“Morgan!” A deep voice distracted me and David pointed north to a dark mass approaching. “They are coming!”
Indeed they were, with Herra gallantly leading the charge. Where she had recruited the many that followed her, only she knew, but the sheer number of merpeople was amazing. Sea serpents and killer whales bobbed along the outer edges of the charge, followed by sharks of every size and even a giant squid. To have gained the trust and following of the sea creatures would have been very difficult, and a task only done by dealing with the dark arts.
Herra spotted me in an instant and headed in my direction as quickly as she could swim. Armed with only a small trident, she sped toward me with the same insane look her father had worn when we had battled. As she reached me, she screamed, her voice amplified three times louder than normal.
“I’m going to destroy you!” She shrieked, the shock waves folding over me and pushing me back. “You denied me of my destiny!”
Instead of shielding myself, I allowed her into my space, grasped the trident with one hand and elbowed her in the face, letting her amassed momentum slam her into me. It was obvious she had been expecting me to use some sort of power instead of brute force and she pulled back, shielding her broken nose with her hand. Blood stained the water, marring her view.
I let The Fire loose and it flew up the handle of the trident, forcing her to release her grip. Flipping it around, I plowed it into her stomach and as she doubled over, brought it up to meet the underside of her chin.
Dazed, she floated momentarily in the stained water of her own blood before raising a finger and pointing it at me. Instant, electrocuting pain entered my body, making me want to sink straight to the bottom of the trench. It was worse than being set on fire. Pushing my hands in front of me, I bounced the pain back to her, doubling her over backward and she screamed in frustration.
“Get her, get her now!” She cried.
Blurred, burned hands closed over my eyes and around my chest and I released one of the powers I received from Thayde – his blinding light that paused events – momentarily stunning everything around me. Turning, I shied away from what once was Akin. Now, he was nothing more than a melted mess of skin around a torso. How he had survived me setting him on fire had been a miracle in itself. But now, as I stared into his hooded, piercing eyes, I realized he was mad. His bared teeth made him more animal than human. In those few moments of calm, I held my palm up and squeezed my hand shut, completely pulverizing him.
Turning away, I was able to focus on everyone else. It was ghastly. My people were dying by the masses, as were Herra’s. One of Tammer’s pilot whales was dead and two more wounded, barely able to swim.
Gavran hung, frozen in a grimace of pain with his pale blue light shooting from his fingertips, not yet meeting its foe. Lars and Raif twisted in a death grip around each other, cursing and shouting. Ezen fought against one of Herra’s followers, his body bent at an awkward angle as he dodged a shot from a spear gun. Dominic sunk slowly to the bottom of the ocean floor. A giant gash in his gut spilled his intestines and they followed him like sinking balloons. I turned away from the gruesome image.
Tammer held Mom by one arm as he flung her away from a glazing pink ribbon of power. It had barely missed her side. Two merpeople hung from Sharlie’s jaws in pieces as he shook his head violently side to side. From the walls of the trench, dark shadows ascended like a plague upon the merfolk – hundreds of Genif’s.
“Did you really think I didn’t come prepared?” Herra’s nasty voice rang through the muffled sounds of the battle as the scene began to right itself. “One thing my father taught me was that Lucifer is a very willing participant if you accept his help.”
I faced Herra, fury encompassing me. “You would sell your soul to be The Link?” I shouted, making her laugh.
“I’d sell everyone’s soul to be The Link.”
Everyone’s soul? The Genif’s flew through the water, swiping up merpeople left and right – no matter if they were Herra’s or mine. Screams flooded my ears and I watched in horror as one fixed its gaze on Mom.
“No!” I shouted, throwing my shield to her, but it was too late. She froze, her eyes locked on mine as the black shadow flushed through her, melting her into oblivion.
“Elan!” Tammer cried, pushed backward as my power reached him, thwarting another Genif from attacking him.
I reeled on Herra, my eyes black with The Look and I shouted using The Voice. “Enough!”
Her laughter rippled across the water and she began to twirl, faster and faster, creating a tornado effect. Her voice sung out from the undulating waves.