Chapter 5 #2
It’s by some miracle that I’m able to force one of my legs free, managing to get a good kick in.
At the impact of my foot on its side, I pull myself towards the creature, grabbing the clawed hand wrapped around my calf.
I heat my palms until they’re scalding, cringing at the sensation of my fingers melting through the thick skin of the creature’s wrist.
From the surface, I hear a shriek, and then it yanks its hand away, forfeiting its grip on me.
I shoot up for air in one quick motion, but freeze when I get to the surface. My lungs shrivel from the breath I’m denying them, but both creatures have shot up too—one a few feet behind me and the other only inches from my right side.
I need a breath, any breath I can get, but they’ll hear me. I’m sure of it. So, I hold it even though my head pounds and my throat burns. I hold it even as spots dance across my vision.
I roll my eyes to the left. The exit is only ten feet away. It’s not like I can outrun them; the mud is too thick, and their bodies are obviously made to move through it without hindrance. For me, it’s quicksand, but for them, it’s water.
I raise an open palm, as silent as I’m able, and face it towards the far end of the pit.
My magic is an extension of my hand, scooping up a ball of mud in the far corner and raising it to the ceiling.
With the point of my finger, it plummets, making enough of a splash for both creatures to sprint after it.
My inhale is euphoric, oxygen spreading quickly to my brain and the rest of my body.
I move faster than I’ve ever moved before, the sound of me scrambling away drowned out by their splashing to get to the other side—
It falls silent again.
Godsdammit, I’m so close. Only a few more feet.
There’s movement in the muck around me, and I slowly lift my eyes as one of the creatures rises no more than a few inches in front of my face, blocking me from the edge of the pit.
It turns its head from side to side, and I do my best to remain frozen, afraid to even blink.
I flip my palm, slowly, mindful of the movement, using magic to pull up more scoops of mud. I send them flying across the pit, smacking the stone wall on the far side, and the creature takes the bait, diving towards the sound. I make a break for it.
Four feet.
Three feet.
The second creature springs from the mud, rushing towards me with its long, dangly arms outstretched.
I duck out of its reach, abandoning all magic as I grab two fistfuls of mud, feeling it squelch between my fingers.
I’m up and ready by the time it circles back around. It lunges forward, arms reaching out.
I let it pass me, then I spring up out of the mud behind it, smashing my muddy handfuls into its ears.
The pale creature roars, whirling around to the spot I’d been standing in, but I’ve already started moving, frantically pulling myself towards the exit. My heart is a wild beast in my chest, and adrenaline is the only thing giving power to my limbs.
One look over my shoulder, and both creatures are racing towards me now, crossing the space between us in steady, powerful glides. The one with mud in its ears has clawed most of it out, and the second one looks to be seeking vengeance.
But I’m so close.
The stone floors that continue the rest of the maze are only inches from my fingertips.
I give it everything I have, pulling myself the last few inches to the exit, and I roll onto the dark stone with a pained grunt, crawling away on my hands and knees as fast and as far as I can.
I throw a weak ward behind me and slump against the far wall, my chest heaving as I cough up mud, moss, and whatever the fuck else was in there.
The creatures come to a stop at the edge of the pit, stoically staring off in my direction, making no attempt to drag me back into—
Their skin begins to melt away, and I’m stunned speechless when pale flesh morphs into Hunter, smiling back at me, mud caking his ears. To his left, Devon’s deep brown skin glistens with sweat. He’s not smiling. Not even close.
“We almost had you,” Hunter taunts. His voice is muffled through the thin ward, so I raise a hand to drop it. Not so I can hear them better, but so they can hear me.
“Fuck. The both of you,” I spit out on a heaving breath, swiping mud off my face and flinging it onto the stone. “I thought illusions couldn’t hurt you.” The gashes on my legs are healing slowly, but the pain is still there—sharp and agonizing.
“It wasn’t an illusion,” Hunter explains, proudly lifting his hand. He’s holding a small metal contraption that looks kind of like a spider. “We used Shifters. It allows us to fully transform into most creatures. Claws and all.”
“I hate this place.”
“Be grateful you faced us and not a real Boglen,” Devon adds. “They’re much harder to fight.”
“So, you were going easy on me?” I ask, ignoring the wobble in my knees as I stand, every inch of my skin caked in mud. “Because it sure looked like you were trying pretty hard.”
