Page 74 of A World of Ruins

‘Careful.’ Aurum grins as my brothers freeze. ‘One more step, and I’ll snap her delicate little neck.’

I can see Freya’s hand at the side, attempting to conjure up some of her magic. Sparks of violet power crackle beneath her palm.

‘The stones,’ Aurum says, shuffling backwards with Freya in his grasp. ‘Give them to me.’

My eyes snap to the necklace around Freya’s neck – the one harbouring the magic of the Isle of Elements portal. She gives me the same wild look as we try to come up with the next step.

‘You’re rotting away,’ I tell Aurum, planting my hand out to the side when I sense Idris ready to run again towards Freya. ‘The Isle can’t give you anything. It will just take and take until it destroys this world.’

The maddening look in Aurum’s one eye never yields. ‘Don’t test me, Nara.’ His fingers dig into Freya’s neck and a strangled cry leaves her lips.

At once, her magic manifests, and she raises a purple-stricken hand, blasting his face with dust.

Aurum’s menacing growl reverberates through the air as he forcefully releases Freya, sending her tumbling to the ground. She clutches the pendant, but the desperate grip proves futile against the brute force of Aurum as it slips from her fingers. The protective shield opens with a crack, and a flash of light erupts, unleashing a force of power up into the air.

My pounding heart echoes around the arena when Aurum’s gaze lands on the pendant and the portal. He begins to laugh – a sickening winner’s laugh that sends a thick wave of nausea over me – as he sees the opportunity to grab it.

At the same time, Darius and I yell out, ‘No!’ as we both lunge for it, before Darius’s golden eyes turn silver, burning bright as he conjures a blast of water from his palm. It hits Aurum straight in the chest, sending him back against the arena wall and causing it to crack.

Darius slows down, shock making him stumble as he glances down at his hands. His fingers flex as if he knows this is something new, something I can only imagine is thanks to Crello.

But instead of dwelling on it, we have no time. I snatch the pendant off the ground, closing it along with the portal. I’m watching Idris and Iker running towards Freya when Aurum rises to his feet, a look of lethal vengeance in his gaze as gold swirls encompass him, and he emerges from them as a dragon.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-THREE

The hollow roar ricochets around the walls as Aurum slams his claws onto the ground. He’s just as big as Darius, carrying a menacing undertone within his red and gold exterior. The slim muzzle shows thousands of scars, matching the one that rests across the same eye where I stabbed him and making the colour of it a milky white.

I swallow.

Darius doesn’t step back from his uncle’s dragon form. Instead, he shifts and challenges him.

‘Nara, get the portal out of here!’ Idris yells at me. He and Iker have each of Freya’s arms on their shoulders as they help her sluggish body stand.

Darius and Aurum are tumbling over each other before Aurum’s teeth plunge into Darius’s neck. His cry burns through me and my legs twitch to go to him.

‘Nara, now!’ Iker says, and the command seeps into my bones as I drag back a slow breath and run.

Large and even smaller dragons swarm the arena while the Elves fight against the saved Venators and shifters.

Fernah, my mind automatically whispers.

I hear the distinct rasp of a growl that belongs only to her. She responds instantly, as if she hadheardme herself, and closes the distance between us with a thunderous roar. Adjusting my pace to a slower stride, I seize the opportunity as she swoops by, leaping onto her back. Urging her forward, I press my heel intoher side, prompting a surge of momentum as she lifts us into the air.

I tightly grip the pendant while Fernah dodges between the Ardenti’s flames and the Umbrati’s shadows unleashing from their mouths. Leaning into Fernah, I urge her higher, chasing the exhilarating freedom from where the dome looms above the arena.

A fleeting smile of relief passes through me, but the serenity is soon shattered by a distant cry, a painful echo that jolts me. My head whips around, dread tightening my core as I search for Darius. But I can’t see him anywhere, only Aurum chasing after Fernah and me.

He’s closing in on us with malevolent speed, and I yell for Fernah to dodge his impact. Yet, it’s not enough as he collides with Fernah’s flank.

Everything slows down before me as she loses her balance, and I slip from her harness.

A guttural ‘No!’ escapes me as I plummet from the sky. The wind tears at my clothes, and I watch in horror as Fernah becomes smaller and smaller the further I drop.

I gasp, desperately reaching for anything within my grasp, fully aware there is nothing in sight. Summoning magic to my fingertips, my veins ignite with surging power just as large silver wings close around me, forming a protective cocoon.

The impact isn’t strong enough to hurt me as we land in the arena and the wings unfold. I roll out of them onto the ground, coughing as sand cloaks the air, and see Darius shift into human form. Without so much as a groan, he comes towards me, urging me to my feet. Fresh blood trickles down his neck and chest, but he doesn’t care; he only cares I am safe.

My fingers gently glide across his cheek just as Aurum lands opposite us; the resonant boom of his claws meeting the groundshakes the arena. As he transforms, Aurum locks eyes with me, ruthless and unyielding as he stalks towards me.

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