Page 66 of Bound in Flames

“I’m not done! Keep fighting!”

I saw something shift in their eyes—a quiet understanding. They saw that I stood despite the unsteadiness in my hands, the tremble of my lip. They knew I was afraid, just as they were, and that made me one of them.

Gornak nodded at me. “We’ll hold the line.” He sounded exhausted, but he was determined. “Whatever it takes.”

I swallowed hard, regret thick in my throat at what we would loose tonight. “Whatever it takes.”

Chapter 34

Dex

Cleo was fierce. Power surged through her and I watched as she moved from warrior to warrior, healing as many as she could. Her hands shook with the effort. The orcs fought harder when they saw her, their resolve strengthened with each step she took along the walls. Cleo wasn’t flawless. She wasn’t a leader. But she was here, fighting beside us in the face of overwhelming darkness.

The shadows continued to crash against the walls, their twisted forms screeching and writhing with a foul energy. My axe was already slick with ichor, my arms burning with the effort of cutting them down. Our bodies were battered but our spirits held firm. There was no retreat. There was no faltering, even as the odds were against us.

I roared, my voice cutting through the screech of the dying creatures, I swung my axe with a grunt, the blade sinking into their unnatural flesh. I glanced back at Cleo. I could see the exhaustion weighing her down, the way her shoulders sagged under the burden of the magic. Her power crackled through the air, fueling our warriors to push back the enemy. She was magnificent—terrifying in a way that made my chest ache with both pride and regret. This was what I had wanted, wasn’t it? Tounleash her, to use her power to destroy those who had taken everything from my people?

Another impact shook the walls, harder this time, and I turned just in time to see a monstrous creature breach the line. It was a mass of roiling dark energy, its eyes burning with a vicious, hatred. It barreled through the defenders, knocking them aside like they were nothing, and headed straight for Cleo. I saw the creature lunge, a claw glinting in the faint light as it broke through the fray. Her back was turned, her focus locked on the healing power she wielded. She wouldn’t see him in time.

“Behind you!” My voice tore through the noise, and I didn’t think—I moved.

Claws sunk deep into my arm as I shoved Cleo aside, my dagger in sunk deep into its throat. Her wide eyes met mine, and the battlefield faded. Blood trickled down my arm, staining the edge of my armor, but I didn’t care. I’d take a thousand cuts if it meant keeping her safe.

“Stay behind me,” I growled.

My hands tightened around the haft of my axe, the wood creaking under the strain of my frustration, my aches heavy with the strain of overuse. “We don’t stop.” My voice was firm, laced with the promise of retribution.

Cleo swiped a hand across her upper lip, smearing blood over her cheek, as a glint of fierce determination flashed in her eyes. She reached out, pressing magic into the fresh wound, knitting my flesh together in almost an instant.

But something had changed. The air around her crackled with raw electricity, raising the hair on the back of my neck. Her magic pulsed out of her control, her eyes locked onto the dark creatures, and I saw something wild flare in her gaze—rage.

Driving her hand forward, the world seemed to split apart with a deafening crack of thunder. Lightning exploded from her fingertips, blinding-white, a spear of pure energy that shotacross the battlefield, searing through the shadows, the flash left spots dancing in my vision, and I blinked against the light. The bolt jumped wildly from one creature to the next, arcing through their twisted bodies like a chain of lightning, narrowly avoiding the orcs. The air buzzed, the scent of burnt flesh filling my nostrils as I watched the creatures writhed, their twisted forms disintegrating into ash, and for the first time, the tide faltered.

The only sound was the crackling remnants of Cleo’s magic, fading into the night. I forced myself to breathe, my chest tight with the aftermath of what I’d just witnessed. Her power had always been a force to reckon with—but this was something entirely beyond our understanding. As the last echoes of thunder faded, I couldn’t help the chill that ran down my spine, wondering if she could come back from the edge she’d been too terrified to cross.

Cleo was barely upright, swaying as if the ground beneath her might give way. Her veins glowed white hot, pulsing in time with her ragged breaths. I could see the pain etched into her face. She had bought us a moment—a brief, precious moment to catch our breath.

“Stay back.” Cleo begged, my heart clenching as I could only watch her wrestle to contain her magic. She was losing control.

I could see the grim realization in the eyes of my warriors. Cleo wasn’t strong enough to keep healing us, to keep striking down our enemies. There were too many.

The weight of duty pressed on me, the lives of every member of my clan hanging in the outcome of battle. We would fight until the end and make the darkness bleed for every inch it wanted to take.

I had lost hope. The walls would fall, and we would be overrun. But if this was to be our end, then we would face it with steel in our hands and fire in our hearts.

The shadow creatures poured back over the walls, their claws scraping against the stone, their eyes glowing with a sickly red light. I carved through another, its body crumbling, but the tide was endless, a plague of inevitable death.

I drove my axe through another creature. “Watch your left!” I twisted in time to see Cleo pivot, flames bursting from her hands and reducing the shadow lunging at her to ash.

She shot me a quick look, her lips curving in a smile despite the writhing magic scorching through her veins. “You think I didn’t see that?”

Amidst the chaos, I found myself smiling. My mate fought by my side with enough passion left to still throw attitude at me.There was no better way to leave this earth.

“Fall back to the inner line!” I ordered, knowing this position was slipping from our control. I found myself circling Cleo, my shoulder brushing against hers. The heat pouring off her skin was like standing next to a forge, her magic searing the air. “We’re getting overrun! We can’t hold them here!”

Her focus was locked on the creatures swarming over the battlements. Her hands pressed to the stone, her fingers glowing brighter as she sent another surge of energy into the earth. Roots burst from the ground, snaring the creatures’ legs and dragging them down. Turning to me, her eyes blazed molten gold, not unlike my own. “Not until we burn every last one of them!” she yelled back, voice trembling with raw power.

Damn her stubbornness.But I couldn’t deny the fire in her voice, the way it burned through the fear that had lodged itself in my chest. The creatures were nearly on top of us, their claws flashing in the firelight, and I met them head-on, swinging my axe with a fury that matched the fire in Cleo’s veins.

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