~Chapter Twenty-Two~
“Get your back to the wall,” I instructed, drawing my swords easily after months of practice.
We backed up against the wall and the large window which allowed light into the corridor. Downstairs we could hear Iain’s booming voice and the shouts of the rogues outside.
My heart beat a tattoo in my chest. Behind me, I heard Phoenix draw his own sword.
“Why did they want us to know they were coming?” I whispered furiously, not taking my eyes from the top of the stairs. “Unless-“
The window behind me shattered as the grappling hook smashed through it, gripping the inside of the window. Phoenix leant out of the window and then quickly withdrew when an arrow narrowly missed his head.
“Apparently they want me dead or alive,” he said wryly.
I sheathed one sword and ran to the window, also peering out of it. Three rogues were climbing the chain with murder in their eyes.
“Time for a little bit of magic,” I said to myself, and then grabbed the grappling hook.
I sent a pulse of magic down the chain like a lightning strike. The mages howled as the shock jolted them from the chain and they tumbled to the earth below.
“Get rid of that,” I told Phoenix, pointing at the hook. I unsheathed my second sword. I could hear the sounds of fighting downstairs, and my heart seemed to be locked in an icy vault of worry. All of our friends were down there.
“We have to go to them,” Phoenix said with anguish in his eyes. “Sky, they could be dying-”
“We were told to stay here,” I replied, though my resolve shook as a scream echoed up the stairs. “Phoenix, we can’t move from here.”
We waited out the battle, my nerves humming like a plucked bowstring. I swung my swords in loops, keeping my muscles warmed up; ready for anything that might come up that staircase.
A racket at the bottom of the stairs suddenly snapped me out of my reverie. My heart broke out of the vault, pounding louder and harder than ever. Behind me, Phoenix shifted anxiously.
Six rogues came up the stairs, all clearly wearing the scars of the battle downstairs. The one in front, a large fellow with long brown hair tied back, had a large cut that almost cleaved his face in half. It bled freely, the blood trickling into his beard.
“Aloysius,” I heard Phoenix whisper behind me and I realised he was scared.
I was terrified.
“Diego,” Aloysius growled, and I realised that was Phoenix’s name. “We’re here to bring you home.”
“Over my dead body,” I snarled, repeating my comment from Iain and Netalia’s office.
Aloysius raised his eyebrow, smiling slightly.
“And who’s this?” he asked. A few rogues laughed and I clenched my teeth so hard they creaked. “Your soul mate, Diego?”
“Yes.” Phoenix replied quietly.
Aloysius tilted my face up towards him before I could step back. He seemed to be searching for something.
“Ah, the green eyes,” he said after I’d wrenched myself from his grasp. “Of course.”
“That’s a good way to lose some fingers,” I snapped. “Try it again, I dare you.”
“Green eyes. But this means... ah,” Aloysius smiled a secret little smile. “Should I be congratulating you on finally finding someone you can love, Diego?” The other rogues laughed along with him.
Suddenly, one of them started yelling in panic. He was being attacked by a small black bundle of feathers and talons. One of the other rogues shot an arrow at the bird, which missed, hitting the stone wall with a clatter.
I whistled to Morri and held out my arm. The bird shrieked and flew over the rogues to land on my arm.
An explosion from downstairs seemed to rock the Academy to its very foundations. We all staggered.
“Right, enough chit chat,” Aloysius snapped. “The place is going to come apart. Diego, time to leave.”
“I’m not going with you,” Phoenix said, and I was relieved to hear that his old strength seemed to be returning to his voice. “You know why I came to the Academy. That reason still stands!”
“Fine,” Aloysius said dangerously, drawing his sword. “Well, if you won’t come peacefully, we’re taking you by force!”
I immediately raised my hand, prepared to blast the skin from his bones. Aloysius saw, and clucked his tongue in disappointment.
“Uh uh,” he said, waving his finger in a way I found especially irritating. “Don’t make it too easy for me, love. Surely they’ve told you all about how our magic will infect yours?”
They had not. I risked a glance at Phoenix, who nodded almost imperceptibly.
“Guess we’ll have to do this the old fashioned way then,” I told Aloysius through gritted teeth.
“My thoughts exactly,” he hissed.
I was attacked by the closest rogue on my right. I dodged his first attack, moving quickly to the side. He wasn’t expecting me to move so quickly, and was too slow to block an opening. I went for it purely out of habit.
As my sword sank into his body, I was mildly surprised to see blood running down my blade, instead of straw puffing through the wound, like the practice dummies. Despite my disbelief, I forced the sword deeper until the hilt was pressed to where his heart was.
Blood, hot and sticky, stained my hands and face. The rogue slumped against me, and I looked up. Our eyes met. I saw his widen and then the life fled them. As though a light switch had been flicked, anything that made this person who he was left his body. Shocked by what I’d done, I pushed him off of me, pulling the blade free from his body, and I realised I had just killed another human being.
Before I had time to fully realise this, Aloysius roared with anger and attacked.
I blocked his first blow with one of my swords, Morri launching himself into the face of one of the other rogues.
Aloysius disentangled himself, stepping back. I held my swords in the ‘guard’ position. I could feel my nerves buzzing, but the adrenaline coursing through my veins made it obsolete. Aloysius shed his cloak for freedom of his limbs.
