More harpies surged from the southern peak, their shadows falling like a plague across the valley. The numberswere overwhelming. Hundreds darkened the sky, their forms blotting out the sun as they descended on our riders.
Daxton cursed under his breath. “We’re losing too many.”
I stood, ready to jump back into the fight. “The winged monsters just keep on coming.”
Adohan swooped down toward the valley with one harpy on his flank and another diving swiftly after him in our direction.
“Adohan!” I shouted his name, but he didn’t turn, my voice drowned out in the roar of battle.
He wrenched his sword free in time to block the strike, flames bursting along the shaft as he shoved the creature back. But the other was closing in.
“Dax!” My brother turned, but I didn’t know if he would be fast enough to help.
A blazing stream of fire appeared, and Skylar intercepted the attacking harpy. Her wings flared out in a torrent of blinding flames as she shielded Adohan’s side.
She turned toward us. I barely had time to brace before the phoenix slammed into the earth beside us in a burst of embers. The impact sent a shockwave through the ground, heat rippling over my skin. Feathers of flame scattered across the dirt before curling inward, collapsing into a swirl of molten light.
She shifted, and Daxton was immediately at her side. Skylar wavered, nearly collapsing as Daxton handed her a vial with a healing remedy, exhaustion clinging to her like a second skin.
Daxton pulled her into his chest as she drank the vial. “Are you hurt?”
“No,” she rasped, shaking her head. “Just drained.”
But her eyes… Gods above, her eyes glowed with a fire that would never burn out.
She looked between us, breath shuddering. “Listen to me,” she said. “They’re coming.”
“Who?” Daxton demanded.
Skylar’s stare narrowed, her expression turning grim. “The nalusa falaya.”
My blood went cold.Fuck my life.
I swallowed hard. “Are you sure?”
The answer came before Skylar could respond. A scream tore through the battlefield, nothing like the harpies’ shrieks or the garmr’s roar. This was deeper, ripping through the air with a resonance that rattled my very soul. A sound that didn’t belong to something of this world.
Skylar’s hand dug into Daxton’s arm. “Positive. The towers… They’re not just for the archers, as we thought. Minaeve is shielding them with her magic. Inside…” She paused, taking a breath. “Inside, I think there are portals.”
The ground trembled under our feet. The low, vibrating hum made the hairs on my neck rise. And then, the towers split open, revealing swirling gates of magic as nalusa falaya, numbering in the hundreds, came pouring out.
Daxton’s blade lifted as he stood by his mate. “Castor…”
“Yeah?” I said, tilting my head toward my brother and Skylar.
They glanced at each other in a way that told me they were speaking directly into each other’s minds.
“Skylar and I need to go. Find Gunnar and Shaw. Hold the front until we return.”
I spun around so fast I swear the world tilted. “I beg your royal fucking pardon…What?”
The screams intensified. Dozens this time, echoing through the valley like a chorus of nightmares. My heart stuttered at the thought that this fight was turning a deadly corner.
Skylar’s voice dropped, her brows narrowing. “He said we need to leave.”
“You want to repeat that?” I asked, my chest rising and falling in rapid succession.
Skylar stared me down, her eyes blazing with amber fire. “Daxton and I need to leave.”
