Chapter Fifty-One
Skylar Cathal
“Astro,” Idris called out, her eyes never leaving Ember as she spoke. “Take Shaw to the armory.”
“Yes, Mother. Right away.”
“And Astro,” Idris added, “grab my knives and spear.”
Astro froze in the arched doorway of tan and red sandstone, the intricate swirls of wind etched into the frame mirroring his bewildered expression.
“Mother?”
“You heard me. And do not argue. You know better.”
Astro first looked at me and then Shaw, asking, “What are you comfortable wielding in battle? What weapons do you prefer?”
“I am the weapon,” Shaw answered with a wide grin. “But my alpha will need hers. I’ll go with you to fetch them.”
I hadn’t thought of bringing my bow or other blades. I only had time to bring the alpha’s dagger with me.
“Good, hurry along then,” Idris said.
He nodded to his mother and then led Shaw down the hall.
A female member of Idris’s household cautiously strode over to her bedside, and Idris handed Ember to her.
“You know the passageway out of the city, correct?”
“Yes, Lady Idris.”
“And you know what you must do if the city is breached. Where you must go to stay safe?”
“Yes,” the maiden answered again.
“Good.” Idris leaned forward and kissed the dark curls of her sleeping infant. “I love you, my Ember. Never forget to burn as bright as the sun.”
And with that, the maiden tucked the baby to her chest and disappeared into a hidden corridor off to the side of the washroom.
“Idris—”
“Skylar.” Idris pushed herself into an upright position, staring me down with fire blazing in her eyes.
“What do you plan on—”
“Do you really think I’m just going to sit here while my realm is attacked and swallowed by the wilt? That I’m not going to take up arms and fight to protect my people and my family?”
I curled my lips, fighting the knowing smile from spreading. “Even though you just—”
“You can heal me,” Idris cut in. “Right?”
I blinked as I approached her bedside. “I mean, in theory.”
“Well, let us put that theory to the test,” Idris said as she raised her gown to reveal her midsection. “And be quick about it.”
I allowed my magic to flow into Idris once more, and in the next minute, she was on her feet and dressing for battle.
“Do you need anything else?” Idris asked me as she fastened her tan and crimson armor into place. Her riding leathers were layered beneath her chest plate and gold armbands. Dark red fabric draped across her legs, paired with black boots that reached her knees.
“Shaw will bring my armor, and then I’ll be ready to go,” I answered.
Idris nodded, securing her chest plate before Astro and Shaw reentered the room. I eagerly accepted my bow and armor from Shaw as Astro greeted his mother, giving her a long spear with a sharp point resembling a blade.
Wisely, her son stepped back as Idris effortlessly spun the weapon in her hand and around her back before forcefully slamming the dull end into the ground. Idris made the movement appear effortless, as if she were born with the spear in her hands, as if it were an extension of her own being.
“Your magic seems to have healed her well enough,” Shaw said.
“Appears so—”
“I didn’t know you could do that.”
“Me neither, but I’m glad I did. We’re not entering an easy fight here, Shaw.”
“I’m aware. Astro filled me in while we were gathering the weapons. Decapitate the dark-cloaked monsters called the fallen, don’t let the hounds bite, and watch out for winged creatures from the sky. Did I hit all the high points?”
“Good thing you’re a fast learner,” I said, strapping the silver bow across my back, daggers along my thighs with the alpha’s blade on my hip, and securing the armor of Aegis in place.
A loud horn echoed across the space, causing Idris and Astro to still.
“That’s Father’s call to arms,” Astro said, his dark brows pinching together as his hand tightened around the sword strapped to his side. “The people will begin fortifying their homes or coming here in search of protection.”
“Open the gates to let our people in,” Idris called down the hall. “Help all that you can.”
“Yes, Lady Idris,” a High Fae called as he sprinted from the room, relaying Idris’s command.
“Our turn.” Idris marched toward the balcony, put her fingers to her mouth, and released three long whistles. “We’ll fly into battle and eradicate the threat from above. Each of us can fly on one of the pegasi.”
