Of Water and Madness (34 page)

Capri clutched at
a stitch in her side as she fought to catch her breath, having just been chased by the remaining harpy as it had flown through the air with a god awful vengeance. She had tried to trap the creature in a tunnel of wind, but instead it had managed to evade the cyclone and launch itself straight for her, fury in its bright eyes.

If she hadn’t fought back her instinct to flee and boldly reached for the sword Rian had given her, whirling around to plunge it deep into the belly of the monster, she might not have survived. But now she stood before the creature as it died in the grass at her feet, her arms wrapped around her torso as she fought to catch her breath and come to terms with the knowledge that she had actually killed something.

But she also knew that if the harpy hadn’t died, then she most certainly would have.

It was then that she heard the echoing scream of rage coming from somewhere near the mountains, and her head jolted up at the sound. Her breath caught in her throat as an unwelcome shiver raced through her. God…what a horrible sound…

“Capri!” Rian called out, rushing to her as his gun tumbled from his hands to land with a thud on the grass. He scooped her up into his arms, hugging her and lifting her clear off the ground as he buried his face against her neck and shuddered.

She welcomed him in, trembling from the adrenaline that came from facing death and conquering it, and knowing just what could have been. Her hands fisted in his hair and she breathed him in, shutting her eyes tight so she wouldn’t have to face the bloody carcass at their feet.

She fought to calm her rapidly beating heart as he lowered her to the ground. “What was that scream?”

He shook his head, his eyes troubled. “I don’t know. But Vivica and Rhiannon are both gone.”

“Do you think they went to wherever Vivica sent Dante and Liam?” Capri asked, her eyes searching his.

In response, he stared over her shoulder toward the mountain range, even though he could make out nothing but the rocky cliffs and snow capped peaks.

“It sounded like it came from the mountains. Maybe they’re up there,” he told her, clutching her shoulders tightly in his hands. “Either way, there’s nothing we can do for them. Our obligation is to win this fight.”

Capri nodded, but her chest ached horribly at the thought that Liam and Rhiannon could be hurt…or worse, dead.

Disturbed, she surveyed the battle scene around them. So much destruction…so much violence, anger and bloodshed…the grassy field that had started out as a beautiful prairie now resembled a mine field, with smoke streaming up from the ground and storm clouds that continued to rage mercilessly overhead. She’d used those clouds herself to send bolts of lightning down upon their enemies, which she spotted her father doing now. Lucian was beside him, adding water to the electricity to brutally electrify the Black Dog. Clearly they had discovered this was the secret to the dog’s demise, as it was instant and exacting and much harder to evade than the bullets had been.

Blythe was with Jax and Brogan as they tackled a few of the remaining demons. Brogan forced the demons from their human hosts and Jax fired liquid nitrogen bullets into the serpents. Blythe followed up with a pistol loaded with lead bullets that shattered the demons into a million pieces, bursting in a cloud of glittering glass.

The Fates were wielding swords and attacking those demons that tried to interfere with the destruction of their own, thus guarding Blythe and the others, while the Muses tended the human hosts, careful to aid whatever wounds they could patch up while urging them into a peaceful sleep. They would need to be returned to a safe zone, where they would be left to awaken, their memories cleansed of everything they had witnessed. Near them, Thea was with Sebastian, tending to the deep scratches on his back.

“It looks like Brock and Rohan need help,” Rian said suddenly, nodding to where the two men were struggling to tackle the dragon, which they had managed to ensnare in thorny vines attached to the ground. But it had reared up and snapped some of the binds, and was flapping its enormous leathery wings in a desperate attempt to get back into the sky.

“Go, I’m going to see if Thea needs me.” Capri attempted a small smile even as her brow creased with worry and fear. “Please, be careful.”

In response, he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her briefly on the mouth, his serious eyes filled with grit and courage. “This is what I was born to do.”

With that, he picked his gun up from the grass and charged for Rohan and Brock, leaving her standing alone to watch him go. He was right, she thought to herself proudly. He was a warrior, and this was his purpose and his true passion. He would come back to her safely, that much she knew. He always did.

Taking a deep breath, she turned away from the battle and jogged over to Thea where she was rubbing salve that the Muses had brought onto Sebastian’s bare back. Capri blushed a bit at having intruded on what appeared to be an intimate moment, but Thea welcomed her over regardless.

“Capri.” Thea’s face was strained with concern and rage as she glanced up from her lover’s wounds. “I need you to finish treating his back, he’s in more pain than he’s stubbornly going to admit.”

