“Let's hope this works,” Christina said to the group in general.
“It will,” GJ replied with conviction.
She wanted to believe the youngest agent. The footsteps overhead had not faded—if anything they’d grown more ominous—so this had to succeed. It was their only chance.
Noah stripped to only his shirt and boxer briefs as Walter peeled off her shirt, revealing her bra and the straps in the setup of the wonderfully bionic prosthetic arm—a little bit of the magic of the Terminator had been revealed.
Though both half-naked agents seemed a bit embarrassed, they’d both had Alesse’s blood on their clothing. Without the time or spare clothing for a change, they peeled it and motioned for everyone to just ignore that they were out of dress code.
Will and GJ ripped at the fabric, trying to keep only the blood-soaked portions and stuffing the small pieces down into the chalice. As Christina watched, she prayed to whatever gods might be listening. They didn’t even know what this spell would do, only that the book said it would “activate” the bones.
Then they all raised their hands again, and Will began going through the spell another time. With as many rounds as he'd repeated earlier, his cadence was now smoother; the words flowed out almost as though he’d begun to memorize them. Even before he was halfway through, the chalice lit, full flames shooting up toward the ceiling.
Christina was shocked they didn't leave a scorch mark, but holy shit it’s working! Though she was tempted to cheer, nothing had actually happened yet. She lifted her hands higher, wondering if she should stand up on her toes. If she was in the right position.
Will’s voice suddenly got louder and lower.
She felt the rolling tension in her gut once more. It was coming.
They had done it.
Will’s voice boomed now, certainly loud enough that those overhead could hear it.
From the center of the bones, a glow began to form, faint enough that Christina wasn't even sure she was seeing it. But the energy in the room seemed to shift and swirl, gathering first in the pit of her stomach and then along the skeleton. Then the ball of energy shot lines between each of them standing in their respective stations. Her brain tried to grasp if it was a seven-pointed star. What gate of hell had they opened?
What if they were wrong, and they’d just set off a nuclear bomb in the middle of the property they were trying to protect?
She contemplated diving into Will, tackling him to the ground and stopping whatever it was they had started. But the footsteps overhead and the shouts and gunfire told her that there was no other option. In a few moments, the intruders were going to murder them all.
So she didn't dive, just stayed where she was, palms lifted to the ceiling as the knot growing in her lower gut made her want to vomit.
Then she saw it. The white hot shockwave spreading outward. It seemed to roll forward in slow motion, though she knew that was just her brain playing tricks. As she watched it come forward, she didn’t have time to react, and as it rolled over her, the force casually tossed her backwards.
Her feet left the floor and she watched as GJ, Noah, and Wade were lifted and thrown as well. In her peripheral vision, she saw Jen fly into the wall, her head hitting far too hard.
But then Christina’s own head must have hit something, because everything went black.