Page 110 of Emylia

“Shecanbleed.” His tone was laced with malice, his eyes narrowing as he studied my bruised, bloody cheek.

Fuck him.

I bared my teeth, a low feral growl growing in my chest.

Without hesitation, I brought my blade down, slamming it in the center of his chest. Crimson liquid sprayed my face as I ripped it from his body, plunging it in again.

And again.

And again.

Blood completely covered my body as I sliced through the warrior’s artery, saturating me in scarlet liquid. It coated my hair and clothes until they were completely drenched. My knife pierced his ribcage so many times I easily ripped open the warrior’s chest cavity, shredded muscle and sinew looked like it had been chewed up and spat out.

A sardonic laugh escaped me, echoing through the almost vacant field as I continued to plunge the blade into his now massacred chest.

“Emylia...” Maalikai’s voice reached me, but I was too ensnarled to react with anything other than violence.

Somewhere in the distance, a crack of thunder rumbled, reverberating through my whole body like it had originated from me. My fingertips tingled as they had the day I touched the roots of the Tree of Life.

My fury was its fury.

And I was fucking livid.

Pressure clamped on my shoulder, a blade biting my skin. In one swift move, I turned and kicked out, my foot colliding with a female’s stomach, giving me a chance to roll away, grabbing a sword as I stood. A scream tore through the warrioress as she launched at me.

Spinning in a tight circle, my sword came down hard, reverberating when it connected with a skull, slicing halfway through her calvaria. Blood and brains stained my shoes and dress as I used my foot as leverage to dislodge it.

I spun in a circle, my eyes oddly blurry as I tried to focus on my next victim.

“Emylia, stop. They’re dead. They’re all dead.”

I whipped around, my eyes narrowing dangerously. On some subconscious level, I knew it was Maalikai who faced me, his sword at his side, the tip almost touching the ground. For some unknown reason, I couldn’t get my body to listen.

I tilted my head at his appearance, like he was my next victim.

Before he could say anything else, I continued my attack. This time on him. It silenced Maalikai, his blade parrying mine as he backed slowly away, giving me more ground.

Every inch of the battlefield was drenched in crimson, the iron-rich scent clinging to my lungs, sharpening the edge of my fury. My foot slid on the blood-slicked earth, the air heavy with its taint, feeding the storm rising within me.

“Fuck.”The word left him in shock. Not in anger, but in exasperation.

I ignored him, my sword glowing with vengeance as I resumed my assault. Advancing, I broke through his defenses, my sword finding his fragile skin, slicing into the epidermis, blood leaking down his tawny-brown flesh.

“I don’t want to hurt you, but if you don’t stop, I’ll have no choice.” Panic edged his voice, his eyes flaring dangerously.

A demonic laugh escaped me as I pressed my advantage. A lethal snarl ripped through him as he pushed forward, meeting my own blinding range with his own.

Before I could make sense of what was happening, he had me flat on my back, his legs straddling my stomach, the rise and fall of his chest erratic.

“I said that’s enough.”

I fought against him, fought against the weight on me and the hands that bound me. I screamed and screamed, until my throat was raw.

I needed to kill them.

I needed to protect.

How dare they attack me? Me!

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