My assault hit my target square in the face, and he crumpled wordlessly to the ground, disintegrated. The other soldier rushed up behind me. I could sense him, like a black shadow pressing against my skin, but before I could turn, his arms wrapped around me.
For a moment, I struggled against his grip. Then he pressed a knife, cold and thin as ice, to my throat .
He tugged me backward, and I had no delusions that he was taking me anywhere but to the mage. But I was determined to get to Vehrin on my own terms. Not wasting another breath, I quickly jabbed my captor in the ribs with a sharp elbow.
I may as well have hit a pillow. His body seemed to mold around my strike. He quickly pinned my arms against my sides.
How was I supposed to get away from somebody I couldn’t even attack?
Magic .
It had worked on the other shadowy soldiers. It would be difficult to launch an attack with my arms held to me, but I was able to get my hand to his leg. I let my power go free.
The man didn’t yell, but I could feel a buzzing sensation rippling through him. He jerked away. I pivoted and thrust a blazing fist into his chest. He arched back and hit the ground in a burst of cinders.
After stepping back from the remains, I wheeled around in search of the mage. He was standing quite a distance away, his arms folded behind his back and his stare intent as if he were watching a riveting show.
Before I could make my way to him, more of Vehrin’s soldiers charged toward me. I ground my teeth. I didn’t have time for this. Somewhere behind me, Kael snarled. He was surely locked in a battle with the massive black panther once again.
Anger burned hot inside me as fierce as the magic that wrapped around my fingers. As the group of soldiers neared, I rushed forward to meet them. I would have never believed I would be capable of fighting so many attackers simultaneously, but whether it was frustration or adrenaline, I sent forth one attack after the other. With each hit that landed, the soldiers erupted into puffs of black smoke.
Finally, there were only two left. They tried to catch me off guard by breaking away as the ones before them had, but I sidestepped into one of their paths. As he reached for me, I ducked and hurdled my body into his. We hit the ground, and in the turmoil, my hands managed to find his throat.
Again, the shadow-wrought man made no noise. His mouth opened wordlessly, and his eyes bulged under my touch until he burst into fine ash, leaving my hands dark with smears of soot.
In my peripheral, the remaining soldier charged at me. I threw my arm out, letting my magic fly from my fingertips just as the man reached for me. I squeezed my eyes shut against the cloud of ebony dust that billowed out.
I drew my arm across my brow to stop sweat from dripping into my eye, though I likely did little more than smear the ash across my face. I peered around, allowing myself a momentary breath of relief that no more soldiers seemed to be heading my way.
It didn’t seem possible that I had killed all of them, but now I had a clear path to the mage. His gaze met mine across the grass.
I took a moment to get my mind right. Then I took a step forward.
A thunderous roar broke through the chill air. I tore my gaze from my target and looked back. Kael had managed to latch onto the massive panther’s leg, his teeth and claws sinking into the cat’s ebony fur. Vehrin’s panther thrashed as it tried to dislodge the shifter. Finally, with a shake of his paw, he sent Kael slamming into a wall. The jaguar crumpled limply to the ground.
“Kael!” My voice cracked, and my heartbeats felt weak, my breaths shallow. There was no way he could have survived that blow.
Then, his tail twitched ever so slightly.
He was alive . The giant panther padded closer with calculated, predatory steps, its sharp shoulders rolling smoothly as he advanced, prepared to finish Kael off.
I chewed on my bottom lip as I glanced between Kael and Vehrin. The mage’s cheek was lifted in a slight smirk, as if he knew the difficult choice straining my thoughts.
I wanted to save Kael, but in doing so, I would leave myself vulnerable. However, if I went for the mage, I would be abandoning Kael to certain death.
A frustrated yell roared up my throat. I pulled my gaze from Vehrin and tore across the grass and toward the panther. He had set a giant paw on the smaller cat, and Kael struggled beneath the pressing weight, his legs kicking and strained growls issuing through him.
Something in me snapped.
I couldn’t stand to see Kael hurting in such a way. My lip curled back over my teeth as my boots pounded the ground. As I neared the panther, my fingers curled around the handle of my knife. I hadn’t even realized I’d pulled it out. Magic would have likely done me more good at that point, but I couldn’t bring myself to loosen the hold on my trusty Chaucer.
The panther was so intent on crushing my partner, he didn’t notice my quick approach until I was nearly upon him. At the last second, he turned toward me with an indignant snarl. His body uncoiled as he lunged at me. Either by instinct or pure dumb luck, my feet slid forward and my back hit the ground. I thrust my arm up as the panther hurtled over me. My knife bit through fur and flesh. With a loud thump, the panther landed behind me. I flipped over and tensed, ready for another attack.
The panther was on his side, and his ribs expanded weakly with strained breaths. He was making a pitiful gurgling sound, and blood pumped through a wound in his throat. Then, he stilled.
A hissing caught my attention, and I looked down. The steel of my knife was hissing and corroded with growing pockmarks. Pieces of the metal began to drop to the ground. I let out a forceful sigh through my nostrils and dropped what remained of the knife my father had given me to the ground.
Behind me, Kael groaned. I pivoted to find he had shifted back into a man. I hurried over to him. His face was pinched, and I could tell he was in pain but trying not to look as if he were. He had a hand pressed to his side, blood pulsing through his fingers.
My own blood boiled .
I pulled my bag from my shoulders—it was a miracle I still had it—and tossed it on the ground beside Kael.
“I’ll be back,” I told him.
Kael’s brow furrowed. “Wait…Livvie.” His voice was strained, tight. He reached toward me with a red-stained hand.
“Put some pressure on that.” I jerked my head toward the gash on his side. I hoped he would be okay, but I couldn’t worry about it now. “I’m going to take care of the mage.”
Kael sputtered out protests, but I stepped away and headed across the grass. Energy warmed my palms, licked my wrists, and tumbled down my fingertips.
My magic came from within me, powerful, callous, unforgiving. I locked my gaze with Vehrin and let my own ancient mage come out.
The dark mage was more powerful than myself, and I feared Kael would not survive that injury, but for him, I would try.
Chapter 27
My magic grew warmer. My steps were calm and steady as I closed the distance between myself and the mage, though my heartbeats thundered and my stomach churned with unease. The atmosphere shifted, as if everything were buzzing with anticipation at what was undeniably an upcoming showdown.
Vehrin still appeared eager, confident. His arms were folded neatly behind his back, and he regarded me with what could only be described as amusement. Ancient power roiled inside of me. It was eager, too. I was eager. Though I was unsure of what the outcome would be, I was ready for this challenge, and when I looked at Vehrin, I didn’t find a new enemy...but an old one.