Page 57 of The Last One
Other villagers have taken up their weapons and are hacking and swinging their swords, their brooms and rakes, whenever the beasts get too close. They’re not killing them, though, since they’re unable to reach them to strike a fatal blow. We’re losing this fight.
I look over to Jadon, and as tall as he is, he can’t reach flies that dart out of the way before his sword can make—
A smaller cursufly hurtles toward me, its head down like a ram.
I turn to face it, tripping over some dropped potatoes, and my sword tumbles to the ground. With nothing but my hands, I swat blindly at the creature before it bites me. Wind from my slap sends the cursufly slamming into the side of the burning jail. I gape at the fiery fly. How could a swat do something a sword couldn’t?
Barking pulls me back into the now.
Milo!The poor dog is trembling beneath a cart, hiding from a cursufly.
Another cursufly swoops at me from the right.
I raise my hand to see if swatting it works again.
The beast is thrown backward, stopping only when it crashes into the burning tavern.
But I didn’t even touch the creature. That realization puts a hitch in my step.
Milo barks as the cursufly bumps the cart, trying to overturn it.
I run faster, stopping only to grab my sword. At least this beast is low enough to slash with my sword. Hands burning, I grip the handle tighter.What the…?The fingertips of my free left hand are glowing coral, red, and blue, and they’re hot, so hot that I wince and flick them for relief. This time, I see blue air burst from my glowing fingertips, and immediately, the cursufly racing beside me goes flying into a burning shop.
Did that just happen?
I sprint to the cart protecting Milo, and this time, I intentionally flick my hand at the cursufly threatening the Gerys’ dog. Blue air gusts from my fingers. The fly goeswhoosh.The cart flips. Milo scurries over to me. My mouth hangs open becausewhat the fuck? Have I always been able to wind whip and only now have rediscovered it? Or is this a new power? I drop the useless sword and scoop up the dog in my right hand. Does my right hand push wind, too?
Another fly homes in on Milo and me.
I switch the dog to my left hand and thrust with my right. I send the creature flying into the darkness. Left hand out—another fly gone. Right hand out—a cart lifts high in the air and knocks a fly to the ground. I laugh. “Milo, do you see this?”
The dog barks and licks my face.
There’s a fly over there, chasing the old carrot farmer.
I push my hand. Blue air crackles. Cursufly gone.Oops. Too much wind—I’ve also knocked down the farmer. But he gets up and gapes at me.
I’m just as amazed as you are, old man.
Every time I flick my hand, wind bursts from my fingers, causing the cursuflies near me to lose all control, landing in heaps, never moving again.
Where’s Jadon?
My gaze skips around, from fire to fire, from one collapsing cottage to the still-burning chapel. Milo hops out of my arms and races through the smoke to…
Zinnia Gery! She’s standing on two feet. She’s not dead and strong enough to catch Milo bounding into her arms. Her amber glow has softened. How is that possible?
I can’t help but gawk at her as she and Milo rush back to their barn, which is miraculously still standing. I spin around, trying to find Jadon again, but all I see is the ground around me flickering with dying amber light of fallen villagers, and villagers with no light at all.
A single cursufly screams above me. I see fire bubbling in its cauldron-like belly as it lets loose a fall of fire. In the light, I see Jadon, still on his feet, still fighting. He swings his sword and dodges the fly’s ball of fire.
As the cursufly blasts another fireball and then another, Jadon rolls and ducks, but he’s running out of room. The fire is spreading and encircling him.
I race over to Jadon before he’s trapped in a ring of fire. I skid to a stop and thrust both of my hands at the beast. Blue wind swirls from my fingers, lifting the massive creature higher into the air. Higher. I keep my hands up, and the fly hangs there, its legs twitching, completely helpless in the space it should own.
Huh. So I can also control this wind? Let’s see what else I can do with it.
I hammer down my hands.
