Oh fuck.
The crack of her face hitting the ground, unmoving, sent chills up my spine.
For whatever reason, that was what sent the room into chaos. Everyone moved sharply towards the center of the room, descending on us as I screamed out Nico's name, knowing he wasn't in the right mindset to protect himself. I tried to surge forward to get to him, but Drayven caught me around the waist with a growl. Nico looked up to meet my gaze, and the pain and betrayal I saw there had my heart breaking.
They were his parents. They were pieces of shit, but they were still his parents.
At that moment, King Celorn and Queen Kahli launched themselves at the rulers of Rune. Twin swords appeared in their hands, white flames licking at the metal of the blades as they arced through the air towards their target. I grunted as Damien backed up into me, pressing me further between Drayven and himself. Colt, in a move that surprised me, grabbed Nico by the collar and tugged him towards the center of the room. Nico’s gaze was still glued to his mother and father’s unmoving forms. Shit. This was so bad.
I looked back towards the clash between Fallen and Runes, but I was distracted by the panic that surged through me as four elves surrounded the rulers of House of Shadows, the shadows Adrien attempted to summon to transport them flickering out. What the fuck? The light the assassins were using on them was too much. It was doing something to their magic, and I saw horror drawn on all of their faces.
"The Dark Elves’ magic. It's somehow nullifying the Wraiths’ power," Colt explained sharply.
I let out a panicked sound, realizing what danger they were in and trying to break out of Drayven's arms to get to them. Before I had a chance to tell him to let go, the elves descended upon Adrien and his parents, immediately binding Adrien's parents in black cuffs that seemed to appear out of nowhere. Their arms lit up with a dark, bolt-like energy that seemed to travel through their veins, and King Victor and Queen Adira fell to their knees, looking as if they were suddenly exhausted. The cuffs had clearly drained them of any energy they’d had left after their magic had been nullified.
This was why King Roarke and Queen Ava had been so arrogant. They had numbers, the ability to nullify magic, and restraints that seemed to suck the energy out of whoever they held captive. This was such bullshit. Adrien stepped back, his eyes widening in true shock. Suddenly, Finias tackled him to the ground just as an elf tried to cuff him. King Roarke and Queen Ava were dragged to the side, leaving Finias and Adrien in the center of the room near us. Relief that both of them were safe flooded me, before I realized how fucked we were.
"Look out!" Drayven's gruff command had me ducking on instinct as Damien leapt and met the arm of the Dark Elf who had tried to attack us. Colt helped me up, but the crunching of bones sounded near me, and Damien was whipped to the side by another elf. I kept low and crawled towards him, the other men surrounding us as Damien let out a low whimper. Fuck. Fuck.
"We have to get out of here," Finias demanded. "We aren't going to win this."
"Any fucking suggestions on how?" Drayven's magic paired with Adrien’s, who looked infuriated as he blocked the different shades of elemental magic being thrown our way. It was clear that these elves were well prepared for battle, the multitude of abilities surprising me amidst the insanity of the moment.
A hit to my shoulder made me cry out, a sizzling sound letting me know my skin was burning. Then, a massive shadow fell over Damien and I. Looking up, I found Colt's massive wings covering us, his hand on Nico's arm, tugging him to the ground and seeming to shake him from whatever fugue he'd been in. I, on the other hand, was in absolute shock as I stared at Colt’s gorgeous wings.
"He's right—we're going to die or be taken as prisoners." Nico's voice was a low hiss.
A protective fury filled me at his words, and I stood up, my eyes narrowing on the multiple assassins coming our way. Once again, knowing it was necessary but a small part of me rebelling against the idea, I let my Succubus magic out. Instead of slowly unraveling, it flew into them in a wall of power that had all of them jolting to a standstill, as if they were puppets awaiting my command. I avoided Adrien's grip as he tried to grab me and instead moved to stand at the front of the group. I used my Reaper magic in a sharp movement of my scythe and brought them to their knees.
I could feel the rage coursing through me at the possibility that the men behind me could be killed. I wanted to kill these fuckers who opposed us. It didn't matter that it would be my first kill or that the idea didn't bother me at all. None of that really even registered. All that mattered was getting out of here and protecting the others. I probably would have killed them in that moment if I hadn't immediately been struck by a vibrant punch of elemental magic that felt like a damn boulder had knocked me to the ground. I whimpered as my head hit the marble floor, and everything in my body went absolutely still.
Holy hell. The pain was unreal.
My eyes fluttered shut as pain completely assaulted my system. I heard someone call my name, but that was right about when everything went dark.
Order the next books in the Monarchs of Hell series:
#2- Imbalance: mybook.to/Monarchs2
#3- Inheritance: mybook.to/Monarchs3
Other books by R.L. Caulder
The Pack Prophecy
Outcast: mybook.to/Outcast
Outlaw: mybook.to/OutlawPP
Oracle: mybook.to/OraclePP
Darkness Rising
Desolation: mybook.to/Desolation
Detonation: mybook.to/Detonation
Devastation: mybook.to/DevastationDR
Other books by M. Sinclair
Vengeance
Savages: https://geni.us/vengeance1
Lunatics: https://geni.us/vengeance2
Monsters: https://geni.us/vengeance3
Psychos: https://geni.us/vengeance4
The Red Masques
Raven Blood: https://geni.us/theredmasques1
Ashes & Bones: https://geni.us/theredmasques2
Shadow Glass: https://geni.us/theredmasques3
Fire & Smoke: https://geni.us/theredmasques4
Dark King: https://geni.us/theredmasques5
About R.L. Caulder
R.L. Caulder is a USA Today bestselling author who lives in her writing cave away from the intense heat of the Florida sun with her husband and furry writing assistants, MeowMeow and Winrey. Life is never boring for R.L., who has hundreds of imaginary friends constantly vying for her attention and begging for their stories to be told.
If you’re looking for ways to interact with R.L., you can find her on Facebook in her group:
The Cauldron: R.L. Caulder Reader Group
About M. Sinclair
USA Today Bestselling Author
A Chicago native, parent to 3 cats, and lover of all things bubbly. She can be found writing or thinking about writing nearly every moment of the day. While new to the publishing world, M. Sinclair has been writing for over 10 years and plans to continue well into the next 10! While currently in love with the Reverse Harem sub-genre of romance, M. Sinclair plans to release novels rooted in romance, horror, and action. Finally, M. Sinclair believes that there is enough room for all types of heroines in this world and that being saved is as important as saving others. So be a princess and a warrior! Just remember to love cats... that's not negotiable.
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Insurrection (Monarchs of Hell Book 1) Page 24