Fic: The Adamant Blade (Chapter Ten)
Danny forced himself to close his eyes, ignoring what Steve was doing, and focus on finishing the spell. He'd shaped it, pulled power from within himself, and charged it with everything he had. He was so close. Just a few more words, murmured under his breath, stitching together the biggest spell he'd ever cast. He couldn't afford to let it all unravel no matter what was going on around him.
Steve was doing the right thing, he knew that, even if everything inside Danny screamed at him to run. If they didn't stop Choronzon now, before it was fully manifested, then they probably never would. Then, no matter how far Steve ran, even if it was all the way back to Hawai'i to protect Grace, it would never be far enough.
Danny reached out, feeling Steve, drawing strength from the bond they still shared, the bond that roared through the spider-web that was the city, and loaded it into the spell. He reached further, feeling Nana urging him on, pushing her power out into the aether, letting him take what he needed to protect her city. The rush was amazing, as if the city, and everyone in it, suddenly turned towards him and yelled their support. He reached even further and felt Grace and Rachel, Chin and Kono, gathering support and strength from them.
Danny loaded the power into the spell, sharpening the words that formed the attack, bolstering the phrases that shaped the defense, and siphoning away a dangerous fizzing overload on the key that would seal the portal. It was a monumental work, complex and dangerous, and their last chance to push the demon of the abyss back out into the void.
He opened his eyes, focused on the thing pushing its way into the world.
Steve was six feet off the ground, wrapped in what looked like a tentacle, composed of a mixture of smoke and mucus. His knife was buried in the writhing mass of creature that bulged through the portal. Danny couldn't tell if Steve was even conscious, let alone if he was still alive, as the thing flailed, howling in pain and anger.
Danny tramped down on the urge to rush to Steve, to save him. He couldn't safely leave the circle, not with all the power he was carrying, waiting to be released. He took a centering breath, focused on the deep well of strength that seemed to flow up to meet him, and began to speak the words of the spell.
“Choronzon, daemon abyssi extremum, milites, multis unus.”
The thing stopped flailing, its focus shifting from Steve, and the pain his knife was inflicting, towards Danny. The kick of power against the shields he'd built was immense, but he pushed back, sounding the next part of the spell.
“Nomen tuum verum dicam, et dominabitur in vos.”
Choronzon howled and fought against the bonds Danny was wrapping around it, but he'd used its names, and names were like a map. They gave the power of the spell something to build on, roads to speed down right to the place it needed to be.
“Non ego solus stare.”
He didn't stand alone. He could feel the power of a city of people behind him. And behind them he thought he might be able to feel more people, more humans lending their support to keeping the world safe. And Choronzon could feel it too, now.
“Unde venerunt ad te deleo.”
The first thrust of power meant to push the thing back, burned through Danny, making his skin tingle and his eyes water. The world fractured into a mass of bright lights, and Danny felt himself falling into it. The spell came to life inside him, using his body to funnel the immense power needed to fulfill its purpose. His mouth formed words, but it was both his voice and not his voice. Millions of voices speaking through him.
“Ego protector, salvationum lucem et ultimum exitium.”
He wasn't the protector and the saving light, he was simply the vessel now. He was split open, exposed, the power of a city, or a world, roaring and burning through him. Words were tumbling and forming in him. The spell crackled and pulled at the construct he'd created, threatening to break free. He threw himself into the maelstrom of fire at the heart of the spell and fought it.
“Revertere ad locum tuum iuste.”
Choronzon unleashed a wave of destructive energy, fighting against the forces trying to push it back through the portal. Danny thought he might be screaming, but he couldn't tell. He felt his skin tearing and his bones shattering, but he could not, would not, let this thing win. He thought of Grace, his family, of Steve, of all the people he loved, and pushed on.
“Ego te signa atque alligare vobis.”
Claws ripped at his mind, gouging holes in him, tearing away everything that he was, and everything that he could be. Memories and emotions swirled and were lost, he was falling into the Abyss, but it didn't matter because he was almost done. He would follow the beast down, spend all eternity bound to it as he was now, if he could just close the door and keep the world safe.
“Ego claudere ostium, et ostia.”
The spell roared out of him, and he felt the world change. The great tear in reality heaved and snapped closed, the body of the thing from the Abyss tumbling backwards. Danny felt like an elastic band snapped over his brain as the pressure wave of released magic boomed out from the portal, rushing over midtown and shattering windows.
Danny crumpled to the floor as the magic drained away, his breath coming in harsh, panting whoops. Lying still, not entirely sure if he was alive or dead, he felt numb, but there was an edge that told him it was going to really fucking hurt later.
