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This is madness,Prentis thought as he cut down earth fae after earth fae. For all of General Slaugh’s prowess as a military leader, his soldiers went down far too easily, and he didn’t seem to care too much about directing them. Rather, he was focused on Lady Axlya and Lord Oren, directing his shadow guard to keep them preoccupied. Fae soldiers of all races littered the battlefield, but far more earth fae blood soaked the ground than anyone else.
Why was Slaugh throwing his soldiers away?
Prentis was yanking his sword out of a dead soldier’s body when he noticed a young lightning rider with spiky hair peel away from the others, a group of four more riders in tow. The unit headed straight for Gelsyne and Lady Mossi, who stood in the shadow of a cliff. Lady Mossi, to his surprise, was standing with her hands by her sides, staring vacantly, while Gelsyne’s eyes were closed, her mouth moving as if in prayer. Four Shadow Guard soldiers formed a semi-circle in front of them, and they sprang into action as the lightning riders tried to attack.
“Help them. Before it is too late.”
The voice echoing in Prentis’s head was not his own, yet he didn’t think twice. Calling a group of cavalry soldiers to him, he urged his kelpie around the fray, heading for Gelsyne. He didn’t know what kind of villany she was up to, but he was damn certain she wasn’t praying to the earth spirits for victory.
He was nearly there when a massive red gorilla barreled through a group of soldiers and leaped through the air. Prentis swore as General Slaugh collided with him in his animal form, knocking him off his mount. The two of them tumbled through the grass, and Prentis screamed in agony as the beast smashed him into the ground. Roots burst from the earth, wrapping around his limbs as the gorilla roared, rearing back to punch him. But before he could make contact, a bolt of lightning hit him square in the chest, sending him flying.
Panting with pain and fear, Prentis tore at the roots binding him to the ground. One of his soldiers rushed to help him to his feet, but Prentis resisted his efforts to pull him away from the fighting.
“My lord, you’re badly injured,” the fae tried to say, but Prentis wouldn’t hear of it.
“I don’t care,” Prentis snarled, pushing the soldier’s hands away. His ribs were on fire, but they would heal—he was a Greater Fae, after all. He glanced toward the lighting riders furiously firing bolts at the shadow soldiers, wondering which one had saved him. “We have to get to—”
His words died in his throat as he turned to Gelsyne, who raised her hands. An inky black shape swirled in front of her, slowly taking on the shape of a monstrous figure with a bull-shaped head and multi-pronged horns. It stood on two hooved feet, and six forked tails lashed the air behind it.
Lady Mossi continued to stare vacantly into the distance, and dread rose inside Prentis as he realized what Nox’s plan was. He shouted a warning as he ran toward Lady Mossi, but his cries fell on deaf ears, and the Shadow reared up and swallowed her right before his horrified eyes.
41
Adara
With no time to lose, we took to the skies in dragon form, Einar by my side while the other two-dozen dragons spread out on either side of us in perfect v-formation. My breath sawed in my lungs as I pumped my wings as hard and fast as I could, heedless of my protesting muscles. I couldn’t afford to slow down, not even for a moment. Not when the very world hung in the balance.
The plains of Geelan soon came into view, a vast expanse of open terrain that seemed to stretch on forever. From a distance, it was beautiful, with a backdrop of rolling hills and low mountains, but that beauty was marred by the battle raging below. The water fae had taken position near a shallow river that wound its way across the plains, the air fae encamped in the shadow of the mountains, and the earth fae scattered throughout the fields, makeshift fortifications and trenches dug into the ground.
Smoke rose from burning tents and structures, and as we drew closer, the sound of magical blasts filled the air. Steel glinted in the sunlight as earth, air, and water fae alike engaged in armed combat, and elemental magic flickered through the air as they hurtled spells and projectiles at each other. My heart hurt at the sight of so much carnage. The very thing that we had fought so hard against was coming to pass.
“Adara!”Einar barked, and I whipped my head around as panic ricocheted through our bond.“Look, to the west!”
I followed his gaze, and my heart stuttered in my chest. Nox and Lady Mossi were standing at the base of a knoll, and next to them was an enormous shadow creature with wicked-looking horns, cloven hooves, and forked tails. I only beheld its true form for a split second before it unraveled into a shapeless, inky black cloud. It reared up, then descended upon Lady Mossi, engulfing her completely.
A roar of fury and denial ripped from my throat, shattering the sky around me. I tucked my wings and dove, Einar and the others following close behind, and the battle came to an abrupt halt as the fighting fae all looked up to see who was approaching. Cries of fear and alarm filled the air at the sight of the dragons, a sight none of them had seen in two decades, but I barely paid them any heed. I had to get to Lady Mossi, had to stop that infernal creature before it took over—
Nox snapped her head around to face me, then raised her hands. The air around her hands began to swirl, coalescing into a dark, electric current crackling with malevolent energy. With a swift motion, she flung her hands out, hurling the shadow magic at me in a wave of dark energy. Though I was immune to the effects, the pulse of magic still slammed into me, sending me flying backward and crashing into several of the dragons behind me.
I righted myself in the air again, but it was too late now. Lady Mossi’s body had absorbed the Shadow completely. I could see it in the blackness that filled her eyes, and the way her hair darkened from its usual sage green to a black tourmaline. Her lips stretched into a wicked grin as she looked me up and down.
“This is the little upstart who’s been giving you so much trouble?” the Shadow asked, addressing Nox. “She doesn’t seem like much.”
“She isn’t, but she’s backed by Kiryan, making her a bit of an annoyance.” Nox’s upper lip curled as her black gaze flickered to mine. I wondered if my mother was aware of any of this, or if she’d retreated into her own mind to escape the fact that she was a prisoner in her own body. “We’ll need to eliminate her if we want to conquer this world.”
“So it’s true!” a familiar voice shouted, and I turned to see Prentis standing only a few dozen yards away. He was flanked by a half-dozen elite water fae soldiers, his face red, sword drawn and bloodied, chest heaving with exertion as he glared at Nox. “You really are a Shadow! Adara was right all along.”
“Of course she was,” Nox said sweetly. “I’m very thankful you all were too stupid to listen to her, or else I might not have succeeded in bringing you all here.” She frowned at me. “It’s too bad that Tempest was attacked before she could make it to Angtun, and that you and Kiryan thwarted my attempts to use Cascada as a plant. I was planning on using Oren or Axlya as the third avatar… but that’s all right.” She turned an avaricious glance toward the crowd. “I’ve got the perfect back up in mind.”
“Who is that?”Einar asked, and my heart dropped as I followed Nox’s gaze to where a massive red gorilla stood. He looked a little different than the last time I’d seen him, sporting a large, singed pattern of fur on his chest, but I’d recognize him anywhere.
“It’s General Slaugh.”
As if he could somehow hear me, General Slaugh turned in our direction. His black eyes were glassy as they locked onto Nox’s face, and his expression went slack as she entered his mind.
“Come to me, my shadow soldier,” Nox cooed. “It’s time to fulfill your destiny.”
Slaugh took a step toward her, but jumped back as a lightning bolt struck the ground directly in front of him. Nox snarled, jerking her gaze up at Leap, who glared defiantly at her.
