They say patience is a virtue, but in this moment, it’s absolutely a sin. Like, why couldn’t this whole fake meeting happen faster. Ugh, the lack of modern technology and cell phones is so infuriating! Someone should just invent one already.

  “Well, today is the day.” Avis says nudging me. “So, at least there’s that.”

  “I don’t know that it makes me feel any better though.”

  Avis and I were sitting atop a building in the Den of Sin watching as local Minor Arcana members filed into the building below us. It wasn’t an easy task to get the messaging right during this whole endeavor, but it appears we were successful.

  We had to make sure that from the outside it sounded like a massive meeting was in fact happening and that all members in this country should come to Sirius. At the same time, we had to ensure they knew that it wasn’t a real meeting and was just a diversion. I’m not sure how Prisha ended up making it happen, but she did. In the end that’s all that matters.

  On the ground Madison and Dardania were in the meeting to watch as everyone entered the building to keep an eye out for Trevor. So far, it’s been entirely quiet. I can’t imagine that he wouldn’t show up. His whole M.O. was trying to murder all of us, so he has to be here. Otherwise, he’s just a really bad serial killer.

  “It’s like a buffet, he has to be here.” I mutter to myself as I continue staring down at the street below.

  “One would think.” Avis says, leaning against me gently. I wouldn’t say things have progressed much over the last few days between us, but there has definitely been a closeness that I’m very much enjoying. For that reason, I’m not going to overthink it, I’ll just continue enjoying it.

  “Isn’t this a lovely sight.”

  I jerk around to see a young woman standing behind us. She’s dressed in what I would classify as modern attire, well at least as modern as you can get in this world. It’s clear that she either made her own clothes or had existing ones tailored to look like clothes from our world. Her long golden locks weaved and curled around her face and midway down her back. She has bright blue eyes, but they look empty. Hollow.

  “It appears that I have interrupted a lovers’ date. My bad.” She chuckles as she covers her mouth. Even her nails were painted a bright blue color. Who is this woman?

  “Well, as much as I would love to stay and chat, there’s a lot on the agenda today. Ciao Bella!” She spins around, and begins walking away. That’s when I notice for the first time that several people are standing behind her facing us. As she walks past them, she says, “Kill them.”

  “What?” I gasp. The group of people push off the roof and dash towards Avis and myself. I don’t have time to react, but Avis grabs a hold of me and pulls me off the roof and plummeting towards the ground.

  “Focus!” Avis screams as we rapidly plunge towards the stone street beneath us. He’s right, I quickly force myself to regain my composure, and I shift the gravity in our vicinity just in time to stop our fall mere inches before we slam into the concrete. I can’t hold it for long and we slap down onto the street.

  “What was that!?” I look up at the roof, but the people who just attacked us are nowhere to be found. I notice the shift in energy around my body. I quickly turn just in time to notice a sword being thrust right at my face.

  Avis swings his knife, parrying the sword. It flips upwards and Avis swiftly elbows the person in the hand causing them to drop the sword on the ground. He kicks them square in the stomach, and they stumble backwards. I dare to look away to see what is going on inside.

  Madison, Dardania, and Prisha are locked in battle against several members of the Minor Arcana who had entered just several moments before we saw the woman on the rooftop. What is going on here?

  I try to go inside the building when a man grabs me on the shoulder and pulls me back into the street. I twist around and go to punch him in the face when I freeze moments before impact and remember that my right hand is fractured. I sharply inhale, and channel my energy into a different attack.

  “Hypergravity.” The man’s knees buckle beneath him, and he slams face first into the street. The surrounding area beneath him begins to crack and sink. Once he’s knocked out, I exhale and let go of the spell.

  Avis grabs the man he’s locked in a fight with by the back of the neck and slams his head into the side of the building. He falls to the ground with a loud thud.

  “What the fuck is wrong with these people?” Avis grunts as he kicks another person out of his way as he tries to make it into the building.

  I look over and see the same woman sitting silently on a bench several blocks away. She watches on, her face blank.

  “It’s her. It’s that woman.” Avis turns and looks her way. Two women step in front of her, blocking our view. I don’t know what she did, or why, but she is the reason for all of these people attacking us.

  “James!” I hear Avis scream just as I feel the impact of knuckles slamming into the side of my face. Before I have time to react, I feel an agonizing pain that starts in my back and radiates through my whole body like a sound wave traveling through on object.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  My vision starts to blur and slowly turn into a pinpoint for a moment, but I quickly regain the ability to see. I raise my head and notice that I’m inside the building on the other side of a giant hole in the side of the building and surrounded by rubble. My jaw is on fire, and is slowly starting to go numb. An ice cold hand presses against my jaw, I want to pull away but I’m in too much pain.

  “Slow.” Prisha whispers and the pain and swelling in my jaw begins to dissipate. Before I have time to thank her for healing me, I see Trevor standing on the other side of the wall where I just was thrown through.

  Dardania steps in front of me in a fighting stance, ready to take Trevor on. Prisha pulls me to my feet.

  “Thank you.” I mutter.

  “It won’t heal it, just slow down the pain and swelling.” Prisha takes a step back and away from Trevor.

  The floor is filled with the bodies of people who had been knocked unconscious during the fight. It doesn’t appear that it was the entire Minor Arcana, only a handful of them. There are several other members currently cowering in the corner trying to avoid any of the violence.

