He probably captured them, brought them here, and ordered them turned loose when it looked like the war might be turning against him. He had no doubt that the Lord didn’t give a shit if these monsters ate some of his men in the process.
And those poor idiots were so scared of the Lord they were obeying him, even if it meant they were eaten too.
Ducking low, Orin threw himself to the ground as the black, lumbering beast lowered its two-foot-high antlers and charged at him. As the wendigo ran past him, Orin pulled his sword free of its holster and swung it to the side.
The blade cleaved the thin beast in half, just beneath the bony ribs protruding prominently from the beast. Its sunken stomach spilled its contents, which were nothing more than black blood and intestines.
When its top half hit the ground, Orin jumped up, planted his foot on its back, and carved its head from its body. He spun in time to see the dragons sweeping toward them.
The Lord’s men and their army battled each other while both sides also worked to destroy the wendigos sweeping through the battlefield. Blood and chaos reigned; the screams of the dying and mutilated blocked out the clash of weapons.
He’d fought in countless battles during the Lord’s war, but he’d never seen one as violent or vicious as this. But this was the end for both sides, and they all knew it. There wouldn’t be any more battles because whoever lost today would be too decimated to fight again.
“Orin!” Sahira shouted.
She threw a ball of fire his way. He caught it and whipped it at the next wendigo coming toward him. The creature screamed as the fire erupted in its face. Flames devoured its flesh as it fell to the ground.
Orin gave Sahira a nod of thanks before lifting his sword and dodging the foot of another giant coming his way.
CHAPTERSEVENTY-FOUR
Lexi emergedfrom the portal and into the palace. She’d pictured the main entrance hall when creating the portal as it was close to the throne room and shadowed enough that the vamps could survive outside it.
They suspected the Lord had most likely ensconced himself in the throne room and wanted to be close to it without being inside. They couldn’t go straight into the throne room as the open ceiling was a death trap for the vamps.
Plus, there were probably countless guards and maybe some dragons in there. And while she and Cole were safe around the dragons, they would destroy the nearly one hundred soldiers behind her.
Lexi stretched her hand out to her dad, and he clasped it in his. “I love you,” she whispered.
“I love you too,” he said. “Stay safe.”
“You too.”
They hoped the dragons in the throne room had been drawn to her presence and taken flight. And though the dragons were already on their way back to the battle when they entered the portal, they still had a chance of entering the throne room before they returned.
That was the hope, anyway. The reality was probably their worst-case scenario: the dragons never leaving and the room full of the Lord’s army.
For now, she and Cole would head for the throne room with half their army. Her father would remain here to destroy anyone who tried to come up from behind them.
A shout sounded from the left, and Lexi turned to discover a group of the Lord’s soldiers entering from the hall across the way and descending the grand staircase. The Lord’s men had been lying in wait to spring their trap, and now they attacked. And there werefarmore of them than she’d expected as they charged forward with their weapons raised and a battle cry on their lips.
“Go!” her dad shouted as he drew his sword.
“No,” Lexi breathed. “There’s too many.”
She couldn’t leave them here like this. They could retreat through the portal, but her father wouldneverdo that.
“We must go,” the Cole thing said from behind her.
A shiver ran down her spine as more voices emanated from him. “I can’t leave him.”
Before she finished speaking, shadows spread out from beneath Cole, sped across the floor, and rose between her father’s army and the Lord’s. Some of the Lord’s men skidded to a halt before they ran into the shadows. The others were too brazen or had no idea what they were headed for and didn’t slow.
Their screams rent the air as their blood sprayed outward to coat the walls. Lexi’s hand went to her mouth as she stepped away from the massacre unfolding before her. When she turned to look at Cole, she discovered him already by the double doors leading to the throne room. Each door held the carving of a dragon in midflight.
Cole’s silver eyes blazed out from the shadows enshrouding him as they completely engulfed him before parting to reveal him again. Turning away, he didn’t look back as he opened the doors to the throne room.
* * *
