They intend to spill blood and bury us.
My gargoyles respond by beating their wings—once, twice—rising into the air, many of them staying aloft, while others take up positions on the ground, forming a thick barrier with their bodies and invincible wings. A synchronized roar blasts across the sky, twenty thousand male and female voices shouting in unison, sending shivers up and down my spine.
“SUPREME INCORRUPTIBLE, WE HONOR YOU!”
The elves fall silent, which makes me grin. The gargoyles’ loyalty to me has silenced them.
I raise my voice, louder than ever before, filling my whole body with thunder and roaring into the sky, “I AM HONORED!”
I lower my arms. Then the gargoyle army shocks me by shouting again. “HUSBAND OF SUPREME INCORRUPTIBLE, WE HONOR YOU!”
Baelen looks as surprised as me. He tips his head back and roars, shaking the sky around us, “I. AM. HONORED!”
My skin prickles, but it’s not entirely because of the gargoyle’s display of allegiance. I sense a force near the ground, a far off disturbance. It feels like pain… It feels like Grayson… He didn’t know I was married…
The sensation shuts off fast, gone as quickly as it started.
My gargoyle army waits for my command.
The sun rises.
I inhale the cold air and meet Baelen’s strong gaze. We both remove our swords and hold them aloft, powerful electricity lighting up around our bodies at the touch of metal. I hear his voice inside my mind for the first time in a long time.I will love you, Marbella Mercy. Until death.
It’s time to fight.
