Page 114 of Arcane Entanglement

Every instinct he possessed told him they were likely walking right into the dark mage’s trap.

They reached the top of the staircase and moved quietly towards the closest aisle, only to freeze when a low chuckle echoed through the cavernous space. They whirled around, trying to pinpoint its source.

“Welcome, gentlemen.” Renwick’s voice seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at once. “I’m glad you could join me for this momentous occasion.”

Evander fisted his hands.

“He’s using shadow manipulation to mask his location,” he told Viggo in a low voice.

Viggo scowled.

“Stop hiding and show yourself, you cowardly bastard!” he shouted.

“Ah, but where would be the fun in that, Brute?” Another chuckle, closer this time. “Besides, I’m rather busy at the moment. Perhaps you and the Ice Mage would like to see what I’m working on?”

Evander’s pulse stuttered when dark magic surged around them.

Crates and boxes exploded before he could react, showering him and Viggo with splinters. A violent storm swept through the building, raising a whirlwind of dust and debris that obstructed their sight.

Evander’s gut twisted when dark shapes lunged at them from the turbulent currents.

Viggo cursed and stumbled backwards. “What the devil are those?!”

Evander’s blood ran cold as he studied the apparitions from behind the shield of wind and ice he’d raised. Made of pure darkness, they were vaguely humanoid in shape and carried a stench that made his stomach roil.

“They’re shadow creatures.”

Viggo shot a taut glance his way. “Is this another kind of shadow manipulation?”

Evander nodded stiffly. He’d read about shadow creatures in arcane texts, but had yet to see them in real life. He realised then that he’d severely underestimated Renwick.

Only someone whose powers were nearly equal to that of an Archmage could bring shadow creatures to life.

One of the monsters dove for Viggo.

The Brute reacted instinctively as it breached Evander’s barrier, his fist connecting with its face in a split second. To his shock and horror, his blow passed right through the apparition’s dissipating form. The shadow creature rematerialised a moment later.

Evander released the shield and called on his fire magic. Globes of dazzling flames exploded into life around them. The creatures recoiled, their shapes flickering in the radiance.

“Viggo, we may be in over our heads,” Evander said in a fraught voice. “If I’m right, Renwick could make scores of these creatures before we get to him!”

The Brute’s face hardened with determination. “Then we’ll just have to fight harder and find the bastard, won’t we?”

Viggo’s grit tempered the worst of Evander’s fears. He took a deep breath and allowed elemental power to rush through him. Static sparked on his skin and hair.

Lassos made of wind and fire formed in his hands.

The shadow creatures shrieked and attacked.

Evander grounded his legs with earth magic and spun the elemental weapons around his head. The whips tore through the monsters, shredding them until they were nothing more than fading wisps of darkness. Viggo guarded his back, his immunity to magic a physical barrier even if his attacks proved useless against the creatures.

Sweat beaded Evander’s forehead as the battle took them deeper into the warehouse, the shadow creatures coming at them on an endless tide of darkness just as he had feared. They rounded a corner and found themselves in an open area.

What Evander saw made him stop short in horror and had Viggo cursing out loud.

In the centre of the space stood a massive contraption. It was a nightmarish fusion of magic and metal some twenty feet tall. Tubes and wires snaked across the floor and connected to a circle of dark, pulsing crystals.

Evander’s breath locked in his throat when his gaze found the source of the sinister magic powering the device. There, suspended inside a web of crackling dark energy above the monstrous machine, was Renwick.