Light flared within the cave. Fire flickered in Hanns’ eyes, and a bow appeared in his hands. With a shout, Hanns released an arrow at the queen’s heart.
She batted the shaft away as though it were a fly.
Brandt’s veins ran cold. The queen knew them, far better than they had guessed. Was Ana safe? The queen’s touch spanned whole continents. Had he made a mistake in agreeing to come?
“Stop doubting,” Alena whispered.
Brandt looked over at her. She appeared worn. “This is a realm of belief, Brandt. You’re not making this easier.”
Ashamed his weakness was so public, he focused on the task at hand. Both the emperor and Alena fought against the queen in their own ways. He needed to find a way to contribute.
The queen’s cold eyes glittered. “This is my home. Those who sought my life never found this place. Here I could sleep and dream of the power I would one day wield. Perhaps the beds aren’t soft, but this is still my sanctum.”
Brandt heard the queen’s words, but his mind was elsewhere. He remembered their last fight, the way he’d manipulated his sword to destroy the gate.
The queen had threatened Ana by naming her in this place.
It lit a fire inside him, a small coal burning as bright as the sun. He held onto that, knowing how volatile his emotions could be in this place.
Brandt stepped in front of the others.
The queen glanced at him, then returned her attention to Alena, who she perceived as a greater threat.
He would make that her final mistake.
Brandt shifted his position, the technique ingrained in every bone and muscle in his body, a move practiced thousands of times.
His sword slid out of its sheath, the steel of the blade glowing. Brandt cut horizontally, the draw and the cut blending into one movement.
As he cut, he willed the blade to grow.
Here, the idea became reality. Brandt’s sword lengthened, quickly extending the entire width of the cave.
It cut into the stone on the other side. Brandt flexed his muscles, willing the cut to be easy. His sword didn’t even slow as it sliced through rock like thin parchment.
The first priest didn’t have enough time to respond. The sword passed through her cleanly. The second priest resisted, but only slowed Brandt for a moment. Then she, too, died. Brandt’s blade passed through an empty throne and met the knife of the third priest.
This one fought, nearly bringing Brandt’s whole swing to a stop. Caught in the moment, Brandt could think of nothing but to press harder.
Then the queen reappeared, standing tall in front of them. Her eyes blazed, glowing with an inhuman red light. She extended her arms and pure power blasted from the center of her being.
Hanns yelled, the sound of a soul crushed with despair. The emperor fell to his knees and the cave dimmed even more.
All Brandt saw was the queen’s glowing eyes.
He heard a whisper, not in his ears but in his mind. “I saved your life once. I own you.”
Something punched him in the stomach. He looked down, unable to see what had happened. He looked up and found himself face to face with the queen. She towered over him.
Brandt felt himself lifted bodily off the floor. His legs dangled helplessly, kicking at the air.
For a moment, the light returned to the cave and Brandt saw it was the queen’s fist that had punched him. It had pierced his stomach, and now she lifted him with one arm by his intestines.
The agony was excruciating, and cold. Ice spread through his veins, slowing his heart.
And then silence.
10
Emotions flooded this world, and Alena felt them all. Hanns didn’t reveal his torment on his face, but desperation leeched off him like a stink. She’d known the import of this task, but it wasn’t until she noticed Hanns controlling two gates that she understood how much they had staked on this attempt. If they failed here, the empire would eventually fall with them.
And they were failing. The cave reeked of death, the stone silent witness to the end of countless lives. Alena saw the barrier the emperor held between them and the queen, the only reason any of them were capable of logical thought. The queen’s power crashed against the barrier, one relentless wave after another.
So far, Hanns had only drawn on the power of a single gate. He would only surprise the queen once, so the moment had to matter.
But Alena wasn’t sure how many moments they had left.
Then the queen attacked Brandt in retaliation for his assault on her priests. The emperor’s boundary crumbled as the queen revealed a taste of her true power.
Alena froze when she saw the queen’s fist impale Brandt. Her friend roared in agony, but Alena wasn’t sure what she could do to save him. The queen could kill her with ease.
Then she noticed the threads tying the priests to the queen. Hanns needed to fight the queen, but Alena could weaken her.
Alena’s own defenses shattered as the emperor’s protection finally failed.
Somewhere far away, her brother waited for her to return. She felt him, his emotions calm, reassuring her.
Alena willed herself to appear next to the priest who had just defended himself against Brandt’s attack, not sure if such a feat was possible.
It worked.
The priest’s eyes opened wide as Alena appeared directly in front of him. Alena found the threads of his soul, wrapped herself around them, then plunged a dagger into his eye.
The priest’s soul pulled her into a familiar place.
No longer did Alena feel the fear of the cave. This was a flat plain decorated only by a single gate, somehow more real than the imitation Alena had seen
