Page 70 of Horns of Wicked Ebony (Deathcaller Duet #2)

A pounding on the outer door dragged me from sleep. I bolted upright, the sheets slipping down my body. In two strides, I was pulling on clothes and grabbing my sword. Grem and Zeec barked as the person knocked again, more forcefully this time.

“Halálhívó!” a male called through the door, panic evident in the way he spoke my honorific.

I yanked it open, revealing a Százados I’d brought back from the front to recuperate.

He didn’t even salute me. “Halálhívó, we’re under attack.”

“What?” I snapped. “How? Where? When?”

“The Angels are approaching from north of northwest. About twenty thousand by our estimates,” he panted, a tremble in his hands he quickly hid behind his back.

“How far?” I growled, neck growing tight and hot.

“A few miles, sir. The night scout spotted them and flew back immediately. We’ve sent others to rouse the rest of the academy. Everyone will be awaiting your orders.”

“How the fuck,” I snarled as I stormed back into the chamber, not even bothering to close the door. I needed to rouse Assyria and strap into my armor. There was no time to waste.

“Send the High Priestess, Hadvezér Rapp, and Parancsok Olet to my office immediately. Send a messenger into Fured to prepare the townspeople and seal the outer fucking doors.” I shot the rapid fire commands over my shoulder.

“Yes, sir,” the male said before sprinting down the stairs, his feet hammering them hard.

“Assyria!” I barked, and she jolted upright in bed. She must have seen the wild look about me because she slid from beneath the sheets and started pulling on clothes without me having to demand.

“What’s going on?” she asked as she jump-shimmied into her black leather pants.

“The Angels are attacking,” I replied, trying to keep my voice calm despite the way my heart thundered in my chest.

“Fuck,” she swore, finding the rest of her armor and securing it around her. It made me infinitely grateful I’d had a few metal plates made for more vulnerable parts of her body along with her rose-covered helmet.

What the fuck had happened to Trol? Did this group slip away unnoticed, like I thought we had? Or had he been beaten back once again?

We hadn’t had a raven from him in nearly a week…

I shoved thoughts of the rest of the army out of my head. There was no use worrying about them now, not when the threat in front of us was very, very real.

In minutes we were both dressed, with weapons strapped and ready to fight. Grem and Zeec were in their harnesses too, tongues flicking out of their mouths as they panted.

“Let’s go,” I growled, blood beginning to boil. These motherfuckers would not destroy us here. Our numbers were fewer, but we possessed more magic, and we had fucking me .

And my mate.

I took the stairs down two at a time, Assyria and the dogs racing behind me.

Once we reached the ground level, chaos reigned.

Males and females darted about, screaming for weapons, instructions, or more torches to light the dark.

We had a plan in place for such an attack, and the officers in charge were efficiently directing each unit to their battle stations.

We whipped toward the inner keep where the offices and healing wing waited. The open air walkway was a flurry of activity, though most gave us a wide berth with my forceful strides bearing down on them.

Across the courtyard, archers grabbed bows and quivers from females handing them out and raced up tower stairs. Below, males passed swords and extra armor to the ground units gathering by the siege doors. More raced along the upper walls, taking their places with a mix of weaponry.

We ascended the final staircase to my office in the middle of the academy.

Olet was already waiting for us there, strapped into his maroon armor, along with a handful of Százados.

Kiira and Rapp dipped inside a moment after we did.

Their clothes were rumpled, and Kiira’s hair was a wild mess.

Rapp smoothed his down with his good hand.

Only then did I think to check the time. The massive clock on the wall read three in the morning.

“Fucking Fates,” I cursed as I turned to my Hadvezér. “Can you fight?”

A muscle feathered in his jaw as he shook his head. “Magic only.”

“I’ll take it. Don’t push yourself, do you hear me? I’d rather you tap out your magic and have to retreat than reinjure yourself.”

“Aye,” he said, his voice hard as steel .

“We trained for this. You know how to lead from the rear. I will go to the front and Call,” I told him.

“Where do you want me?” Assyria questioned, and I faced my fierce, brave mate.

Her determination shone through the slits in her helmet, but our bond told an entirely different story.

Apprehension and uncertainty trickled between us.

Flashes of my recent nightmare held my ribs in a vise.

I knew what I’d promised, but now the threat was so fucking real.

“I can’t risk–”

“Fuck that, Rokath. I’m fighting with you,” she snapped, slicing my words with the fire in her tone. Ferocity replaced her fear. Her arms crossed over her chest, flexing her hard-earned muscle.

“Now is not the time,” I growled, taking a menacing step toward her. The officers pointedly looked elsewhere and busied themselves whispering with heads bent.

She only lifted her chin and glared at me. “For you to be an asshole? You’ve never been able to tell me what to do, and that’s not going to start now. We’ve been training for this. We’re stronger together.”

I ground my teeth at my defiant mate, mind working over how to ensure her safety and our victory simultaneously.

