Destroyer (The Elemental Series #7)(37)

"What the fuck is going on?" he yelped as he shook his head.

"Explain later, leaving now." I yanked the stall door open and he plunged out, giving a little kick with his back legs. I leapt up and Peta was right with me, settling down in front of me in her housecat form. It was my turn to hold a hand out to Raven. "You coming?"

He took my hand and I hauled him up. "Run straight at the wall, there." Raven pointed at the solid rock wall in front of us.



       
         
       
        

I shook my head. "And use the power of the earth to open it?"

"No, the wall is not real, just another illusion. And if you use your connection to the earth, it will become solid. Now go!" He drummed his heels against Shazer's sides and the Pegasus leapt forward.

"Asshole," he snapped back as he sprinted toward the wall. "You'd better be right about this."

I clung to Shazer's mane, tangling the long white threads through my fingers as Shazer sprinted. Ten strides from the wall, Talan burst into the room.

If he used Spirit, we were done.

I twisted in my seat, called up the earth under Talan and let my power course through the rock and stone without holding back. Freedom and relief I'd not felt in being able to use my own abilities in ages rushed along with it. Not since I'd first gained control over my abilities had I felt as helpless as Talan had left me, blocked as completely as if I was once more just a Planter girl.

Helpless no more, the room erupted with all the strength I could shove into it. Shattered stone sliced through the air like deadly daggers that would kill if they hit the right organs.

I didn't want to kill him. Not really.

The explosion was enough to give us the split-second distraction we needed to make our escape happen.

Shazer grunted as he plunged through the wall and the room around us shimmered, faded and was gone. We went from running to falling through space in a single stride of Shazer's long legs.

"Shit!" The Pegasus spat the word out as the waterfall slammed into us. Peta's claws dug into my inner thighs and Raven's arms wrapped tightly around me as we fell with the water and the Pegasus. We'd leapt into a massive waterfall that was pulling us down …  but how far? Under me, Shazer fought to get us out of the rushing water, his wings beating hard against the pounding force as every muscle in him worked to save us.

I tucked my head and gave him all my energy, everything I had. A burst of power rolled between us on the connection that bound us and he let out a whinny as we exploded from the water. Only inches from the rocky pool, his hooves skimmed the surface as he pulled up, gaining height and distance quickly. Shaking, I turned to look back. The waterfall was at least two hundred feet high and there was no sign of Talan.

I let out a breath I barely registered that I'd been holding. "As far as we can, as fast as we can, Shazer."

"You got it. But only if you tell me what happened. One second, I was landing us on the top of that waterfall back there and thought we were taking that asshole on. Next thing I know, you're waking me up and I'm bashing my head on that fucking stall." He swung his head back so he could give me the stink eye. "What gives?" 

I filled him in as best I could. About Vivica, about the original elementals, about Talan confining us all there behind the waterfall.

"So now the plan is to find Viv and the original elementals and save them?"

I nodded even though he couldn't see me. "Yeah, that's the plan."

"Don't know how to find her, do you?" Shazer laughed into the wind as he caught a current and we swept upward over a large forest.

"Yeah, that would be one of the problems. A small one," I said.

He laughed again, turning it into a whinny. "Well, good thing you've got me then."

I leaned forward. "Not that I'm not glad you're with us, but why do I have a feeling you mean more than just being a good friend?"

Once more, he turned his head so he could look at me. "Vivica is my creator, you already know that."

"Right," I said, and then the realization hit me. "Wait, you're bound to her still?"

"Not like I was," he admitted. "But I can still find her. Just like Peta can always find you."

He could find Vivica.

I knew in my head I should be happy about that, ecstatic even. But there was something under my skin that told me that even with Shazer helping, Vivica wasn't going to be easy to track down.

She knew we were coming, that we had it in for her.

Without a doubt, she'd be waiting.





CHAPTER 13