Page 100 of House of the Iron Reaper

Truth be told, I’ve no idea what obsidian is or what it looks like but I remember the clothes Cahir wore at Dragon’s Vale. Black accented with purple and green. Deimos would be proud of me finally taking notice of some clothes.

I take a shortcut down and then back up a tier, avoiding a crowd of people, bounding up walls and slightly destroying a few stall roofs. I turn a corner and skid in the sand but find my footing quickly. It’s always faster on four feet.

“Cahir!” I bellow and follow it up with a loud howl for good measure.

It works. My genius knows no bounds, it seems. Although the man himself doesn’t seem to be in any particular hurry. He creeps tentatively through the front doors as I come to a skidding halt at the gates, kicking up sand.

“Has that lunatic finally shown her true colours?” Cahir says with a raised brow before I can say anything. “I saw the fire and lava, of course, even from here. It seemed unlikely to be anyone else.”

“We need to hurry,” I tell him, slightly breathless. “They need your help up there.”

“My help?” Cahir’s eyebrows crawl upward.

“You’re Ascended, aren’t you? You can beat her.”

“I am no warrior, werewolf,” he says slowly. “I cannot beat Aythora, much as I would like to.”

My stomach drops.

“What?” I gape at him. “But you’re Ascended.”

“Well, yes.”

“How did you bloody Ascend then, if you can’t fight?” I squash the urge to reach across and twat him with my paw. Above us, Aythora bellows loud enough for the city to hear.

“There are many ways to fight—battles with doomkin are just the simplest,” Cahir says with a shrug.

“Oh, by the fuckin’ Five!” I yell up to the sky. Cahir jumps.

I can’t lose Dey, not after Deimos. Not after Deine. Certainly not to that sneaky bitch I never fucking trusted.

“What are we to do then?” I demand.

Cahir doesn’t answer. I look back down at him, ready to actually hit him this time, but find his eyes are locked on a spot above me. I turn to follow his gaze.

“What…” I raise a shaking paw and point it at the sky above Dragon’s Vale. “… the fuck is that?”

Chapter 53

Deyanara

I blink awake to a starless sky. Cool sand is at my back and the air is warm. I feel odd, as though half-awake, caught in a pleasant dream. I turn my head, feeling the sand against my cheek, and see a figure standing nearby.

I open my mouth to try and say hello, but as I do, my voice disappears into nothing. How strange. The figure watches me, still as a statue, a familiar mask over its head.

Oh. A Reaper.

The thought does not alarm me. Something like peace washes over me instead. Around me, I can see Dragon’s Vale, the stands empty. The sand is white and pristine, none of the ash or blood I remember. Nothing to hurt me. Just a restful quiet.

Rest sounds nice. I think… I think I am ready. I am so tired. I have been tired for a long time.

My chest rises as I take in a breath, or at least it feels like I am. Hands push upward through the sand around me, grasping my limbs gently. Like a wave, I have crested, and I am ready to sink back into the sea. My soul returns to the earth, from where I was born.

The hands tug at me softly, and I begin to sink into the ground.

Chapter 54

Novalie