Chapter Sixteen
E ven with the monster locked out from most of its magick, taking it down is proving to be far from easy.
Every spell does nearly no damage at all.
Every strike it deflects.
Blake joins me and I fight the urge to push him away. To protect him. I know that both he and Lucian are blocked from their magicks as well, meaning they can only rely on their base combat skills to help me.
Not that the magickal skills seem to have any sort of proper effect. Fire balls seem to be absorbed. Water balls roll right off. Air bubbles do nothing to stop it. I can’t seem to get a grip on it’s insides to do that squeeze trick I managed to pull off in the battle outside the cave with the cultists either. Like what the fuck?
My focus is honed in on the beast and I deny myself the urge to look over where Lucian rushed to my father’s side.
I know the creature was stealing his essence.
Just as I know that even if Lucian had access to his magicks, there is nothing he could do to save Orobas.
I no sooner let my mind acknowledge the thought when Lucian roars, lunging at the beast with two daggers, using his wings to launch him high enough to stab into the Creatori’s neck.
His rage and the fact that he is no longer at Orobas’s side confirms my fear.
The father I never knew is dead.
This creature has stolen yet another parent from me.
Lucian is in a rage and attacks the creature fiercely. Blake jumps into the mix and I realize that when they attack in tandem, the damage has more lasting effects.
I will never voice out loud that Blake is right about something– no one wants to listen to that ego inflating celebration– but… Blake is right. We need to work together. It can’t over power us all at once.
With Lucian so emotionally driven and the beast not giving us a break either, I can’t communicate my thoughts with my mates. So, I guess I will just have to watch them closely and plan my attacks around theirs.
Lucian launches up again and I watch as his daggers pierce into the monster’s chest. It bellows in pain and anger.
Blake takes the opportunity to stab one of his blades into the monster’s abdomen and it howls louder, but its thrashing begins to slow. Its movements becoming more sluggish. Black blood oozes from every wound now.
This is it.
This is the end.
It just needs the final blow.
I waste no more time on this walking plague, as I flap my wings hard. My hands are on either side of the creature’s head in seconds, and with a scream of my own, I yank the orb from its resting place. The sounds of crunching and ripping flesh fill my ears while the beast grabs my waist and tries to pull me off, leaving gouges from its claws. The pain is so slight, it must only be damage to the flesh. After all, my body was made to take a beating and allow me to keep living.
The Creatori’s body hits the ground and the sounds of our labored breathing fills the area.
No one speaks.
No one moves.
I lower myself to the ground and unceremoniously drop the head on the dirt beside me. My wings pull in and my vision swims as my surroundings brighten.
My magick is clearly depleted and I can feel myself drifting off.
Maybe a nap would be nice. Although, Orobas always gets cranky when we–
Orobas !
I make a mad dash to his side. Lucian is already there, running his hands across my father’s body. Most likely trying to assess the situation, see what he can do to help.
My body begins to deflate and a tear runs down my cheek.
I don’t need to step into the Between to know that he isn’t there. Or at least he wouldn’t stay for long. He’s leaving me. Again .
There is nothing we can do. My father is gone.
Blake and Lucian are speaking over one another, but I can’t hear the words.
I curl up next to my father’s body and rest my hand on his.
Lucian’s hands roam my body and I let myself relax.
The moment I do, the tears begin to flow widely down my cheeks.
As my mind begins to drift into blackness, I let myself ask the Gods for only one thing…
Let him have found his way back to my mother.