Magical Midlife Alliance (Leveling Up Book 7), page 35
I didn’t know why these mages were attacking, or whose mages they were. I’d thought Momar had all his people tied up in anticipation of Kingsley’s battle. All I knew was that they’d be sorry for showing up on our doorstep without a larger arsenal. Because I’d bring in these gargoyles, I’d handle the magic, and I would show those useless leaders what it actually meant to be an army of gargoyles.
My roar felt like it came up from my toes. Power boomed from my body, blanketing the whole territory and beyond. I felt Gimerel scattering away from the mages, having no more idea of how to handle magical workers now than they had the day of the raid.
Come to me.
Harder and harder I boomed out my magic, and my wings made a distinct sound that I’d never made before. An urgent sound, not unlike the buzzing from earlier, but much higher-pitched. It carried along my pulses of magic.
Come to me!
The fliers in my crew rose first as the basajaunak stuffed themselves into cars or vans and headed out with the shifters. They stayed just below me. And then more fliers joined us, ignoring their cairn leaders’ orders to stay grounded and rising to my call.
The darkness pulled at me, and I welcomed it, using it to boost my summons.
COME TO ME!
In the distance, gargoyles rose into the darkened sky, and the moonlight cast them in haunting shadows. More rose all around me, their wings pumping, their anticipation palpable. I found those with resistance and pushed, working at them, coaxing them with magic.
Not the leaders, though, who were all gathered angrily by the restaurant entrance. I blocked them from feeling the message, wanting them to watch me take their people out from under them. I’d give them back, but not until I gave them a taste of victory.
And then I felt a rock in a turbulent sea. Tristan—his resistance ironclad, his will not at all bending. He needed something a little extra. The gargoyle in him longed to rise, but something within him pushed back. Some dark force would not allow him to go so easily.
It felt a little like Niamh when someone tried to force her into doing something. I wondered if he had a little puca mixed up in him somewhere.
I added a little flourish of magic that could usually entice a person like her. It essentially translated to: pretty please.
I had no idea how I heard his dark chuckle. I felt more than saw his deep bow. And then the mighty beast rose into the sky. His wings snapped and his people fell in around him, perfectly organized. A born leader waiting on my command.
The other lead enforcers did the same, if not so perfectly synchronized. They brought their people in around them and waited.
“Okay, let’s go, let’s go,” Sebastian said, starting to run.
In a move we’d practiced many times, Ulric and Jasper swooped down and grabbed the mages. As they rose, Nathanial did the same, holding me so that we could go faster. Tristan followed directly behind and somewhat above my people. Another enforcer was below, and the others fanned out to the sides.
As we cut through the sky, more gargoyles fell in, filling in my ranks. These were the solo guardians, the ones who’d come to check us out. Magic pumped through me, and my heart felt like a battle drum. I felt the distinct desire to connect with everyone in tow. They hadn’t spilled blood on my behalf, but they would. I needed to feel their whereabouts and conditions if I was going to be able to protect them in battle.
Through my gargoyle, I extended my magical connection. One and all snatched it up quickly—and one immediately fed me curiosity. Tristan again. He was analyzing each interaction with me, going along with it but still feeling it out.
That didn’t matter now. I could see the blasts of light and color up ahead, mages pushing forward a good distance behind a large grouping of mercenaries firing at houses or people on the run.
Anger throbbed within me.
We’d run the last time we heard mages were coming for us. We’d taken the battle elsewhere.
Not this time. This time we were ready.
The shifters were out of their vehicles. Austin’s roar went up, a challenge. His shifters followed suit, organizing quickly below us in their heavily practiced formation. The basajaunak flanked their neat rows, hands out and bodies bent forward a little, roaring.
The connections to all the gargoyles were insane, so many flying with me, each now feeding me emotional cues. It was too many. I couldn’t compartmentalize them.
