Page 68 of Crossing Between

I snapped back to consciousness with a violent jolt, my entire body humming with magical energy.

The void where Shanna had been was gone, replaced by the pulsing, organic chamber of the Essencefeaster's lair.

My protective dome of golden light still surrounded us, though it flickered weakly with each of my ragged breaths.

"Zoey!" Three voices called my name at once, filled with relief and concern.

I was on my knees in the center of our protective bubble, Varon, Elias, and Kenji crowded around me. Their faces were drawn with worry, hands reaching to steady me as I swayed.

"I know how to save him," I gasped, my voice hoarse. "Shanna showed me. There's a ritual, the Severance Rite. We can separate Ryan from the Essencefeaster."

Elias's eyes widened. "You saw Shanna again?"

I nodded, struggling to my feet with their help. "She came to me when I was wherever I was. She explained everything."

Through our bond, I felt their confusion, their fear for me, and beneath it all, their unwavering support. The golden threads of our connection pulsed with renewed strength, fortified by the knowledge Shanna had shared.

"The ritual requires all four of us," I explained quickly, my eyes darting to the writhing form of my brother beyond our protective dome.

The Essencefeaster was recovering from the earlier attack, its movements growing more coordinated with each passing second.

"You three will be my anchors while I channel the soulfire. "

"What do we need to do?" Varon's voice was steady, his hand firm on my shoulder.

"Form a diamond pattern around Ryan. I need to draw a specific glyph." My fingers twitched, the pattern already forming in my mind though I'd never seen it before. "And then I have to go in."

"Go in?" Kenji's brow furrowed. "Go in where?"

"Into Ryan's soul. Into the corruption." I swallowed hard, the enormity of what I was about to attempt finally hitting me. "I have to find the boundary between my brother and the Essencefeaster and cut it away."

Elias shook his head. "That's too dangerous. If you enter the corruption..."

"It's the only way," I cut him off, my resolve hardening. "Ryan is still in there, fighting. I can feel him."

The three men exchanged glances, a silent communication passing between them.

"If this is what you need to do," Varon finally agreed, "then we'll be your anchors."

Kenji nodded firmly. "All the way."

"Whatever it takes," Elias agreed, his tentacles emerging to wrap protectively around my wrist.

Outside our dome, the Essencefeaster had fully recovered. It rose to its full height, towering over us, a grotesque blend of my brother and something ancient and monstrous .

"Such a touching scene," it sneered, Ryan's voice distorted by the demon's influence. "Do you really think your little ritual will save him? He's mine now. He gave himself to me willingly."

"He didn't know what he was doing," My voice stronger than I felt. "He was trying to protect me."

The Essencefeaster laughed, the sound echoing painfully through the chamber. "And look how well that turned out. Poor little Ryan, sacrificing everything for a sister who abandoned him."

I flinched at the accusation, but Varon's hand tightened on my shoulder. "Don't listen. It's trying to weaken your resolve."

"What's your plan?" Kenji's body was already shifting into his oni form, skin darkening as his muscles expanded.

"I need to draw the glyph," my fingers flexed as the pattern burned in my mind. "Once it's complete, we'll take our positions. I'll channel the soulfire, and you three will ground me, keep me from being lost in the corruption."

"And then?" Elias prompted.

"And then I find my brother and bring him home."

I took a deep breath, centering myself. The golden light of my protective dome wavered as I redirected my magic, focusing it into my fingertips. With a fluid motion, I traced a complex pattern in the air, golden light trailing from my fingers to form glowing lines that hung suspended before us.

The Essencefeaster howled in rage, recognizing the ancient symbol. "NO!" it roared, lunging toward our protective barrier.

Its claws raked against the golden dome, sending cracks spiderwebbing across its surface. I flinched but kept drawing, my fingers moving with a certainty that came from somewhere beyond my conscious mind.

"It's weakening the shield." Varon's eyes tracked the spreading cracks.

"Almost done," I gritted out, completing the final curve of the glyph. The symbol hung before us, pulsing with power. "Now!"

With a gesture, I sent the glyph outward. It expanded rapidly, growing until it encompassed the entire chamber floor, its lines burning themselves into the organic surface beneath us. The Essencefeaster screamed in pain as the symbol seared into the flesh of its domain.

