by John Corwin
I shook my head. "I wouldn't even know how to begin." I smiled at Evadora. "If you're happy, I'm happy."
"You are my friends," she said. "I will live in the Glimmer and come visit you."
Max frowned. "Well, if you don't care about your people, I guess there's nothing we can do about it."
We entered the Fairy Garden and went to the pond. The water was once again clean and pure, thanks to Percival's efforts.
Mirjana leapt from the water like a dolphin and landed next to us. She gave each of us a wet hug. "Thank you for restoring my home." She took my hand. "Thank you for saving my Klave."
Ambria looked sadly at the forest of tree stumps. "I wish we could do something about that."
"They are not totally dead," Evadora said. She put her ear to one of the stumps. "Maybe I will get my mother's powers. Perhaps I can revive them one day."
"I would dearly love to have them back," Mirjana said. "Perhaps it will come to be."
"Do you think we could get the gift of the sea like you gave to Conrad?" Max asked. "I'd love to see your home."
"We were just about to eat lunch," said the Lady of the Pond. "Perhaps you would all like to join us?"
Evadora giggled and jumped up and down. "Yes, yes, yes!"
"Oh, please," Ambria said.
I smiled. "I think that's a yes."
The school year continued and before I knew it, the last day of classes arrived. Max, Ambria, and I watched proud parents pick up their children and ferry them away to their homes. Once again, we would be returning to the house at the corner of Dowling and Bucket.
Max sighed. "You know what? I don't even feel sad watching all these normal kids go to their normal homes."
"I do," Ambria said.
"Why aren't you sad?" I asked Max.
He shrugged. "Because I have you two." He put his arms around our shoulders. "My parents' house doesn't feel like home. It's only when I'm with my best friends that I feel like I'm where I belong."
Ambria's eyes watered. "Why, Max, that's the sweetest thing you've ever said."
"Home is where the heart is," I said. I remembered Cora telling me that. Even though she was dead, a part of my home would always be with her.
Ambria giggled. "Max's heart is his stomach."
"Well in that case, let's go home," Max said. "I'm starving."
###
Aetherial Annihilation Chapter 1
I found Nightliss sitting in the war-torn field behind Arcane University a few days after the end of the Second Seraphim War.
Wondering what she was doing out there all alone, I sat down beside her and put an arm on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"
She looked at me, her expression as bleak as the blasted landscape. "No." She wiped tears from her eyes and stood. "I don't think I can go on anymore, Justin."
"But you're the Templar Clarion—their guiding light." I squeezed her small hand in mine. "They need you—we all need you."
She took a deep breath, eyes lost in the distance. "My sister is dead and Eden is safe. Now Ketiss marches to Seraphina and into another war."
"Do you plan to go with him?" I asked.
She shook her head. "Seraphina doesn't feel like home anymore."
I sensed something more to that statement. "And Eden?"
Nightliss blinked and looked up as if waking from a dream. "I don't know where I belong."
"With us, with your family."
She hugged me. "I love you, Justin. You are a true and dear friend."
Dread spread its cold tendrils through my chest. "You're not planning to kill yourself are you?"
Nightliss smiled and stood. "No. But I'm going away for a while." She looked around the destroyed field and over at the blackened ruins of Colossus Stadium. "I have fought too many wars in my life. I want to find peace. I want to find myself."
Her statement hit a nerve deep within me. I'd gone from hardcore nerd to supernatural warrior in the space of a year, fought demons, angels, and almost everything in between without a break. How many thousands had died under my watch? How many more would die when Ketiss invaded his homeland to wrest control of the government back from the traitor Cephus? I pushed to my feet as the past swirled through my mind.
"You're haunted by ghosts too, Justin." Nightliss looked at me with intense green eyes. "You just haven't realized it yet." She stood on her tiptoes and kissed me on the cheek. "I will see you again."
Tears stung my eyes. I embraced her petite frame. "Don't pick any fights with stray dogs."
She laughed and cried. "You will always be my hero, the man who saved a little black cat."
