“Castor, he can’t—”
“Zola!” I yelled in fear.
“If you let me in, I can jump him to the healer’s tent,” Zola said.
I nodded, giving Finn one final squeeze before moving aside. The shadows cast by the surrounding rocks would allow her to transport them out of the debris.
Once out of the pit, I glanced at the continuing battle, searching for my brother and my mate amongst the chaos. Looking toward the east, I found her. Nyssa was dragging Skylar’s body up the grassy knoll, her attention isolated on cresting the top.
“Nyssa!” I shouted, trying to get her attention.
What in the Gods’ names was she doing?
As dawn broke along the horizon, Nyssa crested the hill with Skylar’s body in tow. Nyssa fell backward, leaving Skylar on the mound’s peak as the sunlight danced across her lifeless frame. In the next breath, an explosion of flames brighter than the Mother herself erupted atop the grassy knoll.
“Nyssa!” I roared as I shielded my eyes, running toward my mate in panic.
The flames continued to grow, drawing everyone’s attention as the spiraling cascade of fire seemed to stretch up into the rising sun. I skidded to my mate’s side, pulling her backward with me as we escaped the maelstrom of fire threatening to consume us.
“What is this?” I asked. “What’s going on?”
Nyssa smiled, signing, “Skylar.”
The flames spiraled into a swirling vortex as a familiar song echoed throughout the lands. It was a beautiful melody I remembered from my childhood. The same song my mother sang to Daxton and me. The same song I knew he sang to her—Skylar.
The heat of the flames skyrocketed, fluttering blue and then white, every pair of eyes entranced by the sight unfolding before us. The faint outlines of feathers began to dance amongst the wisps of crimson flames, followed by magnificent wings and tail feathers that draped behind a mammoth body cloaked in fire.
The flames swirled as a figure finally took shape, revealing a magical bird of legend, one I never thought I would see in my immortal life—a phoenix.
The flames dissipated, revealing the legendary bird of fire, hovering over the battlefield and looking down on us with a familiar amber stare.
“Skylar,” I whispered as Nyssa grasped my hands.
Shaw’s roar filled the silence as the phoenix’s song answered his call, turning its sight to the mages rallying near Minaeve and Istar near the lake’s edge. Blistering flames engulfed the phoenix’s body as it swooped toward Minaeve. Skylar’s power and rage erupted across the land below, creating an impenetrable wall of scorching wildfire aimed directly at the heart of our enemies.
Minaeve called upon a barrier, the Heart of Valdor clutched to her chest, as Skylar dove toward the shield. Flames and talons collided with the blackened wall, as dozens of smaller portals appeared around us. Aelius warriors were pushed through at the command of human mages.
Still, Skylar did not relent in her attack, determined to break through the magic that kept her from seeking vengeance and blood for the deeds cast by the false queen.
“Retreat!” Seamus commanded, standing along the opening of a portal. “Do what you must,”he said into my mind before stepping through the blinding light of magic.
I turned my attention back toward the mythical firebird, whose flames managed to crack through Minaeve’s shield, causing her to panic.
“Through the portal!” Minaeve shouted at Istar and Anjani.
They both escaped without hesitation as Minaeve slowly backed up, struggling to keep her shield against Skylar’s wrath.
“Until we meet again, shifter,” Minaeve sneered as she stepped through the portal and disappeared with the rest of her troops.
Skylar violently flapped her wings as flames danced along feathers painted in red, yellow, and gold, blazing like the Mother herself. Traces of vibrant purple, white, and blue decorated the plumage at the tips of her wings and tail feathers, where the flames burned the brightest.
Skylar landed on the ground with her head tilted back. Her wings were gracefully tucked into her sides. She stood proud, her eyes shining with determination as she scanned the clearing, the flames cast by her magic burning brightly with the rising dawn.
She was mesmerizing.
Amid the smoke and chaos of the battlefield, I saw a lone figure marching toward Skylar. The flames surrounding her twisted and parted, clearing a path just forhim.
Chapter Seventy-Four
