The Price of Knowing: A Powers of Influence Novel (The Powers of Influence Book 2)

by C. B. Haight

  As Cynda and Rederrick made it to the top, they saw Jarrett yell savagely. His human voice turned to a growl as his back bent, cracking audibly as he shifted. His body twisted and morphed, his nose elongated, and teeth grew into deadly sharpened points. Midnight-black fur spread to cover his entire form. Even in the throws of the change he swung his sword wide and beheaded a creature coming at his back. When the metamorphosis was finished he looked directly at the running couple. His once golden eyes smoldered the bloody red of vengeance and rage. Despite knowing he was on their side, Cynda felt a chill run through her.

  Jarrett felt the power and adrenaline that accompanied the change from man to beast course through him. He leaped into the fray, tearing through the enemy’s ranks with cruel efficiency. He cleaved through the bloated form of one of the lesser underworld monsters, and took off the head of another. Black ooze spilled to the ground as demons fell before him one by one.

  Rederrick began to fight his way to the half-man, half-wolf that was brutally beating back the enemy. He lifted his sword to attack the first one he met, but it was thrown away like nothing more than garbage by Jarrett. Without a glance at Rederrick the black lycan moved on to the next demon. With a shrug, Rederrick merely moved the opposite direction to vanquish another opponent.

  Down on the lower ridge to the west, Nate and Delphene fought for their very lives. The demons began to encroach in on them more and more. They panted from extreme exertion. Shallow cuts and scrapes mottled both of them. A deep gash across Nate’s forehead stung and trickled blood at a steady rate, and his body was slowing from blood loss. Delphene glanced at him, knowing at any moment they would be struck down. He could only smile at her with the same final truth, reflected in his eyes.

  It happened too fast for either of them to react. A behemoth sized demon came at him from behind, reaching to grab him. Delphene’s animal eyes widened with fear as she saw it coming, but two more swarmed her. Recognizing the warning for what it was, Nate knew he didn’t have time to react properly. Instead, lunging forward with his sword, he ran it through the demon on her left, to even the odds. He twisted the blade once waiting for the ash, but lost his grip before it fell to dust. The greater-demon easily yanked him from behind, and dragged him away from her.

  The nasty creature threw him to the ground, and went back for Delphene as two more monsters piled upon Nate. They began scraping and tearing at him. Suddenly, the soil beneath them vibrated, grasses and weeds sprouted and shot from the earth like dancing vines. The living foliage wrapped around hands, feet, heads, and disfigured bodies, effectively restraining the monsters.

  From out of nowhere, Nate heard Jeffery’s voice, “You’ve got to get up to the others. Hurry!”

  Delphene’s breath heaved in and out as she searched for Jeffery, but she didn’t see him right away. All the demons surrounding them were completely restrained by the entangling vegetation.

  Finally, Nate pushed his tired body up and forced his weakened legs to move. He stumbled for the top of the bluff, and seeing him Delphene didn’t waste the reprieve. Getting a second wind, she ran full speed past him, and reached the top just in time to see four more leeches scurry like spiders onto the top cliff to engage in the melee. Not even breaking her stride, she ran directly to them.

  Jarrett had other ideas. He smelled more of the blood leeches coming and considered going after them, but pushed the instinct aside because he wanted the source of all of this even more. He wanted Niall, and he intended to get to him first. He fought tirelessly, gaining ground with every creature that disintegrated in his wake. Blood and ash coated the ground. He locked eyes with Niall, and the sight revived his strength and renewed his purpose. He charged, forcing his way to the real monster.

  Chapter 31

  Niall surveyed the battle and ground his teeth. Unbelievably, and despite the odds against them, Collett’s lap dogs were gaining ground against him. It was something he could not stand for. He locked eyes with the betrayer, the black wolf, who forced his way closer and closer. Even though he loved to feed off the chaos, such things must eventually end. Anger built within, and thunder overhead cracked like a gunshot.