"I'm going to miss you so much." I kissed her forehead and reluctantly did what I had to do.
I let her go.
Nightliss wiped her eyes, turned, and walked away.
War is an ugly thing.
Even if you survive, it slowly kills you inside. Nightliss had woken something inside me—a realization that I hadn't made it unscathed through the countless battles I'd fought against Daelissa and her minions. I wasn't ready to embark on a journey to Seraphina to unseat a usurper, much less to fight a long war against more Brightlings.
Maybe Nightliss had the right idea. Maybe I needed some time away from death and destruction.
Ketiss has an army of super-charged Darklings. He won't have any problems beating Cephus.
I called Elyssa.
"What's up, babe?" she asked.
I took a breath to soothe the knot in my throat. "How would you like to see the world?"
A pause. "Right now?"
"The train leaves tomorrow."
She chuckled. "A plane or portal would be a lot faster."
"We're taking a break from the supernatural." I couldn't remember where I'd left my wallet and ID. "Do you have a passport?"
"No."
"Well, I guess we have some nom stuff to take care of."
Elyssa made a thoughtful noise. "You're serious, aren't you?"
I kicked a rock across the mud. "Yeah. I just want to be a normal guy with his normal girlfriend for a while. Is that okay?"
"There are a lot of loose ends around here, Justin." She sighed. "Now isn't really a good time."
"There will never be a good time." The more I thought about fighting in Seraphina, the more desperate I was to run away. "Please."
She spoke in a soft voice. "As you wish."
The tightness in my chest eased. "I love you."
"I love you too."
Three months later, Elyssa and I watched the sun set over the Andaman Sea in Thailand. Splashing in the water and bathing in the sun was nice after our visit to Switzerland and chillier climates. A young woman raced past us and into the water. Her dark hair, petite figure, and olive skin looked so familiar.
Elyssa looked at the woman. "Something wrong?"
I shook my head. "She looks like Nightliss."
"You've seen someone who reminds you of Nightliss in every country we've visited."
"Yeah." I forced a smile. "I hope she's doing okay."
"She's a powerful Seraphim, Justin." Elyssa squeezed my hand. "Of course she's okay."
"Emotionally, I mean." I cleared my throat to ward off the knot forming and changed the subject. "Gorgeous sunset."
"Mhm." She watched me for a moment. "You're feeling guilty again, aren't you?"
I looked down. "Are you?"
"This vacation has been amazing, and my father tells me everything is under control but—"
"You feel like you're shirking your duty?" I said.
She nodded.
I blew out a breath. "Maybe I wimped out, I dunno. When Nightliss told me how she felt, it just hit a nerve, you know?"
Elyssa wrapped her arms around my neck. "You have nothing to prove to me. I'll travel the world with you for eternity if that's what you want."
I chuckled. "I'll settle for cuddling for now."
She planted a kiss on my lips. "Maybe once it gets dark and everyone leaves, we can do a little mor
e than cuddling."
"Like stargazing?"
She punched my shoulder. "Yes, that's exactly what I meant."
We leaned against each other and watched the last rays of the sun vanish over the horizon. Before long, it was dark. The lack of sunlight didn't deter many people, and it looked like the privacy we wanted wasn't coming anytime soon.
Elyssa pointed up. "Look, a falling star."
I noticed it as well. In fact, it was hard not to notice the massive glowing ball in the sky growing larger and larger with every passing second. "Holy farting fairies, that thing is huge."
"Shouldn't it have burned up in the atmosphere?" Elyssa asked.
I sat up and watched the massive meteor slam into the ocean just off the coast of another small island a few clicks from ours. The water didn't quench the flames. Instead, the glow grew brighter until it lit the ocean like a massive pool light.
Shouts of alarm rose from the other people on the beach. Those shouts turned to screams as a great glowing mountain of water crested and headed for shore.
A tidal wave.
People ran inland toward the small tourist town. A mountain loomed about a half-mile away, but I didn't see how anyone could possibly make it there in time—anyone except for Elyssa and me.
