Queen of the Fae (Dragon's Gift The Dark Fae #3) - Linsey Hall Page 0,25
stadium. Tarron followed me, his lightning wings sure and strong.
Several of the coliseum patrons had wings of their own, and I was surprised to see pointed ears on a few of them.
“Fae?” I asked Tarron as they approached.
“It seems so. Ancient ones.”
“You’d think they’d cut their own kind some slack.” I drew an iron blade from the ether for good measure.
A dark-haired Fae wearing a white toga flew for me, his blue wings more like a butterfly’s than any modern Fae’s wings I’d ever seen. He carried a short sword and round shield. I charged, my blade colliding with his. The sound rang out, and I kneed him in the groin, then pushed off from him. He tumbled off into the distance, and I grinned. That was my new favorite move.
In the distance, Tarron fought two other ancient Fae, his moves swift and sure. Blood arced from their wounds, falling on the coliseum patrons below, splashing them like morbid confetti.
“Leave us the hell alone, or I will kill you.” I bared my teeth. “And I’ll enjoy it.”
The Fae recovered himself, growling and charging. I moved quickly, dodging his blow and slicing my own blade across his neck. Blood spurted and I ducked, keenly aware of my lack of a change of clothing.
His body plummeted to the ground.
Finished with him, I whirled on the air and flew off, searching for other attackers.
Two came from the sides, each headed at me from the opposite direction. One carried a sword, the other a bow. I turned toward the bowman. He drew back an arrow and fired. I raised my shield, letting the arrow crash into the surface. As he reloaded, I stashed my sword and shield back in the ether and drew my own bow. Calling on my dragon speed, I managed to release an arrow right after he did.
My arrow slammed into his, shattering it. I drew another, firing for his neck.
The projectile pierced cleanly, and he whirled through the air, tumbling and turning.
I spun around, nearly face-to-face with the Fae who had been coming from behind. His sword was raised, aimed for my neck.
A dagger appeared from nowhere, slamming into the Fae’s skull and sending him flying through the air. He crashed to the ground right between the gladiators. The crowd roared and looked up.
My stomach lurched and my heartbeat thundered. I glanced at Tarron, who had thrown the blade that saved me.
He’d left his own back open while he’d come to my rescue, and the final attacker was raising a huge axe over his head. This time, the figure was a demon, not Fae. His burnished orange body was supported by ebony wings, and his huge horns jutted toward the sky. Yellow goat’s eyes gleamed malevolently at Tarron.
My arrow was still nocked. I raised it and released, piercing the demon right through the eyes. He whirled backward.
I hurtled for Tarron. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
The entire crowd was now looking at us, and there was no telling how many more of them could fly. I wasn’t interested in finding out.
“Bad news.” Tarron’s tone sounded dire.
I looked down and behind, spotting a hundred winged beings rising up from the seats of the coliseum. They did not look pleased.
“They didn’t like that little kerfuffle,” I said.
“Fly.”
Heart thundering in my ears, I did as he said, stashing my weapon back in the ether and shooting away from the crowd that surged after us. Tarron stayed by my side, his powerful wings moving effortlessly, gleaming like lightning.
“Come on!” Tarron growled.
I flew faster, occasionally sparing a glance at the figures behind. They were gaining.
Damn, they were fast. I needed to practice flying more. Make my wings stronger.
Beside me, Tarron’s magic flared. The scent of autumn filled the air. All around, the clouds blackened. They were worse behind us, thunder cracking and rain forming.
I looked at him. “Is that you?”
His brow was twisted in concentration. “It is.”
I glanced back. The attackers were slowing, the rain and lightning making it harder to fly. They kept coming after us, seeming determined not to stop, but they were slowing. Elation surged in my chest.
Hell yeah.
We flew as fast as we could, Tarron’s magic driving our pursuers back. My lungs burned and my wings ached, but we were gaining. Gaining.
Ahead of us, the sky blackened, even darker than the clouds behind. It turned to midnight, thick clouds roiling and lightning striking.