Page 108 of Lady of Starfire (Lady of Darkness #5)

Her gaze jumped ahead to the direction she was traveling in, and it landed on a flash of silver hair that matched her own.

Cethin.

Nuri was going after Cethin.

How Talwyn had put together what was happening, Scarlett didn’t care. She was only grateful, once again, that Sorin had convinced her not to kill the female.

But she couldn’t leave Sorin and the Witches up here to keep fighting the seraphs alone.

Until two dragon roars ripped through the air. One belonging to a spirit animal and the other to the Legacy he was bonded to. Ranvir and Tybalt were soaring up, and the seraphs were scattering as dragon fire left those in its path in ashes.

That was all she needed.

She leapt from the platform, free-falling through the air at the same time she said to Sorin, I need to go help Cethin. Cover me.

Her shadows were forming beneath her, the dragon taking shape as she fell. She flipped in the air, seeing the seraphs diving after her, but Sorin was already there, already catching up to them.

Not on a fire dragon, though.

No. He had godsdamn wings of fire.

He tackled a seraph from behind, the two of them rolling in the air before blood was spraying, and the seraph’s wings went one way while the male himself plummeted.

Gods. She could watch him like that all damn day. Fire and blood and—

Right.

Cethin. Nuri. Death to bestow.

She could swear she felt Sorin chuckling darkly down the bond as she flipped around, not even realizing she’d landed atop her shadow dragon.

Still not finding Nuri, she soared towards the place she’d last seen Cethin, catching a glimpse of Kailia when she appeared and disappeared before Scarlett could blink.

She landed a hundred yards away from her brother, her dragon shifting to panthers as her feet hit the ground.

She was running, the dark felines snarling and taking down soldiers as she moved, effectively clearing her path.

Scarlett broke through another group of fighting mortals and Fae at the same moment Nuri appeared, and Scarlett stepped through darkness, reappearing in front of Death’s Shadow with her sword raised, meeting her blade in the air.

“Sister,” Nuri crooned. “You made it. About damn time.”

“You know I like a little flair with my entrances,” Scarlett retorted, falling into movements she had done thousands of times with Nuri.

Only this time she was a High Queen.

Her shadows thickened, wrapping around the two of them and encasing them in a sphere of Chaos.

Because that’s what they were.

Two daughters of the darkest part of the world.

They leapt back from each other. Nuri began to pace in a tight circle on her side of the sphere. Scarlett clutched a stitch in her side, breathing hard, the darkness blocking out the sound of battle around them. “Tell me the order,” she said between gasping breaths.

“Kill the Avonleyan King before the battle is won or lost,” Nuri said, sheathing her scimitar.

“So if the battle is ended before you kill him, you will not need to fulfill it?”

“Yes.”

“Okay,” Scarlett said, her mind whirling with options.

“Scarlett.”

She glanced up at her sister to find her eyes filled with dread.

“There is a Maraan Lord here.”

Scarlett straightened. That changed things, but it also didn’t.

“Which one?”

“Roderick.”

The last Maraan Lord. The only one Scarlett had not known.

“What is his stolen power?”

“He is like Veda, only much stronger. Veda could only manipulate one person at a time. Roderick can touch dozens at once,” Nuri answered.

“Where has he been hiding?”

“He has been organizing the seraphs as they have arrived over the decades,” Nuri answered, her pacing becoming frenetic. “This battle is far from over.” She drew a blade, fisting it tightly. “I don’t want to, Scarlett. Know that. I didn’t want to kill Sawyer or any of the—”

“I know, Nuri,” Scarlett interrupted. “Other than Mordecai, are there any others with Roderick that should be spared?”

Nuri stared at her. “You cannot take them all on, Scarlett. Even with your magic, starfire alone will not be enough to defeat him. He is too strong.”

“Answer the question, Nuri.”

“Only Cai.”

Scarlett nodded before she said, “I apologize in advance for how much this is going to fucking hurt.”

She lunged at Nuri, tackling her and sucking her darkness back in at the same moment. Yelling and screaming filled her ears, Cethin still there, eyes frantic when they appeared.

“Kailia!” Scarlett screamed. The queen was there in the next breath. “Bands to hold her.”

Two deathstone bands appeared in her hand, and she slipped them onto Nuri’s wrists, binding them together.

“How will these hurt?” Nuri asked.

“They won’t,” Scarlett said. “They’ll keep you from fighting back when I do this.”

A shirastone dagger appeared in Scarlett’s hand, and she stabbed it deep into Nuri’s shoulder, a scream sounding from the Night Child. Deathstone and shirastone would keep her down.

Scarlett hoped.