Despite the uncountable monsters I'd faced, I didn't know how in the world to fight Mother Nature's wrath. I might channel a magical shield to protect Elyssa and me from the wave, but that wouldn't save the stampede of normal people running for their lives.
Think, Justin, think!
Seraphim magic came in four different flavors: Murk, Brilliance, Stasis, and Clarity.
Brilliance, the element of destruction, would only turn the water to steam. Stasis might freeze the water temporarily, but channeling it required a great deal more effort. Clarity revealed a soul's deepest inner truths, but water didn't have a soul.
That left Murk, the magical energy of creation. It formed the strongest barriers, but I'd never before attempted a shield so massive.
"You've got that look again," Elyssa said.
"The one where I just ate a lot of spicy Indian food and really regret it?"
"Actually, it does kind of resemble that expression, but in this case, you're not running for the bathroom." She gripped my arm. "You're going to try to stop this thing, aren't you?"
I nodded. "I can't let all these people die."
Elyssa looked at the fleeing crowds and a look of firm resolve erased the fear from her eyes. "Then let's save them."
We raced toward the glowing ocean and the looming tidal wave. In the distance, I saw water crash across the surface of the distant island where the meteor had fallen. I wondered how many lives the ocean had just snuffed out of existence but forced the thought from my mind. I walked to the edge of the water, took a deep breath, and prayed I had it in me to keep this monster at bay.
I drew in aether, the magical energy of the world, and channeled it into Murk. My veins grew icy cold as I flooded myself with the dark ultraviolet energy, letting it build until I felt ready to freeze solid. The air rumbled and a gust of hot wind hit my face as the water loomed like a leviathan from the deep poised to consume me and the island whole.
Despite the power coursing through me, I felt insignificant—like an ant preparing to thwart the advance of an elephant.
"Oh my god," I whispered. "That thing is huge." My confidence melted and my knees buckled. Unfortunately, there wasn't much I could do at this point but try or die. Holding my left hand out before me, I imagined a giant wall forming along the beach and opened the floodgates.
Ultraviolet energy flooded the air, shimmering and crystalizing like black ice. I drew more and more energy from the magical ley lines in the earth, until it felt as though I were nothing more than a conductor discharging aether into the air.
My body could take no more. I felt something pop, like a fuse snapping in my brain. My legs went limp and I fell. Strong arms caught me by the armpits and Elyssa spoke.
"I've got you, babe." She dragged me away from the water.
My body finally regained some strength and I climbed wearily to my feet. My crystalline wall rose fifty feet tall and a hundred yards wide, curving slightly inward. It was by far the largest shield I'd ever conjured, but it might as well have been a picket fence compared to the monstrous beast I hoped to contain.
"It's not enough," I said. "It's nowhere near enough."
Elyssa stared at the oncoming horror, futility in her eyes. "You did your best, Justin. That's all anyone can ask."
With a thunderous roar the tidal wave struck my shield. Water rushed around the sides, filling in the gap behind it while the brunt of the wave pressed against it. Cracks sprouted in the middle and I knew it wasn't going to hold for long.
I ran back to our beach towels and slid on my flip-flops. "We've got to run for it."
Elyssa grabbed her purse and slung it over her shoulder. "Are you strong enough?"
I nodded. "Yeah, I think so." My legs felt wobbly, but my demon aura was already speeding my recovery.
Fangs flashing, violet eyes glowing, Elyssa called upon her supernatural dhampyr strength. Half human, half vampire, and all Templar, she wasn't quite as strong as me, but she made up for it in agility.
My flip-flops flipped and flopped at about a hundred flip-flops per minute for the first fifty yards until I lost one. I wonder if it's just a flip now, or a flop. We passed by a parking lot. I saw people atop hotels and houses, their faces hidden in the shadows until the luminescent wave crested close enough to cast the small town in light.
I heard them scream when they realized the wave was far higher than their hotels. Elyssa and I soon caught up to the crowds of fleeing people and it occurred to me that our supernatural speed wouldn't do us a lot of good if we couldn't squeeze through the throng.
