She rolled out of the way of the blood and guts raining down, and quickly found her footing before the hounds she’d swept aside could pounce again.
Barely to her feet, one lunged. She raised her arms, blocking it as it hit. They tumbled to the ground, its massive jaws opened to take a chunk of her flesh out. She pushed at it with all of her might, but its jaws inched closer to her face as the acidic drool sizzled along her arms, causing her to cry out.
The hound suddenly howled in pain as a blade emerged through its chest. It was then flung to the side and Addix was there with his hand out to help her up.
“You alright, baby?”
“I’m good,” she answered, ignoring the burning sting along her arms. “Behind you!”
Addix spun around, swinging his blade. It caught the lunging hound across the throat, killing it before its body hit the ground.
To the right of them, Merta kicked an attacking hound off her, jumped up from where she’d been forced to the ground, picked the hound up and brought it down over her knee, snapping its spine before she dropped it to the ground and impaled its heart with her dagger.
“Is she always that vicious?”
“Not being able to shift shape pisses her off,” Addix answered, “and she hates these damn things.”
“I see.”
“Everyone good?” Merta asked, dusting her hands as she approached.
“All good,” Addix answered.
“Then let’s get the hell out of here. This place brings back bad memories and those screaming people are on my last nerve.”
“We can’t save them, can we?” Zaira looked at the skeletal people trapped in the cages, her heart aching for them despite the obscenities they hurled at her.
“Whatever goodness those people had, it’s already dead and gone,” Addix said softly, tugging her upper arm. “Come on, before more come.”
They crossed the room as a cacophony of shrill screeches sounded from the tunnel they’d just ran through.
“Harpies!” Addix growled. “Hurry up!”
They ran to another tunnel, and followed it to a staircase at the end. Addix shifted shape and squeezed his large body up the steps, touching his horn to the wall it led to.
Merta and Zaira squeezed in behind him as the shrieks grew louder.
The wall blurred, then lightning shot from Addix’s horn, spinning to create the portal. Zaira looked down and saw hideously deformed, bird-women enter the stairwell.
“Hurry!” she cried as they flew at them.
The portal formed and they jumped through.
They tumbled to the ground as the portal closed behind them, cutting off the harpies’ shrieks. Zaira jerked away from the dead body she landed next to. There were three other bodies on the ground.
“What the hell was that shrieking?” Mercury asked, rising from the large rock he’d been sitting on. He helped Merta to a stand and kissed her before enveloping her in a hug, relief visible in his eyes.
“Harpies,” Addix answered, helping Zaira up. “Who are these guys?”
“Guards. They were patrolling. I took care of them.”
“I see that.”
“Mercury, are you all right?” Zaira searched him for wounds.
“Me? You just got out of Hades and you’re worrying about me?” Mercury started to laugh, but stilled as he looked down. “Your arms.”
“Hellhound drool,” Zaira explained as she looked down at the burns covering her. She quickly shifted shape to heal the damage, then shifted back to human form. Merta did the same. Addix had already shifted.
“We should all rest. Tomorrow’s the big day.” Zaira frowned, noticing the color in the sky. “Why isn’t it dark?”
“The night came and went,” Mercury answered. “I’ve been here all night and day waiting on you all to emerge. I was starting to worry you wouldn’t make it.”
“I was there that long?” Zaira looked at Addix, baffled.
“Time moves differently in Hades,” Addix explained before looking at Mercury. “What time is it?”
“Almost time for the Gathering. Imelda and Norene worked all night, informing the Imortians to be ready to give their devotion to Zaira today. They’re expecting her.”
“Well, we don’t always get what we want,” Addix said. “Zaira, you destroyed the cliff by the portal we used to come here but Merta can fly you to it.”
“The portal?” She stepped back. “Why would I go to the portal?”
