The Secret Land of Otrâlmondé [1 | The Other Realms Series]

Chapter Sixteen

Helene descended to the basement. The scent of smoke wafted from the far side of the room. A three-dimensional silhouette was standing in front of the wooden door, his hands grasping the cloth which once concealed the portal to Otrâlmondé. Rip! She watched in horror as Gobhastan shredded the fabric with his bare hands. His plain face scrunched upon noticing her presence.

Helene extended two fingers and retracted her arm.

No! her inner voice screamed. Lightning wouldn't work against him. Most offensive moves wouldn't work either. Her only option was to crush him, either by a shrinking force field or by hurling an object at him. She instead raised her hands. The shipping containers around her lifted off the ground. She then tossed them at him.

He dodged them.

She threw everything at him—metal crates, white sheets, even force field disks with sharp edges. He dodged every attack. He leaped, ducked, and scaled walls to avoid whatever she chucked at him.

If she couldn't bring him down, maybe the ceiling would.

Helene clenched her fists and swung them downward. When her fists fell, the ceiling followed.

Rumble. Old Port Warehouse quaked as a portion of the ceiling collapsed above them. Concrete fell and seemingly crushed Gobhastan, a pile of rubble forming at where he supposedly met the ground. No movement. Helene wiped the sweat off her brow. Maybe she did not need the trio's help after all.

Fwoosh! A flare erupted from the heap of debris, with dust and rock flying in all directions. Helene stepped back and summoned a shield. Her electric blue eyes nearly bulged out of her head as they caught sight of Gobhastan rising from the mound.

Fire blazed as Gobhastan spread his arms wide, the flames reaching for all corners of the room and escaping through the hole above. Helene swung one forearm in front of her. The blaze rushing in her direction vanished. With a swing of her fists, she flung lumps of concrete towards him. He evaded her attack once more. Old Port Warehouse continued to quiver as they battled in the basement.

On the floor above them, the metal door swung open. The trio took a step back—the entire room was burning. Edmond stepped forward and made an outward sweeping motion with his arms. The flames then vanished. The three of them ran across the room and hurried down the stairs as the walls shook around them.

By the time they reached the base of the stairs, the basement was already half destroyed.

Stella jerked backward the moment she saw the shadow. She already knew what he looked like, but that did not stop her from jerking backward. That man took Terra's life. He took Brandon's life. He could take hers as well.

Edmond extended two fingers and pulled back his right arm. Stella shouted,

"No, wait!"

He didn't listen. A bolt of lightning escaped his fingertips as he thrust them forward. The shadow cocked his head, outstretched his arm, and flicked his wrist.

Boom! A shockwave sent them flying backward. Stella heard the cracking of bones as they slammed against the cement steps. Above her, she heard something dripping. It didn't sound like water.

A whooshing sound followed soon after. A shield. Stella lifted her head to see where it was summoned but fell back. She couldn't get up. Everything was aching—her bones, her muscles. Everything. Dread dug into her heart as she realized that she might soon die. She couldn't stand, let alone fight.

Soft skin came into contact with her forehead. Stella lifted her eyes. She recognized Jon's hand resting on her head as it glowed. The same cool feeling she felt earlier flowed into her figure and swept the pain away. Ah.