Page 194 of Red Ruin

But Sentinels?

Especially the deeply damaged ones, desperate to end their pain?

Holy stars.

I whip to find Vhex and Remy.

Vhex stumbles in front of me first, snarling and clapping his hands to his ears. “Get the fuck out of my head.”

“I’m here. I’m here.” I cover his hands with mine.

He shudders, falling into my arms and almost knocking me over.

Bracing my feet, I strain to hold his weight.

His skin is always too hot.

Now Vhex’s fingers are ice.

Something flares through his silks, moving too fast to follow.

“Don’t listen to the voice.” I shake him as I dive into his meridians. “You only listen to me.”

Threads of green and yellow warp Vhex’s magic.

The lich king’s command opened the gates. Now physical death magic crawls through Vhex’s veins.

The lines are faint and frigid, but they’re growing thicker fast.

Vhex is made of flames.

His physique is a nightmare mismatch for death magic. Every rotting thread sparks a backlash chain reaction. Explosions of hellfire sear through his meridians like firecrackers, eating off pieces of his soul.

Vhex is burning.

Fire and rot escalate their fight at heart-stopping speed.

A rampage isn’t just inevitable.

It’simminent.

Vhex’s claws extend. His eyes flash between pink and shocking crimson.

Shaking, he drags my hands to his mouth and kisses my knuckles with a voice carved from smoke. “Let me go.”

Lethimgo?

The heat of his lips tickles my skin. “You’re holding my wrists.”

“Oh. Weird.” Vhex doesn’t change his grip. His chin sharpens, his skin reddening, but his smile softens as he curls his flaming wings around me. His silks make the same motion, reeling me in with a bittersweet rasp that aches in my soul. “Firefly. It’s getting dark. I think I have to go?—”

“Shut up.” I wrench Vhex’s horn and drag him to my mouth.

No one’s fucking dying while I’m here.

As my kiss crushes Vhex’s lips, his wings cocoon me. His soul shivers with pleasure, even as that creepy, crawly magic fights a war inside his veins.

I hiss.

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