  Cynda knew she needed to close the demon doorways if they were to have any chance of ending this. She reached within herself and pulled magic from the depths of her resolve. She was tired already, feeling drained from the use of so much energy, and wasn’t sure how she would find the strength to close the gates. However, she was determined to do what must be done. Despite all the noise and distractions of battle, she focused. Rederrick fought to defend her, and she went into a trance-like state as stinging rain poured from the sky.

  “Powers from the east, west, north, and south, I call upon you at this time, at this place. Gates stand open from the darkest hole, and demon seed spill forth to challenge righteous grace. Close these gates, seal them tight, close the door, and stop this blight.”

  The door of light wavered, but the effort of trying to close the portal required too much energy from her, as she feared it would. She felt the drain and knew holding the magic could kill her. The realization that she could not close the gates with her will and strength alone stung, and she stubbornly refused to accept it.

  Everyone would die if she didn’t close the gates. In a war of numbers, they couldn’t win—no matter how skilled they were. Sooner or later, they would tire. She refocused and repeated her chant, regardless of the risk. Her vision swam. She chanted tenaciously.

  Something reached out to her then. No, not something, someone. She jumped back, almost losing her focus, until Jeffery shouted over the din of battle, “Hold the spell. Channel my strength.”

  She uttered her chant once again, feeling magic pour from her, and this time Jeffery chanted with her. He channeled his energies with hers as they had the night they created the unity pendants. Together, they began to feel the spell flow more freely.

  The gate before them closed halfway. They chanted again and again, sacrificing more energy each time in the midst of chaos to force the magical openings closed. Already drained from before, Cynda felt her head spin. Feeling her waiver and knowing she controlled the spell, Jeffery forced more of his strength into her. The first doorway flickered, then faltered.

  Cade moved away from the fading portal. The demons could no longer get through. For the first time, he turned toward the battlefield and assessed the dire situation they faced. His heart almost stopped. Delphene and Nate fought against four vampiric leeches, Cynda chanted her spell while Rederrick forced anything that tried to breach her circle back, and Collett battled fiercely against three demons while Jarrett left an oily, black trail on his way to Niall.

  Cade didn’t know which direction to go. It seemed everyone needed help. His heart wanted to help Collett, but she was holding her own. His head told him Rederrick would need backup the most, but Nate and Delphene were not looking great either.

  As Cynda and Jeffery finished closing the gateways, they both felt depleted from the extended use of so much magical energy. Sweat dotted Cynda’s brow, and her head pounded viciously. Her knees buckled, but strong, invisible hands kept her from crumpling. Her eyes widened when she saw what was heading for her. In that moment—a tenth of a second— she saw death approaching. A fiendish demon darted past Rederrick and charged toward her with a sharpened dagger raised. She watched, transfixed, as time slowed. The demon lifted the wretched blade to strike, and as it descended down, she knew no one could get there in time. She would die and readied herself for the final blow.

  It never came. Instead of feeling the sharp sting of cold steel forcing its way into her chest, she heard a strange and terrible thump. She lost all thought as she stared into the demon's blood shot eyes. Her breath caught in her throat, and her heart clenched as the demon’s perplexed expression was replaced by Jeffery suddenly materializing in front of her.

  White as a sheet, pained shock covered his features. His chocolate brown eyes looked down at his body, and Cynda did the same. To
her absolute horror, blood bloomed from the center of his chest where the dagger protruded. He jerked oddly as the demon viciously ripped the dagger free. Cynda screamed. Her cry was full of anguish and grief.

  The two of them fell to the ground together, and Rederrick engaged the fiend. She pulled the young sorcerer into her lap and, cradling him, tried to offer reassurance as she wept.

  Following his heart, Cade started toward Collett. Then he heard Cynda’s tormented cry, and though it pained him, he changed direction. Grabbing his sword, Cade tore apart two demons in his path to them, but it was much too late. He reached them as Rederrick finished off the fiend that wielded the dagger. Looking down, he could see Jeffery lying in Cynda’s lap as she pressed her hands to his chest, trying to staunch the steady flow of blood as it leaked through her slender fingers.

  A smile curved Jeffery’s lips as he sighed, “I did it.”

