Magicorum Box Set (Books 1-5)

30. Chapter Thirty-2

“I hope you’re right,” I reply in my head. This is another fae-style answer, though. Based on what the Colonel said, once the activation starts, we won’t be able to focus on anything but magic.

I turned around in a slow circle. Knox, Alec and Elle now stand in front of a pyramid, the discs gripped in their hands. And the pyramids are a machine, so those magical cogs must serve a purpose.

But what?

Closing my eyes, I scan every image and fact I’d ever learned about the pyramids. Nothing seems to help. Even worse, the Codex Mechanica is now a pile of dust. There must be a clue somewhere.

And then, I picture it.

The back of a dollar bill. It shows the pyramids with an all-knowing eye atop the structure. What if the discs from the Codex Mechanica aren’t just cogs in a machine; they’re irises for cosmic eyes?

Only one way to find out.

I cup my hand by my mouth. “Your discs from the codex,” I call. “Lift them up.” To demonstrate, I raise my own arms high.

Knox, Alec, and Elle mimic the action. Once all their arms are raised, the three discs glow with their own unique hue: red, silver, or gold. After that, the discs float upwards, stopping once they hover above the peaks of the pyramids.

I gasp as I take in this surreal moment. Glowing irises shine out above the pyramids. Desert stretches off in every direction. The blue sky fades under the first touches of night. Supernatural figures stand nearby, their bodies made of crimson, silver, and gold.

Perhaps this is it. Magic might be glowing out from those supernatural eyes, sending power and energy out across the world. My role as fountain could be as simple as standing here, watching it all happen.

The ground rumbles. The pyramids vibrate on their foundations. After that, they begin to rise, revealing themselves to be far more massive obelisks that have been buried underneath the ground.

A zing of shock moves through my nervous system. Did I say that this is it? Maybe it’s all just beginning.

An image appears in my mind. My aunties once took me on a tour of an electric power plant in New Jersey. I suppose it was their way of trying to act parental, considering how they rarely allowed me to leave the penthouse. In any case, when I was there, I saw rows of metal rods lined up inside the power plant. Those bars gleamed with sparks as electric energy up and down their lengths. That’s what these pyramids remind me of now: supernatural rods that conduct not electricity, but magic.

Whoa.

The obelisks rise higher until their pyramid-tops aren’t even visible anymore. All I can see are the halos of red, silver, and golden light that gleam from the orbs atop their peaks.

White mist rolls out across the ground. A massive figure floats into view. “Fountain!” he cries.

My stomach lurches. On reflex, my gaze locks with Knox’s. We’d talked about this moment on the place ride over. What would I do when the Void arrived? In the end, I decided that I’d trust my instincts. That meant trusting the Void.

Knox gives me a solemn nod. “Stick to the plan, Bry.”

I shoot him a thumbs-up, turn to the Void, and raise my arms in what’s arguably the craziest move of my life. I wave to the Void. “I’m over here!”

The Void rounds on me. “Fountain!”

Now that I’m done waving, I lower my arms and grip my hands tightly at my waistline, twisting my fingers in a nervous rhythm. Let’s hope this wasn’t a bad idea.

My wolf, who’d been quietly watching things for some time, suddenly comes to life. “We should run!” she cries from the depths of my soul. “The Void looks dangerous.”

“No, the Void isn’t evil. He’s here to help us.” But even as I speak the words in my mind, they come out as more of a question than a statement. What do I know about any of this, really?

Little by little, the Void floats closer. My heart beats so quickly, I’m surprised it doesn’t burst. The Void pauses before me, all eight feet of white mist and fury. For a moment, I wonder if I’ve just made a huge mistake. But then, the Void’s dark eyes crinkle with a smile. “Fountain.”

I answer his grin with one of my own. “Yes, that’s me.”

“Dark to light. Day to night. Magic to void.” Reaching forward, the Void grasps my wrists. His touch is feather light and cool as he positions my arms up into a V-shape above my head. “Release your power.”

With that, the Void melts into a swirl of white smoke that curls around my feet, moving in a single loop of motion. Then I feel a stirring inside me. Strands of magic that have always been inside my soul now come to life. These tiny cords dance, whirl, and expand. For a moment, it seems that’s all they will do. Then suddenly, they shoot out from me in every direction. My fingertips, chest, and toe—even the strands of my hair—every inch of my body exudes threads of power. Pain erupts across my skin. The tiny cords burn me as they move in their wild rush to free.

More chaotic magic shoots out from around me. It’s agonizing and more than that, it’s wrong. There’s too much power and no control. In that moment, I know the only thing that can help me.

I need the Void.

From somewhere in my soul, two words bubble to the surface of my mind. I don’t know how, but I’m certain of what I need to say.

“Rise up!” I cry.

