Ancient words flowed from the three sisters and a low hum vibrated along the ground.
“They don’t approach us.” Jade pointed to a line of Summoners beyond Gregory. “They line the far end of the hall but don’t move. They’re just observing.”
“But why?” Rell glanced upward and then back to where the other Bringers easily held off the Bane. “Perhaps it’s a trap of some kind.”
“Not a trap.” Siban faced the three sisters. “A diversion.”
A loud crack sounded from the wall of ice. The images of the frozen Bringers wavered and were replaced by dark figures. Fingers scraped along the inside of the wall and anguished cries filtered through the ice. Another crack sounded, followed by a thunderous roar.
“Stop!” Siban raced forward and yanked Ravyn’s hands from the ice. “Those are not Bringers.”
“What are you talking about?” Juna’s hands remained on the ice. “Our mother is inside.”
“Look.” He pointed to one of the dark figures. Its body slithered along the inside. For a fraction of a second an eight-pointed star pressed against the ice. “The Summoner’s symbol.”
A small fracture appeared in the structure and traced a disjointed path upward. The three sisters stumbled away from the wall.
“This isn’t a wall of ice,” Meran said. “It’s the Abyss.”
“He tricked us into opening it.” Juna turned and sprinted toward Gregory, shouting at them.
Siban grabbed Rell’s hand. “Come on!”
The five of them raced across the black expanse behind Juna and engaged the demons Gregory and the two others had been fighting.
“We have to get out of here.” Siban swung his sword at the closest Bane. “Get the dragons.”
A low groan radiated from the Abyss and the walls vibrated. Tremors undulated across the floor, sending the fighting Bane running toward the entrance of the hall.
“I’m going to help drive back the Bane from above.” Gregory spun, transforming to a dragon and launched into the air.
“Maybe we can stop the Abyss from opening,” Meran said.
“How? We didn’t even know we were opening it to begin with.” Ravyn turned to Brita. “Do you know?”
The Tell shook her head. “We were not given that information, but as the Trilation you should be able to project what you want.”
The three sisters joined hands again and turned toward the fracturing structure. They closed their eyes and raised their hands.
“They’re coming back.” Magnus crouched, readying himself for the new wave of Bane sweeping toward them. “It looks like they mean to stop the Trilation.”
“And I mean to stop them.” Rell looked at Siban. “Let’s vanquish these bastards once and for all.”
“You read my mind,” he said.
The first wave hit, bringing three demons to one Bringer. Siban hacked at the Bane, sending energy balls as quickly as he could manifest them, with little effect.
“Use your Tell,” Brita shouted. “Concentrate your powers into your attack.”
Siban let the barriers of his mind crumble. His Tell rushed through his body and down his arm. Energy pooled in his hand as he drove back one of the demons with his sword. When there was a brief lull, he sent his intentions into the orb and hurled it toward his opposition. It sped across the hall and blasted into a Bane. The demon exploded into a million glittering sparks, but another demon quickly took its place.
Wind swept through the hall and the glittering bits began to swirl, gathering into a violent vortex. The fiery sparks spun, sucking several of the Bane into it as it swept along the hall. With a violent roar, the vortex rammed through the floor, opening a giant gash in the floor and disappeared.
More Bane converged and again the Bringers attacked with a barrage of fire. Slowly they gained ground, forcing the demons back. Another crack rented the air and a loud groan rumbled from the Abyss.
“It’s not working.” Ravyn’s voice raised above the cacophony of battle. “What do we do?”
“Look,” Meran yelled.
Siban chanced a glance. From the ceiling thousands of imps crawled down the cavern wall toward the Abyss. He spun, hurled an orb and stabbed a charging demon with his sword. Another vortex formed, spinning toward the opening of the hall. The Bane fled, trying to avoid its path.
“What are they doing?” Juna shouted above the roar.
With a reprieve in the fighting, the Bringers turned to watch the imps. Their black bodies clung to the wall of the Abyss, covering it. The wails from within grew, as if angered by the creatures’ interference.
“I think they’re helping,” Rell said.
“No!” Vile’s bellow resonated through the hall. He dove toward the gathering imps, but Icarus landed on top of him and spun, sending his uncle crashing into one of the towering statues.
Vile slammed into the stone, decapitating the sculpture, and dropped to the ground. Quickly righting himself, he sent a blast of fire at the imps. Their squeals of pain filled the hall, the smell of their burning flesh billowing to choke Siban.
He coughed and covered his mouth with his sleeve. “We need to get out of here.”
“What about the Abyss?” Ravyn asked.
“There’s nothing to be done about it now.” Magnus waved at the battling dragons. “Pray that the imps know what they are doing. If not, I’m sure we’ll know about it soon enough. Best that we’re not here when and if it opens.”
One by one the dragons landed. Siban shoved Rell onto Luc’s back along with Jade. Juna and Brita climbed onto Gregory, leaving Siban to ride Rhys and Magnus on Trace. He held out his hand to Meran, but before she could reach for him, Icarus swooped down and plucked her from the ground. The demon shot skyward toward the light at the top of the hall.
Ravyn transformed, but before heading toward the opening, she laid a wall of fire between the Bane and the escaping dragons. Luc shot into the air and Siban breathed a sigh of relief that Rell was on her way to safety. Gregory launched next, then Trace, and finally Siban and Rhys took to the air.
Vile paid them no heed, his attention focused fully on the Abyss and the imps. With their king not in pursuit, the other Bane seemed disinclined to continue the fight.
Above them the light grew. Icarus and Meran burst through the opening first, followed by Ravyn, Luc, Gregory, Trace, and finally Rhys. Sunlight bit into Siban’s eyes when they broke free from the dark interior of the Shadow World. He gasped, breathing in the sweet air of freedom.
Chapter Twenty
Wind dragged at Rell’s hair, the rays of the sun spreading over her the higher the golden dragon climbed. Compared to the icy interior from which they had just escaped, outside felt like a summer day. Jade wrapped her arms around Rell’s waist and crushed the air from her as Luc glided down the slope of the mountain to where they had left the horses when they had entered the Shadow World.
She craned her neck to look behind them and sent up a prayer of thanks when the only others who followed them were members of their party. Perhaps the Sanctuary had collapsed or the Bane were too busy trying to counter the unexpected invasion of imps. Rell inhaled deeply, just thankful that they’d all gotten out alive.
The exhilaration of flight and narrowly escaping Vile’s trap made her want to shout to the open air. A roar erupted from the golden dragon, reverberating against Rell’s legs. Jade yelped and clutched her tighter. Rell laughed, unable to suppress the multitude of emotions swirling through her.
An answering roar erupted behind them. Rell craned her neck to see the black dragon banking around the mountain with Siban on its back. Her heart soared. She scanned the sky, mentally counting the Bringers and the dragons. All had escaped. Overcome with gratitude, she closed her eyes and sent up a heartfelt prayer of thanks to the Sainted Ones.