“Stefan! Get out of the way!” Delmare shouted. She was holding an orb of battle magic in both hands that was steadily growing. The ball crackled and smoked as she strained her arms to try to control it.
Stefan yanked his claws out of the body of theawlya. Before he could dive away, the monster shoved its beak downward and sunk it into Stefan’s chest.
Blood spurted everywhere, and Stefan gave a cry of agony. He kicked the monster away with his back feet, though he sagged in the air, spiraling until he crash-landed against the stony ruins.
“No!” Delmare screamed. She reared her arm back, and released her battle magic orb at theawlyawith all the rage she could muster. The orb sailed through the air and connected with the monster, where it immediately exploded on impact.
Feathers went flying everywhere. There was a soft screech, and we watched as the monster fell from the sky, still smoking. Theawlyalanded on its back, feet curled and wings lying in a disjointed position. In the middle of its stomach was a large hole Delmare had blown with her powers.
Once the creature was dead, I could feel the barrier on the ruins lift. We ran to where Delmare had collapsed by Stefan’s side. The dragon was breathing heavily, taking in long gasps as Delmare observed his wound. The skin on his chest was ripped open, exposing his beating heart through his visible ribs.
I winced as I saw the wound, and a few of the girls gasped. We had to fix it. Stefan wouldn’t make it home like this.
“Stefan, are you...?” Delmare’s words trailed off as she saw the blood seeping from the gash theawlyahad made. Her dark eyes showed terror, as if she feared Stefan wouldn’t survive.
“The dragon stone, Irena,” Stefan gasped. “Retrieve it.”
Delmare staggered to her feet and rushed to the silver box. She tried to open it, but the lid wouldn’t budge.
“I can’t!” Delmare said. “It won’t open!”
She passed the box around. I figured it had a key or something, but no such lock existed on the box. Emma tried to force the box open to no avail. When she passed it off to Kiara, she observed it carefully, before Alexei spoke. “It’s got an enchantment on it. You guys didn’t pass the test.”
“What?” Delmare yelped. “But we defeated theawlya! We showed we were brave!”
“Alexei’s right. Something’s wrong,” Kiara said with a frown. “Whatever the task was, you didn’t do what you were supposed to.”
Delmare’s lip trembled. Stefan coughed and said, “Oh, well. We gave it a good run.”
“Don’t say things like that!” Delmare snapped. She pushed at Stefan’s side. “Get up!”
Stefan moaned. The blood was still rushing out, causing a metallic smell to fill my nostrils. “We have to stop the bleeding,” I said. “If we don’t, things aren’t looking good.”
Delmare’s eyes flashed. “I’ll close his wound, like I closed mine.” Battle magic bloomed in her hand. She kneeled by Stefan’s side, not caring about the blood, letting it soak into her dress. She moved her hand forward to cauterize the wound.
“Stop,” Stefan said, and Delmare halted. “Don’t.”
“What are you talking about, you stupid prat?” Delmare asked. “I’m trying to save your life!”
Stefan’s eyes darkened as his breathing became shallow. “If I’m not the one for you, Irena, let me die.Because I swear, a life without you is one hardly worth living.”
“Don’t say things like that.” Her voice cracked as her lip trembled. “You’ll be fine.”
“I want to hear you say the words,” he begged. “Just in case this doesn’t work.”
“It’s going to work. It has to,” Delmare said. Without hesitating, she moved her magic over the cut. Stefan let out a deep bellow as her magic sealed the wound, burning the edges together.
After Delmare closed the wound, Stefan took a shallow breath. His body relaxed, sinking into the earth. His eyes shut and a death rattle formed in his throat, causing a bolt of fear to shoot through me.
“No!” Delmare pushed at his shoulder again, though Stefan didn’t rise. “Get up! You have to get up!”
Stefan didn’t respond. Delmare’s eyes filled with tears. She threw herself against Stefan, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Come back,” she whispered. “Please.”
I was too shocked to speak. This couldn’t be real. Could my best friend have really...
Alexei and Kiara were both weeping, overwhelmed by the emotions of the situation. Odette had her hands over her mouth in shock, while Theo observed the scene in disbelief. Emma had fallen to her knees, an expression of grief for her friend shadowed across her face.
“Don’t leave me,” Delmare cried. Stefan didn’t respond.
