The older engineer frowned, and his graying eyebrows knitted together. “I don’t know who you are, but you’re not supposed to be here. This is a restricted area.”
Crestia snorted, her lip curling. “Humans and their rules. They think a locked door will keep us out.”
Limaria glanced at Celise, her calm demeanor cracking slightly. “Celise, maybe we should?—”
“Quiet,” Celise snapped. She raised her hand, and shadows began to writhe around her fingers, dark tendrils coiling like living things.
The engineers froze. Their faces paled as the darkness slithered toward them. “What… What is this?” the younger man stammered, his voice barely above a whisper.
Celise’s smile widened. “This,” she said softly, “is the end of your little empire.”
She flicked her wrist, and the shadows lashed out. But before they could strike, Crestia stumbled back, clutching her head with a gasp. “Something’s wrong.” Her voice trembled. “I can’t feel my magic. It was there, a low pulse beneath my skin, and now it’s gone.”
Limaria’s eyes widened. “What? That’s not possible.”
Hishta raised her hands, her amber eyes wide with confusion. She tried to summon fire, but nothing came. “It’s not working,” she whispered, her voice barely audible.
Thraya stepped forward, her hands glowing faintly as she attempted to summon her healing magic. The glow flickered and died, leaving her trembling. “Celise, what did you do?” Her voice was tight with fear.
Celise turned to them, her shadows dissipating as anger flared in her dark eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“You brought us back.” Limaria’s voice shook. “You must have done something, screwed up the spell, or missed something. This isn’t right. How can our powers be gone?”
“That’s impossible,” Celise snapped. How dare they challengeher.She had done everything, risked everything, in order to fix what Peri had screwed up. “I brought you back stronger. You owe me.”
Thraya’s eyes narrowed, her voice calm but cutting. “You didn’t bring us back stronger. You brought us back broken.”
“Enough!” Celise snarled, her shadows flaring around her. “You’re alive because of me. And if you can’t appreciate that, then stay out of my way.”
Her sisters fell silent, their anxiety thick in the air as they watched her turn back to the engineers. The men, frozen in terror, barely had time to react before the shadows surged forward again, silencing them forever.
Celise didn’t look at her sisters as she moved to the control panel, unleashing her magic into the machinery. Sparks flew, and the hum of the plant grew frantic before the entire system collapsed. The resulting explosion sent shockwaves rippling beneath their feet.
As the flames consumed the plant, Celise turned, her lips curling into a smile. “Let them feel what it’s like to lose everything,” she said softly.
Her sisters followed her out of the ruins, their expressions a mix of fear, anger, and confusion. Celise ignored them. The world was hers to destroy, and she wouldn’t let their doubts—or their broken powers—stand in her way.
As they exited what was left of the building, the night air had changed.
Celise stepped out of the ruined power plant, her boots crunching over shattered glass and debris. The acrid stench of smoke hit her first, sharp and cloying, clinging to her nostrils and throat like a parasite. Half of London lay in darkness, the city’s pulse dimmed to a faint, flickering heartbeat. The skyline that had once glowed with human arrogance was now fractured with pockets of light scattered like the last embers of a dying fire.
Behind her, the heat from the inferno radiated like a living thing, pressing against her back. Flames licked at the sky, their colors vivid and violent—deep oranges and reds interspersed with streaks of eerie blue. The fire roared with a hunger that matched her own, its sound a deafening, primal force that drowned out the distant murmurs of the darkened city. Smoke billowed upward, thick and black, blotting out the stars. Its pungent odor mingled with the underlying metallic tang of burning machinery.
Sweat beaded along Celise’s hairline as the heat intensified, waves of it rolling outward in a suffocating embrace. Even at a distance, it singed the air, making it difficult to breathe. She tilted her head, and her heart beat increased as she surveyed the devastation she had wrought. There was a thrill in it—a satisfaction that bloomed in her chest as she watched the chaos unfold.
She turned to see her sisters standing behind her, their postures tense, their faces illuminated by the hellish glow of the flames. Crestia smirked, her green eyes reflecting the fire as she crossed her arms. “Well, that’s one way to start a revolution.” Her voice was almost drowned out by the crackling blaze.
Limaria frowned, her silver hair catching the faint light of the flames as she scanned the darkened city. “It’s not just the plant. Look at the streets. The traffic lights are out. The buildings, too. This isn’t just a blackout. It’s chaos.”
Thraya stepped closer, her light-brown eyes shadowed with worry. She glanced over her shoulder at the plant, the flames casting flickering shadows across her face. “They’ll be coming. The humans. They’ll try to stop us.”
Hishta, as silent as ever, hovered near Thraya, her amber eyes wide as she stared at the fire. She looked almost ghostlike in the glow of the flames. Her curls were damp with sweat, and her lips parted as though she wanted to speak but couldn’t find the words.
Celise smirked. “Let them come. Humans are predictable. They’ll send their sirens, their flashing lights, their little men with guns. And we’ll send them back in pieces.”
As if on cue, the distant wail of sirens broke through the roar of the fire. The piercing sound was frantic, growing louder with every passing second. Red and blue lights flickered in the distance, reflecting off the shattered glass and twisted metal that littered the ground.
Crestia’s grin widened as she turned to Celise. “Shall we greet them?”
