Chapter Thirty
Shay
E meris roared from the skies above. Ember soldiers had lit their blades with their wicked flames and moved forward like a tide of fire. Sweat slicked my skin. They had turned the battleground into an inferno.
“Stay close to me!” Baron shouted. Together, we felled one Ember soldier after another, our movements synchronized since we had fought together for so long.
The babe stirred in my belly as I killed another foe, pain rippling through my frame, but I pushed on.
Baron's hand found mine for a brief moment. The man knew me too well. I hadn’t been able to hide my discomfort from him.
"Shay, be careful," he murmured close to my face, a note of desperation creeping into his voice. I nodded, though my heart pounded as another sharp pain shot through me, but I shoved it away as another soldier barreled in my direction. The pains had been growing closer together through the trek, but I couldn’t bring myself to say anything, especially now.
Three swings of my sword and the next soldier was grabbing at the gaping wound in his neck, looking at me as if I could save him. I moved to the next, and then another, and another.
Then, she appeared: Valla. Her armor was stained with the blood of those who had dared stand against her, her sword carving a path of destruction. Our eyes met across the field, and time seemed to slow, the noise fading until there was only her.
This wasn’t how it was supposed to go. We’d meant to catch them off guard, ambush their soldiers, cripple their forces.
But they’d come in greater numbers than we’d prepared for, and now the field was flooded with their banners.
The upper hand we’d clung to had slipped through our fingers, and suddenly everything we’d fought for teetered on the edge of collapse.
If the rebellion fell today, Ember would be one step closer to overtaking Woodhaven. And then, the world.
I ran a hand along my belly. This wasn't just another battle. It might be the battle. The final stand . If we lost today, Valla won. Ember could take over. Sure, Woodhaven had good defenses, but for how long? My child would be born into a world ruled by fire and ash, never knowing peace, only survival. Gods, I wouldn’t let that be their future.
And maybe it was wrong of me to possibly make that decision, but I had trained for this.
I had spent the last hundred years preparing for this moment.
Enduring, surviving, all with one goal: to face Valla head-on one last time.
There would be no escape for her today. No retreat.
Everything I had lost—the fall of my home, the slaughter of my people, every name I could no longer speak without pain—all of it had been by her hand. She was the embodiment of our suffering. And now she stood within reach.
“Shay, don’t,” Baron warned, gripping my arm. Our shared glance held a world of words unspoken—a desperate plea, silent understanding, a love so profound it ached in my chest. He didn’t have to say it: You’re carrying our child. You’re my mate. I love you. Don’t do this.
But Valla’s presence ignited something in me—a wildfire of vengeance, yes, but something deeper. Resolve.
The throng of soldiers shifted, just for a breath, creating a narrow pathway to her. I took it as a sign. Maybe the only one I’d ever get.
I wrenched free of Baron’s hold.
“Shay!” His scream tore through the air. But the moment I was free, two enemy soldiers were already on him. I knew he could handle himself. I would not falter.
Each step I took was a promise. To those who had died. To those who still lived. To the child I carried. I will not let you inherit this broken world.
And so I ran—toward the nightmare, the fire, the only chance we might have left of winning.
Today, she would know the wrath of a warrior with nothing left to lose.
My boots pounding the earth as Valla clashed steel with a rebellion soldier.
She was too focused on her opponent to see me coming.
My sword cut through the air toward her, but at the last breath of a moment, she sidestepped and my blade whistled past her.
Her eyes flicked to mine, widening a little with recognition.
"Well, well, look who it is," she drawled, her voice dripping with venom as she turned fully toward me now. "And with child, no less. You really are fucking stupid. But you’re brave. I’ll give you that." Our swords met in a thunderous clash. "It doesn't look like much has changed."
But I had. I was stronger. Better than before. Years of relentless training had honed my body into a weapon. My reflexes were sharp. I could see it in her eyes—the confidence. She'd underestimated me.
Perhaps it was the weariness from the ongoing battle that slowed her, or maybe she simply wasn't accustomed to facing an adversary with my level of skill.
With grace, I sidestepped her next strike. In one fluid motion, I drew the dagger strapped to my thigh and drove it home, finding my mark in her side. Valla gasped, her face contorting with pain and surprise. That was the opening I needed. I would not let it slip away.
