Page 47 of Heir of Broken Souls (HOBF #3)
Chapter 47
Delilah
T he freezing temperature of the water shocks my system enough that I momentarily pause as I grasp my bearings. Kicking out my legs, I form a pocket of air around my mouth and take a deep pull of breath into my lungs, and I prepare to do something I never thought I’d be able to.
Not until I saw the vision.
Power moves from the bottom of my toes to the top of my hair, like how I envision using my invisibility magic. But instead, this time, I fill that with golden power and imagine myself stretching, my feet molding, my legs blending, my body moving, my fingers webbing. I picture every single detail the vision showed me and conform the very molecules of my body to the image of the golden water one.
I didn’t know if it would work, but considering the air bubble suddenly pops and I don’t choke on water, something tells me it’s working. I take an experimental inhale, and feel the water glide through the gills along my face.
Pain encases my body. Not one that brings me to my knees, but a type of pain for growth—for change.
Moving a hand before my face, I’m stunned to see golden talons instead of my usually creamy white fingers. The sharp claws replacing my fingernails will make me think twice where I place my newfound hands.
Gods, I can’t believe I’m doing this.
I’ve never felt so foreign within my body before. Growing into my Fae body was a feat, but I was still relatively within my human body. This is…this is something else entirely.
The weight is the trickiest part to grow accustomed to, and when I try and swim forward with my elongated tail where my legs should be, I’m shocked by how far I propel myself. How much I seem to glow within the water.
But there’s no more time to learn my new form. A water dragon has spotted me, and it’s swimming for me at an alarming rate.
Throwing caution to the wind I tuck my new chin in and push, gliding through the water just as quickly as the dragon. I almost miss the moment its eyes widen. Flinging out my golden power I mold it to the element of water around me and give myself a mighty push, turn invisible, and dive further below.
The dragon up ahead stops, even more stunned than before. I can’t help but smirk, shocked to feel the line of razor-sharp teeth along my large tongue.
Using every inch of muscle in the tail I have, I swish it side to side, faster and faster, and careen upwards.
Steeling myself for the taste to come, I open my mouth wide, revealing the golden water dragon body I possess, right as my jaw snaps around the other dragon’s gut. I crunch through bones, muscles, and scales, and the dragon shrieks with a guttural roar. It makes the new scaly ears of mine ring as I carry it to the water’s surface, its black blood spraying throughout the air, before smashing it down once again.
Thrashing my head, I twist this way and that to tear its flesh from its body.
A low keening cry ripples from the water, probably its counterpart crying at the sight. Before its body sinks too low beneath the water, I blow out a breath of golden flames, encasing it in a pocket of air, and hurtle the power toward the body.
It flares up in golden flames, ensuring it never returns to these lands.
A high-pitched scream pierces the water, taking away the pleasure from my small victory within an instant. I turn my large head and watch as the last remaining dragon comes back with a vengeance.
I’m utterly helpless and too far away to do a single thing as it lifts its mighty jaws and snaps its sharp teeth around a pink mermaid’s waist.
A twin.
Even the infamous mermaid power can do nothing.
Pink light explodes from the other twin’s hand, singeing the water dragon’s face. It drops what little remains of the mermaid are left, earning a wail from her twin as she swims toward her, not caring for her safety as she does so.
Propelling myself forward, I prepare to intercept but the dragon doesn’t move toward the remaining pink mermaid. Instead, it locks its sights on Harlow, who continues to try and swim toward the ship, her dragon body bleeding out.
The corner of the dragon’s mouth tips upwards a second before it launches itself.
Panic envelopes my heart, right alongside determination. I shoot perpendicular to the dragon to try and get there in time. To try and stop what Naia has already accepted.
The pod are surrounding their fallen, all except one.
Naia swims behind Harlow, her hands glowing white with healing power. But I know she won’t be able to stop the dragon that is chasing the blood trail.
A scream fills my head. It’s too fast, it’s moving too fast!
This is what I saw, this is exactly what happened in my vision, but I refuse to accept it.
Letting out a roar that explodes golden fire, I’m surprised it travels far at all, and I’m even more surprised when it hits its mark on the water dragon’s tail, forcing it to stagger.
That split second is all I need. I maneuver the water around me to propel me forward, creating wave after wave at my back. If I could teleport there I would, but my body is so heavy it would feel like treading through quicksand.
Another roar erupts from my mouth as the dragon lashes forward again. Its jaws snip a slither of Naia’s white tail, enough to make her yelp in surprise and swim faster, her hands pushing Harlow forward. But they can only move so fast with Harlow’s extreme blood loss.
The sight stirs something within me, something ancient and long forgotten, my magic calling. Following its lead, I line up behind the dragon and narrow my sights on its tail. Despite exhaustion begging to weigh me down, I charge forward.
Golden tendrils wrap around my claws and stream past my face, pulling me forward. Narrowing my eyes, I beg the water around me to move with me and the ocean seemingly answers my call. Something that isn’t my tail or my magic pushes me forward, giving me that last little boost.
It seems the ocean isn’t ready to let go of Naia either.
I’m propelled forward so much so when I open my mouth and snap my jaws closed I’m shocked to feel blood spurt into my dragon mouth, one that is thick and slimy and so revolting I gag.
The dragon stops its pursuit of Harlow and Naia abruptly to snap its jaws at me, but at the sight of the golden tendrils encased in my jaws and claws, its eyes widen before it takes off in the other direction.
Aiming directly for the ship.
Now that Harlow and Naia aren’t in front of it, I launch golden balls of power for its hind, its tail. It dodges every throw I send it. A low grumbling growl reverberates from my chest as I push myself to my limits.
I double the attack, until I’m lucky enough that one nicks its tail. It thrashes in pain, arching to the side out of instinct, but it’s already too close to the ship. Its sharp talons claw out at the wood, and right before it can sink our sanctuary, I let out a battle roar, whipping a wave made entirely of golden power at the dragon.
It’s sucked into the tumbling wave, screaming in agony with nowhere to go. The endless spiral strips it down to muscle and scale until its very bones melt.
I stop to catch my breath beneath the ship, taking this moment to bask in the glory of the dragon’s death. I tuck in deep lungfuls of air as I mold back into my Fae body, prepping myself for the end that no one—including Naia—saw but myself.
Because although I defeated the water dragon, there is a bigger monster to slay.