Bloodflowers Bloom (The Astral Wanderer Book 2), D'Artagnan Rey [essential reading .txt] 📗

her. She kicked another of the beings into it before she thrust her enchanted sword through it. The blow eliminated the fiend but also cracked the barrier. “Hells! It’s weakening too.”

“I only need a few more minutes,” Wulfsun promised. “Once I collapse it enough, I can make the ward It won’t take but a jif.”

“Will that also take care of the dome?” she asked as she looked around her. The fiends had finally been worn down enough that they no longer regenerated.

“The ward will reverse the magic and keep the rift closed, and abyssal magic will either disperse or be reabsorbed into its realm,” the Templar explained and pulled the edges of the rift closer with the gauntlets of his majestic. “We need to destroy those obelisks as well and keep fragments to see if we can determine where they came from.”

“Is there anything I can do to help? The fiends seem to be gone for now,” she told him, although she refused to put her sword away for the moment.

“Aye, you can start making the ward.” Wulfsun grunted and strained to seal the last sections of the rift. “Take the powder out of my satchel and make a ring around the rift.”

Farah ran up behind him and paused when she saw three satchels. “Which one?”

“In a flask…the satchel above the left cheek,” the man snapped and his gauntlets grew brighter as he clenched his teeth. “Hurry! I want to get back to the kids.”

She found the flask, opened it, and ran quickly around the rift, leaving a trail of the powder behind her. “When yer done, I need you to create a shield to protect us from the fire. I need to drop my barrier to focus on containing the rift while I finish the ward. Do you have enough mana left for that?”

“I do,” she assured him, reached the end of the circle, and hurried to his side with the flask ready. “Tell me when.”

Wulfsun nodded and opened his palms as the rift condensed even further. He maneuvered around it and shaped it into an orb the size of a grapefruit. “All right, I’m preparing to drop my barrier. You’re up!”

Farah held her sword aloft and a stream of light magic poured out and formed around them as his barrier fell. He created a small barrier around the rift itself and took the flask out again as he backed away slowly. The magics of the rift thrust against his shielding. Quickly, he set to work finishing the ward and hurried as much as he could without making a mistake. Wards weren’t his specialty, which made it a little more challenging. He took a moment to look at the fiery wall around the edges of the pit. It had been a while since he had spoken to any Astral, but he took a moment to threaten Finis and demanded that he not take the young ones. Otherwise, he would have to talk to him personally.

Devol showed no fear to his enemy, but it did no good. Salvo probably couldn’t even see him through the inferno he had created. A torrent of flame streamed out of the mask and the boy turned his blade so the flat side faced forward and created a shield. The fire was relentless and pushed him back with its onslaught. The shield began to evaporate and he prepared to leap out of the way before it gave out completely. He jumped and expected to be scalded before a blue shield appeared as his gave way.

“Jazai!” he shouted, landed on his feet, and turned as the diviner’s shield was smothered. His friend was on his knees with an arm extended. “Thank you, but you and Asla need to get out of here.”

“I know…dammit!” Jazai muttered and fumbled in Asla’s pocket to take her marble out. “That was the last of my mana. I barely have enough to be useful but you need to go too.”

“I can’t, not as long as—”

“Devol, look out!” The swordsman spun as several fireballs streaked toward him. He blocked a couple of them but one caught him in the chest and set his jacket and shirt on fire. Hastily, he stripped them off and checked himself for wounds. Slight burns were visible on his chest and stomach but could have been much worse without his anima.

As he checked his waist, his hand touched an item he had forgotten about—one that gave him pause. He looked at the demonic visage in the fire-wall. “Jazai, I need to end this.”

“Wulfsun will take care of him,” the diviner protested. “Can you even get around him to—” Devol drew the item from his waist and held it behind his back for his friend to see. The boy understood almost immediately. “If you’re gonna try that, you’d better make it count,” he muttered as he retrieved his marble and held it in his hand. “We’ll be waiting.” Jazai poured mana into both marbles and his and Asla’s forms vanished into a stream of mana that quickly moved through the dome.

“They can’t run away!” Salvo shouted. The fire-wall parted and the man walked through. “I’ll find them again after I deal with you. I will kill you all.” At least he was now speaking in complete sentences again.

The boy stood and pointed his majestic at the fire magi. “You aren’t leaving here, Salvo.”

“Make your boasts,” the man all but growled and whipped the fires around him into a frenzy. “Have you even killed a man before, brat? I’ve killed hundreds. Do you think I’ll simply let you cut your teeth on me? I have a new world to see.”

Devol made no answer as he slid his hand behind him. The fire magi prepared to send all the flames forward but the boy flung a dagger before he could do so. Salvo didn’t need the enhancements from the mask to dodge it. He simply tilted his head to the right and let it sail past. He chuckled