the Wreath and destroy it. Fiona!”
Thin fingers grasped my boot. Fiona’s eyes fluttered open, and she lifted her head to look at me. Blood was seeping from her forehead, almost invisible against her dark red hair. She groaned and forced herself into a seating position, reaching for me with her other hand.
The edges of my binds scraped against her glowing fingers, trying to ward off her magic. But the swarm of spriggans was growing, and Gadot was too busy to feed them more magic. The roots snapped as she hit them with Fairy Blasts. Her magic was strong enough to destroy them, but she lacked the power she’d had at full health, so the sparks that hit me were little more than a snack. My Fire wasn’t satisfied, but it would live.
She wasn’t fast enough to move after I was free, and I fell onto her with a muffled shout. At the very least, my ribs were bruised, my ankle was sprained, and my chest and arms were torn up. I rolled off her, adding fractured kneecap to my list of injuries.
Fiona leaned against the tree, waving a tired hand toward the altar before closing her eyes. I took a second to watch the rise and fall of her chest before taking the weapon holstered to her thigh and setting off.
Thanks to my leather jacket, my arms were still okay. Mostly — Gadot’s attacks had skinned them good, but the burst of magic from Fiona was enough that I could crawl toward the altar. It felt like slugs could outrun me at this pace, but I crept through the battlefield, trying to stick to the edges and away from the spriggans. They’d shown no interest in us so far, and I didn’t want to tempt them.
The perfumed scent of flowers was overwhelming at this point, and I tightened my grip on the blade. Would a human even be able to use it? I couldn’t even stand — how was I supposed to fight Trixie? Could I stab her before she fully awakened?
All these thoughts ran through my mind as I inched toward the altar. The spriggans were dying out, leaving little more than a dozen fighting Gadot. They converged before the altar as a literal last line of defense. I crept behind them, and when I saw the altar, their presence made sense.
Charlotte.
Earth mages could commune with spriggans if the spirits were willing to participate. She had asked for their help in taking back the mountain — and probably to get up here. That’s why Gadot had mentioned her. He’d sensed her presence but dismissed her as a threat.
And now she was destroying the Wreath.
Her trembling fingers held the flower crown in a death grip, the crumpled remains of flowers peeking through. Once vibrantly colored petals faded to gray before falling off the band, covering the earth in dead flowers.
The fresh floral scent of Charlotte’s magic, so different from the Wreath’s overwhelming perfume, had been masked by the spriggans’ magic and the Wreath’s own power, but I could smell it now. It was very weak, and the strands around her fluttered like a dying pulse. Her skin was paler than usual as she imbued her magic into the Wreath, calling on her connection to the earth to pull it apart. Would she make it? Did she have enough magic to destroy the Wreath?
The vines woven around each other were exposed to the midday sun as the flowers all fell away. She tightened her grip further, her body slumping against the altar. The thin white vines shriveled, turning brown then black before crumbling to dust across her lap.
I breathed a sigh of relief and slumped against the ground as the Wreath’s magic vanished, leaving behind only Gadot’s awful scent. Charlotte followed suit, her sweat-drenched form staining the altar. As with Fiona, I took a moment to make sure she was still breathing before celebrating.
She’d done it. She’d destroyed Trixie.
A feral roar destroyed my moment of joy — as did the spriggan that crashed into me. I pushed its prone form aside to see the rest of its brethren laying dead at Gadot’s feet. The red rimming his eyes had taken over, leaving him with a ruby-colored glare. A terrifying snarl was on his face as he snarled at Charlotte.
The earth shook with each stomp he took toward her. I threw the dagger, and it stabbed through his shoulder. He didn’t even blink as he gripped the hilt, ripped it out of his flesh, and flung it aside. I watched in disbelief as it landed near Adam’s forearm, slicing through the roots holding his hand. He was able to reach for the weapon and begin slicing himself free as he found chinks in the rock armor covering the vines.
The turning tide kicked my adrenaline into high gear. I saw his magic, wild and enraged. My bleeding fingers trembled as I raised a hand up, trying to pull the jagged strands apart. My attempt failed, but I continued trying to Break his magic as he approached us. He couldn’t get to Charlotte. He couldn’t—
I blinked, and he appeared in front of me, red eyes colder than an arctic winter. I didn’t see his hand move, but I heard the sound of it connecting with my cheek. The sting of his knuckles embedding themselves against my cheekbone as he backhanded me burned like a thousand suns. Dirt filled my mouth as I skidded across the ground. By the time I finally came to a halt, I was fifteen feet away and my cheekbone was broken.
Adam was almost free, his movements growing erratic now that I was away from Charlotte. The final root snapped, and he rushed toward the altar.
Gadot had grabbed Charlotte by the hair. Her limp body dangled in his grasp as she looked at him with terrified eyes. She’d used all her magic to destroy the Wreath, and it had left her completely drained. Magic was part of a mage’s soul. To be tapped out….
She was helpless.
Pine suffocated my senses and vanilla shoved itself down my throat as Adam’s magic flared. His body was bathed in flames as he charged, a stream of fire flowing from his outstretched hand.
I reached forward too, pul
ling at the strands of Gadot’s magic with my own. Finally, his magic snapped.
But it was too late.
No sooner had the magic left his palm did I hear the sharp crack of a neck snapping. Gadot spasmed as his magic Broke, and he dropped Charlotte. She fell at his feet, her normally vibrant eyes dull and lifeless.
Chapter Twenty-Two
It was as if staring into Charlotte’s eyes triggered a switch. Everything happened in slow motion. Flames covered Gadot’s body, reducing the rest of his clothing to ash. Adam shifted, the fire of his phoenix form burning so hot it made me uncomfortable. The trees closest to him caught ablaze, crumbling to dust almost instantly.
The heat stirred Fiona. Her eyes cracked open before widening in panic. She kicked herself away from the fire and took in the situation, her words drowned out by Adam’s shriek. My ears bled at the pitch — and my heart bled at the pain in his cry.
The barrage of magic he unleashed upon Gadot was nothing short of frightening. True fear raced through me as I watched him rip the Emperor of Earth apart like he was made of paper. With his magic Broken, Gadot couldn’t even fight back.
Fiona kicked herself farther away, reaching backwards until our fingers touched. Her hand squeezed mine as we watched the fight. We both wanted to help, but neither of us could find the strength to stand.
My sister found hers a moment later and stumbled toward Charlotte’s dead body. I peered at it carefully, trying to find a hint of her chest moving, but I knew it was a fruitless endeavor. I’d been too slow. He’d snapped her neck. She was dead.
My own grief-stricken cry was drowned out by another one of Adam’s screeches. More blood streamed from my arms as I forced myself to crawl toward Charlotte. It was harder this time around, the minuscule magic boost I’d gotten long spent. My Fire howled at the feel of Adam’s magic, and I could practically feel it pushing against my gut as it reached for it.
Fiona met me halfway, dragging Charlotte’s broken body to mine as I reached the middle of the field. We were far enough from the fight to not get hit, but close enough to feel the sweltering heat. Though at this point, I was pretty sure we’d feel the heat even from Bane’s house.