A Ride of Peril(72)

We ran fast, as the shouts of Destroyers and their horses neighing was never too far behind. We reached the ridge of Mount Zur in record time, stopping for a minute to catch our breath.

My lungs burned. My hair and clothes still dripped. My whole body hurt, but we weren't done yet. Draven and I looked at each other, our eyes doing the talking. He nodded briefly with a half-smile and looked up at the mountain.

"Come on, we're almost there," he said.

"I'll need a hot bath after all this is over," Sverik said. "I can't live with this much filth on me." He smirked, looking at himself. His uniform was tattered, wet, dirty, and riddled with smudges of silver blood. A wail pierced through the sky above us as ten Destroyers flew in from behind.

"Run!" Draven shouted.

We climbed up the ridge with surprising strength and speed. The prospect of death energized us. Only one thought crowded our minds: survival. We ran up, jumping from boulder to boulder like mountain goats as the Destroyers descended upon us, shooting their poisonous spears.

We dodged their attacks and finally reached the plateau leading into the volcano. We stumbled to our feet as the monsters came down. The Destroyers jumped off their winged horses, landing with a thud, and slithered through the grass toward us, their swords and sharp fangs out.

I shot another barrier out, enough to push them back a few yards as we ran back toward the limestone wall, where the Dearghs stood still like statues.

"Help us!" I screamed at them as the Destroyers quickly gained on us again.

My barrier had been weak. I was losing energy.

The monsters hissed, lifting their swords as they charged us.

The stone behind us crackled, and, one by one, the Dearghs rose from the mountain, massive and with flames in their eyes. Zur stepped forward, grumbling like an avalanche as he moved in front of us.

One of the Destroyers cursed. They all stilled, their tails twitching and rattling.

"They're still alive," he shouted. "Fall back!"

It was too late for them. The Dearghs, as big and bulky as they were, moved quickly across the tall grass. As they engaged the Destroyers, they lit up from the inside, turning into massive fire creatures, blazing with rage. 

There were five Dearghs against ten Destroyers, but judging by the horrified looks on their faces, the stone and fire giants had all the odds in their favor.

Draven pulled me back.

Hansa and Sverik joined us as we watched the fight unfold.

Each Deargh grabbed whichever Destroyer was closest, pulling them by the tails and setting them on fire before they snapped their necks. The Destroyers were big, but the Dearghs were three times bigger.

It was over fast, with just one monster managing to slither away, hissing and cursing as he vanished into the jungle below.

We stood there, our mouths gaping, our eyes wide open, as the lifeless bodies of Destroyers burned. Black smoke rose into the sky. I'd never imagined witnessing such a scene.

The Dearghs were such gentle creatures. I'd had a hard time imagining they'd be capable of such carnage. And yet they stood before us, flames blazing from within, looking down at the handful of monsters they'd so easily vanquished. I wondered why they hadn't stood up sooner. Why had Azazel been allowed to do so much damage in the first place?

"That was surprisingly efficient," Draven quipped, his tone dry.

The Dearghs dimmed their flames, returning to their original form. Zur looked down at us, giving us a gentle smile, his eyes still flickering. Charred Destroyers lay at his giant limestone feet.

"Fire kills everything, young Druid, even snakes."





Serena





We made it to Mount Inon in one piece. We used the swamp witches' spell again and struggled with Sverik as we flowed through the lava. He'd given in to the temptation to open his eyes during the transition.

It took us a while to calm him down after Zur pushed us to the surface and took us to one of the outer chambers of the volcano, where Inon waited with food and water.

A few minutes later, Sverik was down on all fours, heaving and gasping for air as the spell wore off. Sweat beads covered his face. His shimmering skin was paler than usual.

"I'm never doing this again," he groaned. "Next time, just leave me in the cage!"

Hansa smirked as she ate, tearing the meat off the bone and washing it down with cool spring water. She kept an eye on Sverik as he recovered.

Draven and I sat next to each other.

"We told you not to open your eyes," Hansa said dryly.

Inon watched us quietly, his eyes moving from one to the other with childlike interest.

"Yeah, well, that's the one thing my brother and I always had in common. No means yes." Sverik grinned.

A long minute passed before Inon spoke. We were far too hungry and thirsty to fill that time with chatter. I was just grateful to still be alive with Draven by my side. He occasionally leaned into me, giving me a sideways glance that was strangely reassuring. We'd made it this far.