The pain radiates up my thigh as I pull my legs inward to stand. My hands shake uncontrollably when I push off the ground and rise, swaying a bit.
But I stand, despite the pain. Despite the blood that gushes from the wound of the dragon. Despite my eyes flashing to darkness every few seconds.
I won’t let my sister win.
She will not kill me.
“What do you want!” I hiss, my fingers stretching wide beside me.
Her head tilts upward, twisting on her heels to turn towards me and pointing to my arm. “Those stones. I need your dragons.”
“Never.”
“You have no say, dear sis.” Her arms cross. “The dragons will be mine.”
A thunderous roar fills the air behind her as the dragon's mouth widens towards the sky. The ground trembles beneath my feet.
I brace myself, arms crossing over my face while I squint through the ash that catches in the fire.
“You have no idea what I have created since I left you.” She steadily walks towards me. “You have no idea the power I have taken!”
“You always wanted the dragons gone!” My voice cracks as I limp towards her. “You said you’d never ride a dragon, and now look at you!”
Her voice rips in the air as her finger points to her heart. “I control them, dear sis! They are all mine, and those little ones shall be mine too!”
“You’ll have to remove them off of my dead body,” I snarl, spitting blood against the ground as it hisses with steam.
“Easy.” Her lip tugs into a wicked grin, snapping her finger as the dragon's head swivels down and its red eyes meet mine.
“You don’t have the balls to kill me yourself?” I snicker, stumbling over as I sway side to side.
“Oh no.” Her hand reaches her mouth as she lets out a raging, high-pitched laugh. “I won’t bear the curse that comes with killing theProphecy Queen.”
“You may call me the damnScorching Queen.” My lip rises, catching sight of Florian and Koen flying in over the charcoal mountain tip behind Tilly. “And you’ll burn for what you have done.”
“And your most crucial memories will be locked away until those stones are mine. You have forgotten, you have been gone a long time, and I have been flourishing with the Darklands.” Her wrist flicks, lava rising from the cracks of the charred ground and up into the air. It twists and rolls until the crimson-red lava is molded into a glistening silver piece, almost resembling half of a necklace. She wields the lava, just as she wields the blue flame that controls Koen.
Five glistening, white lights pull from Tileatha’s hands and up towards the piece molded and forged by the dark fire that pulsesunder this land. My heart beats against my chest as I take a step back.
“What the hell is this?” I holler towards her.
“I told you, I will always be more powerful than you, little sis.” Her pearly-white teeth peek through her sinister smile.
The light trickles around the floating silver piece, lava mixing in with the pearly-white flickering hues until a bright red fire blasts from the air that surrounds it.
I stumble backwards, holding my arm over my eyes to avoid being blinded. The wind blows, howling in the air as if the lost souls are screaming at what she has done.
And as soon as I let my arms fall, the metallic piece she molded from the molting lava slams into my face, burning into my skin.
Scorchingmy flesh.
I let out a scream, falling to my knees as my hands tremble over my face. My fingers frantically glide along it, feeling the metal attached from temple to temple, gliding over my nose.
What feels like five stones, dangling from it.
My eyes whip up to her, stuttering a breath. “What the hell is this!”
“I told you, you will never remember the most important memories I took away from you unless I have your dragons. You will never fully rise to become what the Gods intended you to be without them.” She lets out a cackle, sending a violent shiver along my body. “Now, this is quite fun, isn’t it?”
