I took off into the sky, wheeling up behind a Nymph on the breeze and blasting its head with Phoenix fire, a shout of rage leaving my lips. As it turned to dust and Tory ran to meet another Nymph, my eyes flickered over the field of our enemies, my gaze falling on Lionel in his jade green Dragon form as he snapped a man up between his jaws and swallowed him whole. A line of rebels must have gotten out here when they’d shown up, but it had clearly been a bloodbath, because bodies lay everywhere and the last of them were being hunted down and slaughtered.
I stared at the forces Lionel had brought here in hopes of destroying us, my heart pounding as I took in the sight of thousands of Nymphs and the legion of Dragons who stood at their backs, waiting with bared fangs and claws to strike at us the moment their king commanded it. He was letting the Nymphs run riot, but this was just child’s play compared to what he had in store for us.
A roaring, bellowing cry came from the rebels at our backs, our army spilling from the ground as they followed Tory and I into the fray. A charge of Centaurs galloped past us with swords raised and they were followed by a group of Minotaurs who pounded their chests and mooed furiously as they ran.
Gabriel came sprinting out of the tunnel, taking off into the sky with his dark wings flexing, and I saw the terror in his eyes which spoke of how pained he was that he hadn’t been able to see this coming. But my brother couldn’t predict the shadows, and it was clear Lionel had hidden behind them tonight when he’d planned this assault.
We pressed forward, needing to create space for our army so that they could emerge from the tunnels to face our enemies and I snatched a smaller blade from my hip, throwing it with a yell of exertion and it wheeled end over end before driving straight into the eye of a Nymph making a charge for my mate.
Orion carved down the Nymph beneath me as it wailed and my heart wrenched as Tory flew ahead of us, diving down into a fight of her own as a swarm of rebels followed her.
A group of Nymphs surrounded Xavier and Sofia on Tyler’s back below, and I flew towards them, drawing the sword from my hip and swinging it with a precision taught to me by Queen Avalon. The sharp, fiery blade sliced through skin and bone, carving the head from one of the Nymphs and ash burst into the air as it died.
Tyler galloped forward, his head bowed and his horn driving into another Nymph’s chest, knocking it down and trampling it before the three of them cantered off deeper into the battle.
A Nymph reached for me in the sky, its probed hand swiping for my leg and I slashed my blade at it with a cry, severing its probes before driving the blade into its head. Embers exploded around me and my gaze locked on Orion as he killed with the wild and vicious savagery of his kind, cutting down his enemies and mercilessly ending them with powerful strikes.
Fear daggered through my heart for everyone I loved and my eyes fell on Lavinia as she stood on a tower of shadow, picking off the rebels one by one with blasts of her dark power, a malicious grin on her lips.
“Lead the way, Blue!” Orion shouted from the ground, my loyal mate ready to fight at my command. “I’ll follow you.”
I nodded, locking another Nymph in my sights as it took down two of our people, my teeth bared with hate.
My Phoenix fire blasted the Nymph apart as I spotted Tory locked in a fight a hundred yards away, her wings flashing with fire as she burned through Nymphs and tried to drive them back to make way for our forces.
Orion cut more of them down beneath me while I finished them with fireballs and the edge of my blade as we pressed forward.
Hamish and Catalina appeared beneath me, their hands locking as a tremendous challenge bellowed from the rebel leader’s lips and the next thing I knew, the whole hillside behind them broke apart and rocks and dirt were ripped from the ground, revealing the whole host of our army beyond them, making my heart lift with the strength burning in their eyes. We could do this, we could really win this.
Catalina yelled out in challenge as she swept her free hand forward, sending all of the dislodged rock and soil crashing towards the enemy army, forcing Lionel to roar in rage as he raced skywards to avoid it and the ranks of Nymphs below him took the hit, screaming as they died.
The earth Elementals within the army cast huge stone slopes out of the remains of the tunnels and the rebels bellowed their challenge to the false king and his foul army as they ran up out of the ground to meet them on the battlefield.
My gaze fell on Lionel and Lavinia as rage coiled through my veins like a snake and an animal rose its head within my chest as I promised them their deaths tonight. Because I would not see anyone I loved die, I’d fight with every ounce of fire in my blood until I saw our enemies bleeding and destroyed at my feet.