I hated how she called me out when terror gripped me, when my desire to protect her blocked all reason.

I hated that it turned me on. Loved her all the more for it.

“Alright, then you will become me. You will remain with the Deathveiled and Rapp.” The unit had been working tirelessly, training to guard my mate.

All would give their lives for her, which was exactly what I needed at that moment.

“What do you have in mind for our defense?” Rapp asked, low and urgent. The other officers returned their attention to us, and I motioned for everyone to join me around the planning table .

From the wall, I pulled the map of Fured and the academy and splayed it out. “Split the Angel’s attention. We’ll already have enough of a target on us, so might as well use that to our advantage.”

I grabbed a handful of marker stones from a bowl and spilled them across the surface, arranging them in neat groups. “You’ll go with Assyria and the Deathveiled to strike from the southeast.”

Sliding more stones across the map, I said, “I’ll come from the northeast with the rest of the elite force. We’ll stay within sight of one another, keep our lines tight.”

The winged markers I moved out toward the sea, past the academy. “In the dark, we still have an advantage. We’ll have archers circle around and use the wind at their backs to push arrows deeper into their forces. Olet, you’ll oversee them from the skies.”

With Rapp still injured, he couldn’t lead in his typical fashion.

“Aye, Halálhívó,” he confirmed. “We’ll use our shadows to cloak our approach as well.”

The rest of the plan formed in my mind as I arranged more markers around the map.

“You three,” I focused on the present Százados, “lead your units over the wall at the rear and sneak around the south side. Depending on how far they advance in the next few minutes, you might be able to use the hills to your advantage to lie in wait.”

“We’ll leave now,” one said, and I gave them permission to go. Every moment of advantage we could steal was essential.

“What about me?” Kiira questioned, her weight placed on one hip and arms wrapped tight around her body.

“Stay here and assist the healers. Save those you can. Comfort those you cannot,” I told her. My cousin was no fighter, despite how hard she’d been training during her time here. She’d helped nurse Rapp back to health though, and she could readily assist there.

She nodded, and I was relieved one stubborn female was listening to me.

At least Xannirin wasn’t here to offer his ridiculous input either.

At this rate, he should be far away from the fighting and safe from attack from the Angels.

While the Kral and I hadn’t entirely repaired our relationship, I still didn’t want him to die.

Then I’d have to fucking rule.

“Is everyone clear on the plan?” I ground out, connecting with each individual in the room.

“Aye,” Olet and Rapp responded, their expressions grim yet determined. They knew as well as I did we were vastly outnumbered. Even with the influx of females, they still only had a few weeks of training.

I had to hope it was enough to save them.

“It will take more of my magic to make your clothes too,” Assyria said, using her thumb to fiddle with the ring on her finger. “Do you have a second set of armor lying around somewhere?”

My jaw clenched again. This was my only set, and yet I didn’t want Assyria to be unprotected or burn through her power faster.

Not with how long this battle could go on.

“I don’t. Like I told Rapp, don’t push yourself past your limits.

The moment either of you start closing in on the point of exhaustion, return to the academy. ”

“We will. Now let’s go. I’m ready to kill some fucking Angels,” she declared, rolling out her shoulders.

I captured her waist and removed her helmet. Without hesitation or regard for others in the room, I crushed my lips to hers in a bruising kiss. “Fuck, I love your darkness Assyria. I should have pulled this side out of you from the beginning. My vicious little imposter. ”

“You should have,” she shot back. Breaking away, she flashed me those devious burgundy eyes I craved so deeply. Then, she snatched her helmet and settled it over her brow again. Kiira held out her arms, and my mate sank into them. They exchanged a few hushed words, both touching their tattoos.

Then, Assyria released her and strode to an open spot in the middle of the room. On her next inhale, her chest expanded and shadows whipped in a frenzy around her.

A heartbeat later, I stared at myself.

“Let’s go,” she bit out in my gravelly tone, then broke out into a mischievous grin.

Rapp snorted a laugh. “She’s got you figured out, doesn’t she?”

I rolled my eyes and pulled on my mask, securing the strap under my chin. Kiira approached, wrapping her arms around me. “Stay safe out there. Please.”

I returned her embrace, hoping the tight way I squeezed her conveyed what my words could not. “I will.”

A shaky breath brushed against my armor. Though Kiira had always known I was fighting a war beyond Uzhhorod, it had always been always a distant, abstract thing. This would be her first exposure to a battle. To the pain and death it wrought.

She went to Rapp next, and they lingered for longer than she had with me.

I offered a harsh reminder. “We need to get moving.”

“Aye,” Rapp replied, calling darkness to his bare arms. The wisps circled them like protective sleeves. “Let’s show these fucking Angels they’re nothing compared to us.”

And with that, we swept from the room, preparing to defend the academy and spill our blood.

The number of souls the Reaper would claim remained to be seen.