Page 34 of Lunar Diamonds (Celestial Magic #1)

RILEY

E ars ringing, I jumped to my feet.

“What the fuck?” Isaac said, straightening beside me.

A beast ten-feet tall stood before us. Made of red fire, shaped like a bear, with just one large black lidless eye in its head. It blinked, opening a mouth filled with obsidian fangs.

It roared, stomping its feet. The beach trembled and my bladder tightened.

Crap.

The heat coming from its body set me to sweating.

Isaac took my hand, squeezing with reassurance.

There were bodies on the ground. Charred and fallen from the wooden spikes. The air stank of burning flesh.

I swallowed an acidic bubble. Those poor people.

The siblings fired their guns at the creature, the bullets swallowed by the fire.

“How the fuck do we take this down?” Isaac asked as he released my hand, his hands igniting with sunshine.

An idea hit me. “Blind it with your light, then I’ll trip it up.”

The monster roared again, stationary for now. It stomped its feet, not making a move.

What the hell was it plotting?

“Tell me more,” my brother answered.

“I can trick it into thinking there’s a boulder behind it,” I said. “The tide’s close enough, right?”

“To cool it down. Yes! I love it!”

Go me with the ideas.

Please work…

The arsehole stomped and roared, watching us move into position. It focused its eye on Isaac, still not moving.

Isaac did his thing, holding up his hands, turning up the sunlight. The siblings and Drake covered their eyes as the monster started wailing, throwing an arm up to protect its singular peeper.

I got to work on a smaller illusion, pointing my power to the area behind the creature. A boulder formed, big enough to trip a beast like this, and just for the scarlet menace’s eyes.

Isaac approached the monster, his sunlight burning brighter and brighter. It moved back, roaring in pain, the color of its scarlet body losing its luster.

Come on, come on…

My heart pounded from an explosion of adrenaline.

The big arsehole’s left leg bumped into the boulder. It dropped its arms, pinwheeling to steady itself. Down it went, performing a backward roll to shake the beach. As it hit the water, a violent hiss of steam engulfed it, smothering it from sight.

Shame it couldn’t muffle the roars.

The flames were doused, the steam clearing to reveal a lump of obsidian in the shallows.

“Is that it?” Isaac said, dropping his sunlight.

The remains of the creature collapsed into gravel, then dust, swallowed by the waves.

“That’s it,” I answered. “Why didn’t it attack?”

Clapping. Applause?

Rhianna appeared out of nowhere, flanked by two shadow witches with magic in their hands. “Well done.”

“What the fuck are you playing at?” Isaac snarled.

Drake moved to my side, slightly ahead of me, as if to protect me.

“You saw what we’re capable of,” she answered. “You were only meant to see, to indulge me by taking it down. Now I see what you’re made of, and it’s shit.” She laughed, the witches joining in.

Hilarious. “Really?” I countered.

She nodded, completely unbothered that we outnumbered her. “You’re not so great, are you?”

Damn. If only I hadn’t used my illusion. I’d be making her believe she was a fly caught in a spider’s web.

Yikes.

Her smug expression scraped against my soul. “We’re sick of your voice. Kindly piss off.”

She scrunched her face. “Fuck you. This is only the beginning. If you and The Sun don’t hand yourselves over in five days, great suffering will come to the streets of Coldharbour. Be fucking warned.”

A shiver of dread hit my confidence.

“Unless we kill you now,” Issac said. “You’re fair game now, your bond bullshit is down.”

“You can’t beat me or House Kingwood,” she returned. “You’re too weak, at a complete disadvantage with no Star to make you whole.”

Cue laughter.

Aaron aimed his gun. “Do you know where he is?”

“Fuck off.”

“Take your own advice, dog breath.”

She glanced at the sea. “Well, have a great evening.”

Magic bloomed in my hands courtesy of my witch bangle. We’d brewed offensive potions but hadn’t taken them in our rush down here.

Silly…

“You’re not leaving this beach,” I warned.

The witches beside her pulled potions from their pockets.

Rhianna cocked her head.

The two witches tossed the potions into the air. Both vials burst, black whooshing into a dark swirl of clouds, smothering the three of them. Seconds later, it cleared, but Rhianna and her were cronies gone.

Dammit.