The Dragon Queen (Death #4)

11. Calista

Chapter 11

Calista

Inferno’s screams were like knives against my ears and blades against my heart, but when they stopped, it was worse. Don’t do this to me. I tried to pry an opening in his talons, but the tension was too tight. Let me kill the rider.

Inferno was quiet.

Please!

His talons suddenly went slack, but I wasn’t sure if that was voluntary…or automatic. I finally slid through the grip and saw the enormous dragon on top of Inferno, his mouth bloody from ripping into the bright-red scales that matched the color of blood. I felt no ill will toward dragons, but the sight of that changed my outlook. I grabbed the dagger at my hip and threw it at his face, aiming for one of his eyes. “Stop it!” The dagger bounced off his scales and disappeared.

But he did turn to me and forget Inferno. He lowered his head slightly to look at me, releasing a quiet growl.

I should be dead scared right now, but the anger masked the fear. I readied my sword, prepared to battle a dragon that could eat me in a single bite. I’d promised Talon I would stay out of the fight, but I couldn’t abandon Inferno to his fate. “Come on, that’s all you’ve got?”

The rider became visible when he dropped down on top of Inferno’s body. In armor that matched his dragon’s scales, he looked at me from where he stood on Inferno’s side. The dragon finally left Inferno’s body to move behind his rider like he’d been commanded to step away.

That was when I noticed the rider rise slightly in the air…because Inferno took a breath.

Hold on, Inferno.

He said nothing, his mind gone.

The rider hopped down again and landed on the blood-soaked earth. He wore a black cape the way Talon did, and as he came closer and in view of the fire that torched the nearby trees, his features became visible.

Astaroth.

With sallow, gray skin and a look of malevolence in his eyes, he stared me down like I’d personally affronted him. The silence stretched for nearly a minute, a minute that Inferno didn’t have. Then Astaroth reached behind his back and gripped the hilt of his heavy blade before he unsheathed it. The blade was midnight blue with a shine so clear it was like a mirror. He held it at his side as he looked at me, cocking his head as he examined me.

A flutter of fear entered my heart, but I pushed it back. I didn’t have Inferno’s power in my veins, not when he was on death’s doorstep. I would never take it from him, not when it might be the only thing that might keep him alive.

I was on my own.

Astaroth took a step toward me. “You’re the one turning our dragons against us. I have seen it.”

I knew I had no chance to win this fight and save Inferno, but I had to try. He gave his life for mine, and I would do the same for him. We were fused—and that meant something.

Astaroth’s eyes narrowed. “There will be no more of that.” He took another step and then another before his momentum peaked, rushing me at a speed that belied his height and size. There was no doubt that he channeled the power of his dragon in his muscles, had the strength to wield that sword like it had the weight of a feather.

Before he reached me, I felt it…felt my body come alive with unbridled power. Fire lit up my veins and made me suck in a deep breath. No . The grip on my sword was suddenly tight, and my body felt weightless. Inferno…

Astaroth stuck me with a killing blow, aiming to decapitate me.

I ducked and felt my hair fly behind me. I rolled out of the way and felt the mud and blood stain my armor. I sidestepped his next hit and then the next, staying alive solely because of the heightened focus that Inferno lent to me.

Astaroth stopped his assault and watched me with narrowed eyes. “Kill the dragon.” He could have spoken to his dragon in his mind, but he said the words out loud just for my benefit.

“No.” I rushed to him and slammed my blade down into his. Then I spun my blade around again and tried to land another blow, but all I received was his sword to my vambrace.

I had the upper hand for merely a second before he overtook me again, and this time, his hand slammed down on my arm and nearly made me scream. The armor protected me and there was no wound, but the hit was so strong it nearly cracked my bones.

He smirked as he barreled down on me. “Your dragon is no match for mine.” His sword flashed through the air, a streak of blue light, coming at me with a speed my eyes could barely see.

I defended myself but only barely. My muscles strained against his size and experience. Inferno’s abilities kept me alive, but barely. I simply didn’t have the skills that Astaroth had accumulated over his long life.

He struck me again, hitting me so hard in the torso that my chest plate cracked inward and impaled me.

