CHAPTERFORTY-ONE
Driving along the road should have been a simple task. As the oil river widened, the track grew smaller and smaller. They still had another six miles until they reached the last section. The oil rig in front of them grew larger and larger as they drove, an imposing giant in the sky. The way it was built, the track went right beneath the rig. More and more oil filled the sides of the track, more and more chemicals. Would there be a reaction between the mixture they needed to worry about?
A brilliant lime green car careened toward them from nowhere, as if they’d been going full speed in the wrong direction. It didn’t take long for Muni to realize it was the fae team, the glitter in the color a dead giveaway.
“The Councilman must have offered them a pretty sum to turn around and take us out, or else they wouldn’t risk not winning,” Muni murmured as they drew closer.
The car flew passed them and pulled their emergency break, spinning in the middle of the road, coming up behind them before squeezing onto the narrowing pavement. The passenger fae was already hanging out the window, something in her hand. The moment she threw it and glitter exploded over the McLaren, Muni cursed.
“They’re throwing spells at us.”
The lights inside the car began to flicker, as if there was a malfunction on the screen. It wouldn’t affect the engine, but it was enough to be a nuisance. Lucky for them, Brin was their map and Eirik still had full control over his tablet. The weapons panel would suffer but they couldn’t use any of those weapons anyway without risking a fire.
“Vidar, take the wheel and give me my axe,” she commanded, reaching for the battle axe between his legs.
“What are you going to do?” he asked, immediately grabbing the wheel.
“Take care of our fairy problem,” she growled, and then rolled down her window.
The chemicals burned her nose again just the same, but she pushed it from her mind in favor of climbing out of the window fully and onto the roof of the McLaren. She crouched down, one hand on her axe and one on the edge of the car to hold herself steady. The fae woman’s face twisted with hatred before she pulled herself out and held up a short saber blade.
“You’re making a mistake,” Muni told her. “Continue on your race, and we’ll allow you to pass safely.”
The fae curled up her lip. “You’ve nothing to offer me, raven.”
Muni nodded. “Only death, I’m afraid. I don’t pay money to cowards.”
The fae flared her wings wide and lunged forward. Muni moved out of the way just in time, her own wings unfurling in answer. Axe clutched tightly in her hand, Muni swung, the fae just barely moving from the trajectory and clinging to the top of their car. Muni did the same, her fingers curled around the edge of the window, but she wouldn’t allow the fae to continue to play with them. With a snarl, she went to swing the axe again, a killing blow, but the fae car slammed into the McLaren, crunching the fenders. The car would be beat to shreds by the finish line without Cricket’s medallion, but Danica had reinforced the frame. Though the fenders crumbled at yet another impact, the integrity of the car stayed the same. Muni would have to send a gift basket to the Vampire mate after all this.
Slamming into them nearly threw Muni from the car and she had to flare her wings to steady her, lifting into the air just slightly before kneeling down again. The oil rig rose before them, a great behemoth. There was only enough space for a single car to pass through without touching the pouring oil, and they were two cars wide.
“Vidar!” Muni shouted.
“I see it! Get back inside!”
Muni turned, planning to swing inside the passenger side of the car, but she didn’t even have a chance to put her wings away. The fae slammed into her back a moment later, shoving her forward the same time as the fae driver hit the McLaren again. Both the McLaren and Muni entered into the rushing oil, the fae who had attacked Muni falling inside it with her from the force of her hit.
The immediate slick feeling of oil covering her, dragged Muni down, her wings collapsing under the thick liquid. The fae screamed, her wings far more delicate than Muni’s. They both were shoved beneath the pressure, but Muni landed on top of the McLaren’s roof, slamming into it so hard, she lost her breath. The fae’s scream cut off as she was dragged over the side and into the rushing black river. The oil waterfall seemed to last for an hour, but it could have only been long seconds as Vidar continued driving through the oil, fighting to keep control. Someone was shouting for her, but the sound was muted with the oil rushing around her ears. And then, the pressure disappeared, and Muni wiped at her eyes. She was so heavy, her wings spread wide around her and coated with slick.
Someone was wiping at her face with some sort of cloth, and when he spoke, she realized it was Brin. “Put your wings away,” he growled.
Muni focused on putting them away, but they were so heavy, the feathers sealed down with oil. It would take so much washing to get them from her feathers, a painful experience, but despite Muni trying to pull in the wings, they proved too heavy to move.
“I can’t,” she cried, clinging to the roof but she was sliding. If not for Brin’s quick hand on her wrist with the cloth, she would have slid right off. “They’re too heavy.”
“I can’t pull you inside unless your wings are put away. They’ll break.” Brin reached out and heaved her wing up from the roof with his shoulder, releasing the suction. He pulled her around, doing g the same to the other wing. It wasn’t lost on Muni the strength required to accomplish such a feat. “Come on, Muni! Focus!”
She closed her eyes and used all her strength to pull at her wings, to put them away, and with a great gasp of pain, the weighed down feathers retracted as they should. Her back felt the weight, felt the poison of the oil there, but it would have to be addressed later.
Brin dragged her inside the car without another word, settling her on his lap where he was in the front seat. Vidar was behind the wheel, his eyes wide as he focused on the road and trying to drive the car. He wasn’t doing bad, though his shifting was incredibly jerky. It was a good thing they’d at least attempted to teach him and Brin how to drive. Eirik was leaning forward, giving direction so Vidar wouldn’t forget steps.
Quickly, Brin began wiping Muni down with more towels, each one growing soaked so quickly, he began throwing them outside the window once they were so heavy with oil, they couldn’t be used again.
Beside them, the fae car lost control, the oil on their tires causing it to begin to spin. Eirik’s eyes widened.
“Get us out of here!” he snarled. “They crash, this all goes up in flame!”
Vidar stepped on the gas despite not being experienced enough for faster speeds.
Brin quickly grabbed his tablet, moving it around and trying to clean his fingers enough to tap on the screen. “One mile.”
The fae car slammed against the side of the bank and flipped, end over end, before coming to a stop upside down in the center of the rushing oil river. The small flash appeared a second later from beneath the car, a tiny flame.
“Go!” Muni cried. “Go faster!”
Vidar stomped on the gas, the McLaren flying fast over the road, the tires barely gripping the ground. Muni turned in her seat on Brin’s lap to look out the back window at the fae car, watching as the small flame jumped from the bottom of the car to the oil coating it, engulfing it in flames and spreading like wildfire. It grabbed ahold of the river, rushing after them while heading toward the rig.
The horn sounded.
“The fae team has been eliminated.”
“Not now, tiny witch!” Brin shouted, shoving the tablet away and holding onto Muni. “Half a mile.”
The explosion rocked the car, shoving them forward despite their speed and being so far from the rig. Behind them, the large cloud rose up, and Muni hoped the kelpie had gotten out. The flames still chased them along the river, and Muni held her breath as Brin’s arms tightened around her in panic.
“Vidar!” Eirik shouted.
To Vidar’s credit, he didn’t panic, his eyes focused on the road ahead of them, sweat coating his brow. With a shout as the flames erupted right beside them, threatening to jump to their oil slick car, they slammed from the Deep Water Horizon section into the final section of the race.
Blinding light took Muni’s eyesight.
Brin’s tablet fizzed. “Welcome to Valhalla.”
Muni’s heart kicked hard in her chest.