“Because you belong with your people, your wolves. I never realized before how pathetic Imortia is, that these people don’t even try. I saw the disgust in your eyes as Imelda brought us to the square. You don’t want to be the queen of these people. You shouldn’t have to be.”
“But your sister will stay bonded to Fairuza.”
“But she’ll stay alive. Maybe being bonded to her is the safest place for her to be in this realm.”
“You don’t mean that. You know that Fairuza is evil. Who knows what your sister has had to witness by being bonded to her.”
Addix looked away and she knew she’d hit a nerve. “I love my sister, but I also love you. I want to do what is right by both. If only someone else would lead these people.”
“If only these people would lead themselves,” Zaira muttered, warmed and saddened by his declaration of love, a love she cherished even if it would keep here in a realm she wanted no part of. “But they won’t. For whatever reason they’ve decided to just do nothing and wait on me to fix everything for them. I didn’t ask for this job but it’s mine.”
“Why? Do you actually care about these people?”
“Honestly? No. Maybe that’s wrong of me, but I don’t.”
“There’s nothing wrong with it. You don’t respect them. You’re a fighter, Zaira, and so are your people.” Sadness entered his eyes. “Our people.”
“I’m sorry you didn’t know our son,” she said, guilt stabbing her in the heart.
“I’m sorry you didn’t get to raise him. We both lost the chance to know him, but that’s not your fault. It’s Fairuza’s.”
“And that’s why she has to be defeated,” Zaira explained. “Not for these people, not for this realm. She needs to be overthrown to make up for the son we lost, and to protect the children that came from him. She will never stop sending hunters after the pack.”
“Your wolves.”
“Our family. Our blood.”
Addix nodded his agreement. “Then we should go, but only if you truly want to. What do you want to do?”
“I want to stop Fairuza, and I want to save your sister. I don’t want any more death if I can prevent it.” She tugged on the fabric of the cloak she still wore. “So I’m going to do what needs to be done. I’m going to walk right up to the palace and kill her.”
NINETEEN
Zaira, Addix, and Mercury waited on the grounds outside the palace for Merta to return.
Having been wearing the cloak when she shifted into her dragon form, she now flew around the palace invisible to all but them, as long as they too wore the hoods up on their cloaks. As long as she remained quiet she would be able to fly around and fully inspect the grounds, pinpointing the locations of their targets.
They’d decided that Addix should use his nulling ability on the cuffs his sister and the other woman with her wore. It would sever Fairuza’s link, helping in two ways. The women wouldn’t be bonded to Fairuza while Zaira killed her, and Fairuza wouldn’t be able to draw from their powers while hers dwindled.
“It’ll all be ok,” she assured him, squeezing his hand.
He squeezed back. “We just have to move fast. Once I free Avery and that other woman from Fairuza’s hold she might know someone freed them. She’ll know it was you.”
“Me?”
“Well, she won’t expect me. You’re the one prophesied to end her reign. She probably never imagined me getting out of Hades.”
“And here I thought she’d be pissed just to see me set foot back in Imo
rtia.”
Addix grinned. “Yeah, it’s going to be a toss-up as to who she’s more pissed off to see.”
“Seeing us together? That alone might kill her.”
Addix grinned down at her, his eyes warmed and he lowered his head toward hers.
“Gross,” Mercury muttered. “If y’all were gonna be all googly eyed and start slobbering on each other you could have had the decency to not let me know you’re like my great-great-great-grandparents.”
Merta landed next to them before they could respond and shifted into human form so she could relay her findings. “Avery and the other woman are in the bedroom next to Fairuza’s. Guards are outside their door, but the balcony to the room is unprotected. There are about ten gargoyles posted along the palace turrets, and at least two armed guards flanking each outer door. I can fly you right up to the balcony outside Avery’s bedroom then head up top to take out the gargoyles in case Fairuza calls on them to aid her while she’s under attack.”
“Once you free your sister and the other woman, I’ll guard them so you two can focus on Fairuza,” Mercury said.