Sebastian winced and shot her an irritated look. “It’s not that bad of a cut, my love. I can fight.”

“Harpies have toxins on their talons, Sebastian, and you know it. If we don’t treat the infection now, it will spread and who knows how long it will take you to recover,” Thea snapped, but Capri could tell that her sharp tongue was not born out of annoyance, but out of guilt and fear. It struck her to the core to see Thea so vulnerable…

“I’ll do it, Thea. Don’t worry,” Capri reassured her, already kneeling down in the grass and smiling sweetly at Sebastian.

“Good.” Thea rose to her feet and stared off in the distance toward the mountains, her eyes narrowing with fury as her long black dress blew around her in the gusts of wind that came from the storm above. “If that scream is any indication, they’re up on that mountain somewhere and Vivica is upset. It’s about time I take control of this situation and end this once and for all.”

“What are you going to do?” Capri asked curiously, already beginning to rub more salve on Sebastian’s back as she looked at Thea.

Thea pursed her lips, her eyes flashing dangerously as she glanced down at her Air Dryad, the urgency and anticipation of power already beginning to flood through her system in pulsing waves. Her hands trembled at her sides, and in response she clenched them tightly into fists and felt her lips curve into a dark and knowing smile.

“When I told you I wasn’t all-powerful, Capri, I didn’t mean that I couldn’t
become
all-powerful.”

Capri only shook her head, confused, as Sebastian let out a hiss of breath and glared up at her.

“Thea! You can’t be serious?” he asked harshly, attempting to turn around but faltering from the sharp pain that came from shifting his back. Fighting against it, he met her eyes. “It’s dangerous!”

“I know what I’m doing, Sebastian. Vivica is much stronger than any of us expected and the only answer is to become what she cannot control. I won’t be long.”

With a flourish of skirt and billowing black curls, she whirled around and glided out across the grass, heading away from the battle to an area that was wide open and empty. Her bare feet connected her with the rich and fertile soil below, while the bare skin of her arms and face embraced the feel of the wind and storm above. The grass brushed against her legs as she walked, and the sensation blended beautifully with the thrumming song of the Earth in her veins. When she came to a stop, she immediately dropped down to a crouch, her eyes closing as she dug her hands into the soil, absorbed in the feel of it as she let her head roll back on her shoulders and the gift within her summon the power from the very Earth she stood on.

She felt the ground shudder beneath her, trembling from deep within as she released the dirt from her hands and rose once more to her feet, her arms stretching up toward the sky, her eyes still closed.

Her feet felt it first, the answering shimmer of power that rose from the core of the planet to merge with her very body, sliding its way up her legs and toward her belly. She inhaled slowly and exhaled even slower, almost as if she were meditating, allowing the ancient energy of the Earth to come inside of her and make her stronger.

If she took too much, she knew she could destroy herself…therefore she couldn’t be greedy. The feeling was incredibly seductive and addicting, the need for it almost impossible to ignore once it began. But she had to maintain control, had to take only what she needed, or the very Earth could cease to turn and the damage it caused would be irreversible.

Shimmering waves pulsed through her body and she welcomed the power that had reached her heart, thudding along with the blood that ran in her veins. In her mind, she almost pictured her blood glowing white hot inside of her as it moved beneath her skin. The urge to keep going, to keep taking and taking until she could take no more was thundering within her, but she knew she had to push back…she couldn’t keep going…only a little more…

No
. Stop. Now. She opened her eyes, exhaling and purposely stepping back from the rooted spot where she had been, clutching her body and writhing from the sudden absence of feeling. Her body was numb and dulled, as if she’d never feel again…

But as she righted herself and released another heavy sigh, she smiled, knowing she had succeeded. She stared down at her hands, saw them glowing with a vague, ethereal golden light, and she beamed with a sense of power and contentment. Yes…now she was ready.

With one last glance over to Sebastian and Capri, Thea spread her arms out wide and in a blinding flash of light, she disappeared.

Liam nudged Rhiannon behind him as Vivica writhed with rage and agony, her body shaking with barely restrained violence as Dante suddenly seemed to awaken from under her control, and stumble back from her.

Shaking his head in an attempt to clear it, Dante tried to stay on his own two feet as he stared cautiously at Vivica, completely at a loss over what had just transpired.

“Vivica, darling…” he began, reaching out for her. But she swatted his hand away angrily and got in his face, her eyes menacing.

“
You lied to me!
” she shrieked, losing all control as she started clawing at his face and hitting him. He fought back, his own temper flaring violently as he shoved her away from him, grinning as she stumbled to the ground.