It was broad daylight when the rescue party of six arrived on the Irish country side. The trial was scheduled to begin soon and they knew they would have to break into the trial itself in order to rescue Derek's brother. Derek sighed, inhaling the scent of the ocean surrounding them. Now he understood why Voisin didn't protest his tagging along on the rescue mission. He was in the optimal environment to enhance his Elemental magic. Here, the ocean was an unlimited source to his power.
"Spell-master, what's the plan?" Leila questioned as she glanced over at Voisin.
Voisin turned his attention towards the castle, closing his eyes as he used his tactical magic abilities to sense how many were present for the trial. Derek followed his gaze, studying the giant castle before them. This was the Irish Council headquarters, ideally placed out of the way of the city in the middle of an open field making it difficult for sneak attacks. It also made it difficult for prisoners to easily escape. They could run the field in plain sight or risk death by jumping over the cliff's edge into the rocky outcropping in the Ocean below.
Voisin opened his eyes, sighing at the difficult task before them. The odds were really stacked against them at the moment. The trial was packed and was standing room only. It looks like almost all of Northern Europe had chosen to attend the trial of an accused Elder.
"The odds aren't in our favor, are they?" Spell-master Domingo questioned as he studied his comrade's facial experssions.
"Not all are foes, though. We may be able to gain their aid in battle," Voisin sighed.
"Sir, will we be able to pull off this rescue mission?" Samir questioned.
"Voisin is very skilled in battle, I am confident we will succeed," Spell-master Domingo explained.
"Don't get ahead of yourself, we can't be sure," Voisin mumbled.
"I agree with Spell-master Domingo, let me lead the charge and we got this in the bag!" Derek grinned pushing forward.
Derek gasped as Voisin yanked him back by the collar of his shirt. Voisin's eyes were full of annoyance as he glared down at the boy, upset with Derek's reckless behavior. It was too risky to blindly charge in without a plan in mind. Derek could end up getting everyone killed, or worse doing the deed himself if he raged out again.
"Slow down, devil," Brie smirked.
"Shut up, pixie!" Devan protested as he glared over Voisin's shoulder at Brie.
"Derek, you are in charge of keeping an eye on Brie. Brie, please don't kill Derek," Voisin ordered.
"This should be interesting," Leila groaned eying the two teens.
"Sir, what should I do?" Samir questioned.
"I need your casting speed. You will act as the second line of defense and protect Leila. Leila needs to be able to get us out of here if things go south. Derek, Brie, and I will head the frontline of the rescue. You will be here with Spell-master Domingo to stop any spells slipping past and hitting Leila," Voisin explained.
"Of course, sir," Samir nodded.
"Well, now that is settled, let's attack!" Derek grinned rushing forward.
Voisin didn't have time to stop Derek's impulsive actions as they boy muttered a blasting spell, causing the ancient bricks to crumble aroudn the castle's exterior leaving a large hole. Derek pushed his way through the smoke grinning at the sounds of shocked screams from the Wizards present in the room. He felt spells firing his direction, quickly dodging them as he let the smoke dissipate around him, revealing his identity.
The room was packed as they waited for the execution of the accused Elder named a traitor to the wizarding community. A haggard wizard stood, propped up by guards in the center of the room, awaiting his trial. His brown hair had grown out some since in captivity, stubble lined his chin. Derek frowned at how defeated his brother looked standing there, his brown eyes dull at the acceptance of his death. Devan was covered in bruises, both new and old. Derek did not like seeing his big brother looking so defeated and broken. He felt rage building up inside of him at the sight of Devan, wanting to take revenge on every person in the room who dare lay a finger on his elder brother.
"Devan!" Derek cried.
Devan slowly raised his head, blinking as he studied Derek not quite believing this was reality. His eyes narrowed in on the younger Fitzgerald, frowning at the boy.
"You can't be real," he mumbled.
"Dude, are you really that weak? I came to rescue you!" Derek screamed.