With deadly speed, he swung the sword down, aiming for my shoulder. I parried the blow with my left sword. My arm felt like it was going to break off; he was incredibly strong. Whilst he was focussed on my left sword, I twisted from beneath him, drawing my right sword across, trying to gash his side. He darted away nimbly, and I missed.
I settled into what Jett called ‘the Scorpion’. My left sword pointing dead out in front of me, the right arched over my head. From this position, I could swing straight into one of my deadly Tornado dances. Aloysius gripped his short sword with both hands.
“Give it up, girl,” he snapped. “You don’t stand a chance.”
I ignored him.
He came at me with such speed I only just managed to dodge the sword. I felt it slice the air next to my throat. Before he could recover, I whipped my right sword down and back up. I nicked his tunic. My left sword blocked his as he went to return the blow.
In terms of combat, we were evenly matched. My only worry was if he started using magic; I knew his powers would double mine.
As if hearing this thought, he pointed at me and whispered something. I felt the strength leave my limbs, and I felt as if I hadn’t slept in years. Fighting to keep my eyes open, I saw him chop down towards my left side. Everything was happening in slow motion.
I watched him sweep towards me, sword raised. With all of my strength I managed to raise my left sword, in an attempt to block his attack. I felt the impact break my wrist, and I cried out in pain. I fell to the ground, clutching my wrist and dropping both of my swords, glancing up just in time to see him chop down towards me. I rolled out of the way, still bracing my wrist. Time fell back to normal as I clenched my teeth against the pain.
Holding my injured wrist
close to my chest, I rolled out of the way of his next attack, but not far away enough that I couldn’t pluck the broadsword from his grip, which I proceeded to do. He hadn’t been holding onto it properly, not expecting me to try anything.
Behind us, I heard Phoenix fighting the other mages, four against one. Out the corner of my eye, I saw my bird fly at the face of one of the rogues, who was stumbling further and further back. I almost cried out to warn him as he stepped back one step too far and went crashing down the stairwell. The mages Phoenix was fighting turned towards the stairs just as their comrade’s cries broke off with an unpleasant crack.
Aloysius lashed out in a savage kick, taking advantage of my distraction. I rolled out of the way to avoid it and pushed myself off of the ground in the same movement. He brought his fist down, trying to hit my broken wrist. I dodged it, and twisted around his side, kicking the back of his knee. His leg collapsed, and suddenly he was kneeling on the ground.
I was just starting to feel like we could handle ourselves when someone hit me hard in the back. Flames had begun to crackle downstairs, and smoke was pouring into the corridor, making it hard to see and breath.
I hit the ground hard, falling onto my wrist. The world tilted as I fought against the pain, black tinting the edges of my vision. I would not, could not fall into the comfort of unconsciousness.
Someone, Aloysius, rolled me over, holding the blade of the broadsword to my throat.
“You fought well,” he said gruffly. “But that isn’t enough to save you.”
“There’s a fire downstairs,” I heard myself say weakly.
“Yes, there is,” the broadsword glinted menacingly. “What of it? We will soon be gone.”
“You don’t use your surroundings to your advantage,” I said, the black beginning to peal itself from my vision. “I do.”
Scores and scores of fire puppets raced up the stairs, born from the fire downstairs. Their cousins in the smoke spiralled towards us, blanketing the eyes of the other mages, who coughed and clawed at their faces.
“What are they?” Aloysius asked with just a hint of panic. The blade pressed into my throat.
I wanted to say something witty, but the smoke was making my throat close over. Fire puppets were crawling up the legs of the rogues, burning them wherever they made contact.
Aloysius cried out as one of the puppets gripped his ankle. In anger and pain, he brought the hilt of the broadsword down on my head.
My vision swam, my eyelids fluttering. The fire puppets fell into little heaps of ashes, the smoke puppets dispersing into the air.
“Stop!” I managed to swim back to consciousness when I heard Phoenix’s voice. “Stop, just... I’ll come with you if you leave everyone alone.”
No, Phoenix! I tried to say, but I couldn’t make a sound. Please don’t go with them!
I managed to open my eyes completely just as Phoenix leant down to cup my cheek with his hand.
“Phoenix,” I mumbled, the world still swimming in front of my eyes. “Don’t go, please... you said this wasn’t the end.”
“It’s not, I promise,” he whispered. “Can you stand?”
I clung to his arm and shakily managed to stand up, leaning against the wall for support. I saw my swords lying at Aloysius’ feet.
“Don’t even think about it,” he growled. “Bind her.”
My arms and legs went rigid, and I gasped with pain as something tightened over my broken wrist. Tears swam in my eyes.
“I’m sorry, Sky, I really am. Don’t look for me, ok?”
“You said this wasn’t the end,” I repeated, the tears beginning to overflow.
He kissed me, our lips meeting for only the briefest of moments. In those moments I felt his longing, regret and a sadness so deep I couldn’t even begin to fathom how far it went. Then he was pulling away.
“I lied,” he said, the other rogues preparing to leave.
Just as he climbed out of the window with the rogues, I caught a glimpse of his captivating orange eyes. Then he was gone.
Soul Fire Page 42