Page 127 of Madness of Her Mages

Malvolia shrugged. “What about them?”

“Aunt,” I whispered, fear numbing my veins. “Thousands will die.” I couldn’t believe my aunt was doing this. Never mind that I’d repeatedly told her Thorin had tricked her, that my mother and sister weren’t her enemies. Not only did she still want to go ahead with this war, but she didn’t care if I murdered thousands of innocents. At least Thorin had an excuse for being evil. He was demon possessed. What was my aunt’s excuse for being such a wicked bitch?

Shadows darkened her eyes to two inky pools as more black magic leached off her. “Tear it down, Shirina.”

The girls gasped, pressing into my mates.

“Why can’t we fly over the wall?” I asked, refusing to back down. Too many lives were at stake.

“Shirina.” My aunt heaved a groan, her shoulders falling before she pointed to the top of the wall. “Do you see those ballistae?”

I squinted, looking up at dozens of sharp objects pointing over the side of the wall, aimed at the sky. My breath hitched when I realized those sharp objects were giant spears.

“After your sister defeated a thousand of my best fire mages,” Malvolia continued, “Windhaven equipped the wall with three dozen rapid fire ballistae. They will shoot our mages down if we fly. Do you want our mages to die?”

I looked to my mates, my blood turning to sludge when I thought of one of those giant spears puncturing them. “No.”

I flinched when Malvolia rested a hand on my back, whispering in my ear. “Tear it down.”

You can do it, Shiri,Nikkos projected.We have faith in you.

I tensed, refusing to look at him, fearing I’d let him down.

What if I didn’t do it? What if I fucked it all up?

I pushed all negative thoughts from my mind while focusing on the wall in front of me, envisioning one solid crack going up the middle without spreading to the adjoining wall. Then I channeled all my magic into that thought, knowing if I didn’t produce, Malvolia would choke, me, or my mates, or even the girls.

I heaved a shaky breath, my veins swelling like overflowing tributaries while magic burned my fingertips, and then when the pain became unbearable, I released my magic with a roar. “Break the wall!” I commanded as white light shot from me like a burst of lightning, striking the wall with a thunderous boom.

Mages nervously shifted as the wall shook and then split open, sliding apart as if both sides were on wheels, leaving a gap wide enough to fit a horse and cart. A wave of cries rang out, and my gaze shifted to the seawall. Violent waves crashed against it as it shook. Fuck. That was what I was afraid of. Dragons circled in the distance, letting out angry squawks. Thankfully, the wall settled after a moment. But what if it had been compromised?

A shout from above, and a massive white flag waved in the wind.

I clutched Drae’s arm.Why would they surrender so easily?

He stiffened, the warmth from his fingers seeping into my skin as he clutched my arm.Perhaps they’d rather serve Malvolia than a demon duke.

I eyed the flag held by two Fae, one Ravini and the other Sidhe. From this distance, I could only make out their hair and wings, but I couldn’t see the expressions on their faces. I hope so.

AFTER SEVERAL HOURS, Malvolia’s generals negotiated a truce with the Windhaven guards. The generals returned with the news that the guards would rather surrender to us than welcome Duke Viggo back after news had spread that Viggo and his niece were indeed demons. Their only condition was that we didn’t pillage the city or harm the citizens.

Once all was deemed safe, my mates and I flew with the thousands of other Ravini mages with no issues while the servants brought supply carts through the crack I’d made.

I wasn’t prepared for the beauty as we flew over Windhaven’s capital city, Ventus. The city had an abundance of purple flowers and a colorful river that ran through it. Almost all buildings were made of pristine white brick and the roads were a light gray cobblestone. We soared near a huge temple near the northern seawall with thick gray walls. Soldiers with purple plumes in their helmets stood guard, and I spied two women standing at the edge of the battlements, both donning purple robes that billowed in the strong wind. One woman had ebony skin, her hair twisted in intricate braids on top of her head and a long, regal neck, and the other woman had pale skin and dark hair that whipped about her face. She waved and blew a kiss to us, and I swore I thought I heard her call out the girls’ names. They were joined by several other women in purple robes, who all waved to us as we passed.

Are they all spirit talkers or empaths?I projected to Drae as he held me in his arms.

I’m not sure,he answered.The witches at Kyan’s temple wear the Windhaven colors no matter their abilities.

We landed in the center of camp, and soldiers directed us to a large tent near a bigger tent in the center.

Blaze let out a low whistle as we walked inside our lavish tent. One corner of the tent was piled with a low, wide bed made upof dozens of pillows. There was a dining table and a buffet server with wine and cold foods.

“We’ve moved up in the world,” Nikkos said as he set Aurora in a chair beside her sister. He winked at me. “A tent fit for a princess.”

I scarcely remembered the taste of the food as we ate in silence while waiting for Malvolia to send word. When would we go to war? Though I wasn’t looking forward to going up against my sister, the wait was killing me. My stomach still twisted and turned. Just by taking over Ventus, we’d declared war on Duke Viggo, and by extension, King Fachnan. There was no turning back now.

After the girls started getting cranky and bickering with each other, I put them down for a nap, rubbing their backs while closing my eyes. Despite my tumultuous thoughts of demons and war, I surrendered to my fatigue, too, my dreams disturbing as I tossed and turned in bed. I dreamt that Tari was demon possessed, her eyes glowing a vibrant red as she chased after us. Then Mortimus swooped in and bit off her head with one chomp. I woke up in a sweat, tears streaming down my face, my sister’s name on my lips. What if that wasn’t a dream but a premonition? What if my sister was demon possessed?

---