Part 25 (2/2)

You miserable cretin, what are you doing? You have disobeyed me! I dont have time to deal with your incompetence now! Sanguina seethed at Venu. Valerie was shocked. Why was she helping Henry? She had to have some sinister reason for intervening.

For the first time, Valerie saw fear flickering in Venus eyes. Im sorry, mistress. But the boy refused to follow my orders! I had no choice”

I heard him agree to do what you asked, Sanguina replied icily. Youre wasting time. You should be at the Devils Pool by now! Go!

Henry looked up from the ground through swollen eyes, and for the first time, Valerie saw where he was. The longest, most magnificent waterfall she had ever seen stretched out for miles. The water rushed over the edge so hard that the spray rose up like a cloud when it crashed into the pool below, creating a mist in the air even though they were still far away from the falls.

Dont give up, Henry! Im sending help, Valerie thought, hoping he could perceive her message. Then she let herself be pulled back to the Globe.

Whats wrong with you? the guard standing nearest to her said, shaking her roughly.

Sorry, she said, realizing that she was slumped on the ground.

Im not falling for your tricks, the guard said, and without another word, Valerie was slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. It was an awkward position, but she was able to reach into her pocket and clutch the charm she had made for Thai. She pictured his face, and instantly she stood next to him in a busy airport. Thai looked at her questioningly.

Cant stay”go to the biggest waterfall in Zambia. Ask anyone”its enormous; it cant be hard to find.

Victoria Falls, of course! Thai exclaimed.

Venus taking Henry there”somewhere called the Devils Pool!

Chapter 42.

Valeries body was thrown on the stone floor. She hit the ground hard, but despite how disoriented she was from her vision and her whirlwind visit to Thai, she had the sense to immediately leap to her feet and a.s.sume a fighting stance, though she doubted that she could take on all of the guards in addition to Sanguina.

It didnt help that she couldnt even guess how many people were surrounding her. She was in total darkness. Not even one of the dim b.a.l.l.s of light was near to give her a sense of the layout of the room and the location of her enemies. She was defenseless without the use of her sight. How could she possibly fight Sanguina when she couldnt even see where she was standing?

Glad youve come out to play, Zunyas voice slithered through the darkness. Valeries power dipped, and a hopeless fear gripped her heart. She would be completely defenseless in the battle to come with Zunya present to subdue her power.

Leave us, Sanguinas raspy voice commanded. Valerie heard the light tread of the guards footsteps as they left the room. You, too, Zunya. I dont need your help with this.

I should stay, in case” he started to say, clearly annoyed at her order.

Get out”NOW! Sanguinas voice exploded. Zunya opened the door to leave, looking back once at Valerie with his vicious yellow eyes.

Then the door slammed closed, and she was alone with Sanguina and completely blind. She took a few practice kicks, preparing herself for Sanguinas attack. But the onslaught of blows never came.

I didnt bring you here to fight me. Ive already proven that I could kill you without making much of an effort, Sanguina whispered in Valeries ear, the threat of violence in her voice. Valeries chest tightened as the fear that she couldnt hold back gushed through her.

Then why am I here? she asked. She was ashamed of how childlike her voice sounded in the darkness. The Laurel Circle was freezing, reminding her that it was only her fear holding her back now”not her skills. She forced herself to breathe more slowly and fight back against her terror.

To answer some questions for me. If I like the answers, maybe your little lightweaver friend will see his family again. And if I dont One of Sanguinas long, sharp fingernails raked across Valeries arm, cutting into her skin. She cried out in pain and she felt a thin trickle of blood on her arm where Sanguina had sliced her.

Valerie punched the air wildly, but in the darkness she could make contact with nothing. What do you want to know? she asked, desperate.

What did you mean when you asked me about haunting your dreams? Sanguina shouted from somewhere nearby. It means something; I know it. And youre going to tell me.

I dont know!

Liar! Without warning, Sanguina landed a fierce punch across her left cheek. Sanguinas fist was a rock, and Valeries brain rattled in her skull and the skin on her cheek split open. Her ears rang from the blow and her head throbbed, but she managed to stay on her feet. She was already losing her tentative hold on her magic. She knew that if Sanguina tried to control her mind right now, she wouldnt be able to fight her off.

I saw you in a dream or a vision, and you were always really angry, thats all, she relented, knowing she had to give some kind of answer.

