My Glory and Hellfire interlocked, bursting out of me in an endless stream of black and white as they collided with the sentient storm. The impact shattered the shards and hissed against my flames. Then it hit again—harder. Each strike forced me back a step, nicking my exposed skin.
I relished the pain, bared my teeth, and retaliated.
My flames tore through the clearing, the Shard Field, the sky. Steam and hissing filled the air as they scorched the ground. For a second, the storm turned chaotic, rapidly slamming against my shield.
Curious, I stilled my power. The wind lessened.
There was something important here.
I pushed my flames out again, edging toward Veil Forest. Two specks of light flickered in the shadows. I squinted through the flames, and a figure flashed behind the spindly trees, disturbing the thick mist along the forest floor.
Was someone watching us?
Narrowing my attention, I directed my power closer.
The Veil Wind lashed out. Violent. Aggressive.
Was it protecting them?
I pulled my flames back slightly, testing. The storm weakened. Then I drove them toward the leafless dark trees, avoiding the area where the figure had vanished.
The Veil Wind shrieked. Wind and ice crashed into me with twice the force.
Not protecting the figure. Protecting its home.
My lips curved into a slow, cunning grin as my power surged—faster, hotter—barreling toward the haunting black forest.
Sensations flickered beneath my satisfaction. A faint, familiar prickling in my feet.
No. Not yet.
The bond eradicated my sudden fear, fueling my drive to finish this. It didn’t care about the sensation, only punishment.
I fell to my knees.
“Release your power, Lucille!” Ronen demanded somewhere behind my six-foot flames. He could feel my body succumbing to Divine Wasting.
I was so close, though. I wanted to save them. Even if I didn’t, the bond wouldn’t let me stop.
I pushed and pushed, knowing my body wasn’t equipped to wield this much power for much longer.
The Shard Storm’s frenzy kept fighting me. Ice constantly snuck through my flames, weakened by my Hellfire and Glory but still able to puncture my uniform. We struggled against each other, both losing strength.
The guardian bond continued squeezing what it could from me. I was inches from the trees. My body slumpedforward.
The songs of my Infernus softened, and beneath their weakening melody came a soft cry echoing my own.
Help me.
Two pairs of black boots entered my wall of flames.
Ronen’s black shadows slowly wisped away, revealing him and Aspen. His nostrils didn’t flare like the time I’d woken in the healers’ wing after he caught me. His muscles weren’t tense, straining to contain his anger. No, Ronen had passed pissed off and entered a deadly, cold calm. If we survived this, I knew my next threat would be the Dark Seraphim staring at me with an unrelenting promise.
Aspen’s expression differed, appearing more concerned. But underneath that concern lay narrowed calculation.
Ronen dropped the shadows from his eyes, and I turned away.
“Youwilllook at me, Hellion,” Ronen barked, a threat lurking beneath his words if I disobeyed, forcing goosebumps up my spine.
