Just Breathe Part 40

He took aim at a group of three Fyres bandying a petrified-looking elderly man between them, and mentally ripped the cord damming his Water.

Whoosh!

"Yes!" Zoe shouted as the Fyres melted into red, bubbling slime. She ran to the frightened man and helped him toward the Veil. Pride swelled Gavin's heart to twice its size. G.o.ds, he loved that woman. Fearless, selfless, and strong. His muse in so many ways.

At Gavin's side, Jack rolled his shoulders, his hands glowing neon blue. A squadron of five more Fyres swooped down from the acid sky, heading for a clump of trembling humans. Terror lit the Wyldlings' faces as they fumbled for each other and balled together.

"You ready?" Jack said.

"Yep," Gavin replied. "On three."

"One." Jack shook out his hands, then balled them into fists in front of him. The Fyres screeched in unison, teeth bared under the flames leaping off their faces.

"Two." Gavin inhaled heavily. Repositioned his aim.

"Three," they said together and cut loose a double surge of Water. Red bodies arched at awkward angles, curses sizzled from wide-open mouths, and soggy sacks of flesh slopped like wet mud to the ground in a perfect circle around the cl.u.s.ter of Wyldlings. h.e.l.l f.u.c.king yes. Gavin could get used to fighting beside Jack.

Jack cracked his neck with a jerk left, then right. "That was for Byrn, you a.s.sholes."

Three Fyres swooped in from behind. One barreled Gavin face-first into the dirt, and the other two took Jack. The heat of the thing pressing on Gavin's back roused Scarlet's Fire inside him. Screw that. He rolled hard, tossed the Elemental off, and scrambled on top of him, straddling the b.a.s.t.a.r.d. Channeling Earth, he pulled back his fist and busted the f.u.c.ker's mouth loose from its hinges. Blood dripped down his chin and cheeks, mingling with the ashes into a blackish paste. Red eyes wide and jaw dangling, the Fyre twisted under him, but Gavin went for another blow. And another. His Fire got the better of him for a split second, enjoying the violence a little too much.

Jack stumbled over after having dispatched his Elementals and targeted his blue fingers like a gun on Gavin's Fyre. He pulled the Watery trigger, and the b.a.s.t.a.r.d's head exploded in a hiss of steam. The Fyre dissolved under Gavin with a terrifying shriek.

"Good show, mate," Gavin said as he leapt off the remains and bowled into two more. Earth-fueled, he relied on physical strength to take out the weaker Elementals and saved his Water for the bigger ones.

Long fangs dripping acidic saliva flashed as he got caught between two Fyres. He cold-c.o.c.ked one straight into the other. The impact from the spin dropped them both to the ground. Clouds of fine gray dust puffed up. Gavin conjured a long blue dagger from the Dreaming's mists and gutted them both as they lay choking. Blood and steam mingled with cries and flailing arms.

Grunts behind him drew Gavin's attention. Four Fyres surrounded Jack. Kicks, jabs, and elbows whirred from the center of the circle where Jack's blurry blue form flashed. He moved so fast, Gavin couldn't even see him.

Gavin jumped on the nearest Fyre's back, swung his arm up, and thrust the Watery shiv into the demon's chest. Screeches deafened him as the beast bucked. Gavin held on tight, stabbing the f.u.c.ker repeatedly until there was nothing left but smoke and the echo of a death cry hanging on the wind.

Jack spun free of a glittering blue whirlpool and landed in a crouch. Three anemic red puddles lay triangulated around his feet.

"You've been holding out on me, Jack. I don't recall you ever teaching me that move." f.u.c.king h.e.l.l, it was brilliant.

Jack shined his fingernails on his filthy shirt and blew on them. "It's my signature attack. They don't call me Jack 'Tornado' Weaver for nothing."

Gavin high-fived him and turned to check on Zoe. When he did, his heart faltered.

A colossus of steaming red flames as tall as a city block parted the Dreaming's acid clouds as it lumbered over the dunes. Cries faded to whimpers. Fighting paused. Air thickened to the consistency and color of blood. Every Wyldling, Sentinel, and Elemental turned toward the rhythmic steps flattening everything in the creature's path.

"What the h.e.l.l is that?" Gavin rubbed his burning Fire tattoos, which had suddenly lit up like a satellite beacon from outer s.p.a.ce. Zoe darted to his side and clutched his hand. Scarlet's Fire smiled inside his soul. He swallowed.

"'h.e.l.l' pretty much sums it up. Meet Archelemental Eidan," Jack said.

Chapter Forty-three.

"That's the Fyres' Archelemental?" Zoe couldn't believe her bugged-out eyes. He was so big, her brain couldn't process what it was seeing. The monstrous golem of a beast burning up the sky, choking the wind, shook her to her shoes. Even though he was a half a kilometer away, the heat barreled off him like an inferno.

