“Do not let them take him!”
Terena swung around at the sound of Soros’s bellow and saw a group of Heylisian soldiers surrounding Lerek. Duke Ravos and his men had emptied onto the battlefield during the fighting, and now besieged Soros and his men. The captain’s men fell under the might of the Heylisians around them and she watched in futile frustration as Lerek was pulled away. She ran toward them, her legs stiff and her gait halting as if she fought with herself about what she was doing.
Fire raged beneath her skin, and a flash of red blinded her momentarily. Terena gasped when her vision cleared. Looking down, she saw her hands ringed with red fire, crackling like lighting. When she held her hands out, white smoke pooled in her palms around the hilts of the Twins. She stared down at her hands, uncomprehending.
Someone shouted in front of her and Terena glanced up in time to see a Heylisian soldier rushing at her. The soldier screamed as he raised a wicked looking sword with a hooked end like a scythe. Terena blocked his killing blow. Fire raged through her at the contact. Red lighting crackled along the swords, startling the warrior and he stumbled back.
Lashing out with both hands, she cut the soldier’s head from his body, turning away before it fell to the ground, her eyes on her next victim.
Terena’s body was on fire from within, her heartbeat racing at an unnatural speed as she burst forward, her mind focused on destroying the men in front of her. The Twins spun faster than light, and Terena barely registered the contact with whatever body parts she struck.
She spared a glance at Lerek over the shoulder of the man she was fighting, his face white as he gawked back at her. The men around him pulled him away, finally getting him mounted and moving away from the carnage.
Terena cried out as he disappeared, her movements a blur as the red light at the edges of her eyes tunneled her vision until she no longer thought of the prince.
Bodies eddied away from her and she caught sight of Daris surrounded and outnumbered.
Her heart stopped when he went down.
Chapter 34
COLINAS, RAVOS
Terena ran through the battlefield, shoving people out of her way or pausing long enough to slice into a soldier who had the audacity to step in front of her.
She watched the spot where Daris had been fighting, silently urging him to appear, her lips moving in silent prayers to the Fates. Her breath fogged out in front of her and panic squeezed her lungs.
A roar from her right had her snapping her gaze around, and she spotted Hermes thundering toward the soldiers fighting on the far side of the field. Shouts and cheers rang out from Soros’s men and the fighting took on a fevered pitch. Her breath hitched and she slowed, her eyes caught on another warrior who roared as he chopped his way through the Heylisians behind Hermes.
Melanos?!
The god looked much as he had when she’d last seen him after she and Sonah had gotten him out of his cave. He wielded an axe in his hands and a monstrous expression as he swung up and into the chest of a doomed soldier.
As Melanos made his way through the battlefield, the soldiers with him and Hermes fought viciously, terrifying the Heylisians. They screamed and began to fall back. A moment later a horn sounded their retreat. Those still able to run did not need further urging.
Terena made her way slowly through the mess as the chaos of the Heylisian retreat momentarily made her lose sight of Melanos. She spotted Hermes once more, his lips pulled back in a ferocious grin as he cut through the Heylisian soldiers easily.
She was about to turn away when her breath caught. Daris came out from behind him, slamming his sword into a soldier who’d almost succeeded in catching Hermes in the back.
Terena ran.
As if the Fates were finally helping, a path cleared before her, and she tore across the blood and body littered ground, her eyes locked on Daris.
Victorious shouts sounded all around her as the last of the emperor’s warriors left the battlefield. Hermes turned, grabbing Daris in a crushing embrace before turning to lift his sword, his own shouts drowned out by the men around him. Terena slowed, her heart still racing, and took several deep breaths.
At that moment, Daris turned, his grin fading as he caught sight of her.
Time slowed. Terena heard nothing but the exhale she released. She sprinted forward, watching as Daris stabbed his sword in the ground and ran.
He caught her as she flew into his arms, her lips crushing his as he spun her, his arms like vices at her back.
Nothing mattered to her but him. He devoured her and she let him, his mouth slanting over hers, his tongue delving deep and she clutched his face, hungry for more. His hand cradled the back of her neck and she locked her ankles at his waist, his grip on her scalp painful, but still she pressed closer.
Terena couldn’t think beyond how complete she felt in that moment. It was the same as when she’d seen him that night weeks ago after she first ported. She was still angry with him for lying about Lerek, but that was a problem for when she was ready to let sanity rule her thoughts. Right now, all she wanted was him.
Daris tore his lips away, his beautiful blue eye searching her face. The heat of his breath fanned her cheeks and she felt wetness there. He cupped her jaw, his thumb wiping at the tears spilling unchecked as she gazed back at him.
“Glad we made it in time,” Daris said, breathless, a smile playing on his lips.
