“Three down,” she muttered, pulling the blade free.
She turned to the fae. “And now for you.”
The fae didn’t struggle as Celise stepped into his circle. He simply stared at her, his golden eyes filled with a strange mix of defiance and resignation.
“You think you’re better than us.” His voice was calm. “But you’re just like me. Like all of us.”
Celise’s smile didn’t waver. “Maybe. But the difference is, I win.”
The blade flashed in the candlelight, and the fae’s life ended in a single, clean stroke.
The air in the room grew heavy with the power from the four sacrifices swirling around them like a living thing. Felspar’s chanting reached a crescendo, and his voice echoed off the walls as the stolen magic was drawn into the blood circles.
Celise stepped back, her chest heaving as she watched her sisters. The energy flowed into them, and their bodies trembled as their powers were restored. The room filled with a blinding light—a brilliant, searing glow that burned away the shadows.
Celise’s sisters stood in the center of the room, their eyes wide with wonder as they flexed their fingers to test their renewed strength.
“It’s done.” Felspar’s voice was hoarse. “Their power is restored.”
“Excellent.” Celise had things to destroy, humans to kill, and havoc to wreak. She lifted her hands, splitting the air open. “Let’s go.”
She stepped through another portal, her sisters following close behind. New York City awaited, and Celise had every intention of making it burn. Her dark cloak billowed behind her as the humid night air of the city rushed to greet her. The lights of Times Square assaulted her senses—flashing neon advertisements, massive LED screens, and glowing billboards that stretched high into the sky, displaying their relentless messages of consumerism. The press of humanity was suffocating. Bodies jostled and weaved through the crowds, and the laughter and conversations blended into a cacophony of chaotic noise.
Her sisters followed, their presence causing a ripple in the air, a disturbance that was almost imperceptible to the humans but unmistakable to those with supernatural senses. Crestia’s smug grin widened as she looked around, her gaze lighting on the bustling crowds like a predator surveying its prey. Limaria’s silver hair shimmered under the fluorescent glow as she folded her arms, her expression unreadable but her eyes sharp. Thraya and Hishta lingered at the edges of the portal, their postures tense but their gazes hungry for destruction.
Celise inhaled deeply, the scents of the city filling her lungs. There was the sharp tang of exhaust fumes, the cloying sweetness of food from nearby vendors, and, beneath it all, the faint, metallic tang of fear. She couldn’t help the cruel smile that spread across her lips.
“Times Square,” she murmured. “The heart of humanity’s greed and vanity. How fitting.”
Crestia stepped forward, her heels clicking against the pavement as she surveyed the massive screens that dominated the square. “So much noise.” She wrinkled her nose. “Let’s see how quiet we can make it.”
Celise raised a hand, and dark energy coiled at her fingertips like living shadows. The air around her grew heavy, thick with the weight of her magic, and the hum of power crackled like static electricity. She waved her hand lazily, as if swatting at a fly, and the nearest electronic billboard shattered with a deafeningboom. Shards of glass rained down onto the street below, glittering like deadly confetti as the crowd erupted into screams.
The chaos began instantly.
The massive LED screens flickered and went dark one by one, their vibrant colors replaced by an eerie, pulsing glow of black and crimson. Sparks flew from the exposed wiring, the sharp smell of burning electronics filling the air. People screamed and scattered. Their panicked voices rose above the din as they shoved and pushed, desperate to escape the epicenter of destruction.
Celise’s sisters joined in with her, their powers surging with renewed strength. Crestia raised her hands, and a wave of shadows swept over a nearby food cart, reducing it to ash in seconds. The vendor barely had time to leap out of the way, his terrified shouts lost in the roar of the destruction. Limaria’s silver hair glowed faintly as she unleashed a blast of raw energy at a line of parked cars, sending them hurtling into the air like toys. They crashed to the ground in a cacophony of twisted metal and shattered glass.
Thraya and Hishta moved through the chaos like wraiths. Their hands glowed with dark magic as they sent bolts of energy racing through the crowd. Streetlights exploded in showers of sparks, plunging entire sections of the square into darkness. The air was thick with smoke and the acrid stench of burning plastic, which mingled with the metallic tang of blood as the first casualties fell.
And then the demons came.
The smaller ones arrived first, no doubt drawn by the destruction and the darkness that poured off Celise and her sisters in waves. They crawled out of the shadows and the cracks in the pavement. Their grotesque, twisted forms were lit by the flickering flames. They were hunched and malformed. Their claws scraped against the ground as they lunged at the fleeing humans, and their shrieks and growls added to the cacophony of chaos.
The humans’ screams grew louder as the demons attacked, tearing into flesh with razor-sharp claws and jagged teeth. Blood splattered the sidewalks and painted the once-vibrant streets in shades of red.
But it wasn’t just demons. The darkness drew others—vampires, their pale faces gleaming in the dim light as they descended on the humans with predatory glee. Their fangs flashed as they sank into throats, their victims’ screams muffled by the press of bodies.
Celise stood at the center of it all, her arms outstretched, her dark magic crackling around her like a living thing. The chaos was a symphony, every scream and explosion a note in the grand symphony of destruction she had orchestrated. Her lips curved into a cruel smile as she watched the humans scatter like ants, their fragile lives snuffed out in an instant.
But then, something changed.
Crestia staggered, and her hands clutched at her chest as the glow of her magic flickered and faded. “Celise,” she gasped, her voice filled with panic. “Something’s wrong.”
Celise turned sharply, her dark eyes narrowing. “What are you talking about?”
Before Crestia could answer, Limaria cried out, collapsing to her knees as her silver hair dulled, the light fading from her eyes. Thraya and Hishta followed. Their bodies convulsed as their powers ebbed away, their magic unraveling like threads pulled from a tapestry.
