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Chapter Twenty-One

R oderick:

B lackstone’s scream echoed across the field as the demon’s massive fingers closed around him. Cinaed’s pain pulsed in rhythmic waves through our link. I felt every broken bone and torn muscle, and the echo of his agony twisted in my chest like a blade.

Beneath his pain flowed a current of fierce satisfaction. Only he could’ve knocked Blackstone into the medicine wheel. Despite knowing the consequences, he hadn’t flinched. His courage sent chills across my skin.

I was torn between watching the struggle inside the wheel and checking on Cinaed’s condition.

Malachy cradled his son as golden healing energy flowed from the king’s hands.

Gently he directed the power to the most damaged areas of Cinaed’s broken body.

The worst of Cinaed’s pain ebbed as his father’s amber phoenix healing power sped up his natural regeneration.

“Don’t worry about me,” Cinaed said when his eyes met mine. “I’ll be fine. Focus on Blackstone.”

His reassurance eased some of my concern, but not my guilt.

I gave him a task knowing he’d get hurt.

It had been necessary, but it was still incredibly hard.

I wanted to protect him always, but he was probably stronger than me.

Our new bond was intensely raw. Every injury he sustained felt like a personal failure on my part, regardless of how necessary or willing his sacrifice had been.

Reluctantly, I shifted back to the struggle we’d so carefully orchestrated. “I’ll check back in a moment.”

Inside the multi-colored barrier, Blackstone struggled in the demon’s grasp.

F’dreg tightened his grip, his fingers exerting intense pressure on the shield that kept him from killing his tormentor.

Blackstone grunted as he strained to stay alive.

The sound held none of the arrogance that had defined him for centuries, only panic and terror.

“Release me!” Blackstone demanded, though his voice cracked with fear. “Kill me, and you will never escape this prison!”

My initial satisfaction at seeing Blackstone in fear for his life gave way to the reality of the situation.

F’dreg despised all beings. His hatred of Blackstone was intense, but it wouldn’t prevent a mutually useful alliance.

If the two of them reconciled, they’d be harder to defeat.

As gratifying as it was to watch Blackstone squirm, we needed to use the situation to our advantage.

“We need to exploit Blackstone’s betrayal,” I said to the others. “Getting them to wear each other out, and then take out the winner.”

“Easy to say,” Eldwin said. “But hard to do.”

Blackstone’s shield held, and he blasted F’dreg with a flurry of dark energy bursts from his black gem. If they had any effect, the demon didn’t let it show.

“You are in no position to make demands, human.” F’dreg’s beautiful face twisted into a cruel sneer. “Did you think you could betray me so easily? Release me from this cage now if you want to live.”

“The wheel was a necessary precaution,” Blackstone said through gritted teeth. “Without it, you would have perished. Release me and together?—”

“Silence!” F’dreg’s free hand traced a glyph carved into the ground. “Do you take me for a fool? You’ve woven control sigils into this circle. Did you think I wouldn’t recognize them?”

They were both correct. Without the protections Blackstone wove into the wheel, the Great Ward would kill even someone as strong as F’dreg. There were also powerful runes meant to contain and compel the demon lord.

“Anso and I have found something,” Percy said, his gaze still focused on the ground inside the guardians’ circle.

“The runes Blackstone activated with his black magic control access to the demon realm. They are his insurance against the demon killing him. If he activates them, F’dreg will be sealed inside the wheel.

He’ll be cut off forever from his home and his access to more power. ”

Inside the wheel, the battle entered an assessment phase. Blackstone and F’dreg searched for an advantage to end their standoff. I studied the runes Percy mentioned and I saw the pattern. Blackstone just might outwit a demon prince. “Do they work both ways?”

“No, and yes,” Anso responded. “The portal cannot go both ways at the same time. The runes as selected are poised to seal off the portal for good. Mix some of them with others in the circle and you open a doorway for demons to come to our world. Choose a different configuration of runes and the gate travels from there to here.”

Not the answer I’d wanted, but it gave me an idea. It was crazy, but if it worked it would solve our problem. I needed someone to help me sort this out.

“You’re stressed,” Cinaed said. “How can I help?”

His voice was stronger, less filled with pain, but I hesitated for a moment. Through our bond, however, I felt his resilience. The injuries were healing, but his mind was undamaged. “I have an idea, but it might be insane. What if we bargained with the demon prince?”

