Chapter 13
Chapter thirteen
Ashland
The metallic tang of blood was thick on my tongue as I surveyed the battlefield sprawling out before me.
Bodies were scattered like broken dolls, some still twitching as they fought the inevitable, others eerily still.
Chaos reigned supreme as clashing steel, screams of pain, and roars of battle filled the air.
The skies above Besmet were no longer an empty void—they were alive with dragons, their massive wings casting shadows over the ground as they dove and wheeled overhead.
Fuck, it had been a long time since I'd seen dragons in action.
It had been a long time since I'd seen him.
My focus shifted to the platform where Prince Bram and Asrael were facing off, along with a third demon. My father.
His back was to me, so he didn't know I was there, watching.
His hair was shorter, and he still had the whole salt-and-pepper combo working for him.
He wasn't much older than me, having only been in his early twenties when he "found me" in the woods.
My stomach twisted at the thought. I turned my head and spat. Fucking murderer.
"I think it's you who's the fool, Az!" Khol boomed, taunting his old pal.
Asrael didn't appreciate his tone or his words, evident as he swung the tightly gripped executioner's axe at Khol. "Guards! Kill them all! Anyone who doesn't stand with me is against me, and they'll meet their death today!"
Khol easily dodged the blow and continued talking shit.
"You know, Asrael, I expected better from you.
All those years we spent fighting, taking over different towns, raiding and plundering.
I figured you would have learned from the mistakes you made back then, but it seems you're just as stupid as ever.
" Khol pointed directly at Asrael. "You should know by now that you can't force the people to bend to your will and still expect loyalty in exchange! "
Even though he was speaking to Asrael, I felt his words as though they were barbs, right to my heart.
I should have been entirely focused on the battle, on Asrael's forces charging toward us in waves, on keeping my brothers alive, but something inside me felt.
.. off. Broken open. Raw. I wasn't used to feeling this much, and it was fucking with my head.
Suddenly, it was hard to breathe with my mask on, and I ripped it off, greedily sucking down lungfuls of air.
I ran my hand through my blond hair, which was sticking out in a very Talon-fashion.
Just breathe.
I glanced back to the platform just as Khol spun and my ice blue eyes collided with his. Time seemed to crawl as his brow pinched, recognition dawning.
"Ace?" he breathed in awe a moment before a guard slammed into his side, knocking him to the ground.
I can't fucking do this. Not now.
Khol spun and hopped back to his feet with ease, but by the time he'd get his bearings to look where I'd been standing, I was going to be gone. Like a fucking ghost. He deserved nothing more from me.
Khol the Cold could handle himself. Or not.
He'd lied to me for years, and when the truth had finally come out, he hadn't denied any of it. Fucker could choke on his lies.
Back to compartmentalization. It always came back to that. Thank the gods for coping skills! I dove into the madness and slammed the box in my brain that held my father and all his bullshit.
Archers began firing arrows like deadly rain from the wall I was standing near.
A wild growl broke through the crowd a second before a massive black panther exploded from the chaos and launched itself at the stone wall.
There appeared to be a tiny black mouse clinging to the panther's head.
I shook my head, blinking, and took a second look.
There was definitely a mouse riding a panther.
The cat reached the top of the wall and charged the archers, knocking them off and sending them plummeting to the ground.
Panthers weren't native to Besmet so I knew that had to be Kaito, one of my sister's mates.
My sister.
Where was Saige?
My hand tightened around the hilt of my blade, the leather wrapping slick with blood and sweat.
A soldier charged at me with a battle cry, eyes wild with that mind-controlled fervor that made them fight beyond the limits of their bodies.
I stepped into his attack rather than away, sidestepping at the last second and driving my blade into his kidney.
He dropped without a sound, just another body on a field of many.
I didn't even pause to wipe the spray of blood from my face. What was one more layer of gore?
Another one came at me, then another. My body moved on autopilot, decades of fighting flowing through my muscles without conscious thought—slash, parry, thrust. The rhythm of death was familiar, comforting even. It was everything else that was throwing me off-kilter.
Family.
The word echoed in my mind as I caught sight of Saige across the battlefield, her hair whipping around her face as she commanded her forces with the same natural authority I'd spent years cultivating.
