Page 95 of Fated In Ruin
They were meant to wear us down.
“Evie,on your left—” Fiona's warning came just in time. I spun, shadows whipping around me like a cloak, as another group of thralls lunged forward. Their empty eyes and grasping hands disappeared into my darkness, and then a shower of dust floated down, settling onto the muddy ground.
But the effort of maintaining such constant defense was beginning to wear on me.
Through gaps in the fighting, I caught glimpses of Ravok. He moved like smoke, always a little closer, no matter how hard we fought or how many thralls we destroyed. His eyes never left me, and his smile grew wider with each step he took in my direction.
A flash of crimson light cut through the chaos. Aria's magic, aimed straight at Malachi. The witch's laughter rang out, high and mocking. “Still playing protector, Malachi? Still pretending you belong withthem?” Her power struck his glamour like blood-red lightning. “You chose the wrong side. Thelosingside, just like you did before.”
Fiona and I moved as one, our magic intertwining. Her golden flames wrapped around my shadow flames, creating a barrier between Aria and Malachi. The witch's next attack splashed against our combined defense, but the effort of stopping her made my arms shake.
“Focus on Ravok.” Blake's shout barely carried over the chaos. He and Riordan were surrounded by thralls, their combined magic carving a gory path through the horde, but there were more. Always more.
Malachi's glamour flickered and then, Ravok was there.
Right in front of me.
I hadn’t even seen him move, but he was close enough to see the ancient hunger in his eyes, the patience of a predator who had waited centuries for this moment.
“Little shadow,” he breathed, and his hand passed straight through Malachi's failing shield as if it were nothing more than mist. Before I could rear back, his fingers closed around my throat, cold as death and strong as iron. “At last.”
“Evie—” Angel's scream cut through everything—the raging battle, the chaos, the crushing pressure around my throat. Ravok turned toward the sound, his attention drawn by the raw desperation in my sister's voice.
She raced through the front door, hair streaming behind her like a banner of pure gold, legs pumping as she ran. Eldric was right behind her, long arms sweeping her up and vanishing in the blink of an eye, but he was too late.
Ravok’s eyes glowed with a malicious anticipation that made my heart stop.
No. No. Angel was supposed to remain hidden. She was supposed to stay safe.
“Such a sweet sister, coming to your aid. I see the truth in your eyes, shadow wielder, but don’t be afraid. We all have our weaknesses, now I’ve found yours.”
As I gathered my power, a terrible certainty settled over me: this was exactly what he'd wanted all along. He wasn't just trying to take me. He was trying to draw everyone I loved closer.
So he could hurt them. Use them.Kill them.
And his plan was working perfectly.
There was so much screaming—Riordan, Blake, Malachi—yet Ravok’s leering grin was all I could see. “She is aprize. I can see why Tyrell had to possess such a beauty.”
“I will kill you before you lay a finger on her.”
Ravok’s smile turned wicked. “I’ve heard those words before. From your lover. But he failed, as you will fail.” He was so close, I saw my own reflection in his dark gaze. “My son tried to keep Rhiannon safe, but in the end, what could he do against me?Nothing.”
Something cracked in my chest, my heart caving in with every malicious, gloating word.
“I will tell you a secret. He thought her magic destroyed her, but the poison was me, all along. He never kept me away from her. I gutted her, from the inside out. And now, I shall do the same to you, and he will watch, as helpless as before.”
On those words, the tide turned like a sudden winter wind.
With Angel's warning still ringing in my ears, Ravok's crushing grip became the key twisting inside me—unlocking a deeper well of power I hadn't even known existed. The air around Ravok and I thundered beneath the force of a coming storm, the ground shuddering beneath our feet.
My ears hollowed out, my skin burning like dragonfire as more and more magic crawled up out of the depths. Ravok yanked his hands off my throat, his eyes flaring in shock before he dematerialized.
My shadowy flames rolled outward like Death itself, unstoppable—inevitable—no longer only consuming the thralls but consuming everything in their path until not a single living thing was left. A gaping emptiness was all that remained between me and the brown-haired vampire, Ravok reforming at his side, nothing but dark wisps and piles of ash where fifty thralls had just been.
To my right, Aria and Fiona battled back and forth, red magic against fire, equally matched.
On my left, Riordan and Blake cast their combined white and black magic, creating a devastating wave that swept through the remaining forces, leaving swathes of ichor-stained ground where thralls had stood moments ago.
