Page 135 of Cast By Flames (Dragon's Breath)
They had no choice except to alter their tactics. There were simply too many getting past them when they used precious time finishing their enemies. With the amount reaching the shield, he wasn’t sure how much longer it would hold. The Kandoran were sacrificing themselves to weaken it. He’d never seen their kind do such a thing, but these were no ordinary circumstances.
Lorcan grabbed a large green dragon, slashed her bright red eyes with his talons, and then ripped her right wing. As she let out a scream of pain, he flung her toward the ground. He’d done the same to many over the last hours. Sometimes, they wounded him as well, but not severely.
He didn’t bother looking to see where she fell. The soldiers and volunteer fighters who’d flocked there from all over Texas would finish the female. They were finally working in sync after the first couple of weeks, which had been chaos.
As he searched for his next target, a familiar shifter flew up next to him. He hadn’t expected the mother of his daughter to appear during the fiercest battle yet. Not that he doubted her fighting abilities, especially since she’d taken a larger-than-normal dragon form, but this was not her territory. And, of course, he did worry about her traveling alone through the melee.
What are you doing here, Ozara?he asked.
Two Kandoran flew toward them, and they each took one to rip apart.
She finished hers faster, but she did get the smaller dragon.Kade sent me.
What for?he asked, finishing his opponent by ripping his throat out. He’d found a renewed sense of brutality with Ozara watching him.
He translated another page from the tome, and it foretells the shield falling in your territory on the thirtieth night of the war. When that happens, you must retreat to where it still stands and hold off the enemy as long as possible.
How long had they been fighting now? He did the math and didn’t like the answer.
Lorcan cursed.This is the thirtieth night. Couldn’t he have figured it out sooner?
If it is any consolation, he told us this while we ate our final meal before sunset. We threw many fruits and vegetables at him,she said as another wave of Kandoran approached.
You didn’t throw any bread?
She snorted.Kayla made it, so no.
That’s understandable.
The enemy who attacked Lorcan gouged his shoulder with his talons. Pain seared him, but he repaid thefushka—fool—by crunching his wing bone with his teeth while raking his claws under the dragon’s belly. The Kandoran roared and jerked away but could not stay aloft. He took a spinning dive as Lorcan’s allies on the ground scrambled to get out of the falling beast’s path. He was relieved they were paying attention.
Ozara finished her opponent a minute later, to his satisfaction. He’d been faster.
If they break the shield here, all of Ft. Worth and Dallas will be vulnerable. We can’t leave the people who live there vulnerable,Lorcan argued.
She shot him an annoyed look before they flew toward more enemies.According to Kade, the Kandoran won’t do too much damage to the cities right now. Their primary goal is reaching the Taugud fortress.
Lorcan took a swipe to the face, and blood ran down his scales.Why?
Because we have the means to defeat them there.
Outrage filled him, as this was the first he had heard of it.What are you talking about? If we have such a thing, why haven’t we used it already?
She finished the Kandoran she fought first, damn her.I cannot get into that here, but I will say certain criteria must be met for it to work. It still isn’t time yet.
The way she whispered the words in his head indicated she was alluding to a well-guarded secret. Pushing her would get him nowhere, as the elite Taugud spy would not reveal more than she deemed necessary. He hated being in the dark with something that important, though. His mother would be even less pleased when she heard of it.
He ripped out the throat of his opponent and tossed him away.
Thank you for the warning.Lorcan took a precious moment to catch his breath. The nearest Kandoran were hundreds of feet away, and he’d used too much energy proving his prowess to the female shapeshifter.I will pass the word to my mother and emphasize that she heeds your warning.
We must go to Hildegard now,Ozara said.
Though another shifter took the nearest enemy, he hesitated.I cannot leave when there are so many attacking here.
Time is running out, Lorcan.
The urgency in her tone reached him.He telepathically called for another shifter he trusted to take charge of the battle, and then he left with Ozara. They departed the western outskirts of Ft. Worth, where the shield ran through the area, and headednorth toward the town of Sanger. To save time, they flew within the safe zone. Guilt ate at him to pass the line of fighting, but the Faegud pendragon needed to know what would happen.
