“We’re ready.” Tyler suddenly appeared. He looked tired, but his dark eyes burned with determination.
Synica nodded. “It’s time.”
Temple approached, his steps silent on the soft grass. “You’ve done your part here. Whatever lies ahead, good luck in draheim.” His words were calm, but there was a quiet sincerity in them that surprised her.
“Thank you.” Synica turned to the others—Sadra, Raith, the djinn elders, elves, and the fae warriors who would flash them to draheim. “Let’s go.”
The world around Synica blurred as the fae’s magic enveloped her and her group. The sharp, acrid stench of smoke and blood faded, replaced by something darker. The disorienting rush of magic made her stomach churn, and the world seemed to fold in on itself before snapping back into focus.
When the light faded, they stood in front of the veil—a shimmering, translucent barrier that was pulsing with an otherworldly glow. In front of the veil stood three djinn males. One held theNushtoniaopen in his hands, and all three had their palms pressed against the pages. She could see the crimson red of their blood soaking into the pages as the book drew in their power. The air was thick with the hum of ancient power.
The three males were oblivious to the group of supernaturals who’d just flashed into their presence. They were chanting in some ancient tongue, focused solely on their task.
“STOP!” Synica shot forward to grab the male holding the book—the male that had to be Shade. But he turned, his lips still chanting, and his power held her in place.What the hell? Frozen, she stared at him.
Synica’s body was rigid, locked in place by the unseen force radiating from Shade. The only thing she could move was her head. Her breath quickened, and her eyes narrowed as she fought against the invisible bonds. Every muscle screamed with resistance, but there was no give. The weight of Shade’s power, suffocating and unrelenting, pressed down on her chest.
Around her, the others stood frozen as well, their expressions a mix of anger, fear, and confusion. Tyler’s eyes burned with frustration as he strained against the hold, his jaw clenched tightly. Jeff’s broad shoulders heaved with barely contained fury.
Shade turned to face them fully, theNushtoniastill open in his hands, its pages glowing with a sinister light. The crimson stains of his blood, and that of the other two djinn warriors, seemed to pulse, as though the book itself was alive, feeding on their magic. Shade’s black eyes were cold, sharp as steel, and utterly unyielding.
“Shade!” Myron’s deep, commanding voice cut through the tension. The djinn elder’s expression was grim, but there was a flicker of something else there—something close to desperation. “What are you doing? This isn’t the way. Whatever you think theNushtoniais going to give you, it’s not worth this!”
Shade’s lips didn’t stop moving as he continued his chant, the ancient words rolling off his tongue in a steady, unbroken rhythm. The power around him thickened, pressing harder against Synica’s chest. She could feel it now. Her breath hitched as a sharp, pulling sensation gripped her, and she looked down in horror to see thin, glowing tendrils of magic flowing from her body. They were pale and translucent, like smoke, but she could feel their weight, their pull, as they were siphoned away.
“No,” she whispered, her voice trembling with disbelief.
She turned her head as much as she could, her eyes darting to the others. The same tendrils were flowing from them, too—from Tyler, Jeff, Myron, Rouse, and even the fae and wolves who stood farther back. The magic was being drained fromallof them and pulled toward theNushtonialike water to a vortex.
“Shade, stop this.” Tyler’s voice was a growl, his alpha dominance surging even though he was held immobile by the djinn’s power. “You don’t know what you’re doing!”
The chanting faltered for the briefest of moments, Shade’s jaw tightening, but he didn’t stop.
“Don’t do this.” Myron’s voice cracked with urgency. “You’re drawing on power that doesn’t belong to you.You’re hurting them.You’re hurting your own people, for gods’ sake! This isn’t you!”
Shade’s black eyes flicked to Myron, and for a split second, Synica thought she saw something there—hesitation, doubt, pain. But then the cold mask returned, and Shade turned back to the book.
“It’s no use,” Raith snapped, his golden orbs gleaming with knowledge. He looked entirely unfazed by the tension in the air, his expression one of detached amusement even as his own power was being pulled from him. “Shade’s made up his mind. You could scream at him until your lungs give out, and it wouldn’t make a difference.”
“Raith,” Myron hissed, his voice laced with frustration. “Dosomething.”
Raith shrugged, his lips curling into a smirk. “Why? He’s not going to listen to me. He’s determined to get what he wants, even if it costs all of us.”
Synica wanted to scream, to lash out at both of them, but her body remained locked in place, her magic still being siphoned away. The pull was stronger now, more insistent, and she could feel her energy weakening.
And then it happened.
TheNushtoniafell from Shade’s hands, hitting the ground with a deafeningthud. The earth beneath them trembled violently, and the trees around the clearing swayed as though caught in a hurricane. The power radiating from the book surged outward in a wave, shaking the very air.
Shade, Edric, and Valin took a step back, their expressions shifting from determination to something closer to fear. The book’s glow intensified, and the runes along its pages writhed like living things.
Black smoke began to pour from the book, thick and oily. It twisted and curled as it rose into the air. Coils of darkness snaked out from the smoke, writhing and snapping like hungry beasts. The ground beneath the book cracked, and jagged fissures spread outward as the power within it throbbed, alive and wild.
Synica’s heart pounded in her chest as she stared in horror. This wasn’t just power—it was somethingelse.Something ancient, malevolent, and impossibly strong.
“What have you done, Shade?” Myron whispered, his voice barely audible over the chaos.
Shade didn’t answer. His eyes were locked on the book, his jaw tight, his hands clenched into fists at his sides. For the first time, Synica saw doubt in his expression.
