Chapter 60
Maelsar and I burst through the treeline on the fringes of the Angels’ uphill surge. I scanned the rear of the battalion for any sign of the two Myrza who had been sent south.
Spotting the Amplifier and Manipulator leaders, I raced toward them. Both were distant kin of some noble house, and I didn’t know their exact power, though it would be some derivation of their respective divisions. But I did know that mine was far superior to theirs.
“Officers,” I crooned, making them both startle.
“Issaraeth,” the Manipulator Myrza said, offering me a salute. “We weren’t expecting you.”
So Ishim didn’t send word of my departure to them.
But there was no time to worry about the schemes of the Zahal. Oshenai would ensure he fell.
“Our holiest Zahal was unsure if I would arrive in time for his assault,” I explained quickly, the lie rolling off my tongue with ease. “I’ll take command of the battle from here. Tell me of your plans.”
They quickly relayed the positioning and strategy of the aerial unit above, already engaged in close combat with their Demon counterparts.
“We’re waiting for the snow to clear to send the ground units up to the wall,” the Amplifier explained.
“That’s not going to happen,” Maelsar added, glancing at the cloudy sky. The trees provided a semblance of shelter, but not much.
“He’s right. We’ll have to take the wall however we can. Though we must take great care, as the Kral is present.”
The two Myrza blanched. “Are you certain?”
“Aye, we spotted him flying overhead during our approach,” I explained. I did not add that he owed us a prisoner. “If you find him, notify one of us immediately.”
“I didn’t think he possessed battle magic,” the Manipulator said, frowning.
Of course, these soldiers had likely never seen him, only heard him spoken of in hushed, terrified whispers, like when they spoke of the Halálhívó.
“He doesn’t, but don’t mistake that for weakness. He’s still extremely powerful,” I cautioned. “Watch out for a male with burgundy irises and long black hair tied atop his head. He looks very different from Hadvezér Rapp, so there is no mistaking them.”
“Yes, sir,” the two said. “What do you want us to do?”
“Gather your ground forces. We’ll lead them to the wall together,” I pronounced, drawing my sword from its sheath.
The weight in my hand was heavier than normal.
Like my blade knew the cost of losing this fight.
That my mate was downhill, vulnerable to attack should the Demons slip past our defenses.
But I was the fucking Issaraeth. For too long, I’d broken the minds of my own kind.
It was time to Command our enemies instead and bring this war to an end.
The Myrza shouted at the battalions, who let out raucous cheers. Many pumped their weapons over their heads, thirsty for blood.
Maelsar and I stole one final moment together as the soldiers arranged themselves for our upward charge.
“We find the Kral and the High Priestess, and then we get the fuck out of here,” I told him.
“Aye, we can’t risk staying,” he agreed.
I clasped his arm, holding his gaze. “You’ve been the truest friend I could ask for, Maelsar. No matter what’s happened, you’ve been by my side, unwavering in your support. I couldn’t do this without you.”
“You say this like you think we’re going to die,” he grinned, punching my shoulder.
I released him with a small laugh. “The Goddess wouldn’t let that happen. Not when we’re so close. Not after everything She’s revealed to Sylaira.”
“I’m so fucking glad everything is resolved between you two. Lyriasthe and I were running out of ideas to force you together.”
I rolled my eyes. “You didn’t do anything.”
“On the contrary, I think we did everything.”
We shared one last laugh before a scream overhead sobered us. Branches cracked, and we leaped to the side moments before a broken Angel fell near us. He twitched once before going still permanently.
“We need to go,” I said, taking off at a jog. Maelsar and I rejoined the two Myrza at the head of the battalions.
White spilled from my fingertips, lighting up the space around us as I turned to face the sea of soldiers. “This is the final battle. Our Radiant Mother has offered the Seraelth a path to our glory and to this war’s end. Will you follow us along it?”
Roars of approval filled the forest, shaking rocks loose from the mountainside. Weapons banged against shields. More magic filled the air.
“Ready?” I shouted at the Myrza over the adulation of the soldiers.
They both nodded. I faced forward again, gripping my pommel tight.
“Charge!”
We sprinted uphill, emerging from the treeline to ankle-deep snow. Some slipped, but they didn’t stop clawing their way toward the wall.
Flames licked the stone from the bowls of oil, casting the red irises of the Demons in a sinister glow. Dozens upon dozens of bow-wielders faced us, their arrows notched and pointed into our line.
The Amplifier shouted a warning a heartbeat before the strings twanged. Around him, a group shoved a wall of light forward. It expanded endlessly, covering the entire front line. The bolts pinged against the shield, falling to the ground instead.
The white winked out, and we surged forward again. When they fired a second volley, the team worked to shield more of us. By the fourth, they’d had to cover far over our heads.
We were gaining ground, and quickly. I took a glance at the sky, finding the aerial battle still raging, Angels and Demons falling into the forest at similar rates.
A new group of Demons flew over the wall, landing in between our racing group and the sheer stone face. Polearms jutted forward, and they charged as one.
The armies clashed under the cloudy sky. Chaos erupted as blades slipped between our lines. I smacked the center of one wooden pole, cracking it. With a whirl, I slashed the stomach of the wielder, sending him careening to the ground.
The pristine white snow stained ruby.
Maelsar and I worked in tandem, disarming and killing our enemies, as natural as breathing. The heartbeats of the battle rose to a crescendo, drowning out all other sound.