There was a short pause, as if Sanguina didnt know what to make of her answer. Switching tactics, she said, How do you know the boy, Henry?

Henry? Never heard of” Valerie broke off in a scream as Sanguina threw her to the ground by her hair.

Youll tell me everything you know about Henry, or I swear I will kill that boy in the dungeon!

Kill me, Valerie begged. Let Cyrus and Henry go.

I will never let you go”or Henry. You are both mine, Sanguinas voice was low and deadly.

But instead of terrifying her, the confidence in Sanguinas voice awoke something in Valerie. She was still afraid, but overwhelming her fear was her explosive anger. This monster would never own her”or her brother. The Laurel Circle suddenly blazed hot on her thumb, and Valerie knew that her fear wouldnt swallow her up this time as it had done before.

Her rage was uncontrollable inside of her, and she almost hurtled herself toward Sanguina so that she could finally feel her fist connect with flesh. But she forced herself not to attack wildly. Instead, she contained all of her energy and power inside her, and prepared to channel it into a more intelligent a.s.sault.

Fine, I give in. Ill tell you what you want to know, Valerie said quietly, remembering her lessons with Jet and Chrome. She needed to gauge where Sanguina was standing in relation to her in order to launch an effective attack, and the only way to do that in the dense darkness was by listening to Sanguinas voice.

Yes, you will, Sanguina replied, and this time, Valeries heightened senses told her that Sanguina was two feet behind her.

Pathos! Valerie yelled, and immediately her blade was in her hand, glowing brightly in the black room.

Sanguina screamed in agony when the light hit her. Valerie immediately lunged toward her, bringing the blade down forcefully toward her shoulder. But despite her pain, Sanguina managed to dodge the blow with astonis.h.i.+ng speed. She darted across the room, and Valerie raced after her.

Sanguina grabbed something hanging on the wall, and this time, when Valerie wielded Pathos, aiming for Sanguinas heart, she heard the sound of metal meeting metal as Sanguina blocked her with a long, curved rapier of her own. For several long minutes, the air was filled with nothing but sparks and the sound of their swords cras.h.i.+ng against each other.

Valeries arms moved faster than they ever had before as she deflected Sanguinas blows. She felt as if she were in a trance, and nothing existed except for the fight. The flow of magic inside of her was only a small stream, as her fear kept gnawing at her mind, trying to steal her attention away from the fight. By the glow of Pathos, she could see Sanguinas confidence in her ability to defeat her. Sanguinas mouth turned up in a cruel snarl of victory. In that instant, Valeries fear flared, interfering with her concentration, and Sanguina managed to slash Valeries leg with the tip of her sword.

How many times do I have to prove to you that you arent good enough to defeat me? Sanguina jeered.

Valerie refused to let Sanguina know how much pain she was in from this new gash on her leg, from the earlier slash on her arm, and from the dizzying blow to her face. But the pain had the opposite effect from what Valerie had antic.i.p.ated. Instead of distracting her, adrenaline rushed through her body, sharpening her focus so that she barely noticed the blood trickling down her cheek and leg.

She said nothing, but more of her fear transformed into rage, and the stream of magic inside of her exploded into a torrent. She gave in to her power, fighting purely by instinct. Now Valerie had Sanguina on the defensive, and she slowly backed her into a corner. Sanguinas face was grim, and Valerie knew that she had to use every ounce of her own strength and speed to fend her off. She could feel Sanguina trying to grasp at her brain to control her, but her attempts to claw her way into Valeries mind were useless, as if her consciousness was a ball of fire that couldnt be contained.

Valeries heart raced as she realized that she was actually winning”but she knew that she couldnt keep fighting this hard for much longer. Her magic would eventually run out. She needed to try something different. So this time, after blocking Sanguinas sword from lopping off her right arm, Valerie deliberately flashed the luminous blade in Sanguinas eyes. The light made her squint and flinch. A second of hesitation was all Valerie needed, and she pressed her advantage. She knocked Sanguinas hand with the flat of her sword as hard as she could, loosening Sanguinas grip on her weapon. The rapier clattered onto the ground.

Swiftly, Valerie pressed her blade against Sanguinas neck. Surrender, she said quietly, trying to contain the glorious tide of joy rising inside of her. Had she really won? Sanguina stared at Valerie, her hatred emblazoned across her face.

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