Laughter answered her words and Erika suddenly felt foolish, sensed the ridicule of her enemy. Even with the support of the Anahera, she sensed her doom. She could not win this battle, would find only death down here in this darkness. The Calafe would forget her brief reign—if they survived to remember anything at all.
And Maya would persist, would give birth to more of her terrible kind, barely weakened from the originals. Then it would only be a matter of time before they took the world.
A scream built in Erika’s throat as she foresaw that dark future. Another flicker of movement came from a nearby corner and she threw out her hand, unleashing the gathering power. Light burst from the gauntlet, catching Maya midstride.
The Old One staggered as the power struck, bending her in two, freezing her to the spot. Shocked, Erika kept on, pouring her energy into the gauntlet, feeding the magic. Gripping her wrist with the other hand to steady herself, she staggered forward, knowing this was her chance. A dark sound whispered from the Old One as her frame bowed, as her body shook, trembled…
… then straightened.
Erika stumbled to a stop as the Old One’s laughter echoed around her. Abruptly the creature darted forward, catching Erika by the wrist and yanking her hands towards the ceiling, directing the gauntlet’s power away from her.
“Ahhh, but I had forgotten that sting,” the Old One hissed, leaning in close so that they were face to face.
Erika flinched away from that face. Her power had not been without effect. Scarlet tears ran from Maya’s grey eyes and her cheek twitched with the aftereffects of the pain. Yet she still stood, teeth bared, that terrible insanity watching Erika from the grey depths.
A scream came from nearby, and Erika’s heart twisted as she saw Cara go down. Before the Anahera could recover, Amina landed upon her back. Grasping the youth by the hair, she drove her face into the stone floor. Screaming, Erika struggled to free herself from Maya’s grip, but the Old One only smiled, amusement playing across her lips as she too watched the end of the battle between sisters.
Snarling, Amina drew Cara’s bloodied face back, then slammed her into the stones again. And again and again, until finally the Anahera lay limp beneath her.
Only then did the Flumeeren queen rise. Magic lit her fist as she gathered power there, readying herself to finish the Anahera.
“No!” Erika screamed, fighting hopelessly against the Old One’s sheer strength. “Amina, don’t you see! She has made you the very thing your father raised you to stop!”
To her surprise, Amina glanced up at that. A frown played across the queen’s face, but her hesitation only lasted a moment. Her eyes met Maya’s, and something seemed to pass between the pair, before Amina turned back to Cara and raised her fist once more.
“Witness, my dear human, what becomes of those who stand against me,” Maya whispered.
“No.”
Erika jerked as a voice spoke from behind them...
…then a blur charged from the darkness, and slammed into the Old One.
37
The Tangata
The breath burst from Adonis’s lungs as he collided with the Old One, hurling her back, freeing the human from her grasp. He attacked again, driving a fist into his master’s face, straining to do the impossible, to stand against Maya’s Voice, against her power. Yet even as he struggled, Adonis felt her mind turning towards him, felt the full force of her consciousness as it focused on him…
Movement came from the floor as Maisie helped the other human to her feet, yet Adonis could not stop to consider them. He launched himself at Maya again, snarling, screaming, determined to stop her, to prevent her from leading his people to disaster—
Light exploded across his vision as the Old One finally recovered, her shock turning to rage. She moved faster than thought, faster even than his Tangatan senses could follow, and abruptly Adonis found himself on the cold stone, the metallic taste of blood filling his mouth.
“Adonis!” Maisie screamed.
His heart lurched at the thought of Maya turning her gaze upon the human and snarling, Adonis pushed himself back to his feet, placing himself before his foe. Maya’s eyes widened, as though unable to believe his defiance. Even Adonis struggled to comprehend it, the animalistic desperation that fuelled him. The buzzing of her Voice increased in pitch, scratching at the layers of his mind, but somehow he held it off.
Gathering himself, Adonis charged again, determined to stop her. But this time the Old One was ready. She caught his fist in one hand, a look of disgust on her lips, as though she considered it beneath her to spar with one so low as him. Her fist came up, and not all Adonis’s speed or skill was enough to avoid the blow. It collided against the side of his head, sending him careening into the wall. Red flashed across his vision, and this time when his vision cleared, Adonis found he no longer had the strength to stand.
A scream pierced his sluggish mind and teeth clenched, he raised his head, struggling to remain conscious. Light burst from the fist of Maisie’s friend as she unleashed the power of her ancestors, though this time she used it not against Maya, but the other, the half-blood that had fallen to the Old One’s power. The queen’s face contorted as the magic caught her, and she staggered, clutching her ears, crumpling to the ground.
The light faded as quickly as it had been unleashed as the human lowered her arm. Adonis frowned, his addled brain confused, struggling to track the players in the room. Nearby, Maya appeared equally as surprised, but the human ignored her, focusing on the fallen half-blood.
“Amina, get up!” Her voice echoed loudly in the narrow space. “We need you!
On