Gavin turned to Jack. "What are our options?"

Her father shook his head.

"It's my turn. Come on, we need to get to the ocean." Zoe grabbed Gavin and Jack's arms and coaxed them down the beach, into the sea.

On land, Wyldlings scattered like frightened rabbits. The few Sentinels herded unwieldy crowds toward the rift in the Veil linking the two worlds. Her two worlds.

Seconds slowed as people overran each other, stumbled, cried, screamed. She understood their panic, but for the first time, she didn't share it. Memories of a life filled with anxiety attacks, of living in fear of what her body might do at the drop of a hat, flipped like pages before her eyes. She slammed the book closed.

No. I will not allow fear to rule me ever again.

The p.i.s.sed off Archelemental headed straight for them, but she wasn't afraid. She had Water. That was all she needed.

Sweat dripped down her face. She clutched Gavin's hand on one side and took Jack's on the other. The two most important men in her world puffed out their chests and stood tall. Water rushed between the three of them in waves. Currents danced, power streamed, love surged.

Eidan loomed closer.

Smoky air filled her lungs. In. Out. In. Out. "Are you ready?" she asked.

Jack tightened his grip and nodded.

Gavin flashed a proud smile at her. "Ready."

She closed her eyes and freed her mind of everything but the whales. Her thoughts merged with theirs inside and outside of the Dreaming. She sensed their emotions ebbing and flowing in the ocean: peace, regret, joy, trust, worry, sadness, loss, and love. Drawing those overwhelming, fluid feelings closer, she welcomed all of them-the happy, the sad, and the neutral-inside her open heart until it brimmed with Water.

Her lids snapped open. Hair thrashed around her face. She focused on the h.e.l.lacious Archelemental barreling through the Dreaming toward her. And she did the only thing she could.

She sang.

The tune began as this year's humpback whale song. Upsweep, drag, chirp. Wop-wop. Squeal. She repeated the notes and phrases just as the whales she loved had taught her.

The Archelemental continued on course but slowed a bit. Some of the shouting behind her eased.

The music shifted. She shared the story her Elemental friend Guppy had told of an ancient time when whales first came into being. Zoe chronicled the arrival of man, the tragedy of whaling, and the triumph of humanity's eventual compa.s.sion. Focusing on the emotional aspects of the whales' history, she conjured an ever-growing stream of Water.

Join me, friends. Help me take both of our worlds back from those who wish them harm. Help me bring song back to the Dreaming. Help me restore peace...

Movement surrounded her, but it wasn't the frenzied, sputtering kind that had dominated the Dreaming moments ago. Now it was fluid.

Her body acting as a tuning fork, she channeled the scattered emotions of millions through her heart and poured them out of her mouth. A great wave welled, rose, peaked...

When it crashed, another precarious levy in the Veil burst and flooded the sleeping realm with water and the loudest, most beautiful, all-encompa.s.sing sound she'd ever experienced.

Thousands of humpbacks rushed through the open gates of the Dreaming, a wash of pure, primary blue drowning nearly every bit of red, save that of the Archelemental fuming toward her, seething with murderous hatred.

Whale voices joined her song. The sheer immensity of sound sloshed and bubbled the sea. They sang in perfect harmony, not a single pitch off, every note in sync. The entire mood of the Dreaming shifted to something deep, lovely, awe-inspiring. The place became a watery blue realm.

The unearthly power of the whales' majestic entrance and accompanying tidal wave throttled Gavin and Jack from her grip, hurling them in opposite directions. She spun around, worried they might've been hurt. Hissing, screeching Fyres took to the skies, clasping hands over ears. Despite their attempts at escape, many fell victim to the Water and evaporated, leaving behind red-tinged puffs of ash.

Jack bobbed on the shimmering ocean a hundred meters to her left. He laughed as he shook his s.h.a.ggy locks, gave her a thumbs up sign, and swam to a.s.sist the surprised-looking Sentinels and Wyldlings.

Not daring to lose her place in the music, Zoe continued singing. She spotted Gavin off to her right. Flailing Fyres scrambled in the air. He shot them with watery bursts, but they kept coming, their feet hovering just above the sea. These guys were stronger than the typical Elementals. Zoe frowned and wished more Water to Gavin.

A raucous rip of thunder rang out behind her. When Zoe turned around, the Archelemental was nearly upon her. Though the Water she'd helped bring in saturated the Dreaming, it was no match for Eidan's Fire. As he flew past fifty or so Wyldlings clamoring for escape, the slightest brush of his heat vaporized them, leaving no traces of humanity behind. Zoe's pulse tripped. No!

Eidan's grotesque face filled with a cruel smile. Evil laughter dueled with the whale song.

Dear G.o.d. She was going to die like them.

