Chapter 41

Zora tore through the forest, branches snapping and leaves whipping against her skin.

"Where are you going?!" Tori shouted from behind.

Zora didn't answer. She didn't even look back.

Her stars zipped after her like sparks trailing a dying firework.

"Where do you think you're going?!" Ricochet yelled, flying into her path.

Zora ducked under him and pushed forward, her legs burning.

She turned her head—just for a moment—and saw them all chasing her.

I can't lead them... I can't... I can't watch them die...

The words repeated in her mind like a broken spell. The wave of spiders was closing in—too fast to escape. But she'd be damned if she didn't try.

"Stop, Zora! You're all going to die!" Aegis shouted from behind.

Zora whipped around mid-run, eyes wild. "We're all going to die anyway!"

Her foot caught on a branch.

She stumbled—hard—hitting the forest floor with a sickening crack. Her body screamed in protest, but she didn't move.

She just lay there.

Tori shot past her.

At least she can get away from this mess...

The world blurred. Tears welled up, distorting the sky above her.

You've always had a terrible habit of running away, Zora...

The ground trembled beneath her. Then—boom—she was flung into the air.

"RUN!" Paul's voice thundered behind her.

She soared above the trees, breath stolen from her chest.

No!

Paul was the slowest. The biggest. The least likely to make it.

Below, Ivory screamed something unintelligible. The ground beneath her rippled—and she too was launched, flying through the trees like a ragdoll.

She reached for a thread—trying to pull Paul with her—but he waved her off. Sending Lena flying a second later.

Then turned.

And faced the swarm alone.

All you have to do, is imagine what it would be like if you didn't run... and that's what makes all the difference in the world

For a brief moment, she heard a voice.

Miss Mathis…?

Zora's eyes widened. Images slammed into her—Tariq's grin, her mother's soft voice, her father's steady hands. The day her world fell apart.

She had run then, too.

Her body slammed into the earth, pain flaring across her limbs. Ivory and Lena crashed down beside her, winded and shaking.

Zora forced herself up, eyes locking on Paul in the distance.

Just in time to see him disappear beneath the swarm.

"NO!" Ivory screamed.

But the wave didn't slow. It surged forward like a living nightmare, aiming for them next.

Zora's breath hitched. "Ricochet… Nexus…"

Her voice shook.

"Don't overuse them—" Aegis began, but stopped. He saw her eyes.

She wasn't asking for permission.

They both zipped into her chest.

Zora raised her hand. The cane materialized with a solid snap.

Tori skidded to a stop beside them, chest heaving. "We're not running anymore?"

Zora didn't answer. She slammed the cane into the ground.

Paul's dead because of me.

A translucent dome erupted around them just as the swarm slammed into it.

Darkness swallowed them whole.

It's getting to be too much, dear—even for the cane! Ricochet shouted in her mind.

The pressure built rapidly. Kinetic energy pounded into her barrier, rattling her bones.

Zora raised her right hand. "Might as well try something."

She conjured flame.

It burst to life with a roar, lighting the darkness with a searing orange glow.

She screamed—half in pain, half in something dangerously close to euphoria—as she began funneling the kinetic energy into the fire.

"You're trying to mix two types of magic together!" Aegis yelled. "You have to stop, Zora!"

Her limbs tingled. Her vision blurred. Her thoughts slowed into a hazy spiral.

What would it be like if you didn't run?

Miss Mathis's voice echoed inside her again.

Zora smiled.

"I don't have a choice this time, Aegis."

The fire flared hotter.

"Are you trying to cook us alive!?" Lena shouted, soaked in sweat.

Zora quickly formed another barrier between them and her as the flame grew.

Her body trembled. The euphoria surged again.

Stay focused… stay focused…

"Godspeed, everyone…" Aegis muttered.

Zora created a final barrier just for herself. Her legs buckled. She barely caught herself.

Then she shoved the remaining energy into the flame.

*t's too much, Zora... I—I can't...

Ricochet's voice trembled.

And then—boom.

The fire exploded outward in a blast of heat and force, shaking the ground and pushing the swarm back.

Ah… I understand now, Nexus whispered.

What the hell are you talking about, woman!? Get away from me! Ricochet shouted.

Zora tried to summon another flame—but her magic faltered. Her thoughts scattered. Her limbs stopped responding.

The cane began to vibrate.

Then crack.

Then splinter.

Then—

Shatter.

The cane shattered.

A blinding flash of light exploded outward as the accumulated energy was released in a cataclysmic shockwave.

Zora didn't have time to scream. The blast flung her and the others through the air, along with hundreds of spiders caught in the detonation.

BOOM!

The sky spun.

The forest blurred.

A voice erupted in her head—one she hadn't heard before.

HAHAHA—I UNDERSTAND NOW!

Zora's body slammed into the ground.

But the barrier she had placed around herself earlier held strong, cushioning her from the worst of the impact.

Her chest heaved as she blinked at the sky above.

Then—snap.

She sat up.

No pain. No euphoria. Just clarity.

Her muscles coiled.

Her magic surged.

And then—

Let's f** them up.