Instead I homed in on the lead enforcers, yanking our connections taut and then using magical pulses to communicate. Hopefully they understood. I’d practiced heavily with my crew. These people were strangers. I didn’t know how to use this connection to work with them.
Trusting they’d at least pick up visual cues, I leaned forward so Nathanial would lower us in the sky as we reached the shifters. Jasper dove to get Nessa on the ground, and she quickly met up with Edgar.
“This way, Shadow,” I barely heard Edgar tell her, curving away right.
“Why this way?”
“I never know.”
Austin glanced up.
Now.
Another magical blast for the gargoyles: follow me!
We shot forward with a roar, Nathanial and me in the lead and the others in my crew fanning out in a V. Sebastian took up the rear.
I craned my neck to look behind to see if the new gargoyles were following. To my utter relief, they were. Seamlessly. Organized in a way that Austin would be proud of.
At the lead, following right behind us, was Tristan. He was taking my cues and directing those around him, not just his cairn but all the gargoyles—it did not seem to matter that he hadn’t previously worked with them. My God, but he was a helluvan asset. No wonder Nelson hadn’t asked any questions about his past.
We were nearly on them when the mages finally looked up.
The first blast came right for me. Nathanial threw me sideways and dove in the other direction. My team knew to split, and as I careened to the side, I half turned back to throw up a shield before the spell smashed into Tristan.
Then I was back and firing, blasting down at the mages with all my power. Austin would handle the mercenaries.
“Lower,” Sebastian yelled as Ulric flew him by. “Draw their fire away from the shifters.”
I dove with them, quickly caught by Nathanial, my speed increasing drastically. Magic came at us almost immediately, and the mages went from leaning forward to looking up. Hard and complex spells slammed into my shields—these were spells I’d never have the time to pick apart. They didn’t have the power to greatly trouble me, though, not with the improved protection spells Sebastian and I had worked up.
The problem was that there were so many of them. Nine to our two. We had to weed some out before the rest of my crew and the gargoyles could take them.
I flung my hands to release me from Nathanial and barreled down into them, taking their fire at close range and reflecting it back. I nearly made it to one of their mages before a spell came at me from the side, knocking me off course. I tumbled through the air and then along the ground, jumping up in time to throw up a shield for Niamh and Mr. Tom, who’d followed right behind me.
Cyra rained down fire in their wakes, scattering the mages but taking a spell for her efforts. Hollace, too, took a hit, and they careened in opposite directions. Hurt, not dead. They’d be okay.
Niamh’s golden hooves beat at the ground a moment before she slammed her horn into the middle of the closest mage. She’d let the others be a distraction. Mr. Tom scratched along another mage, taking a rough shot from a hasty spell.
Grimacing, I launched back into the sky as Ulric flew Sebastian around the mages, allowing him to fire powerful spells at them from right up close. They must’ve taken potions to help ward away magic, though, because his spells weren’t doing much damage.
Gargoyles scattered every which way, not used to this sort of battle. Not used to the pain of these types of spells. They were out of their element, unsure what to do, scared of what was happening even if they didn’t want to admit it.
As I flew closer, I grabbed the tethers of our new connections, one and all, focusing as much as I possibly could to pull taut every one. That done, I pumped into them comforting support, courage, and a heady promise of victory. Into the air, I pounded a magical message. Fight with me! We will win together!
Working on that but now shifting focus, I swooped back toward the mages as the shifters tore into the mercenaries behind us. Flashes of light blasted from magical guns shot into their ranks. Hollace turned back to them, raining down lightning to cut down the numbers.
Gargoyles once again fell in with Tristan, reorganizing. They dove for the mages, and I hurried to get there first. Spells zipped into the air. Tristan maneuvered better than I’d ever seen, even during the raid. He tilted and dodged, working through the air at an incredible speed. His companions didn’t fare so well. One caught a spell center mass, and it knocked him out of the sky.
