Page 118 of Knightfall
Near the dragon I saw a flock of birds appear. They swarmed the beast. He paused momentarily, and then flamed them. But instead of dropping, they just disappeared. Quinn was distracting the beast with hallucinations.
What’s the plan, Bloss?I heard the fatigue in Quinn’s inner voice. That had taken a lot out of him. I doubted he could do it again.
Ryan needs to get Meeker. We need the spell to unlock this sarding chain and get it off me.
Ryan has to heal you.Quinn’s voice bellowed through all our heads.Connor. Take the edge of his rage. Drink it in. NOW!
Make Connor hold my hand as he does it. Have them both get their hands into my peace blast.
Two sets of hands reached out along my arms. Ryan’s pink power glowed around me. Connor’s power was absorption, and he siphoned off some of my pain and some of Ryan’s rage. I heard him grind his teeth together. I could only hope he didn’t try to take on too much. I was about to tell Quinn to stop him when—
Smack!
I screamed internally at Quinn.Asswipe!I came up with a plan!
I sent my men after Meeker. We need more!
Sard! I—my brain felt empty. Tapped out. I didn’t know what to do.
If Dec can’t just minimize the dragon, what can he do? He can’t maximize my power. That will kill us all. It would take too much blood. The words slammed into my mind like a battering ram.
I yelled at Quinn.What’s the opposite of blood?
What?
Dec reduces the opposite. What can he reduce to make blood?
Lips pressed against my arm.
What’s the opposite of blood?Quinn yelled at us all.
The dragon was almost to the moat. Sarding hell. It was too late. I might have thought of a solution. But it was too late. My brain started shorting out in panic. My heart started pulsing so hard I felt it in my throat.
He’s crossing the moat! Quinn, you have to go—
The moat!Quinn yelled.Water!
Suddenly, the water in the moat surged overhead. It rose in a ring around the castle, floating above the towers, rippling in the wind.
I heard Declan’s voice muttering next to me. Yellow light shot toward the water droplets, which suddenly turned black. An iron stench filled the air. My breath caught. My heart skipped when I realized the droplets weren’t black. They were red. Red as blood.
Blood started to rain down on all of us as the dragon flew over the first tower and spewed flame.
I could feel my power swell with the presence of so much blood.
And for the first time, the rush of adrenaline in my veins carried the edge of excitement with it.
This beast wanted to attack my castle? Let it try.
My arms automatically swung to follow the dragon. I pushed out every last ounce of power I had. Green light exploded through the sky. The ring of blood shriveled, evaporating as my power consumed it.
I met the dragon’s orange eyes head on.
Its eyes flickered, turned brown. And then it fell, smashing into the cobblestone courtyard.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Meeker was brought up by two of Quinn’s spies. He’d been caught trying to leave Marscha when the dragon was spotted.
