Burning Magic

by Joshua Khan

  “I didn’t mean for it to happen,” said Ameera, unable to meet her gaze.

  “You took his magic, just when he needed it most. How?”

  Ameera glanced over to the mirror. Then she frowned, knowing she’d given it away.

  This is a trap.

  Lily stepped away from the mirror and toward the door. One quick dash and she’d be out. She made a move and—

  A wall of fire, twenty feet high, burst up from the marble floor. The stone cracked under the heat, and the nearby curtains combusted. The flames formed rough humanoid shapes and came running toward Lily.

  “Stop her!” Ameera ordered them.

  Sami crouched behind the couch, crying, “Let her go, Ameera! She’s my friend!”

  Lily stumbled back from the heat. How could Ameera be so powerful? K’leef couldn’t cast such a spell, and he was good! Ameera was going all out to kill her.

  Lily extended her hands, seeking the magical forces that kept the flames alive. Ameera’s own life force animated them, much like Lily did with the zombies. Lily felt the invisible puppet strings between Ameera and the fire creatures. Strings made out of life.

  Lily cut them with a snip of her fingers. The flames vanished.

  Ameera groaned and collapsed on her knees, clutching her heart. Sami screamed in terror.

  Ameera gasped. “What…?”

  “Enough, Ameera,” Lily warned. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

  Once Ameera had caught her breath, she said, “Oh, Lily. If only we could be allies. Can’t you see how we could rebuild the world?”

  “I don’t have that ambition,” said Lily. “To rebuild, you have to destroy what stood there before. I won’t do that.”

  Legs wobbling, Ameera stood up. She’d recovered more quickly than Lily had expected. This wasn’t over. Lily kept her guard up even as Ameera poured herself and Sami a sherbert.

  Ameera took a sip and smacked her lips. “Can you blame a prisoner for wanting to destroy her prison? Or a slave for trying to break the chains she wears?”

  “You wear only gold, Ameera.”

  She scowled. “A gold chain is still a chain.” She blew flames across her fingers, and burning darts dashed off. Lily swatted them aside, but her sleeves smoldered.

  “Leave Lily alone!” protested Sami.

  How could Ameera be this skillful? How long had she been studying, in secret, to learn such magic?

  You of all people should know.

  But Lily could sense that Ameera’s magic was waning. She’d pushed herself as far as she could go, and there wasn’t anything left in reserve. It was time to finish this.

  Lily drew on her necromantic energies. The flowers around her shriveled as a terrible, graveyard cold spread out across the chamber, extinguishing Ameera’s remaining flames. Then the shadows came alive, summoned into service. They spread across the walls and over the furniture—chill, long fingers grasping at Ameera’s hair and clothing and binding themselves around her limbs.

  Lily watched as Ameera was pinned up against the wall. “Good. Now you just—”

  She cried out as something bit into her back. Lily swung around just as Kali raised her knife to stab again, her eyes blazing and a cruel, frenzied grin locked on her face. The second slash tore into her sleeve and pierced the flesh beneath.

  Rage flooded Lily. Rage and fear.

  She let go of her necromancy.

  The knife rusted, then crumbled to powder. The handle rotted away in Kali’s hand and turned to dust.

  But that wasn’t enough.

  Kali’s black skin, so taunt, so young and fresh, began to wrinkle as the flesh softened and the muscles withered. Her dark hair faded to gray….

  Sami ran between them. “Lily, no!”

  Lily blinked. Kali lay curled on the ground, her body twisted by old age. Even her clothes had suffered, turning to drab, pale rags hanging over a skeletal frame.

  Kali looked up, glaring with volcanic fury. “What have you done to me?” she croaked.

  Her nails were as long and curved as claws, her gums pulled back so her teeth, big and yellow, appeared more like fangs now. The only brightness in her puckered mouth was her swollen red tongue.

  Kali managed to get to her feet. With a murderous scream, she raked her nails across Lily’s arm and went to grab her throat. Sami shouted and tried to pull them apart, but Kali had gone berserk. Despite her now crippled body, she was fuelled by pure hatred and attacked with wild, savage fury.

