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“Protect the officers!”Viggo shouted to Leon as he charged towards Musgrave.

The shadow creatures their enemy had manifested descended upon them, maws gaping and insubstantial limbs reaching for the Met officers and mages.Leon’sNullification Magicflared brightly, his magic aided by the power in the amulet around his neck as he created an elemental barrier that the creatures could not penetrate.

The Arcane Division mages rallied behind his protection and launched counterattacks of their own; fire spells, ice and earth spears, and violent storms of wind rapidly swarmed the chamber.

Evander’s magic and those of the mages at his side made the air tremble as they defended themselves against the swarm of shadow creatures attacking them.

Viggo scowled and barrelled through the magical crossfire, relying on his immunity to direct magical attacks to close the distance to Musgrave.He could see Evander doing the same from the opposite side of the chamber, a barrier of wind and fire magic flickering around him.Their eyes met briefly through the shimmering wall.

Viggo smiled fiercely.Emotion tightened Evander’s face.

A dark mage stepped into the Brute’s path, hands glowing with a sickly energy.The spell struck Viggo’s chest and dissipated harmlessly.The mage’s eyes widened in surprise a second before Viggo’s fist connected with his jaw, sending him crumpling onto the walkway.

“You can’t stop this!”Musgrave barked.Sinister magic flared around him as he backed towards the central apparatus.“Even if you kill us all, the process is already underway.”He gestured wildly to Simmons’s tank, where the silvery traces beneath the thrall’s skin had intensified despite theMidnight Obsidiancrystal having imploded.“The transfer is nearly complete even though you broke the machine, you fool!”

Fear squeezed Viggo’s heart when he saw the young man begin to convulse violently, his face contorting in agony despite his unconscious state.

“No!” he roared, the walkway rattling beneath his feet as he accelerated.

Evander got there before him, his ice-blue eyes glinting with cold determination.

Chapter42

Elemental magic crackledalong Evander’s veins as he closed the distance to Musgrave, the power rushing through him a torrent that made the air shimmer around his body.He could feel the professor’s corrupt magic pulsing outward in violent waves, theMidnight Obsidianhe’d consumed amplifying his already formidable powers to nightmarish proportions.

“You think yourself so righteous, Duke Ravenwood!”Musgrave spat out, pressing his back against the ghastly device he and his lackeys had constructed.Shadows swirled and coalesced around him and the dark mages at his side.“What will your precious Queen say when she learns you’ve destroyed the greatest magical advancement of our age?!”

For one gut-wrenching second, Evander wondered if Musgrave knew his secret.He ground his teeth and squashed his trepidation.

“She’ll thank me for ridding the Empire of a monster!”he growled.

He gathered his wind magic and propelled himself forward and upwards just as Musgrave commanded the shadows around him to attack.Dark tendrils lashed out, seeking to ensnare and strangle him.Evander sliced through them with blades of concentrated fire and ice, the corrupt magic howling as it disintegrated beneath his elemental assault and the power of the amulet swinging against his chest.

Viggo launched himself from the walkway below, his massive frame moving fluidly through the air.His hands closed on the railing and he swung his body smoothly up and over, the metal platform juddering under his feet as he landed on it with a thud.

Evander alighted beside him, his heart racing.

“We have to get Simmons out of that tank!”Viggo said.

He grabbed one of the dark mages lunging towards him by the collar and hurled him bodily into the mass of shadow creatures attacking the Met officers below them.

Musgrave’s face contorted with rage.“You shall do no such thing!Do you have any idea what we’ve achieved here, you fool?The power we’ve harnessed will?—!”

His words were cut short as Viggo charged into him with the force of a battering ram.

Musgrave went flying sideways and collided with the railing of the walkway with enough force to bend the metal.Something cracked audibly in his ribcage.Blood sprayed from his lips as he coughed, his face contorting with pain and fury.

“You filthy thrall!”he snarled, wiping crimson from his mouth.“How dare you lay hands on me!”

Magic throbbed around Evander as he blocked the path of the dark mages trying to come to Musgrave’s assistance with an array of earth, ice, and fire arrows.Dread tightened his chest when he glimpsed Simmons’s body convulsing inside the tank.Whatever magic they’d forcibly injected into him was continuing to spread.If Musgrave was right, they had precious little time to save him.

“Leon!We need you!”Evander barked across the chamber.

The Frenchman looked up from where he was deflecting shadow creatures with hisNullification Magic.“I’m a bit busy right now, mon cher!”he snapped.

Viggo fisted his hands, his brow furrowed in a heavy scowl.“Evander, what will happen if I crush that tank?”

Evander’s mouth went dry.He clenched his jaw.“I’m not sure.”