Lurching and shambling shadows streaked the space between the rolling rocks and the grinding boulders. Hands out like claws, Alexis’s zombies slammed into the enemy forces, ripping and tearing at flesh.

Thunder clapped as the coopted spirits danced to Alexis’s tune. Balls of light exploded against trees. Something sizzled and someone else screamed. She had a few people under her power now.

“Kill them,” Flora yelled, her voice growing like the thunder from which it was made. “Kill those cowards, hiding in the trees like goblins!”

Clouds rolled above, fighting against Kieran’s hold, ripping from his grasp. It did not stop the rain, though, or the accompanying wind, slashing through Flora’s people.

He sprinted toward Dylan, hoping against hope that Dylan would accept that they were on the same side. That Kieran and Alexis were keeping their word, and they would continue to do so after this was all done.

The ground shook beneath him. A great crater opened up not twenty feet away, splitting the mountain open at the seams. Water pulsed within, an underground river cutting through the rock.

Control of the sky was finally ripped from his grasp. Within moments, electricity throbbed around him, standing his hair on end. A streak of raw power broke from the storm-laden clouds, zipping directly for him.

He pulled up the water as he tilted his head to the sky. She was going to kill him. She was actually going to push this to the next level and take him out.

She was going to succeed.

19

Alexis

I staggered mid-stride as I saw, in slow motion, the streak of burnt yellow light rip down from the sky. Kieran’s face had tilted up, but I couldn’t see his expression. I felt it, though. Shock and certainty. Earth-shattering sorrow. He knew this was it.

I didn’t have time to open my mouth to scream. Or to react at all.

His body yanked to the side at the last instant, and the blast of lightning rammed the ground right next to him. The concussion sent him flying, though, and he hit the rock next to Dylan and came crashing down.

Heart in my throat, not thinking, I sprinted toward him. A soul popped into my radar. Hands up, the person was ready to come at me.

Boman shot out a beam of light, slicing through the enemy’s chest. I yanked the enemy’s soul free, even as I directed my zombies to file in around me. They guarded me as I ran across the small clearing, now in plain sight.

Boman ran to catch up, but a blast of fire exploded at his feet, knocking him back. Someone must’ve realized he’d been shielding me from view with his Light Bender magic. Divide and conquer.

Red caught up a moment later, blood splattering her face and knives in her hands. Not knowing I had just turned the enemy into an ally, Red spun and threw out a leg, connecting the sole of her boot with the vulnerable throat, the attack so graceful it was beautiful. A crunch said the blow would’ve killed the man, but the confused soul in a newly dead body was under my control and wasn’t allowed to sink to the ground in misery. Sorry, Charlie.

Fire shot from the cadaver’s fingers and rolled along the ground, quickly doused by the driving rain. I sent him and the other enemies I controlled running at Flora, the red-haired one who clapped thunder, one who emitted blasts of white light that didn’t seem to do much, and the fire spitter—the magic was fun to execute, but not as dangerous as it had originally seemed.

That lightning, though…

Flora lifted her hands, building those clouds. Building her power. Another searing blast zipped through the sky.

Halfway to the ground, it forked and then bent, doubling back on her. It snapped into a tree ten feet from her, and rage crossed her face within the flashing light.

“Are you okay?” I yelled as I reached Kieran, clutching him.

He stood and rolled his shoulder. “Donovan is on point. I’m good.”

Dylan stood from the other side of the rocks. The ground near Flora bucked, throwing her to the ground. Massive boulders rolled toward the rapidly scattering cluster of enemies, dodging the felled trees. I sent my zombies after them, belatedly seeing Bria rushing through the trees from whence she’d gone. Finally she’d showed up.

After a moment, though, relief turned into horror, stealing through me. She held a knife and a determined expression. She wasn’t rushing for the enemy or running to help with the zombies…she was rushing toward Thane. I’d seen that look on her face before—she was getting ready to take out the enemy, and that enemy was the threat of the Berserker.

I hesitated in reacting, my heart dying a little, not believing what I was seeing. I knew she’d slunk away from the battle, which wasn’t customary for her, but Bria did strange things all the time. The element of surprise was her greatest asset.

There was no rational explanation for attacking Thane, however, and from the way her leather vest flew open to reveal her Monster High T-shirt and the dog collar around her neck, there was no denying it was her. She must’ve been the leak. She was the only one who had been around for all of our talks, even in the wee hours of the morning.

Tears came to my eyes as I grabbed her soul, not sure what I would do, not sure if I could bear to hurt her, my first real friend in the magical world. My teacher, and my buddy in arms. I squeezed her soul a little in warning, willing her to fall to her knees, to come to her senses.

And then I yelled in frustration and ripped the soul from its casing.

How stupid was I? That woman looked like Bria, definitely, and she even held herself with the same loose shoulders and I don’t give a fuck confidence, but the soul throbbing within her didn’t match. Assholes. I’d almost let my eyes fool me.

I slapped that bastard back in, sent a command through the new connection, and watched the image alter into that of Demigod Flora. Thane stared at her in slack-jawed shock, watching as she turned around and jogged back the way she’d come.

More enemies pushed forward, seeing me exposed and ready to take their shot. They hadn’t battled someone like me, though. They hadn’t asked around to see what my radar was like, much smaller than theirs but ten times more effective. Fools.

I grabbed the little ribbons connecting all of their souls, waving gleefully within the spirit that surrounded us. With a hard yank and plenty of energy and adrenaline to spare, I ripped them all out. Bodies fell like sacks of skin. Newly freed spirits blinked at me in confusion.

I shoved the spirits at the Line, not giving them a chance to choose if they wanted to hang around or not. This was battle, and they knew the score—I didn’t need all the confused faces standing around, and I didn’t have enough energy to secure them all in bodies.

I raked across Flora’s soul box. Punched the casing. Shook and squeezed it.

A peal of thunder drowned out whatever sound came out of her open mouth. Lightning streaked across the sky with no real target or purpose. I’d knocked her off her game.

“You are fucking sensational,” I heard behind me, only to see Dylan flicking lightning between his fingertips. He shook his head slowly at me. “Terrifying, but sensational. You took control before I could even warn you about the dog-collar chick. I’ve read the legends, but nothing could prepare a guy for all of this.” He gestured, indicating the zombies scrabbling over and around boulders to get at the enemy. One misjudged a boulder’s trajectory, accidentally getting in front. Its bones crunched under the weight. I pushed it to get back up, ruined body and all, and hobble toward its targets.