  “Did what?” she asked through her tears.

  “I finally did something right—something good. Tell my mom, I love her,” he begged with a strained whisper, and then he went limp.

  Tears streaked down Cynda’s dirty face as she held him. She wiped at them with blood stained hands, smearing it on her cheeks, and tried to think of ways to save him. She wouldn’t let go.

  “Please, Jeffery, stay with me!” she pleaded, cupping his face. “Please!”

  From somewhere far away, she could hear Rederrick and Cade calling to her. She felt herself being dragged up to her feet, and she refocused her attention on Rederrick as he gently shook her. “He’s gone, Cynda. He’s gone.”

  “He saved me!” she sobbed.

  “I know,” he replied, crushing her to him. “I know, but I need you to pull it together. It’s not over yet, and we need you.”

  Cynda looked around and saw Cade’s dark shadow move and dance about them as he continued to fend off anything that might harm Rederrick or herself. She realized how her actions were affecting them all.

  Grief turned to anger. She pulled it together and regained a small semblance of control. Sniffling, she met Rederrick’s worried expression once more and nodded.

  “That’s my girl,” he said kindly and kissed her forehead. Giving her arms a firm squeeze one more time, he said with a fierce gleam in his eye, “Pay them back!” He handed her the very dagger that struck the killing blow against Jeffery. The young sorcerer’s crimson blood still stained the blade.

  Having dispatched any immediate threat, Cade ran to them and encouraged, “For Jeffery.” She saw in his glowing red eyes that he too felt grief over the loss of their new friend, but he knew there was no time to grieve. If they lived through this, they would do that later.

  Cade saw determination enter her eyes. Cynda let her grief and need for justice fuel her, giving her new strength. She did exactly as Cade and Rederrick told her. She paid the hellions back. Cynda plunged the dagger into the first demon she encountered and sent magical flames through it. The creature screamed and writhed as it died. She sharply ripped the blade free and moved into the melee.

  Cade fought with a weight in his chest for the loss of Jeffery, but he used that pain to fight on as well. He mutilated and thrashed through several more of the enemy ranks. He decapitated a vampiric demon, and it fell in a cloud of dust. The beast in him clawed and slashed as the man in him rushed to where he last saw Collett.

  Cade began to hope they could actually win. The knowledge that they were turning the tide sent a rush of adrenaline coursing through him. He leaped upon another greater demon, bore it down, and tore through its neck with his powerful jaws.

  Jarrett was almost to his goal. Only a few more feet and it would be just him and Niall. His body hummed with excited energy.

  He saw his target within reach and watched as Niall extended his hand. Niall’s other arm lifted upward, and Jarrett felt his feet leave the ground. Surprise and indignation rushed through him.

  He twisted and struggled against the force lifting him. It had been a long time since someone had been able to use magic against him. Instinctively, he reached for his amulet and found it hot and burning against his hide. The magic was too strong. It overpowered the effects of his amulet. In his life, he knew only one other person that had been able to circumvent the amulet’s protection completely. He turned his head to find Collett on the battlefield.

  He didn’t have a chance to find her. His focus faltered when he felt the strangest sensation. His breath caught in his throat as a burning chill crawled through him. It snaked throughout his body, freezing and clenching the muscles within as it passed. He tried hard to fight against it.

  The wicked cold burned as it touched him. He couldn’t think beyond his shock, so his instincts took over. He locked his hate filled eyes on Niall. He twisted and strained against the paralyzing hold on him.

  His rebellious reaction did him little good. His growl immediately turned into a howlish scream that rent the air as a pain worse than any he had ever felt lanced through him. His body shifted and twisted against his will, becoming a man once again. Niall magically forced him back into his most vulnerable state. He felt the frigid spell move up and curl around his heart. He choked briefly, and his howling cry caught in his throat. The icy fingers tightened their grip on his heart and began to squeeze.

  Everyone, demons, humans, and lycans stopped mid-battle when Jarrett’s scream of pure agony reached their ears. Following the tortured sound, Cade stopped his rampage and looked up to find his brother, once more a man, hanging in mid-air and screaming out in pain.

