“So the Fairimentals can use it?” The woman’s cat-like eyes glittered dangerously. “It’s only fair I take something they want.”
“You don’t expect us to believe the power crystals were yours?” Adriane asked.
The woman eyed the mages. “I used to be like you, a mage with friends, animals, and jewels. My friends betrayed me. The Fairimentals stole my magic and left me with nothing. I taught myself how to be a magic master. Now I take magic as I please.” Her gaze shifted to Emily. “Just like I showed you.”
“You’re not taking this magic!” Adriane shouted defiantly.
“You didn’t seem to mind taking magic from me, warrior. Or have you already forgotten my gift?”
“I’ve never even seen you before.”
“Not in this face, perhaps.” Her features blurred, softened.
Miranda tossed back her hood. A jagged white streak zig zagged in her long brown hair. It shimmered into gleaming silver. Her suddenly bloodred lips curled, revealing vampire teeth. Green animal eyes glittered. The Dark Sorceress stepped forward.
“You!” Emily stepped back, horrified.
Adriane and Kara instinctively raised their jewels. Dreamer and Lyra sprang into position.
“Easy.” The Dark Sorceress held Tasha closer. “We’re on the same side, you know. It’s a shame you can’t see that. Soon, it will be too late.”
“Never,” Emily said between clenched teeth.
“We both want to stop the Spider Witch from reweaving the web, yes?”
“She’s next on our list of worst-dressed villains,” Kara snapped.
“Everything I told you was true, healer,” the sorceress said smoothly. “My friends and I spent years accumulating magic, storing it in nine crystals. But the Fairimentals hid them. They planned it so only someone with two fairy maps and a powerful unicorn could find the crystals. Then they waited—for you.”
Emily was shocked. Why hadn’t the Fairimentals told them this?
“What happened to your friends, the other mages?” Zach demanded, keenly interested.
“They’re around.” The sorceress stared intently at the blond-haired teen. “No, your parents were not mages. They were… something else.”
“You knew my parents?” Zach asked, astonished.
“Tragic, really.” Her slitted gaze flickered to Adriane and Kara, then back to Zach. “Once you develop a taste for magic, it’s never enough. They were obsessed with the darker arts.”
“You’re lying!” Zach cried, his jewel flaring red.
Adriane held the boy back. “Don’t listen to her.”
“You think you know what using magic is about? Magic will change you and everything you touch. The only way forward is through darkness. But you know that, don’t you, healer?”
Emily flinched. One will see in darkness.
“You took magic from the animals and you released Black Fire!” Kara shouted, cheeks flushed with anger.
“Yes, an unfortunate side effect,” the sorceress admitted.
“You almost killed the mistwolves,” Adriane growled.
The sorceress shrugged. “That’s magic under the bridge. If the Spider Witch reweaves the web, all the magic will be hers. None of us wants that.”
Then she faced Emily, eyes gleaming. “Know this, healer. Your power for weaving magic surpasses even hers.”
“Say whatever you want.” Emily’s eyes flared. “You’re not getting these eggs.”
“I can’t fight you alone,” the sorceress sighed.
“You got that right!” Adriane snarled.
The Dark Sorceress smiled evilly. “Level Two, you may be.” She raised her hands, magic flickering from her fingertips. “But I have powers you’ve never dreamed of.”
Droplets condensed, covering the crystal walls in a watery sheen. The girls’ reflections distorted and multiplied as if they were inside a house of mirrors.
The cave suddenly shook with a loud rumble.
“Criminy!” Cribby dove behind the pile of eggs.
Warily, the mages held their magic in check as the sorceress backed away, Tasha in tow.
Without warning, a surge of water crashed through the cave entrance, flooding across the floor. Red magic sparked from the sorceress’s raised hands and the water rose, spinning into a towering cyclone.
“With enough of my power crystals in the Fairimentals’ hands, I only needed a magical boost, which the healer was kind enough to provide in our short time together.”
The sorceress waved her hands. The tower of water twisted together, forming a bulky figure. Sculpted by dark magic, a terrifying beast came to life, limbs rippling from the water itself. A dozen hissing snake-heads sprouted from its body.
