Shadowborn Queen - G. Bailey Page 0,40

sword. The instant I touch it, agonizing pain sears across my hand, and I scream, the smell of my blood invading the air.

I suddenly realize that Corvina doesn't need me to be her light. She just needs me to be her sister.

Once more I reach for the sword, but Corvina is the one to release it, causing the sword to unleash an explosion of magic that blacks everything out. The last thing I see before I die is Kaelah embracing her Titan lovers, the five of them finally reunited.

Chapter 20

Sunlight caresses my skin when I open my eyes. Clouds drift around me as I float with them, the wind lifting my hair on a gentle breeze. Huge talons wrap around my body, holding me in a tender embrace, and all fear seems to drift away with the clouds.Gold's dragon swoops down and my hair lifts again, only this time the strands tangle around me as he makes his descent. He lands smoothly and places me down on the grass. I breathe in, the cold air clawing at my lungs, and look around, my hands clenched.

"Izora!" Scott rushes over and bends down at my side, taking me into his arms. "We thought we lost you!"

"Lost me?" I echo, frowning up at him. My memories are a little hazy, almost like a fog has settled over my mind. "What happened?"

Luke appears beside me, his expression equally relieved as it is pained.

"You died, jaybird," he says after a moment. "Everyone on the battlefield did when you touched the sword. The Dark Fae Queen sacrificed herself and brought those the sword killed back."

My eyes feel like they're about to pop from my skull as I look around some of my guys. Their clothes are torn and their faces dirty, but they don't have any wounds or appear to be in pain. Gold remains shifted behind me, his dragon form coiled as if forming an impenetrable shield.

My guys and I died, but Queen Narah brought us back? I wipe my tears with the back of my hands. It looks like the Zorya Sisters really were looking over us; and the Dark Fae Queen, too. I unclench my hands only to find black petals sitting in my palm. I tuck them into my pocket and lift my gaze.

"Where's Axel?" I ask.

Scott strokes my hair and kisses me on the head, his mouth lingering. "Don't worry, he's alright."

"He's helping with the wounded," Luke explains, kneeling beside me. He runs a hand through his hair and cocks his head. "I thought you were gone. I thought..." His voice breaks, causing my heart to squeeze.

I reach for his hand, saying softly, "I'm here." Then looking at all my guys, I add, "We all are."

Gold stands up and stretches his wings, drawing my attention. He moves over to the edge of the cliff and peers down below.

"He was the first of us to come back, and he's the one who found your body," Scott whispers, a crease etching between his brows. "I think he took it the hardest."

I think back to when I last saw him on the battlefield. Zander was injured and Gold completely lost his shit. Did Zander make it? It sounds like Narah only resurrected those the sword killed. That means anyone who died before that moment remains dead.

"Is Zander still alive? And Corvina? And Sage and David and all the others?" My lips tremble as I say their names, terrified of the answer.

"They left through the portals and are back at the academy,” Scott says. “Corvina is with them now, too.”

I nod, my heart squeezing with relief, and slowly disentangle myself from Scott's arms. He helps me to my feet, steadying me when I almost fall, and I walk over to Gold. I stand on the edge of the cliff with him and look down at the bodies littering the battlefield. Light Fae, Dark Fae, Dragons, and Shadowborns, magics of all walks of life now bathe this land with their blood.

"We can't let their deaths be in vain," I say, placing a hand on Gold's face. He leans into my touch and a growl rumbles in his chest. "Let's honor them and make sure this never, ever happens again."

My hands tremble as I light the candle and place it on the ground with the others outside Shadowborn Academy. I swallow the lump in my throat and blink back my tears. Gold tightens his arm around me while Luke squeezes my hand and the Mune Brothers touch