The Shadow and The Draw, page 25
“Oh yes,” Zadkiel assures me. “It will.”
“So, we protect Cora, we fight them off, and we take out Michael,” Liall says, rising to his feet. “Understood?”
The warriors all acknowledge the command, and one by one they shuffle out of the hall. Rain has started falling outside, thunder rumbling loudly.
I look at the clock. It’s 10pm. We fly in 6 hours.
Hold on, Amryn. I’m coming. I’m coming to rescue you.
Tal turns to me, and gives me a weak smile. “It’s going to be OK, you know.”
I nod, not quite believing it. “Sure.”
“Hey, kiddo,” Tal says, putting a hand under my chin. “Really. It’ll be alright.”
“Sure.” I’m coming, Amryn.
“Baby.” He kisses my nose.
I shift in the bed, keeping my eyes closed. “This is a dream.” I murmur.
His arms move around me, and I can smell him. I can feel him. He’s so warm. “So what if it is?” He asks, stroking my hair. “Does it matter?”
I shake my head against his chest. “No.”
“I miss you.”
I feel a lump rising in my throat. “I’m coming to get you.” I whisper, holding on to him, feeling his skin under my fingertips, and it’s real, so real. If I wish hard enough, if I keep my eyes closed long enough, he’ll be here, even when I wake up. “I’m coming to get you.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
I open my eyes. The sheets beside me are cold. The moon is still high in the sky. It was just a dream. Dawn is a couple of hours away. It’s time to go.
I swing my legs over the edge of the bed, looking at the leather clothing they fashioned for me. Like armour. Not that I need it. I put a hand to my chest. I can summon the Inera now, though I still need to learn how to harness it. But I’m strong now, more powerful. Powerful enough to save Amryn.
I’m coming to get you.
I put my mother’s medallion around my neck, clutching it in my hands for a moment. If I ever needed you to be with me, Mom, today is that day. Please be with me. Please fight at my side. She was a fierce warrior, a Draw. Maybe a part of that resides in me. Maybe it’s just waiting to come out.
I pull on my leathers, and they’re tight but flexible, moulding to my body.
I walk into the lounge room, and Tal is waiting for me, dressed in his leathers. His hair is braided, drawn back from his face, his scimitar on his back. He looks me up and down and nods his approval. “You look good, Kiddo.” He walks over to me, giving me a small smile as he adjusts the buckles on my shoulder armour. “Now, this is how this is going to go.” He fixes me with an earnest look. “You keep your eyes ahead of yourself. I’m your eyes in the back, and I will not leave you, not for a second, do you understand?”
I nod.
“Until Elise and Yassin can find Amryn, heal him and bring him to you, you’re vulnerable, and they’re going to know that.” He goes on. “Amryn will be able to take any strikes thrown your way, he can shield you. And he’ll be able to heal you faster than any of us will be able to, OK?”
“Ok.” I reply. I don’t think I’m breathing anymore. I’m just existing in one moment to the next.
“Now,” he takes my hand in his, “if you have a shot at Michael, and one of us is in the way, you take it.” He clasps my hand as I begin to protest. “Kiddo, you need to take that shot. The Inera is the only thing that can weaken him enough for us to take him out. And one of us being in the way isn’t reason enough to stop that.”
“I’m not sacrificing anyone.” I say quietly. “No family dies today.”
“Cora, we might not have a choice.”
“Sure you do,” I say, mustering a small smile. “Just stay the hell out of my way.”
Tal chuckles, and puts his arm around me, squeezing me to him tightly for a moment. “It’s going to be OK, honey. We’re bringing him home today. We’re bringing them all home.”
We walk outside, and the edge of the horizon shows a mere whisper of light. Dawn is coming. The warriors are assembled outside the Great Hall, armed with swords and round golden shields, some with bows and arrows slung across their backs. They all stop and bow their heads as Tal and I approach, and I remind myself they’re bowing to me, not to him.
I’m their Queen.
