Page 39 of Bedrest Blues & Otherworldly Clues (Mystical Midlife in Maine #17)

A nother impact shook the barrier Lyra had thrown up between us and the rest of my family.

The magical membrane vibrated like a plucked guitar string.

The hollow feeling in my chest expanded with each failed attempt to breach it.

Something was trying to drag me under. It went beyond fear and exhaustion.

It was deeper and more insidious. Hopelessness was so foreign to me it had to be planted. Part of Lyra's magic.

I pushed back against it with gritted teeth.

Outside our magical prison, the sounds of battle had transformed.

My family was kicking ass and taking names regardless of how many Lyra kept putting in their path.

I clung to that thought like a drowning woman to driftwood.

I used it to battle the whispers in my mind that said we'd already lost. Aidon and his parents had torn through Lyra's first shield like tissue paper.

This one wouldn't hold them for long either.

But would it hold long enough? No, I refused to think it.

Another contraction tore through me. The crushing pressure left me gasping for breath. As had been happening from the beginning of this ordeal, the triplets' magic surged in response. Once again, their combined power created visible distortions in the air around us.

"They're getting stronger," Lyra observed, her void-like eyes fixed on my belly with predatory fascination. "The approach of birth amplifies their natural abilities. Exactly as the ancient texts predicted."

I barely heard her through the haze of pain.

I felt her corrupted magic probing deeper as she tried to establish permanent connections to my unborn children.

The sensation was revolting. It was like having parasitic tendrils burrow into my soul.

My magic automatically fought her, and so did the babies’.

"Get... away... from me," I managed between gasping breaths. She had done something to my Pleiades power, but she hadn’t taken it from me. I was able to create a barrier between us. It was weak, but there nonetheless.

Lyra laughed an evil sound that grated on my fraying nerves.

"Your resistance is admirable but futile.

These connections are beyond your ability to sever.

" She gestured to faintly glowing threads that extended from my belly to her.

"Each contraction strengthens them. Each surge of your children's magic feeds them.

By the time they're born, the bonds will be unbreakable. "

A particularly massive impact against the barrier drew her attention away from me.

The entire structure shuddered, and for a brief moment, its opacity faltered.

Through the momentary window, I glimpsed something that made my heart leap.

Hades was standing there in his full divine glory.

He was surrounded by an army unlike anything I'd ever seen.

The forces of the Underworld had arrived. There were legions of legendary warriors who had pledged themselves to Hades' service after death. Heroes from ancient times fought alongside skeletal guardians and creatures of divine darkness .

"Impossible," Lyra hissed, genuine alarm flickering across her features. "The ritual should prevent direct Underworld intervention!"

My snort was fueled by pain and defiance.

"You picked the wrong family to fuck with, Lyra.

That's not just my mate out there. That's the son of the Underworld gods who are here themselves.

My in-laws don't send fruit baskets when they're pissed.

They send plagues, catastrophes, and extinction-level events.

" I managed a vicious smile. "Go ahead. Tell me again how confident you are while Death himself is hammering at your door. "

Another devastating blow struck the barrier. This time, the cracks remained and continued to spread slowly but inexorably across its surface. "Return my mate and children, or I will tear this dimension apart with you inside it," Aidon promised

Lyra's composure fractured for the briefest moment. She hadn't anticipated this level of opposition. "Arrogant godling," she spat, weaving complex patterns in the air to reinforce her failing defenses. "You have no conception of what I've become, what I'm becoming."

The effort of maintaining the barrier while simultaneously trying to finish the ritual was taking its toll.

Sweat beaded on her translucent skin. The corrupted energy surrounding her flickered with instability.

I seized the opportunity provided by her divided attention.

Channeling what remained of my strength into the bonds I shared with my children, I pushed back against Lyra's parasitic connections. Instead of trying to break them completely, I concentrated on weakening them. I believed her when she said I couldn’t break them.

My gut told me doing so wouldn’t be safe, so I created flaws that might be exploited later.