But I would not succumb to the blood magic that begged to be unleashed.
A maroon-eyed Demon lunged for me, his lips twisted in a snarl and revealing sharpened canines. I parried his sword, flicking my wrist around in an attempt to disarm him.
But he was strong and held on, reversing the force and causing me to stumble. The slick ground did me no favors in my recovery, and I snapped a hand out to catch myself.
I grunted as my palm sliced open on a hidden rock. But there was no time to examine the wound, not when the male’s attack was unrelenting.
He swung down, and I lifted my sword, sparks flying from the force of the impact. Gritting my teeth, I dug my heel in and righted myself, shoving with all my might. He stumbled backward but recovered, facing me again.
Red vines danced in my vision, as clear as the flashes of incandescence in the distance.
Steel clashed, ringing out in the night. Whoever this male was, he’d been trained well. Sweat poured from my temples despite the chill. The flakes of snow that landed on my forehead evaporated on impact.
I backed him toward the wall where the ground leveled out. But the angle forced him to swing lower and lower, exposing the juncture of his armor where his neck was vulnerable.
I feinted a strike to his side, then twisted my sword at the last moment and swiped the tip across his throat. With a strangled gurgle, he clutched the wound. He dropped to his knees, sword disappearing. And then he fell.
Air scraped in and out of my throat, frostbitten and raw. I spun around in search of Maelsar.
Yet among the sea of bodies, I only saw those lines of veins begging to be pulled. So I raced back downhill, leaping on the back of a Demon that was about to slice clean through a female Angel.
“Goddess save you!” she called after me as I left her to deal with the oncoming horde.
Sylaira had said that females now filled the Demon army’s ranks, but none moved on the battlefield. I paused at the fringes, searching for a smaller body wielding a weapon among the masses.
There were none on the ground; in the sky, both Angel sexes fought against only male Demons too.
Sylaira’s presence brushed against my mind. I sent her a pulse of love and assurance as I continued my scan for Maelsar.
A shimmer in the air to my left caught my attention, and I found my friend facing off with a group of six Demons. His brow furrowed in concentration as he wielded his magic and sword in tandem.
My heart leaped into my throat, and I sprinted in his direction.
The Demons locked in on Maelsar, none sparing me a glance as I barreled toward them. With a grunt, I stabbed the closest in his lower abdomen, whirling before the others could react. But one had sharp reflexes, and he swung his thick staff for my side.
And I wasn’t quite out of reach for the long weapon.
I tucked my arm in close, my hand protecting the side of my head, and braced to absorb the blow.
Pain exploded against my ribs. Air whooshed from my lungs.
But I didn’t let the impact take me to my knees.
Light detonated from me, throwing him back. But shadows rose to meet my power, swirling around the arms of the five remaining Demons. Maelsar sidestepped until we were within reach, preparing to defend ourselves.
They all launched into an attack at once. We ducked and struck back while black and white tangled around us.
One Demon slipped on the churned earth, and that was all it took for me to stab him in the chest. The next I dispatched with a flung dagger.
And still, the dark magic inside me prowled and gnashed its teeth. The last three would have been so easy to fell with a simple tug…
I shook myself out of the decadent, honeyed whispers as Maelsar shot in front of me, parrying a blow that would have sunk deep into my shoulder.
“Get it together or we’re going to get killed,” he snapped.
“Sorry,” I muttered, spinning my blade and regaining my position. We made quick work of killing our final opponents.
“Where the fuck is the Kral?” Maelsar snarled, glaring up at the wall. Angels had made it to the tops of the stones, battling for control of the spine of the continent.
“And where the fuck is the Hadvezér?” I added. There was no sign of him, even in the skies. And he was the leader of their aerial forces.
“Something’s not right here,” Maelsar muttered, aquamarine taking in the battlefield.
He was right. We were winning too handily.
“You don’t think he told Hadvezér Rapp of our presence, did you?” I said slowly, worry knotting my gut.
“You Commanded him not to,” Maelsar pointed out, rubbing his temple on his shoulder to remove the accumulated dirt and sweat.
“But we know from experience the limitation on Commanding people not to speak of it. There’s only one person in all of Keleti with that magic.” Frustration rumbled behind my ribs. “Let’s get a higher vantage.”
We called out our wings, and the fight raged so fiercely that our presence remained unnoticed as we took to the skies. Hovering over the treetops, I surveyed the scene beneath me. The conflict at the wall came into clearer view.
And then I saw three females.
They hugged the roofs of the watchtowers, their dark leathers blending into the shingles.
With silent, smooth movements, they drew bows.
Of course, they’d been positioned on the high ground.
The Demons had always been strategic with their tactics, even if we’d often used the Seers to outmaneuver them.
Maelsar opened his mouth to warn the Angels, but I gripped his arm. “Don’t. We need them to lose.”
His teeth clicked shut. A twang sliced the air.
All the arrows flew true into the group below. Body after body crumpled, pierced with bolts. Only a few lived, and they pulled threads of luminosity to their forms, primed to shield from the next volley. The females notched and drew again, their entire focus on their remaining opposition.
So much so they didn’t notice the movement out of the opposite side of their watchtower.
Maelsar sucked in a sharp breath, wings flapping to carry him closer.
Because emerging from within was the Kral…
With the High Priestess bound and gagged in his arms.