I almost screamed, but my pride wouldn’t allow it. I could feel the shards of the armor right in my stomach, several inches deep, so painful I could hardly breathe or move. I stumbled back and almost landed in the mud.

Astaroth didn’t pursue me. He just stood there and smiled—like he knew.

Now was the time to flee for my life, but I wouldn’t leave Inferno. If he died, then I would die too.

He spun his sword around his wrist as that gloating smile remained. Then he came for me, his steps slow, as if savoring the moment before the kill.

I moved backward, feeling the mud underneath my boots. It was hard to have a good hold without slipping, and when I took the wrong step, I fell on my ass and felt the shards dig into me deeper.

This time, I screamed.

Astaroth’s smile widened as he approached, his boots tapping against the mud. “Under different circumstances, I would have spared you. Beautiful women are my weakness—and I would have enjoyed you in my bed.”

I couldn’t stop the cringe from coming over my face, preferring death to that outcome, an outcome I knew all too well.

He placed his blade at the side of my neck, forcing my chin to tilt with the edge of his sword, as if he was enjoying the final sight of my beauty before he cut my head clean from my shoulders. “Such a waste…”

The sound of a footstep made me glance behind him, hoping to see Queen Eldinar arrive just in time to spare my life. But it was an elf with a sword, half of his body burned to blackness. He stumbled as he walked, too weak to move, but he continued to come this way.

I didn’t know whether he was dead or alive.

Astaroth kept the sword at my neck as he turned to look at the opponent too weak to fight. “How honorable.” He pulled the blade from my neck and walked to the elf that had no chance against him. He could barely walk, could barely lift the sword that he carried at his side.

Astaroth gripped the hilt by two hands and sliced the blade straight through the other elf’s neck.

His body crumpled to the ground.

That was my opening to get up and run, but then there were more.

Many more.

They appeared on all sides, dead soldiers and elves, some wearing the mark of Talon’s regime and others the emblem of the Southern Isles. They swarmed us, some surrounding Inferno and taking on Astaroth’s dragon, while others moved to Astaroth to be cut down by his blade.

The rest moved to me and surrounded me in a circle, their backs to me with their shields up, forming a solid wall around me.

“Talon…”

“ Rooooaaaaaaarrrrrrr !”

Tears sprang from my eyes when I recognized his voice.

We’re here, Pretty.

I pushed myself to my feet, swaying in pain as the shards cut and twisted inside me. But on the slight hill, I could see Khazmuda appear with his massive wings spread, coming down for a quick landing.

Talon jumped off, his cape billowing behind him, and he unsheathed his blade as he came for Astaroth with a rage that burned hotter than the fires that surrounded us.

Khazmuda roared before he lunged at the other dragon, teeth bared in a ferocious anger. The dragons collided with each other on the ground, talons and teeth aiming at one another’s throats.

Talon faced off with Astaroth, immediately driving the dark elf back with the speed of his blade, wearing a look of indescribable rage. Fire burned in his eyes and smoke left his lips. My swordsmanship was no match for Astaroth’s, not with the speed and strength he possessed, but Talon made him look like a beginner as he ran him down. Talon struck blow after blow, striking him in different places across his armor as Astaroth was forced to retreat toward me and my ring of protectors.

Astaroth blocked the hit aimed for his neck, but he wasn’t quick enough to block the flurry of blows that Talon unleashed. He kicked him hard in the chest and forced Astaroth to land on his back in the mud.

It was wet and sticky, and he struggled to grab his sword and stand upright, his boots sliding as they tried to dig into something solid.

Instead of taking the opportunity to stab him through the neck, Talon sheathed his blade across his back and stepped forward, his boots in the mud, and then slammed his boot right into his chest, forcing Astaroth to become submerged in the black liquid, his body violently trying to fight its way free.

Talon held his stance, keeping him under the mud with just his weight.

Astaroth had descended upon me with malevolence and arrogance, was an opponent who had overpowered me in every way, but Talon made him look like a novice in just a couple seconds.

A void was in Talon’s eyes as he stared down at Astaroth, drowning him under his boot, feeling nothing at all as the dragons fought behind him. The army of the dead climbed all over the dragon and stabbed him repeatedly to aid.

