Talbot had sacrificed himself to defeat the Ancient Horror, but now, the blasted creature was back. Another memory flashed through his mind, the recollection of the night of Elina Eretar’s death. He remembered turning around and seeing Ferradul and Iasan standing right there, at the very edge of the throne room. Iasan’s eyes had been consumed by black, just like now, and he’d grinned at Phoenix. At that time, Ferradul had still had enough power over the enchantment on Phoenix to knock him out, but now, the recollection was unlocked, revealing all the truths it had hidden.
Phoenix had to fight this. He couldn’t fail all the people who’d done their best to stop his foe. More importantly, he couldn’t fail his mate.
“You don’t have a choice, little phoenix,” the Ancient Horror said, bringing the box close to him. Phoenix could feel it weakening him. It allowed his opponent to slowly prey on Phoenix’s energies, gathering more and more power. The earth fed Phoenix, but its warm, affectionate magic came to him through a filter, and indirectly ended up fueling the Ancient Horror instead.
Phoenix had no idea what to do. He was lost and trapped, unable to escape, completely at the Ancient Horror’s mercy. He had no choice but to lay here helpless as the monster drew all of his energy out of him.
“Oh, yes, you do,” Rachen unexpectedly said. “There’s always a choice.”
That was the only warning Phoenix got, because in the blink of an eye, his mate lunged, landing straight on the Ancient Horror. In the process, he dislodged the creature’s hold on the box. It dropped to the floor, away from Phoenix. To a certain extent, it helped, since he could focus again and continue his previous attempt to push out the projectiles and heal himself.
Even as he did so, he kept a close eye on Rachen and the Ancient Horror. Apparently, his mate had taken advantage of the creature’s distraction to surprise him. However, he was still very weak. Phoenix knew better than to believe Rachen had any chance in a confrontation with the Ancient Horror. Indeed, the monster had no trouble pushing Rachen off him. He shot to his feet, dusting his clothes off and arching a brow at Rachen.
“You truly don’t know when to give up,” the monster said. “What do you think you can possibly do to me?”
His body glowed with the energy he’d stolen from Phoenix, and he grinned at Rachen. For a few moments, Rachen just watched him. He was still on the floor, very close to Phoenix, but just out of his reach. Briefly, Rachen turned toward him and smiled. His eyes were loving and warm, just like they had been the night before. And then, that affection was replaced with steely determination.
He got up and faced the Ancient Horror once more. “You think you’re so smart,” he said, “but you don’t realize one thing. That power you took is Phoenix’s. Therefore, it’s also mine.”
Suddenly, a wave of energy flowed over the room, seemingly clustering around Rachen. The Ancient Horror’s eyes widened, and he staggered. “Wait. What are you doing?”
“What my brother tried to,” Rachen answered. “I’m getting rid of you once and for all.”
“Rachen, don’t,” Phoenix cried out. “Please…”
Rachen didn’t look at him, but through their bond, he whispered, “I have to, baby. It’s the only way. Even if we do manage to banish him today, he’ll always return and always hunt you. Your power makes him stronger than ever. If I don’t stop him now, the Overlords only know what will happen.”
“I don’t care,”Phoenix answered, despair rushing through him. “Nothing matters to me more than you.”
“Oh, baby,” Rachen replied. “I know. I love you so much. But I have to do this. You still have so much to give to the world. I can’t allow this thing to extinguish your fire.”
With a pained cry, Phoenix finally pushed the bullets out of his body and struggled to get up. His legs wouldn’t hold him, and he fell back down. However, he didn’t abandon the fight, and on the second attempt, he finally managed to steady himself.
“Rachen,” he said again.“Stop.”
His mate didn’t listen. Phoenix watched in horror as Iasan Sutharlainn’s body collapsed and started to spasm. Wisps of black, red, and white left his body, like tendrils of smoke. They entered Rachen, and every time one burst hit him, the dragon released a pained groan.
