“I’ve seen this before,” Gage said with a frown. “With a spell this big, you can punch small holes in it without a problem, but it fights back—almost like a living entity—when you try to extinguish it. The spell doesn’twantto be destroyed.”
Holy creepy sentient spell.
“But what about the academy? Something is obviously going on at the compound,” I said, torn. My mom, Gran, the children…
Drea glanced over her shoulder where a few Lumens were still emerging, some of them injured; one was even on fire. Then I spotted a bolt of green magic shoot through the air and hit a Lumen in the chest.
Wait, is that a Shade that just came through?
“They must have brought down the wards,” she said, concern splashed across her face as she white-knuckled her sword. “But that’s not your concern right now. My mom’s army will handle it.”
“She’s right,” Harley said. “Come on, Tatum. Let the other Lumens deal with it. What we’re doing, no one else can.”
Even as she said it, the Lumens who had made it into Tartarus started toward the portal in an effort to help, and I felt slightly better.
She was right. I needed to focus. I couldn’t save everyone.
I turned my back on the people coming out of the portal and faced Harley just as she shot a beam of her magic back at the spell again. After I’d gathered my power, I placed a hand on her shoulder as well, adding my own magic to the mix.
The hole we’d created that had started to shrink was now blasted open as we flooded it with Harley’s magic. The hole got larger and larger, and then the entire spell started to fall away as if it were a delicate lace being burned. The ground shook a little as the last of the spell cleared.
Harley let her arms drop to her sides as sweat beaded her brow. A wave of exhaustion rolled through my limbs, but then my angel marks engaged and energy rushed through me.
Okay, it was finally time to destroy the cube.
Pivoting, I started toward it, then the air in front of me tore open and a portal began to form. I stumbled backward, staring in shock at the largest portal I’d ever seen and the sight of a horde of demons tumbling through it and into Tartarus. The mass had to be over a thousand strong. The Blood Mountains burned in the distance behind them as Tartarus erupted into chaos.
Out of seemingly nowhere, Aurum bounded in front of Harley and me. His eye lasers cut into the front line of demons as they rushed through the portal, but many of them flew over his attack and right at us.
I reached for my sword, then Gage grabbed me by the waist and we were airborne.
“No! Gage, we have to help them,” I screamed, pounding against his chest.
I peered down to see the demons surrounding my friends as part of the Lumen army that hadn’t pulled away to check the Lumen Compound portal fought to reach them in time.
“I’ve been given orders to make sure you destroy the cube and free the souls,” Gage said, his voice thick with pain.
Below us, Harley cut down a hellhound as it lunged for her and Dash, and I screamed.
“Screw Aurelia’s orders, take me back—”
Gage shook his head. “Drea and everyone in the gang agreed. We want you to fulfill your mission. It’s bigger than all of us.”
He flew us over the giant Netherworld portal and landed me on the other side in front of the cube. I stared up at him in shock. “But Harley—”
“She agreed. Dash. Marlow, Indigo. Jacob. Everyone. Even Aurum and Skye. Now break that cube in two and free those souls so we can take out Apollyon.”
My heart tore in half. All of my friends agreed that I should ditch them if they were attacked? That didn’t sit right with me.
“Gage,” I whimpered. “I can’t—”
The sky split open then as a streak of lightning ripped through the air and slammed into the ground. I had to shield my eyes as a golden glow blanketed the battles being waged as far as the eye could see.
Squinting, a grin spread across my face when I recognized the angels of Avalon descending to join the fight. Cael was leading the charge.
“Holy crap, is that Cael?” Gage asked.
“Harley destroyed the concealment spell! It must have been holding them back. Did you know they were coming?” I asked him.
