“They could do with a toothbrush,” I said, a little disappointed Sin Garu hadn’t sent stronger minions to deal with me.
Several of the wraiths hissed, each exposing rows of black teeth and forked tongues that sparked when they met the air. Upon closer inspection, I noted bloodied entrails hanging from several mouths, and my first impression that the wraiths were more fool than threat faded under a growing alarm.
“Sin Garu has much to answer for.” Aerolus rose and set me down on my feet. He studied the invading danger with a calm that confused me. Did my Storm Lord not understand what the ice wraiths’ sparks meant?
“Um, Aerolus, I know you’ve dealt with wraiths before, but these are a different breed than the ones you’re used to.”
“I know, purie.” He pulled me back behind him and glanced down into my eyes. “We’re going to have to fight our way out of here. I’d teleport us to freedom, but I have no doubt they’ll follow our trail the minute we leave.”
The ice wraiths circled, keeping a small measure of distance between themselves and their prey, toying with us to increase the pleasure in killing. If I hadn’t been their intended victim, I might have found a small measure of respect for their attempt at fun in battle. As it was, I could only hope my organs wouldn’t soon be dangling from someone’s jagged teeth.
In agreement with Aerolus that we should stay and fight, I still reached for my Mir charm…and froze in shock when I found it missing. Without it, I couldn’t travel between planes.
This was bad.
Aerolus glanced at my neck and away. The bastard.
“Where is it?” I growled, keeping an eye on him and the wraiths. “You bring this mess to my door and you steal from me? Your own protector?” I smacked his chest.
His eyes narrowed, a huge indicator he wasn’t pleased.
“I’ve been here for a year without incident. You visit, and within hours I’ve got pests.” I glared at the wraiths over his shoulder. “I don’t suppose it occurred to you to conceal yourself.” At his confusion, I sighed. “You masked your trail here, but did you cover that mask with anything? A good hunter looks for what isn’t there as much as what is.”
He kept his eyes on the circling wraiths.
I continued, “You covered your magic when you flew here, yes. But you covered it with a huge ball of nothing, clearly announcing your trail.”
He remained silent, but the flush on his cheeks spoke volumes.
Despite our dire situation, I felt tremendous pleasure in instructing an arrogant Storm Lord, my Storm Lord in particular. The Light Bringers always thought they knew everything. Ha. When it came to raw magic, Aerolus was a novice.
“I apologize,” he said stiffly and moved directly in front of me, placing himself between me and the threat. “Follow my lead and hold on.”
That had to be the briefest apology I’d ever received. “What?—”
A dense pressure invaded my body and mind, a subtle popping in my ears breaking the void where thought had once been. And darkness pitched me forward.
Chapter 8
Alandra
As I blinked to regain my bearings, Aerolus left me and teleported back to the opposite side of the room, drawing most of the Netharat in his direction. Amazed, I watched him turn from a calm, together sorcerer into a savage warrior bent on destruction.
Winds howled. Mini tornadoes sucked the creatures in and crushed them into nothing. He muttered spells along with his elemental magic, and I watched as ice wraiths melted, imploded, and generally screamed bloody, murderous revenge.
Shocked at the violence pouring from the man I thought I knew, I was unprepared for a blast of blue fire from a nearby wraith.
It hurt like blazes, and I shrieked.
Aerolus turned, spotted me, and shot a funnel of sheer Light at my attacker. He shoved it into the wall, splattering wraith blood and guts across stone. He teleported to my side and teleported us away again, taking me with him into Trudy’s house, for some reason.
“Are you okay?” He sounded breathless, his gaze bright with concern as he ran his hands over my side, where the blast had hit.
I saw the large, burned hole in my dress and cursed. “Do you have any idea how much this dress is worth?”
He blinked in disbelief as my skin absorbed the faint cast of blue surrounding the burn, healing as if I’d never been marked. He touched my side in wonder, and I felt the heat of him.
Blast, but the Wind Mage only had to be close to get my pulse racing. The feel of him turned me inside out. That he affected me so and didn’t seem to know it irritated me even more.
