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Chapter47
Tenah
Tenah snarled at her father, all traces of her inner balance shredded as Renton’s body crumpled to the ground. A sliver of black crystal hovered above him, ripped from his heart. A prison for Cirel’s war beasts her father had claimed he would destroy. Two other shards accompanied it, floating over the dust of the other prisoners.
No. Renton would live. He had to live.
Gireth howled with palpable fury, hacking a wide berth in the enemies surrounding him.
Something brushed against Tenah’s side, startling her. Intelligent eyes stared back at her.
Maltar. Carefully, she slid a hand over its short, mottled fur. The beast lowered its front limbs, inviting her onto its back. She obeyed. Powerful muscle rippled beneath her as Maltar leaped into the pit, finding rocks along the walls to slow their descent.
Maltar took hits left and right from feingrot, but they had nothing on his speed and strength. A pure predator, Tenah was happy to have him on her side as his claws found purchase and his teeth ripped out throats. They charged toward Renton as the cavern quaked from the dark energy now streaming out of the tiny shards.
The shards exploded, sending out black clouds of magic that began to coil into three large, monstrous shapes. Tenah looked to her father and Renton’s body, too close to the manifesting war beasts. Her father worked to remove Renton’s shackles.
Damn it. They were moving too slow.
She screamed out as the largest of the war beasts solidified directly behind them. Inferno eyes, molten orange, its dark, rocky body pieced together over a magma core.
Her father paid the beast no mind as he siphoned Chaos from the nasty gash in Renton’s chest, just as he’d done for her years ago. Skin flaked from his muscle and bone. Blackened scales rippled down his arms, and multiple horns sprouted from his temples, curling back around his ears.
But his efforts would be in vain if she couldn’t get to Renton in time to mend his damaged heart.
Feingrot parted for her, turning their sharp teeth upon the conjured war beasts instead. Her father finished with Renton’s motionless body and then stepped between him and the nightmarish monster.
Tenah dove off Maltar’s back. She grabbed at Renton’s shoulders, the only part of him that wasn’t yet coated in blood. His skin was on fire, rivaling her own hot-blooded touch. She lifted his head onto her lap and swiped fingers over his cheek. Feingrot closed in around them, forming a protective ring.
“You’re going to be fine.” She sniffled. “You told me you’re all in. If that’s true, you’re not allowed to die first.” Her fingers trailed to his neck, shaking as they waited for a pulse, her heart cracking into more pieces. She funneled strands of Rama into his body, begging the magic to be enough. She wanted to be enough.
Gireth’s mount smashed down next to her. Expression dark, he hoisted Renton up by the arm and laid him over his mount. Then he held out an arm for her.
A seismic roar detonated through the cavern, shaking rocks and stalactites loose. Tenah’s hands shot up to cover her head and ears. Rocky debris struck her shoulders before Gireth draped himself over her as a shield.
When the cavern stopped quaking from Balhudhal’s horrible cries, Gireth peeled away.
“Time to go,” he said firmly. She didn’t budge, and Gireth took her arms, hoisting her to her feet. His gaze was stern. “This is the wrong time for bravery.”
The roars of feingrot accompanied the sonic booms of magical detonations reverberating through the cavern.
“I won’t leave things like this,” she said. “What if my father fails to kill these things?”
Gireth dropped his hands, his expression stern. “You’re walking out of these cliffs today, got it? Nothing touches you. Chaos doesn’t get to win.”
Her chest filled with warmth. Their crew was a mess. Criminals, runaways, prisoners, Corrupt. All deemed wild and dangerous.
She wouldn’t have had them any other way.
With a great thrust of wings, the welkin carried Gireth and Renton out of the cavern. Tenah turned to find her father among the war beasts.
You again, Balhudhal raged, lowering its massive head to Kherathi.I will rip you apart and feast on your blood for imprisoning me.
Her father peppered the war beast with a storm of Chaos lightning, pumping it into the cracks of its rocky armor. But it was three ancient creatures against one Corrupt that kept coughing up blood after absorbing Renton’s disease.
Balhudhal swiped his body-length talons through the cavern floor. Her father barely moved out of range.I smell the stench of fear.
Tenah’s gaze darted to the second largest beast, a creature of swirling, gray smoke and charred bones. She whistled for Maltar, grabbing a handful of fur to pull herself onto its back. Wielding healing magic in whip form, she leashed onto the beast’s skeleton. Its harrowing cry stabbed at her eardrums, powerful enough to crack the ceiling. Beams of sunlight broke through, luring Balhudhal’s head up.
