The Rede Breaker

Chapter 37: Battle Mages

The car almost flies off the road with how fast I am driving.

If I could have flied home, I can. The idea of flight is not unheard of. In ancient texts, there are many instances of witches who learned the art of flight, though most only managed to levitate short distances or by using a focus, such as a broom.

Ancient vampires were even known to hover to great heights. Though, there are not many instances where the art of flight was mastered or used to travel long distances.

The idea of flying through the air calms my nerves only slightly as I pull up to our house. The sun is setting over the houses. The calm is short-lived when I find the house is covered in ash. The lawn is burnt to a crisp, much like it would be in Anarch's realm.

My heart pounds in my ears as I step over cracks in the concrete on the way up the walkway to the house. The door is ajar and pure darkness awaits. An intense sense of runs cold through my veins like ice water. Something horrific awaits me inside the house.

Push past the fear.

I enter the house through the open door. The house is pitch black save for an unnatural green glow coming from the living room.

The living room is a mess. Furniture is overturned and glass litters the ground. Eric, Sierra, Mori, Diego, and Leon hover in a circle around a small orb of green energy. I shield my eyes from the glow of the light and point to the orb as I shout a curse. The light from the orb dies as my friends fall to the floor below them.

I bounce between them, checking their pulses. My heart only stops ringing in my ears when I find strong pulses for each of them. The lights flicker back on above me as I am kneeling beside Eric.

Someone is standing behind me.

I steady myself, ready to cast a spell in the person's direction.

"You shouldn't have brought my friends into this, Elphaba."

"What better way to get you back here?" Laura asks.

I turn to face her. Her paper white skin oozes coldness and veins crawl up the side of her face like vines. The only source of warmth from her is the glint of humanity in her eyes. The minuscule shred of humanity is still present.

"Hate to beat a dead horse, but you really don't have to do this. Would David want you to do all of this?"

"Yes."

"Then he doesn't love you. No one who loves you would ask you to lose yourself in darkness to save them. I can relate. I've loved someone who wanted just that. He was toxic, just like David."

"David loves me. Still, to this very day! He told me so."

"Demons lie. I've seen David and he's in no condition to profess anything, let alone his undying love."

"You're not going to shake my love for him. I know him. I know whatever he asks, it's out of love."

"I thought the same thing, Laura. Until I started seeing how much I was debasing myself for him. For his love. You're not this person and neither was I. It's why I'm not trying to fight you."

"This isn't about you! This is about getting enough power to open a portal to Anarch's realm. That's what it's always been about, but I'm tired of waiting. I don't have to work with Anarch anymore." She says. "You think I want to send those people to his realm? I do his bidding because he holds the cards. I just want David."

"What about all those people you sent there?"

"Casualties. Collateral damage. I can barely get there, let alone bring all of them back."

"You know the rules, right? Every time you open a portal to the other side it creates a tear. Work with me. We can get what we both want, in the safest way possible."

One thing is clear from speaking with her. I don't trust her with her own magic, so I'm not lending a hand for anything less than full cooperation. I'm tired of asking for it. If she doesn't want to share, I'll just have to rip it from her head.

I've changed, but not enough to wait any longer.

As if she can read my mind, she sends a wave of energy in my direction. The energy slams me against the wall. My pinned at my side by the invisible force. I fight the urge to struggle against her will, instead allowing it to absorb into me.

The magic is sent back to her. She flies out of the room. Flashes of the night with Ria invade my mind as I reach Laura. She tries again to attack me but I whip her from the floor to the ceiling.

"This ends, one way or another. I was hoping you would come to see things my way but I'm not asking anymore."

Laura grins from the ceiling. "I'm never going to tell you the spell. Unless you do what I want. And what are you going to do, Mr. Reformed Witch? Rip it out of my head."

Laura's grin disappears just as mine appears. She drops from the ceiling and lands with a thud on the floor. An invisible force flips her onto her back.

"It's against the Rede!"

"You know what they call me, right? The Rede Breaker? I earned that name."

Laura levitates upright, if not a few inches off the ground. I place my hands to her temples. A burst of energy springs from my fingertips as images run through my head. I see the strings of events that got us here.

David promised her a life outside of the covens. He promised to do whatever he had to in order to ensure it. His disappearance shattered her. There are memories of depression, of sitting in a dark room.

And then David's face is reflected in a mirror.

David assures her, tells her what she wanted to hear. He offers her the life she lost, if she obeys his master Anarch.

Laura did horrible things in the name of Anarch, including creating a connection between us at his command. She helped him haunt me. And a sick part of her enjoyed it.

And suddenly, the spell is clear to me. I pull away from and she drops to the floor.

"Now you know it all." Laura pants.

"I do."

"Are you going to kill me?"

A part of me wants to exact revenge on her. I want to cast a curse to make her suffer for the pain she's heaped onto not only me but the others trapped in Anarch's realm. But it won't change what has already happened.

It's just as I thought. She's a scared girl reaching out for anything.

"No. I need you to get to the other side. You've been ripping holes in the veil. If I want to do this safely, I need another witch. It's your lucky day. You can thank me later."

I help her to her feet and grip her hands. Her hands are not as cold as I expected, but still cool. She begins to chant, "Omnium Sereath Molpli Gestrai" before I join in. A strong gust of wind whips through the houses nearly knocking us back.

A large purple oval appears in the doorway to the living room. Laura breaks our connection as she examines the portal. She remarks how stable it is before stepping through to the other side.

I glance around the portal, to the mess that was once my living room. My friends are peacefully sleeping on the floor. I waste no more time climbing through the portal, following Laura to the realm of the damned.