Wicked War of Mine (Overworld Chronicles Book 9) (25 page)

"Well said." Daelissa graced Qualan with a smile. "Let us go. We have a realm to force to its knees." She almost tossed the scepter away, but decided to keep it. It was rather lovely to look upon, and the color complemented the blue in her eyes. She paused at the door and looked at Lanaeia. "Pick yourself up and come."

The sera's bruised face was slowly healing, but Daelissa saw something in her eyes that would never heal.
Good, good. Perhaps you'll soon learn power equals protection.

Lanaeia rose without a word and followed. Banj gave her one of his handkerchiefs.

"Be careful, sweet sera," he told her.

Skazaeleus was waiting for them at the entrance to the Imperial Skyway. Unlike the public ones, this skyway could be directed to go anywhere and was much faster. It had taken the imperial troops only hours to travel from the palace grounds to the Grand Nexus.

Minister Kjoeriss and several other members of the royal retinue waited with the Emperor. Daelissa, Qualan, Lanaeia, and Tovaard stepped onto the skyway.

"Let us make all haste," Daelissa said.

Skazaeleus the Fourth bowed. "Make it so," he told the operator.

The cloudbank began to move. It gathered speed and height as it went until Zbura dwindled to a speck behind them and the land receded far below. Daelissa stood near the edge and watched her kingdom sail past beneath them while the others sat on plush divans and sipped wine. She turned to look at her entourage.

Lanaeia sat by herself near the back. She made no move to wipe crusted blood from her face, nor did she express any emotion. Her nose was still slightly swollen and purple. It was obvious she hadn't fed from humans for very long before making this journey. Otherwise, she would be fully healed by now.

Qualan's dark eyes glittered as he looked at the young sera. "It will be fun breaking that foolish sera."

Daelissa smiled at him. "Perhaps you will one day make something of her."

Emperor Skazaeleus shifted uncomfortably in his royal armor. Unlike the enchanted cloth armor favored by the Templars, this armor was made of thin crystal scales. While it would certainly disperse the weak attacks of the Brightlings in this world, it would do little to stop the power of Seraphim fed on the essence of humans.

At last, they reached the Eternal Cliffs. The crystal armor of the Seraphim troops glittered in the sun like hundreds of diamonds on the plateau below the Imperial Skyway. The cloudbank broke free of the Imperial Skyway and descended. Daelissa spotted a commotion below. Her gaze picked out a familiar woman at the center of the fray, surrounded by imperial soldiers.

What is Serena doing here? I told her to wait.

The instant the cloudbank settled to the ground, Daelissa strode to the soldiers around Serena. "Free her. She is my servant."

"At once, Divinity," a young lieutenant said. He bowed and backed away without looking up from the ground until he was a safe distance away.

Serena's eyes widened when she saw Daelissa. "The enemy is attacking the Grand Nexus! I tried to tell these fools they needed to invade at once, but they wouldn't listen to me."

Daelissa bared her teeth. "Activate the nexus immediately!"

Serena ran to the empty socket where the Chalon would sit. This side didn't require the Chalon since the other side already had it. The Arcane held her hand over the socket. The arch hummed as it drew aether from the ley lines below. The air between the arch columns flickered. The thrumming noise of the arch abruptly wound down as if it had lost all power.

"No!" Serena shouted. She held her hand above the socket, but nothing happened. Eyes wide and full of fear, she turned to Daelissa. "They have removed the Chalon."

Ice formed in Daelissa's chest. "They what?"

"We're trapped in Seraphina." Tears formed in Serena's eyes.

"Trapped?" Qualan stormed to her, gripped her by the throat, and lifted her from the ground. "How could you let this happen you idiot?"

Serena made a choking noise. "Tried…invade…"

"Put her down," Daelissa commanded.

Qualan growled and dropped her.

The short Arcane stumbled to her knees gasping. "I told them to invade." She sucked in another breath and managed to climb to her feet. "I came here immediately and told your people hours ago. They wouldn't listen."

Fire burned through the icy dread in Daelissa's heart. "Who did you speak with?"

Serena pointed to the Lieutenant. "Him."

Qualan covered the distance in an eye blink. Grabbed the lieutenant, and flung him across the rocky ground to land at Daelissa's feet.

He held up a hand. "Please, Divinity, I did not know this human was authorized to command us."

