Page 97 of Reign of the Beast

“Why not?”

Ryker sat forward and told him patiently, “Magic-wielders aren’t just born into the full breadth of their abilities. It takes time, years. And during that time, we train and learn to wield and hone our power.Gradually.That won’t be the case for you. Once you’re unbound, the power will erupt in a violent rush through you and it will be incredibly difficult just to stomach it, let alone to wield it against an enemy as experienced and as formidable as Draco.”

“What I inflicted on Draco at the Guardian Compound will put him out of commission for days,” I revealed, joining them and standing between the couch and the armchair, taking all three of them in. “

“Days?” Lucian asked, incredulous. “How? Even Cornelius struggled to achieve that at the tail end of the Maven Coven battle.”

I looked away as I admitted something that was abhorrent to me. I’d had to, though. I’d done what had been needed to save Ryker. “I bound his magic.”

“Like your father did to Ryker?” Lucian pressed.

“It was the only way to stop him in the momentandto buy us the time needed to deal with our issues, then find the dagger.”

“How could you, as a half-Immortal, bind the magic of a pure Immortal?” Jaxon asked.

“Draco was weakened from touching Ryker’s defensive magic. I could feel it attacking him. He would have been able to shake the infection in time, but I used the vulnerability to flood him with ablock.No one can unbindthemselves. He’ll have to use an entire coven to do it for him, and mustering that level of power will require a celestial event. There isn’t another one for a while yet.”

“Well, shit,” Ryker said, beaming with pride.

“I’m impressed. Extremely so,” Lucian added.

“Right there with you,” Jaxon’s rough rumble sounded.

“It buys us the time we need to do the ritual.”

For once all three of them were momentarily speechless, shocked into silence at my statement.

While that was still the case, I went on, “We’ve had to remain in hiding in this safehouse to protect the Covenant, it being the greatest shot we have of defeating Draco. While that was the case, the Guardian Movement was doing what it was created for, safeguarding the supernatural world and maintaining the balance and in this particular case that being beating back Draco and his acolytes’ reign of terror, chaos, and destruction. Ryker had to move them off-realm. Now there’s no force out there holding back the proverbial tide. Once we perform the ritual, there’ll be no need to hide. The Covenant will be sealed and I’ll wield enough power to stand against Draco. We need to use this opportunity of him being down to use that to our full advantage.”

“Why can’t we attack now if he’s compromised? Why even risk doing the ritual?” Jaxon asked. “Doesn’t you binding him change things? Can’t we attack right fucking now?”

I sighed heavily, hating the question being put out there, because it inadvertently served to highlight my shortcomings.

Noting that, Ryker answered in my stead, informing Jaxon, “None of us possess the power to actually take the life of an Immortal being. At least, not magically.”

“If we had the Wrath of Hades, then the situationwould be different,” I said. “He could be killed with that while in his weakened state.”

“All right, yeah, I get it,” Jaxon said with a nod of his head.

“In light of that, the plan is two-fold,” I began. “We join, solidifying the Covenant and imbuing me with your power. Then I should have enough juice to be able to track down the dagger. We’ll be able to end Draco and save my father in one fell swoop.”

“The Wrath of Hades,” Ryker breathed.

“The… what?” Jaxon asked.

I eyed Jaxon. “It’s the one weapon that can take the life of a Celestial being.”

“Wow. Good. Just what we’ve been needing. You couldn’t track it before?”

I shook my head. “It’s buried beneath layers and layers of magic.”

“Of course it is,” Jaxon groused.

It took me a moment to realize that Lucian wasn’t joining in the discussion. “Lucian?”

When he didn’t respond, clearly deep in thought, Ryker rubbed his arm.

It jolted him and he looked out at us, the expression on his face making my stomach lurch.

---