“I won’t be needing one,” Shaw said as he began removing his shirt, flexing his arms and rolling his thick shoulders corded with muscle. “I’ll combat the hounds and any other creatures from the ground.”
“What’re you doing?” Astro asked as Shaw unfastened his boots and began untying his belt.
“I like these boots,” Shaw said with a dark chuckle of humor in his chest. “I don’t want to ruin them.”
“He’s preparing to shift, Astro,” I said, averting my gaze. “His clothes would be destroyed if he kept them on while he shifted.”
“Also, you’ll want to open the other door,” Shaw said with a dark gleam in his eyes, ready to give the Inner Kingdom a taste of the true power of our people.
I could feel my beta’s animal’s presence rising, his panther itching at the confines of his human skin, ready and eager to be unleashed into battle.
A green shimmer of magic danced along the ridges and valleys of his muscles.
The scars along his arms contrasted against his tanned skin, giving him a dangerous vibe that only scratched the surface of what he’d been strong enough to endure.
“If you don’t,” Shaw said with a deep growl in his voice, “I’ll likely break it down, and I would hate for that to be the first impression you have of my kind.”
“Break it down?” Idris asked as she moved to unlatch the second door to the balcony.
Shaw crouched, his panther roaring inside his chest, pulsing with power.
“Ready?” I asked my beta.
“On your command, Alpha.”
“Give them hell.”
With that command, Shaw released his magic, and in a flash that you would miss if you dared to blink, he shifted into his animal.
“Holy Gods!” Astro cursed as he staggered back a step, his eyes widening with awe and a sprinkle of fear. “He wasn’t exaggerating about the door.”
“I’d move aside,” I said with a smirk.
Idris coughed to clear her throat, unable to keep her eyes off Shaw. “I-I’m…” she said, coming to my side. “If your people can transform into creatures like this, why aren’t you controlling the mainland?”
“Numbers,” I answered.
Idris nodded as Shaw stalked forward, lifting his massive head toward the air and sniffing.
“I’ll cover you from below. The fighting is beginning.”
“Be careful,” I said.
My beta’s large hazel eyes turned toward me, his whiskers twitching at the fluctuations in the different scents swirling in the air.
His claws clicked on the hard stone beneath our feet as his power began building around his massive panther form.
Shaw’s long tail whipped to the right just before he sprang forward and swiftly leaped from the open balcony.
“Gods!” Astro stammered. “He’s fast.”
The neighs from the pegasi sounded from the sky, announcing their approach.
“Let’s not allow him to have all the fun,” I said as the three of us strode onto the balcony. I grinned, spotting Nisha in the sky. Her high-pitched neigh made my chest swell, and I knew she recognized me as well.
A crimson-colored stallion flew to Astro as a dark-colored mare glided to Idris. We all took our mounts, the wings of the pegasi flaring out and carrying us into the sky with the blazing sun beating down from above.
The Mother was shining down from her apex, the scorching heat from her rays blinding my eyes in our initial ascent into the blue skies above.
I shielded my hand over my brow to scan the land below, hearing the panicked screams of the citizens rising through the clangs and growls from creatures in battle.
The black tendrils of wilt migrated through the outer streets of the city.
“How are things going down there?” I asked Shaw.
“I’m hunting.”
I could feel his mind focusing on a scent I knew all too well. The hounds of the wilt—the garmr were already running rampant through the streets of Crimson City.
“Remember, there’s venom in their bite.” My muscles tensed as I recalled their foul breath and stench from my first night in the Inner Kingdom. The four reddened eyes that made your skin crawl while fighting the urge to heave your guts out.
“Also, don’t get lost or entangled in the mist.”
From our vantage point in the sky, I could see patches of blackened mist entering the city and hear the frightened screams of citizens scrambling to run as far as they could. Anger rolled through my chest at the sight of this beautiful, vibrant realm on the verge of destruction.
“I’ve got it. You worry about the beasts in the sky. I’ll handle things down here,” Shaw said as he pulled his mind from mine.
Garmr, harpies, nalusa falaya, and who knew what other horrors borne of the wilt—only the Gods could fathom the dark magic that drained the life from the land.