Page 34 of Magical Melee (Stonewick Magical Midlife Witch Academy #1)

The cottage behind me shook again as another blast of energy slammed through the trees. Pines clacked together as several fell to the forest floor with a thud.

Dust and bits of debris floated through the air.

The sky filled with the deafening cacophony of screeching gryphons, roaring gargoyles, and the crackling of defensive powers straining under pressure.

Keegan swung his glowing sword with deadly precision, deflecting a blast of dark energy back toward one of the shadowy creatures it came from. A piercing shriek screamed from its lips and dissolved into a cloud of smoke. A gryphon flapped its soaring wings and flew toward the clouds.

Nova moved with serene focus as her staff glowed. She reinforced the cottage while Stella hurled bolts of energy from her fingertips, shouting instructions as if this were just another busy tea shop day.

I gripped my wand tightly and aimed at a spiraling black shadow diving toward Keegan.

My mind quickly tried to grasp at anything I might have read over the last while that would tell me what to do.

“Go away,” I screamed as I kept my wand pointed at the creature.

Nothing happened.

Of course, nothing happened.

But then the creature stopped charging toward Keegan, let out a screech, and turned its attention to me.

“Uh, guys?” I said, my voice rising as panic set in. “A little help here?”

Keegan sliced through another creature and glanced at me. He didn’t seem too worried. Rather, his expression was both amused and exasperated. “You have to channel the energy, Maeve. It’s not a toy.”

“Thanks for the tip, Captain Obvious,” I snapped, stepping back as the creature landed only feet away.

And then I remembered what Stella had taught me.

“By light and will, your darkness be gone. Time will cast you to the beyond.” My wand, charged with electricity, zapped toward the creature as my body fatigued.

“Let the wand guide you.” Keegan watched me.

“Let the wand guide me,” I muttered, holding it up again. “Alright, wand. Do your thing.”

“By light and will, your darkness be gone. Time will cast you to the beyond,” I said again and charged toward the being.

In an instant, the creature vanished.

But another came in its place.

“Fire!” I shouted, and a blast of bright blue energy shot from my wand.

The bolt streaked through the air, narrowly missing Karvey, who had just launched himself off the roof in a surprisingly graceful attack on another shadow figure.

“Watch it!” Karvey yelled with a chuckle. “I’m on your side!”

“Sorry!” I called back, my face heating with embarrassment. “First time with a wand!”

Karvey let out a grumble that sounded suspiciously like “Amateurs” before slashing at a shadow figure with his sharp stone claws.

“Focus, Maeve,” Keegan shouted, his voice cutting through the noise. “You’ve got this!”

I gritted my teeth and tried again, this time aiming more carefully. I took a deep breath, aimed, and released as I thought the spell instead of saying it.

The energy surged from the wand, striking the evil darkness in its side. It let out a piercing cry, its flight faltering as it spiraled downward, crashing into the garden below.

“Yes!” I pumped my fist in triumph. “Take that.”

Would Celeste even believe this?

Or Skye?

Another one came to attack. I raised the wand. My confidence grew as I sent another bolt of energy flying. This one hit its target dead-on, and the creature veered off course, narrowly avoiding a collision with one of the gargoyles.

Keegan paused for a brief moment and turned to look at me with his sword held loosely in his hand.

There was something in his eyes—something warm, almost admiring. His gaze lingered, and despite the chaos around us, I felt a sudden heat swell in my chest.

I swallowed hard, my heart pounding for reasons that had nothing to do with the battle.

“Eyes on the fight, Keegan!” I called, forcing a grin. “You’re not the only one who can take down a beast.”

He smirked, his hazel eyes flashing with something unreadable. “Not bad, Maeve. Maybe you’ve got some talent after all.”

“Maybe?” I shot back, firing another blast at a rolling darkness from the forest. “I’d say that’s solid talent!”

Stella, still hurling energy bolts with deadly accuracy, laughed. “This Bellemore’s got spirit. I’ll give her that.”

