When that dark, misty mass of marked energy finally reached the king, the air exploded around him. I could see vibrations of power absorbing directly into that fucker. He grew in size, quickly reaching the girth and length of the golden queen. There was no hesitation in his attack now. He went in straight and fast, wings heavy and strong. I jumped as his talons caught hold of her tail and ripped a large chunk out. At the same time his jaws clamped down on her flank. She twisted, her back talons gouging his underbelly.
The pair of them clutched together; neither could break free, both losing blood, but nothing too serious. Then the king released her flank and went straight for her throat. The queen snaked to the side, avoiding the first hit, but was unable to dodge the second. He had her in a vulnerable position, but somehow she slashed up with her lower half, nearly tearing Larky in two.
Jonathon had me up in his arms and was running. The dragons were coming down, and we were right beneath their massive bodies. As the pair hit behind us, the ground shook like a mini-earthquake and both of us were flung sprawled out in the dirt. I rolled over and clutched at my stomach. Shit. That was a hard fall straight onto my front. I couldn’t think about it yet, about how I might be pregnant and my child might be hurt. I had to focus on the dragons.
My fear and adrenalin were high and I sprang to my feet. I was going to end this shit before anyone else died. The pair were still locked together. The golden dragon was slowing, her movements less sure, and because her head was facing in my direction, I could see how glassy her eyes were. The red jewels had lost their shine.
Her chiming voice, filled with ancient energy, rang through my mind.
I will hold him. Use the blood.
I still held the necklace in my hand. I ran, not looking left or right, unable to see anything but the entangled dragons, determined to get close to Larky without being speared to death from flailing talons.
The queen had pretty much totally eviscerated his beast, and yet he was already starting to heal. With his head locked on her throat, he didn’t see me dashing up behind them. I dodged a flying tail and the spray of blood which followed, before ducking beneath a large red wing, spread wide and flapping frantically to try and gain traction. I was quick and small, slipping into gaps, and then with a deep breath I dived over the locked bodies to land in a small gap between the two. The king was still looking in the wrong direction. Here’s hoping that his blind focus on killing the golden dragon would be the reason he lost his life.
Do it, my child. Take care of my … my daughter.
My heart was trying to beat out of my chest. The queen was falling and I couldn’t stand the agony of watching her die. Beat by beat, minute by minute, she held on and fought with everything she had, giving me the time I needed. My dragon snapped me out of my agonized fear and mourning, forcing me to focus, shifting my hand into a talon claw. Without thought, I moved and when I was close enough I plunged my hand straight into Larky’s chest, breaking through scales, skin, bone and muscle.
His dragon heart was massive, no way for me to miss it. The second I felt the beating rhythm, I clenched my claw tight. It took a moment for the glass to give, stronger than I expected, but it broke at the very instant Larky released the golden queen and turned to repel me. I plunged the bleeding jewel deep into his heart, leaving it there as I yanked my hand free.
I knew I had seconds to get free from my position between the two beasts, the dragon king was hurt, but not dead and he would be coming for me. I was also trying to contain my panic for the golden dragon, she lay still, too hurt to move, though I could still feel her essence. All was not lost yet. Just as I was backpedaling, trying to get free, I was grabbed roughly from behind.
Chapter 19
The binding across my middle felt unbreakable. But I’d come too far now to just give up. I threw out both arms, hands shifting to wolf claws so I could fight, but just as I struck I caught a glimpse of a very familiar pair of blue-black scaled legs. Oh thank the freakin’ gods. Braxton. It was too late to halt my attack, but luckily my claws just grazed his hide.
My mate had yanked me out of the dragon pile just in time. Larky was on his feet, unsteady but still preparing to go after me. Had the necklace worked? Why was he still moving and healing? Screams started around us, and one by one the marked started to fall, literally falling to their knees and then onto their backs, as if they couldn’t stand for a moment longer. The frantic cries surrounded us on all sides; it was deafening, and I tried in vain to lift my arms to cover my ears.
Braxton set me on my feet a few meters away, and immediately fell into a protective pose. He used his bulk to block my body from Larky, who was coming straight for us. I had half my attention on that asshat and the other half on the golden dragon. Her eyes were still open but she was not moving, and blood continued pouring freely from her.
Finish him, my child. I will wait for you. There is something I must tell you.
Don’t die, I choked out. I’m on my way.
There was no reply, but at least her eyes remained open. I returned my full attention to the massive scaled beast advancing on us. I was overflowing with anger, and was just about to shift into dragon when I felt the pull of energy around us. Larky shifted back to his human form.
Okay, he wants to do this on two legs.
More energy rocked the air around us, and then Braxton was back in his hot-as-fuck skin. Larky clothed himself, clearly still possessing enough borrowed magic to do that simple spell. A nearby sorcerer, who ducked out of the crowd, clothed Braxton. The dragon king strode toward us, looking a little shaky on his feet.