  “Kill her!” yelled Ameera.

  Kali clawed at her again. Lily ducked but was rewarded with a kick in the stomach. As Lily gasped for breath, Kali grabbed a new knife from the dining table.

  I have to flee.

  Ameera had escaped the tendrils of darkness and was standing by the mirror. Why? Was she trying to hide behind it? She was rocking it, trying to push it over. What was she thinking? That she’d crush Lily? She was too far out of range.

  Kali advanced, bent over like some hideous spindly insect, her thin fingers locked around a gold-hilted knife.

  Time to leave.

  Lily whipped her hands to opposite corners and pulled the shadows around her like a cloak. A cold wind tore through the room. Kali charged again, but Lily entered the black folds. She looked back in time to see the mirror totter as Ameera gave it a final push.

  Then Lily sank into the protective darkness.

  TWENTY-TWO

  Lily’s head spun as the howling winds of the Twilight assaulted her. The first few seconds of moving between realms—shadow-stepping—were always disorienting, no matter how many times she did it. She gritted her teeth to focus on the world around her.

  She was surrounded by decay, loneliness, and cold. This was the land between the mortal world and that of the dead, and no living person had the right to be here, not even Lady Shadow.

  An icy storm whirled around her, hurling clouds of misery across a gray sky marbled with black light from a black sun. The wind carried ancient curses, forgotten vows, and endless despair. The Twilight was formed of raw, dark emotions. The path was paved with broken promises, and it wound through the crumbling ruins of regret. She didn’t want to linger, for this place was not uninhabited.

  The specters sensed her; she saw them come crawling out of the dark places. They knew her now, knew what she was capable of, so they were cautious. But they were still eager. They could not resist the warm breath of the living.

  Other malformed spirits lurked in the woe-drenched landscape. Some had forms that were spindly or grossly obese, depending on the lives they’d led. Some no longer looked human at all, being so vile and evil that their minds had corrupted their bodies like a pestilence.

  They were gathering, having learned their lessons from her earlier visits. Perhaps they hoped to overwhelm her by sheer number. How many would it take to bring her down?

  Cracks opened up in the sky with a groan. There were beings beyond this plane, and Lily felt their inquisitive eyes upon her. Her father had once told her proudly that the dukes of hell had taken an interest in her.

  She needed to find Thorn and K’leef, tell them what she knew: that Ameera had killed her own brother. Ameera wanted the lava crown for herself, and she was powerful….

  The sound of shattering glass echoed over the Twilight, and the fog around her thickened. Lily lost her footing and fell.

  And fell and fell and fell…

  She didn’t have time for this. She had to find them!

  And fell and…

  Hit the hard, gritty ground.

  Lily lay there, aching and trying to catch her breath. The travel nausea was rising out of her stomach. Her head pounded. She was weak after her battle against Ameera and Kali.

  The cut on her back burned, but a quick brush with her palm told her it was just a small slice through the skin, almost dry already. The nail scratches along her arm were equally superficial.

  She sat up. Where was she now?

  Broken rock, dusty hills, and bare,
spindly trees in all directions. The sky rumbled and weird colors flashed on the horizon. Spirits added their malevolent curses to the wind.

  The Shardlands.

  But where in the Shardlands?

  She stood up and brushed herself off. It was cold out here at night, and she’d escaped wearing only a flowing silk skirt and a short top, the dress of a court princess rather than garb suitable for exploring the ruins of the Old Kingdom. And so much uncomfortable jewelry. She took off necklaces, bangles, and bracelets she’d been given and dropped them in the gravel, keeping only a few rings she’d brought with her from Gehenna.

  Had Ameera broken that second mirror, too? Why?

  Lily trembled. Shadow-stepping always left her exhausted, and she’d fallen out of the Twilight more suddenly than expected.

  Up ahead was a camp with a glowing fire and some horses standing nearby. She could make out at least two people, one in robes. K’leef?

  She couldn’t believe her luck. She raised her hand and called out. “Hey there! It’s me!”