Nova, calm as ever, reinforced the cottage with another sweep of her staff.

“Focus on the task at hand,” she said, though there was a faint smile on her lips. “The fight isn’t over yet.”

As if to prove her point, another wave descended, with screeches filling the air. The gargoyles soared through the sky, meeting them head-on in a fierce aerial battle.

A black cloud dove toward Karvey, and I gasped in panic as I raised my wand. The energy within it crackled eagerly.

“Not today,” I muttered, sending a blast of blue light straight at the beast. It hit with a satisfying thud , and the creature spiraled away, disappearing into the trees.

Karvey turned to look at me with a proud nod.

Keegan was still watching me, his smirk softening into something warmer. “You’re getting the hang of it,” he said, his voice low.

“Don’t act so surprised,” I replied, though my cheeks were flushing again.

Before I could say more, another loud crack shook the cottage.

“Brace yourselves!” Stella shouted as another wave of dark shadows slammed through the forest.

“All of this is a distraction,” I said bitterly. “I want Gideon.”

I gripped the wand tightly, feeling the energy within it pulse in time with my heartbeat. Despite the chaos, the danger, and the very real possibility of failure, I felt a strange sense of clarity.

I could do this.

The fight wasn’t over, but I was ready.

The battle raged on. The cottage trembled under the assault from Shadowick’s forces. The gryphons shrieked as they clashed with dark creatures in the sky, their wings slicing through the air like blades.

Gargoyles roared and dove from the roof, slamming into shadowy figures that tried to breach the cottage. The air was thick with tension and the crackling energy of defensive spells.

I ducked as a bolt of darkness shattered a wooden beam near my head. Splinters flew in all directions, and I stumbled back, raising my wand instinctively.

A pulse of blue energy shot out, striking a shadowy figure creeping through a shattered window. The creature let out a high-pitched screech before disintegrating into a puff of black smoke. I didn’t even need to think of a spell or chant.

The wand just knew.

“Nice shot!” Stella called. Her hands glowed with golden light as she sent another blast of energy.

But even as I fought with my friends, my mind drifted to Twobble.

Where was he?

He’d been so confident when he led me to the tunnel. I couldn’t shake the nagging fear that something had happened to him.

A sudden movement caught my eye. Energy crackled through the woods as a robed figure floated toward us.

A Shadowick wizard? Warlock?

Without thinking, I raised my wand and aimed.

“No, don’t,” Keegan shouted.

Keegan’s beautiful eyes locked on mine.

But it was too late.

A bolt of energy streaked toward the wizard or warlock from my wand. He turned just in time to deflect it with a hastily conjured shield, but the force of the blast knocked the wave of energy back toward me.

The air turned frenetic with electricity as Keegan dove toward me, blocking the charge with his own body as he tackled me.

His body crumpled on top of me as my heart raced with worry. The ache of what had just happened filled every cell of my body with a burning sensation.

“No, Keegan. No…” I muttered, holding back tears. “You can’t. You’re my…” I hit his back. “Get up. Get up now.”

His still body lay on top of me as I ran my hands over his back.

“You’re stronger than Gideon and his foolish army,” I whispered. “Come on, Keegan. I need you.”

Tears lined my bottom lids as I tried to blink them away, shifting under the weight of his body.

His body remained lifeless.

No rhythm of breaths between our bodies.

Just stillness.

“I need you,” I whispered, feeling my throat tighten.

“Maeve, you don’t need anybody,” his gruff voice coated me like the sweetest chocolate. “You’re the strongest woman I know.”

Shock pummeled through me, and I sniffled with a soft chuckle of disbelief. “Then why am I lying underneath a man who just risked his life for me, crying like a…”

He rolled himself off me and smirked. “Aw, you do care for me.”

I narrowed my eyes on his. “Don’t get used to it.”

His lip turned up slightly at the corner. “Oh, I won’t.”

