Page 130 of Within the Veil

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Trí analóir ársa Tir na nOg, ceangail thú.

Guardaí an domhain, spéir, éist liom.

Sealáil teithidh namhaid, le sciathán nó talamh,

Coinnigh iad dlúth le lámh draíochta.

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"By ancient breath of Tir na nOg, bind thee.

Guardians of earth, sky, hear me.

Seal retreat of foe, by wing or land,

Hold them close by magic's hand."

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I pushmagic through the soles of my feet and let the earth of Tir ag Nog feel my request as I cast my powers wide, forcing any Unseelie that was here, who may have been running, either by feet or wings, to freeze in place. Unfortunately for them, while their bodies may be frozen, they will be completely and agonizingly aware of every moment that passes. They will lie in wait, knowing that they will soon die by my fucking spear shoved so far up their fae-holes the imprint of their souls will fucking moan my damn name for eternity.

No one lives. No one leaves here. No one tells this fucking tale. Is that clear?

I project to everyone who is a part of my camp--mates, Charlie, soldiers, and everyone who is faithful to me and my people as I cleave through another dozen soldiers, my skin glowing brighter as their power seeps into me. Except as the last asshole loses his soul, I feel a familiar inkling of a power signature. One which I felt just weeks before, and then I know.

That fucking bitch is here watchingthroughthem like a fucking vision vampire.

I narrow my eyes, I got a show for you, Dra-cunt-ula. I open my mind and this time I project my thoughts and feelings to everyone in the vicinity, letting my fury pump through me as I pierce their defenses and relay my message to the filthy child-murdering brain inside their fucking skulls. If Nici thought for one second that she was ending the night with a glorious twisted fucking Hallmark special, she is in for a rude awakening. You're going to get a Halloween special starring Hudson Myers.

You are all going to die here. Today is your motherfucking funeral, and there is no afterlife. I will feed your souls to my children and relish in your demise. Your leader is a coward, and I ache for the day that I bend her over and make her my bitch. Until then, not only will you all die knowing you were on the wrong side, but you will also perish knowing that your soul is now fueling my power. Thank you for the shitty snack. I prefer Fae-ten free.

I cackle as I shoot up into the air and rain down my power like acid rain on those below. My people move forward with a new fervor, naturally safe from my rain of death as my power instinctively protects them.

My eyes almost jump out of their skull as a loud roar splits the air.Shield your people, or they will die by my flames,a deep voice fills my mind, and I not only throw out a shield but warn everyone to shield as well. Because...fuck. Dragons are fucking huge.

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Ryder

I haven't felta blood lust this intense in my entire existence. Quite possibly because it isn't in my nature, both in lineage and personality. Oh, I am brutal, ruthless, deadly, but murderous? Not usually. However, the fervor to destroy everything in my path that stands between me and our child is nothing if not intoxicating in its potency. When we went into battle and thought we lost Hudson, we still hadn't come into our memories, and we fought hard, but it was a regular battle in the grand scheme of things, a way for Nici to gauge our power.

Now? This attack feels like a personal affront, one that we are going to answer in kind. Our connection blows open, and as if we practiced our strategy one hundred times over, we split. Hudson, Zane, and King stay together while Oberon and Hunter take to the sky, Remi leads Charlie and her mates into the frantic battle, and I follow Grayson as he throws himself into the heat of battle with a single intent--destroy everyone and everything until he sees Li'Ella with his own eyes.

With a nod at Hudson, I surge forward, blood falling from the sky as Hunter rips the head of an Unseelie and drinks its blood, roaring his fury into the sky, the sound a macabre symphony that would send a bone-chilling fear through anyone else, but it makes me want to dance to the sweet sound of the fear of our enemies. I drink it in as I pull my magic forward, letting it rush through me as I force water down the throat of those stupid enough to challenge my family. While I leave them to drown, I slice my way through every asshole as I stay with Grayson. I don't give a flying fuck if anyone here is one of ours who was taken by Nici. There is no time to be sympathetic when they are all scrambling to achieve their goal, fighting harder to get to a fucking child. With every death, I take their souls, letting them fuel us. There is no path to light and rebirth after tonight. While Hudson's new ability with her spear may have come from our connection, in fact, I'm sure it did, well that and her weapon and Oberon's weapons being used in combat at the same time, I have always had to ability to either guide or take a soul. However, taking isn't an ability I have ever had to use, and considering I was warned against it by my grandmother centuries ago, I was never driven to.

But now? As I take every soul into myself, just as easily as I breathe air into my lungs, I understand why. A savage hunger begins to consume my every thought with every kill, and with an ease that should alarm me, I give into the primal urge that rushes through me, taking root as firmly as my mate bond. I let my body twist and turn in a deadly dance of destruction, the sheer anticipation of every kill as I follow Grayson, protecting his back as we hack our way through the Unseelie, blocking out every other thought.

With every tangible rip that comes with the destruction of someone's essence, a burst of wild laughter bubbles up from within me. I feel, rather than see, Grayson falter ever so slightly as the sound reaches him, and I take the opportunity to take an approaching Unseelie by the arms at a blinding speed that is more than the one that comes to me as a Dinka warrior. I rip his arms from his body, cutting off his screams as I use my element to take his neck from his shoulders, the water cutting as cleanly as the sharpest blade. I sense his alarm, and a small part of me struggles to hold on to the one connection I know will counter the growing thirst inside me-- my mate bond.

But the all-consuming need, one which can only be satisfied by the potency of the power that comes from something so pure it its creation, just grows. With every death, instead of satisfaction, the hunger gnawing at my stomach grows more painful, so I do the only thing I can. I take more. I tell myself this is all for Ellie, but my inner voice is quickly fading because the truth is...I want...no, Ineedmore.

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Hunter

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