  One figure turned around. With his back to the fire, all she saw was a blocky silhouette. “Thorn?” Maybe that’s why she had landed here. He and she were connected….

  The figure approached, drawing a sword. He walked cautiously, then stopped a few feet away. She could see him clearly now in the light of the moon.

  No, no, no…

  He smiled and pointed the sword at her heart. “Nice of you to join us, Niece,” said Pandemonium Shadow.

  TWENTY-THREE

  Thorn awoke with a long, deep moan. Sleep had come, somehow, despite the storm. Yet as he woke, he shivered. Those phantasms had been so real, so believable, that he’d almost gone out into the chaos to confront them.

  “Peasant,” said Gabriel, kicking him.

  “Get off,” muttered Thorn. Oww. He was so stiff, every bone locked at an odd angle. He turned his head carefully, loosening his neck and spine one vertebra at a time.

  K’leef stood at the cave mouth. “Good morning.”

  Thorn joined him. “It don’t look it.”

  Ash filled the air and coated the ground, turning it black and gray. The patches of sky visible through the ash clouds radiated a bloody crimson. The earth had cracked open, and it was spewing fire and lava, and the stench of brimstone.

  “How can this be the same place as last night?” asked Thorn. “It’s impossible.”

  “That’s wild magic for you. Thank the Six we had shelter.”

  The ground shook, and a column of lava erupted from a newly formed tear, gushing higher than forty feet and showering the surrounding area with steaming black pumice. K’leef partially unwrapped his turban and covered his mouth with a strip of cloth. “Don’t let the ash get in your lungs.”

  Thorn started loading up Gobber. “What happened last night?” he asked K’leef.

  “We’re in the Shardlands, Thorn. Reality’s been left far behind.”

  Reality…Had Lily turned his family into zombies or not? Of course she hadn’t. Lily was his best friend; she’d never do anything to hurt him.

  But Lily could do it if she wanted to. She could summon the undead, disappear into shadows, and travel through the Twilight and Dreamtime. She was getting more powerful every day. Sure, she was still that nervous, wanting-to-please girl he’d met in the courtyard, all that time ago, but for how much longer?

  He helped K’leef lift the bathtub. “By the way, that was a pretty neat trick you did, when we were wrestling. I thought you was going to burn up—and take me with you.”

  K’leef touched one of his singed eyebrows and smiled sheepishly. “I’ve never done that before. The magic is surging. It’s weird, but I can sense it buzzing in my blood.” He exhaled a roll of flame. “It feels pretty great, Thorn. Pretty great. But it’s wild—makes you powerful one moment, powerless the next.”

  “Yeah. Lily told me there’s always a downside.”

  K’leef nodded. “If I’m not careful, I could blow up. Completely combust and not be able to put it out. More than one of my ancestors has gone that way. It makes life a little dicey.”

  “What about him?” Thorn gestured toward Gabriel. “Could using too much magic leave him ugly forever?”

  The Solar boy was brushing his hair, which magic had restored to its usual shiny platinum blond. Each strand was in exactly the right place. He swept a glistening silver cape over his shoulders, tied his bonnet in place, then looked over at them. “I’m finished. You can put the chest up now.”

  Thorn tugged his forelock. “Yes, m’lord.”

  Once the bags were loaded, the three of them left the safety of the cave and headed toward the distant mountains. Thorn carefully picked his way through the broken streams of lava and hot ash, and it wasn’t long before he was soaked in sweat. He wished they’d brought a sorcerer from House Coral. At least then they’d always have something to drink. Their water was getting dangerously low.

  K’leef chucked a stone into a lava pool. It spluttered with fire before sinking. “Is it my imagination, or are these streams getting bigger?”

  Thorn cursed. “They’re joining up. Like tributaries of a river.”

  “Which means?”

  Thorn shielded his eyes from the ash. What was that ahead? The air shimmered, yet he could see…“We’re dead.”

  A few hundred yards later, they slid down a slope to the edge of a river. A river of lava.

  Gobber folded his legs and settled himself down on the bank.

