Page 88 of The Dark War

A blood-curdling scream came closer to the canyon. The vampire, holding the sword that was now burning red hot, had slashed straight through the armor. It was his mate, his one and only that he had found after eight hundred years of searching. His ears pinned back, and his good wing fluttered until he saw her clutching her stomach.

Osirus roared, lunged forth, and pulled the vampire away from her, his dagger pulled from his thigh and plunged into his heart. Virion, who was sitting on his stone throne, laughed sinisterly as he watched Melina tumble.

“That had to hurt.” He chuckled.

Melina had initially killed one vampire that had come at her with the same sword. She took the vampire by surprise, but Virion had another ready in its stead when she was too busy trying to dispose of the body. When she turned away from the canyon, it pierced the sword’s tip into her body. The Death Sword punctured her armor like butter on toast, ripping through her wound.

The scream she let out was obviously painful, so loud that the surrounding fae heard it all too well. They rushed to her simultaneously as Osirus gritted his teeth in agony. He felt their bond inside them, the unbearable pain she felt. Once the vampire was disposed of, The Death Sword dropped to the ground, only to vanish into the soil.

It reappeared in Virion’s hand, waving it around his throne like a plaything. “Have to say, she got close,” he spoke to himself. “Guess I’ll have to hang onto this.”

Osirus gripped Melina, she was bleeding out, and her healing was too slow. His eyes diverted to Cyrene, who couldn’t break her meditation, and then he looked to his sister in spirit. She was already staring at him, her claws gripping the ground, ready to jump the enormous canyon, but was swept up by another dark figure.

Kane, growling in annoyance his mate would attempt such a jump, held her tight and backed away. He grunted, putting his nose into her fur, smelling the sweet scent of his mate. “Hang on.” He growled. The run became a steady gallop with his large, thunderous legs. The claws gripped the ledge, jumping into the air.

The canyon was far too large for him to land. He held Clara with one arm while the other claw extended, gripping the side of the canyon. The rocks fell around them, and Clara whimpered until Kane used the strength in his powerful arms and slung her above him. Clara caught the ledge with her front paws while her hind legs kicked bits of dirt and debris down on top of Kane.

It didn’t hinder Kane’s powerful strength as he climbed quickly up the canyon side, just in time before the bowels of the Underworld’s fire rose up against his backside. Kane stumbled on top of Clara, covering her from the heat. She wiggled beneath him, trying to get free and see to it that Melina could be saved.

Once freed, she bolted to Osirus, who gave her pleading eyes. “Please,” he begged. Not once had he begged in his life unless it was for his darling mate. He begged her not to fight, but her stubbornness and eagerness to help aid in her new home world had won him over.

Her family, the Atlanteans, and the king of the kingdom could only help in protecting the palace. They couldn’t travel far away from the ocean, and the journey alone would have weakened them without the aid of the salt water.

She was their representation, Princess of Atlantis, and he could not deny her.

Melina gasped, the light leaving her eyes. “Gods, please help her,” Osirus sobbed. His grip tightened around her, his hand filling with his mate’s blood while he applied pressure. Never in his life had he felt so helpless. Clara’s snout went right to Melina’s forehead. Her forehead glowed brighter until Clara whimpered and Kane pulled away.

“It’s too much.” Kane growled. “If Clara gives much more, it will hurt her.” Clara wiggled through Kane’s arms, attempting to try again until the static that ran through Clara’s mind broke. “I can heal her more!” Clara growled to her mate. “I can get it to slow down! I see dark sludge around her wound. I can slow down the bleeding enough to get her out of here!” Kane opened his maw in shock, repeating the words that Clara had just said to Osirus.

Cyrene grimaced, trying to break down the mind-link barriers. It was just taking time with new incantations to unlock the complicated black magic. Apollo had graciously given her a vial of his blood that she hung around her neck to aide her with his magic.

Osirus gripped his hold around Melina, wondering how they would take the black magic from her wound. Clara tried again. The bright light became brighter than any light on the field. Fae had circled the royal warriors in an attempt to save the Golden Light Kingdom’s queen.

Clara paused, her snout now baking away. “I’ve slowed it down, but I can’t work the black magic out of her.” Osirus watched Kane relay the news and nodded his head solemnly.

“Take care of her,” Kane ground out. “We’ve got your soldiers covered.”

Osirus glanced around his soldiers, they all looked on in determination. They wouldn’t stop. They would continue to fight. Their armor was gleaming, taking in whatever reflective light they could from the break in the clouds.

Dragons still hovered overhead, dodging the blue lighting with the greatest of speed. They worked together, bringing breaks in the clouds, enough for the light sources to shine briefly to have the fae recharge.

“Go,” Kane ordered Osirus. Osirus didn’t smirk or have some witty comment to say. Clara touched her snout to Osirus’s forehead that healed his wing enough to fly his mate to safety.

Kane roared in the background while Osirus flew to the outskirts of the battlefield. The tents set up for medical purposes were streaming with people. The finest physicians of the fae kind were on stand-by, healing wounds that would otherwise fester and not heal from the black magic.

Everyone stopped when King Osirus landed. Physicians and aids rushed to the king and ushered them into the royal medical tent. They worked for hours on the queen. Her heart remained at a high steady beat, the black sludge covering the wound and now weeping outside of her body. “Fix this! I’ll kill you all myself if I have to!” Melina whimpered, her body slipping into a coma and no longer responding to his mate’s touches.

A full twenty-four hours later, he finally saw a dark figure come in the doorway. The dragons on the outside had thoroughly brushed away the dark clouds in the sky. Creed walked toward one physician, nodded his head, and grabbed a scalpel from the table.

Creed’s alpha blood thumped through his veins. The physician eagerly grabbed the drops of blood before his wound healed again. “This will help. Thank you, Alpha Dragon.” Creed only grunted, his eyes meeting that of Osirus. “Next time, call for me,” he whispered enough for only Osirus to hear, before Creed stepped out of the tent.

Odessa hovered in the sky, her wings flapping valiantly as she radiated power that accompanied Cyrene. It had taken Odessa hours to feel confident enough to brave the skies to help the entire land of Bergarian. Her fear of unworthiness and inability to wield the dragon’s power enough was frightening to her.

What if she messed up? What if she failed?

Once Creed laid down the law, pinning her to a nearby tree, he promised he would never leave her side and that she was the key to this war. He felt it in his bones. He felt Hecate urging him to help his mate. As much as he wanted Odessa to hide among the burned forests, he knew he had to let her go.

Creed had held her back. He was being selfish, never wanting to see his mate in pain. It was almost too late until Hecate invaded his mind demanding him to give her the strength she needed through the bond. Odessa’s heart ached in her scales as she transformed. The purple tendrils of electricity encompassed her body. Vampires and witches all dared to try and approach, but the electric shocks that reached out to the rogues killed them instantly.

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