“I’ve noticed that you’re at your most powerful when you’re angry. It’s common with fire druids, and I wanted to make you aware of it so you can use it to youradvantage.”
Okay, I had not been expecting that. He wasn’t telling me to hug trees, he was telling me to get mad. “How so?” I askedhim.
“Think of a beautiful, deadly, ferocious volcano. She sits and waits and steams untilfinally…”
I grinned. “She blows.” And kills thousands of innocent people, decimating villages, but I wouldn’t bring that partup.
Isaac nodded. “Normally, I would counsel you to transmute that anger streak you have into something else, but not this time. This time I want you to get livid. It will be your greatest tool againstArdan.”
I could already feel my anger starting to bubble to the surface. Ardan came into our peaceful land and stole my best friend. He’d threatened me and killed countless of mykin.
Isaac dipped his head down to me. “Remember, you and I are a pack of our own. You can use my power and I can use yours. We’re a team today, okay, Sloane?” I nodded, and then suddenly he pulled me into a bone-crushing hug. “It’s been an honor to teach you the ways of the earth druids,” he mumbled into my ear, barely-contained emotion bleeding into hisvoice.
I pushed him back gently, tears filling my eyes. “Don’t do that. Don’t say goodbye. Earth School,remember?”
He nodded, a smile curling the edges of his lips. “I’ll neverforget.”
We both stood there in silence for a moment just clutching our staffs, bare feet in the grass. I couldn’t help but take the moment to appreciate how far I’d come, how much he’d taught me. It was time to do what it felt like I was created for—to take this maniac out of power, so that a new peace could reign onEarth.
“It worked!” Keegan whisper-screamed behindus.
There was a commotion at the castle. I could hear pounding footsteps, the revving of engines, tires squealing. As Isaac and I made our way over to Keegan, I saw Gear’s hawk circlingabove.
Logan looked like he was in an intense mental conversation, and I guessed that Gear was talking tohim.
“Gear says that about half of the druids and hunters have left to track down Isabella and Marco.” Logan relayed. “Nadine is at the very top in some kind of caged room. He can see her through the window. She’s seen him too, so she knows we’recoming.”
I stepped forward. “That room is at the top of a staircase. Steel bars. Minka can make them disappear with her magic bow and arrows. One team should go up the stairs, but someone should fly up too, in case she needs to go out the window, like Idid.”
I didn’t know what they were doing to her or what they would do once they realized we were here, but I wanted all exits and entriescovered.
Keegan nodded. “Let’s go get her. Got a plan to announce ourpresence?”
Isaac strode forward, gripping both staffs, eyes blazing orange. “Ido.”
Without warning, he let rip an unexpected battle cry and slammed his staffs into the earth, which started toshake.
Holy shit. Isaac had been waiting years for this moment, to take Ardan down, and he wasn’t going to go easy. The druids who had been loitering on the front lawn of the castle ran in a zigzag pattern in panic. Some fell over with how badly the earthshook.
Keegan nodded impressively to Isaac, and then the ground ceased itsquaking.
“Let’s go!” Keegan roared, cocking his shotgun. Dominic, who was in lion form, took off at an alarming pace, pounced through the trees and out into the open, Sophie and her harpoon gun was right behindhim.
I looked at Logan. “You should shift and fly up to Nadine’s room. Minka can make the bars on the window disappear. You could fly her down now that the druids aredistracted.”
My “twinnie” popped her head over my shoulder, making me jump. She must have been stalkingme.
“Sure can, sweetie. Let’s do it,” she told Logan with a wink, eyes raking over his chest as he pulled off hisshirt.
I really wanted to punch her in the face and rip out one of her teeth, but thought better of it. Logan, shirtless and on the verge of shifting into his dragon form, pulled me in for a quick kiss, ignoring Minka and her Sloane-snatcherbody.
“I’ll go up and get Nadine, but I’m keeping an eye on you,” he told me as he releasedme.
I nodded. “Be safe!” Then I was running, Isaac at my side, thoughts of Logan and anyone else in the back of mymind.
Where are you, Ardan?It was time to endthis.
As Isaac and I busted out through the trees, it was chaos. Druids and hunters were engaged in battle with shifters and sorcerers. Eva and Danny were hurling balls of yellow magic, to combat the red that were crashing into ourforces.
