Page 69 of The Demigod

Or, maybe, I simply didn’t have much power left to command them.

This is the last time,I whispered to my own mind, to my soul, to my powers.

I just had to do it one last time.

The shadows came, and we rushed ahead, both shivering at the coldness of the cave as we drew deeper.

This time, there was no screaming as Aggy dropped the protection spell.

“How do we get her out?” I asked as we rounded the corner toward her prison.

“I just… need to ground myself for a minute,” Aggy said, moving forward toward my sister.

As for me, I slid down the wall, every muscle shaking in exhaustion.

I watched Aggy standing there, head tilted to the sky, arms out wide, lips moving.

But my vision kept blanking out as I drifted off over and over.

It was the roar that snapped me awake again.

Then there she was.

Nemesis.

My sister.

Free.

And fucking enraged.

She screamed so hard the ground shook.

Then, without so much as a glance at the two of us who risked everything to free her, she was gone.

“Nox? Hey, Nox!” Aggy said, gently tapping my cheeks. “Come on. Don’t die on me.”

“I’m not dying,” I assured her, my voice weak. Though, honestly, I felt a bit like I was dying.

Maybe I was.

“You’re so pale. And cold,” Aggy said, hands chafing up and down my arms. “We have to get you somewhere warm.”

“I have a car. And a motel room. I just… I’m so tired.”

“I know,” she agreed. “And you’ve earned the right to sleep. You just… saved the world. But… but you need to get somewheresafe first, okay? Here, I’ll help you,” she offered, slipping under my arm and half-lifting me to my feet.

“We got this,” Aggy said, starting to half-carry me through the cave.

I was aware of her lips moving, of her voice chanting.

But I had no idea what she said, or what she was doing. Trying to lend me some power, maybe.

All I knew was pain, an ache that felt like it came from my marrow. And cold. God, I was so cold.

I was vaguely aware of leading her to the car, of asking if she was even old enough to know how to drive.

“The world is ending, and you’re worried about road rules?” she said as she hefted me into the passenger seat. “Where is the motel?” she asked.

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