Page 299 of The Lands Defying
Instead, I bring the sword to his throat.
“You will never hurt anyone again.” I tell him. “I am the lands, and I will right the wrong. That begins with you.”
“You think I’m going to be stuck by your binds?” He struggles more. “I am Lord Higher Charles!” He shouts, “and I am your new God! Release me and lay at my feet—”
He cries out, a cough coming from him as I stab the sword in his stomach. I watch as blood instantly pours from his mouth, watching him struggle in earnest as I pick it up and stab into him again.
He tries to speak, but all that comes out is blood, splattering on my face and I revel in it.
Revel in his end.
I call power to my palm, the color now purple, and then I’m sinking into his chest, my magic carving the way. Pain creases his face, a bloody scream coming from him as his body struggles in the binds as I dig deeper, finding the organ I want as Darius watches on closely.
Gripping it tightly in my palm when I have it, I squeeze and pull.
I hold up Charles’s still beating heart in front of him, a smile on my face as he becomes pale, watching my hand flex with every slow beat as blood blooms on his chest.
“May you walk the below forevermore. Cursed to repeat your cycle in nothing but darkness and pain,” I tell him as he shivers, his body twitching as his wide eyes stay upon me. “I hope Cazier enjoys playing with you. Lord Higher Charles,” I mock, as he takes his last and final breath.
I rise to my feet, sword dangling from my fingertips as I stare at the monster who is no more.
No essence leaves him as I lift my gaze to Darius, his eyes filling with so many emotions as he peers into my soul.
“My little warrior.” I smile softly at that, throwing the heart to him and his smirk is deadly as he catches it, squeezing it in his hold before crushing it under his foot.
I pull the sword from his stomach and I start chopping.
Darius watches on, arms folded, ever the protector as I hack, cut, and slice through flesh. When I get to bone and struggle,Darius whistles for Runa to come over, and then her teeth are there, snapping it in half.
When she’s done, I wipe the bead of sweat from my brow, and pick up Charles’s sword. Twirling it in my hand, I stab it through his chest, and pick up his head, slam it on the hilt.
It’sfinallyover.
But when I turn to look at the Elites, my pack and the people who are tending to the wounded, the beasts and hounds that were at a standstill start to twitch, start to growl.
And then, they attack.
Eighty Three
Rhea
I gasp, shock coursing through me as I’m frozen for a moment. We killed Charles, they should go back to where they came from. He controlled them…He…
“Why aren’t they going back?” I ask Darius, as we both move in an instant, heading toward them as the others begin shouting in alarm, trying to defend themselves.
“We killed Charles, so the control he had over them must be broken,” he replies. “Which means when he commanded them to stop, that no longer matters now.”
Gods.
“What do we do?” I lift my hand and send out a wave of power, launching a few rogures to the side as best I can when we reach them, mindful of those I don’t want to hurt.
“We get rid of them.”
“All of them?” I gasp as I turn and pick up a discarded sword, wrapping two hands around the hilt and stabbing a rogure in the side.
“There are hundreds of them, Darius!” I gasp as more and more come out of the ground.
“Yes,” Darius says as he suddenly hauls me to him, a barrier around us. He looks to the rogures, his eyes alert and thoughtful.
