Page 78 of Kingdom of Spirits
“Of course I did, fool.” Ophelia launched herself forward.
Crouching, Tahlia gripped one of the Terror’s spikes as the dragon listed to one side. Ophelia fell to her stomach and grabbed onto another spike, the Terror’s wing nearly battering her in the process.
Tahlia stood as the threads showed the Terror was about to even out his flight. Confusion swarmed his mind, or at least that was what the threads suggested. Maybe he would circle and hover and await an attack from one of the others to do more than that. But one thing was abundantly clear…
“Your dragon is trying to get rid of you,” she said to Ophelia.
“Ha! As if you know anything about dragons, human.”
The dragon dipped, and they flew up for a second, both females scrambling for a hold on the creature. If she’d not been weakened by the cursed plague, she’d have had no problem, not with the threads’ help. But her body trembled with fatigue again, and she couldn’t get her lungs to fill with air. The Terror leveled himself once more, flying higher, the fight between possessed Marius and his likewise controlled Ragewing and the other members of the order below them. Thank the Old Ones that the other riders and dragons were able to keep Ragewing from firing on them by peppering him and Marius with attacks. Marius had his bow out though and Tahlia fought to focus on the fight going on in front of her positionally. Even though she saw the threads clearly, her heart demanded that she check on Marius and everyone else.
Forcing herself to turn back to Ophelia, Tahlia studied the female’s red-tinged eyes and how her lips were pulled back into a grimace. Ophelia was just a sad, sad person.
“I can’t believe you murdered your father.” Anger made Tahlia’s skin itch. “Why did you do it?”
“I sacrificed everything for this order and Marius.” Spittle flew from Ophelia’s mouth as she made it to her feet and started toward Tahlia. “You wouldn’t understand that kind of selflessness, human.”
Tahlia lifted her sleeve to show the golden boils that had erupted when she’d grabbed Marius. “Wouldn’t I?”
Ophelia’s eyes went wide. “The ritual worked.” She flung a hand in Katk’s general direction, but Tahlia didn’t glance away. The threads told her what she needed to know. “The monster did that to you?”
“Marius’s curse did this to me when I pushed him back to save his life.”
A sick grin crawled across Ophelia’s lips. “It all worked. The demon, the ritual…”
“Whatever you did woke up this monster and he is determined to kill everyone with Mistgold blood. How do you see that as success?” For a moment, black spots dotted Tahlia’s vision.
Ophelia laughed loudly and shot forward. Threads, black and blue, wound through the air, connecting dragon scales, wings, Ophelia, Tahlia, and the twist of wind that buffeted them. The sparkling lines showed Tahlia exactly what to do and when to do it.
Shaking slightly, Tahlia simply lifted a foot and launched the witch off the dragon.
Bellowing, Katk caught Ophelia. Golden boils erupted over her face, and she screamed. Her shrieking faded to nothing and she disappeared inside the monster’s fist. He stumbled, on the verge of falling.
Katk’s creator had formed him to destroy those Fae with Mistgold blood and not even the fact that Ophelia was his champion could save her. In fact, it was that very fact that had doomed her from the first time she’d done whatever ritual it tookto raise him. Katk had met his champion at last, only to kill her, and with that move, end himself as well.
Tahlia winced at the tragic waste of Commander Gaius’s life and Ophelia’s riding talent. Dropping to her knees, Tahlia trembled as the remainder of her strength left her body. Her skin was on fire, the dragon fire burns battling to outdo the pain of the golden boils. The sounds of the fight jumbled in her ears as if she was underwater.
Rider, don’t give up.It was Lija, her voice reedy and frail.
I won’t. I can see it…
Atticus and Ewan shouted for Tahlia. She turned their way as she crawled to the Terror’s saddle. Beside them, Maiwenn waved her arms. Her Seabreak, Donan, clasped both Lija and Fara in his talons. Trevain floated nearby and a host of spirits the same golden shade had joined him.
Every ounce of air left Tahlia’s lungs. They were alive. She’d seen it in the threads, but it was impossible not to fear the worst anyway.
Then her heart drew her eyes to Marius.
Ragewing flew toward Katk, who had gone to his knees on the earth below.
Were Marius and Ragewing still held by the curse’s power? Where was Ophelia?
Tahlia searched the threads and found nothing.
Had Ophelia portalled somewhere or disappeared using more dark magic?
Ragewing blazed the back of Katk’s head, and even though the Heartsworn’s fire was as tattered as an old cloak, hope lit a flame of its own inside Tahlia. They were fighting Katk and, hopefully, Ophelia and the curse, too.
Katk’s massive body pounded to the earth. Boulders lifted from their resting spots to roll down the foothills in an avalanche. The debris cut its way messily down the land. Treessnapped like twigs and fell. In the distance, mountain goats bleated in alarm and scattered.