I love you, Gavin, she thought. I love you.

There was nothing to do but sing louder.

Her skin crackled. Hair went up in flames. Her face melded to her skull. She held on to the blue with every ounce of strength. It was all she had.

Human life snuffed out from every side.

I love you, Gavin. I love you. I love you. I- Another tidal wave of sight and song rolled in faster than a blink and batted her out of Eidan's path like an insignificant bit of free-floating plankton at the mercy of the ocean's whims. A familiar voice joined the chorus.

Lily.

f.u.c.king h.e.l.l, it was Lily.

As Gavin flailed in the churning sea, desperate to see if Zoe still breathed, cool Water flowed over his burns. He pulled heavily on his stored Earth to speed up the healing process. Heat left his bones, and the liquefied calcium within re-solidified. Muscles and tendons thickened, mending to their original smooth state. The lines of his tattoos reformed, digging deep into his arms, and the four Elemental colors burst to vibrant, glittering life.

Eidan clutched his ears and bared fiery teeth like a wounded wolf. Lava dripped from sharp canine points, sizzling the ocean with geyser-like steam. He veered toward the great singing whale.

Earth energy fueling his arms and legs, Gavin paddled against the churning currents in vain toward his badly burned muse.

Dear G.o.ds, please let her live. Please let her be okay.

Zoe surfaced and shook her head. Her blackened flesh was already healing, thanks to all the Water pumping through her. Within seconds, her skin lightened to its original color. A soft smile curved her pouty lips as she waved.

Limbs trembling with hope, he grinned.

Scarlet's Fire battered against his chest. His pounding, Water-laden heart squelched it.

No room for you here anymore. This is Zoe's home.

A sudden rush of a different kind of Fire brushed him from above. He directed Water to his fists and swung them upward.

Sinnder.

His control snapped, his itchy fingers ready to blast the f.u.c.ker into oblivion. Sinnder held up both hands in surrender, then quickly covered his ears against the continuing onslaught of the whale song.

"Wait. I need your help," Sinnder shouted. His expression was urgent.

"What could I possibly help you with, lackey?"

"Pest control. You've got a direct line to the queen bee. You can lead me to her." The muscles in Sinnder's face hardened as he centered his pointed gaze on Gavin's chest.

Torn between what his heart wanted and what his head knew to be true, Gavin hesitated. Sinnder had proven himself a liar and a thief on countless occasions. Gavin needed Scarlet dead so badly, it hurt, and he couldn't take her out himself.

But Sinnder could.

A phrase from Yileen's whale tooth prophecy stabbed his brain like an ice pick: The Sentinel clutches gifts in his heart, Destroying destroyers with guile, not fists...

Gavin lowered his Watery weapons. "Why do you want her?"

A slow smile edged onto Sinnder's lips. "Same reason you do." He glanced over Gavin's shoulder to the chaos surrounding Eidan and Lily. "We don't have much time. Your girlfriend will be fine."

Gavin twisted his bobbing body to face Zoe. Surrounded by singing whales, she seemed okay, but he'd never forgive himself if she got hurt again-especially if he could have been there to protect her.

"Now or never, Sentinel. This is a limited time offer." Sinnder's brow creased, and he struggled to gain traction in the air above the rising water level. His complexion darkened to a sickly shade of gray. Threads of red wove through his light brown irises.

The whale song had to be doing a number on him. The few remaining Fyres howled and scrambled for escape to Realis. Random waves reached up and s.n.a.t.c.hed many of them into the depths, leaving nothing behind but thin lines of smoke.

Aside from a few stragglers, only Lily and Eidan were left, and the whale had put herself in front of Zoe. Gavin's resolve wavered. He looked to his lover, tenseness knotting his shoulders.

Then three dark-haired men rose simultaneously from the waves-one on each side, and the third behind Lily.

Holy. f.u.c.king. h.e.l.l.

The Tongans.

Lit up like blue Christmas trees in Sydney Harbour, the trio laid hands on the whale. Blinding white light erupted from the three points, and Lily's body grew to match Eidan's size. Navy blue outlines defined her edges, but the bulk of the whale became transparent with Water.

The Mother is reborn unto another, Returning the third Element to its n.o.ble station.

When all this comes to pa.s.s, Then shall Balance in the Fortieth Great Age be restored.

Gavin sucked in a mighty breath and grinned. Lily had risen to her Archelemental position.

Sinnder clenched his jaw and fled to the Veil.

Lily had far more power than Gavin to keep his muse safe now, and though Zoe wanted to see Scarlet dead as badly as he did, he couldn't risk bringing her along. Sinnder's motives were too questionable. He'd have to go this one alone.

Gavin waved at Zoe and pointed in the direction Sinnder had gone. Zoe tilted her head, looked at Lily, then nodded.