Page 138 of To Kill a King
With a twisted growl of glee, the creature curled into a ball and plowed through the middle of her ranks. A cloud of black ash piles trailed behind.
If that thing killed the princess, the elves would break and scatter to the winds. The fight would be lost. And then Princess—other Princess…Aliya—wouldn’t have support to claim her throne.
Zadé kicked her pony’s sides and charged toward Tsara. “Out of my way!”
The screams and commotion buried her orders.
The city guards cheered from the parapets. A few arrows peppered the elven troops, but they were nothing compared to the hell beast raging unchecked through her brigade. Tsara’s brigade.
Lightning cracked against its skin as the dragon rolled into range of the elven mages.
With a howl, the monster popped up and blasted its breath at the source of the pain.
A translucent purple barrier appeared, clashing with the rippling waves of death. Magic collided and the shield fizzled out as the dark currents tore it apart. A wall of fire snapped up in its place.
The hell beast screeched again and sent another blast toward the magic users. The flames flickered, barely managing to hold back the onslaught before their power collapsed.
Another bolt of lightning caught it in the hip. The shadow dragon roared. It breathed at the magic users one final time before curling into a ball and rolling away in search of easier prey.
“No! It’s heading for Tagate’s battalion!” Tsara stretched her hand out, as though she could grab the Shadow Dragon and fling it away.
Zadé frowned. Tagate…Tagate. Oh, right. Tsara’s younger cousin.
“Zadé! Please, help!”
Turning to face the sun elf, Zadé blinked. She hadn’t even realized Tsara had registered her presence. But no, she couldn’t help. She was broken.
Tsara locked eyes with her. “General Brightleaf, please! Save my cousin!”
Valek. That was the same desperate look Elsan’d given her in the bar after Princess—Aliya—got kidnapped. The look that made her not finish the rest of her schooners. Zadé took a deep swig from her flask and sighed. Why couldn’t kids nowadays get themselves out of their own problems?
A hand clasped her forearm. She looked up to find Tsara’s intent gaze.
“Please, General. I’m begging you.” The princess leaned forward, and whispered in her ear, “I took the army without my father’s knowledge. If we lose, or get his favorite nephew killed, he’ll disown me.”
No one needed to tell Zadé how much it sucked to be disowned. And Tsara’s wide-eyed gaze looked a lot like Aliya’s when she was scared.
Okay, fine. “But only on th’ condition yeh don’t call me General again.” Zadé knocked her knuckles against her temple. “Haven’t been a general since m’ brain broke.”
Tsara’s relief was palpable. “Thank you, Gen-Zadé.”
With a sigh, Zadé turned and scanned the field. The left flank was holding steady with the assault on the gate. The right flank was collapsing under the Shadow Dragon’s rolling assault.
“Mages!” She pointed as her voice tore from her throat in desperation.
Twin lightning bolts arched across the sky in response, striking the monster. Fireballs followed close behind. The fiend howled but didn’t deviate from its course.
Tsara’s horn bearer stood beside them. “Princess.” He cleared his throat. “You should consider leaving the field.”
She whipped around to face him. “What?”
“You’re the heir. We can’t afford to lose you.”
Tsara turned back to the hell beast, wreaking havoc on Tagate’s soldiers. “You would have me flee like a coward? This battle can’t be routed so soon. If we fail here…”
Zadé caught the gaze of the horn bearer. “He’s right, Princess. Yeh don’t belong here.”
Tsara’s lips thinned into a line. “No. If we flounder here, if the humans destroy our forces, the elves will be defenseless. We’ll be exterminated.”