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“There are always consequences for using this type of power,” I murmur to myself, nearly forgetting that Mateo is there, surprisingly.
“What do you mean?” Mateo asks, his fists clenching on top of the table as I shift my attention from the book to him. His jaw ticks as he waits, tension radiating from his tight posture.
“I mean, Romulus had to cast something dark and powerful for none of us to be able to break that barrier, especially with the amount of power that Liv sent into it,” I say, pushing thoughts of the ancient magic away for a second now that a crack in the god of war’s facade has shown. He might be annoying as infernal right now, but I get why. “And with dark magic, comes consequences to whoever cast it.”
Mateo nods stiffly and taps his finger on the table, seemingly needing some way to release the nervous energy clearly radiating through him right now. “Sorry.” He curls his finger back into his clenched fist as though he only just realized what he was doing.
“It’s fine,” I murmur and focus back on the book, settling into a comfortable silence as I scour the pages for some sign of a trap or encasement charm strong enough to hold a god.
I comb through every spell, not wanting to miss a detail, until the sun finally lowers in the sky. The change in light as the sun dips beneath the tree cover jerks me from the book.
“How did I not realize it’s so late?” I murmur and scrub a hand over my face, only now noticing how blurry my eyes had been getting.
“You were so focused, I didn’t want to disturb you,” Mateo says, his earlier levity gone now as he shifts his focus from the crater and back to me. “Nothing yet?”
“Nothing yet,” I agree, shaking my head as I turn the page. “I still have about a hundred pages to go so there’s still a chance.”
Mateo nods, but both of us know this isn’t a good sign. I sigh in frustration as I look down at the next page. Every spell and story has been getting darker and darker, just like the title of the ancient tome promised. There’s a reason I’ve never read this book in its entirety, and this is exactly why. I almost hope I don’t find anything now, and that I need to search for another book, because I already know that the price of any of these spells is not going to be something easy to part with.
“Do you want me to read some?” Mateo asks, his lips quirking to the side.
“That’s okay,” I chuckle, shaking my head and doing my best to hide the way that my stomach sinks at the thought of anyone else reading this text. There was a reason it was entrusted to me—not that I think Mateo would actually use the spells in here, but I can’t take that risk.
I grimace as I read the effects of the next one, and force myself to shift to the next page.
Demon’s web.
I pause at the table, my blood turning to ice in my veins at the title already. A leaden weight sinks in my stomach, but I push it aside, somehow knowing this won’t be good.
The demon’s web is cast to both entrap and drain the individual of their powers.
The blood drains from my face as I glance at the disaster site mere feet from me. That was what he was able to do with a trickle of Maximus’ power combined with his own—this is how he was able to destroy the house on his own. If he was able to bide his time, or get Liv or Osias into the web, he would’ve been able to take out the entire school in one blow.
The power seeps from them slowly, until they’re a mere husk of themselves. The spell shall take a week to fully drain even the most powerful being you lure to their demise.
Fuck. That means we’re up against the clock. If we don’t get him out of there soon, I’m not sure there’ll be anything left to save.
Ensure you do not trap someone accidentally. Blood for blood, the greatest sacrifice of all, the only form of rescue.
The caster shall only be able to retain the power for a period before sanity begins to be stripped away. Consuming you the same way you drained your victim, leaving you a shell of your former self.
I do my best to keep any sign of emotion from my face as I close the book and force a smile onto my face.
“I know a way to save him,” I say weakly, doing my best to feign excitement despite the blood draining from my face. “I’m going to need a few ingredients first.”
“Are you serious?” Mateo demands. He bolts from his chair so quickly it topples over and clatters on the earth behind him as a wide grin spreads across his lips. My stomach sinks as his eyes light with a mix of excitement and hope, which I try to emulate, despite the fear slithering up my spine.
“Yes.” I nod, hoping he doesn’t see past my facade. “You can tell the others that in a few days’ time, Maximus will be out.”
“Can I help you find anything?” Mateo asks, nearly leaping away from the table.
“No, I can find all the ingredients,” I say, needing to keep the details to myself.
“If you’re sure, I’ll go let Kyros know he can stop his search, and we’ll go let Liv know,” Mateo says, barely able to contain the eagerness in his tone. “I’ll let Osias know too, and he’ll get you set up in a room for the night; you must be exhausted.”
I nod in agreement, not even sure I can trust the strength of my voice right now.
“Maybe this will even get Kyros to stop hating you.” Mateo chuckles, nudging me teasingly with his elbow before he dissipates away.