“Crimawager!” Cribby screamed.
“What is that?” Lorren shouted.
The enormous monster heaved forward. Its multiple sinewy necks looped through the air, heading straight toward the mages.
“It’s a hydra,” Marlin gasped.
“You have done well, mages,” the hydra hissed.
The mages exchanged panicked glances.
“Marina!” Emily cried.
The hydra’s voice belonged to the missing water Fairimental! Marina was being controlled by the Dark Sorceress. That’s what had twisted all the water magic, not a power crystal. Unwittingly, Emily had strengthened the sorceress by providing her a source of magic.
Lightning fast, the writhing snake-heads swept over the mages and struck like vipers.
“No!” Emily cried out as two eggs shattered, their brittle shells hurling across the cavern.
Glowing magic funneled down the hydra’s throats, collecting in its thick, clear body. Faint screams echoed along the walls as the life was taken from the baby dragons. As their magic drained into the monster’s stomach, vibrant colors warped into bloodred.
The Dark Sorceress laughed. “The magic will be mine!”
JEWEL FIRE EXPLODED in the cave. Red, silver, pink, and orange beams ricocheted everywhere as the mages rocketed into action.
Adriane somersaulted through the air, landing in perfect fighting formation, Dreamer snarling beside her. Wolf fire sprang from her fists, slicing through one of the hydra necks. The hissing head splashed to the floor.
“My turn.” Kara twirled, blond hair spinning around her. She landed in a crouch, Lyra by her side. Diamond red and white fire sizzled through another hydra neck, releasing a torrent of steam.
The blazing star smiled at the warrior.
But her triumph was premature.
The severed necks sparked and split apart, sprouting four heads where two had been before.
Adriane lashed out again, but only made it worse. The hydra grew two heads for each one the mages lopped off.
“You have to take magic to survive.” The sorceress’s raised hands controlled the hydra like a marionette. “I learned that a long time ago.”
Tasha stood spellbound beside the sorceress, unable to move as magic fire sparked dangerously all around her. Loren held Kara’s gaze for an instant before disappearing into the shadows at the back of the cave.
Like twisting serpents, the regenerated heads latched on to the eggs. Bright magic pulsed down the hydra’s throats.
“Marina!” The healer reached out, desperately seeking the core of the watermental’s magic. “Stop it, you’re killing them!”
A violent flash of deep red sent her reeling back, heart pounding. Marina was gone, twisted beyond recognition.
“The magic is mine, one way or another,” the sorceress taunted them.
“Save the eggs!” Marlin cried, grabbing two of the fragile eggs in the nick of time. Two snake-heads missed by inches, smashing into the floor instead.
“Shield!” Adriane ordered. Warrior and mistwolf spun in a tight circle, streaking silver fire in a crisscrossing pattern.
Kara and Lyra were a step behind them, binding unicorn power into the shield.
It didn’t work. Just as before, wolf and unicorn p
ower repelled each other, unable to meld.
“Zach!” Adriane yelled.
The boy added blazing dragon fire, binding Kara and Adriane’s magic into a shimmering dome. The three mages threw their shield, blanketing a large pile of eggs. The snake-heads hissed steam, weaving in the air, looking for an opening.
“Go, go, go!” the warrior ordered. “Get the others!”
Emily and Marlin scrambled to rescue the defenseless eggs, depositing them under the protective shield.
“Save the booty!” Cribby yelled as he and Ozzie rolled a large egg behind the mages.
Indi used his nose to roll several eggs out of harm’s way.
Arms ablaze with energy, the sorceress furiously pushed the water hydra forward.
Red lightning spiked along the forcefield as the monster struck. The shield wavered but snapped back in place.
“Give it up!” Kara yelled.
“Keep it coming!” Adriane held her hand palm up, beckoning the sorceress closer, black eyes sparking with fury.
Ozzie dashed back and forth, depositing eggs in the pile. “We can’t stay here forever!”
From the corner of her eye, Emily caught Lorren sneaking along the back of the cave toward Tasha.
“Adriane, keep her distracted.” Kara shot a telepathic message to the warrior.
