Phoenix Academy - Lucy Auburn Page 0,61

detail. It's a circular rune with three smaller, overlapping circles inside, and several symbols that represent different ancient words used to call on magic.

Reaching inside my pack, I draw out a thick white piece of chalk and meticulously draw the rune, making it big enough for all four of us to stand inside. It takes several minutes, but I have to be careful here, or the spell won't work. Once the chalk is done, I grab the drawing I did of Lizzy and place it in the middle of the rune, weighing it down with a small rock. Her smiling face stares up at me from the pages, full of mocking.

"Alright, get inside. It's time."

As we gather in the circle, Headmaster Towers, who's been observing this the whole time, speaks up. "Good luck, Ari. If you run into any issues, you have my number. Don't hesitate to call."

"Call me first," Dani responds, piping up from her spot next to the headmaster. "I have four demons. The headmaster has... none. So y'know, I'll be far more helpful."

I smile at both of them, and laugh at the way long-suffering Headmaster Towers turns her head away to roll her eyes. "Everything will be okay. All I have to do is get to her, grab her, and get out. It can't be that hard."

Or at least, that's what I've been telling myself.

Gathering my strength and courage, I look down towards the rune, and carefully speak the words to make the spell come to life. "Alhatraska, morento, bìanna cata, loræ."

Wind stirs around me.

I throw my phoenix flames on the ground and watch them race across the chalk lines, bringing them to life.

The air glows.

Magic grows.

And all at once, a window opens in the air in front of us: woods near a graveyard, a stone church, and a gathering of grey-robed people. A familiar figure in the middle catches my eye.

"Lizzy."

Together, we walk through the portal, and across space and time towards my sister.

Chapter 15

Based on the sudden change in the position of the sun overhead, the increase in heat and humidity around us, and the swarming of mosquitos towards my legs, we've traveled pretty far. It's hard to tell exactly where we are now, but I'd guess somewhere in the south, maybe near the Gulf Coast. The air is scented with brine and a certain swampiness that's embedded in my memory from my time here with Mom and Lizzy when we were children.

"Stay close," I tell the guys, surveying the distant scene. "It looks like there are probably at least ten of them, all men, all no doubt my father's followers."

"Do you see him there?" David asks, narrowing his eyes. "I can't catch sight of him."

Xavier tilts his head back and sniffs the air. "His scent is missing." At my sideways glance, he shrugs. "Soullessness gives off a certain smell. Like death. I'm not catching it now."

"Good. It'll be easier to grab Lizzy and take her back if he's not here." Hesitantly, I add, "Maybe she'll even come willingly."

That's assuming she still has a free will. If he's done to her what I suspect he has over the past several months, she'll be hypnotized by him and firmly under his thumb, like all his followers. I don't know what it is that he does, but the Heretic can make men jump off cliffs for him. Based on the way Lizzy reacted to my spirit's presence a few weeks ago, he's used some of the same techniques on her.

But his influence wanes the further he is from his subjects. That's why he keeps his followers close. Once, when I was about eleven years old, one of them found my mom and me while we were fishing in a nearby lake. She roped him up and dragged him with us for miles, fetching Lizzy on the way. By the time we were near the highway he was no longer babbling nonsense, his eyes fresh and clear, and he promised to never bother us again if we just let him hitchhike home. We never saw him again—neither, I suspect, did my father.

I'm hoping the same thing will happen to Lizzy as soon as we get her far from him. The portal, in this case, would help—but it's only able to go one way, and can only be cast once a day. I won't be able to make another one for twenty-four hours. Since I can't wait that long, we'll have to figure something else out.

"Xavier, any clue where