Queen of the Gryphons: Ishtar's Legacy: Books 1 & 2

by Lisa Blackwood

  Ahassunu glanced at Iltani and then the cubs, her pain evident in her eyes. “Do you really think you can save my little ones?”

  “I don’t know, but I will do all in my power to protect them or die trying. You have my vow.” Iltani dragged in a breath, almost a sob, “That’s why I need Ditanu off this beach. I need to know even if I fail, he is safe.”

  Ahassunu nodded her head. “I understand. You have my gratitude. I will see your will is done even if one of the great lamassu has to carry the king away from here.”

  The consort backed out of the passage. From outside, Iltani heard Burrukan and Ahassunu attempting to reason with Ditanu. It went on longer than it should, but at last, there came the thunder of wings followed by Ditanu’s startled exclamation as a lamassu scooped up the gryphon king and his cub, carrying them both away from the battle.

  Through their link, she could feel the distance rapidly growing between them as the stone guardian winged away, heading for the safety of the capital, the king and the cub Ilanum, clasped in its embrace.

  With her king as safe as he could be, Iltani turned her attention back to the other two cubs. Kuwari was crying and fighting to free himself. She scooted closer until she could curl protectively around him and his sister.

  “Easy, little Mite,” she said as she caressed his head, trying to distract him from his injuries or, at least, stop him from inflicting more damage. “I’ll have you out of here in a moment and back with your parents before you know it.”

  She hoped that wasn’t a lie, but even if it was, the cub stopped struggling to free himself. He pressed his head against her hand and turned his beak enough he could nuzzle into her side.

  Iltani waited until the sounds of battle grew closer. There was another scuffle at the entrance.

  A body hit the sand just outside her cave. Burrukan suddenly stuck his head inside to peer into the passageway.

  “Ditanu is safe.” He turned to look behind him, scanning the beach as he continued. “Consort Ahassunu and the remaining Shadows are waiting further down the beach, at the northern pier. We’ll meet you there. The beach here is overrun. Give me a count of ten and then raze everything to glass and ash.” He gave her a flash of white teeth. “I’m proud of you, more than I could ever say. So don’t disappoint me by getting yourself killed.”

  With that, he disappeared back out of the passage and was gone.

  “I will not fail you or my king,” she whispered and pressed closer to the cubs. She closed her eyes, sending a quick prayer to Ishtar and then summoning that full, unrestrained torrent of power which had been dancing at the edges of her consciousness since she’d first learned there were invaders within gryphon territory. The sword glowed more brightly, and Iltani formed a ring of burning power around herself and the two cubs.

  Once the power was concentrated enough, she sent a small portion to eat away at the rocks pinning the cubs. Above her head, the rock shifted, making her heart pound, but the rubble didn’t fall. Ishtar’s magic held it back with greater force. Sweat trickled down her back, and her ears felt like she was underwater as a great pressure descended upon her body.

  Her magic continued to eat away at the rock trapping the cubs and suddenly Kuwari came free. He yelped in pain but shifted closer until his entire body was pressed against her breasts. She couldn’t spare him the attention to soothe his fears. Dragging Humusi free, she eyed the damage.

  What she saw of the cub’s injuries sent a sharp lance of fear straight through her heart. The cub’s hind limbs and pelvis were crushed. The right hind leg was almost severed at the knee. Iltani hastily tore off a piece of her skirt and used it as a tourniquet.

  She was out of time. Gathering both cubs into her arms, Iltani sat up, coming to her knees. Shifting them to a one-armed hold, she grasped her sword’s hilt and released the contained power. A power bright as the sun flashed through her closed lids, tinting the cavern red all around her.

  Then the world exploded.

  Chapter 13

  Choking on air filled with dust and heat, Iltani struggled to her feet and found herself in the center of a crater. Blessedly, she was unharmed by the blast. Almost the opposite, she felt like she could conquer a mountain. Reining in her adrenaline-filled thoughts, she glanced down at the cubs. They were no more damaged than they’d been before, but that still wasn’t saying much for Humusi’s chances at survival.

