Power flared beneath my skin, thrumming in my veins.
“Argentum!” Aurelia’s voice rang through the cavern. “Please.”
I lifted myself off the ground, hovering above the ice-shrouded flames.
“The girl must die!” Argentum shouted. “Can’t you feel her power? It’s coming to life.”
The air shifted. From all directions in the cave, it was sucked into Argentum. His body expanded.
The ice collapsed into the lake and washed onto the shore in chunks. The wind tugged at the dragons’ wings, pulling them like kites about to be launched into the sky. They braced their feet against the ground. Their talons gouged the cave floor.
I clamped my hands over my ears, trying to block the sound so I could figure out what he was up to.
Dacia. Fear tinged Malcolm’s voice. Summon Mavros. You must do it now.
Mavros’ unbidden image came to mind. He knelt before me like he had when I’d used his true name and asked what I commanded of him. I imagined myself ordering him to kill Argentum, but I realized the guilt would belong to me no matter what. Either way, his blood would be on my hands.
I blasted a lightning bolt at the wall just above Argentum. Rocks crashed down on his rough hide, but it wasn’t enough to stop him.
Val lifted off the ground, sailing through the air backward toward Argentum. His face was panic-stricken.
“Transform!” I shouted.
A blue mist surrounded Val. Caught by the wind, it rushed toward Argentum, temporarily blinding him.
His outraged roar shook the cavern. Rocks jarred free and tumbled from the ceiling and walls. I shielded myself and the injured dragons.
Val plummeted toward the lake. I lifted my hand, stopping his fall, and pulled him to me. He cowered behind my legs, leaned his head against me, and whimpered softly.
Russ and Arianna transformed into humans. Arianna raced to me, grabbed Val’s hand, and pulled him away.
Rage burned in my chest. Anger for what he was doing to my friends. Fury that he couldn’t see past his prejudice. Lightning bolt after lightning bolt shot from my fingers. They collided with the ledge he sat upon.
The wind gusts ceased as he plunged from the rocky outcrop. He spread his wings and soared, landing in front of Aurelia. The ground shook in response. Rocks splashed into the lake and crashed against the floor. He lowered his head. “Can’t you sense it?” A silver haze surrounded him. “She’ll kill us all.” The voice that came through the mist was more human than beast.
Tension eased out of my shoulders. As it did, the power in my veins diminished. It was still there under the surface but no longer crackling with purpose.
Arianna stood over Cash, healing his wounds. Val hid behind a boulder, watching every step Argentum took. Russ went to Aurelia’s side, and Malcolm came to mine.
I nodded to the shadows. “Tye’s hiding back there.”
“I saw him,” Malcolm growled. Don’t trust Argentum. This is too easy. Even in my thoughts, his voice was feral.
I nodded and put my hand on his leg. Healing energy surged into him. “Save your strength, Dacia.” His obsidian scales were hard plates ending in sharp points. His muscles rippled with every step. His talons clacked against the ground. He was an apex predator, bred for fighting, and Argentum had swatted him aside like he was a tiny housefly.
“I don’t think I need to.” I’d never felt energy like this before. Even so, I needed to make sure not to deplete my stores too much because Malcolm was right. This was too easy.
Just as the thought blew through my mind, Argentum knelt in front of Aurelia. His silver hair pooled on the ground at her feet. She stretched her paw out to grab him in her talons, and he latched onto her. Her eyes glazed over, and as Argentum transformed into his dragon, his laugh filled the cave.
Chapter 43
Bloodlust
To me! I shouted the command to the dragons. They responded immediately, surrounding me. I put one hand on Cash’s neck and one on Malcolm’s. Val, Russ, and Arianna each held onto me. Their power flooded into me like a tsunami. “Chaódis Skotádi, I summon thee. Come forth, and stand before me.” The dragons turned their heads looking at one another, trying to figure out what I was doing.
Malcolm never looked away from me, holding my gaze with his, reassuring me this was the right thing to do, the only thing to do.
A black haze undulated through the air. It weaved and twirled in a mesmerizing dance. The vapor clung together forming Mavros. He knelt in front of me. A knowing twinkle sparkled in his obsidian eyes. “What do you command of me, my prothymós?”
I tilted my head, not sure what he’d said, afraid he would try to mislead me.
“It means liege,” Arianna said as she let go of my shoulder. Her voice was laced with disgust.
I lowered my hand to Mavros. “Lend me your strength.”
“I can kill him for you.” Mavros slipped his hand into mine and stood. “I can save you the pain.”
Malcolm stared at Mavros’ hand in mine. “You must set ground rules, Dacia.”
“There isn’t time for that right now.” Mavros had helped me. Would he try to defy me now? “Do not try to control me. Do not hurt any of my friends. Do not do anything that you know I would disapprove of.” I turned toward Malcolm. “Good enough?”
“For now.”
Mavros’ power slammed into me. The serpent under my skin greedily sucked it in. It was dark and ominous, forbidding. The alien energy was like a hurricane blasting through me. I searched for the eye, hoping to find a calm inside this raging storm.
I strode out from between the dragons, holding fire in both hands. It burned blue and black. Mavros walked beside me. “Argentum, let Aurelia go.” My voice sounded like me, but not. It was harsher, deeper, and had
