Night Fae (Dark Fae Kings #3) - Meg Xuemei X. Page 0,22

from somewhere. “Recharge the Silver spell!”

Sinn and two dark mages surrounded Northton, hurling purple spells at him unceasingly. The Silver Circle director countered with his incantation, and fireballs of purple and silver smashed into each other. Sparks of fire and trails of smoke spread out in the hall.

Baron and Rydstrom rode their conjured storm and charged Brigantia again. From another direction, I sprang at her with Netherbane, bluish light skidding on the edge of the blade.

“Stay back, Evie!” Rydstrom and Baron screamed their objections as they hurled the twisted bolt of sunbeam, starlight, and nightmares into Brigantia, but the usurper’s purple wind blocked the attack.

Once, all three Fae kings had joined forces and vanquished a host of demons, but now only two kings were left to fend off the usurper queen.

Where was the Winter King? I thought of him with hatred and loathing. I hadn’t seen him anywhere since the fight broke out. I took my mind off the cowardly betrayer and sent my shadow fire and spiky vines toward Brigantia. She sneered in contempt and chucked her black power at me, flinging me to the ceiling.

My lungs burned as smoke filled them, and my head throbbed at the impact.

What the archdemon had whispered about Brigantia’s secrets that night rang in my head—even the three kings’ combined powers wouldn’t be enough to counter hers. Faerie magic had been fading for millennia since the rise of human technology and their expansion of the territories. While magic was trickling away from the immortal land, Brigantia had found another power source that was demonic. Her black magic fed on her victims’ agony and death. And for centuries, she’d figured out a way to siphon others’ powers.

We had no chance of overcoming her before my Turning, but I wouldn’t give up.

I shot to my feet, ignoring the pain traveling through my body, and leapt toward Brigantia again. My shadow fire and thorny vines surged toward her, meeting her second tidal wave of black power. Her power ate up my shadow fire until it diminished like raindrops.

“You’re pathetic,” Brigantia sneered. “Now watch how I handle the kings you tried to steal from me.”

Her foul magic knocked into Rydstrom and tore open his dress shirt. The usurper dipped her vengeful yet lustful gaze to his cut chest as if she wanted to lick him while tormenting him.

I roared, my protective instincts toward my mates and my rage toward my immortal enemy boiling inside me, and I charged Brigantia.

Rydstrom also roared like a beast, his starlight burning and cleaving her power as it tried to bind him. Baron tossed his brilliant sunbeam at the evil queen, intent on toasting her. Just as Rydstrom broke free of the bitch’s grasp, Brigantia morphed her power into purple light and dragged the Summer King toward her with it.

Her claws shot out, extending over ten feet long, and stabbed Baron’s left eye.

No one had seen that brutal, monstrous move coming.

Blood and fluid ran down the Summer King’s beautiful face from his wounded eye socket. He screamed for the first time, his agony ripping into my heart.

I couldn’t draw in a breath in the face of my mate’s suffering.

I screamed in horror, sheer panic freezing my blood. “No, don’t hurt him! Stop. Fucking stop!”

Rydstrom flew toward the queen with an enraged battle bellow, trying to free Baron. Brigantia flexed her razor-sharp claws, slick with my mate’s blood, ready to impale Baron’s other eye.

We wouldn’t be able to stop it in time, and the Summer King would lose both eyes before the queen did worse to him.

“Brigantia, please don’t hurt him. Please,” I begged. I never thought that I’d bow to her like this, but I’d do anything for my kings. I’d die to protect them, so begging my worst enemy now was the least of my concerns.

We couldn’t win today. We’d lost too much. We had to bide our time to defeat her.

“What’s your price, Brigantia?” I asked. “What do you want?”

She cocked her head, an unforgiving, cruel smirk on her lips coupled with inky darkness in her eyes.

I knew what she wanted most—to kill me in the Wild Hunt and then enslave my kings to warm her bed.

“Release them,” I said, “and I’ll take part in the Wild Hunt.”

“Are you sure you’ll answer the Wild Hunt, Ileana Evelina?”Brigantia taunted.

It was the first time she’d called me Ileana, though I could tell how much she hated to admit that I was the lost princess heir this way. She had to say my