Page 63 of Three Dark Kings and the Gilded Serpent

My warriors are alive.

I have my cousin Kaiba’s foresight to thank for it. Ironically, he probably had the men dig chambers as a way to escape my fire, but only he can confirm that for me.

For the next two hours, I burn ice while Stellen and his wolf stay ahead of me, keeping out of the direct line of sight of the emerging warriors while they work.

At one point, I’m certain Stellen’s trying to break through to the stone slab himself, but it looks like his frost power splashes across the rock, only sealing it in more firmly.

I understand why he’s becoming more frantic when I reach that spot.

The men are clearly running out of air, emerging gasping and clawing at the grit, struggling to drag themselves to the ice even when I roar at them to “Fucking move!”

When I reach the final tower at the base of the charcoal mountains, a deep silence greets me, a heaviness that defies the brightly shining afternoon sun sitting high in the sky above us.

Stellen and Nara stand to the side, having marked out the spot, but the grim look on Stellen’s face and the fact that his head isn’t tilted…

I blast my fire across the frost that resists even the now-burning sun, melting the spot Stellen marked out to reveal the stone slab.

The stone doesn’t move.

I don’t hesitate, punching my fist into the rock, cracking the slab down the middle, snatching the two halves before they can fall into the darkness below.

Nothing stirs.

I look to Stellen, a flood of helplessness making me want to smash everything around me.

“I can’t safely pull them out,” I say. “I burn what I touch.”

If I could be certain I’d control my fire like I did when I pulled Kaiba from the tower… But a fire within the walls of the chamber below us would kill the fae I wanted to save.

The corners of Stellen’s mouth are turned down. His chest, like mine, is heaving. The hot sun can’t be doing him any favors. Within the space of two hours, we’ve run the length of a third of Ember’s border while working hard to shift rock and ice. And that was after traveling through the night.

My strength is nearly depleted. So must his be.

“Fuck it.” I prepare to jump into the chamber. “If they’re dead, anyway⁠—”

“Enough death.”

Before I can stop Stellen, he closes the gap at a run and drops into the dark chamber.

Opposite me, his wolf gives a soft howl, her head hanging low, her fur matted and sweaty.

“Goddess of Truth and Light,” I whisper. “Bring me hope.”

A moment later, Stellen emerges, carrying two bodies, each of which he places onto the ground now awash with a mix of melting frost, chunks of ice, and gritty sand.

In quick succession, he smacks his fist down on each man’s chest.

Black smoke emits from their mouths.

The warriors jolt, gasping for air.

Stellen doesn’t wait, disappearing back into the chamber.

Five times more he descends, emerges, and brings life back to men who had taken their last breath.

And all I can do is watch. Fucking stand aside while my enemy carries my people up into the sunlight, hitting their hearts with a fist covered in frost that forces the toxins from their chests.

The men seem too dazed to immediately understand who is in their midst.