Page 7

Rion

Beautiful was too small a word to describe his mate in this moment. He’d seen her magic take control, causing her to forget herself and those she desired to protect. But the bond told him she was in control now—that the magic radiating from her was of her own free will.

And it was intoxicating.

Electrifying.

Addictive.

Rion smiled for the first time tonight, confident they just might pull out of this mess. There were too many poorly trained warriors. Too many who had never seen a battle of this magnitude. Even those with experience had nearly balked at the sight of the Dark Fae.

Thankfully, they’d stood their ground and it had made all the difference. They were succeeding, even if the body counts were rising more than he’d like.

Arianna exploded, her magic a majestic symphony that knew friend from foe with little effort. As if it were a sentient being.

She ducked, thrusting her sword up through a creature’s jaw before twisting away. Rion grabbed her by the waist, spinning them both out of range of flying flames. His magic rose to dance with hers—testing, teasing—before colliding with another enemy.

Their magics knew one another as if they were old friends who’d been reunited.

They were one.

His chest swelled with pride. Their eyes met, hers exhilarated from the fight, before she dove back into the fray, and Rion followed.

It was a dance of water and sand and ice and steel. Teeth snapped at them but were stopped in their tracks. Claws reached out to rake down their flesh only to be cut off at the bone.

And his mate didn’t balk once.

He’d seen her like this before. The day she’d protected him when she’d been sorely outnumbered. The day she’d stood at Talon’s side, ready to fall defending Levea. The day she’d come for him, liberating him from being a captive once again. And the day Ruádhan had fallen.

Arianna’s sword was out, her fangs bared, her body a living weapon.

A queen.

Rion ducked beneath a winged talon that reached for him and blasted the creature’s skin right off its body. Arianna attacked another, a spear of ice flying straight through its torso. They kept moving toward the break in the wall.

Others saw and followed. Trees were growing where the wooden planks had failed. If they could just hold the line a little longer—

A scream echoed from behind and Rion pivoted, heart pounding, to find two Fae who’d been separated from their comrades. Arianna paused too, but the others kept moving, fighting back the creatures with everything they had.

“Rion.” He heard his name at the same moment he felt her pull on the bond. He knew what she wanted.

Rion glanced toward the two being herded away. Everyone else had already left them to their fate. A fire wielding male and a water bending female. An unlikely duo fighting side by side to the death.

More of the Dark Fae turned their attention toward the pair. An easy meal.

Arianna’s magic exploded, carving a path in their direction, but they both knew she wouldn’t reach them in time. Even now he saw the male buckle.

“Get them,” Arianna commanded, her fear reflecting down the bond.

Get them. Go after two complete strangers or stay at his mate’s side. He’d already made his decision, but the pleading in her eyes had him reconsidering.

Arianna kept fighting to reach them, her magic blasting creature after creature. She’d never forgive herself if they went down. He knew that pain. The ache of being too late. The drowning guilt of knowing you could have done something but weren’t strong enough.

“Rion,” her voice echoed above the violence. Rion shoved another creature back, snarling as he ripped it apart. His eyes tracked their comrades’ movements. They had to move. Now. They were too far away. Arianna was vulnerable. She hadn’t spent decades on the battlefield. She didn’t understand that some people just couldn’t be saved.

“Rion,” she screamed again and the absolute panic that shot down the bond somehow reminded him of the time he’d pushed her away and left her crying on her knees.

Rion looked back toward the two Fae who were fighting with absolutely everything they had. What if that were he and Arianna one day, left to their own devices, praying someone would intervene?

What if no one did?

Rion snarled and sent a wave of magic flying toward the couple. “Stay close to me.” Her relief was instantaneous and she obeyed, keeping right on his heels as they ran through the narrow path he’d carved among the creatures.

His magic circled her, even as it ripped through any who dared to lunge for him or his mate.

The couple spotted him, but it wasn’t fear that shone in their eyes at his approach. It was relief and hope. And it … startled him. These complete strangers wanted his help.

Rion propelled his magic outward. It circled the two Fae and blasted the creatures away, giving them an opportunity to flee back toward the wall and their waiting comrades.

