43. Chapter 43
They stood at the edge of the tree line, observing the ongoing battle between another group and Lieutenant Humn, a shorter-than-average male Fae who made up for his stature with thick muscle.
He wielded two axes, handling the melee fighters while being barraged by ranged attacks with an ease that frightened Yareli.
To their left stood a general, their cloak’s hood hiding their face from view.
No magic radiated from them, further concealing their identity.
Yareli cursed; there were too many variables.
“We can’t wait for another group to appear and take the general’s attention. Lieutenant Humn is playing with them. As soon as he’s bored, they’re goners, and our slim window of opportunity will be gone,” Vanessa whispered, giving a nod to Erbert, who cast the haste spell on Yareli.
“Ines, stay near the back until we send the smoke canister,” Vanessa said. “Then, go. Hesitation will cost us, got it?”
“Got it,” Yareli said, her voice quieter than she hoped it would be.
Understanding softened Vanessa’s face, and she patted her shoulder. “We all have our roles. There’s no guarantee we can hold the general long enough for you to scale the volcano. We’re giving it our best shot, and no one will blame you if we fail. We win as a team. We fail as a team.”
“As one,” Dre echoed, clapping her other shoulder.
Even Erbert gave her a curt nod. “Try not to die.”
Yareli snorted but conceded a small, amused smile. Out of everyone there, he seemed the most willing to die trying, so she could hardly believe he meant it, but she appreciated his attempt.
“Let’s go,” Vanessa said.
They picked their way through the trees until they were facing the general, their head already angled toward them.
A shiver raced down Yareli’s spine; the general awaited them, shifting slightly, readying themselves for the upcoming attack.
Yareli sent a quick prayer to the sky, unsure of who—if anyone—was listening, but if divine intervention existed, she needed it now.
Vanessa led the charge, sword in hand, and Dre trailed behind her, adjusting the straps of his gloves.
Yareli followed Erbert, her bow held out with an arrow nocked.
She released it as Vanessa and Dre reached the general.
They cocked their head, dodging her arrow and Vanessa’s sword in one smooth motion.
The hood fell down, revealing Storm General Tonio, a wide smirk plastered on his face.
“My first challengers! Welcome!”
The glee in his voice made her neck crawl. Tonio’s ruthlessness in the challenges left most of his opponents bedridden for months. Erbert caught her eye, grim determination on his face, and she straightened. She would not hesitate again.
Vanessa swung again; magic elongated her sword’s length and sheared his cloak.
He laughed, shedding it in one fluid motion.
He shot straight at her with speed that rivaled Augrys’s.
Dre stopped him, catching him with his fists; a loud crack went off as the ground sank underneath them from the sheer force of their collision.
Erbert ran closer, preparing an illusion of a Yareli, another smokescreen they hoped would give her more time.
Yareli nocked another arrow, aiming at Tonio. He swiveled, landing a punch on Dre’s gut and sending him to the ground. A burst of heat flashed in front of her, and Tonio was in front of her, his brown skin glowing with crackling blue lightning.
“Your little arrows are pathetic,” he said, his lips pulled back in a sneer. He raised his hand.
“Eat shit,” she said.
The smoke canister flew across the air; Yareli shot it.
A dark cloud erupted over the area, throwing them into instant darkness.
She dropped to the ground, the air above her swooshing as Tonio struck, and rolled into a run.
She pumped her arms hard. Erbert’s spell worked; she was faster than she had ever been.
Time slowed down as she sprinted up the towering volcano, her heart beating in her ears as she fervently prayed that no one would sight her lone figure.
An explosion rocked the ground. Shouting broke out behind Yareli, but she kept her eyes on her target, determined to make it there.
The crater neared, and it almost seemed like she would succeed.
The air shifted; the energy around her crackled with electricity, and she threw a shield around herself before being knocked forward, rolling up the volcano from the sheer force of the hit.
Blood ran down her cheek, but she didn’t dare take the time to wipe it away.
She stood, a blanket of trepidation falling over her.
Tonio stood behind her, watching her with renewed interest.
He said, “Not many have blocked my kick, far less have blocked my lightning kick. And yet, you remain in one piece.”
She coughed, blood splattering her lips. “And yet.”
