Page 4 of A Fury Of Shadows

“Shield!” Mae barked.

Crimson runes exploded into life around her, forming a barrier that few things could pierce. Karin and Derrick swore when it easily deflected their attacks. Mae ignored the scowling pair and inhaled.

Na Ri’s voice reverberated inside her mind as they invoked the spell.

SEVER!

Anya’s magic flickered.

Karin and Derrick froze. Awareness bled into their expressions.

Cortes straightened where he’d been leaning against the wall. Relief brought a weak smile to Anya’s face.

Elation had Mae’s heart singing.Yes! This is it! We—!

Mae!Na Ri warned.

Ice Fortresswas fading. The blue runes of Anya’s magic brightened once more.

Mae’s gut twisted. “No! We were almost there!”

My witch!Brimstone yelped.

By the time she realized she’d inadvertently droppedShield, Karin and Derrick’s magic was upon her.Bindlocked her limbs. Hellreaver cursed when he was wrenched from her grasp. The world tilted violently around Mae as she was swung about by unseen shackles and sent smashing into the roof. She crashed onto the ground with a harsh grunt.

“Mae!” Anya shouted, alarmed.

She ended her spell and dashed across the warehouse with Cortes. Karin and Derrick shook their heads groggily as they awoke from the witch’s Illusion Sorcery.

Brimstone reached Mae first. She groaned as the fox licked her face and nudged her all over with his wet snout, checking for injuries. Sorrowful sounds rumbled from his chest.

Hellreaver whipped into view above them.

I’m sorry, my witch.The weapon sagged.I couldn’t protect you.

“It’s not your fault, Hell,” Mae mumbled while he worriedly poked her cheek with a blade. “I should have paid more attention to the fight.”

Cortes squatted beside her, brow furrowed. “Are you okay?”

“I could be better.” Mae winced as he pulled her to her feet. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure I cracked a couple of ribs.”

Anya’s face fell. Sable leaned over and nuzzled Mae’s cheek with a regretful squawk. By the time Karin and Derrick approached, Mae’s wounds were already healing.

“You guys really got into it at the end there, huh?”

Derrick scratched his cheek awkwardly at her faintly accusing stare. “You can blame the spell for that.”

Karin didn’t look in the least bit abashed. “Look on the bright side. We felt Anya’s magic waver.”

“They’re right,” Anya confirmed. “My Illusion Sorcery weakened for an instant.”

“So, how’d you do it?” Cortes asked Mae curiously.

“We—” Mae stopped and corrected herself hastily at Cortes’s suspicious look, “I mean, I usedIce Fortressto visualize the runes that make up Anya’s magic. Then I tried to break them.”

This earned her a battery of stares.

“What?”

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