I wasn’t alone. Never alone. All these people who fought holding my banner now, humans and fae, they knew when to come, because as that bird swooped into the thick of the crowd it disappeared in a flash of light.
Then through the bodies, Davinawinkedat me.
She joined the fighting seamlessly, propelling a dagger from her fan in her graceful battle dance. It was then I knew… Rose and Zath would be somewhere here too. Davina used her influence in the fae resistance to turn it into the Maiden’s resistance, open to more walks of life than just fae now.
The day Auster stood me in front of the castle and the resistance had ruined his wedding announcement… that had been their warning call.
This… this was their first call of action in the rebellion against the High Celestial order.
Before Auster’s soldiers could reach me, others did, forming a circle around me and bracing bravely with weapons that could not contend with the might of the celestial soldiers. They shouldn’t be protecting me; it was my duty to protectthem.
Drown the world in starlight.
That phrase had become a battle cry for the people, who struck a determined will in me to stand strong for them.
I am Astraea Lightborne. The star-maiden. The Daughter of Dusk and Dawn. The Goddess of Justice. I am Lightsdeath.
My belief sparked enough of my suppressed magick to seize. A scream torefrom my throat to drag it out, and I dropped down, slamming a hand to the ground, striking the land, which cracked from the impact that blasted every soldier back outside the radius of people who surrounded me. The scars of the stone flooded with liquid silver, as if my glowing tattoos flowed off my skin to web around me.
I was hypnotized by the glittering silver pools, and my mouth watered at its resemblance to starlight matter potions.
No. I do not crave that.
I do not crave that.
I scrunched my eyes shut, forcing back the creeping desire for the drug that danced metallic notes on my tongue and pricked under my skin.
My fingers flexed against the stone—still braced in position from my strike of magick—when I felt a shadowy caress over them.
As I opened my eyes, darkness spilled over my silver rivers and twined through my fingers. Glancing up, I saw the source of the shadows stalking toward me, so calm among the chaos. I didn’t fear Nightsdeath, but to my relief and surprise, the people around me didn’t either. They parted, letting him approach until he was close enough to crouch at my level.
“Hello, Starlight,” he purred.
He used Nyte’s nickname for me, and I bit my lip against a whimper. Nightsdeath plucked the comb of the veil from my hair and tossed it aside. I took his hand when he offered it, rising on shaky knees with him.
I scanned over the mob still resisting the celestials trying to rally order. They used force and magick and every cry of an innocent life fleeing or falling tore soul-deep.
“Save them,” I asked him.
Nightsdeath canted his head as if the request was as humorous as it was curious. But if Nightsdeath helped the people while I couldn’t, it would show his allegiance. Right here could begin Nyte’s redemption for when I finally had all of him back.
“Please,” I said, clutching him tighter.
He cupped my check, scanning my eyes.
“Then we will go retrieve the key together,” he said, tipping my hair over my shoulder.
“Yes.”
“Very well.”
Nightsdeath became a slice of shadow that moved with the grace and precision of a blade with no hand to wield it. I watched in fascination and horror as he was less a body and more a thick stroke of pure darkness, with only his piercing gold eyes to track, as he reaped souls and spilled blood before a single enemy saw him coming.
I only lost track of him when a pink flicker caught my eye. Rose stared at the shadows cutting through masses of celestials like her worst nightmare had come. She met my stare, wide and horror-filled. All I could do was shake my head once.
None of them could come to me. Though they’d helped in rallying allies against Auster, and would continue to while we were separated, they could not be seen by Nightsdeath. If he found any of them, he would have a far easier time than he did with me torturing, even killing, any of them to get the location of Nyte’s body.
Zath approached, and seeing him made my heart yearn. He hooked Rose’s arm, muttering something to her. With Nightsdeath pulling the focus of battle, it was time for them to retreat. Zath’s blue eyes found me, and my pulse lurched at his firm expression of concern, fearing he might break the plan and come to me because he was always so damned stubborn and protective. He shouldn’t even be here with his injuries still healing.