The false air of bravado did nothing to quell the raging fear rising through the cloud of pain that coursed through her body.
Although her shield had taken the brunt of the hit, it had not been able to block all of it.
The aftereffects reverberated through her—the bruise on her back, the awkward angle her left wrist hung at, and the multitude of cuts from the stones she had rolled on.
One hit. That was all she had taken, and she was already in a poor state.
Her eyes flickered toward the base of the volcano.
“You won’t find any support from your team,” Tonio answered. He drew out a sword—Vanessa’s sword. Her eyes widened at the blood on it. He was unharmed; there was little doubt whose blood was on its steel.
There was no choice. The only way forward was up.
She gathered magic at the balls of her feet, preparing to dodge the imminent attack.
Electricity danced on the sword’s blade, a few of Tonio’s hairs standing up from the static electricity.
Her regular senses would not be enough to dodge the attack.
She closed her eyes and focused on the swirling energies around them.
“Accepting your fate already?” Tonio asked, but she knew he wasn’t looking for an answer. He only listened to the flow of battle, just as she planned to do.
It was easy to identify his energy; the looming blue mass snapped and crackled like the electricity he favored.
When the energy shifted, she leaped to the side, dashing toward the crater.
She kept her magic at her feet, willing the speed she desired to manifest, focused on dodging his lightning all the while.
“Smart woman,” Tonio called out, laughter in his voice. “You know you’re weak!”
She screeched to a halt a moment before a strike split a chasm in the volcano. Changing her trajectory, she risked running parallel to it until she could make the jump over.
His energy swirled faster, and then, in a burst of speed she hadn’t expected, he appeared in front of her.
“I wonder,” he said, “how Augrys will feel when his lieutenant is burnt to a crisp.” His voice had lost its laughter, replaced by a menacing glee. “Although perhaps he won’t mind that I rid him of a pitiful lieutenant.”
His sword gleamed in the light, raised high.
Dispersing her magic from her feet, she threw it outward in front of her, bringing her arms up and steeling them like her magic core’s steel wall.
His sword fell; a metallic clang resounded, and she was blown backward.
She landed on her back, hearing a sickening crack as her head struck the ground, but she stayed conscious.
There’s no way I can do this. Tonio walked toward her, his impending victory all but secured, because Yareli’s limbs weren’t responding to her.
She had to move now. He stood over her, the point of Vanessa’s sword at her chest.
“Is that it?”
Fuck you, she glared at him. They had thrown all they had at him, and it was nothing but child’s play for him. Vanessa, Dre, and Erbert’s dreams and hopes…
A yell filled the air.
“Ines!”
She turned her head in time to watch as a spear hurtled through the air, aimed straight at Tonio.
It struck true, catching him by surprise, and though he blocked it, it sent him flying away from Yareli.
Seeing her teammates standing at the base of the volcano, bloody and beaten, but alive, renewed her determination, and despite her body’s protests, she ran once again.
She was almost at the crater, but Tonio was gaining on her.
She needed more time, which meant it was time for her to gamble.
Yareli took her satchel, gems clinking together, and flung it toward the crater.
Tonio zipped past her, confirming he still prioritized the game despite his bloodlust. With the last of her dwindling magic, she dug into the ground and launched herself toward the other side of the crater.
All she had to do was drop the gems into it.
She fiddled with the latches of the two belts that carried their actual gems and grasped them in her right hand.
Tonio’s said, “How dare you trick me!”
Heat surged, lightning crackled, thunder boomed.
Time slowed. She dove toward the opening and dropped the belts.
And as though the belts had held the weight of it all, the tension left her body as she watched them melt in the lava.
It was done; they had won, but the magic hurtling her way didn’t cease.
In almost a trancelike state, she turned her head to watch the growing ball of lightning.
She knew it wouldn’t stop. Tonio seemed like the vengeful type, and both her body and magic core were depleted. Was this it then? Would she die here?
She closed her eyes.
The blow never came. Instead, a loud clap rang, and she opened her eyes to find a tall figure holding the blade aimed at Yareli’s neck. Through the dust, she wondered if it was Augrys, but as her vision cleared, she saw a familiar shade of braided black hair.