34. Amber

Morgan motions to the Buddha."Go ahead," she says, although Blaze is already there, Crimson Quill in hand, slicing its tip through his palm to draw blood.

He writes the word—explodere—on the same place he struck the Buddha earlier: the part of his robe that drapes around his ankles.

Once finished, he pulls back the quill.

The word doesn't glow. The blood simply slides off the smooth stone, leaving a faint smear in its wake.

"It's not sticking," Blaze says, and he tries again, pressing harder.

It remains stubbornly resistant.

"The stone's too smooth." He turns to face us, his grip around the quill so tight that I fear he might break it. "My blood's sliding right off."

I curse under my breath, panic rising as the walls make their way closer. So close that the four of us would barely be able to stand in a line shoulder to shoulder without touching the walls on either end.

We need another plan, now.

I rack my brain for solutions, my eyes drifting to my pack.

The crystals.

My magic might be weakened by how much I used it in the previous chamber, but the crystals amplify the strength of the light. And I have four of them.

"I have an idea," I say, and I unzip the pack, pulling out two of the crystals. My hands aren't big enough to hold all four at once. At least not without help…

"Morgan. Blaze," I say. "Grab a crystal and hold them up to mine. It'll amplify the magic even more."

Their fire magic will make it less likely that they'll get burned by the heat I'm going to conduct.

"I'll use my magic to try pushing back at the walls," Damien says, apparently understanding why Morgan and Blaze are best suited to the task I assigned to them. "I'll hold them back for as long as I can."

"Perfect," I say, and I hold my hands out in front of me, gripping the crystals as tightly as I can, pointing them toward the center of the Buddha.

The air stirs behind me, but Damien makes sure the wind stays behind us, so it can hold back the walls without interfering with what I'm getting ready to do. It's the sort of control that a vampire has not simply from centuries of practice, but also from innate skill and immense power.

"Hold your crystals up to mine," I tell Morgan and Blaze. "Only touch their sides. Leave space in the front for me to shoot my light out of them."

They nod and do as instructed.

Focusing on the stone Buddha, I ground myself, take a deep breath, and reach for my magic.

It builds, filling me with power.

Once I've gathered as much as physically possible, I concentrate on the crystals in my hands.

"Hold on tight," I say to Morgan and Blaze, my voice steady despite the pressure building inside me.

"We're ready," Blaze says, and for the first time, the darkness swirling in the eyes doesn't scare me. Instead, it makes me feel strong. Powerful.

Like I can do anything.

Including blowing up a seemingly indestructible stone Buddha.

The crystals in my palms thrum and glow from the closeness of my magic, like they're trying to pull it out of me.

Morgan and Blaze's are doing the same. But theirs are more orange, powered by fire.

"We can mix our magic," Morgan says. "Sun and fire. Forces of nature that burn and destroy."

"Good idea," I tell her, and the crystals glow brighter, as if they agree.

The walls are dangerously close now, the grinding growing louder. They're definitely moving slower than before—thanks to Damien's magic—but he's not able to stop them completely.

I'd turn around to check how he's doing, but it's too risky to focus on anything other than the crystals in my hands and the magic swelling in my body.

I have to pour everything I have into this final effort.

No—we have to pour in everything we have. Me, Morgan, and Blaze.

"Ready?" I ask, and they both nod. "Go!"

A brilliant beam of light and fire bursts forth from the crystals, striking the center of the Buddha with a deafening roar.

Blinding light fills the chamber, the heat almost unbearable. But I hold on, channeling all my strength into the attack. My body aches from the effort, my arms shaking as I try keeping them straight. I'm burning holes through my palms, and I'm not sure I can keep it up for much longer.

Just as I'm starting to give up hope, the stone Buddha begins to crack. Slowly at first, then faster and faster, the lines spiderwebbing across the surface.

"Keep going!" I shout, and as the pressure inside me builds to a peak, I feel like I might burst from the sheer intensity of the magic.

More, I think, and I scream, releasing everything I have.

The statue shatters, the fragments scattering across the chamber, the force of the explosion knocking us off our feet.

The walls stop their advance, and the grinding noise ceases, leaving us in a sudden, almost eerie silence.

My entire body feels drained. Like I've run a marathon and then some.

I'm on the ground, gasping for breath.

We did it.

The Buddha is gone. There's only a hole in the wall in his wake, revealing another chamber.

Catching my breath, I examine my arms. They should be mauled by the explosion of stone. Every bit of exposed skin should be.

But there's nothing.

I look around, curious about where all the shards went.

They're scattered on the ground a few feet in front of us, the majority having been pushed out toward the walls. As if they were blown out of our way by the wind.

Damien.

He protected us from the explosion.

The crystals in my hands, miraculously, stayed intact.

Well, not miraculously.

Thanks to Blaze's spell to make them indestructible.

"Amber!" Damien's voice cuts through the haze of shock and exhaustion. He's by my side in an instant, his hands gentle but firm as he helps me to my feet. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I say, steadying myself. "Just tired."

Morgan and Blaze are already on their feet, looking equally exhausted, but also triumphant.

Damien wraps an arm around my waist, leaving me more breathless than I was after the explosion knocked me to the floor. "Let's get out of here," he says. "We need to be in the next chamber before that thing gathers himself back together and blocks the exit again."

I nod, leaning into him for support as we make our way through the gap in the wall where the Buddha used to be.

Honestly, I could walk on my own. But I like being this close to Damien, especially since I'm sure it won't be long until he snaps back into his unemotional haze of the past few days and pulls away again.

And so, knowing how hurt I'll feel when he does pull away, I protect my heart and do it first.