Keegan’s fingers laced through mine as he helped me up.

I cleared my throat. “But, thank you.”

“I never break my promises.” Keegan was beside me now, his sword flashing as he deflected a dark spell aimed at Nova from the same wizard.

“Stay focused!” he shouted over the din. “They’re trying to wear us down.”

“I noticed,” I shot back, firing another spell at a figure that emerged from the treeline—a witch. Her hands wreathed in brilliant flames as she attempted to aim at Keegan. But my energy hit her square in the chest. She staggered back, and the flames dissipated into thin air.

“Not bad,” Keegan said with a quick grin, but his eyes were sharp and concentrated. “I guess we’re even.”

But I felt a pang of doubt.

Was I enough?

The Academy’s robed figure had offered me a chance to learn and to grow stronger. Yet here I was, fighting with every ounce of my strength alongside the people who had become like my family, and the exhaustion was eating away at me.

Suddenly, a sound like rushing wind filled the air.

I looked up and froze.

A group of figures emerged from the forest, their shapes silhouetted against the brightening sky. Some were walking confidently through the trees, their hands glowing with magic. Others were flying—on broomsticks.

“Oh, no.” My words filled with dread, but Keegan shook his head.

“Don’t worry. They’re on our side.”

I blinked, half convinced I was imagining things. “Are those… brooms?”

One of the flyers dipped low. Their broom skimmed just above the treetops as they hurled a glowing orb of energy at a cluster of shadowy figures. The explosion lit up the woods and scattered the creatures like leaves in the wind. The pine trees clanked their trunks in appreciation.

“Apparently, that’s a thing,” I muttered, half-laughing in disbelief of people flying on cleaning tools.

Stella followed my gaze and let out a delighted cackle. “Oh, it’s about time they showed up!”

“The Stonewick residents,” Nova said, her voice calm but tinged with satisfaction. “They’ve come to fight.”

The newcomers spread out across the battlefield as their magic lit up the forest in bursts of color and energy. Brilliant colors beamed in all directions. A man with a flaming staff strode confidently through the underbrush, his attacks so precise and devastating that he rivaled Keegan.

I spotted a pair of women moving in perfect unison. Their hands wove together, glistening threads forming protective barriers around our allies.

And then I saw her.

The woman from the knitting store—the one who had helped me pick out yarn for Celeste’s scarf. She emerged from the trees with her hair pinned back under a practical wool cap.

In her hands, she carried several skeins of shimmering, enchanted yarn. She moved quickly and efficiently, tying the yarn around trees and bushes in intricate web-like patterns.

As I watched, one of the shadowy figures stepped into the yarn’s path and immediately found itself entangled. The enchanted yarn tightened around it like a snare, and with a quick tug, the woman pulled the figure to the ground, immobilizing the creature completely.

I couldn’t help but laugh, a mix of shock and admiration bubbling up inside me. “Magical yarn traps. Of course.”

The woman caught my eye and gave me a quick nod before moving on to set another trap. Her calm, determined presence filled me with a renewed sense of hope.

The battle surged around us, but for the first time, I felt a flicker of confidence. We weren’t alone in this fight.

Stonewick’s residents had answered the call, bringing their unique talents and magic to protect their home.

Our home.

As I sent another bolt of energy toward an advancing Shadowick wizard, I felt a strange sense of peace settle over me. This was where I was meant to be—not hidden away in the Academy, but here, standing with my friends and the people of Stonewick.

Keegan glanced at me between strikes, his dark eyes filled with an intensity that made my breath catch. “You okay?”

I nodded, a small smile tugging at my lips despite the chaos. “Better than okay.”

He raised an eyebrow, his expression softening for a brief moment. “Good. Stay with me, Maeve. We’re going to get through this.”

The words sent a surge of warmth through me, grounding me even as the battle raged on.

I took a deep breath, my grip on the wand steady.

Whatever came next, I was ready to face it head-on.

Together, we would protect Stonewick—no matter the cost.