I ready for the retaliation, but the moment it sees me standing there with fire magic crackling around my hands, it stops dead and runs the other way.
“What is actually happening right now?”
Tharuzel’s laughter echoes in my mind.They know not to harm what is mine.
Seriously?Without time to be horrified about that right now, I rush back into the fray. As quickly as we’re taking demonsdown, more are pouring through the stones in an endless tide of snapping jaws and grasping claws.
The air reeks of sulfur and rot.
My lungs burn with every breath.
"There are too many!" Rowan’s shadow magic flares as she whips another demon into oblivion. She’s got a nasty cut on her head, the burgundy stripes in her hair no longer only hair dye.
We’re kicking ass one-on-one, but everyone is getting tired.
In another few minutes, they’ll be exhausted.
Then, the tide will turn against us.
Clara is down and crumpled at the base of a stone with Izzy and a black bear between her and the freakishly tall demon that wouldn’t fight me.
I call spirit fire to my palms and throw two fireballs at his back. He goes up like a blue bonfire and melts into a black ooze on the clearing floor.
Sebastian appears beside me, breathing hard. He’s got one bloody hand clutched over his belly and I’m really hoping his insides are staying firmly inside. "We need to end this."
"I know. We have to close the breach.”
“I’ll watch your back.”
“You won’t have to. I’m off-limits. No one will fight me.”
Sebastian’s confusion doesn’t last long before it morphs into something darker. “You’re nothis, Poppy. He holds no power over you.”
But sadly, he sorta does.
Not willing to give that mental mind-spin too much power, I study the standing stones and the crimson light pouring from their runes.
How do I undo what Tharuzel has done?
“His magic corrupted the intention of the stones, and turned them into a demon conduit. How do I undo that?”
"Figure it out." Sebastian spins away to intercept another wave. “Orion, help Izzy!”
I grit my teeth, my hands trembling as I reach for the power of the ley lines again, forcing my consciousness deeper into the earth's magical arteries.
The magic fights me this time—it's angry, poisoned.
Tharuzel's corruption has infected everything, turning the clean flow of my family’s power into something vicious and unpredictable.
It burns as it flows through me, leaving a taste of ash and despair in my mouth.
Still, beneath the layers of corruption and chaos, I feel the Hallowind anchors. These aren't just any ley line connections. They are the generational spells my ancestors wove into these very stones, threads of power passed down through bloodline and ritual, strengthened by decades of careful tending.
My great-great-grandmother's protective wards. My grandmother's blessing circles. My mother's healing enchantments. All of them sleeping inside the stone.
I pour every ounce of intention into the connection, letting my fear and love and stubborn determination flow down through the magical channels.
Please help me heal the stones.
