‘I am an adult, Dad!’
‘Look, we don’t have much time, okay?’
‘I’m not leaving,’ I growled.
‘All of these people,’ he wheezed, ‘are here because of you. They have gathered under your name to fight the Realm for what they have done to their families. Let them fight.’
He grabbed my wrist and tried to pull me from Hawthorne’s back, but I yanked my arm back.
‘No!’ I said angrily. ‘They need to pay for what they did to Helena. If the Realm is destroyed, then so is slavery.’
My father’s eyes were panicked. ‘We need to get inside, Avalon. You can’t destroy the building yet.’
I narrowed my gaze. ‘What? Why do you want to go in there?’
‘There’s a cure,’ said my father, his filthy hands gripping Hawthorne’s bloodstained fur. ‘A cure to bring back the humans' memories!’
Chapter Thirty-Four
Shatter
JACK GREENWOOD
Jack ducked for cover as the Realm’s great oak doors were blasted from their hinges. Instantly, swarms of Mages began to pour inside, bludgeoning everything in their path. He even thought he saw a black bird swooping in through the ceiling.
He was a little frightened, as the uniform he wore marked him as a guard, but, hopefully, the H.W.L members would recognise him.
What had once been a gleaming room of polished stone was now covered in blood, glass, and dirt.
Jack was yet to see Avalon. He thought he had spotted her flying above the shattered dome ceiling, but she had vanished in the blink of an eye.
He longed to see her; to run into the fray and shout her name, but there was no time. This was the closest he’d been to her in weeks, and his heart ached.
He wanted to talk to her, to convince her to call off the attack, but he knew it would be useless. The Realm needed to fall in order to get the cure.
Suddenly, Xara appeared at Jack’s side.
‘The infiltration squad is inside the headquarters,’ she told Jack. ‘But many people are injured. They need your help.’
‘Right!’ said Jack, racing forward.
Jack ran outside to see the devastation. Men and women lay on the ground, burned, bruised, and bloody. There were too many to count, let alone heal in time, but he tried his best. The green lawn was set black, and smouldering. Arrows stuck out of the ground, in between the bodies, and Jack wondered who the archer was. Most of the fight had been taken within the Realm walls at this stage. Those that lingered outside were already engaged in a fight Looking to the skies, Jack spotted Hawthorne. He stared, seeing a red haired girl flying on top of him, a bow in her hand.
Wait … no. That couldn’t be right. Hawthorne couldn’t fly unless Avalon was riding him. He squinted, trying to get a better look. Where was Avalon?
The strange girl on the back of the Vulmessian suddenly broke into a spectacular dive, heading straight for Jack. He ducked as she swooped ahead, and he caught a closer glimpse of the beast she rode; it wasn’t Hawthorne. It was far too large, over twice the size.
She turned and aimed for Jack again, intent on killing him. She had no idea that he was on their side.
Luckily for Jack, Ethel came to the rescue, diving in front of him and producing a shield around the both of them. The arrow released from the redhead’s bow bounced off the shield. It was unlikely that Jack would have been killed by the arrow, but it still would have hurt him.
‘This bitch won’t give up,’ Ethel growled under her breath.
‘Have you seen the Fire-Mage?’ Jack asked at once.
‘Have I?’ said Ethel. ‘She’s the only one who can destroy my shields. Ugh! Speak of the devil, herself.’
Jack looked up and saw Avalon astride Hawthorne, flying next to the redheaded girl. The resemblance between Hawthorne and the enormous, unknown beast was uncanny. They could almost be related …
But Jack didn’t focus on them. He stared at Avalon, beautiful and dangerous, her long hair billowing, a fireball in her hand. She stared down at them, no glimmer of recognition in her eyes. She hadn’t seen him. Perhaps the uniform, or the shortly cropped haircut made him unrecognisable from a distance. Either way, she was going to attack; he could see it in her eyes.
‘Ethel, get inside!’ Jack demanded.
‘No!’ she snapped, sweat beading on her brow as she concentrated on keeping the shield up. ‘I have to protect the Realm!’
‘You’re going to get killed!’ he shouted at her, but she didn’t listen.