Ashes of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #2) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,6

slaughter one another. The victims had to be willing to die for the sacrifice to power the grid. Spelling the victims provided a way to cheat the process, ending their lives without argument. The sexual incantation used was then amplified, turning it into a weapon to drive their victims mad with the need to take their pleasure by force. They created sexual monsters that felt no pain or remorse, only boundless pleasure until they died from mating or self-inflicted wounds.

Chapter Three

I stared through the window as the masked figures set ablaze the bodies, and my breathing stopped. I watched the Hecate insignia burning dimly on the remains of the many victim's heads and chests. Each palm also carried the mark and was placed touching another, sealing the circle and igniting the grid as a sacrifice to Hecate, increasing the coven’s power.

Adult bodies created the outside circular pattern while smaller victims formed the five-pointed star in the middle. As I studied one male’s face, his eyes shifted, holding mine as his body slowly burned, and I clamped my hands over my mouth as tears slipped from the precarious hold I’d had on them.

Not everyone set on fire was dead before the flames had reached them. In horrified silence, I listened to the screams of the dying as they burned to death before my eyes. I trembled with the force of my emotions, unable to stop the tears that burned in my gaze.

I wanted nothing more than to jump to their aid, but the reality was the moment the villagers fell under the spell, it sealed their fate, and nothing would change that fact. The only thing I could do now was study and to learn more about my enemies so I could avenge all those sacrificed in my grandmother’s name.

As I silently cried, evil shadows danced hypnotically to the screams of their victims. The masked figures laughed at the dying as their flesh sizzled and burned, sending the putrid scent high into the night. I noticed other flames lit in the distance, and suddenly, the entire area glowed with hundreds of similar circles made from remains. The fire created a burning pathway that flowed outside the village, deep into the countryside as if lighting the way toward something, or worse, someone.

Calming my emotions wasn’t easy. Inside the Nine Realms, everything about me was enhanced, including my senses. My sense of smell was unreal. My hearing had amplified to the point that a twig, breaking miles away, echoed within my ears. The need to mate hadn’t merely increased; it had intensified until even my nipples ached when Knox was near. To say it was ridiculous was an understatement, but that’s how I knew when he was near, how I sensed him before I ever saw him as he continued to chase me.

My body knew Knox, desired him, and craved him deeper than I craved the need to do what I’d come to the Nine Realms to accomplish. I’d used potions and spells, all to no avail, because it was a primal need and something that wouldn’t be ignored or shut off.

I leaned against the wall, closing off my emotions. I tuned out the debauchery happening outside. The victim’s screams were dying down, which meant death was finally claiming them. I rubbed away the tears, deadening myself to the senseless loss of life, knowing that I’d come upon it too late to make a difference. Nothing I could have done would take away the dark, oily magic fueling the men and women to slaughter one another.

I wasn’t that strong, nor did I house the right magic to fight against the spell. Not yet, at least. Soon. The witches outside stopped laughing and talked excitedly, in a rushed, worried speech. I frowned, moving back to the window.

Peering down the road, I spotted Knox as he stepped into the village and unseeingly moved through the scene. My eyes narrowed as he and his men continued toward the courtyard, stepping through the bodies. I blinked, rubbing my eyes. I watched the hooded figures slowly slinking toward him, Knox seemingly unaware.

Son of a bitch! Knox and his men were within a layer of the realm. I turned my attention back to the masked figures, but they showed no signs of alarm. They could not see Knox and his men, so how was I able to see them? Knox came closer into view as a hooded figure emerged from the crowd, looking directly at him. Removing the mask,

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