Chapter Nine
Owen and Darrellcrashed to the floor with a loud, thunderous roar.
The wooden chair must have been as rickety as the hayloft boards, because it splintered to pieces under Owen’s weight. He rolled over and up onto his knees, then ripped the ropes off his arms. The second he was free, Owen threw himself on top of Darrell and started punching him.
Celeste cursed and started in thatdirection to help Darrell, but I kicked out and drove my foot into the back of her left thigh. She let out a loud, surprised shriek and tumbled to ground, although she managed to hang on to her swords.
Those two giants were still holding on to me, so I turned to the one on my right and drove my foot into the side of his ankle, which let out a loud, sickeningpop!The giant screamed and loosenedhis grip. I shoved my hand down between us and grabbed the silver sword out of the scabbard on his belt. It was heavy, just like all the giants’ weapons were, but I managed to slice it across his stomach, and he dropped to the ground, screaming and clutching at the wound.
I turned toward the second giant, who was still hanging on to me, his mouth gaping open in shock. I yanked my arm free ofhis grip, wrapped both hands around the hilt of my stolen sword, and sliced it across his chest. He too screamed and fell to the ground.
The two giants might be out of the fight, but Celeste was definitely not.
She surged back to her feet and whirled around to me. She was still clutching her swords, and golden sparks of electricity started sizzling up and down the blades again. I reached formy own Stone magic, using it to harden my skin, although Celeste didn’t seem to notice.
“I’m going to cut you to pieces for that!” she hissed.
“Do your worst!” I hissed right back at her.
Celeste let out a shriek of rage and charged forward. I also screamed with rage and stepped up to meet her.
Celeste whirled and twirled her swords every which way, slicing out with them over and over again.I might be skilled with my knives, but it was all I could do to lift the giant’s heavy sword and block her vicious blows. Yep, I definitely needed to add medieval weapons to my training regimen. Some heavier weights too.
After a particularly fast, vigorous exchange, Celeste managed to knock my stolen sword out of my hand. The weapon sailed away and landed point-down in one of the hay bales. Ah,the irony. I couldn’t have done that if I’d tried a hundred times.
Celeste tightened her grip on her swords and reached for even more of her magic, so that the blades seemed to be made of golden electricity instead of metal. “Now there’s nothing to keep me from slicing you to ribbons and then frying your weak, clumsy ass.”
She let out a loud yell and charged forward, slashing her swords throughthe air as fast as she could. I spun out of the way of her first attack, then her second one, but I couldn’t avoid her third strike, and she sliced one of her swords across the back of my thigh.
The hard, bruising blow made me stumble, but thanks to my Stone magic, the blade didn’t actually bite into my flesh, and her electricity only scorched my costume, not my skin. Still, I let out a loud,agonized scream, flailed around, and dropped to one knee, as though I was severely injured.
Celeste thought she’d won, and she started circling me, still clutching her swords. Electrical sparks fell off the blades like acid raindrops and crackled against the floor. I felt like I was trapped in a fireworks show, although I maintained my grip on my Stone magic to protect my skin from her hot, burningpower.
She was savoring the moment. Well, I hoped she enjoyed it. Because I was a long way from done, something she was going to realize in another minute, two tops.
“I don’t see why Darrell was so worried about you,” she said. “Sure, you’re a good fighter, but I’m better, especially with my swords. And my electricity gives me a clear advantage.”
I could have told her that the better fighterdidn’t always win and that I’d killed a whole lot of people who’d been stronger than me in their magic, but I didn’t waste my breath. She was already dead. She just didn’t know it yet.
Instead, I looked past Celeste at Owen, who was still pummeling Darrell. The two giants who’d been sitting in front of the computers finally realized that their boss was going to lose the fight, and they surgedto their feet and headed in that direction. Owen saw them coming, picked up one of the broken pieces of his chair, and threw it at them. Even though it was just a harmless piece of wood, the two giants still lurched back out of the way.
Celeste finally noticed that Owen was beating the shit out of her boyfriend, but instead of going over to help him, she turned back to me instead.
“Time to die,little Spider,” she snarled.
She lifted one of her swords and then snapped it down. I didn’t even try to avoid the blow. Instead, I reached for even more of my Stone magic, closed my hand into a fist, and smashed it up against her weapon.
CLANG!
Celeste wasn’t expecting the concrete resistance of my Stone-hardened fist, and she lost her grip on her sword, which sailed through the air beforelanding point-down in that same hay bale right next to my weapon. Bull’s-eye for a second time. Even Robin Hood would have been impressed with my aim today.
Surprise flickered in Celeste’s hazel eyes, and she lashed out with her other sword, trying to drive it into my heart. This time, I reached out, wrapped my fingers around the blade, and used it like a lever to pull myself back up and ontomy feet. Celeste snarled, gripped the hilt with both hands, and tried to wrest her sword free, but my Stone magic gave me a cement grip that she just couldn’t break.
I dropped my free hand down by my side, this time reaching for my Ice magic. In an instant, I had formed a long, jagged Ice knife.
Celeste tried one last time to wrest her sword away, but I tightened my grip on the blade and yanked,pulling her toward me. Celeste growled and raised one of her hands to blast me in the face with her electricity, but I was quicker. I snapped up the Ice knife in my other hand and buried the cold shard in the side of her neck.
Her eyes bulged, and the golden glow of her electrical magic snuffed out of her gaze like a fire doused by a wet blanket. I twisted the cold shard in even deeper, staringat her the whole time.
