The blasted wings that had almost killed him.
Chapter 78
Allie
“No,” Ryker said curtly as Dax cursed up a storm as he tried to balance himself and the huge wings on the narrow ledge.
“Yes.” My heart raced as the poisoned mist rushed through the streets.
The scent of blood and olive trees hooked itself into my brain, screaming at me to pay attention.
My power, already overwhelmed, trembled as the memories flooded my mind.
I gritted my teeth against them.
This wasn’t Sanctua Sirena.
My father was already dead.
Many more would die if I didn’t conquer these echoes from the past threatening to wreck my future.
“They’re only memories,” Ryker’s soothing voice entered my thoughts, clearing the ghosts away. “They can’t hurt you.”
“They can’t hurt me,” I muttered.
“No, but they can hurt plenty of other people,” Dax hissed, oblivious, as he unfurled the wings. “We have to move!”
“But that contraptioncanhurt you,” Ryker insisted.
I understood his worry, I did.
I would’ve been just as concerned if he planned on jumping off a roof with nothing but canvas and Dax strapped to his back.
But I would rather take my chances with the sky than the poison.
“The mist can hurtyou,” I said. “Meet you there, safe and mostly sound.”
“Allie–”
“I promise.”
With a clench of his jaw, Ryker sighed and contorted his back. I only felt the whisper of bones breaking and a sharp pang in my back before he severed the connection to protect me from the brunt of his transformation.
I pulled back the scorching heat of my drained power. A single body, not even one as strong as his, couldn’t withstand that unnatural speed and the blaze echoing from me into his veins.
As he flitted between fallen warriors, pulling them into his arms and vanishing beyond the trees, I called upon the winds to fight the racing fog.
The blue currents swept down onto the streets, clashing with the green poison. For a flash, they melded together in a sickly shade of molding teal.
Then the wind pushed back.
It revealed dozens of Northern corpses, cheeks and limbs already poxed by the poison. The veins on what remained on their faces were raised and had a sickly green tint to them that turned my stomach.
Beren, Lioran, and Edrin had sent them to die and had left them to rot.
The mist fought back, more hisses resounding from beyond the trees.
No amount of rope was helping us get off this roof.