I threw a catching spell under him to keep him suspended as I got a block up in time to protect two other gargoyles. Tristan reached the mages, but not before one of them hit him in the side with a spell that made him roar in pain. He snatched up the offending mage and, using both of those enormous arms, pulled the guy apart. Literally ripped his body in two like a piece of paper.
Blood splattered everywhere. The mages around him scattered, scared beyond sense. They kept firing spells, though, now directly at him.
I was there, shielding him from damage, no time to attack with any spells of my own.
A spell buzzed right past me, a narrow miss. Tristan turned and grabbed me, firing up into the sky so fast that I might’ve peed myself a little. He held me as we did a circle, weaving in between the magical attacks and dipping so I could get spells fired off or shields hastily erected at the last moment.
Gargoyles attacked, but not as a cohesive unit. They didn’t have a clear idea of what to do. They weren’t as fast or agile as Tristan or my crew gargoyles. They didn’t know how to engage.
I worked at those connections again, trying to energize. Trying to bring them back together. I panted in fatigue but didn’t give up.
Thankfully, my crew was well versed in all of this. They were the saving grace. Ulric took a hit, though, losing his grip on Sebastian. His roar sent a message to our team. Help!
Someone needed to grab Sebastian. He could catch himself in a magical net, but then he’d be a sitting duck for the enemy mages.
I flared my hands, frustrated when Tristan didn’t recognize the signal I’d established with Nathanial. This time I added a little electricity in the movement and a wiggle, flaring my hands again.
Sebastian fell, utterly composed, trusting that one of us would grab him. He kept firing at the mages, and his spells were starting to get through whatever potion or deterrent they’d taken.
Tristan loosened his grip and then caught on; a shock of alarm coursed through him as he noticed Sebastian falling. Letting go of me, he sliced through the air, dodging enemy spells and snatching Sebastian up before Jasper or Mr. Tom were able to get there.
A lead enforcer led a group of gargoyles down through the spells with zero fear or hesitation. I flapped my wings as hard as I could, trying to get closer so my defending spells would be more focused. Gargoyle arms closed around me, and I recognized the coloring of one of the cairn enforcers. He picked up speed rapidly, and downward we shot.
My spell covered the others right in time, blocking blasts from three mages, but I didn’t have enough juice to reflect the power back at them.
In a moment, it didn’t matter.
That little defense was all the gargoyles needed. They closed the distance in record time and dug their claws into the mages. Their wings flapped as they pulled the mages into the sky, making short work of frail bodies. When they were done, they threw the bodies down at the others.
Five mages to go.
One saw the carnage, turned, and ran back toward a street where a line of black cars was parked.
He shouldn’t have turned his back on a swarm of gargoyles.
The gargoyle holding me let go and went after him immediately, easily dodging the spells tossed over the mage’s shoulder. The other mages ran in different directions, not used to the aerial onslaught.
Shifters roared behind me as I hammered down spells, taking advantage of the mages’ fear and confusion.
Shadows materialized behind one of the mages who had just fired into the sky. Edgar zoomed in behind him with a cheerful “Hi!” He dug his fangs into the startled mage’s neck and stayed there as Nessa appeared behind another and peppered his body with her knife blades.
“Jessie, look out!”
I turned in time to see a blast of light coming right for me. My hands were slow in rising, or maybe time had just slowed down. I didn’t have the opportunity to say the words to protect myself, or even duck out of the way. Only one thought formed in my brain: This is gonna hurt.
I prepared to heal myself as a big body slammed into mine. Tristan. The shot hit him in the side, tearing through his wing and making him grunt in pain. We careened, spiraling quickly—Tristan only had one wing now.
Struggling free, I switched our positioning, holding him as best I could and making a pathetic attempt to fly with him. He was much too heavy for my meager wings. Choosing a plan B, I began healing him in earnest as I lowered us, made it down, and then helped him get to cover. In a moment, I was rising again. Only two mages were left, and Sebastian hovered over them, held by Jasper, keeping them busy.
