Chapter 201: Time To Win
>>Aelin
The white light swallowed everything, Asha’s smile, Tala’s golden eyes, the shimmering spires of the spirit realm, until there was only emptiness. And then... color began to bleed back in. Shapes. Sounds.
My lungs caught as I realized I was standing on the polished wooden floors of the mansion. The warm, oaken scent hit me instantly, but I barely had time to take it in before the muffled roar of something monstrous shook the air.
Commotion.
I turned my head toward it, my pulse quickening. My legs moved before my mind caught up, carrying me to the open corridor. My hands grabbed the railing as I leaned forward, and froze.
Below, in the open expanse beyond the mansion’s grounds, two massive beings clashed in an explosion of force and fury.
It only took a heartbeat for me to recognize one of them, Reagen. His towering form radiated dark, vicious energy, his every movement dripping with lethal intent. But it wasn’t him that made my heart stutter.
It was the other.
The dragon’s scales gleamed in rich shades of black. His wings spanned wider than any sail I’d ever seen, each beat sending shockwaves through the air. His eyes, those burning, molten purple eyes, were unmistakable.
"Draegon..." I breathed, my chest tightening.
Even in the chaos, I couldn’t help but admire him. His movements were as fluid as they were brutal, every lash of his tail, every slash of his claws carrying both grace and terrifying strength. He moved like a force of nature, a living embodiment of power and will.
But Reagen... Reagen was relentless.
They collided again and again, talons scraping against talons, teeth clashing in showers of sparks. Draegon’s roar shook the sky, defiant and unyielding, but Reagen met him with savage strikes that sent tremors racing through the ground.
I gripped the railing so tightly my knuckles ached, unable to tear my eyes away as the battle intensified. Draegon swiped, his claws tearing across Reagen’s side, but the dark creature lunged in, his own talons raking deep into Draegon’s chest. The dragon reeled back with a roar that made my blood run cold.
And then, Reagen surged forward, his massive body slamming into Draegon’s with crushing force. In one brutal motion, he overpowered him, driving him down to the earth. The ground shook violently as Draegon crashed into it, the sound of the impact thundering in my ears.
Blood, bright, terrible red, poured from him, staining the ground beneath his trembling form.
My heart lurched into my throat. "No..." I whispered, barely aware of the tears pricking my eyes.
I could feel it, the magic Tala had unlocked surging through every vein, roaring to life like a wildfire. The ache in my chest dissolved into a steady, fierce heat. The tears that had threatened to fall vanished before they even formed, burned away by the sheer force of my resolve.
No fear. No hesitation. Only one thought echoed in my mind.
He’ll pay for that.
My glare locked on Reagen, my voice a low growl.
"You’ll pay for that."
I thrust out my palm, my magic answering instantly. Golden threads erupted from my fingertips, shimmering with blinding light, racing through the air until they connected, one strand piercing into the center of Reagen’s belly, another snapping into place against his forehead.
The moment the threads sank into him, I whispered the words. My voice carried low but unyielding, every syllable laced with power and rage:
"Condemn the dark ones back to where there is no light."Condemn the dark ones back to where there is no light.
Burn the bones to ashes, flesh to dust, ashes to ashes, dust to dust Burn the bones to ashes, flesh to dust, ashes to ashes, dust to dust
Let their shadows be scattered, devoured by the maw of the abyss. Let their shadows be scattered, devoured by the maw of the abyss.
With fire unyielding and stars as my witness, I unmake their claim to this world. With fire unyielding and stars as my witness, I unmake their claim to this world.
By blood and by oath, I sever their tether to all that breathes. By blood and by oath, I sever their tether to all that breathes.
Let the ground reject their touch, the heavens blind to their plight. Let the ground reject their touch, the heavens blind to their plight.
By the ancient seals and the whispers of forgotten god, I call upon the eternal flame By the ancient seals and the whispers of forgotten god, I call upon the eternal flame
Consume, purge, and erase. Consume, purge, and erase.
What once was shall now be no more."
My voice trembled, not with fear, but with anger so sharp it could have cut the air.
Reagen’s foot was a mere breath from crushing Draegon’s skull, and then his belly burst.
A violent explosion of light and fire ripped from the core within him, the force knocking him stumbling back with a howl of confusion. His claws clutched at his midsection, and he whipped his head toward the mansion.
His gaze found me.
"YOU!" he roared, his voice shaking the earth.
I met his glare without flinching.
I wanted him to see me.
I wanted him to know exactly who had done this.
The second thread still held fast at his forehead. My fingers clenched, and I released the final strike.
Light roared from my palm, slamming into him in a perfect line, and his forehead burst open in a violent eruption of golden flame.
Reagen’s scream tore through the sky, a sound of pure rage and agony that rattled my bones.
>>Draegon
I could barely comprehend what had just happened.
One moment, Reagen’s foot was poised above my skull, the crushing weight of death pressing down on me. The next, an explosion of golden fire tore through his belly, sending him stumbling back.
I blinked, breath ragged, mind struggling to catch up. That should have been it, no one survived losing their core.
But then I felt it... and realization sank in like ice.
Three cores.Three cores.
The bastard had three cores. Not two. How stupid of me not to think that far.
That’s why, even with a hole burning through his gut, he staggered back to his feet as though nothing had happened.
I spared him a glance and saw that his deformed body began to shift, his massive form shrinking as his body retracted into its smaller shape, magic swirling violently around him.
I forced myself upright, my muscles screaming in protest. My claws dug into the ground, dragging my weight until I stood on all fours. My wings trembled, my chest burned, and blood still poured from my wounds, but I lifted my head anyway, and then I saw her.
Far across the battlefield, standing in the open space of the mansion’s corridor, golden light still dancing around her fingertips...
Aelin.
My heart leapt so violently it hurt.
My wife!!
She was alive. She was alive. And she was standing strong, her gaze fierce, the air around her thrumming with power.
The chaos, the pain, the scent of blood, all of it faded for a heartbeat.
Because in that moment, all I felt was joy.
And peace.