"You fucking bitch." Valla's hiss ripped through the clamor of battle, her movements becoming a blur as she regained her footing.
I pretended to strike, my sword aimed high, watching her eyes track the motion as her weapon rose to meet mine.
In that heartbeat, I spun beneath her guard, the world tilting on its axis as I crouched and swept my dagger across the flesh of her thigh, leaving a deep gash behind.
The dark stain blooming on her trousers made a grin tug at the corners of my lips.
She attacked harder then. Each clash of our blades sent jolts up my arms, the impact resonating through my bones.
Flames ignited up her sword. The leather of my gloves smoked with the friction.
Valla was relentless, pushing me back step by step.
Her fire-forged sword was suffocating. Every parry scorched my palms through the leather of my gloves.
She was strong and fast, and I was rapidly losing ground.
But I couldn’t stop. Wouldn’t. Because I was those things too. This ends today.
I stepped in close, ducking under the arc of her burning blade, and brought mine up in a tight swing meant to catch her unprotected side. Valla’s eyes flared with fury—and then something shifted in her stance. Before I could register the change, she twisted.
CRACK.
Her elbow collided with my jaw—sharp, brutal, and so fast it felt like the world snapped sideways.
Pain exploded through my skull, white-hot and blinding.
I staggered back a few steps, nearly losing my grip on my sword as my vision spun.
Another type of pain shot through my back and lower belly again, but I gritted my teeth through it.
The world tilted. My legs screamed to buckle.
And Valla used the opening.
She turned with lethal grace, fire trailing in the wake of her blade as she readjusted her position—putting space between us, reclaiming control of the fight. Her burning sword danced in the air again, casting her face in flickering orange light like a demon from the depths of my worst memories.
Blood dripped from my lip.
My head throbbed.
But my eyes locked on hers.
No. I wouldn’t fall. Not here. Not now.
Not with everything at stake.
Emeris roared from overhead, and I recognized the sound instantly—the slightly higher pitch.
A warning.
I didn’t look up. I didn’t dare break my gaze from Valla. But I knew my dragon was close, circling. Waiting. Watching.
With the distance she put between us, I took two more slow steps back—just enough to nudge Valla into the right position. Just enough to set the trap.
My jaw throbbed with each heartbeat, but I kept my smirk steady. “Come on,” I shouted, my voice rough. “Is that all you’ve got? You’re going to let a pregnant woman kick your ass?”
Valla’s eyes narrowed into slits. Her grip on her sword tightened, but she didn’t charge yet. No—she was calculating. Assessing me. Wondering what my next move would be.
I took another small step to the side, guiding her, lining her up.
“Twice,” I said, raising my blade again and pointing it at her. “I’ve hit you twice. To your one.”
Her expression twisted.
“Looks like you’ve gotten soft, Val.”
That did it.
With a snarl ripping from her chest, Valla lunged—fire flaring to life around her as she closed the distance between us in a blur of fury and smoke.
Got you.
I spun out of reach just as her sword came down, scorching the ground where I’d stood a heartbeat before. She chased after me, right where I wanted her—oblivious to the storm building above.
And then—
Emeris struck.
A thunderous roar cracked the sky as my dragon dove from above, wings slicing through smoke and chaos. Flames burst from her jaws—a torrent of golden fire that swallowed the battlefield in light and heat.
Valla barely had time to look up as the fire slammed into her back, hurling her forward and off her feet.
She hit the ground hard, rolling through the dirt, her armor blackened, the flames licking across her shoulders as she screamed in agony.
A Fire Fae could wield fire, but it didn’t stop it from hurting them if they were hit with it. It worked as a weapon both ways.
Smoke curled from Valla’s armor, and for a moment I let myself believe we had her.
That she was down . That we had won.
But then she moved. Valla pushed to her feet with a growl, flames still clinging to her as she rose. Her armor cracked and burned and fell away in some places as she heaved breath into her lungs. She turned her head slowly, gaze locking with mine from where she was.
I knew she had to be in pain from the burns, but then she smiled.
“This time . . .” Her voice was low and deadly. “. . . I won’t miss.”
My heart dropped into my stomach. In the same breath, lightning crackled in her palm, searing the very air between us. But it wasn’t aimed at me.
“NO!” I screamed.