“I thought I was doing that,” the warrior replied.
“Oh, good job.”
“Dreamer!”
The black mistwolf roared as his packmate fired powerful bolts of silver at the sorceress, slamming her against the opposite wall. The magic meter tumbled across the cave floor.
“Distracting enough?”
Kara gave the warrior a thumbs-up.
The sorceress’s eyes flared with rage as she got to her feet. Rearing up, the hydra struck again, furiously pounding away at the shield.
Adriane flicked her wrist. Easily sidestepping the lumbering hydra, Dreamer lunged at the enemy.
The Dark Sorceress fired directly at the mistwolf—only to hit bare crystal walls. Dreamer had vanished, leaving a trail of misty sparkles. The sorceress whirled, trying to gauge where the wolf might attack from next.
“That’s all the eggs,” Ozzie announced, matting his forehead with a paw.
Emily frantically surveyed the pile beneath the glowing shield. There were hundreds. What was she going to do now?
“Huddle up,” Adriane ordered.
“What’s the plan?” Kara asked as the mages gathered behind the dome.
The warrior turned to Emily. “What about it, Doc?”
“Marina is the cause of the water sickness,” Emily was thinking aloud. “We can’t heal the water unless we heal her.”
“That’s why the Dark Sorceress just gave us the power crystal,” the warrior said, angrily. “It was full of dark magic.”
Emily nodded. “The sorceress planned it all along.”
“Can you heal Marina?” Marlin asked Emily, eyes wide with fear.
“I can’t use this magic,” Emily said, glancing at the eggs. “It would destroy them.”
“We can’t keep this up,” Zach reminded them as the hydra battered the shield.
“Something’s got to give.”
As if on cue, several eggs began to shudder and crack.
Marlin’s face flushed. “What’s happening to them?”
“Too much magical energy,” Zach cried. “They’re starting to hatch!”
“Do something!” Marlin screamed.
“What am I supposed to do?” Emily cried.
Large cracks began spreading over dozens of eggs.
“We can’t let them hatch,” Zach called out. “They’ll imprint on the first person they see.”
“I’m calling Starfire,” Kara announced, preparing to summon her paladin, the fire stallion. “He can help us heal Marina.”
“I’m calling Stormbringer.” The warrior raised her wolf stone.
“We can’t risk using your paladins!” Emily cried. “Their magic is too strong. All these eggs would hatch!”
“Everyone, clam down!” Ozzie ordered as six eggs shuddered, cracking open in front of his eyes. “Gah!” the ferret screamed and ran around in circles. “Help!”
Emily felt the world close in around her. Ragged breath caught in her throat as she fought to stay calm.
“Time,” the healer said, spinning to face Zach. “We need time. That’s your department.”
“I’ll try.” Zach closed his eyes, dragon stone glowing as he called upon his elemental power of time. Sweat broke on his brow as rings of magic pulsed from his wrist, trickling over the mages.
“Hurry up!” the blazing star ordered.
“Careful, Zach,” Adriane cautioned.
“Oh, give me that magic.” Kara swung her fists, locking unicorn power around Zach’s wrist. The boy cried out as Kara seized his magic, forcing it over the eggs and encircling the hydra.
“Kara, stop!” In a blaze of silver, Adriane tried to fight Kara off.
But the blazing star’s magic was unstoppable. It latched on to the wolf stone, too! Kara’s magic was greedy, hungry, consuming everything in its path. The shield crackled with the impact, threatening to rip to pieces.
“Kara, let go!” Emily grabbed Kara’s arm, trying to pull her back. With Lyra helping her, they pulled Kara and Zach apart.
“What are you doing?” Zach yelled, rubbing his arms.
Kara fell back. “What does it look like? I’m saving the eggs.”
“You’re out of control!” Adriane shouted, wolfstone blazing.
Lyra stepped in front of Kara protectively, teeth bared.
“Stop it!” Ozzie bellowed as he planted himself between the two mages.
Kara and Adriane glared at each other, jewels pulsing dangerously.
“We have enough to deal with without you two going at it!”
