Angel Fury (Immortal Legacy #2) - Ella Summers Page 0,64

said coldly, then turned around and walked away from him.

“Where are you going?” He set his hand on my shoulder.

I shrugged it off. “To get some air. Call me when it’s time to go infiltrate the Hive’s fortress. Until then, stay the hell away from me.”

I continued walking, and I didn’t stop until I’d put the whole base between him and me.

20

Magic Broken

I stood outside the fortress’s beige stone walls with Damiel, Jiro, and the rebels. Jiro was setting up the Magitech devices in preparation to break through the Hive’s first line of magical defense.

“The Hive sure constructed a clever magic ward for their fortress,” he told us. “The only way inside is through this ward, and the only way through the ward is by simultaneously using all eight magical abilities. A single Hive squad consists of eight magic users, each soldier possessing one of those eight abilities. That should mean only a Hive squad can enter this place.”

“What about a supernatural with multiple kinds of magic? Like an angel?” I asked him.

“While the Hive doesn’t seem to have accounted for that possibility, the problem is the amount of magic necessary to pass through the ward is enormous, much more than even an archangel possesses. It’s questionable if even a god possesses that much magic.” Jiro held up the eighth and final device in the octagon he was configuring. “But the ward should be no match for a few of my Magitech-powered babies.”

All eight devices now set, Jiro glanced at the readings on his tablet. “Strange.” He frowned.

“What is it?” Damiel asked him.

Jiro pointed at the Magitech octagon he’d constructed. “Together, these eight devices have enough magic to break through the Hive’s ward. I can measure that. But they aren’t having any effect on it. It’s almost as though…” His voice trailed off.

“Jiro?” Damiel prompted him.

“The devices have the necessary power to break the ward, but that’s not enough. The spell is smarter than I anticipated. It can sense the difference between a machine and a person. And only a living person can step through the barrier.”

“You believe I don’t have enough magic,” said Damiel.

“Sorry, no,” Jiro replied with an apologetic look at his friend.

“Attach the eight Magitech devices to me,” Damiel told him. “Push their magic through me. The spell will see that magic as mine. That should give me the power I need to pass through the ward.”

Jiro rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “That should work, assuming…” He frowned.

“Assuming?”

“Assuming your body can handle that amount of magic pumping through it.”

“We have little choice. It’s our only option for getting past that ward.” Damiel picked up one of the Magitech devices and handed it to Jiro.

Jiro took it. “Skin contact will maximize the magic flow.”

Damiel took off his jacket.

Jiro strapped two devices to his forearms. “Take off your shirt.”

Damiel pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it to the ground. Several of the female rebels oohed in appreciation of his physique. Angels were gorgeous, of course. Some people thought we looked like we’d been chiseled from marble by a master artist. And Damiel was especially beautiful.

But I wasn’t appreciating his dashing good looks right now. Not at all. Because it wasn’t only his body that was made of marble; his thick head was as hard and immovable as marble too.

Jiro attached one device to Damiel’s chest and another around his waist. He was still looking for a place to place the next one, when Damiel’s body began to shake.

Jiro paused.

“Attach the final four devices,” Damiel told him.

Jiro scanned him with his tablet. “It’s too much power. You can’t take one more device, let alone four more.”

“Do it,” he said, bearing the pain with stoic stubbornness. “I can handle it.”

“No, you can’t.” Jiro showed Damiel his screen. “It says so right here. It’s too much magic for you to handle. It’s completely overloading your body. The numbers speak for themselves. You can’t argue with that.”

“I can argue with whomever or whatever I please.”

Jiro rolled his eyes. “Yes, thank you, I am well aware of your disagreeable disposition, Your Holiness.”

“Put the four remaining devices on me.”

Jiro folded his arms over his chest.

“I will write you up for insubordination,” Damiel warned him.

“Go right ahead, if that makes you feel better. I’d rather be charged with insubordination than be guilty of killing an angel. No matter how thickheaded that particular angel can be.”

“If you won’t follow my orders, then get out of my way.” Damiel reached for the next Magitech device.

Jiro blocked him.