Chapter 61

Gold’s Dark Magic had dissipated the second he’d vanished with the demon, and the other Dark Mages didn’t seem to be coming back.

Alastair and Eloise rushed to Sebastian’s side.

“Is he dead?” Eloise said. “I can’t look.”

He was lying face-down. Alastair turned him over. Blood pooled beneath his head—and to his relief, the man was still breathing. A deep wound, infused with Dark Magic, slashed across his face.

“He’s alive,” Alastair said with relief. He waved his wand, eyes closed. “We need to get him to the infirmary as quickly as possible. This is beyond my ability to heal.”

“They’re gone,” Amaryllis said, rushing back. “As if they just… vanished. No sign of them or any undead anywhere in town. Oh, gods! What happened!”

“We need to get him to the castle,” Alastair said.

He levitated Sebastian into the air, letting him hover at waist height. He was still unconscious, though Alastair’s attempt to heal the man seemed to have slowed the bleeding.

They were about to move out when they heard a voice.

“Hello?”

For a tick, Alastair had no idea who was talking. Then he remembered the entire purpose of their mission. They’d been so focused on Sebastian, they’d almost forgotten about Headmaster Ozelius. He was in a heap on the ground below where Gold had suspended him in the air.

“Headmaster!” Alastair called. “Can you walk, sir?”

The old man shook his head. “I’m not sure. I don’t think so. Believe the fall might have broken something… or some things.”

Alastair attempted to float Ozelius too, but it was clear his magic was at its end.

“I’ll get Sebastian,” Eloise took over from Alastair, allowing him to redirect his magic to the headmaster. Amaryllis took the lead as they made their way back toward the school. Eloise and Alastair brought up the rear, with the two wounded men between them.

The undead might’ve been gone, but the city was devastated. Many of the buildings in the old part of town were scarred by fire, and the streets were full of debris and broken glass. Townspeople wandered around, looking dazed, though no one gave them any trouble.

“Mayor Lamkin is going to be furious,” Alastair said.

“Even more so when he learns some of the Night Coven is still on the loose,” Eloise agreed. “Although, surely, he can’t blame us for that.”

Alastair wasn’t so sure. He couldn’t get a read on the mayor lately. Ari had been right—everyone in Watermere, it seemed, had their own agenda.

They returned to Emberstone to find two of the towers in flames and George Redding outside in the street looking exhilarated.

“We did it!” he shouted. “Battle Magic! Caliban and I froze eight people each.”

“You didn’t—”

“We didn’t hurt them, just froze them. Don’t worry, Headmaster. We’ve listened to everything you’ve said this year. They’re just over there.”

Indeed, a group of townspeople sat, propped up against the closest castle wall. Alastair thought uneasily of everyone who’d been killed and eaten during their own mission. Perhaps better not to mention that to the students.

“What is going on?” Ozelius said, looking around in horror. He was still floating in midair, laid out prone as if on a stretcher. “My school!”

“The city’s ruined too,” Alastair said, struggling not to be irritated. “We saw all of it in passing.”

“Yes, but—the school!”

Ms. Snapdragon hurried over, her face smeared with ash. She looked overjoyed when she saw the headmaster—and then, when she spotted Sebastian, her face fell.

“Is he—?”

“No,” Alastair said. “He’s alive. But he’s not doing well. We need to get him to the infirmary, quick.”

“The front gates are on fire, as is the main side entrance,” Ms. Snapdragon said. “But I know how to get him inside. Infirmary’s still in good shape. We’ve got a few students in there. No one seriously wounded. They did well. The wards helped.”

“Take the headmaster as well,” Alastair ordered.

“Go ’round by the front,” Ms. Snapdragon said as she took over from Alastair, her wand aimed at Sebastian and Ozelius. “There’s a group of students who need your help. The rest will be trying to put out the fires.”

George Redding led the way. The front courtyard was a frenzy as spells ricocheted off the castle’s ancient stone walls. When they arrived, the students had formed a defensive line in front of the gates, with Onyx Priestly at their head. Facing off against them was a large mob of dazed-looking townspeople.

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“Let’s strengthen our Containment spells!” Onyx shouted, his voice rising loud and clear over the din. “The wards will keep them out of the castle proper. Let’s see what we can do to push them back!”

“Speaking of the wards,” Alastair asked George. “What happened? Why is the castle on fire—do I need to strengthen the Elemental work or—”

“Uh, that was us,” the boy said, looking guilty. “Our aim wasn’t great at first. Not very precise. A lot of our initial Elemental spells went a bit… haywire.”

“Oh.”

Alastair couldn’t help but laugh. They should probably work on that.

The students responded to Onyx’s commands, conjuring shimmering barriers to keep the townspeople from coming any closer. A few people tried throwing rocks and cobblestones, but they seemed to be confused as to why they were doing it. The eighth-year crew ably blocked them.

A few students, mostly Nature Magic specialists, focused on Calming Enchantments similar to the one used to make the draught Sebastian employed on Asmodeus, to try and soothe some of the angrier people in the crowd.

The rioters really didn’t have much fight left in them. They weren’t trying particularly hard to push forward, and after the first few attempts to throw rocks they mostly just milled around, then stopped, looking at each other in bewilderment.

It was time for Alastair to step in and bring an end to the conflict. Trying to look as authoritative as he could, he strode forward into the fray.

“Enough!” he boomed, casting a Projection spell on his voice so it cut through the noise. The crowd fell silent, and both students and townspeople turned to look at him expectantly.

“There’s no reason for us to keep fighting,” he went on. “Emberstone and Watermere are not enemies. I know the school hasn’t exactly been friendly with the town. We’ve kept ourselves separate from you. There’s a lot of distrust between us—and there’s a good reason for that. But I hope, going forward, that that can change.”