Page 32 of Queen of Legends and Lies
He’s a lighthouse in this chaotic storm, and my heart leaps, because I know with every fiber of my being that he means what he says.
I glance upward in the vicinity of the dragons. Kaida and Mygist are hidden in the dark sky, but I can feel their presence.
My body buzzes with an electric current.
The sensation is heavy and dense, as if filled with rocks.
Unlike anything I’ve ever felt.
Agnar’s eyes glow, reflecting some unseen firelight. The current intensifies, transforming my muscles to stone and my veins to streams of molten lava.
The mountain heaves.
Bending my knees, I brace myself for whatever’s coming next. My balance is perfect, even as the ground trembles under us. It’s as if I’ve become part of the very soil, of the earth itself.
A swirling maelstrom of burning ash billows down from the peak, a mudslide of cinders and smoke that devours everything in its path.
Except for the outcropping we stand upon.
Corrupted screams rip through the curtain of gray death.
Heat swells around us. With a flex of my magic, I part it, keeping us safe in the middle of the incinerating flood.
“What’s happening?” Agnar points through the haze, where shadows contort and flail and bodies ignite like torches caught in a tempest.
“No idea!” It’s like we’re connected somehow, our magic intertwined. But that’s not possible.
I have no time to ponder the bizarre notion because the heavens rain fire.
Kaida and Mygist startle, veering away to dodge the unknown threat.
Boulders alight with a furious red-gold glow plummet toward the earth with a vengeance. They slam into the corrupted ranks with the wrath of a scorned god, each impact a symphony of destruction.
Agnar grabs my hand. “Gods above.”
The air itself sizzles. But there’s no time for awe.
The corrupted keep coming, their numbers seemingly endless.
“Let’s move!” Agnar pulls me away from the rapidly approaching danger.
We retreat, stepping over charred remains and dodging falling embers from above. The ground trembles beneath our feet once more, a rumbling reminder that the world is still in chaos.
We were supposed to be scouting, not kicking hornet nests.
But as the last of the boulders settle and the dust begins its slow descent back to earth, I see them.
Corrupted souls, ablaze and relentless.
They scramble over the debris like fire ants, determined, unyielding.
“I’m really starting to hate these guys!” Agnar growls beside me as he scans the growing inferno. His fingers twitch, as if he’s already missing the weight of his sword.
We’re going to be overrun at any moment.
Twin denials from the dragons pulse through our link.
I glance up in time to see black legs stretching down, sharp talons glinting in the firelight. Turning from the horde, I reach up for Mygist just as he scoops me up. The ride is shaky as he fights against the turbulence, riding the whirlwind of thermals into the sky.