Brie and Voisin appeared on either side of Derek, deflecting spells wizards were firing at them. Devan's eyes widened at the sight of his former spell-master and the strange petite purple haired girl as they fought effortlessly despite being heavily outnumbered. He couldn't believe that Voisin cared enough to come to his rescue. They had a rocky relationship in the past, especially after the Wizard Olympics his senior year when he allowed his teammates to be coached by a demon. In his defense, Voisin had disappeared and they would be disqualified without a coach.
"Stop gawking, and help us! Unless you really are that weak!" Derek shouted, taunting his brother and pulling him from his thoughts.
Devan grinned, closing his eyes as he unleashed his magic. The earth began to shake and bend sending both his guards flying off of him. He ripped the shackles from his skin, as the whole room began to shake, dust and debris falling from the ceiling above as wizards went running for cover from the destruction.
"Did he just do that without a wand?" Brie asked shocked.
"The Fitzgerald's are known for their elemental magic," Voisin replied as he fired hexes at the Noble supporters.
Voisin noticed some of the members in the trial had stayed behind them to assist in the fight. Brie froze in shock at the sight of Voisin actually grinning. Derek had warned her to run if a grin ever appeared on Voisin's face. She was surprised all it took to put a smile on the man's face was a battle where they were clearly outnumbered.
"Lil bro, thanks for coming to the rescue, but I could have gotten out on my own!" Devan shouted.
"Really now? How would you get out? You were looking pretty defeated just now!" Derek grinned.
"I would have found a way," Devan winked.
Derek laughed as he shook his head in disagreement. His brother could be cocky at times. That was probably his biggest weakness. Devan flicked his wrist, causing the head of the Irish Council to go toppling backwards as Devan's wand came flying from the man's pocket back into his own hands.
"I heard Little Anna is awake again," his brother muttered as he deflected a spell aimed at them.
"Well, yes you can say that! However, she kind of disappeared into the past right now!" Derek explained as he deflected another cast.
"Oh, I'm sure she has a plan, she always does," Devan grinned, "however, I was disappointed when she ran away!"
"You were the one keeping Anna hidden?" Derek asked as he glanced over his shoulder towards his brother.
His brother winked as he created a rift in the ground, knocking some enemy Wizards off their feet. The Resistance used this diversion to run back outdoors to open land to regroup with the rest of their team.
"Yes, she showed up on my doorstep barely alive all those years ago," Devan sighed.
"Wait, that cat was Anna? Why didn't you tell us? It would have stopped a lot of Luke's antics growing up if he knew his sister was still alive!" Derek cried.
"Michael Noble couldn't know she was alive," Devan snapped as he blocked a cast aimed at his brother.
"We could have stopped him then instead of letting things turn out like this!" Derek protested.
"Anna wanted to make sure she found someone that could return her to her body before she revealed she was still alive," he admitted.
"That's why she sought out Riley."
Devan nodded his head in agreement. He glanced up as more reinforcements arrived on the hillside to fight. There was no way their small number of seven wizards could fend off all these attackers. It was already taking a lot of magic to be on the defensive, trying to stay alive. If they kept it up, all of them would begin draining their life forces before passing out and dying if they were lucky to last that long.
"We really are outnumbered now," Devan sighed.
"I really didn't think this plan out," Derek groaned.
Derek glanced around, seeing how his friends were struggling all around him. Voisin and Brie were cornered back to back, surrounded by twenty other wizards. Sweat lined Brie's face, her magic attacks beginning to weaken from exhaustion. Even Voisin was slowing down as his stamina waned. Spell-master Domingo was pushing people back from Leila's back while Samir and Leila deflected oncoming attackers. Derek could sense Leila using time manipulation with her casts, slowing down the opponent's impacts while Samir was rather impressive in his casting speed firing spells off simultaneously faster than Derek could even process. He knew Leila couldn't keep up with time manipulation if they expected her to make a portal without harming herself.