  Rocks, dislodged upstream, bobbed in the flow. Flames ran like ribbons across its surface, and there were continuous spurts and small eruptions.

  Thorn groaned. “We need to go back the way we came.”

  “But the opposite bank’s only over there!” declared K’leef. “It can’t be more than a hundred yards away!”

  “Feel free to swim across anytime you want, K’leef.”

  “Er, peasant…”

  Thorn sighed. “What now, Gabbs? Want a piggyback ride?”

  The beast watched them from the top of the ridge, grinning.

  It was twice as big as a lion; brown patches speckled its fur and ash powdered its thick mane. A fang-filled mouth almost split the face in half. It swished its spiked tail, dragging the long ivory needles back and forth through the blackened earth. It shook its massive shoulders and roared, as if already proclaiming its victory.

  There was a thud as Gabriel fainted.

  Thorn managed to nock an arrow, despite his shaking hands.

  The manticore had them trapped.

  TWENTY-FOUR

  The arrow trembled on the string. Thorn couldn’t stop the sweat from blurring his sight.

  It’s huge! You can’t miss!

  “Shoot it!” yelled K’leef.

  He tried to slow his breath, control his racing heart. He could do it. It was only a few yards away, there was no cross wind, and the arrow was stalk-straight.

  Why wouldn’t his fingers work? They seemed locked.

  “Shoot it!”

  Gobber charged the manticore. He galloped up the slope and lashed out with his front legs. The manticore rose on its own hind legs to slash with its wicked front claws.

  Gobber bit its ear as the monster clawed his back, tearing off the baggage and scoring red wounds in the camel’s hump.

  Thorn jumped aside and dropped his arrow as the chest full of Gabriel’s clothing bounced past, smashing open and sending silk underwear into the lava. They burst into flame and floated above the river like fiery butterflies.

  The manticore swatted the camel’s face, and Gobber stumbled aside. After one final kick, the dromedary dashed off. The monster roared angrily, then turned its attention back to the three boys.

  Thorn scurried on his hands and knees to the fallen arrow.

  “Thorn!” shouted K’leef.

  He spun, and it just…happened.

  His eye, hand, the arrow, and the distance between him and his target merged into a seamless, instinctual reaction. Even
as he released the bowstring Thorn knew where the arrow would go.

  It flew true into the monster’s left eye. The manticore snarled and snapped the arrow off with a flick of its paw. Oily yellow mucus dribbled out of the wound, but otherwise the creature didn’t seem bothered by it.

  Thorn drew another arrow, and this one slipped easily onto the bowstring. All his previous fears and doubts about his ability had vanished. The arrow would strike exactly where he wanted. Like always.

  What good would it do, though? Eye shots usually ended things, but that one hadn’t fazed the beast.

  K’leef wove his hands through the air and fiery darts shot out, some striking the creature’s flank, others disappearing into the ash. The fur smoked, but the manticore kept coming.

  Thorn stepped sideways, seeking the other eye. If he could blind it…

  The creature wasn’t stupid. It circled, too, keeping its face turned, denying Thorn a shot. It flicked its tail.

  “Look out!” yelled K’leef.

  Thorn dove as the spikes hissed through the air. K’leef hurled another volley of flames.

  The manticore pounced, and Thorn jammed his bow into the manticore’s mouth as it went for his neck. The fangs glistened with spit, inches from his face, and the long red tongue lashed eagerly. The bow began to crack….

  It snapped, and Thorn jabbed the broken halves down the manticore’s throat. The beast sprang back, blood dripping from its torn gullet. Thorn scrambled back to his feet and joined K’leef, who was standing over the still-unconscious Gabriel.

  “Maybe we can throw him at it,” suggested Thorn. “Gabriel won’t feel a thing.”

  “Then what?”

  Back across the ash plains? Through the Valley of the Gods? With the manticore snapping at their heels? If only they could get across that river! Thorn laughed bitterly. Yeah, in a fireproof boat. As if…

  He looked at the bronze bathtub.

  “Get Gabriel.” He rolled the tub to the edge of the river.