The Five

20. The Flower of Aubrey

"I warned him," Addey said. "I told him the demon would never let him have all its power."

"Smart girl," Malvado said. He casually took a step forward. It was Kusa's body, yes, but it was clear he was no longer in control. It wasn't just the red eyes, it was the way Malvado carried himself. He oozed confidence. "Now which of you would like to die first?"

"We're here on a united front," Sasuke spoke up. "You take on one, you take us all on."

The others gave a brief nod of agreement.

Malvado shrugged. "Suit yourselves." He rared back and thrust his palm at them. A tidal wave of energy shot out.

"Brace yourselves!" Akashi shouted.

His hands flew, open-palmed, out to the side. He produced a shield the length of the room. He gritted his teeth as the energy hit, groaning against the power and force behind it. The shadow clones were nothing compared to this.

"Akashi, are you alright?"

Freya's voice rang in his ears. When he answered, his voice was strained. "For now."

She stared at the back of his head. He was keeping the energy away from them for the time being, but he wasn't going to be able to hold it back forever. They needed a plan. She turned to the others. "We have to help him. We need a plan."

"You're right," Divinity said, "but what?"

Freya looked into her eyes. She willed herself to dive into her thoughts just like she had before. "Don't say so out loud, but can you hear me?"

Divinity gaped at her. She didn't know what to do. Was Freya actually in her head? And how was she supposed to answer if she couldn't say it out loud? Then it dawned on her. She had to think about her answer. "Yes."

"Good. Akashi and I found a way to get the demon out of Kusa. I have it in my pocket. I just have to get close enough."

She glanced at Addey and Sasuke. They were watching very closely. "Freya, are you okay?"

Freya followed her eyes and understood. "Yes. I'm fine. I'm just...thinking."

"What do you want me to do?" Divinity thought.

"Use your instincts. You'll know what to do when the time is right."

Her eyebrows raised in alarm. She shook her head.

"You have to do this. He won't suspect me. Please."

Divinity took a deep breath. She didn't want to go along with this. What if something terrible happened? What if she missed her chance? But she couldn't deny her. "Okay, we have a plan."

Addey and Sasuke looked at one another, their eyebrows knitted together in confusion. How could they have a plan? They hadn't even said anything.

"Where was I when we constructed it?" Addey asked her hands on her hips.

"We couldn't let Malvado hear," Freya answered quietly. "I used telepathy."

Sasuke pressed his lips together. "So what do we do?"

She projected the answer to both Addey and Sasuke's minds. "Keep me safe until I can get close to Malvado. Akashi and I know how to separate him from Kusa. Once we do, Addey must destroy him with light magic."

"Okay then. Will do."

A loud grunt drew their attention to Akashi. His arms were shaking from the effort of trying to hold back Malvado's attack.