Page 13 of Court of Dragons and Twilight

Into the village right behind me and Arden.

Desperately, I pull all my shadows to make a wall, but he’s too fast, cutting through them with fire, and I’m about to scream when a familiar beautiful black dragon dives into his side, sending them both rolling in the opposite direction. “ARDEN!”

My scream is lost to the wind, and I’m stuck, unable to do anything but watch as the dragons fight with fire, claws and teeth. I focus on the village, knowing I can’t let those innocents die and Arden needs me to save them. The lava is slower than I’d expect it to be, but it’s still coming down the volcano, and they won’t get far enough on foot.

There’s people already screaming, running out of the houses as I land on a fountain, crushing it with my shadow dragon. Sweat pours down my face, and I feel breathless from using so much power, but I start making a box of shadows big enough for at least a hundred people and add something for my dragon to hold on to at the top. Everything is spinning around me when I’m done, but I see the crowd. I see the scared children, the cowering adults, and a sea of redheads who don’t know where to turn. “Everyone get on the dragon. I’m Ellelin, Princess of the Spirit Court and King Arden’s mate. Trust me or trust him. Just get in and I’ll save you.”

I’m surprised when they actually run towards my terrible box. That looks like hell itself. Even the children fight their parents in fear, but they don’t run away. Only when it’s silent and no one else comes closer, only when the sound of lava cracking stone gets closer, do I force my dragon up into the air, feeling like I’m touching the edges of my magic, like it’s all too much. I need more power for this. My shoulders drop, and mydragon groans as I nearly fall forward. I shake my head and grit my teeth, pushing the last dregs of my power into getting my shadow dragon to pick up the box and fly it high into the sky.

People scream and cry, but I block out the terrible sound of their fear and keep my dragon going. I keep going, keep pushing, tasting blood in my mouth. Feeling blood pouring from my nose and ears. When I see water, with a dock and two ships, I finally let my dragon slowly drop the box and let the magic go, shadows disappearing around all the people I’ve saved. I slump on my dragon as they cheer, as they shout for me and Arden, but I don’t hear anything other than my desperate need to see my mate.

“Arden…” I turn my shadow dragon back, straight towards Arden. I can see Arden’s dragon and his grandfather’s fighting, the two of them lashing out against each other, but pride fills me as I realise Arden is fast, quick, and he’s a king. Fire bends to him, swirling round in great arcs around the dragons, smothering Marcelli as it pushes him down to the floor. Arden’s gorgeous dragon lets out a mighty roar as he lands on top of Marcelli, pushing him down on the ground, lava pooling. He watches me until I’m close, and I land on his back, finally letting my shadow dragon disappear and the power too. I wipe my blood away as I look at Marcelli and feel his chest moving up and down. This grandfather dragon is so big. One of his teeth is probably the size of me, and he isn’t dead.

“Shift back!” I shout at Arden. The dragon shakes his head. My heart races at the stubborn red glowing eyes. “Shift back!”

He does. I’ve never been so happy to see the mist around his dragon and, when it fades, to see Arden. My smile fades when Aphrodite steps out of a portal next to Arden, who comes straight to my side and wraps his arm around my waist, holding me up. I need him too, I realise. I’ve pushed my magic too far. Aphrodite looks down, disgust marking her pretty face until it makes her look as ugly as her heart is. “Kill him and you win.Both of you never thought to ask what the actual terms of the test were.”

Arden feels like he goes cold at my side. “I’m not killing my grandfather.”

She smiles. “So, you lose? Honestly, there is nothing left of him in here, anyway. Kill him or you lose.”

I close my eyes. We only have to win three out of the four, and we just lost this one. “He’s not killing him, and neither am I. You win, you fucking bitch.”

“Elle,” Arden whispers to me.

I look into Arden’s red eyes. “He’s your grandfather. You should have told me about him before now, and we’ll figure out a way to break the spell, because you need family. We can lose one.” His eyes are filled with love and pride.

Aphrodite is smug, and it grates on my last nerves. “Fine, go back then.”

A portal opens right under our feet. I scream as I fall straight through the air. Not with Arden, just on my own. I’m right above the spirit castle, far above it, and my magic is weak. “Terrin!” I scream in my mind for him. “Terrin, I can’t call my shadows.”

I try to pull my shadows, try several times, but they just crash underneath me with how weak they are. I scream as I keep falling. Just as the castle comes into view, Terrin sweeps out of the clouds, catching me mid-air. I knock my chin on his face, tasting more blood in my mouth, and my teeth sting from the impact. My entire body hurts, in fact. I groan as I hold on to him.

“What the fuck are you doing up in the sky? Are you okay?”

“Yes, just fancied learning to fly,” I joke, and he growls loudly. I sigh, resting my head on his back. “Aphrodite opened a portal unexpectedly. We lost the test.”

“I’m sorry,” Terrin answers. “And fucking hell, when can we kill her?”

“Soon,” I vow.

“I think it’s about time I tell you everything,” Terrin softly whispers into my mind as I spot Arden’s dragon flying with Grayson around the castle, both of them heading our way. “And please don’t hate me.”

CHAPTER 8

HOPE

“Why are we locked in a room?” I lean back on the wall, by the window. “Again?”

Xandry is sitting on the edge of the bed, a sea blue sword resting across his knees, and he is quietly wiping the blood off the blade as he lifts his eyes to meet mine, and like usual, I can’t look away even if I wanted to. He has a way of pulling me in, and he always has done, but at least I have the answer to why. He is my mate. He is the one I’m destined to be with, and this obsession I have is normal. Dreaming about him? Normal. Wanting to jump him even when we aren’t alone? Borderline insane. “Because we were nearly killed only an hour ago, and murdering more of them is a shit idea. We stay in here and call for help from the Spirit Court and our friends.”

“Assassinations seem to be a problem,” Meredith mutters, like she wasn’t the one they nearly killed. If I hadn’t heard her scream, I doubt Xandry and I would have been able to save her in time. There were twelve of them, and Xandry took out nine. The smug bastard hasn’t mentioned the difference, but I know he will. We’ve been back only a few days, and the fucking nobles have made it very clear we aren’t welcome. First, it was blocking us from having any food by claiming there was none and lockingthe kitchens for anyone but them. Then, it was flooding several royal quarters where they assumed we would be sleeping, but we weren’t, thank the dragon gods. Today, they just sent assassins to deal with us. “The nobles have gotten used to ruling on their own. They, of course, didn’t take it too well when I told them all he’s back in this world and a little angry.”

“Well, would you have taken it well when you’re practically ruling?” Xandry questions. “They are stupid assholes. Sorry about my language, your majesty, but they are. Nothing will ever change, and you telling them that news without King Lysander here was risky.”

“My son needs a council, and he set all of us up with this task.” She lifts her head high. “And—” She pauses and looks behind her at the door that leads to the main corridor of the castle. Cold salt water pours through the gap beneath the door. I frown, looking down at the clear water, and notice right away how it doesn’t touch us. It skirts around our feet, leaving a dry path on the floor at our feet. “The water king is back.”

She looks proud, even when we all hear it. The screaming. The screaming doesn’t last long, and I wince. Lysander isn’t known for being merciful. Meredith opens the door, and we all see a waterfall going down the middle of the corridor, taking people with it. The water unnaturally glows with magic, and I’m familiar enough with Lysander’s magic to know it is his.

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