“There’s powerful magic in the fog,” Gunnar said as he returned to his position in front of her. Now that the fireballs had stopped, her people were regrouping around her.
“It healed me,” Adele whispered loud enough for Gina to hear. “When the fog touched my wound, I could feel fire and ice, and then the pain was gone and the wound with it.”
Gunnar merely nodded as if he’d expected no less and returned his attention to the combat that was ongoing in the center of the field of challenge. The two tigers were upright on their hind legs, locked in an epic struggle.
And then Gisli roared in pain as Mitch scored a solid hit. Blood gushed from deep gouges on Gisli’s flank. The two tigers broke apart and went down on all fours, hidden mostly from view in the fog. It parted as Mitch made his next move. He crashed down on Gisli with all his power and Gina heard the snap of bones as Gisli cried out.
The fog dissipated and the two tigers remained. Gisli was on the ground broken beyond repair, while Mitch stood above him, prowling back and forth, his tail twitching with agitation. The most confusing part of all was that Gisli…had turned orange.
His dull fur was no longer the sickly off-white. He was no longer blanche. And as he breathed his last, it was clear that any magic he’d had once upon a time had left him for good.
Mitch shifted back to his human form and walked toward Gina. He scooped up his sweatpants and boots along the way, stepping into his pants as he went. He climbed the little rise in the ice on which Gina and her small group of Guards had watched the battle.
When he reached her, he simply opened his arms and she stepped into his embrace. They were both shaking with emotion, clinging to each other while the rest of the onlookers remained speechless.#p#分页标题#e#
Before long, Gisli’s supporters began to wake up and try to make a run for it, but the mountain wasn’t done with them yet. Without warning, a huge flood of water swept down the slope at an incredible pace. The source of the water was a new fissure that had opened up just below the peak of the mountain, lined up perfectly with the battlefield.
It all happened so fast, there was no time for anyone to get out of the way. Gisli’s body was swept away first, followed by the tight knot of his supporters. Within moments, they were gone from sight, lost to the torrent.
Oddly—or perhaps magically—the water just missed the small hill on which Gina and Mitch clung to each other, surrounded by their friends. Only a thin line of Royal Guards who had stood behind Gisli at the perimeter of the cliff had escaped the flood on that side of the field.
“What the hell was that?” Gina asked after the main force of the water died down.
“Jökulhlaup,” Gunnar answered from a few feet away. “When the volcano erupts, the heat melts a huge amount of snow and ice under the ice cap. It builds up in the caldera and can release all at once, sweeping away everything in its path. It wiped out a big section of the Ring Road last time it let loose.” Gunnar looked into the darkness, his gaze following the path of the water. “It is doubtful their bodies will ever be found.”
“I hope no innocents were caught up in that,” Gina whispered.
“Have no fear, princess,” Gunnar went on. “Only Gisli’s staunchest supporters were in that group. He kept his sycophants close to him at all times. The Clan is better off without them. They were as poisonous as he was.”
As they talked, the row of Royal Guards came closer. The waters were finished gushing and had gone as quickly as they had come.
“What happens now?” Gina asked Mitch, still held close in his arms. He was bloody, but she didn’t care. He was alive and that’s all that mattered.
“I’m not sure. I hadn’t really thought beyond the challenge,” he admitted, moving slightly away to smile down at her.
“You did it. Praise the Lady. You did it!”
He looked around, moving a little farther back from her. “Yeah, I guess so. Hot damn.”
The Guards neared, and one by one, they slid to one knee as they formed a semi-circle around Gina and Mitch. Gunnar joined them. Only the Old Guard friends they’d brought with them from the States kept their feet, watching intently, ever vigilant.
“Gunnar…” Gina stepped away from Mitch so that they stood side-by-side. “What’s going on?”
The younger man rose and bowed toward both her and Mitch. Then he winked and turned to address the people who were kneeling all around.
“Royal Guard!” he called out in a ringing tone that carried to all present. “The winner of the challenge is Mitchell Gustavson. He is one of us. A Royal Guard born and bred.” Those kneeling cheered. Mitch stood his ground though Gina knew he was uncomfortable with all the attention focused on him. Then Gunnar held up a hand, signaling for silence. “By right of combat, he is our new king.”