Page 68 of The Princess of Portals

Members of the Court echoed his words. “Cut those strings! Cut those strings! Cut those strings!”

“Gaia is ruled by small-minded people,” Fenris told them, “people who are frightened of magic and of anyone who can wield it. People willing to do anything to go back to the way things were before they discovered the Many Realms, back to that time when magic was a myth and they were the only intelligent civilization in the universe, the light at the center of everything.”

“This is absurd.”

Fenris snapped around, glaring across the room at the General. “What’s absurd is that we allowed this to go on for this long. We should have taken action immediately after your people tried to destroy all the Spirit Trees. We won’t make that mistake again.”

The Court bellowed in agreement.

“Never again!”

“We will put a stop to Gaia’s foul schemes.”

“My mother’s murder will be the last one Gaia commits against the Many Realms.” Fenris shoved his finger out like a spear, pointing at the General across the room. “We won’t allow you to poison the trees that connect us. We won’t allow you to destroy the friendship that binds us together. We won’t allow you to murder our mothers and fathers, our sons and daughters, our brothers and sisters. And we won’t allow you to exploit and corrupt children, to twist their minds and contaminate their souls. To turn them into soldiers to fight your war against us!”

“He’s riling up the Court,” Kato said beside me.

Conner watched them, looking worried. His easygoing manner had long since left the building. “They’re going to give us to Fenris.”

I managed to scrounge up enough energy to stand. “No, they aren’t. Because we won’t let them. The Court isn’t the boss of us.”

“Try telling that to them.” Kato indicated the armed warriors, the Court’s loyal Guard. They were slowly gathering, but they hadn’t drawn their weapons. Yet.

“Kato is right, Red. They have the numbers. And they have the exits covered.”

The soldiers had positioned themselves to block all the doors and windows.

I sighed. “Then I’ll just have to freeze them again.”

I tried, but the spell that I’d performed so effortlessly just a few minutes ago didn’t answer my call. All I got for my efforts was a headache and a nose bleed.

“Here.” Kato handed me a handkerchief, and I pressed it to my nose. He slowly eased me back into my chair. “Did you forget what we taught you about overexerting your magic?”

“No. I just decided it didn’t apply to me.”

“Of course you did,” Conner chuckled. He knelt in front of me and gently pressed his glowing hands to my face. The pain eased.

“Thanks,” I said hoarsely.

“No problem.” Conner winked at me, then rose to his feet.

And then I could see Kato again. He was giving me the look. “Fenris had you locked up for over a day, Seven, and from the looks of you, he didn’t feed you. You had to fight your way out of there. Since your escape, all you’ve had is a few hours of sleep and a donut. You used magic, including teleporting between realms. You’ve still not recovered. You need more time to recharge your batteries.”

“I can handle it.” I gritted my teeth and tried to stand.

Conner tapped me lightly. That’s all he had to do, and I fell back down into my chair. “No, you can’t. Even with all this magic, our bodies still have limits. And if you forget yours, you’ll end up with a lot more than a nosebleed.”

“I said I can handle it.”

“You’re not listening to us. If you push yourself too hard, you could die, Seven. And neither of us wants that to happen.”

“So just sit tight,” Conner added. “Do it for us, Red. We need you. Without you, Kato and I would be at each other’s throats in about five minutes. And you don’t want our blood on your conscience, do you?” He smiled at me.

I didn’t smile back. “You guys don’t get it. If we don’t do something, none of us will ever get to make a choice ever again. Because we’ll be Fenris’s slaves.”

Conner brushed his hand through his hair. “Nah, I’m way too stubborn to be brainwashed.”

“How can you joke about this?”