Daelissa clenched her scepter. "You have cost me everything!" She swung the scepter hard. It smashed into the seraph's head. Again and again, she pummeled his skull until the crystal shattered. With a final scream, she drove the splintered shaft into the base of the seraph's neck.

Laughter burst from Qualan's throat. "Truly, he has learned his lesson, Divinity."

As Daelissa rose, she looked at her bloodied hands. Skazaeleus looked at her with naked fear on his face, as did some of the nearby soldiers. She could no longer take her army to Eden. Her plans to scour her enemies from that realm were vanquished. Fury boiled beneath her skin. She wanted blood. She wanted to obliterate Justin Slade as she had Moses.

"Mistress."

Daelissa looked down and saw Serena combing through the scattered brains of the dead lieutenant. The Divinity bared her teeth. "Were you not a human I could feed from, I would kill you this instant."

Serena held up something small and coated with gore. "Where did this come from?"

"Is it a bit of bone? An eye?" Daelissa almost slapped it from the woman's hand. "How should I know?"

Serena wiped it on a clean part of her dress and held it up.

Daelissa recognized it. "It is the orb from the Scepter of the Divinity."

Insane giggles erupted from Serena. "This is no mere orb."

Freed from the intricate setting atop the scepter, Daelissa realized how clever the original Skazaeleus had been. The Chalon on this side must have fallen from the arch after the Desecration. Unable to attune it without Alysea, he had hidden it.

"This was why Skazaeleus the First sought a perfect voice," Lanaeia said. "He thought someone else could attune the Chalon."

"Pah!" Serena gripped the orb. "It must be in the nexus to be attuned."

"Then by all means activate it," Qualan said.

Serena placed the orb near the socket. Nothing happened. She took an arcphone from her satchel and projected an image of Alysea.

Daelissa felt her lips peel back at the sight of the traitor. Unfortunately, she still needed the services of her former friend.

The holographic image of Alysea began to sing. A few minutes later, the Chalon snapped into place like a magnet. Serena's eyes brightened. "If it is not already attuned to Eden, it will take me several minutes to do so using a recording I made of Alysea when I held the Slade boy and his father captive in the Gloom." She giggled again, eyes almost manic. "The key to all the realms is ours."

Daelissa's heart lightened a thousand fold. Giddy laughter sprang from her lips.

Qualan raised his arms in the air and roared. "We will have Eden!"

"Troops form up!" Skazaeleus shouted.

The military commanders took up the call. Before long, the imperial army stood in neat columns, ready to march through.

"The Chalon is already attuned to Eden." Serena caressed the hovering orb with her hand. "All I need to do is activate it."

Daelissa stepped atop a personal cloudbank that operated much like a flying carpet. She felt a smile stretch across her face. "Then by all means, let us invade."

The Grand Nexus hummed to life. A moment later, the gateway tore through the ethereal divide between the realms to reveal an army of Templars. Surprise flashed across the faces of the rebels.

Skazaeleus floated nearby on his own cloudbank. He held an amplification crystal to his throat and boomed the first command of the real war. "Attack!"

Chapter 22

The air in my lungs froze as the Seraphim army rushed to meet ours. The enemy soldiers wore sparkling armor that appeared to be made of glass or crystal. Each held swords of the same material that glowed with an inner white light, as if infused with Brilliance.

The first wave of Templars engaged the Seraphim. Silver swords shattered when they met the shining swords of the enemy. Arcanes fired spells into the Seraphim ranks but the armor seemed to soak it up and glow brighter.

Seraphim soldiers cleaved through the Templar lines like paper, losing only a few of their own. Although we held a numbers advantage, the area around the nexus was too small for all our forces to fit. I saw lycans and Daemos unable to reach the front lines as more and more Templars fell to the relentless advance of the invaders.

A wave of enemy soldiers flew through the gateway on small clouds. Blue Cloaks took up positions. The new attackers aimed their swords at the Blue Cloaks and fired white beams from them. Our people threw up defensive shields or dodged the attacks on their flying carpets.

The Blue Cloak who'd used Magitsu to kill the battle mages earlier swooped beneath the enemy attacks and leapt to the cloud carrying one of the Seraphim. He ducked beneath a swing of the sword and pressed his wand to the back of his attacker's knee. Light flashed, and the inside of the crystal armor glowed bright, as if the spell were ricocheting off the inside of the armor.

