Page 58 of The Last Slayer
Powerful magic rose from each of the liliths who made up the circle. It stretched and arched, creating a dome over me. Power crawled over my skin like a million caterpillars, ticklish and grotesque, covering me from head to toe in layers and layers of translucent silver light. It took all my control not to move. If I broke the circle now, I’d be incinerated. The liliths chanted, amplifying Nahemah’s magic, and she hadn’t even begun.
Nahemah’s hand drifted upward and touched India’s breast. The nipple turned hard and erect, and India’s lips parted. Nahemah smiled and gave her a kiss. Then she plunged her hand into India’s chest. The bones and muscles crunched, snapped, ripped, gave in like balsa wood and tissue paper. I swallowed hard, refusing to lose the mint wine I’d had over this. I didn’t want to show any weaknesses in front of Nahemah and her servants, none of whom seemed to be perturbed by the scene. Maybe it was an everyday event. Or maybe it was a great honor.
A hell of an honor, to give up your life for it.
Nahemah pulled out a small stone glistening with blood. India remained standing, supported by Nahemah’s magic, her eyes blank and unseeing and her lips curved into a faint smile. Her heart continued to pump, red blood squirting out of the hole Nahemah had made. But none of it touched me or Nahemah, as if an invisible shield was there.
The Dragonlady of the Lunar Garden turned her hand and let the stone bask in the silvery light. It pulsated and glowed like a tiny moon. A cold ripple ran up my spine as realization dawned on me. It was a heartstone. India had been nothing more than an incubator, like an oyster used to grow a pearl. Mortals aren’t powerful enough to grow heartstones by themselves, so a powerful magic user is needed to help them nurture the objects. Once the heartstone is taken out, the mortal incubator dies.
Nahemah chanted words, the sounds hissing and nearly unpronounceable—the ancient language of dragons. Then she caressed my jaw with her free hand and suddenly put pressure on my chin and shoved the stone into my mouth. The raw scent and metallic taste of India’s blood overwhelmed me, and I gagged and tried to spit the warm stone out.
“Don’t!” Nahemah said sharply. “You need it to cross to the Mystic Forest.”
I set my teeth firmly together and jerked my chin away from her grasp. She could’ve warned me about this part of the ceremony.
She lowered her head until her lips almost brushed my ear. “Why pity her? You didn’t even like her,” she whispered. Her breath tickled the sensitive skin of my earlobe. I shivered.
The eight other liliths finally moved, all taking a step back simultaneously, and India collapsed in a boneless heap. Nahemah flicked her wrist and a portal appeared in the air. It was as big as a door and glowed like fire. I stared at it, but I couldn’t see through to the other side.
“Go, before it’s too late. Whatever happens, do not put any part of yourself into or over the lake surrounding Leh’s cottage. Leh will return you to me the same way I sent you to her.” Nahemah glanced at me with a faint smile on her lips. “One other word of advice—she may be dead, but she’s still a slayer and an extremely powerful witch, while you are a mortal not-yet-a-dragonlady. Be careful.”
Whatever. Anyone with the power to destroy dragonlords was good in my book.
I tongued the heartstone over into one cheek. “See you for dinner,” I said, and jumped through the portal.
Eleven
The portal propelled my body forward and catapulted me into the air. I flew, soaring through the sky like a missile. The Lunar Garden shrank to a tiny dot—the sky and forests flashed by me. I blinked hard. The force of the wind blasting into my face stung my eyes, and I couldn’t hear anything. Was I supersonic? The lack of sound creeped me out. It was as if one of my senses had been switched off.
Gravity began to pull me down, and my hearing kicked in again as air whipped by me in a long chilly gust. I started to worry about my landing. Ironically enough, now I really wanted an amphitere.
I reached out blindly for something—anything—to hold on to, but my hands found only air. Weren’t there any trees around here? It was the Mystic Forest, not the Mystic Desert. Then the world rushed up and I crash-landed on my side, which hurt like hell and stunned me for a second. Fortunately, semi-muddy ground had softened the impact. When I could draw breath again, I looked around, doing my best not to make any noise. I was dirty, but nothing seemed broken.
I rose to my feet gingerly, checking for injuries. I was standing before a lake that circled a tiny island like a donut circling a hole. A small cottage stood on the island, soft light glowing from every window. Was that Leh’s place? I wasn’t so sure. Nahemah’s intentions seemed less than squeaky clean, and her spell could’ve dropped me off just about anywhere. I took a step forward and stopped short, my heart hammering against my rib cage.
Nathanael was standing less than five yards in front of me, facing the lake.
He was dressed in black and blended into the darkness of the night. But his presence was bigger than the Mystic Forest and all its dead. It loomed over me like a monster with power so potent it could never truly be killed. I felt insignificant and weak to be this close to him again, just like I had at TriMedica.
Nothing stirred around him, neither the wind nor the night insects. It was as if the world itself was waiting, holding its breath, wondering about his next move. He remained still, staring across the lake.
A woman came out and stood in front of the cottage. If Nathanael was the night, she was the day, all in glowing white. The modest neckline of her long-sleeved dress hinted at full breasts, and the tightly cinched waist showed off a beautiful, lithe figure. Platinum-blond hair trailed behind her, long and unbound, brushing against low plants in what seemed to be a garden. I felt dizzy from the brilliance of her presence. I knew her. Ramiel had shown her to me in my dream.
“Leh,” Nathanael whispered.
That single word, pregnant with so much longing that it made even my heart ache, carried over the water like a lover’s caress. She shivered and hugged herself. The wind rose and shook the trees in the surrounding forest, crackling branches and causing old leaves to fall. Even the lake surface wrinkled in agitation, and the water slapped the shore.
Leh took a step back. The movement was small, almost imperceptible.
Just as subtly, Nathanael stepped forward. He stood close to the water but didn’t touch it.
The air was heavy, loaded with unspoken words, and I took shallow breaths. But I couldn’t understand it. His behavior here didn’t match my impression of the ruthless demigod at TriMedica. Whatever was between them was more than lord and servant, conqueror and conquered.
Leh turned away from Nathanael and looked at the moon. The light from the cottage accentuated the clean line of a heartbreakingly beautiful profile.
A headache formed behind my eyes, and I rubbed my temples. Maybe Ramiel had been mistaken. How could a woman that gorgeous give birth to someone who looked like me? I mean, unless she had dated someone really ugly and I had ended up with the short end of the genetic stick. Besides, Leh used to work for Nathanael. If her singing ability was as great as Toshi had said, Nathanael would never let anything jeopardize his claim to her. Exhibit A was right in front of me—he couldn’t bring himself to allow her to descend into the world of the dead. Instead he’d bound her to the Mystic Forest.