  Trevor steps over the wall and into the pub. The rubble crumbles under his feet with each step he takes.

  “Funny to see you all here.” Trevor chuckles. He turns to face Madison but Dardania steps in front of Madison and comes face to face with Dardania.

  “You’ll be fighting me today.” Dardania says through gritted teeth. “I owe you pain.”

  Trevor lets out a sinister laugh and rolls his eyes.

  “Please. I can’t be bothered with the likes of you.”

  “Heavy.” Dardania exhales. Trevor immediately falls to his knees, the floor cracking beneath his strength and the additional weight. Dardania takes a step forward and quickly kicks him square in the face. His body whips backwards, his head slamming into the floor.

  “Gust.” Trevor’s body is flung forward from the floor and his face blows right into Dardania’s fist. He stumbles backwards but doesn’t fall.

  “Backdraft.” With explosive force Dardania punches Trevor in the chest, the sound of the cracking of his ribs fills the room. His body is flung through the wall, across the street, and crashing through the building opposite of the pub. The impact of her hit causes a small shockwave through the pub, knocking several of the hypnotized Minor Arcana over.

  “Fucker.” Dardania mutters as she shakes her fist and groans in pain.

  My jaw hits the floor.

  “Dee what was that?” Avis asks as she pushes his way into the pub and towards Dardania.

  “I second that, because I didn’t teach you to do that.” Prisha says, her mouth hanging open in surprise.

  “I guess this means I can sit this one out?” Madison says with a small chuckle.

  Like seriously girl, that was crazy bonkers. I broke my hand on that guy but she just made him her bitch. I’ve seen her in action before but nothing even remotely compared to what I just witnessed.

  Our victory celebration is short lived unfortunately.

  Rubble shoots through the pub like a flurry of bullets being fired from a machine gun. Avis tackles Dardania, Prisha, and myself, slamming us to the floor. Madison is able to put up a barrier just in time, stopping them from hitting her.

  Several bodies hit the floor, several pools of blood start to form. I turn my head and notice several members of the Minor Arcana laying dead several feet away from me.

  My jaw starts to tremble as tears fill my eyes. Here I am again watching another massacre unfold right before me. A lump forms in my throat. I look back towards the street, Trevor stands there with blood slowly running down his face. Normally there is a lightness in his eyes, but that’s gone now. They just look hollow, void of any emotion. Violence, violence is all I can see in him.

  He kicks the base of the wall, destroying what remained after knocking me through it. He kicks the rubble out of his way and walks into the pub again.

  “That actually hurt. I think I’ll start with you first Dardania.”

  The moment he utters her name, Avis jumps to his feet and assumes a defensive stance next to Dardania. I climb to my feet, my entire body aching, and I prepare for a fight.

  “Oh hey!” A cheery voice rings out from behind the bar. I turn to see the woman from before sitting on a stool behind the bar. She waves as she smiles at me. “Don’t forget about me.”

  Several members of the Minor Arcana make their way in front of the bar and immediately assume a defensive pose.

  “Help me! These people are trying to hurt me. Protect me. You love me right? Protect the one you love.” The woman cries out with a fake plea for help, a smile on her face the entire time. Then her voice turns sinister. “Kill the monsters to protect me.”

  The people start to move but before they can reach us, Madison slams her staff through the floor. Several vines shoot up and wrap around the legs of our assailants and hold them in place.

  “Ignite.” A voice from the corner of the room echoes through the room. The vines erupt in flames and disintegrate to ash. In the corner of the room is small man holding a wand, shaking violently. He looks beyond terrified but he still chose to fight back.

  “I didn’t want to hurt you.” Madison says, her voice dripping with frustration. “But, I guess I have no choice.” Lightning starts from the top of her staff, ripples down into the ground and shoots towards the three people that stands before us. It crackles as it rips through each of them. As they smoke, they all fall to the ground, knocked unconscious.

  “I’m sorry.” Madison whispers as she pulls her staff out of the floor. I immediately turn towards the woman, and all I can see is red.

  “Fight your own fights.” I say through gritted teeth. “Hyper-”

  “Uh-uh.” The woman wags her finger at me as two women step close to her. “Do you really want to crush them? I’m not so sure they could survive that.”

  “Why are you doing this?”

  She shifts her gaze to Trevor for a split second and then immediately back to me. It happens to fast it’s clear that she didn’t do it on purpose and it was a knee jerk reaction to my question.

  “Does a girl really need a reason for a good dramatic story? I don’t think so. Besides, you’re the infamous Magician and High Priestess, I should merely be just a blip on your radar.” She flips her hair over her shoulder, I have no idea what she is trying to say.

  “Too busy saving the world to save the rest of us I suppose. Ces la vie. Well lovelies, it’s clear these extras don’t quite cut it. Time to up the ante and add a little bit of flair.” She slowly twirls a curl of her hair around her finger as she smiles softly.

  “Prisha, save me! Don’t let them do this to me!” She cries out.

  “Madison fell to her knees and wept in despair.” Prisha mutters as she brushes past me towards the bar. She spins around on her heel to face the two us. Madison immediately falls to her knees and starts weeping in despair. Her face contorts in fear as her body moves against her will.

  “Death to the Magician and High Priestess.” Prisha declares.