“Explain.”

Only my mate would have understood me well enough to hear my thoughts before expressing doubt.

“No matter what happens next, F’dreg has lost. With the new Great Ward in place, he can’t leave the circle.

Blackstone might be able to destroy the Ward if he was on the outside of the wheel, but do you think F’dreg is going to let him leave?

But even if he could get outside again, what incentive does Blackstone have to free his personal power source? ”

“Less than none, if such a thing were possible,” he answered. “F’dreg would fight him for control of the world if he roamed freely.”

Cinaed understood my idea, and his approval gave me confidence. “ Exactly. Which leaves F’dreg three options, two of which were not palatable. Try to leave the circle and the Ward will kill him; stay in his cage and let Blackstone use him to rule the world; or go home.”

I quickly showed him the rest of my idea. He took a moment to consider if it would work. “Can you send him home?”

“I think so.” I smiled despite the seriousness of the moment. “Let’s find out.”

I quickly called my brothers, their mates, and the old guardians into our conversation. “Based on what you told me, I think we can solve both our problems,” I said. “Anso? Can you and Percy co-opt Blackstone’s glyphs?”

Confusion circulated across the link, but no one asked questions. Their trust weighed heavily on me to be sure my decisions were right.

“Yes, but not easily or quickly,” Percy said . “Blackstone sealed the ground so the demon can’t free himself. We’ll need to access them from below.”

My diamond pulsed against my palm as I processed this information. “That may be impossible. I couldn’t understand why Blackstone would create a cave structure below his wheel. It was to prevent doing what you suggest.”

“Not anymore,” Bart said. “I’m not detecting any dark magic in the caves below. The earth magic used to create the new Great Ward must’ve burned it away.”

The assessment, if true, was a glaring flaw in Blackstone’s planning. He wasn’t God, but his attention to detail and ability to anticipate possibilities were beyond anything I’d seen before. “Are you sure it isn’t a trap? ”

“I can reach the underside of the wheel with my earth magic,” Cael said. “Why Blackstone’s glyphs are gone, I can’t say, but they’re not there.”

Inside the wheel, a burst of energy hit F’dreg. The demon growled, but didn’t let go of Blackstone.

“If you don’t release me, you will die inside this wheel,” Blackstone’s voice carried across the field, full of tense defiance. “You can’t deactivate the runes that will trap you here forever. No one can other than me.”

“You think little runes can hold me?” F’dreg snarled, dark energy rippling across his gray skin. “I am a prince of hell. My power is far beyond your pathetic magic.”

The demon’s voice didn’t sound as confident as his words.

“Try it and you’ll be sorry.” Blackstone spoke like a man in a dangerous position, but who knew he still held the winning hand. “You’re already cut off from your power. Only I can reverse that.”

Blackstone was the only one inside the wheel who could open the portal. Either he considered no one outside would be crazy enough to free a demon prince, or he was too focused on F’dreg to remember we were still here. I hoped to make that belief his downfall.

“Do whatever it takes to gain access to those glyphs, but don’t take control until we’re ready,” I said to the group. “I don’t want Blackstone to know what we’re doing until it’s too late.”

The mages sent their non-verbal agreement and began their work.

“What are you planning?” Leifr asked.

The question required me to reevaluate the plan before I could answer. It held little downside risk that I could see. The two sides hated us as much as each other. They were in a standoff neither could break. “I’m going to give F’dreg a third option.”

“It will work,” Cinaed said. “Father says the demon will go home if given the chance.”

I glanced left, and when I saw him a subconscious worry disappeared. Malachy still held his son, but the glow wasn’t as intense. Cinaed’s pain was gone, and his injuries nearly healed. Intellectually, I knew he’d recover quickly, but I needed to see it to fully believe he’d be fine.

“Did he say why?”

“Things didn’t go as F’dreg hoped.” Cinaed stood up and stretched his wings. “His ally betrayed him, the new Great Ward traps him in the circle, and Blackstone is going to lose.”

Our victory wasn’t assured, but I understood why F’dreg could reach that conclusion. “The irony is he planned to betray Blackstone, but was double-crossed before he could act.”

“That was Father’s thinking as well.” He moved gingerly, and after a moment he shifted.