Page 27

The other mages were too busy fighting for their lives to prevent Cinaed’s team from approaching the tortured Ailpein. With every new spell, Reid’s desperation grew. I kept alert, hoping he’d make another mistake so I could end the fight, but he never gave me the opening.

A tremendous crash echoed through the chamber.

Bart’s barrier finally gave way in a shower of rocks and arcane energy, the concussion making my ears pop painfully.

The rush of air from the entrance washed over us, carrying the metallic tang of fresh dark magic.

With their backs to the wall, the mages facing Bart and Eldwin couldn’t see the entrance and flinched at the sound, bits of stone dust settling on their shoulders. Three more died before they recovered.

Dark mages poured through the opening, their stones glowing with malevolent energy. Fourteen had entered the cave before I stopped counting. I wasn’t giving up, but our chances dropped dramatically.

“Free the king,” Cael said, rushing to Bart’s position. Malachy and Cinaed hurried to Ailpein’s prison.

The enemy rushed forward, expecting their numbers to overwhelm my brother and uncle. They clearly hadn’t remembered what happens to a mage when they form a mate bond with a shifter.

Cael and Bart moved in perfect synchrony, their gems glowing in harmony.

Cael’s sapphire sent ripples through the stone floor, while Bart’s tourmaline created intricate geometric patterns in the air above.

When the spells merged, they erupted into a purplish-blue shockwave that caught the charging mages like insects in amber, suspending them in contorted poses before flinging them backward.

Another example of the sum being greater than the parts.

Their bond amplified two powerful mages to incredible levels.

Together, they created a devastating combination of purple arcane energy and blue earth magic that sent three of the invaders flying backward.

Eldwin and Hro joined the fight, and the four kept the lesser mages back on their heels.

Reid’s triumphant expression didn’t last long as his back-up failed to turn the tide of the battle. He lashed out at me with magic fueled by rage and desperation. I parried his attacks, my counters calm and measured. I waited for his recklessness to give me an opening I could exploit.

As Reid and I continued our duel, Cinaed and his father had freed Ailpein from his prison. I stole a glance and the king looked diminished. He stumbled as he emerged, leaning heavily on Malachy for support.

Ailpein spoke to his family, but I only heard single words. There was an apology, gratitude, relief, and an urgency we all felt.

The opportunity in Reid’s defense happened, but not how I’d hoped. Reid launched a new attack, but directed it at Ailpein, Malachy, and Cinaed.

My brain stopped working at the thought of Reid hurting Cinaed. Logically, I should’ve used Reid’s distraction to kill him. His spell might seriously hurt or kill a phoenix, but they’d regenerate. Seeing any attack on Cinaed, however, overrode rational thinking.

Aiming my magic in the path of the hostile spell, I instantly realized Reid had played me. He quickly pivoted and fired a new spell in my direction. Black energy sped toward me, faster than I could shift back to defense. My shields would probably hold, but I’d still be rattled.

I pulled my stone across my chest, hoping to reinforce my protections. The dark magic hit with the force of a truck. I staggered from the blow, my teeth vibrated, and I stood on wobbly legs. Reid grinned and took advantage of my condition to toss more black energy at me.

Just before the deadly spell struck, something flew into its path. The cracking bolt hit one of the phoenix guards flush in the chest. As the being collapsed, I struggled to clear my head.

The phoenix’s sacrifice surprised Reid, giving me an extra second to recover. It wouldn’t be enough. My ears still rang from the first blow, and I labored to shore up my protection. My foe shook off his disbelief and raised his black gem to pound on my rickety shield.

A surge of energy filled the chamber. The golden energy warmed me and refreshed my strength. It also distracted Reid before he could release his next attack.

Between one heartbeat and the next, something fundamental changed inside me.

The barrier that kept Cinaed and me from fully connecting dissolved like snow on a warm spring day.

The flood of power should’ve swamped me under its weight, but this was Cinaed joining his soul to mine.

We’d prepared for this for decades, and far from disrupting my concentration, it grounded me in a way I’d never experienced.

Reid must’ve realized Ailpein had revoked the magic keeping Cinaed and me apart, as his features contorted with anger and fear. He fired off a string of incantations, no doubt hoping I’d be disoriented for a few seconds.

The black energy washed harmlessly off shields stronger than any I’d ever created.

My diamond blazed with white light, channeling my new power into a blinding ball of magic.

I released the spell into the barrage of Reid’s assault.

White shredded dark, and his shields shattered like brittle glass.