  More heat radiated up from the sand, some of it an odd crunching consistency under her sandals. Neither the hot air nor the molten spots slowed her as she bolted into motion, the cubs tucked against her side and a glowing sword in the other hand.

  She cleared the small rise, which was actually the crater’s rim, and came out on the beach and saw first-hand the destruction she had created. Burned and broken bodies. Boulders and bits of temple masonry. None of it distracted her from her destination, the small harbor just beyond the curve of the cliff wall.

  Iltani sprinted across the sand, weaving around or jumping over bodies and debris in her path. This particular stretch of beach was relatively empty of enemies, which was a blessing. Encumbered with the cubs as she was, hand-to-hand combat wasn’t something she wanted to face. Unfortunately, ahead, the sounds of battle rang out.

  She stumbled more than climbed over the last rocky section and sprawled on the beach. Rolling onto her side, she shielded the cubs from the worst of the impact. Kuwari whined, but the other was ominously quiet. Iltani’s focus became finding one of the Shadows trained as a healer. Etum and his twin, Eluti, both possessed healing gifts. If either of them still lived, they might be able to help.

  Surveying the battle before her, she spotted three separate groups engaged in fighting. Nearest her location, a vanguard of Shadows was dispatching the enemy stragglers that had landed on the beach during the earlier battle—the few to escape the lamassu’s assault.

  Further in, Ahassunu and her guards were liberating one of the enemy’s boats. It was larger than a skiff, with no sail. Instead, it had oars to power it through the water. Iltani’s brows drew together in confusion. A closer look showed why they were after the boat. Ahassunu’s one wing was hanging limp, broken. She wasn’t the only one with injuries. There weren’t enough able-bodied gryphons left to fly the rest to safety.

  If that were all they’d had to face, escape out to the safety of the ocean would have been relatively easy.

  But fate wasn’t being kind today. A large battle-damaged ship was already in the harbor. Its three masts were shattered by a lamassu’s rage, and there was also a large hole in its side. The boat was riding low in the water—sinking further as she watched. The vessel might be dead, but its crew wasn’t.

  Swinging her gaze away from the wounded ship, Iltani searched out Burrukan by the sounds of battle. He was on the harbor’s main dock, flanked by five of his Shadows. Together, the small group of defenders attempted to keep the ship’s crew from coming ashore.

  “It will be all right Kuwari, I promise,” she said as she glanced down at the cubs in her arms. Decision made, she sprinted toward Ahassunu. She would deposit the two cubs in the boat with their mother, and then guard their escape.

  By the time Iltani reached the nearest group of Shadows, they’d finished with the nearest batch of invaders. Seeing Iltani and her precious burden, they formed up around her and together they rejoined the consort and her guard.

  Iltani spotted a large gash running along the consort’s hip, and she favored that leg heavily, but she did not look defeated as she walked up to Iltani and nuzzled at the two cubs. Iltani gently placed them on the sand, already knowing that even a mother’s love could do nothing for the oldest cub. The cub’s heart fluttered feebly along Iltani’s blood-link.

  Her own heart breaking, Iltani withdrew and walked toward Burrukan.

  The invaders would pay for the crime of spilling innocent blood. The sword in her hand pulsed brighter, its magic flaring and dancing along the blade with renewed anger.

  Ishtar, goddess of war
, agreed.

  Chapter 14

  Iltani only made it halfway to Burrukan’s location when one of the tiny threads of her blood-link snapped and blinked out of existence—a tiny life going with it. She’d only known the cub for a day, but its sudden absence left an aching hollowness which took up twin residences in her mind and heart.

  Halting at the water’s edge, she focused on the first thing she saw—the boat and its crew where they were lowering three smaller boats into the water. Iltani narrowed her eyes and raised her sword. Her magic raced over her body, an outward sign that didn’t even begin to cover the depth of Ishtar’s rage seething within her.

  Screaming, she lashed out with power, giving it no direction other than to destroy.