Liall raises his hands, and calls for attention. “We fly together, and swarm the guards,” he announces. “You,” he points to a group of four warriors, “go with Yassin and Elise, and ward off any attacks while they seek out the Draw and heal him.” The warriors nod. “Everyone else, protect the Queen, destroy the opposing clans, and make sure we all get home safely.” He raises a fist into the air, alight with flames. “The Queen is home!” He calls.
The warriors raise their fists in response, their flames lighting up the village. “The Queen is here!”
“And the Old God sees us!” Liall calls in response, and the warriors roar and cheer. “We fly!” Liall’s smoky grey wings unfurl behind him. He lifts off into the sky, Ebony following close behind. The warriors take off after them.
Zadkiel is standing beside me, and he gives me a warm smile. “Ready?” He asks.
No. No. “Yes.” I say, feeling my wings unfurl behind me. Like opening my arms. My feet leave the ground, and Zadkiel and Tal fly either side of me, Zadkiel’s feathered wings cutting through the air audibly as we fly higher and higher.
I don’t feel prepared. I don’t feel ready. I still have a million questions, a thousand scenarios rolling through my head as I wonder what will happen when we arrive in Nilau. It all seems so simple, and yet so unknown. Defeat the enemy, blow the place to pieces. But how? What awaits us there? What if they can’t find Amryn?
We fly and fly, the sky becoming slowly brighter around us, the landscape beneath us warming from the dark of the night, hills and trees and mountains beginning to glow ethereally below. I look over at Tal, and he looks so young as he focuses ahead of him. He said he won’t leave my side. I’m glad he’ll be there. But I’m scared to hurt anyone, for anyone to be caught in my line of fire. I’ve lost too many people I love to lose anyone else today.
The warriors ahead of us begin to fly lower, and we follow suit. The towering trees just below our feet are familiar, and I know we’re near Nilau. It smells like home. No, not home. Nilau. It smells like that place, the place of enforced Fate and lies and rape and despair. It’s not my home, not anymore.
I feel a pain in my chest, and I cry out, clutching my hand to my heart. My wings falter for a second, and a hand grips my arm, steadying me in the air. I see it’s Zadkiel’s hand around my arm, his brow furrowed as he looks at me.
“What’s wrong?” Tal asks urgently.
“She can feel him.” Zadkiel says sadly.
I try to catch my breath, let the pain subside. It’s Amryn. He’s close.
Suddenly, there’s a flash of green up ahead, and the warriors disperse in the sky. They’re firing on us.
“That’s my cue,” Zadkiel says, and with a loud rush he swoops towards the green light, a shimmering red field emanating from him as he flies ahead..
“Cora, come on.” Tal says, pointing to the south side of the compound. “We’ll stay under the tree cover.
Something drops on me, something heavy, and I hear Tal call out as I hurtle to the ground with arms and legs wrapped around me. I hear wings, and I know it’s an angel. I wrench around in their grasp, fixing them with my eyes. Their eyes widen in terror, and I know my eyes have gone the ghostly white that signifies the Inera. “Big mistake.” I say, and there’s a flash of white light. The angel blows apart right in front me, their wings flinging off, catching the air and sailing away into the glowing dawn.
Tal swoops down beside me. “Are you OK?”
I nod, wiping the blood from my face with the back of my hand. “Just needed some war paint.” I reply.
Tal allows himself a quick grin, then gestures for me to follow him to the tree line at the south side. Flashes of green continue to go off in the sky, and then a fireball is detonated, and I hear screaming as someone - many someones - down in the compound are incinerated.
We touch down just inside the fence line, and quickly there are two guards running at us, dressed up in the stupid military uniform I recognise from the warehouse in Sfayder. Tal brandishes his scimitar in one hand, and a flame in the other, slicing one demon across the chest, and hitting the other one with his flame.
The demon with the chest wound raises a gun in my direction, and Tal swings his scimitar, swiping the demon’s head clean off his body. It rolls across the grass, coming to rest against the fence. I suppress a gasp. I’m going to be seeing a lot of this today.
In a low crouch we run along the fence line for one of the guard towers. I can see demons up there, firing on our warriors, up into the sky with the neon green canons that must be new tech or blood magic or something else Ragnar dragged up here with him to equip his old enemy.