The Seraphim screamed and plunged from his mount into the sea of invaders below. The Blue Cloak leapt from the cloud back to his flying carpet in time to avoid several death beams from the attackers' swords.

"We've got to do something," Elyssa said. Horror gripped her face as she watched Templars fall.

A trumpet sounded and our forces began to retreat toward a large space where they'd be able to regroup. But even as they marched back, the enemy forces advanced, taking down our people left and right.

It was too much to bear. I flew our carpet low and blasted a searing wave of Brilliance into the midst of the Seraphim soldiers. Their crystal armor cracked and shattered, unable to absorb the full power of my attack. Screams rose from their ranks as they fell. There were far too many for me to kill, but their march faltered.

I saw Joss and Otaleon blasting the enemy with ultraviolet beams as they flew overhead, giving our troops even more space. Otaleon managed to ravage a couple of soldiers with a thin beam of white destruction.

Brilliance speared through the gateway in the nexus, narrowly missing the two Darklings. A cloud bearing Qualan burst through. His face bore a look of rage and delight as he unleashed another blinding bolt at Joss. "Filthy Darklings! Come face me!"

Joss and Otaleon were already in dangerous territory flying so close to the enemy. I waved my arms to get their attention. "Fall back!"

Otaleon blocked another attack from Qualan with a shield as Joss wheeled the carpet around and flew after us.

I fired a flurry of beams from my fingers at Qualan, but they all flew wide, or dispersed before reaching him. He roared when he saw me and launched into pursuit. The rest of the Seraphim army came through the portal as our troops made more space. Another cloud zipped through, this one bearing Daelissa. I spotted the elfin girl, Lanaeia, on a flying cloud of her own. Her face looked bruised and bloody. The two of them flew at us. Daelissa balled her fists, pressed them together, and discharged a beam of white light into our troops.

Our people screamed as pure destruction cut them down. I tried to shield some of them, but I was out of position to render much aid. Daelissa's cold eyes settled on me. The cloud bearing her came straight for us. Qualan launched another attack. This one caught Otaleon on the shoulder.

Their carpet spun out of control. A Blue Cloak flew his carpet close, leapt to theirs, and stabilized it. Joss gripped Otaleon to keep the Darkling from falling off the carpet as the Blue Cloak flew them toward the southern corridor where our troops were retreating.

Although it was hard to maintain a moving shield, I was plenty good at making a stationary one. Just as Qualan took aim again, I threw up a small shield right in front of his head. He cried out in surprise as his face slammed into the barrier. The cloud flew from beneath his feet, and the Brightling tumbled backwards into his own troops.

Unfortunately, the fall wasn't nearly enough to kill him.

"Run all you want, Justin Slade," he screamed at the top of his lungs, "I will kill you!"

The Seraphim troops had fallen well behind our people by now, but it was due more to our own dead blocking their path than the speed of our retreat. The angels were incredibly agile, however, and managed to navigate the bodies of our fallen without tripping over them.

The bulk of our troops reached the south corridor about fifty yards ahead of the Seraphim. I spotted Thomas on his command platform and raced to him.

"What now?" I asked.

His face seemed set in stone. "We hold."

I saw Daemos and lycans moving to the front lines while ranks of the elite gray men took positions to the right. The Daemos morphed into demon forms while the lycans shifted into their beast forms.

The front row of Seraphim soldiers balked when they saw what they had to fight. Qualan, once again on his cloud, flew overhead.

"Attack!" he shouted. "Destroy them!"

He fired a thick beam at our front lines. I intercepted his attack with a barrier of mirrored Murk. It reflected his attack to the side. The base of a massive column supporting the corridor entrance exploded into shards. A great rumbling sounded and the entire right side of the entrance cracked.

"Retreat our units!" Thomas shouted.

A trumpet sounded and our rear guard moved back.

Cracks ran up the wall. Huge chunks of marble rained down. One slab thudded into the Seraphim front lines. Another took out a squad of gray men. Still another hit the Daemos as they raced backwards. Our forces moved farther and farther back until we were near the statue of Daelissa. We watched as the ceiling and walls collapsed in on themselves, blocking the corridor while a thick dust cloud billowed toward us.