Reid engaged me, the black energy of his strike fizzled against my shields with a sound like sizzling oil. My diamond heated against my palm, almost painfully hot as I channeled more power than it typically carried, interrupting his next attack with one of my own. Two more concussive arcane balls had him stepping back. Before I could end the fight, several new mages appeared behind Bart’s barrier.
The newcomers attacked the sheet of purple energy meant to keep our opponents from fleeing. Reid and the others fought with renewed strength, the chamber growing noticeably warmer from the concentrated magical energy.
If the barricade fell, at least ten new mages would join the fight. Quickly defeating those in the chamber became imperative.
I focused on Reid, my diamond blazing with white light. Reid was powerful but arrogant, overconfident in his numerical advantage. He also didn’t know the full extent of my rarely seen skills.
“You’ve made a critical error,” Reid said with a twisted grin. “We don’t need to beat you to win. I only have to keep you in here with us and give James time.”
My diamond pulsed, releasing a blinding flash that swept across the chamber like silent lightning. Reid and the nearby mages threw their arms up, shielding their eyes. In that moment of distraction, I shaped my magic into a concentrated beam of white energy that struck Reid’s shield like a sledgehammer.
Reid staggered backward, his smirk gone. “Impressive, but not enough.”
He slammed his stone into the ground, and the floor beneath me turned liquid with darkness. Shadow-hands erupted upward, reaching for my ankles and wrists. I struck the darkness with my fire, creating a nova of light that forced the darkness to retreat with an audible shriek. Reid’s face hardened with the failure of his assault.
Around me, the battle raged with increasing intensity as magic collided in spectacular fashion. Bart’s purple spears worked in concert with Eldwin’s pink sigils that burned through the air. Where their spells overlapped, the magic created shimmering distortions that blinded our foes. Four of Reid’s mages lay unmoving, their stones scattered across the floor, while three more were pinned against the wall by what appeared to be translucent gold chains conjured from Hro’s blade.
Reid fought with the skill I expected from one in his position. He maintained his composure even as his companions went down. A sliver of darkness lanced toward me, nearly piercing my shield. Grunting, I reinforced my protection and then counterattacked.
I checked on Cael’s progress and was pleased to see many glyphs had disappeared from the chamber’s floor. Soon they’d free Ailpein, and hopefully we could end this by creating a new Great Ward.
“They’re breaking through,”Bart’s voice strained as purple energy flared from his stone.
He’d strengthened the barricade, but we were in a race to free Ailpein before the enemy reinforcements broke through. Reid and the survivors must’ve noticed what Bart had, and fought with renewed tenacity. Brilliant magic bounced around the room, momentarily blinding me. Before my sight cleared, attacks from multiple directions battered me. Most weren’t strong, but a vicious attack from Reid rattled my defenses. I barely deflected it, countering with a burst of white energy that forced him back a step. In the pause between attacks, I saw most of the glyphs had vanished.
The fight intensified as Reid’s onyx stone blazed with dark energy as he launched a string of spells at me. I parried his spell and countered with a barrage of crystalline darts that streaked toward his face.
Bart and Eldwin had their opponents backing toward the wall. Once those mages were down, Reid would be overwhelmed.
A flash of blue-gold light caught my peripheral vision.“We’re through!”Cinaed called. “Clear us a path!”
Relief surged through me. I pressed Reid harder, keeping him too busy to stop Ailpein’s rescue. Panic replaced the smug arrogance on Reid’s face. He pivoted toward Cinaed, and I sliced my diamond through the air. A crescent-shaped wave of white energy whistled as it sped toward him. The spell’s edge carved a gouge in his shield. His attention snapped back to me, eyes widening.
“The phoenix!” Reid’s voice cracked with panic. “Stop them!”
The other mages were too busy fighting for their lives to prevent Cinaed’s team from approaching the tortured Ailpein. With every new spell, Reid’s desperation grew. I kept alert,hoping he’d make another mistake so I could end the fight, but he never gave me the opening.
A tremendous crash echoed through the chamber. Bart’s barrier finally gave way in a shower of rocks and arcane energy, the concussion making my ears pop painfully. The rush of air from the entrance washed over us, carrying the metallic tang of fresh dark magic. With their backs to the wall, the mages facing Bart and Eldwin couldn’t see the entrance and flinched at the sound, bits of stone dust settling on their shoulders. Three more died before they recovered.
Dark mages poured through the opening, their stones glowing with malevolent energy. Fourteen had entered the cave before I stopped counting. I wasn’t giving up, but our chances dropped dramatically.
“Free the king,”Cael said, rushing to Bart’s position. Malachy and Cinaed hurried to Ailpein’s prison.
The enemy rushed forward, expecting their numbers to overwhelm my brother and uncle. They clearly hadn’t remembered what happens to a mage when they form a mate bond with a shifter.
Cael and Bart moved in perfect synchrony, their gems glowing in harmony. Cael’s sapphire sent ripples through the stone floor, while Bart’s tourmaline created intricate geometric patterns in the air above. When the spells merged, they erupted into a purplish-blue shockwave that caught the charging mages like insects in amber, suspending them in contorted poses before flinging them backward.
Another example of the sum being greater than the parts. Their bond amplified two powerful mages to incredible levels. Together, they created a devastating combination of purple arcane energy and blue earth magic that sent three of the invaders flying backward. Eldwin and Hro joined the fight, and the four kept the lesser mages back on their heels.
Reid’s triumphant expression didn’t last long as his back-up failed to turn the tide of the battle. He lashed out at me with magic fueled by rage and desperation. I parried his attacks, my counters calm and measured. I waited for his recklessness to give me an opening I could exploit.
As Reid and I continued our duel, Cinaed and his father had freed Ailpein from his prison. I stole a glance and the king looked diminished. He stumbled as he emerged, leaning heavily on Malachy for support.
Ailpein spoke to his family, but I only heard single words. There was an apology, gratitude, relief, and an urgency we all felt.
The opportunity in Reid’s defense happened, but not how I’d hoped. Reid launched a new attack, but directed it at Ailpein, Malachy, and Cinaed.
My brain stopped working at the thought of Reid hurting Cinaed. Logically, I should’ve used Reid’s distraction to kill him. His spell might seriously hurt or kill a phoenix, but they’d regenerate. Seeing any attack on Cinaed, however, overrode rational thinking.
