Page 113 of The Silent Mountain
Ros gets up again, stumbling forward before falling over again.I am no use like this.
We are strong, Ros. We are strong. This is not the first obstacle we have to overcome, and it won’t be the last. We need to return to our mate!
Our mate…
This is the cult that took everything from him. Let’s not have them take us and Elio away too.
They hurt our mate,Ros says, a sudden glint of anger in her eyes. I could swear there is a hint of red in them, taking me by surprise.Damn these creatures. I want to send them back to the abyss they came from!
With a sudden spurt of determination, she gets up again and jumps forward, this time successfully staying upright. With an angry growl, she dashes into the group that’s surrounding Elio, jumping and biting at anyone who comes near her, pushing the crowd back and towering over Elio’s motionless form.
He doesn’t move.
I can’t feel or hear him breathe,Ros exclaims.
My heart sinks at her words. Please don’t let them take him away from us.
thirty-six
The End of a Battle
*ALANA*
Myfirstinstinctisto shift back to my human form and check on Elio, but we are still surrounded by our attackers, and it’s just me now who is able to fight. That’s when I feel a sudden warmth gripping my heart, as if something is chasing the cold away.
It’s the mate bond! It has to be Favian! Goddess, he found me!
I don’t contemplate my options any longer, deciding I will put faith in him to make it in time, and shift back to my human form. Instantly, I attend to Elio, trying to feel for his pulse. Ros was right, it’s barely there. There are some nasty wounds on his upper body and face. While the crowd starts closing in on us again, I can feel the warmth coming closer, soon accompanied by the swishing sound of wings. For a moment, I raise my eyes to the night sky, right in time to see the golden dragon breaking through the darkness, proud and strong like in the legends surrounding him. There is just one golden dragon shifter, and it’s always the king or his heir, the one who was blessed by Aengus. Behind him, there are more and more dragons following him.
“Finally,” I breathe, resting my forehead against Elio’s while I press my hand onto the injury on his stomach. “Your brother is coming, Elio. Hang in there, little brother.”
I feel myself being transported back in time to when I lost my best friend, Ita. We fought a similarly grim battle, and she took a fatal blow to save us all. I was kneeling next to her, like I am kneeling next to Elio now, and trying to stop her injury from bleeding.
But I couldn’t save her.
“Elio, don’t die on me!” I beg. “You are the dragon prince, remember? The dragon clan’s hope, and Favian’s hope too. What’s he going to do without you? He is completely lost without you.” I am not sure if he can hear me, but I keep talking to him, hoping he will. “You saved your kind once, you are strong! This is nothing. It’s nothing.” I pause, feeling tears burning in my eyes. “It’s nothing, right?”
The heat of flames surrounds me, reeking of burning flesh. Favian clearly came prepared! Fuck this cult! I hope they finally burn it to the ground.
The golden dragon lands, shifting to Favian’s human body. “Alana!” he yells, running towards me. “I felt you getting hurt!”
“I am fine,” I exclaim. “Elio is much worse.”
Favian drops to the ground next to me. Having him so close all of a sudden instantly fills me with relief. All this time, I only clung to the hope of seeing him again. That’s what helped me push forward.
“By Aengus,” Favian curses, putting one of his hands on Elio’s forehead and the other on the wound on his stomach.
“Is he… will he…” I can’t bring myself to ask my question.
“He is hanging in there,” Favian says. “He is still breathing. I won’t let him die.” He looks at me, his eyes widening when he takes in my condition. “Alana, you are severely hurt! I am so sorry, this is all my fault. I should have protected you and Elio better.”
I heave a laugh, well aware of how hysteric I sound. “I am so glad you came. You found me.” I feel so tired all of a sudden, as a wave of exhaustion hits me.
“The cultists are retreating!” one of the warriors calls out.
“Don’t let them escape,” Favian yells. “I want you to find and kill every single one of them!”
“The curse, or rather the black spell,” I inform them. “Its origin is in the building there, down in the basement. There is a hall with a fountain and a bowl of blood. That’s where the spell starts. We need to put a stop to it.”