Lyra felt my interference immediately. " Stop that," she snarled and tried to send a pulse of corrupted magic through our unwanted link.

Another contraction seized me. They'd been coming for hours now.

While I had managed to slow them, they were now increasing in frequency again.

It was a terrifying reminder that my body was preparing for birth despite my desperate attempts to delay it.

I managed to suppress a scream, but couldn't hide my grimace of pain.

A wave of primal fear washed through me.

I was in active labor, and Lyra was standing next to me, waiting to claim my children.

"Perfect timing," Lyra purred, her momentary anger replaced by triumphant satisfaction. "The final phase can now begin."

She turned her attention fully to the ritual, abandoning her efforts to maintain the barrier in favor of taking what she needed from my unborn children. It was a calculated risk. One that assumed her defenses would hold long enough for her to complete the most critical elements of her plan.

It was the wrong calculation. Aidon would never allow her to harm our kids.

And before I had another contraction, the barrier shattered in a spectacular display of magical backlash.

Fragments of corrupted energy dissipated like smoke in a high wind.

Through the opening stepped Hades and Aidon.

Father and son looked terrifying. Their combined power radiated with such intensity that even Lyra took an involuntary step back.

"Phoebe!" Aidon moved toward me, his shadows extending ahead of him like searching tendrils.

Lyra interposed herself between us. "Not another step," she warned. "I've established direct connections to those children. Any interference now could have... catastrophic consequences."

She wasn't bluffing. I could feel the parasitic bonds pulsing with malevolent energy and responding to her will. If severed incorrectly, they might well cause irreparable harm to the triplets.

Hades assessed the situation with the cold calculation of an ancient deity who had witnessed countless magical confrontations. "What have you done, witch?" His voice reverberated with divine authority that made the very air vibrate.

"Created what you and your kind have always feared," Lyra replied. There was a hint of madness now visible in her eyes. "A power that transcends your artificial hierarchies. These children will be the catalysts for a new age. One where the old gods are replaced by those truly worthy of worship."

"Megalomaniacal nonsense," Hades dismissed her with contemptuous certainty. "You're not the first to challenge the divine order, nor will you be the last. All who came before you failed. You will, too."

"Because they lacked what I now possess," Lyra countered, gesturing to the glowing threads connecting her to my unborn children. "A direct channel to the purest form of Pleiades magic. And it’s multiplied threefold. When these children are born, a portion of their untamed power will flow into me. With each day they grow stronger, so too will I. I’ve tapped into a never-ending font of magic that not even you, Lord of the Underworld, can sever. "

Another contraction seized me. I couldn’t hold back the grunt of pain that time. Aidon looked to his father. His desperation was evident in his expression. "We need to get her out. Now."

"The dimensional transition could put her into a phase of labor Clio cannot stop," Hades warned while keeping his ancient eyes fixed on the parasitic bonds linking me to Lyra. "Especially with these connections in place."

"We have no choice," Aidon insisted. "This place is collapsing. If we don't act now, we'll lose them all."

An enormous chunk of the chamber broke away. There was nothing but a hungry void beyond. The Forgotten Ones and other creatures who were still swarming outside were being drawn into it. Their unearthly shrieks cut through the din of battle.

Hades made his decision. "Everyone to me!" he commanded in a voice that carried across the battlefield. "We're leaving!"

Lyra realized his intent a moment too late. "No!" she screamed, lunging toward me with unnatural speed. "They're mine!"

Aidon intercepted her. His shadows solidified into physical barriers that stopped her, at the same time, he pulled me into his side. "Father! Now!"

Hades didn't hesitate. Divine power pooled around him in waves of midnight blue energy. It expanded outward to encompass our entire group. I felt it wash over me like cool water. It temporarily dampened the pain of contractions and provided blessed relief from Lyra's ritual.

"This isn't over!" Lyra howled as she ran toward her own portal. Of course, she had prepared an escape route. "I've made contingencies you cannot imagine! The links remain intact, regardless of distance or dimensional barriers! I will still finish this ritual!"