said firmly, his expression somber. “Not yet, not before your Turning.”
“Mage Ganon is right,” Adele urged. “If you perish, Queen Ileana, then all we’ve done will be for nothing, and your parents’ decades of sacrifice would be for naught.”
They were all trying to keep me away from the frontline of the battle.
Northton led a group of Silver mages, trying to cut a path through a host of demonca toward me. Waves of darkfae surged toward me, recognizing me as their main target. Then our reinforcements arrived—a large group of mages and knights poured into the hall and joined the battle, yet we were still outnumbered.
A feeling of déjà vu pinged my brain, and the devastated scene of the Fae warriors falling around me under blades and black magic in front of the abandoned Burbank warehouse flashed through my mind.
I would not just stand by. I wouldn’t let any more of our warriors be killed.
“Let me fight!” I roared, fire in my eyes. “If you expect a worthy queen, let me be one. I should and will always fight on the frontline.”
Dad and Adele traded a look, and Adele reluctantly nodded.
“Fine, we all fight,” Dad said. “Sir Drake, please guard the queen’s back.”
All three of them peeled away and formed a formation around me—Drake watching my back, Dad and the Seer by my sides. We cut our way toward the Silver mages who were trying to reach us. Together, we thinned the numbers of the demonca from both ends, although a couple of our warriors fell under the demonca’s lethal claws as well.
Little did they know, I had a trick up my sleeve.
I recalled that the troll and the darkfae had frozen for a few seconds when my blood was spilled on the ground and my magic rose to the occasion. I’d seen the terror and shock on their revolting faces as they scented my blood. And in the last battle, I’d incinerated the demonca with the power of my blood and shadow fire.
I sliced Netherbane across my palm—Adele had found my lost dagger and returned it to me amid the chaos.
“What are you doing, daughter?” Dad asked in alarm.
“Trust me on this, Dad,” I said as I balled my palm into a fist and let my blood drop to the ground. Then I called for my vines.
Just as I’d expected, the demonca sniffed the air and froze at the smell of my blood. I didn’t let the opportunity pass me by.
Black vines sprouted from the ground and the ceiling, even though we were on the top floor. Shoots of vines with my blood on the thorns dashed toward the horde of demonca. I followed the aggressive movements of my vines as they opened the path for my team, and I swung my sword in an arc, cleaving the head off a demonca near me.
My vines and thorns sliced into the enemies, tripping, maiming, and tearing into them.
“Cut them down!” Northton shouted, not wasting the narrow window I’d just created.
His mages surged forward, crashing into a host of giant darkfae. Adele changed positions with Drake to watch my back while the Captain of the Guards of the Night Court fought on the frontline with my father and me.
Our blades slashed into claws and steel. Blood splashed everywhere. Our coordinated efforts cut down over a dozen demonca, and we started to push our enemies back.
“Don’t leave any darkfae alive!” the older mage roared beside his director. “Kill them all!”
The battle frenzy reached its peak.
Northton dueled Sinn near the toppled bar. A light mage and a dark mage flung spells at each other, shouting incantations. Their spells crashed into each other, creating lethal fireworks. Purple beams and silver lights zipped through the air. Wherever they hit, holes appeared and smoke rose.
Just as we started gaining ground, a fleet of winged shadows moved across the window, sending half of the room into darkness. Flying lizards carrying Dawn soldiers crashed through the glass, and more enemy soldiers poured into the grand hall.
We’d meant to ambush Brigantia, but she’d prepared and brought a heavier force. And she’d finally showed her trump card by revealing a forbidden hybrid army.
The Night knights led the charge toward the flyers and Dawn soldiers. Drake leapt forward with a roar, his black longsword swinging left and right and slicing through flesh and bones. A lizard head rolled off a darkfae flyer, blood spurting and tainting the broken glass on the ground and hanging from the broken window.
Another flyer opened its enormous