There was no sign of Viktor, but Petra was easy enough to find. Her arm still glowed blue with power as she berated my Necromancers. The sight made blood boil. That is, until another scene grabbed my attention entirely.
My parents were being pulled through the gateways. All the other residents of the Eternal Lands had already vanished, but the Sire and Lady remained and fought against their bounds, twisting, writhing and fighting every step of the way. The cords stayed wrapped about their hands and waist, but the two dug their heels into the meadow. Mauling them into the gateways was slow going.
“Do you see that?” I asked Rowan.
“Hard to miss.”
“We need to send in more power.”
“Right.”
Focusing deep within our souls, Rowan and I delved into every corner of our consciousness, heaving forth every last scrap of hybrid power we could manage. Before, my body had felt so jammed with hybrid magick, I thought I might explode. Now, my limbs felt empty and hollow. Even when my blood had been drained by Kila Kitu, I hadn’t felt this woozy.
Our efforts soon paid off. The violet cords around the Sire and Lady turned thicker and stronger. Suddenly, the ropes flared more brightly than ever before. The cords turned taught and whipped my parents out of this world and through a gateway. Light flared as they disappeared.
Seeing that, something in my soul broke. I’d wanted to know my parents so badly, thinking there was a hole in my heart without them. Now, I realized how much I already had. Rowan, Amelia, Jicho, Rosie…I’d had a loving and full life indeed. My parents were better off where they were, in their own realm while I stayed in mine.
For a moment, the meadow was silent. The Caster and Necromancer armies looked to us expectantly. The Changed Ones were still sealed inside their Orb of Holding. Above us, the red light of the Martyr’s Comet burned more intensely than ever.
That’s when Viktor struck.
My brother had hidden himself inside the Necromancer army. It was easy enough to do, considering how he was already wearing hooded Necromancer robes.
Now, Viktor leapt out from the ranks of death mages. In all the excitement of dispelling the other armies, somehow the Lady had dropped the Sword of Theodora. Or perhaps she gave it to her son. In any case, Viktor now held the Sword in his fist.
And he was racing toward Rowan and me.
The Necromancers and Caster armies roared with rage. That’s when Petra got into the battle as well. She released the magick she’d been storing up and quickly cast a skeletal wall. This was a massive structure made of thousands of razor-sharp bones, and it blocked the Caster and Necromancer armies away. The Changed Ones were left outside the wall, however. I assessed the Orb of Holding that kept them back. They Changed Ones were pounding against the clear walls. Cracks had already formed in the sphere. It wouldn’t last much longer.
Kade could order the palace mages to cast a few spells and shore up the Orb of Holding, but all of Rowan’s people were still blocked behind Petra’s Bone Wall, along with Petra herself. Rowan and I could boost up the Orb of Holding as well, but we’d both depleted our magick in order to get rid of the Sire and Lady. And I couldn’t speak for Rowan, but I not only felt empty, I was exhausted too. My mind felt numb from processing so much magick. Normally, I’d rest for days after what I’d just done. Here, there was no time.
Viktor raised his fist, showing off the totem rings that gleamed on his fingers. He called out the words to launch the spells hidden within the bands. “Attack!” Blue lights flared as the hidden spells came to life.
This was where all Viktor’s planning came into play. His totem spells were all about empowering his army of Changed Ones. Before, the Changed Ones had been mostly human. Now, they all transformed into full hybrids of humans and animals. Lions, eagles, and reptiles…every kind of predator now stood across the meadow from us. They beat against the wall of the Orb of Holding with ferocious power.
The spell burst apart. The Changed Ones were free.
Viktor raced toward us with a hoard of berserk animal warriors behind him. The Sword of Theodora gleamed in his fist.
I searched my soul, looking for any kind of hybrid power left inside me. I was empty. My gaze locked with Rowan’s. “I’ve no magick left. You?”
Rowan shook his head and raised his hand. “We need to recharge.”
I pressed my palm against his and tried to pull Necromancer power into my body. Exhaustion was getting the better of me. No matter how hard I pushed myself, I could only pull in a thin trickle of blue light. Pathetic.
Rowan wasn’t doing much better himself. “I’m too tired. I can’t recharge.”
“We need help.” My gaze ran across the orange totem ring on my own hand. An idea formed. “Whatever power you have, focus it into your totem ring. Maybe we can summon Mlinzi and Walinzi.” It was an outlandish plan, but as least it was one.
“Right.” Rowan glared at his own totem ring with such intensity, I was surprised the metal didn’t disintegrate under his stare.
For my part, I channeled my paltry bit of Necromancer energy into my orange band while repeating the same thoughts, over and over. “We need you. Help us.”
At the same time, Viktor and his army of Changed Ones rampaged closer. Viktor ran before his warriors, a maniacal gleam in his eyes.
I stared down at my hand. The last time the totem ring activated, it glowed orange. Now, the metal looked ordinary and dull. The same was true with Rowan’s ring.
The plan to summon the trickster gods wasn’t working.
Time to fight.
It took a huge effort, but I was able to force myself to face turn and face Viktor straight on. I imagined myself standing strong and tall but in reality, I mostly wobbled. Reaching out with my mage senses, I pulled in whatever Necromancer energy I could find. Another pathetic stream of power wound up my arm. If I got lucky, I might be able to cast a fireball spell. One.
Rowan stood by my side. His hand glowed red, too, and the light of his magick was just as weak as mine.
Viktor was closing in.
Twenty yards.
Ten.
One.
My brother paused before us and raised the Sword of Theodora high. “I told you that you’d power the gateways for me. Thank you for my empire.”
He never got the chance to lower his blade.
All of a sudden, the gateway behind us flared with orange light. The stone arch burst as two gigantic monkeys leapt onto the meadow. It was Mlinzi and Walinzi, and they were angrier than I’d ever seen them.
“Kill!” cried Mlinzi.
Viktor stood frozen in shock, the blade still held above in head. “What in the worlds are you?”
Walinzi pursed her long lips. “I’ve seen this one. He causes you trouble, doesn’t he, Elea?”
“He was about to run me through with a sword, actually.” I was proud of how little I slurred my words.
“Yes, brother. You may kill him. Use the Sword.”