Chapter Twenty-Eight

**Leo**

Our group started flanking around the back of our troops, towards the rock. The dragons sat on top of it, watching over the battlefield.

Our line was stretched and thin compared to theirs, and I prayed our troops could outlast them despite the number discrepancy. If we’d had more time to gather others from different realms, it wouldn’t be so offset, but everything had happened so fast.

Vampires were not strong one-on-one, but their strength came in their ability to overwhelm with numbers. I shuddered as I glanced out over the enemy lines. Many humans with missing family members could never guess that their loved one ended up standing out here, fiending for a taste of blood.

Suddenly, the green dragon screeched loudly. The sound traveled across the open air of the battlefield with nothing in this big, flat desert to stop it.

Thousands of screeches and wails from the vampires answered it. And then they were running. Advancing at incredible speeds, no regard for one another as they clawed and tripped over each other, desperate for the first taste of blood. The dark elves hung back, and I saw they were knocking arrows, silver and iron tipped, I imagined, and preparing to fire.

“Now,” Finn whispered.

We all shifted, Eris, Finn and I, and hurried towards the rock, hoping that we wouldn’t be seen. I doubted the dragons knew Enid could use the link, so they shouldn’t have any idea that we knew where to go. River and Rhia disappeared, transporting to the opening of the chamber rather than running. Cass said he’d get there and went to stand by the harpies.

A large horn sounded on our side of the battlefield, a signal to the Fae troops to stand ready.

I heard the first clashes of war behind us, but couldn’t look back. I had one focus, one goal. Find my mate.

*’Enid?’*

*‘Leo, we’re in a huge chamber underground. They’re nearly ready to start the ceremony.’*

*‘We’re coming. Almost there.’*

*‘You won’t make it in time,’* she answered, worried.

I picked up my pace, running faster. Hades was easily keeping pace next to me, and I was once again amazed at his incredible speed.

*‘We will,’* I growled in my head.

We were close to the rock now and my adrenaline was hopping, making it easy to run at full speed.

A loud screech sounded above us and I looked up to see that the red dragon had spotted us.

*‘Faster!’* Finn said in my head.

The dragon jumped from the rock, using its giant webbed wings to glide down towards the ground. But she was intercepted halfway. Dozens of harpies, their wings shining black in the moonlight, advanced on the dragon.

They went straight for her wings and eyes, screeching shrilly as they tore at them. The dragon roared in pain and fury, unable to keep the glide and crashed down about twenty yards away from where we were running just along the rock’s edge.

The harpies didn’t relent, diving and slashing with six-inch razor-sharp claws. I winced as I saw the dragon grab a hold of one harpy, making a quick meal of her as her bones crunched sickeningly.

The green dragon roared from the rock, obviously noticing the commotion, and took flight. He was watching us with a yellow eye, and advanced towards us. I could see his maw open, his throat glowing orange with the fire he was about to spew.

Cass, as his small black dragon intercepted him. He landed on his back and attacked the back of his neck, tearing away at the sharp scales. The dragon screeched in fury and tried to roll, using his tail to whip at his new rider. A fresh wave of harpies advanced, helping Cass bring the dragon down.

Both the red and green dragon roared in fury, blasts of flames lighting up the night.

We rounded the corner of the rock, now on the west side of it, and I saw the opening descending into the underground.

*‘Nearly there,’* I told Finn and Eris.

We picked up our pace and finally arrived at the destination. We stared for only a moment, and then quickly started descending the steps.

I heard a thump behind us I’d grown so familiar with the last couple of years, I recognized it as Cass landing at the opening.

*‘The witches must’ve gone ahead,’* Finn said of River and Rhia.

I hoped they would make it in time. I knew we could only be a few minutes, if that, from midnight.

**Enid**

They wheeled me into an enormous stone room. Cera looked around and then raised her hands, firing dozen’s of perfect tiny fireballs around the room. They expertly found torches that had been hung on the walls and ignited them. The rock room lit up, the glow of the fire accentuating the orange and red color of the stone even more.

I watched, feeling for a moment a little jealous of her ability to manipulate the stubborn fire even though she seemed so young. It would have been very hard for me to do what she just did.

We were in a chamber with a raised platform in the middle. Stairs were carved into the rock, ascending up the side.

“We’ve got to hurry now,” Morga said in a rush. “Get her up there.”

Nox picked up the entire dolly with me on it and carried me up the stairs. Morga followed, moving quicker than a woman of her age should’ve been able to. The twenty vampires stayed on the lower level. Morga handed Cera the athame, chalice, and bell and then pulled the ancient-looking paper out of her robes.