“Watch her,” she said to Kailia. Then she looked to her brother. “You’re with me.”

She Traveled them to the trees where she’d first spotted Nuri. Mordecai was there, giving orders to seraphs who flew off to deliver them to various units.

“We need to take care of the dragons,” Mordecai said to a male that Scarlett had to assume was Roderick.

“Godsdamn overgrown lizards,” the male answered. “They were supposed to be taken care of centuries ago. How are they appearing in the various realms now?”

“I do not know, my Lord—” Mordecai answered. “But their dragon fire will decimate our ranks if they are not taken care of soon.”

“How many bolts do we have?”

“Ten.”

“Make it happen.”

Mordecai’s wings flared out, preparing to take to the sky. “And you, my Lord?”

“I am waiting for her. Now that she is here, she will come to me. I do not play the games Alaric does,” Roderick answered.

“A word of caution, my Lord,” Mordecai started.

“It is not needed. Go do your job,” Roderick spat.

Mordecai nodded, taking to the sky.

“Can you begin draining that one subtly?” she whispered to Cethin. “He is a Maraan Lord.”

If that was news to him, Cethin didn’t show it. He’d likely felt out his reserves the moment they had appeared in the trees. “For him not to notice, it won’t be much,” Cethin replied. “But I will do what I can.”

She nodded.

Sorin?

What do you need, Love?

She looked up, not surprised to find him fighting above her, easily within range. Fire flared from one palm while he swiped with one of his short swords with the other hand.

Did you see Mordecai take off?

Yes.

I need him far, far away from me, along with all of our people. And as many seraphs pushed my way as possible.

There was a pause before, What are you going to do?

Unleash Chaos.

She glanced up again, already seeing him shooting higher.

How much time do I have?

Minutes.

Fuck.

She choked on her laugh, but a few moments later, she started hearing the cry ring out.

“Fall back! Fall back!”

“You can start draining him fully now,” she said to Cethin.

That made him start, his head whipping to her. “What? Then he will know we are here.”

But she was already walking out from the trees, shadow panthers at her sides. “Roderick, right? I don’t believe we’ve met.”

The male turned to her, holding up a hand to still the warriors that had immediately drawn blades.

They obeyed instantly, and Scarlett knew beyond a doubt that this male was Alaric’s Second-in-Command.

It was why she had never seen him. Alaric trusted him implicitly.

He didn’t feel the need to oversee his actions, leaving Roderick to prepare the armies he had slowly accumulated in these lands.

“Scarlett Monrhoe,” Roderick said, a note of derision in his voice as he reached up and pulled back his hood. “Alaric’s proverbial salvation.” He jerked his chin at the few remaining warriors. “Search the surroundings. She won’t be here alone.”

He had the same nearly black eyes as Alaric and Mikale, but his dark hair was cropped so short, one could hardly see it. His angular features were twisted with contempt as he beheld her.

“I’m flattered you’ve heard of me,” she said, bringing her hand dramatically to her chest. “One minor correction. It’s Scarlett Sutara Aditya now.”

“Yes, yes,” Roderick mocked. “A Fae Queen who is not Fae.”

His eyes went wide then, and she knew he was feeling Cethin. Suddenly, she was being yanked to him by invisible hands. He had her spun and against his chest with a dagger at her throat before she could process what was happening.

Well, then. Nuri hadn’t been exaggerating about the strength of his power.

“Tell your brother to come out,” Roderick snarled into her ear.

“Honestly, I’m much better company,” she replied, feeling the Chaos inside her stirring more as it sensed Roderick’s power.

His hand slid into her hair, yanking her head to the side. “Your smart mouth is not endearing to me. I am not your master,” he sneered.

“No one is my master,” she said darkly, the Chaos growing and growing. She felt Roderick stumble. The dagger dug into her throat, and she flinched when she realized it was deathstone.

“Ah, so you do know what this is? That it will not kill you, but will hold you in the in-between?”

“Yes,” Scarlett gritted out, knowing he wasn’t drained enough yet for her to do anything.

“Tell your brother to come out.”

She ground her molars, but she called, “Cethin.”

He stepped from the trees, violence dancing in his silver eyes. “Release her. Now.”

“Get your claws off my power, and we can discuss it.”

“No, Cethin!” Then she cried out as Roderick dug the dagger in a little more.

Sorin! Is everyone safe?

A little longer, Love. Almost.

Roderick began dragging the dagger down her flesh to her collarbone. She could feel her blood sliding down her skin, and she whimpered.

Scarlett? What is happening?

You need to hurry.

“All right, all right,” Cethin said, and Scarlett felt Roderick instantly relax a little.

“Cethin, keep going,” she demanded.