Read Online Curse of the Gargoyles (Gargoyle Guardian Chronicles Book 2) by Rebecca Chastain - Free Book Online
Authors: Rebecca Chastain
Tags: Literature & Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction & Fantasy, New Adult & College, Sword & Sorcery, Mythology & Folk Tales, Fairy Tales, mythology
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elements divided into five separate sections, Terra Haven would fall apart. Everything from basic housekeeping magic to the complex structural patterns of the city’s communication and transportation networks would collapse.
Not to mention the devastation to lives. We were proof that humans could function in the polarized fields, even if magic wasn’t working right, but some creatures depended on the blended elements for sustenance. Stuck in this divided energy, gargoyles throughout the city would sicken from the imbalance and be forced to flee the city or die.
“We’re not letting it reach the river,” Grant said. “We’re countering this now. Spread out to your element and link.”
The squad traded glances and hustled to their sections. Seradon strode to my side and gave me quiet directions.
“This is different than what we did before, and it’s going to hurt. Since you can’t access all the elements, the link will have to act as one person. Grab earth and push it to Winnigan, then let Velasquez push fire to you.”
Earth element burrowed into me, sharp as shale without another element to buffer it, but no matter how much I drew or how hard I pushed, I couldn’t penetrate the barrier between earth and water. The magic I fed into the wall of helixes warped and transformed into water, exiting the barrier in a useless splash. Around the circle, the captain, Marciano, Winnigan, and Velasquez were each haloed in an impressive display of elemental magic, but everyone had the same problem I did. Worse, our efforts fed the purifier, and the bubble pushed outward.
Grant cussed. “Stand on the dividing lines and try again.”
We all shifted to the right. Sweat trickled down my neck, stinging my cuts. Keeping my eyes on the marmot, I aligned myself in the middle of the purifier’s wall, with polarized fire encasing the right side of my body and earth the left side. The helixes moved harmlessly through me—until I tried to grab an element. I reached for earth first, and magic pounded out of control against my brain. Refining my draw down to a slender strand enabled me to manipulate the element, but the moment I opened myself to more, earth crashed through me, breaking my hold and leaving my metaphysical pathways bruised. Reversing tactics, I reached for fire. It roared into me, overwhelming and unchecked, then guttering to a mere flutter too soft to grasp. Heat beat against my right side and charred my elemental senses. Through sheer determination, I clung to a whipcord of fire and yanked it to me.
Between one second and the next, the fire element morphed into earth inside me. With a cry, I threw the wild energy from me before it ripped me apart. I staggered into Seradon, gasping for air. Pain speared through my skull, subsiding to a dull headache as I clutched my temples. Elements didn’t do that. It would have been like having a real flame in a fireplace turn spontaneously into molten lava. The elements could feed and support each other, but they didn’t transform.
“You okay?” Seradon asked.
I straightened and nodded. To the right, Velasquez collapsed to one knee, a beam of raw fire shooting from his palm into the sky. Shaking his head, he surged to his feet. Marciano knocked himself flat on his back, and grass sprang up around the left side of his body, covering him in seconds. Around the circle, the polarized bubble surged and churned, eating across more parkland.
“Stop!” Grant ordered. “This is useless. We need to be on the outside where we can get some damn control.”
The squad convened in the earth section. Sweat matted Velasquez’s shirt to his chest and ran down his neck. He stuck an arm back into the hot air of the fire section, then retracted it.
“That’s not natural,” he muttered.
“We can’t predict how this’ll mutate, but we should be safest in our element,” the captain said. “Divide up and get to the outside. We’ll link up once we’re clear.”
“I prefer not to
Not to mention the devastation to lives. We were proof that humans could function in the polarized fields, even if magic wasn’t working right, but some creatures depended on the blended elements for sustenance. Stuck in this divided energy, gargoyles throughout the city would sicken from the imbalance and be forced to flee the city or die.
“We’re not letting it reach the river,” Grant said. “We’re countering this now. Spread out to your element and link.”
The squad traded glances and hustled to their sections. Seradon strode to my side and gave me quiet directions.
“This is different than what we did before, and it’s going to hurt. Since you can’t access all the elements, the link will have to act as one person. Grab earth and push it to Winnigan, then let Velasquez push fire to you.”
Earth element burrowed into me, sharp as shale without another element to buffer it, but no matter how much I drew or how hard I pushed, I couldn’t penetrate the barrier between earth and water. The magic I fed into the wall of helixes warped and transformed into water, exiting the barrier in a useless splash. Around the circle, the captain, Marciano, Winnigan, and Velasquez were each haloed in an impressive display of elemental magic, but everyone had the same problem I did. Worse, our efforts fed the purifier, and the bubble pushed outward.
Grant cussed. “Stand on the dividing lines and try again.”
We all shifted to the right. Sweat trickled down my neck, stinging my cuts. Keeping my eyes on the marmot, I aligned myself in the middle of the purifier’s wall, with polarized fire encasing the right side of my body and earth the left side. The helixes moved harmlessly through me—until I tried to grab an element. I reached for earth first, and magic pounded out of control against my brain. Refining my draw down to a slender strand enabled me to manipulate the element, but the moment I opened myself to more, earth crashed through me, breaking my hold and leaving my metaphysical pathways bruised. Reversing tactics, I reached for fire. It roared into me, overwhelming and unchecked, then guttering to a mere flutter too soft to grasp. Heat beat against my right side and charred my elemental senses. Through sheer determination, I clung to a whipcord of fire and yanked it to me.
Between one second and the next, the fire element morphed into earth inside me. With a cry, I threw the wild energy from me before it ripped me apart. I staggered into Seradon, gasping for air. Pain speared through my skull, subsiding to a dull headache as I clutched my temples. Elements didn’t do that. It would have been like having a real flame in a fireplace turn spontaneously into molten lava. The elements could feed and support each other, but they didn’t transform.
“You okay?” Seradon asked.
I straightened and nodded. To the right, Velasquez collapsed to one knee, a beam of raw fire shooting from his palm into the sky. Shaking his head, he surged to his feet. Marciano knocked himself flat on his back, and grass sprang up around the left side of his body, covering him in seconds. Around the circle, the polarized bubble surged and churned, eating across more parkland.
“Stop!” Grant ordered. “This is useless. We need to be on the outside where we can get some damn control.”
The squad convened in the earth section. Sweat matted Velasquez’s shirt to his chest and ran down his neck. He stuck an arm back into the hot air of the fire section, then retracted it.
“That’s not natural,” he muttered.
“We can’t predict how this’ll mutate, but we should be safest in our element,” the captain said. “Divide up and get to the outside. We’ll link up once we’re clear.”
“I prefer not to
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