How would she break my spirit?
But then I knew.
Dread filled me as I sensed Myel’s fear spike through our bond. Saldrea had gone to get him.
No, no, no, no, no!
Feeling Myel die the first time had been anguish beyond anything I’d ever endured. Nothing could be worse… or so I’d thought. Yet lying here, knowing I’d feel that epic agonyagain, so close but unable to stop it,thatfilled me with a dread horror, which shredded my soul and eviscerated my mind.
I wasn’t strong enough to survive Myel dying again.
This time, if he was killed…
I’d die with him.
VYNSIEL
I’d never foughtthis hard before, never pushed myself to my limits this long, but I couldn’t help it. I sensed Izzy’s pain and her flagging spirit. She was dying, and I was so damned close but too far away to help her.
I fought with everything I had, blasting dragons and defenses and anything in my path with searing beams of light over and over, an unending barrage of lasers as I screamed my fury and frustration.
I’d grown wise after the first time Hana had hit me with a mental attack, stunning me, then Neyalim had surrounded my head with water attempting to drown me. I’d blinded them and fled, regrouping. My mistake had been having my beams originate from me, which gave them a target. Now I launched my attacks from all over, while adding blinding flashes to disorient them and hiding behind a shield of light, of which I kept three going at all times, alternating which I hid behind.
Never before had I attempted to do so much at once, surprising myself with my aptitude and strength. Even the hard-faced titans gave grunts of approval.
Then, as I flew from one shield of light to another, my enhanced vision caught something back amongst the enemies.
The heavy grate blocking the entrance to the arena floor was open. Saldrea stood just inside. For an instant I panicked, thinking she was finished and Izzy was dead, but no, I was still in contact with Izzy’s spirit, strong but waning.
It was the other thing I caught in that quick glimpse which spiked my fear: Golana handing Myel over to Saldrea.
Fuck.
No!
Saldrea would use him to break Izzy’s spirit.
I’d seen what his torture had done to Izzy the first time, how it had broken her. I couldn’t let Saldrea take him into the arena. My life was worth nothing if Izzy died, so screw it. I braced myself for all manner of nastiness and flew straight into the enemy…
…or I would have if a hand hadn’t clamped on my shoulder and stopped me.
“Let me go! Saldrea has Myel. She’ll take him into the arena and torture him to break Izzy. We have to—” That’s when I noticed who was holding me. “Koar?”
“We’re here, we can help,” the dragon said. With him were Rook and Olinara, Lhorine and a titan woman I didn’t know but I assumed was Bayn’s sister. This was confirmed by the big titan giving her a brief hug when he saw her.
Huh.
I didn’t think titans had feelings.
That didn’t matter; reinforcements had arrived and with their help, we could turn the tide of this fight!
“You heard what I said, though, right? We need to get in there now!” I reiterated.
“We’ll break through their lines,” Lhorine said. Shelooked wan, rough, drained, but her words and tone were determined. “You need to focus on Izzy, on her spirit. Give her everything you have, support her, be her rock. She’ll need your strength to survive what is to come. Give her time. Giveustime.”
She was right, but I balked at the idea of sitting back and not fighting.
“We’ve got this,” Rook said, balls of fire in his hands, which he threw at the enemy.