On top of the platform, there was what looked like a stone coffin. It was huge, like they made it for a person who was ten feet tall. I swallowed a spike of fear, realizing that Sidious rested there. Around the coffin, there were three platforms.

“The chalice there, the bell there, and the athame there,” she said, pointing and instructing her daughter.

Cera obediently placed the items where she was instructed. I felt the magic in the room spike and I started to panic.

*‘They’re going to do it,’* I told Skadi.

She growled, and I could tell she was trying to think. Trying to figure our way out of this.

Suddenly, there was a commotion on the floor level of the chamber. I heard the vampires screeching and then felt magic that I recognized filling the air.

River and Rhia were here!

I smiled, looking at Nox. He was furious as he snarled, walking down the stairs to help the vampires. I heard stone and air being manipulated aggressively. Morga cursed, looking at her daughter.

“Strap her to the ceremonial table,” Morga told her, indicating the coffin. “And then slice her wrist. That should do it. None of the documents show an incantation needs to be recited.”

Morga then followed Nox to confront her sister and sister-in-law. It was just Cera, myself and Sophia, still in wolf form, up on the platform now. Sophia looked at nothing, keeping her head down and accepting her fate as Sidious’ first meal. Nox was so sure of her obedience that hadn’t even tethered her, just left her chain laying limply on the ground.

Cera’s hands were shaking, and she unstrapped me from the dolly, my first sign that she was unnerved. She fumbled with the key, shoving it into the locks.

She jumped when a ferocious growl sounded through the chamber. An Alpha wolf, no doubt.

My Alpha wolf.

A happy tear left my eye, but I watched Cera closely. She was rushing as she tried to move me to the table. I went limp, making her lift all of my weight and the weight of the chains. Grunting with effort, she finally got me to the table, but I could tell it was chaos below us.

I only had on the silver collar, the iron hand covers, and ankle cuffs now. I looked at the key in Cera’s shaking hand. She reached into her robes with the other hand and pulled out a small, decorated dagger.

A loud roar sounded below, catching Cera’s attention.

*’Now is our chance!’* My wolf growled.

Skadi pushed forward, only a partial shift because of the silver collar, and grabbed a hold of Cera’s arm. She tore at it violently and the key fell, tinkling softly as it hit the stone floor. I felt the bones of her lower arm crunching and breaking beneath our jaws.

Cera screamed in agony and swung the dagger wildly, slicing my face. Three fat drops of blood fell from my wound and I watched them fall in slow motion and plop on the top of the coffin.

The magic in the air increased, and I gasped in horror when I realized what we’d just done. Through the stone underneath me, I could feel shifting and stirring. Cera sensed it too and her eyes grew wide with terror. She ran away down the steps, blood pouring from her wound the entire way.

I scooted off of the coffin, desperately searching for the key. I spotted it, but with my hands still in the shackles I couldn’t grab it. Doing the only thing I could think of, I dropped to my knees and tried to pick it up with my mouth. If I could get it and take it to Leo or someone else, they could unlock my hands.

Before I could grab it, a hand shot in front of my face and snatched it up. Skadi growled, ready to bite, but stopped when she realized it was Sophia.

She’d shifted back to her human self, her face pale and gaunt from blood loss. She was focused and determined, zeroing in on my hands. Her hands were shaking, but she got the key into the lock. I could hear the rock scraping above us, the lid of the coffin sliding, and my eyes went wide.

“I’m so sorry for last night,” I whispered to her, feeling tears in my eyes.

She shook her head, but didn’t answer. The lock clicked, and I sighed in relief. My hand didn’t want to respond at first, having been locked in a fist for days now, but slowly I stretched my fingers. She worked quickly at the other cuff, getting it open as well.

Sophia looked at my face and said, “Forgive me.”

A giant hand with yellow claws instead of fingernails wrapped around her neck and lifted her off of the ground. I saw her eyes widen as the fingers squeezed, easily crushing the silver collar and her neck before I could even react.

I scooted back away on my butt and screamed, “No!”

Fear coursed through me as he stood, grinning. Sidious was nearly ten feet tall, his skin so dark it seemed to absorb the surrounding light. It was matched by the dark, crushing aura of immense power that flowed from him. His hair was long, almost to his waist. It was a strange reddish black color and twisted into massive locks.

He hissed at me, and his teeth were sharp even in his human form, his yellow eyes full of delight at being free.

I lifted my hands and blasted him with a shot of air. He flew back, smashing into the wall, while Sophia’s body dropped out of his grip.

I watched him, breathing hard, and he stood laughing. His laugh was a deep, eerie timbre, filling the chamber that I realized had grown quiet.

“Pythonissam Viridi,” he hissed, grinning wickedly and advancing towards me.