But Kara’s boost had worked. Zach’s time magic had slowed the hydra, its dozens of necks bobbing and weaving sluggishly. Even the Dark Sorceress seemed unable to lift her arms to control the watermental.
“Kara, you can’t just take magic like that!” Emily exclaimed.
“I was only helping.” The blazing star sneered at Adriane.
“You hurt him!” the warrior snarled.
“I’m fine, just keep sending me power,” Zach said evenly, stone sparking as his time magic held the hydra at bay. “Easy.”
“Okay,” Ozzie squeaked, lying over three eggs that had rolled free of the shield. “But no more surprises.”
Suddenly, Lorren appeared out of thin air, Tasha beside him.
“Ahhh!”
“Tasha!” Kara hugged her, then held her at arm’s length. “Are you all right?”
“I think so. Gertie and I landed downriver and the next thing I knew, I was in this cave.”
“Sounds like the same spell we were under,” Marlin said.
The air sparkled as Dreamer’s invisible mist reshaped into solid wolf form. Tasha’s magic meter was clamped firmly in his mouth.
“Thanks, Dreamer.” Tasha cleaned it with the hem of her robe and ran a finger over its surface “Holy cow!”
“Unicorn,” Indi corrected her.
“Emily…” Ozzie wobbled as an egg beneath him shuddered. The shell fractured as a tiny, webbed fin reached out, struggling to free itself.
The ferret leaped in the air. “It’s hatching!”
Emily knelt next to it as Indi watched her with wide eyes. She had so badly wanted a bonded animal, and now it looked like she was going to get her wish tenfold!
“Emily, look out!”
Marlin pushed Emily aside as the infant dragon poked his long nose through the crumbling shell. The baby wailed mournfully, searching for its mother. Large, wet eyes locked on Marlin. With a joyful squeal, the creature sprang into the arms of the merprince. He screamed as they tumbled backward together, vanishing into the pile of eggs.
The cave echoed with the wail of newborns as more eggs began hatching.
Emily felt the familiar tingle of panic. She had to heal Marina before all the eggs hatched. These infants wouldn’t have a chance against the virus. But there was no power crystal.
“What are we going to do?” Kara asked.
Her friends looked at her anxiously. Adriane and Kara were tiring; Zach was fading. Their magic shield wouldn’t last.
Emily had no choice. She would have to weave her web again. She needed the magic of every water animal to heal Marina. Fear burned through her. Would the animals even come to her? What if she lost control like the last time?
It was a risk she had to take.
“I have to try healing Marina,” Emily said. “I’m going to need all your help.”
“I can’t work with her.” Adriane pointed at Kara.
“Not my fault my jewel is so much more powerful,” Kara snapped.
“I can guide your frequency levels so they blend together better,” Tasha suggested, tweaking her magic meter.
“Okay?” Emily asked Adriane and Kara.
Her friends nodded as magic pulsed from their jewels.
“Zach, keep your magic focused on the eggs,” Emily ordered.
“Right.” The blond boy nodded.
Adriane and Dreamer stood to Emily’s left, silver wolf magic swirling from her gem.
Kara and Lyra, on the right, released a diamond cloud of sparkling magic.
“Less wolf, more cat.” Tasha watched colored lines move up the meter.
Following Tasha’s instructions, Adriane, Dreamer, Kara, and Lyra managed to hold their magic in balance.
Emily fought the tightening in her stomach, pushing the fear to a place where she could harness it, use it.
“Indi.” She placed her hands on the unicorn’s warm, velvety neck. “I can’t do this without you.”
Confidence and love shone in his eyes. “We will do it together.”
Centering herself, Emily gazed at the colors swirling around the eggs. Reaching her hand around the shield, a tiny spray of the hydra’s water washed through her fingers. Droplets covered her silver bracelet, sparkling like diamonds, washed clean by the magic of the sea dragon eggs.
She closed her eyes and concentrated, opening herself to the water magic. She visualized fine lines radiating, then stretching out, leading to every lake, river, and stream, melding with the warm undercurrent flowing in the oceans.
Heart of Avalon (Avalon: Web of Magic #10): Page 11