Phoenix could tell exactly what was going on. By absorbing Phoenix’s energy, the Ancient Horror had given himself a vulnerability he hadn’t had before. He had an indirect link with Rachen, which now allowed Rachen to use his own energy-absorbing powers on him. It worked like a charm, and through his bond with Rachen, Phoenix felt the alien presence trapped within Rachen’s body, trying to claw its way out. It assaulted their mate bond, attempting to draw Phoenix in and use his powers again. However, Rachen stopped the creature before he could save himself.
“Not this time,” he said. “This time, you die, and you stay dead.”
He melted into his dragon form with striking ease given how much pain he was in. Phoenix tried to rush to his side, but he was too slow. With one last glance thrown his way, Rachen flew straight through the windows and launched himself into the air.
Breathless with terror and pure despair, Phoenix followed. He tried to change into his second form, too, and in spite of the weakness still lingering after the Ancient Horror’s attack, it came to him as easily and naturally as always.
Still, by the time he did so, Rachen was already high up into the sky. He glowed so brightly even Phoenix had trouble looking at him, and Phoenix knew he didn’t have much time left. He flew toward his mate, so impossibly terrified that he couldn’t even think anymore.
“Promise me you’ll rebuild your life after I’m gone,” Rachen murmured in his mind. “I know it’s selfish, but I need to know that you’ll be safe.”
Phoenix couldn’t make that promise, because he didn’t know if he’d be able to keep it. In fact, he was pretty sure that without Rachen, he couldn’t even live. It was unfair of his mate to even ask him that, so very unfair when Rachen knew all too well how Phoenix felt. But then, this had long ago gone beyond fairness. If there had been any rightness in this whole thing, right now, Phoenix would still be in Rachen’s embrace, not one step away from losing his mate forever.
Fate seemed to be set out on ruining everything good in Phoenix’s world. Before Phoenix could reach his mate, Rachen summoned the full extent of his abilities. Fire magic bubbled inside him, trickling into Phoenix through their bond.
“Promise me,” Rachen insisted.
If he’d been in his human form, Phoenix would have screamed and cried. As it was, he released a loud screech. Using his mind link with Rachen, he replied, “I promise.”
No sooner had he finish the phrase than Rachen’s power finally reached unbearable levels. With one last roar, he literally exploded, a supernova right there, in the skies of Germany.
Phoenix felt the moment Rachen died. In spite of the impossibly bright light surrounding him, the world seemed to grow dim. Phoenix couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t think. The only thing he could feel was the pain of his loss, so intense it numbed out all else.
His wings faltered, and he collapsed out of the sky, back onto the cliffside of the mountain. He wished the fall would have killed him, but, he couldn’t be freed from this nightmare so easily. He lay there, feeling like his very wings had been cut off, trying to reach out to an amputated bond in a desperate attempt to get his mate back.
Naturally, it didn’t work. With an anguished cry, Phoenix clawed at the stone, his talons sending rock flying all around him. It hurt so much, more than all the centuries he’d spent trapped in that blasted box put together. His reason shutting down, Phoenix blindly attempted to connect with the core of the earth, seeking the comfort of its familiar energies.
How could this have happened? Why did there have to be so much pain, sacrifice, and darkness? Phoenix was tired of it, tired of death and destruction. People shouldn’t have to die for duty. No one should be allowed to take slaves. More importantly, Rachen should still be at his si
de, smiling at him, kissing him, holding him. It was all so wrong, at a level Phoenix himself could barely fathom.
Outrage exploded through him, combining with sheer agony of his loss. He begged and pleaded for the earth to give Rachen back to him. He knew it was next to impossible, but he simply couldn’t let go of his mate.
And then, he felt something within him expand. The pain melted into an emotion he himself couldn’t comprehend, and Phoenix became one with the earth itself. The tears he couldn’t weep in his shifted form were his rivers and rains. His pained cries were wild winds, and his broken heart was the volcanic center of the planet.
He knew he was only imagining things, and the whole odd phenomenon ended in what must have been mere instants. When he returned to the real world, he found himself in his human form, kneeling on the ground, feeling diminished and impossibly cold.
The chill vanished when he heard a familiar voice behind him. “What just happened?”
