Page 63 of Crown of Flame
I can’t help but smile, knowing I’m safe. The elf loosens his grip, suddenly choking. I spin around to see Cinis holding the gray-skinned bastard in his hands, draining the life out of him.
He flings the remains to the ground and turns to me, our eyes locking onto one another with renewed hope.
I want to throw myself into his arms, relishing the strength of his grip enveloping me. But I know that if I get close, I’m going to burn up.
I stutter as I try to find the right words but nothing comes.
“I missed you,” I mutter somehow, my throat swelling with joy.
“Serena, I shouldn’t have let them take you in the first place, I… I…”
I imagine kissing him. I want so badly to embrace him. He feels like home.
“There’s something I must tell you,” he states. “It can’t afford to wait any longer.”
“What is it, Cinis?”
I’ll remember his words forever.
“I love you, Serena. I’ve always loved you since the first time I saw you. I have lived countless years, but all that time before you no longer exists for me. Because of you, I now know the meaning of a life with purpose, and my life is one with you.”
“Cinis,” I whisper, shedding a tear. “You don’t know how long I’ve wanted to tell you the same thing.”
He smiles, and it’s more beautiful than anything I’ve ever seen.
“I love you so much,” I tell him.
“You were worth those centuries of waiting,” he replies.
I want him to pull me in by the waist and hold me tight, bending me down and kissing me over the raging flames. Unfortunately, an open battlefield isn’t the best place for a reunion.
“Get them!”
We turn to see the surviving soldiers rallying against us, most are bloodied, and those who aren’t advance hesitantly. I grab my fallen sword, but by the time I wield it, Cinis is sucking the life out of the final trooper.
It’s a relief that their supply of armor is limited.
“That takes care of this problem,” he states, flinging the body to the ground. “Serena, I fear we may have to hold off on our proclamations for now.”
“That’s okay,” I tell him. “I know there’ll be time for it very soon now that you’re here with me.”
He’s right. As much as I’d love to focus on us, there’s a bigger task at hand. We need each other now more than ever. I look across the rest of the humongous compound. The other side doesn’t appear to have been alerted to my escape or Cinis’ appearance.
“Cinis, I think there’s more of them on the other side.”
“There’s something you should know first,” he says. “There’s dark elf camps hidden around the hills surrounding the human settlements. They’re surveilling them before Aldris gives the order for assaulting them.”
“Bastards,” I hiss. Out of the corner of my eye, I spot the impaled soldiers and remember their armor. “Cinis, do you see those soldiers wearing the blue armor?”
“Yeah, I found a way around that,” he says. “They might be immune to my magic, but if they leave a flame around of its own accord? I can help it along.”
He sighs, exhaling smoke.
“But without an open flame, and not one I conjure, I’m afraid I’m helpless against them,” he says. “I can’t lift them into the air. I can’t shoot fire directly at them. They’re immune to my magic.”
“Cinis,” I say, just glad to be useful. “I found a weakness in their armor.”
“You did?” his voice perks.