"Leila, stop draining your energy!" Derek cried, losing focus on his own battle as he glanced worriedly over at his friend.
"Derek, don't get distracted!" Devan screamed.
Leila glanced over, seeing the concern on her friend's face. He was right, she needed to stop, she was already growing shaky. Her eyes widened, sensing the cast fired out of both Devan and Derek's blindside, heading straight for her friend.
"DEREK!" Leila screamed.
Derek gasped for air as a knockback jinx hit him before either he or Devan could deflect it, sending him flying over the cliff's edge to the water below. Devan watched in shock as his brother crashed into the water below him. Devan used his magic to shift the rocks, keeping his brother from impaling himself on one as he fell. Derek felt the burn as his body smashed into the water.
That really was going to leave a mark, he groaned. He felt the water engulfing him, smirking as he realized the tides had just turned in his favor. He was in his element now.
Get our people together in a line along the cliff's edge.
He projected his thoughts to those fighting on his side. They needed to be there for his attack or they would drown too. Derek felt the tingling sensation in his whole body as he spoke to the water with his magic feeling it swirl around him as he rose from the deep depths of the ocean. Easily, he manipulated the water into a giant wave, with him riding the top, using his wand as the wheel to guide the magic along.
He smirked as he saw shock and fear on both the Resistance and foes' faces at the man walking on water, manipulating it around him as the brilliant blue swirled angrily around his body, creating a protective barrier for his attack. He saw his people had made it to the edge of the cliff, outside the antiapparation wards. It was time to take out the foes.
Derek felt the swish of the water as he used his arms to split the water on either side of his hands, feeling the magic emit from each of his palms. This might be his best trick yet. He hadn't held this much water in his hands in a long time. Derek shot a wicked grin studying the fear on everyone's faces.
"See you in hell," he cackled as he pulled his hands back, slowly clenching his fists causing the water to follow his arm movements.
With all his strength, he threw both fists forward opening them and releasing the water from the confines of his control. He laughed at the sound of the opposing wizards screaming as they were buried by the waves, being pushed back towards the town.
"Oops, I may flood the town," Derek sighed as he shrugged his shoulders.
He hoped Michael Noble got the message that the Resistance wasn't weak and they would destroy him even if Riley wasn't in the picture at the moment. Derek turned to glance back at his friends and fellow wizards against Michael Noble. There were about fifty in total standing before him now, jaws open in shock.
His brother, Devan, rolled his eyes as he pointed his wand towards the town using the earth to create a protective barrier around the town below the castle to keep the mortals safe. His brother, Derek, really should think the consequences of his actions through better before acting on such a wild and crazy plan. Devan couldn't deny that Derek's plan was definitely one way to take out the enemy. Thanks to his actions, they had just won the Irish Council back.
"What the-" Leila began as she gasped in shock.
"You aren't the only one with hidden talents," Derek winked at his friend.
"Obviously," Samir muttered, too much at a loss of words to think of anything else to say in response to his shock.
"Derek, it took you long enough to master that," Voisin snapped.
Derek grinned remembering all the times he had attempted the trick before in private training sessions, only to end up almost drowning himself instead. This time, he let go of his emotions, and let his magic control the water, not his emotions as he had attempted to in the past.
"Is that what you were doing in independent study with him?" Spell-master Domingo questioned. Voisin nodded, with a sly smirk.
"Do you think Michale Noble got the message?" Derek asked.
His brother slapped him on the back, pulling him in by the shoulder as he grinned, "Oh, he definitely got the message!"
~~~~~
What are your thoughts on this chapter? Yet again, Derek breaks limits with his magic. Who is your favorite character so far in the book and why do you like them? Feel free to share your thoughts below!
The Song above is The Resistance by Skillet. The first time I heard this song, I knew it was the perfect theme song for this book and that it would fit perfectly here, at the end of part 1.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of this book as we see more drama, more magic, and more Riley...