Page 172 of The Kingdom of Eternal Ice
“Cover your ears, warrior,” he commands.
I do as he says, noticing how he raises his head and barks. Once, twice… thrice. He signals me and when I release my ears, I can hear people whimpering in pain and fear. Our attackers crawl out of our way, terrified to the core. Cù Sìth doesn’t waste any more time on them. Instead, he dashes in the direction I’ve been leading him, clearly picking up Penelope’s scent now.
More guards come at us, but Cù Sìth just wipes them out of the way. In the distance, I can hear the screeching of the golden dragon, majestic and beautiful against the night sky. Outside, the battle seems to be at its full height. When I glance through a window, I can see several shifters and witches, all of them Penelope’s private army, taking it up against our allies.
The Ice Wolf breezes through their attackers though, and the bear creature does the same.
“That’s Artio,” Cù Sìth says. “A deity, and he is angry.”
“I hope he will keep an eye on my princess, who he carries on his back,” I frown. “Deity or not, he better not harm her.”
Cù Sìth turns his huge head towards me. “You know the Princess of the Sun?”
“She is like a daughter to me.”
“Then, come, warrior, let’s end the witch and save your friend’s life,” he says, picking up his pace again.
I run next to him. “You knew I wanted to save Royan?”
“Of course, but our interests align, and I owe you for freeing me.”
I feel a huge weight drop off my shoulders. I was wondering how to tell him that we needed to save Royan, even if it meant leaving Penelope to the others. We run the last couple of steps downwards, take the turn towards the dungeons and finally reach our destination. I instantly notice a row of guards, most pointing their arrows at us, but a couple of them have theirs pointed towards Royan.
Royan himself is lying motionless in his own blood on the ground of his cell. “Shoot him,” Penelope screams. “End his life with the silver arrow.”
Cù Sìth leapt forward, wiping away most of the guards, but not before they send their arrows towards Royan.
“No,” Rona cries. Before I can grasp what’s happening, I see her jumping forward and throwing herself in front of his body. Several arrows hit her back, making her drop down to the ground.
“Rona, no!” Penelope yells, before her she turns towards us. Her eyes widen when she sees me.
“You!”
I tilt my head. “I apologize, but my loyalty only lies with my princess, whom I swore to protect.”
Penelope’s eyes turn pitch-black. “Then, you will die protecting her.”
“So be it,” I say without hesitation.
“I don’t think you are aware…” Cù Sìth says, as he walks by me. “Of the dangers you woke up, witch. Of the enemies you made.”
“You are no match for me, creature,” Penelope hisses.
Cù Sìth sneers. “Maybe that’s true, but someone else is.” He turns to me. “You should check on your friend, warrior. And, get out of the way.”
Out of the way of who? I want to ask, but helping Royan is truly more of my priority. I can see Penelope’s seething gaze on my back as I hurry to Royan. By now, she’s probably put two and two together.
The witch lunges forward, but before she can attack me or Cù Sìth, a wind passes me, carrying a hollow howl with it.
*AZADEH*
Favian and I flew directly to Artio, who was pacing around restlessly. Now that I had freed Favian and Cailleach, I knew what to do and was able to wake him up. To say he was fuming would be an understatement. Wrath and anger were clear in his eyes. His howls soon turned into vengeful growls.
I told Endellion that I would give them a sign for the attack. At that time, I imagined I would appear with Elio, who would screech or something, but to come with so much backup feels amazing. Artio immediately puts me onto his back and starts to lead the way.
He is out for blood, and Cailleach is, too.
“Just so we are clear,” Cailleach brushes around us in her foggy form. “The witch belongs to me!”
