Page 54 of Ignited Spirits (Haunted Magic #3)
IZZY
I look down at the rock in my hand and back up to the grassy plain apprehensively. “You sure she’s going to come?”
Hades somehow procured a rock from the Earth’s core for us, the one remaining ingredient that Lua needs to complete her spell to drain the planet of its magic. And I’m currently holding it in the middle of a field in nowhere Iowa to lure Lua to our battlefield.
We picked everyone up way before dawn to assemble our forces on the banks of the Styx, one of the few places Lua can’t see from afar.
The plan is to offer her the rock and then run through a rift back to Infernus . If all goes well, she’ll follow, and we’ll kick her ass. I highly doubt it will be that easy, but a girl can hope.
Along with the jaguars, Joseph, and Angerona from La Esperanza , the curae from Hades, the mages from Elemental, the hellhounds Cain rallied, and the enforcers from the Nightshade Pack, Rhys also managed to secure us over a hundred wolf shifters.
Where he found them, I have no idea. But I’m grateful for any extra support we can get.
“She’ll be here. She’s just waiting to see if we have any hidden backup.” Levi gazes contemplatively at the sun just peeking out over the horizon as the harsh winter wind whips around us.
We’re all tensely looking around the open field, scanning for any sign of Lua.
We chose the wide-open space purposely so that it would be hard for Lua to sneak up on us. It also has the benefit of limiting any collateral damage because there isn’t anyone around for miles.
“Yeah, I bet she’ll show, kid,” Aggie tries to reassure me. While I tried to get her to sit out the confrontation with Lua, Aggie was having none of it. According to her, she’s my trusty sidekick and the only one who can get me out of trouble.
It’s sweet that she cares, but I care about her too and don’t want her to get hurt. After arguing back and forth, I eventually relented and agreed to let her come for moral support. It’s not like she can really fight as a ghost, so I’m not sure what else she expects to do here.
After waiting a few more minutes, I get fed up with this whole game. Tilting my face up to the sky, I yell, “Lua! I want to make a deal.”
When nothing happens after a beat, I deflate and wonder if we just gathered over a thousand people together for no reason. I close my eyes and let my head fall forward as I reluctantly accept that our plan failed, and I’m going to have to find some other way to take her down.
An unhinged cackle sounds from directly in front of me, and I snap my eyes open to see Lua standing a few feet in front of us.
Like every time I’ve seen her, Lua is covered in blood that drips down to pool at her feet, turning the pure-white snow a crimson red.
She has the same twin short swords strapped to her back, curved blades on her hips, and the bandolier of throwing knives across her chest. Her bloodred eyes glow with a feverish light, and her mouth is stretched wide in a savage grin.
Every muscle in my body locks up when I see her, and images from when she killed Archer flash on repeat in my mind. I have a hard time focusing on what’s happening in front of me because I keep getting dragged back into the past.
“Why the long face, sport?” she asks in a singsong voice that feels like nails on a chalkboard.
Her voice snaps me out of the unwelcome trip down memory lane. I can’t afford to be distracted when she’s around, or we’re all going to end up dead.
Throwing my shoulders back, I lift my chin and look her in the eye. “I want to make a trade and was worried you wouldn’t show up.”
I purposely let my posture slump so that she thinks I’ve already given up.
“And why, oh why, would I trade anything with you? What could a tiny, pathetic little mortal like you have that I would want?”
It’s hard to resist the urge to roll my eyes at her. Holding up what’s clutched in my hand, I let her get a good look at it. “A rock from the Earth’s core.”
As soon as she realizes what it is, she lunges for me. Unfortunately for her, she bounces off the barrier Legion created. Apparently, hydras not only shift into terrifying snake monsters, but they can also perform limited defensive magic. It’s way cooler than my own magic.
She stares at the barrier in complete and utter confusion before she locks eyes with Legion, who’s in control of Archer’s body right now. “ Anguis ,” she hisses in disgust.
Legion gives her a hair-raising grin and dips his head in acknowledgment but doesn’t say anything.
I prop one hand on my hip and extend the one holding the softball-sized rock toward her. “So… do you want the rock or not, crazy pants?”
Is it smart to rile an off-her-rocker, super-powerful war goddess? Not normally, no.
But I need her to follow me through the portal and not ask too many questions. So, getting under her skin, it is.
