Page 45 of Rescuing Air

Rolling my eyes, we entered the gym to find Brayden and Hudson already there, dressed in matching gym shorts and white t-shirts. “What are you guys doing here?”

“What took you guys so long?” Brayden asked, his brows scrunched. “We’ve been waiting for almost fifteen minutes.”

“How did you know how to get here?” Micah challenged.

“We asked Blessing when we saw her in the office,” Hudson said, cocking his head to the side confused by our question. “Have you guys been wandering around this whole time?”

“Whatever, we’re here now so it’s best if we just get down to business. The other reason I wanted to spar was to see what happens now that Lailah’s powers are unlocked. It’s smart for us to know what we’re dealing with before we end up face-to-face with the Dark Lord,” Micah shared.

“Yeah, that’s great and all, but I don’t think they have warded rooms like they do back at Ryevick,” I countered.

Brayden walked up to me and grabbed me by the hips so I was facing him. “Why don’t you put up a shield for us to work in? You’re bonded to us all now so it should be way easier to do.”

Pausing at that thought, I realized he had a point. “Guess there’s only one way to find out.”

Closing my eyes, I gathered all six balls of power and pulled strings of energy from them, weaving them into a net. I’d never done anything like this before but it just seemed to be instinct and flowed easily between my fingers. When I felt like I’d woven it tight enough, I tossed it out around us and made sure to cover the floor since there was another level to this place. Then I sealed up the last bits of it, creating a perfect containment for the space.

“I think that should work,” I commented, looking around as if I could actually see what I just did. “I don’t think anyone else can come in or out of the space I just blocked off though.”

“That was fucking amazing, Cookie. You did that so fast and I can feel how powerful it is,” Micah said with a grin. “Let’s see what other things you can do.”

Without missing a beat, he materialized his swords, and they burst into flames. “Holy fuck!”

Next Brayden and Hudson produced their weapons as well, each of them glowing with a fire that matched their powers. It seemed that they all had a power upgrade, and it made me curious as to why Parker’s staff had done that. But then I remembered how much power I was pouring into him when it happened. Now, I didn’t have to do anything but be connected to them to give them a solid boost. Skipping my sai, I went straight for the sword and shield but instead, I got two small crossbows with golden tipped arrows that glowed with my power.

“So, is this an upgrade?” I asked, waving them at the guys.

“Whoa, don’t wave those around like that until you know what they can do!” Micah barked, ducking out of the way. “Didn’t Jay teach you anything with those gun lessons?”

Seeing as they all had a slightly panicked look, I dropped the crossbows to my side. “Better?”

They all gathered around and examined them, taking my hand, turning it this way and that to get a better look. “I have to admit, Sunshine, those look far more impressive than my guns. Try one out and see what happens.” With a wave of his hand, Hudson made a water target that floated in the air opposite of us.

With a shrug, I lifted one arm, aimed down the sights and pulled the trigger. The short arrow flew from the crossbow faster than my eyes could track and when it hit the water, it exploded like a bomb of golden light, knocking us back on our asses.

“Yup, that is definitely an upgrade, Angel,” Brayden groaned as he sat up. “Look at that. It reloads itself. Just like Hudson’s guns, they never run out of ammo.”

“Oh, those are going to fuck some demon asses up!” Micah crowed, smiling like a fool as he helped me to my feet. “If all of us have gotten upgrades like that, then I’m not so worried about this fight.”

We all laughed at feeling the same sense of relief, knowing we had a fighting chance for this battle. It all came to a halt when the gym door was thrown open and Blessing stood there her face filled with panic. “You need to get back upstairs now!”

“What happened?” I demanded as I pulled a string in the net, unraveling the whole thing in a second, allowing Blessing to enter.

Her eyes were wide, and I didn’t have to be bonded to her to sense the fear that she was feeling right now. “They’re almost here. Makoto and the Dark Lord’s army. They’re attacking the school. The wards are keeping them at bay but they haven’t been renewed in a long time. I’m not sure how long they’ll last.”

That was all we needed to hear before we bolted out of the gym and headed for the stairs next to the elevator. None of us wanted to risk the chance we got stuck in it. How the fuck did Makoto know we were here? We’d been right under his nose for three days, why wait to hit us here? Could it be that he finally figured out that Parker wasn’t dead? None of it really mattered, the fight was upon us and we had a date with the devil.

twenty-seven

Lailah

Just like how things were at the base, it was pure chaos as everyone ran around the facility, trying to get prepared for battle. While all Elementi members were trained in self-defense, there were not many who were actual fighters. All of them knew how to handle a gun but that didn’t mean they could hit the broad side of a barn. Each of us were given tactical gear to change into—thick black cargo pants with black t-shirts and bulletproof vests. It made me feel like I was supposed to be SWAT instead of an Elemental Warrior, but I was thankful for the added protection. I knew Makoto had normal humans working and fighting alongside him, as well as the demon possessed. This could mean guns along with traditional weapons, making this getup a safe bet.

Blessing was in full control even if the rest ran around in a panic. She directed everyone into the areas they needed to be, including making sure the women and children got the hell out of here. The guys and I did a sweep of the third level, making sure it was clear before we locked it up, ensuring no one got crushed if something happened to the facility. Jay, as always, fell into being the leader of our group when it came to battle and we listened to whatever he told us. Blessing also was wise enough to listen to his advice as he suggested the better fighters be out front and the rest remain as backup while the six of us went right up to meet the jaws of evil.

I couldn’t imagine what it must be like to know your father was leading the enemy army and the chances of having to face off with him were high. Although, if he was the conduit for the Dark Lord, then I had a feeling the real fight would be between the two of us. Somehow, I’d found a moment to pull Jay and Parker aside to tell them what we discovered as we were sparring. Of course the others followed, refusing to let me out of their sight with the impending attack.

“Wait, you mean I get the double-ended staff back? That’s awesome. It was so much easier to fight off the swarm,” Parker said, clapping his hands together and rubbing them in excitement.