The skull lowered its eyes to my level, my breathing becoming erratic. My pulse racing.
But just then, I realized how close the other head was. I could reach for my second sword. It was still embedded in the wolf’s eye.
I shifted across the ground, reached for the hilt, and rolled under the chimera’s massive body just as its flames licked the wall. I landed on my back, and I raised my sword, piercing its belly, and stabbing up and up until I had to sit, pushing harder, and praying that its anatomy was like other animals; that its heart was above me now. I thrust the blade, sizing all the muscle I had in my left arm.
The chimera stilled, then screamed. A sound I knew I would never forget.
Its legs wobbled. Blood spurted from its belly, dripping across my face, then drowning me in it—along with other inner body parts and fluids I didn’t want to consider.
I pulled the sword down, and started scooting back and back, moving as quickly as I could, scrambling to get out from beneath its body.
The chimera released one more ear-piercing, bone-shuddering screech before it collapsed across my legs.
I gasped, winded from its weight. I still couldn’t move my arm, and could barely see with my face covered in blood and guts. Fuck, it was so heavy. But at least it was just my legs. I would have suffocated if it had landed on my chest.
I watched its body shudder, while I leaned back, desperate to free my legs.
There was one final exhale, a rattling hollow sound. And the chimera stilled.
Moaning, I used my good arm to lean on, and then freed one leg, before kicking the beast and releasing the other.
I scooted back, my legs too wobbly for me to stand.
The chimera was dead, and Queen Ma’Nia was standing over the edge of the pool, her violet eyes murderous as she stared down into her playground.
“Release her!” Auriel yelled. “It’s dead. You made your point! Now get her out of there.”
The Queen shook her head, her mouth tight, before she stepped back, and I turned on my side, vomiting onto the ground. My power spent, I collapsed beside the beast.
Chapter
Twenty
LYRIANA
“Lyriana?Meka?Open your eyes.” Auriel loomed over me, his eyebrows furrowed, his face anxious.
I sat up and moaned, my stomach twisting into knots. Fuck. Everything hurt. I shuddered, remembering the weight of the dead chimera on my legs, and the vision I’d had in the Queen’s playground. Gods. That chimera could have killed me. If I hadn’t had that vision, hadn’t remembered that past life, it would have.
I looked past Auriel. We were on a bed, in a large rounded room, surrounded by floor to ceiling windows, all without glass. Seraphim were chirping, and ashvan flew by, running across blue rainbows.
White columns painted with the phases of the moon filled the space. It looked exactly like the eyes of the wolf-skull. Like the bone-chilling half of the chimera, just before he attacked.
I looked down at my body. I was dressed in armor, my tunic, cloak, and boots, though my weapons and chest plate were missing as I gingerly tested out the movement of my right arm, wincing in preparation for pain. But it moved with ease.
In fact, it felt fine.
“You’re healed,” Auriel said quietly. “You’re completely healed.”
I frowned. “How?” Then I grabbed the front of his armor, terror washing over me. “How long was I out this time?”
“No time at all,” he said, taking my hand and squeezing it. “Not really—considering. About an hour in our time.”
I shook my head. “Our time is Moon Court time. What is that? Like a day in Lumeria?”
Auriel shook his head. “Don’t think about it. What matters is you’re okay. And the chimera is dead.”
“And the Queen?” I asked.
