“Well, if that wasn’t a sign…” she muttered.
We took off down the freshly cleared path.
A massive wolf bounded in front of us, growling low. Maureen didn’t even flinch—she rubbed her face into his thick fur as he sniffed her.
Jackal.
The next moment, he shifted into a hulking gorilla and barreled forward, plowing through the next wave of enemies.
We followed close behind.
Through the broken trees and the endless rain of red leaves, I saw Sebastian first—cutting down enemies with brutal efficiency. Then Nova and Isabella came into view, side by side, weaving magic together. Their combined blasts shot into the sky, helping Joy and Payne as they wrestled dragons in midair.
Isabella had thrown a large, dome-shaped barrier over their group—but a few monsters had made it inside.
Barron shoved August aside, driving his sword into the skull of an abomination. August returned the favor, slicing the head off another that lunged behind him.
“Drop the barrier,” Sebastian called to Isabella. “You’re just going to wear yourself out. Some are still getting through.”
“Some is better than all,” she snapped back, her hands glowing as she reinforced the magical dome.
That’s when one of my brothers spotted me.
“Kitty!” August’s voice cracked with obvious relief—but we had no time for reunions.
He ducked low just as a mass of writhing tentacles shot from a creature’s back—only to be immediately charged by another, this one with the horns and bulk of a bull.
“August!” Nova screamed.
In seconds, hundreds of deafening pops echoed through the trees. My eyes widened as a fresh wave of abominations burst apart—black, ichor-like blood spraying from their chests in grotesque fountains. The scent hit a second later, and it was vile. Like rotted fish and festering wounds.
I gagged, covering my nose and mouth as the bodies dropped around us with dull, meaty thuds.
August whipped toward Nova, jaw tight. “I told you not to overexert your magic.”
He stalked over, wiping the blood from under her nose with his thumb.
She breathed deeply, in and out. “One was on top of you!”
“We have it under control.” August grabbed her arms, rubbing up and down. “You’re mortal. You’ve got too much power packed into this little body. It’ll kill you faster than anything out here.”
“I have the power to protect you—all of you. I won’t stand back and do nothing,” Nova said, and it was the wrong thing to say. The tight clench of August’s jaw, the glimmer of fear in his eyes—it wasn’t just frustration. It was terror.
“Shit,” Barron muttered.
We turned to follow his gaze, and my heart lurched.
The crossover was widening—like a gaping mouth splitting open. No force was drawing from it yet, so it wasn’t fully active…but it would be. Soon.
“We can’t stay here,” August blurted.
Sebastian pulled my weapon off his back and tossed it to me. “Where’s the Devil?”
“I don’t know,” I admitted, handing Maureen her blade back.
“No time for waiting,” Maureen muttered, twirling her twin blades. “We’re surrounded again.”
“Hades,” I groaned as my weapon fell through my hand—phased right through it. My fingers were transparent again.