“You won’t make it past them,” Devon shrugs, as if it’s a cold, hard fact. He’s nodding to the dark hall behind me—the continuation of the maze. I’m guessing he’s referring to whatever kind of hell Pax and Callan have cooked up for me.
Using the wall for support, I slowly climb to my feet.
It’s not a secret that Devon doesn’t want me in this coven. I have my doubts about Easton, too. I’ve no idea what their gripe is, nor do I care. I have to be in this coven.
“You have something you need to get off your chest, D?” I ask, scraping mud off my hands as I stumble forward. “Go ahead.”
“Devon...” Hunter warns.
“I just don’t think you’re right for this coven.”
“Devon,” Hunter grits out.
I exhale a deep breath, shedding my ruined shirt for my slightly less-ruined sports bra. I toss it to the ground, the muddied fabric slapping against the stone. “I appreciate your honesty.”
If Devon is at all surprised by my reaction, he doesn’t show it. His face remains stoic, a deep line creasing between his brows. A line that never seems to soften.
I gesture an arm to the continuation of the maze behind me. “Do you want to come watch, then?”
Devon’s dark eyes narrow. He’s likely thinking the mud went straight to my brain. I’m not entirely certain it hasn’t.
“I don’t mind, really. If I’m so wrong for this coven, surely you’d enjoy watching me prove your point.” Hunter snorts, Devon rolls his eyes, and I wave a hand, urging them to follow. “Come on, it’ll be fun.”
Though I have no idea what’s waiting for me next, I do know I’ll give it all I have. I didn’t come this far not to go out swinging. If anything, Devon’s skepticism puts some extra fire in my tank. Vita knows I need it.
I can breathe, my heart is still beating, and I can walk. That’s enough for me to keep going. That and the knowledge that this is it, the final test. The end of Albatross. Hopefully.
I’ve already made it halfway down the hall when I hear two sets of footsteps following. Hunter and Devon bicker about something too quiet for me to hear. I’m not really listening anyway.
A steady stream of magic flows under my skin, rippling all the way down to the dirt beneath my fingernail. I keep myself on high alert, cutting right at the end of the corridor.
There’s a flash of light as soon as I turn. It bursts from around the next corner, illuminating the dark stone bright enough that it nearly blinds me.
It’s followed by the unmistakable rumble of thunder.
My heart rate picks up. The poor thing had just settled.
Knowing that nothing will prepare me for whatever I’m about to walk into, I move forward despite the fear, pulse thrumming down the sides of my neck.
In one quick step, I turn around the next corner and find myself smack dab in the middle of a desert. I’m high up on a dune, sand shifting beneath my feet. All evidence of the maze disappears. I’m somewhere else entirely.
The sky is black and riddled with heavy clouds, but I make out a few stars tucked behind it all. I quickly steal the smallest ones, storing their light for myself. It glitters like fireflies as it seeps through my skin, the soft glow dancing around my outstretched fingers.
There’s another blinding flash of light, illuminating the entire desert, and I barely jump back in time as lightning strikes the sand only inches from my feet.
Before I can fully get my bearings, a second strike comes down, followed by a clap of thunder so loud I feel the vibration in my chest.
Boots skidding through the sand, I slide down the side of the dune, flipping onto my stomach as soon as I get to the bottom. Heart in my throat, I peer around the mountain of sand, hoping to get a better view of the desert.
As if the dimly lit space isn’t bad enough, rain begins to fall—slow at first, then all at once—until I can hardly see anything through the downpour. The white sand darkens, the rapidly falling drops pelting the grains as another lightning strike hits the sodden ground.
But this time, when the light bursts, illuminating the desert, I spot a dark figure standing on top of a faraway dune.
Another strike hits, only inches from my shoulder, and I catch a glimpse of red hair peeking out over the top of his mask.
Pax. But there’s some kind of neon light wreathing his fingers. It wraps all the way up his arms, and—
Oh, shit.
Pax has lightning.
The clap of thunder that follows has me spinning until my back is against the bottom of the dune, hopefully keeping me out of his view. I take the brief moment I have to search the dark sky, scanning the far walls for a way out, but I don’t see anything. What the hell is the objective here?
I squint through the downpour, and suddenly my eyes catch on a glint of silver nearly a hundred yards away.
A target.
The bullseye is no more than a speck from here, but I can easily make out the rings around it.
Lightning hits the sand beside me, and a clap of thunder follows only three seconds later.
It hits me then, like a punch to the gut. No, a boulder to the gut.