Extraordinary (The Extraordinary Saga #4)

Chapter 19

They ran over the plan one more time, adjusting some small details to make it as likely to succeed as it would get. But there wasn't much to change, so the basic premise remained the same.

It started with Rowan. All eyes were on her. Maybe that was only seven pairs, but it still felt like a lot. They were counting on her. The whole town was. If she failed...

She forced herself to breathe, gathering as much power as she could into her fingertips until they buzzed like they were about to explode.

"I, uh, don't really know what I'm doing," she admitted, gaze locked on her hands. They had started shaking, but from magic or just plain nerves she wasn't sure. "I've never done this before."

"First time for everything," a voice said in her ear. Luna. "You'll do great."

Had it really not been that long ago when she and Luna had completely stopped talking? Hadn't their friendship been done just a few months ago? If nothing else, Rowan was glad for Aether for one reason - it had brought them back together. And she'd met Caeden. As terrifying as Aether was, that was the one silver lining.

Plus, she got to use a power that most people only dreamed about. It was scary and impossible and a hell of a lot of pressure, but when the lightning - the Aether - coursed through her hands, she felt unstoppable.

"Okay." She nodded towards Peter and Jay, who were standing a few steps away from the wall of rubble. They looked ready. They were ready. If this went well, soon they would all be able to see the not-shadows waiting on the other side. And then luck would be more important than power.

Rowan stepped towards them. Once the energy in her hands maxed, she didn't form it into lightning the way she usually did. Instead, she focused on the presence of Aether, on that subtle buzzing that she knew was all around the cave. And after she had envisioned that perfectly in her mind, she channeled the hum in her hands to be exactly that.

It wasn't so different, her own magical energy and Aether's raw power. In fact, they weren't different at all. Which is why when Rowan grabbed Jay and Peter's wrists in her own hands, the effect was similar to walking down in this cave in the first place: a surge of power.

Whether it was the earthquake that shook the cave or the gale that crashed against the wall, the blockade of rocks came down with a crash. Rowan pulled her hands back, cradling them to her chest as she let the energy die. She hadn't expected it to work to that extent. And apparently, neither had anyone else - especially Jay and Peter, who both sat on the ground, trying to recover from the whole ordeal.

From behind them, a voice said, "Holy shit!" which Rowan thought pretty much summed up the entire situation.

She held out a hand - which had been completely drained of energy - to Peter and Jay. "Are you guys alright?"

"Fine," they said in unison, seemingly recovered and back on their feet.

"Please don't ever do that again," Peter added, touching his temple.

"It worked, didn't it?" Luna pointed out. "But now we gotta hurry before the not-shadows come floating through that wall."

Jordyn ran up to Peter and Jay. "You sure you're alright?" She whispered to them, not taking her eyes off the gaping hole in the wall. She locked her fingers around Jay's. "You both seem a little unsteady."

Peter and Jay exchanged a glance, then Jay told her, "Fine. But we might not be if we can't stop this, so I need to focus on finding that coin."

Jordyn kissed his cheek. "If you say so, Airhead." Then her expression turned serious. "Be careful."

"Don't worry. I know my limits."

Jordyn nodded. Though being serious wasn't exactly his strong suit, Jay knew how to buckle down and focus. He would be fine.

Still, she watched apprehensively as he stepped up towards the hole in the wall, painfully aware of the gold specks visible on the other side.

Jay reached his arm through the hole, focusing on the negative space in the air for something that felt like the compass. It was difficult work with the not-shadows around; they weren't quite air but weren't quite solid, either. But he kept his eye on the prize, and little more than a few paces down the corridor, he found the exact spot Luna had dropped it barely an hour ago.

"Got it," he whispered.

But when he called a gust of wind to carry the compass back to his outstretched grip, something changed. Because he had used his magic, he became vulnerable to the not-shadows. One charged towards him, ready to steal his magic and with it, his life.

Jordyn screamed his name, but he barely heard. He ducked down, pressing his back against what was left of the rockwall. He put his hands up in defense, but that only seemed to make the not-shadow more eager to pull the magic out of his fingertips. He was ready for whatever it had to throw at him, but instead it just stopped, its golden particles just barely touching his hands.

And for a moment his power started to leave him.

He was dimly aware that the compass flew over his head and into Jordyn's grasp. Though he was stunned by the not-shadow, he was relieved that they'd succeeded. But that didn't last long, because the second Jordyn nodded toward him, showing off the compass, the rest of his magic left his hands completely.

He tried to get up and help the rest of them, but dozens of other not-shadows streamed over his head. If he got up, he'd be right in their path. And it wasn't like he'd be much help anyway; though the one sucking his magic away had retreated with the others, he was still powerless.

And then the ceiling, though continuously rumbling with Aether's threat, made another loud noise and started to collapse. But it wasn't solid, like the rocks were. In fact, it was the opposite... he was soaked.

Water.

Jordyn.

His guess was correct. She grabbed him and the coin and dragged him to the wall, safely out of the not-shadows' path. At the same time, she tossed the coin to Caeden, whose hands immediately lit up with flames.