Chapter 46

Riding a mackie bareback is no easy feat; their spines aren’t as level as a horse’s, and there’s not much to grip onto. It was a fortunate that Viktor had his winter coat, and that her Lightshow affinity only required one hand.

I wondered how she’d gotten the ungulate to let her up, though that was the least of my questions. Wait, the devil is she doing here?

Casting light magic like there was no tomorrow, it seemed. My vision was dominated by another shower of sparks. Between Mulciber’s enraged screams, I could just make out Heida shouting haltur a few times, bringing her steed to a stop.

“Hey, u-ugly! H-how about picking on a r-real wizard and not some cadet?” She snapped her fingers, turning her makeshift spear-holster into a shower of residuum. It dropped into her grip, and she leveled it at Mulciber. Her knees knocked, and her brow was slick with sweat despite the chill night air, yet she stood firm, which was more than I’d expected from her.

Probably more than she expected from herself, honestly. She might be too scared to run away this time. Viktor performed as expected, though, bolting away as soon as he got a good look at Mulciber. There was a hitch in his step as he made his escape, and I thought the bandage was redder than it had been before.

“Heida?” There’s no way she’d be able to hear my weakened voice; it barely carried to my own ears.

Mulciber spun about to face the new challenger. I couldn’t see his face from my angle, but I could hear the scorn in his booming voice. “Ya got another human to save ya, Malthus? And a woman at that? I think I’ll tear her in half and make ya watch. Real slowly.”

He sprang forward, and to my surprise, Heida displayed some decent footwork. It was clear this wasn’t the first time she’d wielded a polearm, as she stepped back, keeping the tip high. She jabbed at Mulciber, forcing him to keep his distance. Surprising everyone involved (including herself, judging by her terrified expression), she lunged forward. The spear tip flashed as magical energy flowed up from Heida’s hands, punching a hold clean through Mulciber’s right wing.

The demon hissed, hopping back out of range. He winced as gave the pierced wing a test flap. “Ya cheap whore, I just fixed those!”

Heida couldn’t understand his words, but the meaning was crystal clear. “Yamada, do something useful and patch him up! I’ll buy you time!”

Either Heida couldn’t see the extent of my injuries, or she had a wildly inflated idea of what human healing magic could do. She was fortunate Mulciber didn’t start flinging fire magic at her. Instead, he circled her, hunched over on all fours, trying to find a weakness in her defense.

That seemed odd to me, since taking flight would have made her position untenable. Her hands were tied up wielding the weapon, so she’d have to abandon it to cast counter-spells. Had her last strike damaged his wings too much? No, he’d flown with bigger holes in the leathery membranes before. Perhaps he was starting to run low on magical energy? He’d had to rebuild himself after the explosion. If only we could be so lucky.

Mariko bolted to my side without a moment’s hesitation, propping my head up on her lap. “Kasasagi! Please, say you are still with us!”

“By some miracle,” I managed, wincing as my left hand was jostled. “Are you alright, my dear? He treated you rather roughly before.”

“How can you worry about me at a time like this?”

I smiled weakly at her. “Why should I start being sensible now?” I held up my left hand, hissing at even that small gesture. “P-position Twenty-Three, if you would.”

Her face went white as she looked at my bruised fingers. “I-is there any other way?”

“Unless I can teach you the most complex demonic spell I know in a minute, no. Please, Mariko, I need you to do this.”

“One moment.” Her fingers traced through the air. “Nightingale’s Comfort!” The ache in my left hand subsided ever so slightly. “I cannot cast anything stronger, or it might knock you out.”

“Th-thank you,” I said. “Listen, if this doesn’t work, I…”

The disappointed look she gave me quieted my doubts. “It will, because it must. You are not in the habit of letting me down.”

“I… my dear, I’m the one with the blood loss. Why are you the one spouting nonsense?”

Despite it all, even with the sounds of Heida’s fighting in the background, she found the time to giggle. “See? You always make me smile. It makes me feel awful about what is to come.”

She squeezed her eyes shut as she began manipulating my broken fingers, though she was forced to open her them to inspect her work. The way the blood drained from her cheeks, it wasn’t much easier for her than me.

I wished it was a different spellcasting position; Twenty-Three involves three raised fingers, and the angle has to be just so. I had to coax her through minute adjustments. Even after her pain-deadening spell, I won’t describe the sensation. Sufficed to say, I tasted blood from where I’d bit my cheek when she was done.

That was only a foretaste of what was to come, though. Be strong, Malthus. “Alheln!” Shredded flesh knit itself, and my fingers were forced back into place over the screaming objections of my nerves.

My next memory is of Mariko shaking my shoulders as she called out my name. “Wake up! Please, you cannot… you cannot…”

I cracked my eyes open, flashing her a smug grin. “You ought to be careful, my dear, or somebody is going to get the wrong idea.”

“This is hardly the time for joking,” Mariko chided.

“You’re probably right about that,” I conceded. “Yet, it felt right. You were looking so dour.”

