Wicked War of Mine (Overworld Chronicles Book 9)

by John Corwin

  "Of course, sir." He released it.

  I switched back to the map and traced a line. Daelissa is all about brute force. She'd push her troops straight at us. That would take her past a mall and right through the rear pastures. "How many soggers are being deployed in this field?" I tapped it with a finger.

  The man looked where I was pointing. "We knew that would be her preferred route, so I sent half our soldiers to saturate it. It should be a boggy mess by the time they get here."

  "Justin?" Phoebe's voice startled me.

  I spun. "What are you doing here?"

  "I can't let you go alone." Phoebe wore Nightingale armor and had two katanas sheathed diagonally across her back.

  My heart stopped at the likeness to her sister. Stop thinking about it! I shook it off. "You should—"

  "Don't even think about telling me to leave." Her violet eyes sparkled with ferocity. "I don't plan to get up close and personal with the Seraphim, but I will be sure you make it out alive."

  A group of Templar Arcanes walked past. Two familiar figures burst from the group.

  Bella gripped me in a tight hug. "Justin, what are you doing here?"

  "You should be recovering," Shelton said. "We wanted to come with you to Thunder Rock but"—he made a helpless gesture—"things got so crazy around here we ended up pitching in."

  "How's Elyssa?" Bella asked, worry plain on her face.

  "She's being taken care of." I didn't feel like getting into details right now. It was all I could do to stop thinking about her. "Are you evacuating with the others?"

  "We're joining with the Templar Arcanes to hold them off as long as possible." Shelton held my gaze. "You don't look right. Are you sure you're okay? We heard everyone took a good beating during your assault."

  I ran a hand down my face. "I don't want to talk about it right now." I gripped his shoulder. "Just make sure you get out of here in one piece."

  He poked a finger into my chest. "You be careful. We can take care of ourselves."

  Bella squeezed me one more time. "Please don't overexert yourself. We need you."

  I returned her hug and tried not to contemplate losing them. They were more than friends to me. They were family. "I'll see you soon."

  They gave me one last worried look before hustling after the Templar Arcanes.

  I turned around and saw Kanaan walk out of the barn across the yard from us. His eyes seemed to assess me as he strode our way. "It is good to see you again," the Magitsu master said when he neared us. "I assume you are here to fend off the assault."

  "That would be correct," Phoebe said. "Are the Blue Cloaks here to help as well?"

  He nodded. "Our plan is to slow them and perhaps inflict a few casualties before a retreat."

  "Shouldn't you be with the other Blue Cloaks?" I asked.

  "I am to hang back and take out any targets of opportunity." He touched the wand at his side. "Considering the Seraphim battle tactics, I do not expect to find many who separate from their main force, but it is worth a try."

  "Three minutes to assault," a voice rang out from a loudspeaker somewhere. "Ready positions."

  I handed the tablet back to the Templar coordinator. "Go see to your duties."

  "Thank you, sir." He saluted. "Good luck."

  "I think I will accompany you two," Kanaan said. "Perhaps we will get lucky."

  Phoebe looked him up and down. "I remember seeing you before the Blue Cloaks joined us at Kobol. You're impressive with a wand."

  "You are as impressive with a blade." Kanaan offered her a curt bow.

  I clapped my hands. "Great pep talk, people. Let's all go be impressive together."

  Phoebe bared her teeth. "Sounds like a plan to me."

  We each grabbed a flying carpet from a stack where the coordinator had been standing and flew toward what would soon be ground zero. Flying above the trees, I spotted the glimmer of Seraphim armor shining in the dark.

  The enemy was here.

  Chapter 29

  Glowballs shot high into the night air, casting a bright white light across the surroundings. Some Seraphim soldiers looked up at the hovering spheres but didn't seem the least bit concerned by the sudden illumination.

  Arrogant bastards.

  The enemy reached the tall fence surrounding the perimeter and cleaved through it as if it were paper. I watched their glowing forms as they tore down a patch of trees in their path and threaded through the utility poles the noms used for electrical cable. They crossed into the pasture. A few yards into the field, the first row of soldiers slowed considerably as they sank up to their knees in the muddy mess created by the soggers.

