The ground reappeared beneath my feet in a rush. My lungs dragged in a sharp, ragged breath. For a second, everything was too bright, too loud, tooreal. My knees wobbled, but my mate…my matehelped hold me steady.
“Give it a second,” Zola said, rubbing my back between my shoulders.
I look down, swallowing hard, willing myself not to vomit on the green sand beneath my feet.
“Breathe.”
I straightened, calling on my panther to help ground me. “I’m fine.”
She huffed a laugh. “Good. Because I’m shadow-jumping us straight into this fight.”
I bit my lip, shaking my head.My female, gods help me, is as vicious as she is beautiful.
“Daxton!”
Along the green shoreline, Daxton grunted, collapsing onto his knees. Skylar slipped her hands under his arms, catching him before he fell forward.
“I’m fine,” he grumbled.
“Right,” Skylar huffed, unconvinced, before uncorking a vial of red liquid and pressing it to his lips.
I knew it instantly. The famed remedy from Crimson City, capable of replenishing his reserves. It had done wonders for all of us after the battle against the nalusa falaya.
Daxton drained the vial, steadying himself. “You need to get in this fight, Spitfire. I’ll be fine in a few minutes. Shift and call your people.”
Skylar gave him a fierce yet tender look that only she could muster.
“Go, Spitfire—”
A sudden kiss cut off Daxton’s words.
Skylar pulled back, gave a quick nod, then took off at a sprint. Magic shimmered in her wake as she shifted mid-stride, flames bursting around her. In a flash, the phoenix rose, wings blazing as she soared into the sky. Fire danced along the beach, and her song rang out, wild and free, echoing through the clouds.
Our pack answered. One by one, voices joined hers. The call of our people rising to meet their alpha.
Skylar Cathal
The scent of blood and ash devoured my homeland. My pack’s fear hummed through the bond, but beneath it was something fiercer—their courage.
They were ready and waiting for their alpha to join them in this fight.
I drew in a breath, feeling my fire stir in my chest, my phoenix’s magic answering my call. It coiled beneath my skin, waiting to ignite the world below. The battlefield spanned the meadow and thick pines below, where metal weapons collided, bodies clashed with teeth and fangs, and where my people were fighting for their lives.
I threw back my head and called to them, the sound tearing from my throat and rolling across the sky like piercing lightning.
“I’m here,”I called to them.
Their answering howls and roars rose to meet me, wild and fierce. It ignited a hidden strength that surged to the surface. The tether connecting us braided into an unbreakable bond.
Fire raced through my veins, searing and sweet, until I was nothing but heat and light. And then, I released my powers on the attacking horde below.
Flames arced in a violent, glorious eruption that eviscerated anything in its path. Wings of living fire spread wide from my shoulders. Each feather was a blade of gold and crimson, shedding embers that rained down like stars. The heat rolled off me in waves, distorting the world below.
I opened my mouth and sang—not in pain, but in release.
The sound became a flame, spilling from my throat in a river of liquid heat aimed at the human threat. It hit the ground below, and the earth itself seemed to shudder. Armor melted. Shadows vanished. Enemies fell to their knees, blinded by the brilliance of my magical flames.
The sound of bow strings releasing arrows sent me soaring back into the skies. The wind whipped past me as I flapped my wings and climbed higher and higher, until I felt the pull of another presence flying to meet me.
