Surrounded by tall trees and dense thickets, I found it impossible to know where to go other than to follow the large orange glow in the sky, which had to be Sinnendor’s castle. One of my boots was gone, lost in the aqueduct. I quickly unlaced and rid myself of the other so I could run toward the castle.
And toward the enemy.
I was quickly out of breath and out of energy, but I continued on and tried not to think of everyone I was losing. I tried not to think of Joss and Kael. The only way to save both of them was to kill Cirrus and Queen Lilyana. They were my mark, they were my focus.
I almost walked right into the enemy camp before I heard or saw anyone. I ducked behind a bush as a small patrol of guards wearing the emblem of the Septori walked past me. I was right at the edge.
I was close to Raven.
Silently, I crept forward until I saw an outcropping of tents. It appeared that after the battle had begun, the Raven retired to her quarters to rest. It must’ve been grueling work controlling an army of Denai. It was easy to spot the largest of the tents—the one that was heavily guarded. Patiently, I waited and watched as someone moved past a lantern inside, a sign that it was indeed occupied.
Reaching down to the ground, I focused my power and sent a bolt of fire directly from the tips of my fingers across the dry and brittle grass to envelope the edges of the tent in flames. Within seconds, the red fabric caught and smoke billowed upward. Cursing and yelling came from within, and Cirrus rushed out followed by Queen Lilyana. Adept Cirrus didn’t waste any time as he quickly smothered the fire by creating a large bubble around it and removing all of the oxygen.
My hand went to my throat and I could imagine that same feeling wrapped around my throat. Cirrus had been the Denai in the wagon, the one who attacked me. Queen Lilyana looked around the camp nervously. More of the Septori rushed to their aid, and everyone began to search the camp for an intruder. I didn’t try to hide my presence anymore. Besides, it only took Cirrus a few more seconds to follow the burned trail of grass to me.
I walked into the middle of camp and head held high, my hands glowing with power.
Cirrus was awestruck by my presence and blinked a few times against the darkness. Then he recognized me.
“See Lily. She came back.” He flashed her a charming smile and held his hands wide open to me in a welcoming gesture. “Our creation came back.”
“I’m not your creation.” I seethed, feeling the fury begin to take over. I walked closer to them, into the ring of light created by the torches. So he could see what I’d truly become.
“She’s beautiful,” Lilyana gasped. “She’s become far more than we ever dreamed. Power and beauty. The Denai will be stronger than ever before. Come Thalia, and we can take it all away. I can make you human.” She beckoned me toward her.
“I have not come to give you anything. You’ve taken enough from me. I’ve come to make you stop.”
Queen Lilyana’s pretty brows furrowed, creating a pinched and ugly look. “You said, if given the choice, you would give it all up just to be normal. I can make that happen.” She held her petite hand out to me, inviting me to take it. Cirrus stood off to the side, his hands clasped in front of him. He nodded his head in encouragement.
“That was before I knew who you really were. Do the rest of the adepts know that you’ve been lying to them? Does Calandry know that you are behind all of the missing Denai? And what do you think they will do when they find out?”
Her face registered a moment of shock, and I knew that the other adepts couldn’t know. Then her face took on a haughty expression. “They won’t find out, you idiot child. Because I’m their queen. All Calandry wants is peace. All the Denai wanted was peace, but they were dying out. They weren’t interested in war. I did what I had to do. The answer to their curse lay within the blood of their enemies. I’m doing them a favor. Ridding Calandry of their hated neighbors and providing the cure for the dying out breed. They will grow in power and be safe, and we will be twice as rich and powerful, because I will peacefully rule both countries.”
“You dare call that peaceful!” I yelled, pointing to Sinnendor’s castle up in flames. My heart raced powerfully fast as I tried to not think about my father, about Siobhan, Joss, Kael, and all of the innocent lives that were at risk—or already lost. “You call using mind control and drugs to force them to fight for you peaceful? They are people with their own free will.” I took another step toward the young queen. Her hands were hidden within the fold of her red dress, her face expressionless.
“No, I call them a necessary expense.” Her lip rose in a smile of disdain.
“No lives are ever expendable.” I roared and felt power begin gather as my fury rose. “I’ll have you know—”
Snarling erupted behind me, and I turned to see a pack of hybrid dogs, with blood-red eyes. Cirrus made a single motion and the pack raced to attack me.
This time, I knew what to expect as five furious canines barreled down on me. Without even a glance, I flung out my hand and sent them spiraling into the air and crashing back through the underbrush. Yelps of fear littered the darkened forest, though I could hear some of them gathering for another attack.
Cirrus attacked me head on—a blast to the chest and I flew back into a tree. My head exploded in pain as it slammed into the trunk. Every Denai trait was mine to command—earth, air, water, and fire—as well as the Sirens’ gift of death and destruction. If only my will were strong enough to wield them.
I got up and lashed out at Cirrus with a bolt of ice. He blocked it before it touched him. I was at a slight disadvantage, because I didn’t know what I was doing, but he did. It became difficult to breathe again as Cirrus wrapped a thread of power around my throat. I fought against it and fell to my knees. I tried to reach for him, tried to stop him, when I heard another growl to my right. Out of the corner of my eye I could see the huge rabid dog growling and preparing to attack.
He barked twice, flexed his muscles, and lunged for my face.
Chapter 35
I closed my eyes, expecting teeth to rip through my throat.
Instead, something darted in front of me impacting the dog and knocking him down. I opened my eyes to see a large grey wolf in front of me, biting, clawing, and going for the dog’s jugular. I felt a touch of worry in my mind and knew it was my wolf. He’d come back when I needed him most.
My lungs still burned, and I fought against the lack of oxygen, trying to gasp for air. But with every breath it seemed to squeeze tighter. Cirrus sent another wave, this time encasing me in a ball of fire. Heat engulfed me, flames flickered against my skin, barely touching me.
But when they did pain followed. He was toying with me.
“You see, I’m the teacher,” Cirrus taunted. “You’re still the student.” The ground shook, and I felt myself running as the ground began to collapse below me. I wished for a bow and arrow, for its familiarity. These new powers were still foreign to me. I saw a large stick on the ground and thought of it flying through the air. It did—and sliced Cirrus across the cheek.
The pressure around my throat released and I could breathe again. But only until he attacked me again. I dodged another large fireball, which grazed my leg and instantly blistered my bare foot. I flicked my wrist and wrapped it with a bandage of frost. The coolness cancelled out the pain.