Seconds ago, the Void had transformed into a swirl of white smoke that looped around my feet. Now that moving cloud rises up until the Void becomes a white column that swirls around me, forcing my wild magic to take the same shape. Within seconds, my undifferentiated power becomes a rod of energy that streams toward the heavens. Red, silver, and gold…all of the lines of magic are there and winding together.

My body cools. A sense of rightness overtakes me. This is what’s supposed to happen. The magic inside of me is flowing into the world. Only trouble is, it’s still undifferentiated.

That’s when the pyramids start to work.

The colored eyes at the top of each obelisk glow more brightly. The mixed-up power inside my column of magic breaks apart.

It starts with Knox.

Tiny threads of golden power reach out from my column to connect with the fingers of Knox’s left hand. The golden threads wind across his chest and up his right arm. All the while, a look of perfect calm takes over Knox’s face. Without knowing how, I’m certain he must be infused with the same sense of rightness that I have. The golden threads of magic travel up Knox’s right arm. From there, they arc into the pyramid behind him.

The stones of Knox’s massive obelisk glow with the golden brightness. Great arcs of lightning-style power wind around the length of the structure, all of gold colored as well. The Colonel had talked about this before. The obelisk will store the power of shifter magic. Then, every year, the ceremony of the wardens will release a little more shifter energy into the world.

I smile. This is really working.

Next, the same thing happens to Alec. Crimson magic winds across his left arm, exiting his right and flowing into the pyramids. His obelisk glows with red light.

Elle is last. Just as before, silver lines of power arc through her and into the structure behind her, surrounding the entire obelisk in silver light.

A moment might pass. Or it could be an hour. Time loses all sense of meaning. All I know is that Elle, Alec, and Knox are guarding the power of the fountain, channeling my energy into the safety of the pyramids, just as we were all meant to do. The Colonel watches from the sidelines, grinning from ear to ear.

I exhale. Magic is being stored within the pyramids. And it’s not undifferentiated mess, either. Each obelisk is keeping a wealth of power for only one kind of Magicorum. Soon the annual rituals can start up again. It will be the new Fountain of Youth.

A sense of peace and calm infuses my soul. This is what I was born to do—bring magic back into the world. As every stand of energy leaves my body, it’s as if another burden is lifted from my soul. The pyramids glow more brightly, each one shining with the light of its own uniquely-colored magic.

It all feels too good to be true.

And then, it is.

Suddenly, lines of darkness drip down the pyramids. The flow of power and magic slows. A chill of terror seeps into my bones. My wardens lose their look of calm. Like me, they all gaze about in terror.

Only one presence can cause darkness in magic.

The Shadowvin are coming.

And there’s one person who’s unprotected form their evil. Elle. On reflex, I try to race over to my best friend. But I can’t move. My body is locked in place. It’s just like I was warned; once the fountain starts to give its bounty, there’s nothing you can do until the process is over. I look to Alec, Knox, and Elle. None of them are moving, either.

This is bad.

Colonel Mallory steps closer, his arms raised. Silver clouds of fae magic swirl around his hands.

“Don’t worry,” he calls. “I know none of y’all can move.” He glances at Elle. “I got this for you.”

The Shadowvin materialize at the base of the silver pyramid. They’re all surrounding Elle. Fresh panic and adrenaline pump through me. I twist and writhe harder. The column of magic sways with my movement. It’s something, but not enough. I need to get over to Elle and help her, somehow.

The Shadowvin close in on Elle. Terror lights up her eyes. I turn to the Colonel, who has been building up his magic this entire time.

Please, Colonel. Have the power to stop the Shadowvin.

The Colonel releases the fairy dust that has been building around his arms. A cloud of silver flies from his hands. As the magical dust speeds through the air, the mist takes the form of long rods. These magic bolts slam into the desert around the Shadowvin, forming a makeshift prison. More bars cross the top, boxing them in.

The Shadowvin slam against the bars of their prison, but they can’t escape. The darkness on the obelisks fades. Power flows from me once again, moving into the wardens and the pyramids.

Everything, it seems, is working once more. Except for one thing.

The Colonel grits his teeth in pain. Sweat lines his brow. I’ve seen this before. Even though the containment spell has left the Colonel’s hands, he still needs to send in fresh energy in order to keep it going. The Colonel crumples onto his knees. The bars of the supernatural prison start to fade. My heart falls to my toes.

The Shadowvin won’t be confined much longer.

The three dark spirits stare at Elle with hungry eyes. There’s no question in my mind what they wish to do: possess her like they did Knox. From there, they can easily consume the power they crave.

Darkness seeps across the obelisks once more. Despair weighs down my soul. Is there any way to stop the Shadowvin from getting what they want?

That’s when the answer appears. I’m magic. So I can do what magic did the last time these Shadowvin tried to steal the power.

I can give them what they want.

This is the same thing I did when I fought Jules—I pumped him so full of magic, it burned him up from the inside out.