Adriana knew she was too far to get there in time, and so she put her strength into her Elementai powers and threw a ball of fire straight at the Lamia’s chest, letting the flames spread with a strong gust of wind that wrapped around him until his entire body was ablaze. She didn't know where she'd got the strength from, she was so weak from the collar, but she summoned her power amongst the chaos and pushed through. The Lamia screamed out, his shrieks piercing through the laughter of the crowd.
She ran to grab the boy to haul him away from the burning man, pressing his face to her chest so he wouldn’t see. Asshe looked around, she saw the two Lupi who had previously been fighting were still breathing but both passed out, and they wouldn’t likely survive much longer without help, the same as the Lupus and female Lamia she had knocked out. The other two Lupi were already dead, as was the mortal woman and the burning Lamia whose screams had come to a stop. The fight was over, but she knew there was no way Rook would let them all live.
The boy sobbed in her arms, his face covered in splatters of his mother’s blood. Adriana tucked him behind her as she stood to face Rook, her eyes turning black and her fangs on full display. The crowd started to die down as they watched her, shifting uncomfortably in the stands.
Adriana was furious, and that fury had fuelled the power inside her. Her magic had returned in full force. Now, she would unleash it upon them all.
“You disgust me,” she spat out. “You call me a monster, then what the fuck does that make you? Look at this, look at what you have done. Not just to Daemons, but to mortals, to your own kind! How can you sit there, acting like a king, when you are the least humane piece of shit to walk this earth?”
Rook laughed at her, running a hand through his greying brown hair as he stood and leant over the railings. One of the guards offered to switch her collar on, but he raised a hand dismissively at them and focused on Adriana.
“You Incantrices are all the same, you’re so soft. I thought you’d be different, I thought the beast that turned you would have some sort of effect on you. But no, you’re just another disappointment.”
Adriana stiffened as she heard the door behind her open, paying attention to the footsteps of the guards that entered the pit as she listened to Rook.
“Do you know how many Incantrices I have killed?” he continued. “How many descendents of The Three I have disposed of? In all honesty, it’s too many to count.”
Adriana wasn’t certain if he was lying to get a rise out of her. All of Divina’s descendents had remained in hiding, other than Cass, and any Incantrices descended from those made by Malefica tended to keep a low profile. Still, the venom in his words found their mark.
Rook raised his hands to his sides, as he said, “And now, you filthy Blood Witch, you will join them.”
He nodded to the guards behind her who raised their batons, ready to beat her and the remaining surviving contestants to death. But she’d had enough, she was done playing their games. She was not just a Lamia Incantrix, she wasn't just the Blood Witch. She was the last Luciferus.
She turned to face the guards and threw her arms forward, her palms facing towards them, as she unleashed her light upon them. The entire pit lit up, her power directed to those who were a threat, whilst protecting the young mortal boy and the unconscious contestants.
As the light dimmed and the pit came into focus again, not a single one of the guards remained. It was as if they had vanished, only scorches in the sand remained as any proof of them ever existing.
She tilted her head slowly to look at Rook and gave him a dark smirk, relishing the fear in his eyes. Norman stumbled back, his obvious confusion at her powers evident on his face.
“Surprise,” she whispered with a wink, as she brought her glowing palms up to face them.
“Stop!” a voice rang out. “Stop the fight! Stop!”
Adriana looked to the crowd as a short, pale man with mousy brown hair came running through to stand by Rook and Norman. She could see the markings of vines and leaveswrapped around his wrists, the brand of a Terrai. Ieuwan Drystan, another one of Xander’s brothers who sat on the Lamia Court.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Rook shouted. “You are not meant to be here, Iuewan. Your instructions were to remain in the Courts and report back!”
“I know, and I am.” Ieuwan turned to point to Adriana, and she saw a quick glimpse of regret in his eye before it was replaced with a stern look. “You can’t kill her, he’s looking for her.”
“Who is?” Norman asked.
“Xander. She’s the Luciferus, Norman. The only Luciferus. It’s her, it’s Adriana Clarke.”
Adriana began to tremble as Norman’s eyes widened, his face twisting into a sly smile. She could practically taste his glee as he realised he had caught his greatest prize.
“What?” Rook impatiently asked, clearly annoyed that he did not understand what was going on. “Who is she, what is she to Duran?”
Ieuwan looked away from Adriana as she gave him an accusing stare, silently asking him why he would betray his brothers. But Norman carried on smiling, his grin reaching his ears in delight at what this meant.
“This is our bargaining chip,” he explained to Rook. “This right here is how we bring the Courts down. She is my brother’s weakness, the long lost love of his life.”
Adriana raised her hands again, ready to strike. She would not be used as a pawn, she would not be used against Xander or anyone. But before she could even shoot a single beam of light, her collar activated again and she dropped to the ground, unable to prepare herself to hide her scream of pain.
She spasmed on the floor for several minutes, her cries echoing round the pit as the crowd watched in silence. She triedto reach for the crying mortal boy who had begun to crawl towards her when she felt a harsh kick to her ribs.
She rolled onto her back to see Norman smiling down at her, Rook and Ieuwan at his sides. “My apologies, Adriana,” he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “Perhaps I should have treated my sister-in-law with more respect. Although, you never did get your wedding, did you?”
Adriana tried to raise a hand to aim at him, but her body just wouldn’t obey. She called to the shadows, sensing them crawling slowly towards her, but Norman was quicker. He slammed a syringe in her chest, the needle puncturing through with ease and setting her body on fire as he injected her. She choked as all the air seemed to vanish.