Reid’s eyes widened a second before he flew back into the stone wall.

He crumpled to the ground with a sickening crack that reverberated in the sudden quiet.

His fingers uncurled and his stone rolled from lifeless fingers.

It rolled slowly, leaving a faint trail of residue on the rough floor.

The few enemy mages who were able fled back through the entrance they’d forced open. For a moment I considered chasing them, but something more important called me.

Cinaed stood halfway between his family and me, his amber eyes wide with wonder. Our connection sang to me with a beauty I didn’t believe possible. The feeling of completeness banished the emptiness I’d lived with for so long.

We moved toward each other, drawn by an irresistible force. Raw emotion filled me, and I wanted to laugh at how wonderful it felt. Its warmth thawed the ice I’d surrounded my heart with to survive until this day.

The world fell away, leaving only Cinaed registering in my mind.

The cavern’s temperature climbed several degrees as Cinaed’s copper phoenix fire merged with my white mage energy.

Steam rose where our combined magic touched the damp walls.

The cave, the battle, even the looming threat, receded into insignificance as our bond, so long frustrated by Ailpein’s spell, finally settled into place.

Our connection exploded into fullness, decades of longing crystallizing into a perfect union of souls. His thoughts flooded into mine, and mine into his, not as separate streams but as a single, harmonious consciousness.

Cinaed’s inner fire, always kept carefully controlled around others, flared in response to our bond, surrounding us both in a gentle corona of golden light.

My diamond blazed in answer, white light merging with his fire to create a luminescence that was neither phoenix nor mage. It was perfect and uniquely ours.

For a moment, we allowed ourselves to exist in the joy of our newly formed bond. After decades of separation and pain, we relished the chance to breathe in the reality of what we’d fought so long to achieve.

Then the Earth intruded, reminding us of our duty. We needed to create a new Great Ward and frustrate the plan Blackstone had devoted his life to making a reality.

Bart and Cael watched us with huge smiles.

“We’re so happy for you.” Bart swept me into a huge hug. “You two deserve this happiness after all you endured.”

Cael replaced Bart as my brother embraced Cinaed. Even the normally dour Hro looked happy as he congratulated us on our status.

The Earth nudged us again, and this time I obeyed. “We need to create a new ward immediately,” I said, slipping my fingers between Cinaed’s. I didn’t need the contact anymore, but I still craved his touch.

“Yes,” Eldwin said. “Prepare the spell while Bart and Cael link in the other guardian pairs.”

Cinaed and I opened ourselves and linked our cores tightly together. Bart and Cael joined us, and this time, I saw the vibrant relationship they shared through the lens of my newfound connection.

Jan and Conall joined us next. Their happiness for me and Cinaed pulsed through the link. It was the same when Leo and Gund entered. Leo’s love came with a side of snark that made it feel even more real. Finally, the steady presence of Otto and Thal completed our group.

“Everyone ready?” I asked.

Affirmative responses arrived in feeling rather than words.

The spell itself was simple. Any of us could cast it.

Earth magic, flowing through our bonds, would power the ward.

The near-infinite well of energy the planet held would ensure the barrier never ran out of fuel.

My job was to weave the power into something vast and impenetrable.

I gathered the magic needed, but the ground shuddered, disrupting the spell.

A deep vibration traveled up through my bones, setting my teeth on edge.

It felt like the threads of a centuries old tapestry were being violently torn out.

The tremor originated deep inside the earth, and the planet groaned in pain —not just a sound, but a sensation that pressed against my skin like a physical weight.

“No,” Eldwin gasped, as he and Hro steadied themselves against the wall. “It’s fallen.”

We were too late. Blackstone had dissolved the Great Ward. Through our newly formed bond, Cinaed’s heartbreak rose to match my own. We exchanged a silent look as our worst fear became reality.

Connected to the Earth, I felt demons summoned all over the world. Most winked out in seconds, but a few survived the attacks of the mages on alert for their arrival.

Malachy stared at Cinaed, panic written on his face. The fight to free Ailpein had delayed us just long enough to make us too late. I could almost hear Reid’s mocking laughter and his voice saying, “told you so.”

We grappled with the repercussions of what had just happened in silence. No one wanted to mention the solution to this problem, as if by not speaking the words, it wouldn’t come to pass. They meant well, but it wouldn’t change things.

Creating the new ward would no longer be simple. The part of the spell needed to push out all the demons who evaded the mages wasn’t that much more difficult. It was the enormous burst of power required. A burst Cinaed and I would need to supply personally.