Page 156 of Soul Forge

An angry sob burst from her when she watched him collapse, but she raced towards the fae and grabbed her arm, dragging her to her feet. Lillian stared at the demon soul on the ground, his heart pierced by the blade.

“Lillian, you have to move.” She didn’t budge. Elda shoved her. “Lillian!” The fae stayed staring at the demon soul.

“It’s no use. He’ll find me. He’ll destroy us all,” she muttered, frantic with fear.

Elda pulled back her hand and slapped Lillian across the face as hard as she could. "Move, damn it!" she screamed.

The fae sucked in a sharp breath and scooped up her katana, taking a steptowardsVel instead of away. “We should kill him. One cut would take his head.”

“Are younuts?” Elda gasped, yanking her arm to try and drag her away.

“I’m not the one in love with a monster!” Lillian cried, tears welling in her eyes. “He’sthe monster here! You can’t pick his side!”

“I’llalwayschoose his side,” Elda answered truthfully, raising her hands to show she meant no harm. “He hates you so viscerally because of what you did. He’s attacking you, not me. If he were a monster, he’d snap my neck just as soon as he’d snap yours. Hecancome back from this, but not with you so near, and certainly not if you kill him.” She swallowed her fear. “You need to go, Lillian.”

“You’re a fool,” she snarled, bringing the katana down to take Vel’s head.

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. The blade winked in the sunlight, right on course to cut through his spine. Lillian’s teeth were gritted, her eyes wild with anger and determination.

Something welled up inside Elda, something powerful and foreign. It didn’t belong to Irileth. Her worry for Vel’s life, her rage at Lillian’s stubbornness, the absolute fear that her choice would lead to the ruin of her home – all of it melded together in a white-hot ball in her chest, building until it exploded outwards. She screamed Vel’s name, glowing power pulsing from her lungs and slamming into the other wielder with enough force to send her skidding through the sand.

The blast dislodged the blade, and Vel yanked it from his back, tossing it aside and getting quickly to his feet. His fangs were still lengthened, veins spreading all the way down his neck with his magic still unbridled. He stalked towards Lillian.

Elda planted herself in front of him, placing her hands on his chest. As soon as her palms touched his chest plate he was shunted backwards by the same strange power, a blast of light flinging him backwards. It seemed to release itself of its own accord, controlling her limbs. Vel swiped an arm into her ribs,knocking her to the sand, but up she rose. Magic built in her legs, and her muscles bunched as she jumped and landed in front of him again, only to be thrown aside once more.

She was a puppet, a marionette under the control of whatever power was consuming her, but even the strange magic couldn’t stop him this way. She knew instinctively that the next strike would aim to wound him, the one after to kill if there were no other choice. Her legs were already moving, positioning her in front of him again. The look in Vel’s eyes told her he had no intentions of giving up.

Pushing back against the power, Elda lifted her chin and tried to think of an alternative. The magic continued to beckon to her, willing her to put her hands out, to fire a blast powerful enough to smash his rib cage in and crush his organs, but she refused the charms of whatever force had decided she was a weapon.

She’d been used before. She’d been a chess piece on someone else’s board her entire life, first for her father, then for the Spirits. Feeling her control slip away lit a spark inside her, and her rage fanned the flames into an inferno, surging through her veins and pushing that power back, until her arms and legs were her own, and her body stopped trying to disobey her.

She would not be controlled. She would not be commanded. Not by her father, the Spirits, or anyone else ever again. She was a wielder, a future queen, and she would set her own course even if it killed her.

“I am no one’spuppet!” she yelled, screaming the warning into the ether, willing whoever –whatever –was using her to hear it and tremble.

Irileth’s power rose in answer, ice cooling the searing light pouring through her body, forcing it to fade until it was just Elda facing the demon soul. Vel looked ready to smack her aside again, but she didn’t falter. She didn’t flinch. Shemoved.

Her fingers clutched the sides of his hood. In the second that their eyes met, she remembered the touch of his hand in the hallway at Gira’s, the way he’d protected her in Grimgarde, how he’d stayed with her until the thrall lifted. Even the glimpse of him when she’d gifted her purity to Sypher swam through her memories. This creature in front of her was frightening, more than capable of tearing out her throat, but she would face him if it brought Vel back to her.

She stretched up onto her toes and smashed her lips against his, knowing full well Lillian’s life depended on it.

The demon froze. Every inch of him stilled, even his breath ceasing. When she pulled back, his expression was blank.Painfullyblank. She blinked away shocked tears, not expecting it to hurt so much when Vel didn’t react at all. The fire in her banked and sputtered. She had no hope of beating him hand to hand. She’d put too much stock in herself and the influence she had over him, and he was going to kill her for it.

When she tried to step back, his hands found the sides of her head. She closed her eyes, expecting him to snap her neck. Her pulse thudded slowly, too loud in her ears, when the seconds ticked by.

“Varro,” he whispered, and her eyes flew open. Vel –herVel – was looking back at her. His teeth were less sharp, the veins receding to surround his left eye. “Youdid it, you beautiful creature.”

And then he kissed her hard enough to make her toes curl. It was different to kissing the angel, more forceful, and the goosebumps she usually felt were replaced with fire, prickling her skin and flushing her chest. His hand knotted in her hair, tilting her head back. The kiss consumed her body and soul until the only thing left washim.

She was at his mercy, her body reacting despite her brain screaming at her for kissing a demon. His lips, originally coolagainst hers, warmed up as her breath fanned them. His free hand lowered to grip her hip, pulling her against him like he never wanted to let go of her again. A satisfied hum rippled through him.

“What the fuck are you doing?!” Lillian hissed, slicing through the haze. He broke off the embrace, not looking away from Elda. “He just tried to kill us!”

“I tried to killyou,” Vel corrected.

“You were a raging monster!”

His black eyes narrowed. “Predators tend to have that effect on me.” He folded his arms across his chest, finally turning to face her. “While we’re at it, what thefuckwere you thinking? You provoked a two-thousand-year-old Behemoth out ofspite, you crazy bitch!”

---