Free Eternal Fire by Chrissy Peebles Page B

as it rolled across the grass and crashed into the soldiers and Immortals with intense strength. The connection broke, and I sucked in a giant gulp of air.
    Closing her eyes, Liz touched the force field with both hands. She knew far more than I did, and I hoped she could break through it.
    Next, a fireball whizzed past my head and crashed into the force field, dissipating into nothing but red energy. The soldiers were out for the count, but the Immortals weren’t.
    “ Sarah, stall them!” Liz said.
    I darted forward and ducked behind a huge statue of an angel. I peeked out and took careful aim at my first target, who was standing next to an equally large statue of a priest. I let out an onslaught of fireballs with expert precision, and the Immortal stumbled to the ground. Another tried to sneak around the water fountain, but I kept him in my sights, threw my hand back, and delivered a fireball that took him out before he knew what hit him. Fragments of stone flew as water exploded. My breath froze in my throat as Ethano walked in my direction, his hands brimming with blue energy. “Hurry!” I yelled. “Ethano’s coming.”
    I threw more fireballs, but he shot out streams of water that instantly fizzled them to smoldering nothingness. He stared into my eyes harshly, wearing a smug smirk. He was still a good distance away, but that didn’t make me feel safe in the slightest.
    Suddenly, I couldn’t move my limbs; I literally couldn’t lift a finger because Ethano had paralyzed me. Pain exploded in my head as an invisible hand yanked my hair back.
    “ Submit to me,” he ordered sternly inside my head. “I won’t spare your punishment, but I’ll let your sister live.”
    “ Go to hell!” I yelled back.
    An invisible force yanked my hair even harder. “You will pay for this,” his voice echoed in my mind. “Our deal is off, and now your beloved Liz will be executed before your very eyes.”
    Deal ? I wasn’t aware we’d made any kind of deal.
    “ I got it,” Liz yelled. When I didn’t respond, she knew what was happening: My body was under Ethano’s control. She threw me over her shoulders, and we traced a million miles an hour into the woods.
    As I bounced on Liz’s shoulder, I swore I was going to puke all over her. “Put me down,” I said. “I’m okay now. Ethano’s power over me is broken.”
    She came to an abrupt halt and set me down, then glanced around for the best direction to go. Finally, she pointed to the north. “That way.”
    I took a few steps through the vegetation until I slipped and fell sideways, bursting through clusters of large leafed plants and down a rocky hill. Somehow, I needed to slow my descent. Reaching out my hands, I desperately tried to grab a tree, a log, or anything to stop my gravity-induced momentum. Rocks flew up from under me, and branches slapped my face, arms, and legs. I finally stopped rolling when my back and head hit something hard, a jolt that sent a series of shudders through me. I drew in a sharp breath and reached behind me, then ran my fingers along what felt like the bark of a tree. I rubbed my pounding head and blinked, groaning, stars spinning in my vision. I gazed up at the humongous green ferns looming over me. Soil was clinging to my clothes, hair, and skin.
    Liz held out her hand and helped me up. “Come on, sis. They’re right behind us!”
    I sucked in a shuddering breath and nodded. A brilliant flash of lightning lit the sky, followed by a loud clap of thunder. I shielded my eyes as torrents of rain showered down upon us. With my dress glued to my back from the rain and my own perspiration, I sprang into the overgrowth and sped deeper into the forest with Immortal speed, leaping over giant logs and slippery rocks along the way. My frantic mind forced my feet into action, allowing me to ignore the burning sensation in my legs. Darting forward, I jumped over logs and zigzagged through the thinning trees, finally stopping where the soil turned