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Reality flashed across Varlett’s face, and her talons grew longer and sharper.

“You know what I think?” Valeen said, rising to her full height. “I think that all your past transgressions have come back to haunt you…demon. You’ve finally become what you always were inside.”

“It doesn’t change anything.” Varlett’s eyes glowed crimson now.

“Apparently it does. That spell you had over me is gone.” Valeen threw another star, and it sliced into her other cheek, eliciting a hiss then a low growl from her nemesis. It was time to take sweet vengeance. This dragon had ruined her life. Had taken Hel from her and was the reason they were here in this shithole to begin with. Valeen raised Soulender and stood at the ready. “You know why I think that is? The connection is severed because the lake washed away the magic.” She laughed, who could have ever guessed the underrealm would be the thing to end the spell between them? “You wanted to be immortal, it looks like you’ll get your wish and live forever in the underrealm.”

“Well, if it is true.” Varlett crouched into a fighting position. “You’re in my domain now.”

Varlett sprang at her, talons cutting through the air with blurred speed. She brought Soulender up to meet her strikes and sliced through the first talon. Varlett gasped and pulled back. “You’re going to regret that!”

“I’ll keep your talon for a trophy and wear it around my neck. And I’ll carve ‘the dragon who thought she could betray the goddess of night and live’ on it” She kicked out, connecting the toe of her boot with Varlett’s thigh, then swung her blade aiming for her chest. Varlett bent backward in an unnatural way to avoid the strike, kicked up, and slammed her boot into Valeen’s forearm, nearly knocking Soulender from her grasp.Shit.The impact made her hand tingle, but the pain was nothing. It was a step closer to killing this wench.

Varlett squared her shoulders and jerked her own sword free. The next clash came in a fury of swings and blades cracking. This wasn’t just aboutnow; this was for the past, for the absolute devastation she’d put not only Valeen through, but Hel and Thane too. All her pent-up rage from being forced to hold back rippled through her movements, her swings came harder, faster, her kicks and parries that of a goddess as old as time. Her fist smashed into Varlett’s nose, splitting open the bridge. She sliced into her thigh and opened a good five-inch gash.

A guttural growl ripped from her, like that of a beast. But Varlett too was a seasoned warrior, and it would take more than that to bring her down. That ring and this place gave her supernatural abilities she hadn’t had before. She was faster, a match for Valeen in speed, and the hits vibrated her arms and hands. Varlett’s elbow cracked her in the mouth, making her stumble back a step. If there was pain, she didn’t feel it.

A coppery taste filled Valeen’s mouth, and she spit. “That’s all you’ve got,bitch?”

Roaring through her teeth, smoke billowing from her nostrils, she charged again. Valeen dipped and bobbed, anticipating the moves, learning her weaknesses. They hit swords and the black blade Varlett wielded shattered into a thousand splinters, sounding like glass breaking. Valeen swungat her throat, but she maneuvered just out of reach and stumbled over a protruding root and hit the ground.

“Get up, Varlett. When I kill you, I want you to be standing so I can watch you fall.” She was waiting for her to shift into her beast form, for the wings to stretch and her mouth to turn into a vicious snout, but not even her scales made an appearance.

Varlett rolled backward, springing deftly to her feet. The amber of her eyes was completely taken over by crimson now. Her skin held no sign of ever being the bronze it once was, changing entirely to blue-gray. “You’re not getting out of here alive. I will kill you and keep him. Together we will rule both the underrealmandthe lands of the living.”

She swore she heard Hel curse her, but it was drowned out by the rising growls and screeches surrounding them. The demons were getting restless and charged. As if the fighting and contention invigorated them.

Then it wasn’t only their sounds anymore.

Several demon hounds came forth out of the shadows in low crouches. Three hounds moved in close behind Varlett, sniffing and becoming familiar. They weren’t snarling or hostile… They were curious, almost as if greeting a new master.

Not almost… that’s exactly what they were doing.

“Hel.”

Can’t take her down without me?He chuckled and then coughed.

There are demons everywhere. Do you want your wife to throw you over her shoulder and carry you out? Because I will if you don’t get up.

He chuckled again.Damn, I’m getting up.

It was time to end this. Valeen went for her again, sword raised and hacked down—a hunch-backed hound jumped in front of Varlett and took the death blow.

Shit.

Ten other hounds crept in to surround and protect Varlett. Growling and snapping at Valeen.

Leaving her here with the dead would have to be as good as killing her and erasing her from existence. She’d never escape this place. Holding the point of her glowing blade at the beasts kept them back but wouldn’t for long. Valeen backed up until she dropped to Hel’s side and grabbed his arm. “Hel, now!”

“Alright.” He groaned and pushed to his hands and knees. “I’m up.” He got to one knee and rolled his neck from side to side. The black streaks from the bite had faded, and the teeth marks were now light pink scars. The tightness in her chest loosened some.

He bent over and scooped up his onyx sword, nails scraping the black soot it laid in. He raised his chin, eyes sweeping across the darkness before them. “What the fuck is going on?” He sounded exhausted as he staggered to his full height.

“I believe… she’s become one ofthem. She was never dying. She was turning.”

That tired look on his face turned to something darker. “I didn’t anticipate this.”

“I should have seen it before, but it doesn’t matter, the link between her and I is gone, Hel. I’m free.”