Page 49 of Langiappe & Lost Legends

Time to go find our sister and show these reality-bending cultists exactly why you don't mess with the Six Twisted Sisters. There were five of us at the moment, but not for long. First step. Locate Dea's precise position in the dimensional chaos. Next step. Get Dea back. Raise hell. Then we could get to my favorite part. Decorating for a party.

CHAPTER 18

DREYA

My telekinesis was acting up again and making nearby objects float ominously. It wasn’t exactly helpful when we were trying to infiltrate the tunnels unseen. A large rock and a garden gnome drifted past my head. I consciously reeled in my power. Being the sister with uncontrollable psychic abilities was super fun during high-stress situations. Really.

Just as I was trying to convince a particularly determined squirrel to stay put, my phone buzzed. Given our luck lately, I half expected it to explode or start spouting prophecies in ancient Greek. But no. It was just Kaitlyn's name lighting up my screen with what turned out to be the first good news we'd had all day.

"Holy shit," I breathed. "Kaitlyn and Kaveh got Viktor. Terrence just escorted our favorite vampire turncoat to his new accommodations at Coldwater Creek."

"Terrence took him?" Kota perked up. "The supernatural cop that hasn’t handled much since we came on the scene in New Orleans?"

"The very same," I confirmed, trying not to smirk at her obvious annoyance. "Apparently, they needed someone whocould handle a master vampire having a tantrum mid-transport. Terrence might not carry a gun, but he had magical cuffs that could immobilize the most volatile.”

"Did they say what happened?" Dani asked.

"Kaitlyn just said it was 'messy but final' and that Terrence had to pin Viktor with some kind of ancient binding spell while Kaveh did... whatever a djinn does." I tucked my phone away, accidentally making it float for a second before catching it. "She also mentioned something about Viktor owing her a new leather jacket and Kaveh needing to replace his favorite ceremonial dagger. Knowing those two, I really don't want the details."

"One less homicidal vampire to deal with," Phi noted with a decisive nod as we made our way to the tunnel entrance.

"Oh yeah," Lia drawled. "Now we just have to infiltrate a heavily guarded cemetery through underground tunnels that probably haven't seen maintenance since before the Civil War. Then, we have to establish a stable connection across dimensional barriers without ripping reality apart. And finally rescue our sister from between realities before her mind shatters from experiencing every possible version of existence simultaneously. Easy peasy."

"Your sarcasm is showing," I told her.

"Better than my panic," she countered. "Though I reserve the right to freak out if we run into any giant tunnel rats. There are limits."

The tunnel entrance gaped before us like the maw of some ancient beast. It even exhaled centuries of mold and decay. What I wouldn’t give for nice, clean, well-lit secret passages right about now. Unfortunately, that wasn’t on the agenda. Instead, we had to crawl through what felt like the city's moldy basement while some ancient assholes tried to destroy everything.

"Is everyone clear on the plan?" I asked as I double-checked my bag. The weight of my dagger and emergency potions felt reassuring against my hip.

"Yep. Phase one. Don't die in the creepy tunnels," Kota recited in a voice that echoed in the dank space.

"Phase two. Locate Dea without alerting the Lost Legends or accidentally creating a tear in space-time," Dani continued as she checked her gear.

"Phase three. Probably blow something up," Lia added with the kind of grin that made insurance adjusters wake up in cold sweats.

"That's not actually part of the plan," I reminded her through a chuckle.

"Yet," she said, waggling her eyebrows. "Give it time. Everything we do eventually involves property damage of some sort. It's like our signature move at this point."

"Can we focus?" Phi adjusted her detection equipment. It was making concerning whirring noises and occasionally spitting sparks. "The temporal distortions are getting stronger the deeper we go."

She wasn't wrong. The descent into the tunnels felt like walking into soup. Thick, magical soup that made my skin crawl and my magic go haywire. Our flashlight beams caught glimpses of ancient brickwork and what I really, really hoped weren't human remains. The air grew heavier with each step and was pressing against us like we were deep underwater.

"We’re close to the cemetery," Phi reported in a voice barely above a whisper. The display on her equipment flashed sporadically. It flickered between normal readings and what looked like ancient runes having a seizure. "The crystal's harmonics are definitely bleeding through down here."

I could feel what she was talking about. My magic was doing the equivalent of a caffeine-fueled jumping jack session. And myhealing ability was trying to mend tears in reality that shouldn't exist. Worst of all, the empty space in our sister bond where Dea should be ached like a phantom limb.

"Stop," Maeve commanded suddenly. Her body flickered between dimensions like a glitchy hologram. She pointed to a section of the wall that looked exactly like every other moldy section. "Here. The barriers are thinnest at this point."

"You sure?" I asked as I eyed the suspicious liquid dripping from above. “Cause I'm pretty sure that's just water damage."

"The veils between realities aren't usually visible to the naked eye," she replied with the kind of patience usually reserved for explaining things to small children. "Unless you'd prefer to keep wandering until we find a convenient sign that says 'Tear in Space-Time This Way'?"

"Point taken." I inhaled to calm my racing heart and reached for Lia’s hand.

The five of us gathered in a rough circle. Phi pulled out the artifacts we'd brought from the hidden room. Each one hummed with power that resonated with the crystal's original frequency. The air around us vibrated like a bass speaker at a rave.

---