The female wrapped an arm under the male’s shoulder and hauled him to his feet. Rion held the line for them, following in their wake. He glanced behind and found Arianna smiling. He returned it. Then one of the fire-breathing creatures with large horns barreled right into her.

His world froze. Fractured. Shattered.

Too late, too late, too late.

Fear and agony radiated through him as he watched the beast’s horn tear straight through Arianna’s right side. He saw the depth of the wound then the blood that rushed to fill it. Her smile faltered. Faded. Another slammed into her from her other side and she went spiraling forward. He was too late to stop her head from slamming into the ground. More were coming, just inches from sinking their fangs into her flesh and tearing his world apart.

A ringing echoed in his ears and the earth split at their feet. Rocks and dirt and everything he could command all splintered apart as if by some unseen force.

Boulders tumbled over one another and a chasm so deep he couldn’t see the bottom split wide open.

Arianna plummeted into the fissure, along with the horde of Dark Fae rushing toward the scent of her blood.

Rion’s body was already moving, but his magic was faster. It wrapped around her left arm and wrenched her to the side, away from snapping teeth and claws grappling for purchase.

Rion jumped for her, wrapped an arm around her waist, then lifted them both up and out.

His eyes raked over her body. She wasn’t screaming. Wasn’t moving. His magic kept fighting as he lifted her head, and his hand came away bloody.

He couldn’t breathe. Every fiber of his body screamed for her. His magic spun in a violent circle, tearing the skin away from anything that dared to approach. He lifted the fabric of her torn shirt and a strange drowning sound escaped his throat.

Blood. It was something he’d seen a thousand times, yet it had his body trembling as if he’d never laid eyes on it.

Rion tilted her head and whispered her name, his voice cracking on the syllables. He tugged at their bond. Nothing. He pulled at it again, desperation overwhelming everything else.

Open your eyes , he willed. Open them and tell me I haven’t lost everything.

The Dark Fae were increasing in number, battering against his magic. Their teeth snapped just out of range and Rion looked up at them, growling low as he clutched Arianna to his side.

He had to get her away from here. Protect her at any cost. Without her—without her, he’d unleash hell upon this world before jumping into the flames himself. She was everything, everything, everything.

Another lunged and Rion roared, rising to his feet with Arianna in his arms.

This battle needed to end. He had to kill them all so Arianna could get the help she needed. But they just kept coming, pouring from the darkness with no end in sight.

Panic seized his heart. Maybe if he got her back to the village—Zylah was there. She could help if—his blood ran cold as he turned around.

There was another hole in the wall, and he watched in horror as three more creatures barreled straight through the wooden structure. An entire section fell and the Dark Fae swarmed in like a dam breaking free.

He could feel Arianna’s blood rolling down his arm now.

Lightning flashed on the western side and Rion’s hope died in his throat. There was another wave coming they hadn’t even seen. It was a spec in the distance, but Rion knew an army when he saw one. Either it was Niall or more Dark Fae. They wouldn’t be able to withstand it either way.

Rion’s eyes locked on a male still fighting on top of the wall. Talon. He shouted commands Rion couldn’t hear. Not due to the noise, but the roaring in his head. Talon was pointing to them, but no one was available to obey his commands.

Rion’s breathing accelerated and he stepped back. The creatures still surrounded him, but they were lighter on this side. If he left—he swallowed hard, his heart beating so fast he was sure it’d stop.

He could run with her. Save Arianna from this fate. Maybe. She might still die anyway, leaving him alone.

They were all going to die. His mother. Saoirse. Talon. The villagers.

But Arianna. If he had her, maybe he could—

Rion stepped back again and let his magic pulse out from his body, knocking the Dark Fae back.

Nothing else mattered. Just his mate. He had to protect his mate.

Rion clenched his jaw, gave Talon a final look, then pivoted on his heel. He held Arianna tight, his heart thundering as he slammed through the creatures separating him from what he prayed was salvation.

Not for himself. He’d already been damned decades ago. But Arianna. Arianna deserved to live, even if it meant she’d ultimately damn him too.