  I heard someone shout orders. Eyes wary, the Seraphim took a step back to solid ground and seemed to assess the area. Soldiers at either end walked along the marshy ground, testing it with their feet. They soon realized the ground was thoroughly saturated in either direction.

  "Forward!" Daelissa's voice boomed from somewhere. I looked and spotted her hovering beyond the trees on a carpet.

  Qualan floated next to her on a carpet of his own. He added his commands to Daelissa's. "Push through!"

  Hatred boiled in my heart at the sight of the two people I hated the most. I sensed my inner demon awaken. It strained against its cage. Not yet. We'll have our blood soon enough.

  The front row of soldiers formed back up and pressed on. Despite the thick mud, they still moved forward at a steady pace.

  "Behind us," Kanaan said in a calm voice.

  I turned and saw Templars pushing catapults on levitating platforms into a line. Scores of our soldiers quietly formed ranks and moved toward the edge of the field. A fleet of Templar Arcanes and Blue Cloaks rose on carpets.

  The Seraphim soldiers tightened their ranks, presumably so their armor could distribute any damage once they came under fire. I saw smug smiles on their faces. They knew we'd thrown everything we had at them at the nexus and it had hardly fazed them. They obviously didn't expect the results to be different this time.

  The field was about a hundred yards across. Already, the first ranks of Seraphim had cut the distance in half. Looking down, I could barely make out where the ground wasn't boggy a few yards in front of the Templars.

  When the Seraphim were about three-quarters of the way across the pasture, a trumpet rang out. The catapults unleashed a volley of crucibles at the enemy. Each glass sphere glowed with destructive energy. Just before the crucibles hit, Templar Arcanes and Blue Cloaks cast hundreds of spells at the enemy front line. The result was a blinding light show.

  I squinted until my eyes adjusted to the light. The Catapults launched more crucibles. I timed a burst of destruction at the front line to coincide with the next attack. The racket of explosions filled my ears. Afterimages of each attack danced in my eyes. I saw flaming meteors fall into the Seraphim. Pulsating nova spells exploded. Spears of light every color of the rainbow rained down on the enemy advance.

  A trumpet sounded and our attacks died away.

  When the smoke cleared and my eyes adjusted, I saw the Seraphim formation was even tighter than before. A dozen or so soldiers lay in the mud, either dead or incapacitated during the attack.

  "Impossible," Phoebe said. "We only killed twenty-three." One of the fallen soldiers staggered upright.

  "Twenty-two," Kanaan corrected.

  "That should have annihilated most enemies." She peered at them with uncertainty.

  I looked down our lines and saw looks of disbelief on the faces of Arcanes. Shelton was looking at his staff as if something might be wrong with it.

  Laughter rang out from behind the enemy lines. Daelissa and Qualan flanked by Brightlings I recognized from our assault on Thunder Rock flew their carpets over the bog and stopped a quarter of the way.

  "That was pathetic," Daelissa said, her voice amplified by magic. "You've tried everything in your power to stop us, and it has failed."

  Qualan sneered. "You cannot stop destiny. Surrender your little lives to us and we
may take mercy."

  Daelissa preened her hair and regarded us as if we were ants. Her eyes lit on me and flashed. "I see you have already replaced your dead woman with her sister."

  Phoebe's hand gripped my bicep and tightened as my face heated with anger.

  Qualan's haughty gaze found us. "It was I who burned her heart from her chest, boy." He leered. "I hope you feel the pain I felt when you killed Qualas, you worthless pile of dung. Perhaps I'll let you grow attached to this creature and kill her as well."

  My hands shook with rage. An inferno seemed to boil in my chest and it was all I could do not to fly at him.

  "Notice the enemy armor," Kanaan said in a quiet voice.

  I managed to break my furious gaze from Qualan and looked down at the Seraphim soldiers. Raw energy crackled and pulsed within the translucent armor. The mass of our destructive spells had accumulated into something resembling malaether. Some soldiers were pressing their swords to the armor, possibly transferring the energy so they could use it offensively.

