A crimson-colored stallion flew to Astro as a dark-colored mare glided to Idris. We all took our mounts, the wings of the pegasi flaring out and carrying us into the sky with the blazing sun beating down from above.
The Mother was shining down from her apex, the scorching heat from her rays blinding my eyes in our initial ascent into the blue skies above. I shielded my hand over my brow to scan the land below, hearing the panicked screams of the citizens rising through the clangs and growls from creatures in battle. The black tendrils of wilt migrated through the outer streets of the city.
“How are things going down there?”I asked Shaw.
“I’m hunting.”
I could feel his mind focusing on a scent I knew all too well. The hounds of the wilt—the garmr were already running rampant through the streets of Crimson City.
“Remember, there’s venom in their bite.”My muscles tensed as I recalled their foul breath and stench from my first night in the Inner Kingdom. The four reddened eyes that made your skin crawl while fighting the urge to heave your guts out.
“Also, don’t get lost or entangled in the mist.”
From our vantage point in the sky, I could see patches of blackened mist entering the city and hear the frightened screams of citizens scrambling to run as far asthey could. Anger rolled through my chest at the sight of this beautiful, vibrant realm on the verge of destruction.
“I’ve got it. You worry about the beasts in the sky. I’ll handle things down here,”Shaw said as he pulled his mind from mine.
Garmr, harpies, nalusa falaya, and who knew what other horrors borne of the wilt—only the Gods could fathom the dark magic that drained the life fromthe land.
Chapter Fifty-Two
Skylar Cathal
Nisha came to a sudden stop as the three of us hovered over the city.
My eyes darted to the western border, where strands of my bond with Daxton flickered within a bone-chilling shadow. The land stretching to the mountain range was as black as night, devoid of life, drained of the very magic our world was built upon.
Flames erupted along the border of tanned sand and blackened earth with warriors clad in crimson armor. There was a silver flash, and my heart skipped, knowing Daxton would put himself in the middle of the chaos and fight with everything he had to ensure the safety of his allied realm.
“Astro,” Idris said in a firm tone, her eyes hardening as flames engulfed the tip of her spear. “Take the western side of the city and work your way toward your father’s line. Skylar and I will circle the center before we—”
A mind-splitting screech forced us to cover our ears, our mounts neighing in protest. Then, my stomach dropped as a flock of harpies gathered within the skies ofthe wilted lands. A group so large it dared to block out the peaks of the far-off mountains along the horizon.
“Gods above.” Idris gasped. “I’ve never seen them in numbers like this! There must be hundreds.”
“Possibly thousands,” I whispered as dread clenched the beats of my heart.
“We need more fighters in the sky, Mother!”
“Gather the herd and find riders,” Idris said. “The harpies won’t travel far from their masters. We need to keep the creatures and the wilt at bay while Adohan and Daxton reactivate the wards.”
Astro followed his mother’s command, pulling on his reins and guiding his pegasus toward the paddock.
I scanned the area beyond the wall, finding a single tower in the distance with crimson-clad warriors fighting to reach its base.
“If they’re able to reach the tower, Dax and Adohan can reinforce the ward and repel the wilt,” Idris said as she followed my gaze.
“Then let’s make sure they do.”
Idris and I guided our pegasi straight into the heart of the oncoming flock. The first wave of fifty or so harpies broke free from the circling mass, with the speed and grace of our steeds closing the distance. I kicked Nisha’s side as I pulled an arrow from my quiver, knocking it against my bowstring. I’d fought against these creatures before, and unlike our first encounter, I was no longer afraid.
Adrenaline pumped through my veins, my animal’s power surging through me as we flew forward. Crimson City disappeared beneath me in a blur, with my focus honed on the approaching flock of harpies. I could feel the threads of magic pass over my skin as we soared into the land claimed by the dark magic of the wilt. My animal roared inside me, the sensation of this power making her restless.
Nisha flapped her wings in a steady rhythm, allowing me to pull back on my bow, line up, and loose an arrow straight through the heart of my first target.
The brown-and-golden-feathered female screeched as the arrow struck her in the heart, sending her falling through the skies that she terrorized, dead before her body crashed into the scorched earth below. I relinquished control of my reins, giving Nisha her head, trusting her to keep us alive as we flew into the battle of the skies.
As soon as I released an arrow, I was grasping for another, ducking under swipes of elongated claws from outstretched hands and beats of colliding wings.
