63. Lora
Lora
Rage surged through me as I ripped water from the earth. I gathered droplets clinging to leaves, moisture trapped in moss, dew coating blades of grass. Never had I drawn from so many sources at once. Fury sharpened my focus, guiding my magic with brutal precision.
My fingers twisted, shaping the liquid into razor-sharp spikes. I launched them at the deep-rotten fiend before me in rapid succession. His metal reshaped into a shield between us, swallowing each spike in a hiss of steam.
A guttural snarl tore from my throat as I flung shard after shard from different angles. He deflected them all. The metal floated around him, reshaping and darting to intercept each projectile.
Never once did he strike back.
His restraint only enraged the snarling beast in my chest. Cold seeped from my skin, frost crystallizing in the air around me. Shadows curled up my legs of their own accord, drawn by the savage emotions clawing through my veins.
I hurled a cloud of needles toward him.
Several slipped through his defenses, tearing into his shoulder and thigh. Blood welled from the gashes, dark and vivid against his torn tunic. But no hint of pain twisted his features. Of course, the brine-hearted coward was bolstering himself.
But anguish carved deep lines across his face, something hollow flickering in those amber eyes.
Good. Maybe he’d finally given up. Let him drown in the despair of defeat.
I reached for more liquid, but every droplet had been stripped from nearby trees and moss. Growling, I extended my senses through the forest. Gathering moisture from distant foliage, I formed another spike.
His glowing metal whipped into its path before it could strike home.
Silt and rot, why wouldn’t he die?
Dark figures loomed at the edges of my awareness, pirates shifting in a loose circle around us.
“Stop standing around like idiots.” A woman’s command cut through the red haze consuming my vision. “Get the body.”
Two pirates broke from the circle, heading straight for Erion.
“No!” The cry tore from my hoarse throat as I whirled around.
I threw myself in front of Erion, fingers curling. A feral growl rumbled through my chest. Squaring my shoulders, I widened my feet into a defensive stance.
If they wanted him, they’d have to go through me. I’d failed him in life. I refused to fail him in death too.