Stinging magic rolled over me, and hands grabbed my shoulder and ripped me back. Their help had arrived.
“Gotta kill you quick-like,” I said, my vision still splotchy but good enough.
I threw back an elbow and connected with a sternum. The hands loosened and the guard’s breath flowed over me, but he didn’t let go. Someone else grabbed at my arm.
I swelled air to throw them off, but my attention was divided, and the king had an unimpeded shot at me. My vision flickered out again, and pain nearly doubled me over.
I felt a blast of magic rush by me. A hoarse cry sounded before the pain ceased and my vision flickered back to good enough. The hands yanked at my shirt before disappearing entirely.
I spun with wild eyes in time to see Cahal’s sword slice into one of the guards that had restrained me. Emery punched another before grabbing the dagger from her belt and stabbing her in the chest. He turned to another one, wild-eyed, and let loose a spell that tore the guard’s chest wide open. Blood and guts spilled out. The guard tried to catch them in crimson hands as he sank to the ground.
Penny shot off another spell. The king barely managed to redirect it before falling off the other side of the dais.
She glanced over, and I felt relief so thick it was choking me. She met my eyes and nodded.
The queen had turned over and was crawling to the back of the dais, clearly not sure where she was going, just away. Marks did this too. Usually I’d step on their backs and demand answers, or just haul them up and take them in.
But she wasn’t going anywhere. Neither of them were.
“I got the king,” I said. “I’ve already primed the queen for you.”
“Nah. I’ll let Emery take that sack of monkey balls.”
“You can’t swear, even here?” I grinned, my rage swelling, my magic swelling with it. “Still know how to do hellfire?”
“I can’t without your dad’s magic here too. I can light a bunch of guards on fire, though.”
“Good. Don’t go overboard. We don’t want you losing yourself to rage and never coming back.”
“My mom already warned me about that. I’m good. I’ll let Emery handle it.”
I nodded and stepped up onto the dais, ignoring the queen. Emery would handle that, as Penny had said, and we’d forgive him for his lack of decorum when he did.
“Fucking with us was a big mistake, your highness,” I said as I stalked toward the king, shoving at his magic with gritted teeth. “Oops. Found your equal, did you?”
“You’re trash,” he snarled.
“If name calling helps you cope with this situation, by all means.” I tangled with his power. It was volatile and unstable sometimes, and cool and smooth others. I had no idea what that meant, but I did know these suckers weren’t great with their hands.
I gave a big push as I rounded the corner, shoving his magic right back at him. Then I physically rushed forward, jumped, and kicked. My heavy boot cracked him in the face, and he fell backward like a log. He shot his hand up, but I slashed with air, ridding him of that ability in the future.
“I have to ask…” I slashed down at him, my magic skimming across his neck. He cried out, an inhuman sound, throwing everything he had at me.
I spared a bit of my magic and endured the pain. I worked around his gale of power.
“You’re not banging your sister, right?” I stabbed, the thrust of air magic shoved aside but not enough, because it came down in his side. “Because that would be gross.” My next slash was accompanied by another swell of magic. I cut through his middle this time.
He yelled, clutching the wound, and I swiped once more, silencing him for good. His head rolled away.
Archion now stood on the field he’d crashed into, my hasty grass illusion torn up in a couple places, but at least it had done the job. He appeared unhurt. The other two dragons dropped down as well, Coppelia huffing smoke.
Emery stood on the dais looking at the castle, his chest rising and falling. He’d dealt with the queen. He glanced my way, saw that I was good, and then found Penny shooting off spells into the much-reduced crowd of guards like a gunslinger. None of the other elves had come back to help. Not one. That spoke volumes.
Your people need help, Archion thought. You will have to surprise the elves another time.
I told Emery and the others what he’d said.
“Penny!” Emery shot out a spell, cutting down a guard who’d thrown some kind of nasty magic at her. Cahal lopped off one elf’s arm, another’s head, and then cut through a third’s leg with cool economy, like he was dancing with his sword. It was vicious and vile, and I loved it.