Suddenly, I see the Bloodbane swoop lower, bows and arrows aimed at me and my army. I soar towards them, dodging poisoned-tipped arrows. I plow into the Bloodbane, pain lancing through my shoulders as I knock them from their deadwood brooms. They plummet to the ground with high-pitched cries of fear. Arrows fly through the air, catching the Bloodbane by surprise. From the corner of my eyes, I see Haru’s archer in perfect form.
With a roar, I wheel around and back to the demons below. Haru can take care of the Bloodbane now that we’ve thinned their ranks. My claws, as long and as sharp as the demon’s, are coated in blood.
I see gold-clad soldiers fall under the demons’ claws, gasping for their last breath before the demons’ jaws close around their heads. I feel my own sanity and sense of self fade as the battle wages. I become nothing more than a killer, a hunter. My eyes are dry, narrowed, and furious as I soar into battle again and again and again.
I feel my fur matted with black blood, but I don’t stop. I watch countless yellow eyes fade into darkness as I steal life after life. The demons balk at my approach, screeching to one another. I ignore them, shredding through their scaled bodies without mercy.
The demons are turning back, running on all fours back to the shelter of the mountains. I roar victoriously and the archers behind me send waves of deadly arrows into the demons’ exposed bodies. I pause, hovering over thousands of carcasses and blood-soaked fields. And then in the distance, I see Sadal and Maaz atop a mountain cliff.
I can feel Sadal’s wicked grin, feel his eyes on me. Without hesitation, I swoop towards him, beating my powerful wings until the demons and dead Fae are nothing but blurs of color below me. As I grow closer, I see Sadal’s grin widen. He seems unconcerned that we decimated his forces, if anything he looks amused. I feel cold rage coil inside my chest at the sight of him and the pale-haired woman beside him. Maaz.
I stretch my claws forward, imaging how it would feel to curl my claws in his innards. Suddenly, Sadal steps aside in a smooth motion and I reel back, beating my wings furiously to slow. I feel sick, nauseous, and deep-seated sorrow as the woman in red comes into view. Verity, dressed in a Bloodbane cloak, stares at me with wide, fearful eyes. I see her elegant fingers reach for me before Sadal steps in front of her again, shielding her from view.
I whirl away, reeling from the sight of her in the red cloak of my enemy. There’s a painful clenching in my chest and I know that if I wore my Fae form my sorrow and heartbreak would be clear on my face. I dive low, soaring close over the corpses that litter my lands. The stench of blood reaches my nose. I can hardly smell it; all my senses are wrapped in the realization that Verity has joined my enemies.
I can’t get the panic in her eyes out of my mind. And I can’t forget the vibrant color of her cloak. I growl softly as I land in the midst of the surviving forces. I will get Verity back. I have to. I turn back towards Sadal, staring towards the distant cliff he’s standing on. My lips curl back over my fangs. I won’t rest until Sadal is dead at my feet and Verity is safe in my arms.
Chapter 5
Verity
“Altair,” I whisper as his beastly form soars away from me. I feel tears stinging at my eyes, but I blink them away; I can feel Maaz’s eyes on me. I won’t give her that satisfaction. I know I’ll never forget the way his hazel eyes widened with shock and then grew dark with sorrow. He thinks I betrayed him, I realize. He thinks I wanted this.
I hang my head, hair spilling over my shoulders as I fight against the pain in my chest. The Bloodbane cloak itches against my skin. My fingers twitch as I fight the urge to tear it off my shoulders and fling it into Sadal’s face. I glance up and see his black eyes watching me. My heart pounds faster anger flooding through me. As if he can sense this, his lips quirk into a victorious smile.
“Enough games,” Maaz hisses from Sadal’s side. “Finish them.”
“Finish?” I echo, staring at her in surprise. I wave a hand towards the thousands of demon corpses on the field. “It’s over, your army is decimated.”
Maaz eyes me coolly. “You mortals are such tiny, stupid creatures.”
“So, I’ve been told.” I glare at her.
She turns to Sadal and wraps her thin fingers around his arm. “Do it, my Lord, show them your power.”
My lips part softly as Sadal shakes Maaz off his arm. She ignores the slight, biting her lips with excitement. Her blue eyes are wide, gleaming, and her red lips are parted in a broad grin. Sadal doesn’t look back at us before he slips off the cliff face. My stomach lurches as his body plunges out of sight. I rush to the edge and drop to my knees. As much as my stomach is twisting with nerves at Sadal’s sudden suicidal move, my heart is pounding with anticipation. Without Sadal, there will be no more fear for Altair or me.
My eyes rove over the twisted mass of retreating demons below, but I don’t see Sadal’s lean body on the rocks below. Dirt cakes under my fingernails as I dig my hands into the earth. Suddenly, a cloud of black smoke or tangible shadow soars upwards, blocking out the sun. I gasp sharply, falling back as it streaks past me. It rumbles, like the earth shifting, and coils towards Altair’s forces.