"Take your positions!" I commanded, moving to the northernmost point of the diamond pattern that had formed within the glyph.

Varon, Elias, and Kenji moved swiftly to the other three points, forming a perfect diamond around the writhing form of the Essencefeaster. As they settled into place, lines of golden light shot from my position to each of theirs, connecting us in a network of power.

The Essencefeaster, realizing what was happening, let out a roar that shook the very foundations of the chamber. "You think this will be so easy?" It snarled. "You're not the only one with power here!"

It slammed its draconic fist into the ground, and the chamber shuddered violently. The walls pulsed faster, the veins of black ichor swelling ominously. And then, to my horror, forms began to emerge from the walls themselves. Twisted, corrupted bodies started to pull free of the organic matter.

"The undead army," I gasped, remembering Shanna's warning.

Dozens of figures staggered toward us, their movements jerky and uncoordinated.

Some wore the tattered remains of police uniforms, victims from the station attack.

Others were civilians, their clothes modern or ancient depending on when the Essencefeaster had claimed them.

All had the same vacant, glowing eyes and gaping mouths that emitted a terrible, unified moan.

"Keep the ritual going!" Varon shouted. "We'll handle them!"

Kenji was already moving, his oni form fully manifested now. His skin glowed with magic as he drew symbols in the air with his fingers, leaving trails of blue-gold light. "Ancestral binding!" he roared, completing a complex pattern that shot outward.

The symbols expanded and wrapped around a group of approaching undead, freezing them in place. Their bodies strained against the magical bindings, but Kenji's magic held firm.

Meanwhile, Elias had abandoned his human form entirely.

His kraken nature emerged in full glory, tentacles erupting from his back and sides, his skin shifting to a gray-blue hue that gleamed with an otherworldly iridescence.

Where his tentacles touched the corrupted undead, cleansing flames erupted, burning away the taint without harming the bodies themselves.

I watched in awe as he grabbed a spirit hovering at the edge of the Veil, his tentacles glowing with healing magic. The spirit shuddered, then seemed to relax as Elias gently guided it toward a natural transition.

Varon moved with the preternatural speed of a vampire lord. He darted between the approaching undead, his hands moving in complex gestures.

Protected by my three anchors, I focused on channeling the soulfire. I closed my eyes, reaching deep within myself for that core of power Shanna had helped me unlock. It responded eagerly, rushing to the surface in a torrent of golden light that surrounded me in a pillar of radiance.

The power was intoxicating, overwhelming in its intensity.

For a moment, I feared I might lose myself in it, become consumed by my own magic.

Then I felt them, the three distinct presences in my mind, three heartbeats synchronizing with my own.

Varon, Elias, and Kenji, their souls connected to mine through our bond, anchoring me to myself.

"I'm ready," my voice echoed strangely through the chamber.

The three men, still fighting off the undead horde, nevertheless managed to position themselves at the points of our diamond. Golden threads of magic connected us, forming a perfect geometric pattern with the Essencefeaster trapped at its center.

"NO!" the creature roared, thrashing against the invisible bonds of the ritual. "YOU CANNOT DO THIS!"

But it was too late. The soulfire erupted from my hands, flowing through the golden threads to my anchors, then rebounding back to create a cage of light around the Essencefeaster. The creature howled in agony as the purifying flames licked at its corrupted form.

I stepped forward, my body moving of its own accord, guided by knowledge that came from somewhere beyond my conscious mind. My hands reached out, palms forward, as I approached the boundary of our magical diamond.

"What are you doing?" Elias' alarm spiked through our bond.

"I have to go in," My voice eerily calm. "I have to find Ryan."

Before any of them could protest, I stepped through the boundary and into the cage of light surrounding the Essencefeaster. The creature lunged for me, but the soulfire held it at bay, creating a small bubble of safety around me.

"You'll die here," it hissed, its voice a blend of Ryan's and something ancient and malevolent. "And your brother will die with you."

I ignored its taunts, focusing instead on the task before me.

Reaching out with both hands, I placed my palms against the Essencefeaster's chest, directly over where a heart would be and just above the hole Varon had created.

The contact sent a jolt of agony through me, like plunging my hands into acid, but I gritted my teeth and pushed through the pain.

"Ryan," I called, not with my voice but with my soul. "Ryan, I'm here. Show me where you are."