Phoenix turned and gasped when his saw his naked mate kneeling there, breathing hard. “Baby?” Rachen asked again. “Didn’t I die?”
Phoenix couldn’t answer. He wondered if he’d lost his mind and had fallen into a beautiful dream. If he had, he didn’t care. He would gratefully surrender his reason in exchange for having his mate back.
Without a word, he wrapped his arms around Rachen and squeezed his mate close. Rachen embraced him back and pressed their lips together. Their bond vibrated with love, arousal, and relief. Rachen’s flavor exploded on Phoenix’s taste buds, his touch so blissfully familiar and genuine as his hands traveled over Phoenix’s flesh. Gods, this was real. Phoenix couldn’t possibly be imagining it. Not even in his wildest dreams had he ever been capable of mimicking the full extent of their connection.
Unfortunately, he didn’t get to enjoy their reunion for too long. The sound of a cleared throat interrupted their impromptu make-out session. Phoenix tensed, remembering the benandanti, Iasan Sutharlainn, and everything that had happened. He broke the kiss and turned, half expecting their attackers to have pursued them.
Instead, he found a group of draechen soldiers, kneeling a few feet away from them, their eyes on the ground. When they didn’t speak, Rachen got up and addressed them himself. “Yes?”
His voice came out biting and rough, and the draechen jumped, obviously terrified. Phoenix stood, too, a little surprised at the reaction. “Your Imperial Majesty,” one of the men replied, “forgive us this slight. Is everything in order?”
The use of that title was startling, but Phoenix surmised that with all the recent changes around Draechenburg, one individual guard could easily get confused. As for the fear…well, it could have been caused by any number of things, from Rachen’s unexpected resurrection to the Ancient Horror’s mysterious arrival.
The thought made Phoenix focus on his bond with Rachen and scan his mate’s energies. There was no sign of the Ancient Horror at all. The creature was completely gone.
“He died,” Rachen told him. “I felt him die with me.”
Phoenix shivered and took hold of his mate’s hand. He didn’t want to remember that dreadful moment. He had no idea how Rachen had returned to his side and whether the Ancient Horror had survived, too, but he really didn’t care about either of those things. From his point of view, the only relevant issue was that he had Rachen back.
Rachen kissed his temple, then directed his attention to the guards again. “Have you captured the intruders?”
Finally, one of the draechen dared to look up. “Which intruders, Emperor Shtamakarein?”
Phoenix blinked, now well and utterly lost. Clearly, these men thought Rachen was Karein. Sure, they were nearly identical in physical features, but since Rachen had mated Phoenix, his hair had become red, making him clearly identifiable.
Before either of them could address the obvious misunderstanding, two other people joined them on the cliffside. Phoenix just stood there, frozen and gaping as he watched the couple approach. It wasn’t their presence in particular that shocked him, but the interaction between them.
His arm wrapped around a pale Caelyn in a possessive grip, Karein frowned at Rachen and Phoenix. “Who in the name of the Overlords are you?” Karein asked. What are you doing in my palace?
End of Book 6: Fire’s Embrace
To be continued in
Book 7: From the Ashes
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A native Romanian, Scarlet was born in 1986 and grew up an avid fan of Karl May and Jules Verne, reading fantasy stories and adventure.
Later, when she was out of fantasy stories to read, she delved into her mother’s collection of books and, of course, stumbled onto romance.
As a writer though, Scarlet Hyacinth was born one sunny summer day, when a dear friend of hers—the same friend who introduced her to GLBT fiction—proposed they start writing a story of their own. As it turns out, the two friends never did finish that particular story, but Scarlet discovered she had a knack for writing and ended up starting to write individually. And so, between working on her dissertation, studying for exams, and reading yaoi manga, she started writing the Kaldor Saga. Along the way, Scarlet met a lot of wonderful people who supported her, and in the end, she found her story a home and, in the process, fulfilled a beautiful dream.
For all titles by Scarlet Hyacinth, please visit
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Fire's Embrace [Chronicles of the Shifter Directive 6] (Siren Publishing Epic Romance, ManLove) Page 25
