Page 79 of Hell Fae King

As if drawn to the blaze, the Manticore coming at me from above turned to the excitement and flapped his wings, heading for the moving target.

He dove right into the flames, not even caring that he might get burned. Manticores could handle high temperatures, but not outright Hellfire with their batlike wings.

The Minotaurs roared and followed him, which was once again entirely unlike the beasts. They didn’t work in packs.

It’s like they’re just… feral.That was the term I had heard echoing in Az’s deduction, but it wasn’t like anything I’d ever seen.

Two small portals opened directly in front of me. One delivered a Siren, likely from the Underwater Kingdom. The other, a Naga from the Marsh Lands, but strange shadows flicked around its scales as it spilled through.

Both were intimidating, but it was the Siren that captured my interest most.

Because… because it wasmale. Not female.

There are male sirens?I thought, mostly to myself.

But Az must have heard me because he responded,A few.

Oh.I’d never seen one before. The Sirens in my dungeon were all feminine in appearance.

Of course, they weren’trealSirens. They were dark souls wearing a nightmarish mask.

This Siren, though, was the real deal. And he, along with all the other Nightmare Fae, had previously been cooperating with Lucifer, eagerly awaiting their new brides.

So why are you fighting on the wrong side?I wondered, taking a moment to look the Siren in his milky eyes.

And once again I found agony there that didn’t align with the sneer on his face.

The Naga took advantage of my hesitation and went right for me, finally shredding my defensive spell in the process. Apoprent the air as the fae clawed its way through.

I barely sidestepped in time, taking note of the uncharacteristic full-frontal attack.

Nagas were Hell Fae, not Nightmare Fae, meaning they operated less on instincts and more on reason. And they were sly; they didn’t just charge like a Minotaur.

And it was strange that those shadows were still clinging to it.

What is that?

Pain sent stars sprinkling across my vision when something hit me on the back of my head. I wasn’t used to fending off multiple Nightmare Fae at once.

Hissing, I palmed the bloody wound, and then a blow from a second rock made me stumble to the ground.

On your knees already?Az teased. Despite his playful words, I picked up on his concern. He was worried enough that he was using our bond to tap into my mind and monitor my progress. A bond that was much stronger now that I had bitten him. Twice.

Don’t worry your pretty feathered head about me,I purred in return as I found the male Siren picking up a rock in his hand. He gave me a toothy smile—or was it an apology?—before he hurled another one at my face.

I think I’m more worried about him,Az replied.What’s a Siren doing out here?

I disliked Sirens, but I tried to set my personal feelings aside because Az was right. A Siren shouldn’t be on land. Sirens could exist outside of their watery kingdom for short periods, but he wasn’t going to last long like this.

Something isn’t right,I told Az. And I wasn’t just talking about the state of the paradigm and the portals.

I knew Nightmare Fae behavior, and they didn’t act like this. Even the dark souls I had hunted and managed had an instinct for self-preservation.

The Siren’s gills flexed and closed as he struggled to draw in the oxygen from the air. It was possible for him to breathe, but difficult. He was exerting far too much energy by forcing his powerful tail to prop himself up in order to face me.

I inched closer to him, examining him while he clearly struggled.

“Why are you throwing rocks?” I asked him. “Can’t you sing? And what are you doing out here?”