Great. Now I’m hard in the middle of a battle.
A second Mage—a Fire Mage—hurled a massive ball of flames at her entourage, but it was quickly doused by her female companion.
They were a deadly vision, Ellowyn and her three Mages.
“Go,” I said to the Mages and Vessel at my back. “See to it that our forces cease fire. We need to regroup if possible.”
I felt a heavy hand on my shoulder and swore the Earth Mage muttered “good luck” before the six dispersed to their respective tasks.
Once they were safely away from Ellowyn and her destructive tirade, I dropped my Air Shield and opened my arms, a slight smirk tilting my lips.
“Here I am, sweetheart. Come get me,” I called.
Her answering scream, filled with pain and rage, was all the warning I got before she hurled a cloud of Destruction Magic my way.
I barely had time to throw an Air Shield tight around my body just as the vaporous magic engulfed my form. Tiny pricksdanced across my skin, small motes of her power bleeding through the shield that was weakening by the second.
Fuck, she’s gotten good. Though she still relied too heavily on her Destruction Magic. It was like she’d forgotten she had three other magics at her disposal.We can fix that. Later.
Once her magic dissipated, I dropped my shield and immediately conjured a wave of water that swept all three of her Mages a few feet back. Ellowyn quickly created a small platform from the scorched and dilapidated cobblestones at her feet, pushing herself out of the way of the worst of the wave.
She hopped down as a second jet of bright-green magic flared from her palm and hit the ground at my feet, the stones there quickly forming a growing cage around my body. With a growl of frustration, I used what was left of my draining Air Magic to blast away the stones.
Once I emerged from my prison, I turned to find Ellowyn gone from her earlier position. Instead, I felt a long-fingered hand grip my shoulder and pull me back into the curves of her body. Her tightly bound breasts pushed against my back, her chest heaving from exertion and adrenaline. In her other hand, she clutched a dagger that was pressed mercilessly against my throat.
And now I’m hard again.
“Give me a reason,” she whispered in my ear, “onegoodreason not to just end you and take your power now.”
I swallowed, letting the edge of her blade cut me slightly. My blood rolled down my neck and pooled at my collar. I shifted my head to the side so I could see the storming grey of her eyes, and I knew then that she wouldn’t do it.
Her eyes swam with hurt and despair, frustration and fear. But, beneath it all, there was love. Despite everything I’d put her through, despite everything she’d endured because of me, she loved me.
And I was certain she hated herself for it.
“I—” I opened my mouth to tell her I loved her. Thatthatwas a good enough reason, but was stopped when the loudest boom of all sounded, nearly bursting my eardrums in the process. My hands instantly covered my ears, Ellowyn’s dagger falling away from my throat as she moved to do the same, and I watched with morbid fascination as the nearly translucent film that made up the Air Barrier dissipated into the night sky.
Either my eardrums had burst, or complete silence settled over the battlefield—groups of Academy soldiers and rebels once locked in desperate battle now frozen in fear and shock.
All at once, a feral roar rose from just beyond the courtyard as the gods’ army flooded the square.
And there, standing in the middle of it all as their sycophants rushed to their deaths, were the two most horrifying yet breathtakingly beautiful beings I’d ever seen.
“Solace and Kaos,” Ellowyn whispered from behind me, her hands hovering around her ears, eyes wide with shock.
As if they could sense us, the woman as white as lightning and the man as black as midnight, swiveled their heads until they were staring directly at us. Matching feral grins broke across their eerily perfect faces, and I felt my blood run cold.
I wasterrified.
“Ellowyn,” I whispered, my voice wobbling on her name. Her wide eyes shot to mine, and I memorized her face just in case it was the last time I would see her.I love you. But the words didn’t come out. Instead, I said what would either be the smartest or stupidest thing yet. “Run.”
Chapter 89
Lex
“General! The barrier has fallen! Repeat, the barrier has fallen! We—fuck, hold on.” Sol’s harried voice rang through the small communication orb attached to the shoulder of my uniform. The sounds of battle and death echoed from the orb. I swiped my sweaty palms on the front of my pants, trying to dispel the jittery sense of dread that had overtaken my entire body.
“Sol, what’s happening? Report,” General d’Alvey’s rough, commanding voice responded, but was met with crackling silence. “Sol?”
