Over and over again, my kunai reappeared and I let another off, helping Elwin as much as I could with ranged attacks.
Four harpies were hit with Ariel's quick correction of our aim, losing their flight trajectory and falling into the arena as the ones still in the air above us began their descent upon us.
I locked eyes with one as it came directly down the middle of their grouping and snarled.
“Let’s fucking go.”
Grabbing the hilt of my kunai, I shoved it into the upper chest of the creature as it crashed into me, knocking me to the ground. I used my momentum to roll on top of the harpy, shoving my knife deeper with a scream until it finally stopped moving. Being this close to the creature, I felt something open within me, reacting to them.
They were evil. I felt like a sticky oil covered my body just by touching one, their energy wrapping around me as long as I maintained contact.
“Feed on them!” I cried out, sensing the darkness within them. Without souls around to feed us, my mates and I had all been running on low energy reserves for our powers, and feeding on all of these souls at once would be a huge boost for us. There had to be nearly fifty of them in total.
Instantly, my mates shifted into their monstrous forms, maintaining their grips on their weapons with one of their multiple hands as they used the others to defend against and grab the harpies.
I jumped to my feet, letting my other kunai fly off my rope as I swung it at the harpy flying directly with its massive talons extended toward Elwin’s glowing green core.
While I preferred my monsters to be in this form for our fight–because they would be harder to physically harm being mostly made out of shadows–their colorful hearts were a beacon practically begging for the harpies to pluck them out of their chests.
The beast dropped to the ground, and I ran toward Elwin as I called forth a new weapon for him. I let go of my mental hold on his bow, feeling my mind almost at its limit for what I could hold in a solidified state. Instantly, a broadsword appeared in my hand as I yelled for him. “Catch!”
Without hesitating, one of his arms reached out to snatch the hilt just in time to drop to the ground, avoiding another harpy as his hand lunged backward to stab a harpy coming up behind him.
My breath was knocked from my lungs, and my eardrum felt like it shattered as a screech sounded right next to my ear. I hit the arena floor hard, unable to move my arms with the sudden weight of one of the creatures bearing down on me.
White feathers appeared above us, and with a battle cry that had to be heard for miles away, Ariel grabbed the harpy by its wings and yanked it off me. She kicked her foot into its back, cracking the harpy’s wings as she pulled back on them.
I didn’t have a second to soak in her brutality as a new set of claws dug into my arm, yanking me up harshly. My shoulder felt like it was being torn from its socket as my feet left the ground. A scream tore from my lungs as I watched the ground move away with each beat of the beast's massive wingspan. My kunai’s rope was tangled around me, so I let go of my hold on it when I failed to get a grip on one end.
Pain overwhelmed me at the agony searing through my shoulder as I hung limply from the harpy’s taloned grip, but I forced the hand that was ensnared in the harpy’s grasp to call forth my power. I pictured purple flames in my palm before pushing the energy into the harpy until the flames consumed the beast in a roaring inferno.
My own power was fed as it tore through the harpy’s vile darkness, draining the beast completely.
Its grip on me loosened, and then I was falling through the air, feeling the wind whipping at my face as the ground quickly approached.
“Alexandra!” Kylo roared, drawing my eyes to his form breaking free from the beasts surrounding him to run after me, as if he could fly and grab me in time.
Closing my eyes, I imagined the foam pits gymnasts fell into and willed one to appear beneath me to break my fall. A smile stretched across my face as I opened my eyes and saw it waiting for me on the arena floor beneath my flight path.
But talons ripped into my skin as I was snatched from my free fall, the tips digging into my ankle so hard I was pretty sure they were going to pierce the bone as I was jerked back into the air. This time, when I looked at my mates, it was to see that all of the harpies were leaving the battle below and flying toward me, like they now had their prize.
Ariel tried to launch off the ground after me, but it looked as if only one of her wings was able to move. With a cry, she fell back to the ground, agony on her face as she watched me being carried further away from them.
I could easily see the despair and the pain she was experiencing as she fell to her knees and screamed for me. The sound of her scream spurred me into action, reminding me that she had taught me so damn much in the short amount of time we had trained together. I had to believe in myself to get out of this.
I called forth my powers with my good arm once more, but just as I was about to chuck it at the harpy holding me, a blow was dealt to my head. My head swam, and I felt my consciousness begin to fade.
Damnit! No!
As my eyes began to close, the last thing I saw was all three of my monsters running after me, but it was useless. They couldn’t fly, and the clouds wouldn’t extend forever for them to run on. In my heart, I took comfort from the knowledge that they wouldn’t let that stop them from finding me.
Nothing in this world could keep us apart. I dared anyone to try.
Chapter 18
ALEXANDRA
“Alexandra!You have to open your eyes and tell me what’s going on.”
