My eyes widened. I glanced to Tegan.
“It was that bad, Savannah,” she said softly.
I had no words. There was nothing I wouldn’t do for a friend…but…
I don’t doubt your abilities to use black magic safely and successfully, Tegan’s voice said straight into my mind. But given Saffie’s situation that was about to kill you.
I swallowed through a sudden hot lump in my throat.
I glanced up to Cooper and found him still glaring at me.
He shook his head. “I asked if you were all right, you should have told me your plan and I would have warned you.”
“Tegan—” Tennessee snapped his fingers between me and her. “Just get her back alive.”
“I can do that. I have a plan.” Tegan stretched out her arms and rainbow magic coiled around her fingers. “I just need time to properly prepare for it so I know you’ll be safe. This kind of magic has to be slow.”
“So you know she’ll be safe?” Cooper scoffed. “What are you gonna do, tie a rope around her waist and pull?”
Tegan gasped and her eyes sparkled with excitement. “No, but I am now.”
Cooper’s face fell. “Wait no…”
Chapter Fourteen
Saffie
My feet hit the ground and the air whooshed right next to my face. My instincts kicked in and I ducked just as a sword swung right over my head. The sound of metal clanging against metal filled the air. Deafening screams echoed in the warm breeze, like little whispers in the wind. My feet sank into the drenched ground, whether it was from the misting rain or blood I didn’t know. A man the size of a barrel with tree trunks for arms and legs held his hands high in the air. Bright glittering smoke gathered around his fingers and he blasted it over my head.
I turned, giving him my back, only to see he’d struck a huge spider demon. It tumbled onto its back with long twitching legs. A wave of new spider demons crawled over its corpse as if it didn’t matter. They were coming at me like a storm rolling in, a swarm of dark shadows promising death. I scurried backwards — and slammed into something hard. My legs gave out and I crashed to the soggy dirt. I gasped and spun, only to find a wall of rainbow mist.
“Tegan!” I whisper shouted. “Tegan, I’m here!”
The wave of spider demons lunged right for me but Tegan’s rainbow magic formed a dome over me. The spider demons went around the dome like it was a solid structure. Men in gleaming silver body armor jumped over my head with fancy, shimmering swords raised in the air. None of them seemed to see me as they sliced spider demons to pieces.
“TEGAN,” I hissed and glanced around.
“Saffie — can’t see — too far back— too much time,” Tegan’s voice was strained and far away.
Too far back. Too much time. She meant I’d gone too far back in time for her to reach me. I cursed and glanced over my shoulder and my jaw dropped.
The war raging around me made World War II looked like child’s play. There were no planes and flying cannons, but there were demons. Everywhere. Of all different sizes and shapes. Every other second, magic exploded. Fire raged in every direction. The sky was blood red. Shadows crept over the land, casting everything in bits of darkness. The air carried that sickeningly sweet stench of maple syrup.
A pillar of fire shot straight up into the sky. The ground rumbled under my feet and the earth split open. A valley of fire and shadow screamed as demons climbed their way out and into the battle.
The sea of monsters and men fighting parted and a man covered in gold body armor emerged with two long golden swords in his hands. He screamed and dove for the valley of fire, ducking and slicing his weapons through demons like they were made of air. Silvery wings popped out of his back as he spun in a vicious circle. Black demon blood sprayed in an arch. His back was to me so I couldn’t see his face, but I saw long pale blond hair swinging with each of his steps. He threw his hands out and silver magic shot out of his palms in every direction.
I gasped.
I knew that magic.
Heat filled my body.
Demons burst into black dusty clouds the second the silver magic touched them.
A shadow passed over me — and two dozen spider demons landed on the other side of my dome.
The man spun, his blond hair flying like a cape, and I saw his face.
It was Riah.
I frowned and shook my head. No. No, something’s not right here.
But Riah lunged forward and decimated demon after demon, shooting silver magic while slicing heads off with his two swords. Nothing was even getting close to him, yet his face and blond hair were stained with dirt and blood – both red and black.
He half-turned and yelled. “PROCTOR!”
I gasped and sat up straight. Me? I was a Proctor…but he hadn’t even seen me, had he?
Bright white light shined from the left. I looked toward it and my eyes widened. A tall man with jet-black hair and light eyes emerged from the sea of demons holding a six-foot-tall sword that glowed like sunshine. He swung the sword through the belly of a wolf-demon beside him and my gaze landed on the black IV Mark on his left forearm. The Emperor? Had to be, that was a Coven Mark.
Except that was not Tennessee.
This Emperor grinned as his glowing sword annihilated half a dozen demons. He glanced over his shoulder to Riah and shouted, “Where’s Henry?”
“I’ll get him,” Riah screamed and impaled two scorpion-demons at the same time. “You cannot wait.”
The Emperor shook his head. “But—"
Riah’s face flushed. “To Lilith NOW!”
I gasped. My body went cold. I knew where I was. This was the Hundred Years’ War, the war between Earth and Lilith. This was Riah from the past. He’s THAT old?
The Past-Emperor looked off in the distance and his face paled. “I’ll never make it, she’s too far.”
Past-Riah growled and leapt over to the Past-Emperor. “You are the son of Uriel, yes?”
“Yes, why—”
“Tuck and roll on landing,” Past-Riah said with a wild grin. With one hand he grabbed the Past-Emperor by the armor and threw him in the air.
The Past-Emperor soared like a shooting star across the massive field of battle and there was something about it that reminded me of Tennessee. Past-Riah watched until he dropped to the ground, then he turned back to the battle around him.
Demons surged. Nothing was touching me inside my rainbow dome but my heart was lodged in my throat as I watched Past-Riah destroy them one by one. He was incredible. I needed to find my way back to the tunnel and get home, yet I couldn’t stop watching. Even amidst blood and death he was mesmerizing.
Golden light sparkled from my left hand side but when I looked I found it was another man— no wait. This man wore the golden armor of the fae. Of the Knights. The very ones chasing me now. He hurried to Past-Riah’s side and the two moved in perfect synchronization.
“Malachi. Now,” Past-Riah yelled.
I heart stopped. Malachi. I know that name. That’s his brother’s name. His brother who died…I looked back up at the two and I saw the resemblance. They had the same facial structure and gold eyes. Same silver wings. Their hair was different shades, but they were the same long length. Oh Goddess. This is his brother. I hated how much my heart hurt for him.