My sister. A fucking demon-witch hybrid, pregnant with twins, mated to a demon and mages both.
The revelation still sat heavy in my chest, an unwelcome weight I couldn't dislodge.
Palmer.
"No," I muttered, twisting away from a spear thrust and removing the idiot's head with a single sweep of my blade.
A flash of movement to my left caught my eye—Felix darting through the battle with his characteristic fluid grace, blades spinning in his hands as he carved a path through our enemies.
My chest tightened watching him, remembering the hours we spent out here perfecting our fighting skills.
Little had we known back then that all of that work was for this very moment.
A wave of strong magic slammed into me, and I spun wildly to look for the source. Well, I'll be damned, little sister is a powerhouse.
Saige's scream of panic pulled my focus back, and I watched in horror as her giant mate, Cam, struggled to breathe as he stood before her. Magic was radiating from her being; there wasn't a single creature in that courtyard that couldn't feel it.
"Fucking hell," I snarled. I had to help her.
I launched myself at a cluster of enemies with renewed fury, set on removing any obstacles that stood between me and making sure she didn't do something she'd regret.
A sweep of my leg took one down; I drove my blade through his chest before rolling to avoid the axe aimed at my skull.
Coming up behind the axe-wielder, I grabbed his hair and cut his throat, letting his warm blood spray across the ground.
This was what I knew. This was what I was good at. Not family reunions. I pulled my mask back on right before I reached her.
"Saige," I barked, as though I was speaking to one of my fucking prospects. "You need to focus!"
I could feel her power, like a bone-deep ache within me. It didn't want me coming closer, so I froze. She looked back at me, her short red hair dancing wildly around her green gown. When she saw me, despite the fact that we'd met earlier, she still took a step away.
I held up both hands in a gesture of peace. "I'm not going to hurt you. You're hurting your mate right now; you don't want to do that."
Tossing a glance at Cam, I knew he was close to passing out. His face was red and his fingers clawed at his neck, trying to escape the invisible force that was choking him.
Keep talking, Ashland.
"I know your magic feels out of control, but it's not. You are controlling it. It's scary, but you need to push that away. You're arguably the strongest person standing in this courtyard, and you have nothing to be scared of!"
Saige shook her head back and forth, her eyes brimming with tears as she took in my words and tried to gain control. "Help me! Please, help me!"
I took a step closer, despite the pain it caused me. Despite the fact that I had no fucking business helping this woman, or anyone. All I knew was that at that moment, I had to try.
"It's all you, girl. You're the only one who can shut it down. Focus on my voice and take a breath." She was near hysteria and her breaths were choppy, but by the gods, she tried. "That's good, you're doing great!"
I could feel her power quivering, fighting between holding on and letting go. She was right there. She could do this, gods dammit.
The storm mage's lips were light blue, and his eyes rolled. Come on, Saige! I inhaled and spoke as calmly and as sternly as I could. "Now, you need to release Cam and focus this power where it belongs."
She nodded frantically, drawing in a deep breath, and abruptly, the hold her power had over her and everyone else evaporated. Her wide eyes stared at me, as though she could see right through my mask, right into my soul. Did she know who I was?
The moment was broken when Cam began loudly taking gulping breaths, and she spun back to her mate. The corner of my lip lifted as I watched her examine his body for injuries. She did it. I knew she could.
A gust of wind from the dragon overhead whipped through the courtyard, the scent of blood and fire heavy in the air. I prepared to jump back into the action when I detected something else mixed into the aroma of battle. A hint of sweetness. Something that certainly wasn't real.
Cherries.
I ripped off my mask and spun in a circle, scanning the faces and bodies that surrounded me. She wasn't here. Logically, I fucking knew that. Why was my mind choosing right now to start pulling stunts like that?
"Ashyyy!" Talon appeared at my side, a baseball bat raised above his head in triumph, his face splattered with crimson.
"Best day ever," he shouted over the noise of battle and nodded to a particularly large group of Asrael's men that were making their way to the platform.
His eyes glimmered with excitement at his proposition for bloodshed. "Let's party!"