  His heart pounded against his ribs as he heard his brother’s cry, and Cade watched as Jarrett twisted desperately in the air. He knew the tormentor immediately. His eyes flamed brighter. With little thought, he ran full speed toward Niall. Rage filled Cade completely, and Niall’s attention moved from Jarrett to Cade. Displaying a sinister smirk on his face, he smiled with wicked pleasure.

  In a distant part of her mind, Collett registered the melee resuming, but she couldn’t see it. The dam had broken, and she was in a different place. The images, hidden for so long, slammed into her full force. No matter how she tried, she could not block the assault she suffered upon seeing Jarrett dying before her eyes. A tidal wave of memories flooded her mind, obliterating the subconscious wall that had been imposed on her as punishment. A punishment she willingly accepted, and one only Justice could have inflicted.

  Image after image poured into her mind, each one clicking into place like pieces of an enormous puzzle. Memories and thoughts coalesced into cohesive pictures.

  She staggered backward and would have fallen if not for Rederrick, who rushed up behind her. Catching her, he eased her down as she pressed her hands into her eyes, trying to quell the storm raging through her mind.

  Jarrett cried out again, and the storm ebbed. As quickly as the bombardment began, it ended, and everything was clear. For the first time in almost three years, Collett understood her purpose.

  Victory knew who, and what, she was.

  She stood. Rederrick spoke to her, but she didn’t hear it clearly. His words were distant, tinny, and unimportant to her then. Looking up, she could see Jarrett, who was writhing in pain, and her stomach clutched. He was dying. She knew it. Felt it. Everything was happening exactly as she foresaw in her dreams. Only now, she knew what to do.

  She searched for Cade, who relentlessly forced his way to Niall with only one intention in mind. Demon after demon fell before him as he desperately fought to reach his enemy and save his brother. Her heart pounded with fear. Letting go of the fear, and knowing she was not helpless, Collett reached within and felt her power surge.

  She locked her eyes upon the betrayer and felt warmth spread as the power filled her completely. She shouted with a voice that magically carried and echoed, “Bellig! You will not have them!” She thrust her hand out.

  Everyone watched white-hot power fly from her fingertips, harmlessly over Cade, and strike Niall directly in the chest. He was thrown back several feet but remai
ned upright. The attack did succeed as she intended; it forced him to lose focus. As a result, he lost his grip on Jarrett, who fell to the ground, limp and lifeless, with a horrible thud.

  Her brilliant power and amplified voice caused shock to ripple through the entire circle of friends. Cade pulled up short, gripping earth to quell his momentum, and turned to look back at her in wonder.

  Rederrick and Cynda could only stand in complete disbelief with astonished expressions. The two remaining vampires fighting Nate and Delphene covered their ears and shrieked as if the sound of her voice hurt them, but neither Nate nor Delphene took advantage of the opportunity to easily kill them because they too could do nothing more than stare at her.

  Collett eased away from Rederrick, smiled at her stunned friend, and turned back to her enemy. “You are a traitor, Bellig.”

  “That is not my name, and it is you who betrayed me!” he spat back across the torn field.

  “You have broken the rules and forsaken your purpose, betraying us all.”

  “You break them now; you interfere again. Have you not learned?”

  She continued as if his accusation was nothing to her, “I will not allow this any longer. You will not take them! None of them! They are mine to protect. To have them, you will have to get through me.”

  She rapidly spoke words of protection in the most ancient language, a dialect only her enemy understood. “Gamentea sy! Senoa sy lethan!” Brilliant, blinding light surrounded her and expanded until it encompassed the entire bluff.

  Everyone shielded their eyes, and any remaining demons caught within the radius of the glow screeched horribly before turning to dust.

  Collett strode forward, and with each confident step, the light began to dissipate.

  When he could finally see once more, Cade could barely fathom the sight before him. Collett met his eyes as she passed him, making her way to Niall. Cade perceived that hers were different somehow. The pale, blue eyes he knew so well conveyed her love to him with a single glance, but he also saw they were hardened, fierce.