“If things go sideways, you two take the women and get to Imelda.”
“Things won’t go sideways,” Merta said sternly. “If we fought our way out of Hades twice, we can defeat this bitch. Hell, she didn’t even have the guts to face Zaira. She’s afraid of you and there’s a reason for that.”
“She was still able to trap me,” Zaira reminded them.
“Yes, but not smart enough to set a trap to kill you. Her own wicked desire to see you suffer is what will cause her to lose everything.”
“Still, let’s be careful. She set that trap for me, knowing I’d try to free those people. There may be traps all over this palace.”
“Which is exactly why you will not touch a single door until she’d dead,” Addix instructed her. “Now, is everyone ready? The Gathering will be starting soon. People are already here.”
They looked at each other, nodded firmly, and made sure their hoods were secure, allowing them to remain unseen.
Merta shifted back into her dragon form and waited for them to climb on her back before she took to the sky, flying them to the palace balcony before soaring above to take care of the gargoyles.
“She’ll be fine?” Mercury asked, genuine concern in his voice.
“She’s fought monsters a hundred times worse than gargoyles,” Addix advised. “Nothing to worry about. Stay focused on protecting yourself and these women.”
Nodding his agreement, Mercury turned toward the balcony doors. “Here we go.”
Avery and the other woman each sat on a bed, both reading.
Addix crept over to his sister and kneeled beside the bed. Mercury went to the other woman’s bed and did the same. They nodded to each other and, in sync with one another, placed their hands over the women’s mouths and removed their hoods.
Avery’s eyes widened as she saw her brother. A mix of emotions swam within them before tears spilled over and she jumped up to hug Addix. “I thought you were dead,” she cried. “I wanted to die too.”
The other woman jerked away from Mercury and opened her mouth to scream, but the sound died in her throat as Zaira lowered her hood.
“Zaira?” She blinked for a moment, then smiled. “You came back to save us.”
“Somebody had to,” Zaira mumbled as she smiled over at Addix and his sister. “See if it works, Addix.”
“What?” Avery asked, confused. “What are you going to do?”
“Get you out of this thing,” Addix answered as he picked up her wrist and studied the metal cuff in disgust. “You’re not anybody’s pet, especially not Fairuza’s.”
The cuff broke, falling to the floor.
“Well, look at that. You didn’t even have to shift shape,” Zaira observed. “This is looking more promising by the minute.”
“Let’s hope dealing with Fairuza is as easy,” Addix murmured as he crossed over to the other woman and removed her cuff.
“How do you feel?” Zaira asked the women as they rubbed their newly naked wrists, reveling in the feel of freedom.
“Good,” Avery answered. “Free. I could always feel a sort of a tug, a drain on my mana. It’s gone.”
“My strength is coming back,” the other woman said. “My name’s Phoebe. I was a personal guard of the queen, until she decided she’d rather just suck out my strength than use me to protect her the way a guard would.”
“You’re free now,” Zaira advised. “And if all goes as planned, all of Imortia will be very soon.”
“At the Gathering?” Phoebe asked.
“That’s the plan,” Zaira advised, turning for the door that connected the women’s room to Fairuza’s bedroom. She nodded to Addix, and watched as he approached the door.
He ran his hands along the door, frowning as his hand hovered over the knob.
“Another trap?”
“Feels like it,” he answered as he placed his hand on the doorknob with eyes closed, and inhaled. “It’s gone now.”
He twisted the knob and pushed the door open.
“Crap,” Addix muttered as they saw Fairuza standing across the room, two guards at her side. Dressed in a black tunic and leggings, she’d dressed for the possibility of a fight.
“You thought you could release my pets and I wouldn’t feel it instantly? You really didn’t think it would be that easy, did you?” she asked. “I don’t know how you got out of Hades, Addix, but I guarantee you won’t be able to escape death.”
“We should have kept our hoods up,” Addix said.