Screaming metal, shattering glass, and the crackling of trees rose above the sound of rushing water as the wave crashed through the parking lot a few hundred yards behind us. I glanced back and saw the wall of water quickly gaining on us, preceded by a swell that swallowed the street moments before the wave annihilated everything in its path.
I grabbed Elyssa's waist, aimed a hand at a nearby building, and channeled a web of Murk to swing us over the throng. Nothing happened.
Elyssa raised an eyebrow and urged me to run. "Was that a hug, or did you have something else planned?"
"We need to get around this crowd, but I can't seem to channel magic." Trampled bodies lay in the street and a wall of humanity prevented our escape. I knelt next to a moaning woman on the side of the street. Two children cried over her and a fallen man nearby. Anger, sorrow, and worst of all, futility weighed me down with guilt. My attempt to save this island had failed miserably. Looking up at the nearest hotel buildings, I realized they were probably tall enough to protect people, but how was I supposed to get people up there before the wave hit?
Elyssa wiped tears from her eyes. "Justin, you can't save everyone."
I shook my head. "No, but saving one person is better than just saving myself." Without my magic, there was only one way to do this. I unleashed my inner demon and manifested. Muscles rippled and bulged along my arms and bare chest, making me even stronger than my human form. My body grew taller and wider, and a tail sprouted from my backside. A light blue tone shaded my skin. I ran to the children.
They looked up at me, the demon monster, and screamed.
"I'm here to help," I said, my voice deeper than usual.
The boy recovered first. "You're a superhero? Is that why you look so scary?"
"Exactly." The unconscious man next to them moaned. I glanced back at the wave and made a quick decision. I slung the man over a shoulder, took off his belt, and wrapped it loosely around my waist.
"I have something better," Elyssa said, and produced a strand of diamond fiber rope from her purse.
"What don't you have in there?" I asked. "Come hug my waist," I told the kids. "I'm going to tie you to me."<
br />
The girl, frightened as she looked, followed her brother. I knelt and secured them against my waist. All those bodies hanging encumbered my stride, but there really wasn't a way around it.
Elyssa picked up the woman in the road and placed her over a shoulder. She pointed to the tallest hotel. "That's our best bet."
When we reached the building, I leapt up and caught the railing of the lowest balcony, pulled myself up. Leapt to the next one, wash, rinse, repeat. The boy whooped with excitement. His sister shrieked and buried her face in my ribs. I looked down. Elyssa hung three stories below me, sweat-streaked face grim with determination.
We still had a dozen stories to go before reaching the roof. The rumbling of the wave drew closer and closer. I looked back and saw it tearing up the street less than a hundred yards away. We'd never make it in time. I redoubled my efforts, springing myself as high as possible and skipping balconies in between.
Even with my demon form strength, I was panting by the time I reached the roof. People cried out in shock and fell over themselves in an effort to get away from me. I unbound the kids and put the man on the roof. I looked down and saw Elyssa seven stories away and struggling. Without thinking, I leapt off the roof. When I was only a short distance from her, I pressed my claws into the brick, digging deep gouges, and gained a foothold. I wrapped my tail around the woman and snatched her from Elyssa's back.
"Go," she said weakly.
"Not without you." I grabbed her hand. "Get ready for launch."
She braced her feet on the side of the building and bent her knees. "Go!"
I slung her upward with all my might. She performed a graceful flip, clearing five stories and grabbing the railing. She hung upside down by her legs and held out her arms. "Throw her!"
I dangled the unconscious woman, bent my knees, and whipped her up with my prehensile tail. Elyssa caught her by the arm.
The roar grew deafening. I turned and faced a wall of water.
It's over.
Water slammed me into the side of the building. I tumbled back and forth along the wall as if gravity had suddenly gone sideways. A final breath exploded from my lungs as the incredible pressure forced it out. Something shattered and I flew inside a hotel room, bounced off the bed and plowed through a wall. A torrent of glowing water slammed into my face and sent me spinning over hard bathroom tiles and against a Jacuzzi tub. Pain knifed through me with every tumble.