Valla’s arm shot skyward, and the bolt tore from her fingers with a sound like the world being ripped in half.
Straight at Emeris.
My dragon shrieked as she was struck in the chest. The force of it rocked the sky. Light flashed across the battlefield, illuminating everything in blinding white for a heartbeat before Emeris fell.
Wings going limp. Smoke trailing behind her.
I ran, screaming her name, my voice cracking as I stumbled over bodies and ash, reaching for her even though I knew I was too far. Too late.
The ground trembled as she hit the earth in the distance, a thunderous crash that silenced everything.
My knees nearly buckled.
My chest ached like something inside me had been ripped out.
“Emeris!”
And Valla—she just stood there, smiling, the lightning still dancing along her fingertips.
I knew I was putting myself at more risk by running away.
Valla used her lightning as a distance weapon most of the time and she could shoot me in the back if she wanted, but I knew she wouldn’t.
She lived for torment like this . . . craved it even, destroying you in every way she could before claiming your life.
My legs barely worked, my breath came in gasps, but I ran. The recurring pains continued to shoot through my body, but I didn’t care. I had to get to her.
“Emeris!”
She lay crumpled in the charred earth, her massive body twisted, wings torn and scorched. Smoke curled from the blackened gash across her chest, and blood—thick, dark, and steaming—pooled beneath her.
Her eye fluttered open as I dropped to my knees beside her, my hands scrambling to touch her, to do something . But there was nothing I could do. No wound I could stitch. No magic I could summon to save her.
“Stay with me,” I whispered, my voice breaking. “Please. Please, girl, don’t go—don’t leave me, not yet.”
Pain hit me then, sharp and agonizing, and I growled as I gripped my stomach. “Fuck, not now.” I cried, tears streaming down my dirty cheeks.
Emeris gave a low, rumbling exhale, her breath hot and trembling against my skin.
Her eyes found mine—full of sorrow and love.
She tipped her head slightly, just enough for her snout to rub against my swollen stomach, and then she released a small huff of smoke, her smokey ash and milkweed rose scent engulfing me.
Reminding me of home. “No, please,” I begged.
Then she stilled and her eyes went vacant.
Emeris was gone.
The grief hit so hard, I didn’t hear it at first—the sudden change in the battlefield.
The screams that had started. I thought it was mine.
One. Two. Then dozens.
All around me, enemy soldiers dropped their weapons, clutching their heads and howling in terror. Bloodcurdling, primal fear. Their eyes went wide and empty, as if they were seeing things no living soul should ever see.
A wave of shadows had slithered across the battlefield like a living tide, thick tendrils of inky darkness rising from the ground and wrapping around ankles, throats, arms. Where they touched, men fell—some twitching, some silent, most screaming as they were fed visions pulled straight from their worst nightmares.
I didn’t think Kade was capable of destroying so many minds at once, at least not on his own.
The battlefield became a graveyard of the writhing and broken, and the air turned cold with shadows so dark they pressed against my skin like hands.
Even Valla froze.
Her head whipped around, eyes scanning the carnage, her mouth twisting in fury, and was that fear in her eyes?
She looked back to me, still cradling Emeris’s lifeless body, and I saw it.
The shift.
The realization that she was no longer in control.
With a snarl, she turned and barked a command to any soldiers still standing.
“Fall back! FALL BACK NOW!”
They didn’t hesitate. Those who hadn’t already collapsed scrambled to retreat, trampling their own dead in their desperation to flee the darkness that was hunting them.
Valla cast one last look at me. Not victorious. Not mocking.
Just . . . wary.
Then she vanished into the smoke.
And I was left alone, holding the body of the only creature who had never betrayed me, never doubted me, never left me—until now.
Another surge of pain shot through me, and I toppled over, wanting to scream as Baron rushed to me.
“Shay!” he cried out as he made it to me, sliding to me on his knees and cupping my face as tears lined his blue eyes and stained his cheeks. He searched my body for any injuries, but I just shook my head.
“The baby.” I breathed. “Is coming.”
“Fuck.” He went to grab me and cradle me in his arms, but I didn’t want to leave Emeris.
“Wait—”
“We will come back for her. We have to take care of you first. It’s what she would have wanted.”
I groaned and gripped onto Baron as another wave of pain rushed through me, and then the shadows darkened around us and the world went dark.