Chapter 17- Luther
ONE WEEK OF research and tirelessly monitoring the ley lines has led to this. Our team is in some woodsy area in upstate New York, ready to take on any cultists and hopefully find the last of these gauntlet pieces.
And by my team, I mean Necia, Max, and Taz.
My boyfriend and I have been going strong during our off time, going on dates, occasionally having sex, and sleeping with each other every night.
I’m growing addicted to waking up next to Taz; I wonder if it’s too soon to ask to move in with him.
When he shoots me an adorable grin and bounces his eyebrows at me, my cheeks warm.
I’m trying not to flirt with him mid-mission, but it’s not like I don’t notice the funny looks Max and Necia are also sharing during work hours.
If we weren’t fighting homicidal cultists, this might constitute as a double date.
“About a half-mile ahead,” Necia says, pointing forward. I’m not sure if it’s better or worse that the threat of the week is walking distance from our Upstate New York portal. It’s annoying to have to rent a car every time we’re on a mission.
We trek through the woods, far away from any roads or villages. While I’m glad to be away from innocent bystanders, the evening twilight once again feels like we’re walking into a horror movie. Fortunately, I’m charged up with geo arcanum in my pocket, but anything goes with these warlocks.
Fifteen minutes later, Max stops and points through the trees. Lo and behold, we spot a faint orange glow, contrasting the darkening sky. When I wave my hand, I sense the undeniable pulse of dark energy. We trek closer, looking around at all sides for any cultists.
When we reach the clearing, it’s an ominous sight; four seven-feet-tall torches are lit aflame. Each of the wooden poles, several yards apart, has a body tied to it. It’s a grotesque display, and I pray we got here on time.
“Cauldrons,” I mutter. “Max!”
“On it.” He jogs to one, and I make my way to another.
As I undo the knots, I give a brief glance at the victim. A middle-aged man is tied up, unconscious, but thankfully breathing. “I got a live one,” I say.
“This one too!” Taz hollers from my left. He’s undoing a set of knots while Necia is at the farthest torch. Before I can ask her what her victim looks like, I sense a pulse of dark magic approaching us.
“It looks like we made it on―aggh!” Max’s words are cut off by an unintelligible sound from his throat. He falls over, and behind him stands a man wearing a purple robe, with arcana dripping from his hands.
“Max!” Taz hollers, and we both run to him.
“If it isn’t the world-famous wizard cops,” the cultist says in a deep, sinister tone.
Undoing his hood, I notice he’s bald with bright red eyes, a distinct face to say the least. There’s no time to dwell on that when he launches a volley of purple fire at us.
My instincts kick in, and I swiftly stand before my boyfriend and summon an energy shield.
“Stand down!” I shout as he shoots another blast of fire at us. Taz tries to move around me, but I grab his arm to keep him behind the barrier.
“We do not answer to you.” The warlock summons energy between his hands, getting ready for another blast. “You are nothing but insignificant curs in the grand scheme of the universe!”
My shield powers down, and when another ball of fire is lobbed at us, Taz pushes me to the right, narrowly dodging its trajectory.
“We are the Unheard, and the finality is upon us!” The red-eyed man’s menacing voice grows louder as he approaches us. I can spot the jeweled bracelet, a piece of the gauntlet, on his left hand, as both of his palms drip with arcana.
“Our promised time is coming. And you will not stand in the way!”
“It’s not worth it! Working for the Other Side isn’t worth it!” Taz says as he helps me up.
“What do you know about worth?”
I summon roots from the ground to bind the cultist, but he magically swats them away with ease.
“You pathetic, privileged plebeians were born into a life of magic. The rest of us deserved it and got NOTHING!” He sends a wave of fire toward us, and I freeze in fear. Taz swiftly gets in the way and summons dirt from the ground to form a miniature wall between us, effectively blocking the fire.
Before I can react, a purple blade of energy cuts the wall of soil, and it crumbles before us. The maniac is holding a massive blade and steps closer to us.
“You will not stand in the way of the finality. We will be heard!” He raises the sword, and I summon magic into my palms. “We will be―aggh!”
The cultist falls forward, and his sword dissipates. Behind him, a light blue lasso of energy drags him back. “Yeah, pro tip, buddy? Don’t start a villain monologue until you’ve dispatched all of the heroes.”
“Necia!” Taz and I exclaim in relief.
“Thanks for distracting him, boys.” She conjures more energy to wrap the perpetrator up in several glowing rings. “If one of you would be so kind?”
“Already ahead of you,” Taz says. He steps close to the man and plucks the bracelet right off of him. “That should be the last of this thing.”
“Yes, please!” Max says, slowly standing up.
“Max!” I say, running to his side.
“Baby, are you okay?” Necia asks. She wrangles the cultist closer, in a rough maneuver. Peering at him, she says, “If you hurt my man again, I’m chopping off your fingers.”
“I’m good,” Max says, brushing off his shirt. “A little embarrassed.”
“We’ll get you to the infirmary when we get back to HQ,” I remark.
“And we’ll get this guy to interrogations,” Necia adds.
“What about these people?” Max asks, pointing to the torches.
“Let’s check and see who’s alive and ask Cleo to call local authorities for them,” I say.
“I’ll check the last one,” Taz remarks. With that, he runs off, and I approach Necia.
“Allow me to help.” In moments, I summon roots and branches to bind his hands and gag his mouth, replacing Necia’s spell.
“Thanks,” Necia adds. “But I’ll drag him back myself.” She grabs the branch rings and moves him forward, and the bound cultist stumbles along.
“And I’ll set up a foggy perimeter so that mortals won’t notice,” Max says. He grins at Necia and bumps his shoulder against hers. “Thanks for being a kickass superheroine.”
She titters, and I turn to finish assessing the other potential victims. I don’t walk three steps before I hear Taz’s voice in the distance.
“Guys?”
“What’s up?” I holler.
“Come check this!”
My instincts warn me this can’t be good. I jog over to the torch where Taz is hunched over a limp body. This victim is particularly bloody, and I frown. We didn’t make it in time to save this person.
“Shit,” I say.
“It’s so much worse than the others we’ve seen.”
“Blood magic,” I say dolefully. As Taz inspects the mangled corpse, I notice a small trench in the ground. Huh.
After stepping a few feet away, I use my flashlight to follow the trench. It’s deep red and seems to be flowing in a small circle around this one specific torch.
It’s the blood of the sacrifice. And it’s in the shape of mystical runes, carved into the ground.
The ground my boyfriend is standing at the center of.
“Taz!” Just as he looks up, the air above us shifts.
The red runes, powered by the blood of a human sacrifice, light up.
One rune flies out, narrowly dodging me, and lands square at the perpetrator.
The red-eyed man glows white, and he appears pleased as he disappears into thin air, his bindings falling to the ground.
“Shit!” Max curses from afar. The perpetrator is gone. The ritual did that! But that means…
Taz gazes around at the glowing red circle surrounding him. I don’t have time to think, only to act. Rushing up to Taz, I push him aside, out of the circle. With a sound like the crack of thunder, the sky above me opens into a rift of purple haze.
And the gravity of it pulls me in. The last thing I see before flying upward is Taz’s hands trying to grab me. I reach for him, but my body is flung upward. Even as I fall into the sky, I have the clarity to know I’m headed into the Other Side.