I wave Tal away with my hand, back towards the fence. I focus on that feeling, that feeling that’s now familiar to me, and the feverish heat beats at my ribcage, clawing its way out of me. With an explosion of light the tower topples to the Inera, taking the guards with it. It lies in a pile of flaming rubble, and the green canons go silent.
Tal moves back to my side, and gives me a smile. “Nice one, kiddo.”
We keep running, taking cover behind one of the log houses near the perimeter. Tal peers around the corner, then ducks back down. “There’s a group of demons there,” he says quietly, gesturing to the left, in front of the house.
I step out and edge down the side of the house, and as I round the corner, one of the group looks up, and it’s Vale, staring right at me. His brow crinkles with confusion, then he sees the white glow bursting from my hands. His eyes barely have time to widen, and I hit them, taking them all out, leaving only burnt ground behind.
Bye, Vale, you piece of shit.
Tal is chuckling quietly behind me. “You really are a weapon, kid.”
A gunshot hits the house beside us, and we scurry for cover.
“Come out!” A voice demands. “Come the fuck out!”
“That’s Finn.” I say to Tal. He grips his scimitar and rises to his feet, but I stop him. “No. He’s mine.” I say, summoning a flame. I step out from the cover of the house, my white flames licking up my arm.
Finn stares at me in disbelief. “You’re back?” He says incredulously, lowering the gun. “You came back?”
I shake my head. “Nope, just stopping by.”
Finn scoffs. “To get him, right? The fucking Runt.”
“I wouldn’t call him that if I were you.” We’re circling each other, moving slowly.
Finn sneers at me, bitterness twisting his features. “Well, don’t hold out much hope for what you’re getting back. He’s a wreck. He’s nothing but a broken, twisted fucking wreck. You’ll be begging to come back to me.”
I laugh and shake my head. “You think I’d want you over him? He’s a million times the man you’ll ever be.”
“I loved you,” Finn says. “I really did.”
“No you didn’t.” I say, brandishing the flame in my hand, making it dance. “You wanted to be Alpha, and I was just the means to an end. And you raped me so you could claim your Alpha status, and you were going to kill the man I love to prove a point.”
“It was fate, Cora!” He says, dropping the gun and holding his hands up. “Babe, we’re meant to be together, remember? I’m the one for you, not Amryn. Fate says so.”
I point my flames at him.”Fuck fate then.” I fire at him, and he cries out, thrown onto his back. I walk towards him, and he lies on the ground, gasping for air, his skin burned and blistered. His eyes are wide as he looks up at me.
“Cora.“ He can barely get the words out, his throat raw and gleaming.
“What is it Finn?” I ask, standing over him. “Does it hurt?” I lean down over him. “Do you want it to stop?”
“Cora, I’m sorry.” He gasps.
“You’re nothing, Finn.” I sneer. “You’re nothing.” His eyes widen as my flames wash over him, and reduce him to ash within seconds.
Tal cheers from behind me. I look up, and I can’t see any angels around. This isn’t right. They’re waiting for something. They haven’t launched a full attack yet.
“They’re biding their time.” I say to Tal as we both scan the sky above us.
“As long as we have time to get Amryn healed, I don’t care,” Tal says, retreating back to our shelter. “They can take all the time they want.”
21
Amryn
The eerie silence that settled over the compound a couple of hours ago - or was it minutes? - is interrupted by the fire of cannons, guns, yelling. The ground beneath me shakes as explosions go off.
When was the Blood Moon? That’s tonight, isn’t it? No. Tomorrow. I blink, trying to remember. I’ve lost track of time. Stupid.
I pull myself into a sitting position, creeping slowly up the wall, and just this action costs me every ounce of strength I have. I cry out as I lean on my arm, the blisters and seared flesh sending black spots in to my vision. The pain turns my stomach, but I have nothing in there to vomit up. I retch dryly on the floor.
There’s gunfire right outside the building, and yelling. Flashes of green light illuminates the cracks in the ceiling. They’re using blood magic. That acid shit that’s bound around my arms.
There’s more shouts in the corridor outside my cell, and then gunfire, followed by an explosion. The door is blasted open, and I press myself back against the wall as air rushes past me.
