Page 54 of Within the Flames
Fourteen
The fight had become an intricate dance of wooden staffs meeting with a clunk, then returning to their masters again, then meeting once more in a cacophony of sound. This wasn’t a fight as much as a show of strength and confidence.
Luc was in his element, easily blocking the Mahoun’s attacks, but Macey was beginning to think that the devil was just toying with them. Maybe he was even trying to distract them while he had a much worse plan put into action by his lackeys.
Hopefully, the others had entered the castle and were following the plan.
Slightly distracted, Macey lost her grip on her magic and the Mahoun's staff got through her defences, knocking hard against her shoulder. She stumbled back, cursing herself for her carelessness. She didn't know how to fight, but somehow, her magic did. She just had to keep connected to it. She ignored the aching pain flaring down her arm and filled herself with magic once more, letting herself be led by it. She stepped forward and attacked the Mahoun in new fervour, joining Luc's ever faster strokes. Together, they matched the Mahoun, but neither he nor they were getting the upper hand.
She still didn't know why he'd chosen to do this little staff fight. He could have just slipped into her mind again and fought her there. No, instead he was fighting her physically. There had to be a reason for it, but she couldn't stop to think.
She blocked his next attack, then swooped low and aimed for his feet, but he twisted his staff faster than she could see and prevented her from succeeding. Something needed to change; this was a waste of time.
From the corners of her eyes, she glanced at Luc. The daimon was fighting hard, his wings steadying him, half unfolded. She was surprised his long black cloak didn't get in the way.
THIS IS FUN, the Mahoun shouted in Macey's mind.
"No, it isn't!" she called back in between blocking yet another vicious attack. "What do you want?"
YOU.
"Could you be more specific?"
I TOLD YOU. I WANT YOU TO SUBMIT TO ME. I WANT YOU TO BE MINE.
Macey decided she was done with the staff and let it drop to the floor, creating a coil of magic instead.
"Dream on," she hissed while weaving together lightning, water and fire magic, keeping it invisible so the Mahoun wouldn't see what she was doing. Luc was continuing to block the man's attacks, now having to protect both himself and Macey.
BY THE END OF TODAY, YOU'LL WISH YOU'D GIVEN IN EARLIER.
A shiver ran over her back. No, that wasn't going to happen. She wasn't going to let him scare her. Not that she wasn't scared shitless already, but she wasn't going to let him make it worse. Right now, he looked like a man and a man could be killed. He was no longer the disembodied Voice, but flesh and blood.
Suddenly, the Mahoun broke through Luc's defences and hit the daimon hard on the knee. Luc screamed and fell to the ground, his staff slipping from his hand.
Macey had to act, now, before the Mahoun hurt Luc. She took the magic coil and flung it at the Mahoun like she had at the tree when they were practicing earlier that day. The tree had burst into flame. The Mahoun... he laughed.
NICE TRICK, BUT ABSOLUTELY USELESS ON ME.
She stared at where her magic used to be. Sparks were falling down, her magic, disintegrated. She'd thought she was strong, but he had defended himself against her attack without even moving. How the fucking waves did he do that?
Ignoring her, he lifted his staff, ready to let it pummel down on Luc. No, she couldn't let that happen.
Instead of carefully planning her next attack, she simply threw random magic at the Mahoun, whatever she could find within herself. A lance of water hit him in the stomach, or at least it would have, had he not had some kind of invisible shield surrounding him. The water she'd thrown at him was now a useless puddle on the ground, soaking his black boots.
That gave her an idea. She formed a very big, very obvious flame and then pushed it towards him, giving him time to completely focus on it, while at the same time, she created some lightning and made it hit the wet ground beneath his feet.
He screamed as lightning raced through his body, making his limbs twitch.
Macey poured more energy into the lightning, creating more and more bolts that she fired at the Mahoun. His guards were down while he tried to deal with the pain she was causing him.
Luc groaned and she turned to him, her eyes widening when she saw how his leg was bent in an unnatural angle. That hit had to have been a lot more violent than it had looked. He grabbed his staff and threw it at Macey, who just about managed to catch it.
"Blow to the head," Luc shouted over the Mahoun's screams. "Get him unconscious."
Macey took two steps towards the cloaked man and lifted the staff, bringing it down on the back of his head with as much force as she could muster. The screaming stopped and he collapsed into a heap.
As soon as he was on the ground, Macey ripped the hood off his head - and screamed. There was no face. Pale white skin was drawn over where the face was supposed to be, but it was smooth like that of a shop window mannequin. This wasn't a human being, or even a humanoid person. No, this was some kind of weird creation of the Mahoun, not the devil himself.
