Her First Mistake

Chapter Seventy-One: Yeah, Yeah. Whatever

              Fole took the first attack. The large sword – it had to weigh like fifteen pounds – straight-up jabbed for my torso. It was bait for me to bring my staff up, and then he'd break it apart. Daniella had done the same thing at the community meeting. Instead, I lifted my hand and magic enveloped it like a glove. The sword halted right in my palm and small strings wrapped around the blade in a net. Using my hand, I wrenched it to the side and twisted his arm, then lifted my foot to kick him in his exposed gut.

     He let go with one hand to intercept my foot, catching my ankle and yanking. I allowed my footing to slip. As I fell to land on my back, an explosion of scarlet sent me shooting forward. Now behind him, I grabbed his ankle. Magic poured from my hand and formed a shackle that locked around his leg. A chain formed as I pulled my hand away, rolling to my feet.

     The sword lashed for my throat in a fatal strike. Startled, I lifted my arm. Crimson solidified into a guard. The blade cut right through. I yanked my arm away, but the edge had already left a gash in my bare arm. My blood dripped down to the floor. I surveyed the sword with new apprehension. It had been spelled. Somehow, that blade was impervious to mage magic.

     That made my job a lot harder.

    Pain stinging down my arm, I twisted my arm around the chain that I'd left around Fole's ankle and hauled with all of my might. He crashed into the opposite wall. Landing on the ground, he rolled to his feet and used the wall as a launchpad to lunge for me again. I twisted to the side, pulling a red rope taut in front of his feet. My other hand fisted to create a blinding spell, golden sparks flying in a frenzy.

     Fole scaled the rope, darting past me. His hand reached for the door. Growling under my breath, I threw the blinding spell into the back of his head. I lashed my staff forward and the hook soared, stabbing itself into Fole's shoulder. An animal-like snarl escaped his lips. His sword flashed and severed the rope. Blinded, he rushed for the door again.

    Determined little twit. A red chain lashed around his ankle and the weight forced his legs out from under him. I hauled him backwards. His leg lashed out and slammed into my knee. Pain shocked through my joint as it nearly bent the wrong way. Staggering backwards, I clumsily blocked another strike from his leg. My hand caught his ankle. Fole wrenched at his foot.

    My knee throbbed in time with my speedy heart beat. Magic poured down my shoulder and seeped onto my grip on Fole's ankle. He felt the magic – searing hot in my current mood – and hissed. Electricity sparked down his arms. With a shrill cry, I threw Fole into the ceiling, my body bending entirely backwards with the velocity.

   His body left a heavy dent. Dust rained down on me like a storm. Fole somehow twisted to land on his feet. His eyes were still dazed, showing he was blind, but he slashed forward with the sword. It left a small cut on the side of my neck before I got completely out of the way. The smell of burning hair filled the air. My ears picked up on the crackling of lightning before the full force of his blast slammed into my stomach.

    I hardly felt my body collide with the wall through the screaming of my nervous system. My ears rang, blocking all noise. The taste of copper filled my mouth. A grunt escaped my lips as I rolled onto my front, pulling my knees under my body. My eyes darted up to see Fole aim his sword at the ceiling above me. His eyes – the poor shot of a blinding spell having worn off – flashed yellow and another burst of electricity exploded. It tore apart the ceiling. I barely had time to lift my hands before the scaffolding came crashing down.

    My arms strained as crimson magic poured from my shoulders. The wood of my staff sat in my grip, feeding energy into my system. Fole turned away, but when the pile of debris on top of me rattled, he began to realize his mistake. Face beaded with effort, I locked my knees, and slowly straightened up. Scarlet swirls wrapped around every piece of debris and ceiling, pushed away from me as I rose to my feet. The full weight of the mess sat on my shoulders, heavier than it looked.

   Fole's lip pulled back to expose his sharp canine. He turned and prepared to blast the door, which would probably be effective to destroy the runes. Arms trembling with the pressure, I released a yell of effort, and the mass above me was thrown off. Fole had no time to brace. The full weight of the debris crashed on top of him.

   Sweating from the effort, I sat the butt of my staff on the floor, panting heavily. I hadn't expected him to put up such a fight. Approaching the pile, I caught the smell of melting plastic just as Fole's body exploded with electricity. A red shield condensed in front of my body in time, but my feet were pushed back several feet from the force of his explosion. My hand twisted and I turned my heel, magic condensing into a bullet between my fingers.

   Fole rose from the debris, covered in dust. Blood trickled from his forehead. I launched my hand forward. The bullet sunk into his chest and he slammed into the door, his skull knocking against the wood. A faint prick of pressure appeared between my eyes.

   His lip curled again. It took a moment for him to realize that he couldn't access his magic. A snarl left his throat. With another step forward, the sword flashed for my head. I ducked the swipe and my hand hit his gut. The paralyzing spell sunk into his body and took ahold immediately. The fae slumped to the ground. His eyes bored into my face, furious.

   "Yeah, yeah. Whatever." I blew out a breath and examined my arm. The cut didn't go to the bone, but it hurt like a bitch. "Brat," I muttered. Red shackles formed around his wrists and bound his ankles. Cricking my neck, I tapped the communication device in my ear. "The instigator is down."

   Tate, Jennifer, Zain, Erlan, Mark, Daniella, and the three captains all had the same communication device. Zain had rushed out and bought them a day ago. In order for this plan to work, we had to be coordinated.

   Daniella, having heard my message, shed her invisibility spell. Her body materialized nearby. The look in Fole's eyes revealed that he hadn't been aware that she'd been nearby during the fight. I'd never actually been alone. 

   "Let's get to the front line," said Daniella. "We've probably only got minutes before they assume the door is going to fall."

   I nodded, eyeing Fole. "Something's off, though. The door never located his bracelet, and he had to be inside Anchorage's barrier longer than two minutes."

   Daniella grimaced. "They might have had time to improve the design. We don't have time to wonder. Come on." She moved down the hall. Dragging Fole's body behind me, I followed.