“Amryn.” Someone’s hands are on me, holding my face. “Amryn, sweetheart, it’s me.”
I open my eyes and look at her. “Mom?” I ask. It’s another one of Morgan’s fucking spells. “You’re not real.” I shake my head, trying to push her away, closing my eyes. “Not again. Leave me alone. Don’t touch me.”
“Amryn, it’s me, it’s Elise.” She says. “Baby boy, it’s OK.”
Panic swells in my chest, and I ignite my flames, screaming as they burn my arms. “Get away from me!”
“Shit.” I hear a man’s voice say. There’s cool hands on my arms. “Amryn, come on, stop now.”
I open my eyes, and it’s Elise’s face in front of me. “It’s another spell.” I mutter,
“No, baby boy, it’s me.” Her hands press against my chest, and my skin glows under her touch. “Amryn, it’s me, and I’m here to heal you.”
I shake my head. “No, no, you’re her, you’re her.” Nausea overcomes me again as I feel her hands push on my chest, and my jaw trembles. “Please, don’t. Not again.”
“Baby boy,” she says, “Cora’s here. She needs you.” A gentle yellow glow begins to come from her arms. “Amryn, it’s me.” Warmth begins to flood my body. “This will hurt a little. But it’ll be over, just let it take over. Yassin, look at his arms.”
Strong hands lay themselves on my blistered skin, and they’re cool. I close my eyes, the relief at the acid bonds falling away so strong I feel tears in my eyes. The maddening feeling of bugs eating away at my skin shrinks away. I exhale heavily.
“He’s hurt bad,” the man says. “I’ve never seen anything like the shit on his arms.”
Elise’s hands stay on my chest, and I suck in a sharp breath through gritted teeth as bones knit back together, as torn muscles repair. I feel all of it now. The warmth is giving way to a feeling of a million steel traps going off in my joints.
An explosion goes off right outside the building, and Elise cowers against me as rubble showers down from the ceiling. “Tell those warriors to keep that shit away from us!” She yells at the man. My ears are ringing. A searing pain burns through my skull, and I throw my head back, bellowing as my vision goes black. My head’s going to shatter, it’s going to split apart.
“Amryn, stay with me,” Elise says, her hands on either side of my face. “Amryn, this is the worst part, it’s nearly over, come on, stay with me.” I try to claw at my head, to stop the embers that are burning through my brain, but Elise holds me down. “Amryn, it’s OK. Come on, stay with me, I’m here, I’m here.”
Images flash through my head, the torture I’ve endured, the pain they’ve subjected me to. I feel like I’m suffocating. I gasp for air, and a throbbing pain thumps at my temple. Someone screams, and I’m pretty sure it’s me. Then everything is light, and warm, and I’m in the water, with Cora, her arms around me. I panic for a moment - am I dying again? - but air fills my lungs, and even though it’s thick and sticky, it’s air.
I can breathe. I’m alive, and I can breathe.
Something snaps inside me, and I slump to the ground. I stretch my hands across the stone floor, and I can feel it, properly. Not muted through the bonds on my arms. I ignite a flame, and it doesn’t hurt. My body doesn’t ache anymore. I can move my arm again.
I sit up against the wall, and Elise is eyeing me anxiously. I give her a smile. “I’m fucking glad to see you.”
Her face is flooded with relief. “You’re OK,” she breathes, putting her arms around me.
“I guess I am.” I reply, hugging her back. “I feel like I am, so that’s a good start.”
“You really do heal quick,” she says, pulling back and getting to her feet. She unhooks a satchel from around her shoulders, and pulls out clothes for me. Ones that aren't caked in blood and sweat and filth. “Come on, we gotta get out there.”
I stand up, flooded with relief as nothing hurts, and I pull on the black pants and long sleeved black shirt. They feel like light-weight armour, the fabric flexible but hard to the touch.
Yassin rushes back into the room, and he gives me a nod. “Glad to see you’re back on your feet, my friend. You had us worried for a minute.”
“Thanks. What’s it look like out there?”
“A load of demons, and not too many angels.” He replies.