Khazmuda grabbed him by the neck with his sharp teeth and slammed him down into the ground. He sank his teeth in hard and pierced all the scales. There was a commotion, and then the dragon who had mutilated Inferno went still.

Astaroth and his dragon went together.

I felt no sadness for the dragon, even though I should. Not after what had happened to the dragon who shared my soul.

Macabre landed that moment with Queen Eldinar upon his back, probably noticing the commotion from above. Queen Eldinar headed toward us while Macabre moved toward Inferno with Khazmuda, seeing what they could do for their fallen brethren.

The dead dropped their protective wall and dispersed so the king they served could approach.

Talon rushed to me and kneeled down, immediately realizing my injury. With experienced hands, he unlocked the armor and pulled it off my body to expose the blood that soaked into my shirt.

With his bare hands, he ripped the shirt open to see the wounds from the armor, seeing the blood flow over my skin into the mud below. His hand immediately cupped my wounds, and he applied pressure to make it stop. “It’s not deep. You’ll be okay.” He lifted his gaze and looked at me directly for the first time.

“Inferno…” My eyes immediately watered once the threat had passed. “He protected me…”

“Dragons can heal each other,” he said. “It’s not over.”

I looked to see Macabre leaning over Inferno, nudging him slightly with his snout to turn him into a different position. A drop of water in his eye the size of a pond dripped down his snout and landed on Inferno’s bloody scales.

I looked at Talon again. “Did you kill him?”

Talon stared at me, so much emotion in the stare.

I waited for him to answer.

He dropped his chin and broke our connection. “No.”

“What…?” I wanted to ask what had happened, but in those few seconds, I understood. He left the fight that mattered most to come to me. Inferno must have asked Khazmuda for help, and in that moment, Talon had to make a decision. Guilt flooded my body until it drowned me, but I was also touched that he’d chosen me over what mattered to him the most. “Go, Talon.” I pushed myself up.

He grabbed my arm and helped me to a stance.

“I’ll come with you.”

“Calista, you’re injured?—”

“You said I would be fine,” I said. “Come on, let’s go. I want to see you win.”

Talon hesitated, his eyes shifting back and forth between mine.

“Khazmuda,” I called to him. “Take us back to the castle.”

Khazmuda left Inferno’s side and came close, his eyes on Talon as they had a silent conversation.

Queen Eldinar approached our conversation. “Macabre says he’ll stay with Inferno.”

I stared at Talon. “We need to hurry.”

“General Ezra and his men are almost at the castle,” Queen Eldinar said. “Most of the dark elves have been slain. Most of the dragons have been freed, and only a few corrupted remain. I’m never one to assume a victory, but I believe the Southern Isles is now ours. The final loose end is King Barron and his kin.”

Talon continued to stare at me, his breathing elevated.

“I’ll stay with her,” Queen Eldinar said to Talon. “A medic will be with my husband. I’ll patch her up when we meet.”

He continued his heavy stretch of silence, his breathing elevated.

Another dragon landed in the clearing with us, a dragon without a rider. It was the first dragon I’d saved, the one whose name I didn’t know.

Macabre’s voice was loud in my mind. Xavier has offered to take you.

Talon seemed too overwhelmed for words, wanting to shut down this plan but unable to do so. He finally looked me in the eye. “Calista, I need to do this?—”

“I know, so let’s go.”

“I can’t worry about you. Do you understand me?” His hard eyes narrowed on my face. “I need to see this through till the end. You should stay here with Macabre and Inferno, out of harm’s way, but if you want to be there…I won’t stop you.” A warning was in his stare, an intense expression of both fear and dread, like he wanted me there…but he also didn’t.

“I’ve made my choice—to be with you.”

His eyes suddenly had a shine to them, a buildup of emotion that didn’t escape as tears, just unspent feeling. His internal suffering exuded from his entire body, a catharsis of pain and rage. He blinked and then turned away, heading to where Khazmuda waited for him. He climbed into the saddle, and then Khazmuda took off, launching into the night and heading back to the castle to finish what he’d started.

Queen Eldinar watched him fly before she looked at me. “The end is nigh…”