My taunt works a little too well. She tips her head back and lets out an ear-piercing scream that has me involuntarily recoiling into Cain behind me. Her hair starts floating on a nonexistent breeze, and the blood dripping from her hair and gown flies around her.
“Give it to me now,” she grits out, her voice sounding deeper than usual and multilayered. It sounds like something straight out of a horror movie, and I am not here for it.
I tap my chin like I’m pretending to think. “Hmm, nah, I don’t think I will. But you can try to take it from me.”
Opening a portal behind me, I trust that my mates, aside from Legion, are going through like we discussed. I’m too wary of Lua to take my eyes off her, so I just have to hope that none of my mates are pulling a sudden switcheroo.
Legion has to be the last one through the portal to keep the defensive dome open, which I hate but understand. I don’t want to leave any of my mates alone with Lua, but I don’t really have much choice.
Chancing a glance over my shoulder, I’m relieved to see that everyone has gone through the rift. Slowly backing up toward the interdimensional black hole, I only turn around when I’m a step away. “Be careful,” I whisper to Legion before walking through.
When I step out on the riverbank, I immediately start sprinting up the tall, rocky cliff to get to the rest of the forces.
As soon as I get close enough, I chuck the hunk of core rock at Hades. He disappears to hide it somewhere super-secret because we can’t chance Lua getting her hands on it.
My heart is in my throat until I see Legion sprint through the portal and up the cliff.
As soon as he reaches us, the assembled curae create a defensive dome similar to the one Legion created to stop Lua earlier.
With over a hundred curae feeding their magic into it, the hope is that she won’t be able to tear through it easily or at all.
An eerie quiet falls over our group as we watch anxiously for whether Lua will come through the rift.
We chose a secluded spot a few miles outside of Acheron to stage this battle to keep the residents of the city safe.
Since the River Styx runs throughout the whole plane, it was easy to find a barren area where there’s nothing for miles, other than the river, jagged, imposing cliffs, and rocky desert ground.
When we brought everyone in this morning, the wildlife created a calming symphony of chirps, rustling, and howls that made the desert feel alive. Now, however, all the wildlife has gone just as silent as our tense army.
I push to the front of the group, standing on the cliff point overlooking the portal when Lua walks through. She is quite the sight to behold, with her hair violently whipping around, a tornado of blood swirling around her legs, and her glowing red eyes that exude madness.
“Silly little girl. Did you think that running to my plane would save you?” she asks in her echoing, inhuman voice. “No one can save you, sport. You were always destined to die at my hands. Give me the rock, and I will kill everyone you love quickly.”
My throat tightens as I think about everyone I care about that’s here on this battlefield today to support me.
My mates, my parents and brothers, Hades and his mate group, Mateo and his shifters, and the mages from Elemental.
Even the people I don’t know who still showed up to fight beside me matter so much to me.
I have the urge to give her what she wants so that she’ll leave everyone else alone. But I know the only way to guarantee their safety is to eliminate Lua once and for all. With her on the loose, no one I care about will ever be safe.
Gathering all the strength and courage I have, I straighten up and stare her in the eyes. “You’ll have to pry it from my cold, dead hands.”
She gives me her signature terrifying grin that’s more like a baring of teeth. “That can be arranged, sport.”
Lua lets out the worst shriek I’ve ever heard, and I have to slap my hands over my ears because it kind of makes me feel like I’m going to pass out. I hear thuds behind me and turn to see some of the shifters have fallen unconscious to the ground with blood pouring out of their ears.
Apparently the shriek wasn’t the real attack, because a blast of multicolored magic explodes from her and hurtles toward us.
I have time to realize that her magic is multicolored from all the people she drained before it smashes into the shield with an audible crack. While it doesn’t shatter the shield, it does weaken it significantly.
Some of the curae responsible for maintaining the shield are on their knees, sweating profusely as they do their best to hold up the barrier.
Lua frowns at the fact that the shield is still in place. I’m pretty sure she expected to annihilate everyone with that blast of magic. Unfortunately for her, I’m coming into this battle better prepared than our last confrontation.
After glaring at us like the force of her displeasure alone will kill everyone, Lua shrugs and turns around. My nose wrinkles in confusion as I wonder what she’s doing. There’s no way she’s giving up this easily without a fight.