“He did it,” Liam said with a frown.
“He did what?” We all stepped out of the car and moved closer to the dome. It cut into the earth just like the one in Faerie.
“It’s the start of his new world.” Liam sounded dejected. “Just the one house now, but he’ll grow it bigger and bigger until it encompasses the whole state or country or whatever part he wants to make into his dark version of Faerie.”
Dark version of Faerie was pretty much the worst thing I could think of. I charged forward. “We need to stop it.”
Liam stumbled after me, Cam and Elle following just behind him. “Hold up.”
“We’ll take the crystals, and his dome will fall, just like in Faerie,” I growled. I was thirsty for revenge. He thought he could steal from us and create his own world?
Hell, no.
Liam had reached me and grasped my upper arm, slowing my run. “Just wait. This doesn’t feel right.”
We were ten feet from the dome, and seeing the crystalline structure cut right into the grass here in the human world was unsettling. I wondered what illusions the humans saw. I had planned to rip an opening in the dome like I had back in Faerie, but Liam’s words gave me pause.
The entire house looked dead, like no one was home. Not a guard outside, not a car in the driveway. Empty.
That was weird…
Reaching out, Liam brushed his fingers against the clear dome. A sizzling sound ripped through the space, and he yelped, yanking back his fingers. “Shit!”
The tips of his fingers came away singed black, but they quickly frosted with snow as he pulled forth his power to cool the burning.
“What wa—” I began.
My words were cut off as the illusion dropped. Suddenly, we were surrounded by fifty Sons of Darkness. One second, we’d been alone in the woods on the outskirts of this mysterious property, and the next, dozens of men with swords and horns were bearing down on us.
I yelped, completely startled by their sudden appearance.
With a battle cry, Liam thrust his hands out, and a wall of ice cut us off from them momentarily. The top was open, but it would give us seconds to decide what to do.
“Retreat and meet at the blue door!” Liam yelled, and Elle and I nodded. Then he hooked Cam under the armpits and kicked off the ground, shooting up and out of the ice ring like a tornado.
Elle and I were next. Kicking off with all my might, I shot for the sky. I was a strong flier—not as fast as Liam, but decent in my own right.
The second Elle’s head broke the top of the ice wall, she started throwing knives, and I came up right after her. Doing a quick scan of the Sons, I saw that only two of the dozens there had wings, and they had only just taken to the skies.
Those on the ground all had menacing expressions, and a few of them started to shift into animal forms. Pelts of fur rippled down their arms, and they hunched onto the ground. I’d never seen a shifter fae before, save for Cam, and I had never seen him shift—I had been passed out. To my people, shifters were demons who lived in the dark forest, spoken about only in whispers.
I didn’t spot the Winter King, a mercy for which I was grateful. Flying with as much speed as I could muster, I wove through the trees and headed for the blue door.
I had high hopes we would lose this mob until I saw a harpoon dart sail through the air and puncture Liam’s wing up ahead.
“No!” Dread turned to stone in my gut as I watched Liam and Cam tumble into the crowd of angry, armed Sons.
I looked at Elle, who was staring in shock as the Winter King’s dark fae descended on my soulmate and his bestie. Like a mob, they jumped in a pile and completely covered the two boys, kicking and stabbing like madmen.
The horror caused heat to sear my palms, and I felt pressure build in my chest. Flapping my wings, I lowered myself right over the mob and thrust my arms out.
Everything went white. The pressure left my chest in one huge sunlight explosion. Buttery light burst from my palms, temporarily blotting out everything in the vicinity. It was like a light bomb had been dropped, and everything turned golden white for a second before the glow retreated.
I landed on the ground amid screams and the smell of burning flesh. My eyes tried to compensate for the temporarily blinding light, but I was struggling to see fully. Moving my way through the chaos, I searched for Liam.
The edges of my vision started to come back just as a Son lunged for me. Holding my left hand out, I blasted him with sunlight, and he shot backward like I’d lit a rocket underneath him.
“I’m at your back!” Elle shouted as we moved in on the pile of men. Most of them rolled on the ground, holding their eyes, and thick red welts marred their arms.
Holy shit.
I’d done that? I felt sick for a moment, but then I remembered they were trying to kill us.
Finally, my vision returned fully, and I saw Liam and Cam in his wolf form. It looked like Liam had pulled the harpoon out of his wing and shoved it into some dude’s neck.
Liam looked at me with shock, which turned to understanding. “You have light magic,” he whispered.
I gulped, unsure what that meant. The last time I had used this magic to fight off his father, Liam had been in a psycho dark state from the crystal, and then he’d been injured.
Elle came up beside me, looking at me like I’d grown two heads. “What the fuck was that?”
Okay, not the best time to discuss the gifts the healing pools had unlocked within
