“So much for this place being peaceful,” I whispered, realizing I hadn’t spotted Eva yet either. “I can’t find her.” Panic gripped my throat.
“Your friend’s safe, Aria. They aren’t interested in her. She didn’t come for the throne.”
I gave him an unladylike snort. “I neither wanted nor intended to claim any throne. Scylla informed me it wasn’t an option to walk away without it, though.”
Frantic shouting erupted to our right, but Griffon’s scream compelled Zyion and me to turn towards it. One of Baldrick’s sons was standing behind the king, an arm banded around his chest and a dagger pressed to his neck. A small rivulet of blood dripped from where the blade pressed to flesh, dripping down and staining the king’s collar.
“It’s a coup?” I wondered out loud. “I did not see that one coming.”
“That bloody, treacherous bastard,” Zyion snarled. “Baldrick will give the order to Sain to murder Griffon before we can reach him.” The panic in Zyion’s tone was as genuine as the fear perfuming the surrounding air.
Amused by his conclusion, I aimed my assault on the man brandishing the blade against my father’s throat. Sending a prayer heavenward, I brought the single violet-colored bolt down from the sky as lightning struck from the angry, gray clouds above us. It slammed into the stands where the guy held the blade to my father’s throat.
The single bolt caused the sharp scent of ozone to drift to me on the gentle breeze. Next, I invoked the wind, which forcefully rushed through the crowded dais. Everyone caught in its path lurched forward or stumbled to maintain their balance, and those who couldn’t stay on their feet were sent to the ground or fell from the stands.
The skies strobed lightning, which was punctuated by thunderous claps of thunder. Wind continued rushing through the area as it forced those on the dais to crawl as they sought to escape or move toward the king. I eyed each man, trying to discern his intent before I brought violent, angry bolts rushing toward the next man who sought to end Griffon’s life. It was a beautiful symphony of chaos as they struggled against the onslaught of my wrath.
I hadn’t even had a chance to know my father or have an entire conversation with him, and they were attempting to end him? I’d be damned if they murdered him before I’d gotten the information I’d come here for. I wouldn’t allow them to steal that from me.
Slowly, people figured out where the new waves of violence were coming from, and started backing away, shoving at those who were too slow to move. I wanted to scoff because, had I wanted to end them, I could have. They were perfectly safe so long as they weren’t trying to murder anyone. Though, I probably looked like a badass with my hair whipping against my face and the skirt of my gown tearing under the onslaught of cyclones, spinning near where I stood. Violet veins pulsed beneath my pale flesh as the magic within me waited for my next target.
“Damn, woman.” Zyion gripped my hand and started toward Griffon. My vision blurred with the turbulent storm of power humming through my body. I felt myself being dragged toward where Griffon now knelt, his eyes locked on the sight of my immense power oozing from my soul. Baldrick crept closer to where Griffon remained perched on his knees, staring at us. My heartbeat thundered along in time to the bolts crashing against the ground. The scream that tore from my lips was drowned out by the clamorous storm fueled through my emotions.
“Can you take him out? Aria, can you just hit him?” Zyion asked as Baldrick lifted his blade before he swung it wildly at Griffon’s exposed throat.
A horrified wail ripped from my lungs as I yanked against Zyion’s hold and then directed several wide, lethal bolts of lightning down at Baldrick. Forcing my mind to ignore the battle raging around me, I continued sending bolt after bolt of violet light at the bastard who thought to depose the king. Baldrick dropped, flopping around on the ground. Zyion rushed toward Griffon, shouting for anyone who could hear him to protect the king.
By the time Zyion reached him, several warriors had already closed ranks around the king, creating a circle of defense. The relieved smile on my lips fell as a strange whistling noise reached me. I turned just in time to spot something shooting through the air toward me, too fast for me to dodge or deflect. Then pain exploded against my skull.
I went toppling over into the greenery of the field as blood filled my mouth. Blinking past the light that flooded my vision, I whimpered in pain as blood trickled from my lips. My equilibrium was akin to when I’d downed a fifth of tequila and tried walking afterward. Crashing against the ground, I lay there, unmoving, as the ground began to shake. Acid rushed through my veins, burning its way through my system as agonizing pain consumed my mind.
The wind blew my hair into the air as if something large had landed in front of me. Forcing my palms against the field, I screamed at the agony burning through my body. A massive shadow spread over the area, and the booming rattle that silenced everyone on the field was loud enough to steal my hearing for a second. The men and women, who weren’t already prostrate on the ground, dropped to their knees, bowing their spines and yielding to the demand for submission.
The creature landed with one clawed foot on either side of me, and it was a struggle not to black out in sheer panic. Rolling onto my back, I gazed up in horror at a massive black dragon, which was dripping saliva over my torso as it stared down at me as if I were a snack. It radiated unbearable heat that pinked my flesh, and there was no way I was sticking around to see what it wanted. I flipped back onto my belly and began crawling to escape being smashed beneath the beast’s large, razor-clawed feet.
An angry rattle vibrated the earth, and as the beast lifted its clawed talons, I pitched myself to the left, blindly rolling as fast as I could to try to avoid being crushed. The second I was free, I was on my feet trying to stumble away even as the world blurred around me.
The dragon turned on me, opening its mouth of serrated teeth to reveal a black maw of endlessness. A spark ignited and the surrounding air turned into an oven. Its rattle became a high-pitched scream, a heartbeat before searing flames engulfed the men who’d been sneaking up behind me. Their flesh melted from their bones, and a look of fresh horror at how effortlessly the dragon made the panic rise within me.
A scream bubbled inside my chest as the thought of being burnt alive consumed my mind. I saw past men being charred or melted into puddles of melted armor and gore over the surrounding field. On shaking arms, I continued to crawl away from the colossal beast, laying waste to the men who’d foolishly charged it with their weapons drawn.
I closed my eyes against the nausea fisting my stomach. Then hands grabbed onto my waist and hoisted me onto the back of a large, emerald-green dragon. As it launched into the air, I screamed and scrambled for something to grasp on to. I met the sea-green eyes of the man who I assumed placed me on the back of the dragon, and he chuckled as he stepped back.
The leathery wings flapped powerfully against the air, bringing us higher and higher with each beat. Fear gripped my heart like a vice as I continued searching for something to hold on to in order to prevent falling to my death.
“No-no-no-no,” I whispered as I turned, ready to beg for the green-eyed man to get me off this thing. My plea died a quick death when I watched him become a dragon. “Nope. This isn’t happening!” Within seconds, I was too far from the ground to even consider jumping. Everything looked like ants scattering on the ground below.