Page 108 of Forged By Heart and Claws
Above, Calla Lily hovered, smirking victoriously. "You see? You're nothing. You’re already dead, Briar. You just haven’t realized it yet."
I fought to get up, but she was already descending, her hands cupped together. Flames licked between her fingers, illuminating her face with an eerie glow.
“It can take hours to burn a body completely,” she purred. “Consuming essence gives us strength—gifts beyond our kind. And fire…” She grinned. “Fire is my favorite. I love slow-roasting my enemies and watching them scream?—”
Suddenly, the fire between her palms sputtered and shrank to half its size. The brilliant light in her wings dimmed, the flames that had been dancing along their edges flickering weakly.
She stared at her hands in shock. "What—? How is it used up already?" Snarling, she shot into the air above the crowd and snatched a young nobleman by the collar. He screamed, fire flickering from his fingertips in a feeble attempt to defend himself. She slammed his head against the wall with a sickening crack, then jammed the orb against his skull.
He convulsed violently. Magic fizzled and died on his skin as he shrieked, his body arching in agony.
I forced myself upright, my fingers fumbling for my fallen sword.
A concussive blast ripped through the hall, but this one was from Colm.
The shockwave sent rubble and bodies flying. A second blast followed, even stronger, tossing me backward and ripping chunks from the ceiling and hurling them across the chamber. Screams echoed off the walls.
Colm cackled as I slammed into the wall and cracked my head. Blood streamed down my forehead and into my eyes, my ears ringing.
Vad linked to me, disoriented and in pain just like me.Briar, you’re hurt?
So are you; just stay focused on your own fight.I partially closed the bond so he couldn’t feel me as intensely, and I focused on the bitch in front of me. I froze when I spotted Colm flying toward the bride’s side of the dais.
Thalen was hunched on the staircase, clutching his bloodied head. Colm landed beside him and seized him by the front of his tunic. Colm slammed him back against the staircase and then struck him with the merlinite orb.
“Thalen!” I screamed. Pain lanced through my skull as I pushed to my feet, but I ignored it. Blood blurred my vision, hot and sticky, but I wiped it away and staggered forward. The floor lurched beneath me, and my stomach roiled.
I barreled toward them, looking for Vad. He was surrounded, but his magic and sword handled his attackers with ease.
Thalen was in more trouble.
Colm ground the orb against Thalen’s forehead. His silver-white hair was soaked with blood, his face twisted in agony.
“Let himgo!” I roared, my voice drowned out by the ringing in my ears.
Like a lightning bolt of fury, Myantha burst from behind a pillar, her face contorted with a feral rage I’d never seen in her. She leapt onto Colm’s back and choked him with surprising force, one arm locked around his throat, the other tangled in his hair.
Colm stumbled, his grip on Thalen faltering. Before he could recover, Myantha bared her teeth and bit off his ear with savage precision. Blood spurted as she tore through cartilage and flesh.
His scream carried through the hall, high and piercing. He thrashed, trying to throw Myantha off, the merlinite orb slipping from his grasp and clattering down the steps.
Myantha spat out his ear, her face twisted in disgust as blood dripped from her lips. She leaned in and whispered something that made Colm freeze, his eyes widening in shock.
Seizing the opening, Thalen shoved free and kicked Colm square in the chest, his boot connecting with a satisfying thud. Colm staggered, flailing his arms as he tried to maintain his balance.
His face contorted in rage and agony. “You beastly little wench!” he shrieked, clutching the ragged, bleeding stump where his ear had been.
Then he threw himself backward into a wall hard, right against Myantha.
Her shout rent the air as she was crushed between his weight and the stone. Her arms fell limp.
I’d nearly reached the dais when something slammed into me from behind.
Calla Lily.
She stood on my back, her heel grinding into my neck like she meant to snap it.
“I’m freshly powered now, Briar,” she cooed, voice dripping with malice. “The real question is, how creative do I want to get with making you suffer?” She pressed down harder, until pain flared sharp and hot as her heel bit into my skin.
