Page 119 of Live Like Legends

My shadows hissed at the thick black wafts of smoke seeping from the cracks. This was different from the mist Dimitri had created before. The sky grew darker and a deep red shone over us all. I went to back away, but a hand clamped around my throat. Fingers gripped me so tightly that a single gasp for air felt like a difficult task.

Dimitri’s face was gone now and only the skull, decorated with gray matter and black eyes like a dull void, was in its place. The tattooed hand that had a hold on my throat vibrated and pulsed. His voice was deep and hollow when he spoke, “you willnothave it all. You willnotbeat me, Soul Seether. You can have what Itellyou you can have.” He threw me onto the ground and I heard my shoulder pop back in place. The cracks only got bigger and bigger.

I couldn’t bother trying to regain my breathing, so I tried to gather as much of the hybrid power I could in my hands, but something wrapped itself around my legs and wrists. The thick black smoke from the cracks in the ground had shot out and seized my ankles, holding them together tight; my wrists were the same, pulled in towards my chest.

My energy felt like it was leaving me, depleting. This wasn’t Dimitri’s magic. The Son of Hell didn’t have this sort of power. The person heworkedfor did though.

“You really can’t do anything yourself, can you?” I wheezed out, exhaustion hitting me like it never had before.

It was hard to see any kind of expression from him when he was in this form, but I knew he understood that I’d realized this power wasn’t his. His laugh seemed to rumble through my very core. “To be fair, getting a little help isn’t unheard of. We want the same thing, him and I.”

I could hear my shadows crying as if they were suffocating. My light simmered and tried to shove through, hitting my chest from the inside over and over. My fingertips felt the heat from my light, but it wasn’t enough.

“What the fuck?” Elise yelled, the thick black rope yanking her off of the hellhound and pinning her to the ground. Leah and Garrett tried to expel as much of their magic as they could but the darkness was too strong and it spun around them, pulling them in different directions before pinning them to the ground as well. The hellhound Elise had been on top of rammed into Axel, before it slumped to the ground, causing Axel to skid across the ground and be engulfed in the dark magic as well.

Beetee’s tail got caught with one of the ropes, ceasing her movements. She hissed out, her yellow eyes locking onto me. Those eyes widened when a shadowy demon came up and struck with their blade. Not once, but twice. She whipped her head to the side, snatching him up into her mouth, clamping down and then throwing him to the other side. She slowly began to shift back into her normal self, pink hair and lilac eyes. The heat was turning thick, but she was naked and shivering.

She held her side, covering the bloody stab wounds that pierced her skin.

I pulled at Dimitri’s restraints. The more I pulled, the tighter they got.

Nick and Reese continued to fight in the air, but the thick ribbons of dark magic shot up in the air, wrapping themselvesaround Nick’s wings and yanking him down. Reese flew down to try to release him, but his own wings got caught up in the black ropes as well. Nick slammed into the pile of rubble from a broken bench, his sword landing a few feet away from him.

Maurice was on his knees, two restraints at his wrists as he held his arms out. Another black rope wrapped around his head, covering his mouth and restricting words of any kind. He didn’t look afraid, though. He looked like he was still full of so much pride even if the odds of this ending well were slim.

I saw no signs of Morgan, leaving me to assume this had been too much for her. Hiding was always an option. Submitting was always an option.

No, no, no.Fuck, that was never an option.

“He let me have control of these beauties of his.” Dimitri cocked his head to the side and motioned his hands towards the dark magic holding me hostage. “I will show you howlittleyour resistance mattered.” He snapped his fingers and a loud agonizing groan sounded.

It didn’t sound like Nick. It didn’t sound like Nick at all.

Leah let out a blood curdling scream as she watched the restraints hold her husband up and pull in tighter. Even from my small distance, I could see his cheeks hollow and his face grow more ashen as if his life force was being taken from him.

“Dimitri, stop!” I screamed as I watched Leah try to pull away from the thick shadows. Maurice yanked on his as well, along with anyone else I could see. Elise tugged and tugged but to no avail. Beetee, who was the closest to me, had small tears in her eyes as she winced at her wounds.

Garrett groaned louder, bones cracking and blood expelling from his ears. “I love you,” he said to his wife in a strained voice. My fingers sparked a little brighter but it still wasn’t enough. Ineededit to be enough.

Dimitri snapped his fingers again and the ropes pulled so tight that Garrett’s body crumpled in on itself as they let him go. He swiftly descended to the ground, landing near Maurice whose chest was heaving in and out. I saw tiny sparks of light in his fingertips as well as if he was pushing through.

Leah started to scream violently, but a black shadow clamped over her mouth. Dimitri laughed. “Who's next, hmm? Don’t worry, I’m saving your heroic angel for last.” I felt a burning sensation in my thigh. My blood was boiling and he didn’t even need to be touching me to create visions in my head. I was starting to sweat and every time I blinked, the pictures I was forced to see just got worse and worse. “Perhaps we should just get rid of all the Enchanters first? I did tell you that you could keep your friend, didn’t I?” He pointed at Elise, who was still pulling at her restraints, even using her teeth to try and get out. “I am nothing but good to you, even though you want to be ungrateful.”

I felt tears brimming and my body was waning. My strength was straddling a line and every breath I took felt harder than the last. My light pressed hard against my chest and I wanted to tell it that I didn’t know what it wanted. I didn’t know…

I peeked up at Dimitri who was bringing Natalia over, letting her fall to her knees. The glitter that had decorated her dark skin was messy and her once vibrant demeanor was lost under the dark magic. Her honey eyes stared at me as if she still had all the confidence in the world, despite the circumstances. She wasn’t dumb enough to think this situation was ideal, but she didn’t think less of me…of any of us.

Her eyes moved to my thigh and then to the light that sparked at my fingertips. She looked back and forth from my hand to my throbbing wound. My deep planted scars were the only connection Dimitri had to me. It was shrouded in darknessand something needed to root it out. I needed enough light to eliminate it.

I used all the strength I had to push Dimitri’s vile visions aside and searched my head and my heart for the memory I wanted. I thought back to when I’d let myself be balanced with my light and dark magic. I’d let Nick help me; I had been open to the added assistance. I needed to push through the debilitating force of Dimitri’s restraints and so would Nick, if this was going to work.

Always here for me when I need you.

For you? Absolutely.

My light was strong enough to push at my chest and beg to be released. His light was strong enough to find me in a Hell prison. Ihadto hope it was enough.

Ilooked over at Garrett’s dead body and I could feel my breathing getting rougher from the harsh breaths I was letting out. Leah was still screaming behind the black ribbon over her mouth and I couldn’t blame her. I could barely make out the way Beetee’s shoulders moved, telling me she was barely alive.

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