I headed that way, once again grabbed by a random gargoyle, and helped Sebastian rain down magic. Our spells were faster and harder than theirs. The mages quailed, sinking down, and then screamed when five gargoyles swooped down to finish them.
Breathing hard, I looked back toward the mercenaries. Then realized there were no more mercenaries. Not any who were left standing.
Ulric’s was the first roar of victory. His flying was a little wonky, but he was still in the air. Jasper joined, and then all the gargoyles were roaring, joined in a chorus by shifters and basajaunak.
Tristan rose into the sky again, not quite mended but apparently good enough. He needn’t have bothered.
I shifted as soon as I landed, checking the mages just in case one had made it.
“That was a grisly end, huh?” Nessa said with a smile, standing next to a body part I didn’t want a closer look at. “And I thought shifters were vicious.”
“Shifters are vicious,” Sebastian said, landing with Jasper.
A loud “Aaaahhhhh” drifted from the mercenary area. One of the basajaunak was lifting two disembodied heads into the sky, yelling out his victory. I turned away, my stomach rolling. That was way too much. Way too much.
“I think we have a lot of vicious creatures,” I murmured, feeling my newly established links with the gargoyles. I’d need to figure out a better way to access through them now that there were so many. It had gotten very confusing during the battle, and I’d missed people. Not that I could’ve ever covered them all anyway, but it would have helped to have a system.
A few swells of pain caught my notice, and I homed in on them and headed in that direction.
“Miss Jessie,” someone called.
I ignored it. They could come to me if it was important.
“Are you okay?” I asked as I reached a hurt gargoyle with a large gash in the side of his leg.
“I’m okay, Ironheart.” He grimaced as he took a step away. “I’ll be okay.” He pointed at the sky. “That felt good, what we did. What we were. Together. That was fun. Dangerous.”
I couldn’t help a grin. Gargoyles—they did love a good battle.
“Just go sit over there, okay?” I pointed to a little grassy area. “I need to see how many people need my attention before I can start healing.”
“You can heal?”
Why did no one seem to know that?
I sought out the next hurt gargoyle.
“Miss Jessie.” Tristan caught up easy with his long strides.
“Yeah? What do you need?”
“What are you—”
“Are you okay?” I asked the next gargoyle, who was badly hurt and barely clinging to consciousness. “Oh, man, okay, lie down. Just right here is fine. I’ll help, okay? You’re going to be okay.”
Where was that healer that I’d sent a summons for in the basajaunak lands? We could sorely use them.
I started healing the gargoyle immediately, turning to Tristan. “Get someone over here to sit with him.”
He didn’t balk at my order. “Of course,” he said quickly.
On I went to the next. Tristan caught up with me again.
“You should be checking in with your people,” I told him. “Some of them are hurt. I don’t have the energy to heal everyone, so only call me if it’s life or death. Otherwise, I’m sure Austin has medical people on the way.”
“My second-in-command is seeing to that.”
“Ah. Well, what can I do for you?”
Tristan didn’t answer me. Instead, he shadowed me as I checked in with the next gargoyle, who was already being seen to by his enforcer, and then the last one, who seemed to be in the worst shape. I set to healing him immediately.
Austin had already worked through his people, sectioning off those who needed medical attention.
“What’s the status?” I asked when I caught up with him.
He looked me over briefly, running his thumb along my chin, before glancing over my shoulder at Tristan.
“Thank you,” he said. “For taking that magical blast for her.”
“She was more valuable to the battlefield than me—simple as that,” Tristan replied.
“That kinda cheapens it a little,” I grumbled as Austin ran his touch down my arm.
“The darkness?” Austin asked me, peering into my eyes.
I shook my head. “It was fine. I didn’t even feel it recede. Throughout the battle it just…felt like me this time.”
“You must be acclimating to your beast. That’s good news.” He kissed my forehead. “We have a few wounded. They took shots from the magical guns. Nothing that needs your attention, though. Brochan is getting them situated now, and we’ll get them home when they’re a little further along the healing process.”
