Page 278 of When Sisters Collide
Together, the three of them tore into the fray. But it wasn’t enough.
Romilda’s shadows poured fresh cohorts into the battle, driving back the Westerners and Achaeans with relentless force. Rasennan soldiers also crossed the exposed riverbed where the Makhai still held the waters at bay.
Yet Alena, Leukos, and Nik weren’t pushing towards their allies. They sprintedawayfrom the main lines, towards the cliffs upstream.
Katell’s attention snapped to the ridge. There, etched against the storm-darkened sky, loomed a ring of standing stones—jagged, ancient, thrumming with magic.
Laran let out an amused chuckle. “Your sister is a clever one,” he mused. “Just like your mother.”
Katell’s heart hammered. Alena had a plan. But what?
What could the stones possibly do to stop her—and the Makhai?
CHAPTER SIXTY
ALENA
The sky had turned nearly black, heavy with storm clouds and smoke. Rain lashed at Alena, plastering her hair to her face, though the Cyprian’s armour kept her warm. Ash swirled on the wind, stinging her eyes and burning her throat. Ahead, Nik snatched up a shield from a fallen Achaean and vanished in a blur, quickly swallowed by the darkness. Though it was still morning, the sun was gone, smothered from sight.
Alena pressed forward, heart hammering, Apollo and Otxoa close at her heels. She thrust out her hand, summoning the South Wind’s Gift, but nothing happened.
Panic shot through her. She whirled towards Leukos, who guarded the rear. “I can’t control the wind.”
Leukos glanced up, face grim, rain streaming down his brow. “The Thunder rules the skies now. Your Gift can’t break his hold—not on his lands. If I hadn’t made the pact with the North Wind, my magic would be faltering, too.”
He closed the gap between them, seizing her hand. The North Wind’s magic flared from him in a cold, spectral light, pushingback the dark. Frost spread across his skin, breath misting in the wet air, while shards of ice spun outwards—circling them in a glittering barricade that hissed and split against anything that drew too near.
Through the haze, Rasennan shields flashed closer. Screams cut through the din. Thunder cracked overhead, shattering the sky, the sound rolling across the grassy rivershore.
A soldier broke through the ice, sword raised high. He swung—but the blade clashed against Alena’s armour and passed straight through, as if she were made of smoke. It sliced back into him instead, opening his side.
He crumpled with a strangled groan, and the wolves tore his throat out in the next beat.
Alena didn’t stop. Her limbs screamed, breath came ragged, but still she pushed on, Leukos at her back. Katell was coming, and there was no stopping her until they reached the circle of stones.
She clung to the White Mare’s words as if they were the only thing keeping her upright. If they could just reach the cliff, her sister could be saved. The Makhai would vanish. Victory might finally be within reach.
Her boots slid in the muck—mud and blood churning together beneath her feet. Rain lashed in sharp, slanting spits, blurring the battlefield into a shifting haze. Her lungs burned, but she refused to slow.
Which way?
Her gaze swept the chaos, searching for the cliff and standing stones, but the battlefield lay drowned in smears of grey.
Then—a flicker of red.
Between two fallen bodies, a fox stood poised, its coat burning like a flame in the haze, golden eyes fixed on her—unblinking, knowing.
“The fox!” She seized Leukos’ arm. “Follow the fox!”
Leukos turned, shock flickering across his face as recognition struck—the Mother Goddess’ messenger.
A breath later, the fox vanished into the fray. None of the soldiers even glanced at it. Alena gave chase, lungs burning. Mud gave way to damp grass, and the cliffside loomed ahead, its path winding upwards, beckoning her on.
Together, they climbed, pursuing the fox, trying to draw Katell towards the standing stones—bait dangling on a hook.
Where was she? Was the Makhai following, too? Alena didn’t dare look back. There was no time.
Soldiers swarmed the trail in pursuit. Nik carved through them, steel flashing as he darted past. Leukos followed, raising walls of ice that exploded from the ground, slowing their advance. Still, the enemy pressed on.