  Daelissa and Qualan continued to speak. Some of their words were directed to me, but all I could think of was what would happen when the Seraphim redirected our spent energy back at us.

  Qualan's voice penetrated my thoughts. "Slade's head on a platter would be a fitting gift for your new rulers."

  Phoebe tugged on my arm. "The Seraphim armor acts like a magical conductor."

  "I think we established that."

  Her violet eyes grew fierce. "Shut up and listen."

  I looked at her expectantly.

  "Water is also conductor." She pointed to one of the crates on the ground beneath us. "If we use those EMP grenades, we might cause an electrical current that could destabilize all that contained energy."

  "Perhaps we could utilize something even more powerful," Kanaan said. He looked toward an electrical utility pole fifty yards to our right. A thick cable ran from it to the poles along the road. Reaching it would require flying over part of the Seraphim army while avoiding Daelissa, Qualan, and the other Seraphim on flying carpets.

  "Give us his head!" Qualan roared.

  I stared at the creature who'd nearly killed Elyssa and let the hatred ignite my blood. "When I divert their attention, go do what you need to do."

  "Justin, no." Phoebe gripped my arm. "You'll get yourself killed."

  I shook my head. "No, I'm saving lives." I jerked my arm free. "Get ready." With that, I rose higher on my carpet and directed it toward the edge of the bog. I aimed a sliver of Brilliance at Qualan's butt. Across this distance, I couldn't do much damage, but with a jackass like him, I didn't need to.

  Smoke rose from the seat of his fancy blue tunic. He yelped and almost jumped off his carpet.

  I grinned. "You want my head, coward? Come and get it." I flew my carpet further to the left to draw everyone's attention away from Phoebe and Kanaan as they glided away.

  Qualan cupped both his hands and released a wide blast of Brilliance. I shielded myself and stuck out my tongue.

  "That's weaksauce, brah." I tsked. "No wonder you can't face me in a fair fight."

  "I would destroy you in any fight!" Qualan bellowed.

  Daelissa gripped his arm. She said something to him I couldn't hear.

  The rage faded from Qualan's face and was soon replaced by a sneer. "I will be sure to save your death for last, boy. Until then, I plan to amuse myself by killing everyone you love."

  I looked toward the opposite end of the pasture. The light of the glowballs was weaker there, but I could make out faint silhouettes approaching the electrical pole from behind the edges of the Seraphim army. The pole stood only a short distance from the enemy. If any of them looked up and to their left, they'd see Phoebe and Kanaan.

  That just wouldn't do.

  "You'll never kill the ones I love, you sick bastard!" I cupped my hands and channeled twin spheres of Brilliance. "I'll kill you like I killed your sister." I flung the pulsars at Qualan. They splashed harmlessly against a shield he threw up.

  Qualan gave me a contemptuous look. "Is that truly all you can muster? You are the weak sauced one."

  "Enough of this nonsense," Daelissa cried. "Forward march! Kill them all!"

  The Seraphim soldiers moved forward. I didn't know what was taking Phoebe and Kanaan so long. I fired a lance of destruction into the front ranks of the enemy. The armor on one soldier shattered in a brilliant burst of light, but the others kept coming. They closed to within striking distance of land.

  The Templar front line braced to greet the enemy. I knew from the fight at the nexus, our people would be slaughtered.

  Something crackled like fireworks going off. A blue arc of electricity traced across the ground from a thick black cable. As if guided by an invisible hand, the cable floated a few feet and then dropped into the water.

  A loud hum filled the air. The Seraphim closest to the cable began to shudder. Blue arcs raced across their armor, jumping from one to the next like an angry snake. The street lamps in the vicinity dimmed or exploded in a cloud of sparks. Cylindrical transformers exploded one by one, sounding like cannon shots as they went up.

  Like a string of light bulbs caught in a power surge, the crystal armor worn by the Seraphim nearest the power cable exploded. The chain reaction spread across their ranks. The portion of the Seraphim army that hadn't entered the boggy pasture retreated while those still caught in the mud panicked and made for the closest shore.

  Screams and shouts of pain echoed with every new explosion.

  A trumpet sounded and our troops backed away from the carnage to avoid being caught in one of the explosions.

