I didn’t have time to move, time to think.
Instinctively, I lifted the small Mortal Blade above me and held on tight, pressing my palm against the flat end. Her sword collided with my dagger. The blow was like an earthquake, vibrating my entire body. My teeth knocked together; stars stormed my vision. My arms ached as I desperately tried to hold off the strength and weight of Callisto’s sword.
But I held it. I held the damn thing and thenshovedwith all my might.
Callisto stumbled back, her eyes wide with shock.
“How?” she whispered.
I rolled back my shoulders and smiled. “Because while you may think of me as an insect beneath the heel of your boot, I am strong. All of us humans are strong. And we will stop you.”
Truthfully, I didn’t think what I’d done was down to only me. There was magic in the Mortal Blade. It had helped me. I’d done my part in it, of course, but I wasn’t alone. And while I’d hated help in the past, now I was glad for it.
Callisto’s face went hard as she seemed to recollect herself. “We all know you can leave Malroch. Your bond with Kalen Denare overrides the vow you made with Andromeda. But there is a part of the vow that still holds. You cannot use your power against us.” Her eyes flicked to the blade. She’d guessed, too. “But that’s notyourpower, is it? So without your little toy, you are nothing.”
“Try to take it from me, then,” I said, bracing myself for her next attack.
“Gladly.” She tossed a glance over her shoulder and whistled twice. The shadowfiends leapt into action. Their paws pounded the dirt. I bit the insides of my cheeks and took a few steps back, glancing around the silent street. Curtains fluttered in nearby windows, but that was the only sign of life.
The street was silent and empty. I couldn’t spot anything that might be useful as a makeshift weapon. No one in the nearby homes would come to my aid, nor did I hope they would. To help me would be to sign their own death warrants.
There was only one way I could win against the beasts.
As they thundered toward me, I sheathed my dagger and held my out my hands like twin spears. Callisto shouted in rage. I kept my focus on the shadowfiends’ yellow eyes, their sharp, glinting fangs, and the matted fur that clung to their powerful forms.
I would not let them take me.
The shadowfiend on my left reached me only a breath before the first. As it widened its terrifying maw, I ducked low to avoid the fangs that raced toward me. Then I slammed my hand against its flank.
I grabbed a handful of its oily fur.
“Death,” I whispered.
Burning, intoxicating power rushed from the depths of me. It flung outward, launching me into the air. I flew backward. My backside slammed against the ground, knocking the breath from my lungs. I blinked. And breathed. Then I blinked and breathed again until the stars abandoned my vision.
The shadowfiend was dead. Its body was curled oddly against the ground, limbs twitching like a fallen scorpion. Ashes flaked off its fur as my power consumed its flesh. Soon it would be nothing but a pile of black sand.
But the other shadowfiend was stalking toward me now. It was slower, more deliberate, its yellow eyes pinned on where I’d fallen.
“You can’t do that. You vowed not to use your power against us!” Callisto shouted. “Take it back. Take it back!”
Slowly, I stood, careful to keep my gaze locked on the second shadowfiend. “I vowed not to use my power against Andromeda or any of the gods. That includes you, Callisto. But that doesn’t include any of your beasts.”
Steel sang. Callisto must have armed herself again. But I didn’t dare look. The shadowfiend was only a few steps away now. If I loosened my focus for even a breath, it would attack.
“You will die for this, you piece of human filth,” Callisto said.
Saliva dripped from the shadowfiend’s fangs, big droplets that hissed when they hit the dirt. Its eyes roamed the length of me, as if sizing me up. Curious, almost.
No more waiting.
Clenching my teeth, I launched toward it with my hands splayed. My fingers made contact as it tried to flinch back. But the beast was too slow. My power slammed into the creature, burning like liquid fire in my veins. The shadowfiend shuddered before collapsing onto the ground.
Callisto rushed toward me with her sword raised. I drew the Mortal Blade. The god reached me only a second later and swung her sword at my head. I ducked and stabbed at the small gap between her leather tunic and trousers. The Mortal Blade sank into her stomach.
Callisto gasped.
She shuddered and fell. I pulled the dagger from her stomach and scrabbled back, horror and relief a tangled mess inside my gut. A guttural scream ripped from Callisto’s open mouth. Her gaze locked on my face. Ribbons of red streaked through the whites of her eyes until the crimson was all that was left.
