"Fuck, fuck, fuck," I mutter under my breath, my eyes darting between the cosmic tear and the two witches who are our only hope of unfucking this situation. "Alright, no more screwing around. It's time to put your magical money where your mouth is and seal this blow hole before something really nasty decides to come a-knocking."
Emily fixes me with a glare that's one part steely resolve, two parts 'I will curse your dick into a cactus if you push me.' She holds out her hand, fingers snapping like an impatient diva. "Cough up the magic pebble, jackass. And start making offerings to whatever twisted gods you worship because if this goes sideways, we're all screwed."
"Wow, way to sugarcoat it,Glinda," I snark, fishing the Soul Stone out of my pocket like a used tissue. "Why don't you just tell me to bend over and kiss my ass goodbye while you're at it?"
I drop the stone into her waiting palm, trying to ignore how it pulses with malevolent energy. "Just don't go all Dark Phoenix on us, yeah? I'd rather not have to explain to my sister-in-law why her best friend went nuclear and turned us all into demonic kibble."
Emily rolls her eyes. "Gee, thanks for the pep talk, Coach. Really feeling the confidence here." She closes her fingers around the stone, taking a deep breath like she's about to dive into the deep end of a cursed pool. "Alright, let's see if all those late-night Latin study sessions were worth the crippling student debt."
Emily's eyes drift shut as she begins to chant. The words are ancient and guttural, the kind of language that could unravel the very fabric of the universe if spoken just right. Or just wrong, depending on your perspective.
"Claudere portam, et signa fractum, restituo velum inter mundos!"
Seraphina presses close to my back, her fingers curling into my shirt like a lifeline. I can feel her trembling, the fear rolling off her in waves. I reach back, gripping her hip in silent reassurance. I'll be damned if I let anything happen to my angel cake, even if I have to personally punch every eldritch abomination in the face to keep her safe.
Sable steps up behind Emily, placing her hands on her shoulders like she's jump-starting a car battery. She joins in the chanting, her voice rising perfectly with Emily's.
"Ex umbra in lucem, ex nocte in diem, ex inferis ad vitam!"
The air around us begins to crackle with power—the fine hairs on the back of my neck standing at attention. Emily's brow furrows—sweat beading on her forehead as she pours every ounce of her considerable magical mojo into the spell. The rift pulses and writhes like a living thing, tendrils of inky smoke lashing out as if in defiance of the witches' attempts to close it.
ButEmily is a fucking force of nature, her power bolstered by the strength of a hundred witches. She grits her teeth, her hand shaking to channel the stone's energy into the rift. Emily's closed hand begins to glow an eerie purple, pulsing in time with the tear in reality.
"Sigillum fractum, clausus portam, finem tenebris!"Emily's voice rises to a fever pitch, the words tearing from her throat like they're being ripped out by force.
The rift shudders and convulses, the edges beginning to seal shut like a gruesome wound knitting itself back together. The air is filled with the sound of reality itself screaming in protest, a high-pitched whine that sets my teeth on edge and makes my brain feel like it's about to leak out of my ears.
Just as the rift is about to close completely—
"Oh,shiiiit" I breathe, instinctively pushing Seraphina further behind me. "That's not good. That's sovery, verynot good!"
The creature that just slipped through the rapidly closing rift is the stuff of nightmares. It's tall, easily towering over all of us, with a body that looks carved from the darkest shadows. Its skin is mottled black like it's been scorched by the fires of hell, and wicked-looking spikes protrude from its shoulders and spine like some demonic porcupine.
But the face seals the deal on the whole 'unholy abomination' vibe. Its features are twisted and grotesque, with a maw full of razor-sharp teeth that look like they could shred flesh from bone with ease. Horns curl back from its skull like a crown of thorns and its eyes... Christ, its eyes are like pits of pure, malevolent flame, burning with an intelligence that makes my skin crawl.
Seraphina whimpers behind me, trembling.
Emily and Sable exchange a look of 'oh shit,' but to their credit, they don't stop chanting. If anything, they redouble their efforts, their voices rising to a desperate crescendo as they pour every last ounce of power into sealing the rift.
"Finem! Finem! FINEM!"Emily screams, her hand clenched so tightly around the Soul Stone that I'm pretty sure it's gonna leave a permanent impression.
With a final, gut-wrenching howl, the rift slams shut, the edges sealing together like a zipper being pulled closed by the hand of God himself. The sudden absence of sound is almost deafening, the only noise the ragged breathing of four people who just stared down the barrel of the apocalypse and lived to tell the tale.
Butwe're not out of the woods yet. Not by a long shot. Because now we've got a pissed-off demon from the depths of hell itself stalking towards us, its clawed feet gouging deep furrows into the stone with each step.
"Alright, new plan," I announce, my voice only shaking slightly. "So far, we've checked off 'seal gaping asshole' and 'prevent the universe from going kaboom' from our to-do list. Gold stars all around! But now we've got this walking Hot Topic mascot. Anyone got a demon-sized rolled-up newspaper we can smack it with?"
Emily and Sable look at each other, then back at the demon, then back at each other. I can practically see the gears turning in their heads, the calculations of 'Can we magic this thing back to the abyss before it rips our faces off?' running at lightning speed.
"I'm open to suggestions," Emily begins to back up, her voice strained with exhaustion and panic. "Because I'm running on empty here, and I don't think asking it nicely to pretty please go back to whatever circle of hell it crawled out of is gonna cut it!"
I take a deep breath, squaring my shoulders as I step forward. "Well, then. Guess it's time for Plan B."
Seraphina's hand shoots out, gripping my arm. "Lucian, no. You can't—"
"Maga." The demon's voice is like gravel being dragged over a cheese grater, low and menacing. Its burning gaze locks onto Emily like she's the only thing in the room worth noticing.
Emily, to her eternal credit, doesn't even flinch. She thrusts out her hand like a magical crossing guard."Daemonium, ego praecipio tibi! Flectere genua et oboedire!"
