“Sisters, bless me. I am yours, as I am his, as I am mine.” She urged her fangs to lengthen and took a shaky breath as she recalled the details of Hedda’s instructions. “And I am not afraid.”
She sank her fangs into her wrist, ripped the flesh away, and stepped through the ether to the far side of field below, outside the forest’s edge.
Her blood hit the dry ground in a waterfall of red as the dreamlike quality of her hiding place dissipated. Heads snapped to the air, sniffing, and she smiled as the droves of Forgotten took the bait and surged towards her
“Come and get it, you fucking filth.”
Just before the first claws could rake across her torso, she misted back to the Montrealm.
When Lunara reappeared in Straelon,everyone was already joined in any way they could manage while keeping one fighting hand free. Fern stood right at the front, Magnus and Vann’s hands on her shoulders, Faldir behind with a hand on each of theirs.
And so it went, the towering Demons of the Montrealm holding fast to their brethren, their numbers staggering as they filled the courtyard and spilled down onto the road.
Hedda was waiting, asking quietly, “How was it?”
“Exactly as you thought it would be. Your idea worked.”
“Then we have no time to waste.”
Before leaving for the Westglen with Lyriat, Araxis had hastily guided her through what to do. How to feel the connected bodies and join them with her own. After a couple of practice runs, and with Illamiata guiding her, it was the most natural thing in the world to grasp Fern’s outstretched fingers and grab onto every particle of every creature.
It was amazing the things one could learn in a matter of hours when fueled by desperation.
Hedda gripped Lunara’s nape as she turned to the gathered horde and raised her battle axe. “Be ready! We follow the mist into mayhem, to the Forgotten awaiting on the other side. Rip them apart!”
Gritting her teeth, Lunara wrenched them into the ether.
Their voices were still blaring, “Limb from fucking limb!” in answer to their commander when they emerged in Glynmor as one.
The violence was instant.
Demons roared as they swung their weapons, descending upon the throng of Forgotten where they were still crawling in a seething mass over her pool of blood.
“Get us to the incline!” Hedda shouted over the chaos.
With a nod, Lunara misted again, bringing their core group with her. Hedda had tasked warriors from her First Legion with leading the battle here. The chasm, finding Brand, was up to them.
Releasing Fern, she brandished her whip… talon… things, ready for the final trick Araxis had shown her. Well, mostly ready.
Magnus pointed at the spot where the grass and dirt at the chasm’s edge were drooping. “Brand’s steps, and our destination.”
“Do we await the Nachthellians?” Hedda asked.
“No need.” Magnus stripped his robe away, keeping his eyes trained below. “They’re here.”
Lunara pushed past him, panicked, as Sorcerit spilled from between the longhouses of Glynmor, magic leaving their hands in bursts as they joined the fray.
She wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry when she spotted Cordelia already in the midst of single-handedly beheading one of the Forgotten and setting it on fire. “I didn’t know she still had it in her.”
“Ach, I fucking did,” Magnus scoffed. “There’s a gleam in the eye there, witchling. Cordy will be just fine.”
…Cordy?
“Mist down,” Vann asked, “or fight our way through?”
Faldir twirled his axe. “I say we butcher as many of these bastards as possible.”
“Agreed,” Magnus growled.