  I heard Shelton's voice ring out. "It's like freaking New Year's Eve!"

  A trumpet sounded two quick tones. The catapults renewed their assault while our Arcane troops unleashed everything they had at fleeing Seraphim.

  The enemy ranks descended into pure chaos.

  I saw Qualan's stunned face through the smoke and haze as he flew his carpet higher to avoid the destruction. As much as I wanted to end his miserable life, he wasn't the one I was interested in. A moment later, I sighted Daelissa, her face red with fury as she screamed at her fleeing troops.

  It was terribly risky, but this was a chance I couldn't pass up. I turned my carpet toward Daelissa and shot toward her.

  I might die tonight, but I'd take her down with me.

  Chapter 30

  I zipped high and came at Daelissa from overhead. Her carpet was a nice, large, area rug woven with ornate designs as befitting someone with Daelissa's narcissism. It presented a nice, big target. Clenching my teeth to restrain a battle cry, I leapt from my carpet and landed on hers. She spun. I blurred to her. My hand locked around her throat and squeezed.

  Her eyes flared with shock. I channeled Brilliance into my hand and saw her fair flesh smoke from the heat.

  Daelissa screamed. Her body glowed and I felt my hand being pushed away from her skin as she channeled a shield. I blasted a wave of Murk into her shield to balance the Brilliance. If I could turn it to gray stasis, I might be able to punch through. My attack merely splashed across the shield instead of mingling with the energy powering it.

  She burst into laughter. "Weakling. You think you can harm me?"

  With a primal roar, I manifested. My armor grew to accommodate thick muscles. I felt the weight of horns sprout from my forehead and a tail stretch against the seat of my armor.

  I spread my lips in a gruesome smile and said, "I think I can harm you a lot, bitch." I threaded Murk and Brilliance into a thick cloud of stasis and surrounded her. Her shield froze, cracked, and shattered.

  Pain pierced my shoulder blades. From the corners of my eyes, I saw a brilliant white wing unfold on the right, and an ultraviolet one on the left.

  What the hell?

  My hand renewed its grip around her neck. Abandoning all magic, I did something I'd wanted to do for a very long time. I punched Daelissa in the nose. The blow made a satisfying crack. Her head reeled b
ack and blood spattered her face. I punched her again. Heat exploded against my stomach. My armor absorbed her attack, but the force of the blow nearly bowled me off the carpet. I released my grip on her, sidestepped, and karate-chopped her arm.

  Her bone made a satisfying crack.

  "You are an abomination!" Daelissa screamed with rage. Her knee flashed for my groin. I barely twisted to the side in time to stop the blow from emasculating me. I heard a roar an instant before someone slammed into me from behind and drove me to my knees. Daelissa leapt from the carpet and landed on one flown by another Seraphim. An arm locked around my throat.

  "You're mine now, Slade." Qualan's breath warmed my ear.

  I struggled against his grip. "Get your elderberry stank-ass breath out of my face."

  His grip tightened. "I will breathe wherever I want!"

  More Seraphim on flying carpets surrounded us, their eyes glowing white. Daelissa, her face a bloody mess, bared her crimson-stained teeth. "How fitting you will die as Moses did."

  One by one, the Brightlings channeled Brilliance in the palms of their hands while Qualan held me immobile. I had one chance at surviving this mess I'd gotten myself into.

  I used the tactic I'd used with Aerianas's stone grip. Drawing upon Murk, I imagined it flowing from every inch of my body. I even thought of it flowing from every centimeter in case magic preferred the metric system. My skin tingled. Qualan's grip receded from my neck.

  "Kill him now!" Qualan shouted.

  Daelissa's eyes blazed white as she thrust her hands forward. In a gloating voice, she said, "Goodbye, boy."

  A flying carpet rammed into the female Brightling on the far left. A figure in a tight Blue Cloak slammed her in the face with a roundhouse and sent her plummeting into the bog below. Before the male Seraphim next to her could react, the Blue Cloak leapt to his carpet. Jammed a wand into his nose. Green light exploded within the Brightling's head, lighting it up like a jack-o'-lantern.