Her shoulder finally untensed, which felt like a weight off my own shoulders. “You must be feeling better, then,” she said, not withdrawing her hands right away. Her dark eyes shone with a mix of concern and relief. “You had me so worried, Kasasagi. I—”

“Hey!” Heida’s voice cut through the spell like a flash from her spear. Anger flashed in her blue eyes as she spared us both a glare. “If you two are done flirting, I could use some help!”

A look at Heida’s situation snapped me out of my post-healing reverie. Mulciber was still dancing at the edges of her reach, his white eyes narrowed in frustration. A few rents in her uniform showed her defense hadn’t been perfect, but Mulciber’s still-closing wounds showed she was giving as good as she got. There was also a patch of burning pasture behind her. How had I missed that? I must have been completely out of it while Mariko tortured my hand. Or, she’s just that distracting in general…

Focus, Malthus. You have a mess to clean up.

Unlike the three of us, Mulciber was on the ball; he took advantage of Heida’s distraction and darted forward, getting inside of her defense in the blink of an eye. For some spearmen, that would have been the end, but she’d clearly been better trained than that. With a single smooth motion, she swung the blunt end of her spear up to attack him. The wood flashed, illuminating reinforcement runes that turned it into a club as hard as iron.

Mulciber was unimpressed as he blocked the strike with his right forearm. The runes running down his left flashed brilliantly in the gloom, and Heida let out a piercing wail as she realized what was coming. The spear dropped from her hands as she tried to cover herself from the coming Fireball.

Not on my watch! “Magic Bolt!” With his wings unfurled and his hands busy, Mulciber was defenseless. The hardened energy envelope hit his fanged maw like a war hammer, sending him staggering and his Fireball shooting harmlessly into the sky. More jagged teeth flew from his jaws as he spat a curse at me.

I wasn’t about to let up. He wasn’t getting another chance; after that All Heal, my own reserves were beginning to flag. If he was too tired to fly, all the better, but I wasn’t about to count on that.

“Svalinn’s Wrath!” I cast the spell three more times in quick succession. Drawing inspiration from Mariko and my meeting at the airport, I made the energy structures longer and more spear-like, though it was many times the size of her knitting needles. A wave of my hand sent them flying. Two went wide as Mulciber fell onto all fours. Another tore through his already wounded right wing. The final one struck paydirt, pinning his left hand to the ground.

“No, no no,” he chanted, fruitlessly pulling at his impaled limb. I willed the blade to stay in place. Blackened blood spread across damp soil as he widened the wound with his struggles. “Not going to lose after Our Father gave me Malthus on a platter! This is my revenge!”

I didn’t reply with so many witnesses about, though I was sorely tempted to throw some insult his way. I kept my tongue still as I prepped for another spell. The greatest insult will be putting the next one between his eyes.

“Kill it! Just kill it!” Heida’s sudden burst of courage seemed to have fled her as she scuttled away from the fallen Mulciber, her spear forgotten between them.

Oh, well; she’d done her part. For a change. “That’s the plan,” I said. I waited a moment for Mariko’s inevitable objection. There was none, though she’d turned away from us.

She preempted my question. “You said you must, so make it quick.”

I nodded, though she couldn’t see the gesture.

That moment’s hesitation cost us. Mulciber couldn’t wrest his hand free, but he could pivot around the point. “Ya love humans so much? Well, I smell two of ‘em over there.”

His free arm flashed, launching a Fireball right at Bryndísar’s farmhouse. It was a decent shot, given the distance and the circumstances. A little high, but it got the job done; the roof was engulfed in flames in a moment.

Heida hopped to her feet, seemingly unaware of everything else around her. “Pabbi! Lilja!” She took off running towards the burning farmhouse, magical runes flashing around her hands as she considered the proper spell to put out the growing inferno.

My eyes met Mulciber’s. “Heida, he’s still there! Heida!”

He looked awfully pleased triumphant for somebody was so trapped. “Easy target.” His left arm flared with runes again, and I barely erected a Svalinn’s Mercy between him and Heida to block his attack. She didn’t seem to notice as she sprinted towards her family home. A Hell of a time to start caring about them!

A flap of his wings pulled him loose, spraying the area with residuum as he burned magic reserves. He didn’t seem to mind that he’d left most of his hand behind; he had other concerns as he landed. His eyes tracked over to Mariko, and the runes in his free arm flashed again. “Easier target.”

Mariko inhaled sharply. I couldn’t see her from my angle, but the poor dear must have frozen in place.

I wouldn’t have time to cast another spell. Wishing for a better option that wasn’t there, I threw myself in between him and Mariko.

He’d foreseen the maneuver, and his last Fireball was the largest of the bunch. Magic armor or no, he was going to scorch my exposed flesh.

I had a fraction of a moment to appreciate the trap. He’d played on my instinct to defend the two girls instead of taking the rational course and attacking him instead. Devils didn’t have to understand why humans put others first; it was enough that they knew we did.

Never, ever let a devil know you care for something. It’s how they get you.