“No, we should have ended her a long time ago,” Zaira replied.
“End me and you end Imortia,” Fairuza warned.
“I don’t care about Imortia. I haven’t been an Imortian in a very long time, but I won’t let the people die.”
“Right.” Fairuza smiled wickedly. “Your wolves are who you care about. Your heart lies with them. Do you think I haven’t taken precautions? If I die, do you have any idea how many more hunters will be unleashed on them? I’ve been sending them sporadically, playing a game, but with my death the game is over. It will get very bloody very soon. I promise you that.”
Zaira stilled. She hadn’t thought that ending Fairuza would result in even more danger to her wolves.
“Zaira, remember the unicorns,” Addix whispered. “Why they wanted you brought to them.”
Of course. Zaira recalled the bloodshed in the unicorns’ realm. Blood shed by the evil of one woman bent on ruling all. She would not stop until death took her, and that went for everyone, not just the unicorns. Her death might cause several hunters to attack at once, but if she stayed alive, she would either continue sending hunters in bursts, or just wipe out all of the wolves. If Zaira died, Fairuza had no need to keep the wolves alive, and only one woman would be living past this Gathering. The unicorns had wanted her there to see what would happen the longer Fairuza was allowed to live. They said they didn’t want her to hesitate when the time came. They knew Fairuza would threaten her with her wolves’ safety.
“There’s been a noose hanging around my pack’s neck from the very start,” Zaira advised her. “The only way to get rid of it is to get rid of the hangman.”
“The hunters will still be there after I die.”
“Yes, but unlike the people of Imortia, my people aren’t afraid to defend themselves. I think we’ll be just fine.”
With that, she shifted into her wolf form and leapt at Fairuza. It seemed appropriate for her to be killed by the creature she created.
Expecting her guards to protect her, Fairuza stood still, but the guards did not jump in front of her to block Zaira’s attack. They were busy fighting off Addix.
Fairuza screamed as Zaira’s canine teeth ripped through the side of her neck, drawing blood. “Guards!”
Realizing the guards weren’t going to do anything to save her, Fairuza shoved Zaira off and lashed out with a wave of power.
Z
aira’s flesh stung as she was propelled backward, slamming into the wall. She lost her wolf form as she slid to the plush, carpeted floor.
“I will not be defeated that easily,” Fairuza growled, rising to a stand. She touched the crystal pendant hanging from her neck and closed her eyes as she chanted a summoning spell.
Glass broke as Merta crashed through the balcony door, having shifted into her human shape seconds before hitting it. She rolled to a stop and stood. “There are no gargoyles left to summon, Fairuza.”
“No, but I still have a dragon.”
Merta’s eyes shifted to the glass doors she’d just burst through.
“Shit,” she muttered before running to the balcony on the other side of the room and jumping onto the railing.
A large purple dragon tore through the room after her, entering through the same glass doors she’d broken.
“Let’s take this outside,” Merta called to it before jumping off the railing, shifting shape to lead the dragon away from them.
“Kill her!” Fairuza screeched her command to the dragon chasing Merta.
Taking advantage of the diversion, Zaira ran to the front balcony and yelled down to the Imortians gathered below. “Imortia, who do you serve?”
Enraged, Fairuza hurled a ball of green fire at her, which she narrowly avoided.
A loud cheer went up from the crowd and then the devotion started, Fairuza’s name replaced by Zaira’s.
“Giving their devotion to you may give you the kingdom and save their immortality, but I can still kill you and take it all right back,” Fairuza reminded her as she joined her out on the balcony.
More guards piled into the room from the hall entrance, attacking Addix as he attempted to aid her.
With Addix in the room fighting guards, Mercury guarding Avery and Phoebe, Merta fighting the dragon in the sky, and all of Imortia below them chanting their devotion to Zaira in order to keep the crystal glowing, all that was left was her and Fairuza.
Moonlit Majesty Page 12