As the sky darkened, he looked up and watched the stars twinkle into life. There wasn't a cloud in sight and the air smelled weirdly fresh. It was as though the magic had washed away the smog and left nothing but summer evenings and clean air. There was no sound, no cars, no sirens, nothing. He was still staring up at the sky when Steve's face swam into focus.
“Danny?” Steve sounded hesitant and he wondered how bad he must look if Steve couldn't tell who he was.
“Yeah, it's me,” Danny said, glad to find his voice back under his control. “How bad is it?”
“Are you hurt?” Steve asked, and Danny felt hands on him.
“Am I?” Danny didn't think that was the right answer but his brain wasn't really online yet.
“Don't think anything's broken,” Steve said seriously, leaning over to peer into Danny's eyes, obviously hoping to check for head injuries.
“You and I are going to have so many words, Steven,” he said, slapping away Steve's hand as he tried to angle Danny's head to get a better look. “You have no more sense about demons than you do about criminals.”
Steve laughed and then leaned down and landed a messy, wet, relieved kiss on Danny's lips. “Never change. Ever.”
Danny grinned up at him. He knew they needed to move soon. He wanted to check on everyone else, and make sure Steve wasn't hiding a broken leg or something equally bad. But right now he was happy to lie there and bask in the knowledge they'd saved the day and, against all the odds, they seemed to both be alive.
Chin watched the shaky phone footage of the events in New York. The clips from before the authorities started confiscating everything and saying it was a gas leak. And he wasn't sure he could be believe his eyes.
“Did...was that...?” Kono asked, watching the screen next to him.
“Yeah, me either,” he agreed.
The phone in Steve's office rang, the encrypted sat phone, the one that only Steve really used. Chin and Kono looked at each other, neither entirely sure if they should answer it or not. Chin was fairly sure they were going to ignore it, when Kono's cell beeped.
She pulled it out and unlocked the screen. 'Answer the damn phone' Danny's text message screamed at them, and they scrambled into Steve's office.
“Hey guys,” Steve said, as soon they answered.
“Steve,” Chin replied, holding the phone between him and Kono. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah,” Steve answered, sounding like he wasn't really sure what he should say. “You watching the news?”
“Boss?” Kono said. “What was that?”
“Not sure I should tell you over the phone,” Steve said, his voice going quieter as though he turned away slightly. “Not even this one. And it's mostly Danny's story to tell.”
“But you're both okay?”
“Yeah,” Steve said, obviously distracted by whatever was going on around him. “Look, Danny and I are fine. So's his family. But we lost a kid today, on the roof, and...he was only nineteen. Danny didn't know him all that well, but...you know Danny.”
“How's he doing?” Chin asked, because it was the easy, obvious question, before he got to the one he needed to ask. “How are you doing with that?”
“I'm okay, Chin,” Steve sighed, like he was really thinking about it. “We've got a couple of broken bones and some pretty big scrapes but we're okay.”
“Who's got broken bones?” Kono demanded, looking alarmed at the prospect of both Steve and Danny in casts.
“Oh, not Danny and me,” Steve said, realizing he was being vague, and not passing on the information he needed to. Chin could almost see him pulling himself together. “We had some of Danny's friends, and friends of friends, helping. Gavin, the kid who died, he was...I don't think we actually spoke, but his boyfriend's pretty cut up. Danny's with him. Uncle Mack's with Della at the hospital. Look, sorry, I'm really fucking exhausted.”
“It's okay,” Chin said, just glad that Steve and Danny were alive and seemingly whole.
“I called, well, to say we were okay, but can you try to get online and make me, Danny and the other names I'm going to send you disappear from today?”
“We can try, boss,” Kono said, catching Chin's eye to make sure he agreed. “Won't be completely possible, I'm sure.”
“Do the best you can,” Steve said, sounding like he was about to fall asleep.
“Go and get some rest, Steve,” Chin ordered. “Go and make sure Danny's getting some sleep too.”
“I will Chin,” Steve sighed. “Thanks guys. I promise we'll explain everything when we get back. Speak to you later.”
With that he disconnected the call and the two cousins were left just looking at each other. Chin wasn't really sure what was going on, but they had things to do for their friends and the promise of an explanation later.
Danny's spell
Choronzon, demon of the Abyss, Outermost, Legion, many and one. I call you by your true names, and I have power over you. I do not stand alone. I banish you back to whence you came. I am the protector, the saving light, and your ultimate bane. Go back to your rightful place. I seal you and bind you. I close this door, and all doors
Epilogue