  Ocean water boiled away as steam, the smaller boats disintegrated, nothing more than bits of fire and ash raining down into the waves. Ishtar’s power collided with the larger ship, racing over it, consuming it. A convulsive ripple raced through the growing cloud of magic and with a large crack, the boat shattered, vanishing into smoke, fire, and ash.

  Swirling motes of magic drifted slowly down upon the waves.

  A sudden fierce roar of pain jerked Iltani away from the sight of the ocean. Whipping around, she spotted Ahassunu fighting fresh enemies, but it was Kuwari’s panicked cries over the sound of the surf and the shouting of men that made ice run in her veins.

  Swiftly, she scanned the area. The Shadows guarding Kuwari were battling six times their number, and more of the enemy was climbing over the rocky coast to join in the fight. There must have been a second ship out of sight, just around the harbor wall.

  The how or the why didn’t matter now.

  Iltani ran. She was halfway there when one of the Shadows guarding Kuwari was overwhelmed by sheer numbers, and the enemy dragged him down, stabbing swords and axes into his body. The remaining three closed ranks around the frightened cub. Even as Iltani raced closer, another Shadow was taken down by an arrow through his throat.

  Coming up behind her, Iltani heard Burrukan and the other Shadows with him gaining ground.

  Iltani reached the battle first, cutting down enemies as she forced her way through to get to Kuwari’s side. Every instinct told her that Kuwari was the target. Kill him and they came that much closer to ending the line of the Gryphon King’s.

  Ahassunu was still on her feet, fighting to reach her cub. The fierce mother dragged down enemy after enemy.

  In a still moment between kills, Iltani found herself facing off against an enemy with the wildest hair and beard she’d ever seen. But it was his eyes that held the greatest wildness. A look that said he knew there was no surrender for either of them, that he wasn’t going to make it off this island alive, and he might as while do as much killing and ravaging as he could before he fell.

  She held her ground, looking past him to the boat just steps away from where Kuwari was cowering.

  The big man spat something in an ugly foreign tongue as he grinned and ogled Iltani. She returned the man’s grin with a savage one of her own.

  “Is this what you want?” Iltani held her arms wide, daring the fool.

  Again he spoke in his language, the words unknown, but the meaning clear enough.

  “Look your fill,” Iltani laughed. “It’s likely the last thing you’ll see.”

  Ahassunu lunged, grabbing him from behind and shaking him like a dog.

  Out of the corner of her eye, Iltani noted his head part company from his body, and then she was leaping into the boat. She scooped up Kuwari even as she summoned power, cocooning them both in shielding magic. At least, he hadn’t collected any more injuries.

  “Shhh, it will be all right,” Iltani whispered to the cub as she rocked him. It was the only comfort she could give him as the battle continued to rage around them.

  Iltani stood with her sword ready and her legs braced, matching the rock of the boat as the first soldier came at her. He made it within two body-lengths of the boat and then he burst into flames. He didn’t even have time to scream. It happened all without any conscious thought on Iltani’s part.

  Ishtar roused, stronger than before.

  Two more invaders had been approaching Iltani’s location but backed away when they saw their comrade vanish in fire and ash. Iltani felt Ishtar’s attention flick across them in a dismissive motion, setting them to burn while she took in the larger battle.

  Burrukan and the few remaining Shadows were making their way toward the boat. Consort Ahassunu was finishing off her present opponent when a figure rose up out of the rocks to the right of the pier. He held one of those musket weapons gripped in his hand.

  A loud boom echoed along the shore, and the consort grunted, struggling away from the human she’d been battling. After a few steps, she collapsed on her side. The new angle showed Iltani the bloody mess of a belly wound.

  Burrukan screamed Ahassunu’s name as he finished his own two opponents and limped toward her.

  Iltani’s own consciousness receded before the greater influence of her goddess. Ishtar adjusted her hold upon Kuwari, and then stepped out of the boat and walked toward the injured gryphon carrying the next generation of the gryphon kings. Iltani was still aware of her surroundings but was content to watch Ishtar.

  When she reached the injured gryphon’s side, she dropped down on one knee in the sand. Burrukan and the other Shadows, who had been trying to slow the flow of blood backed away obediently when Ishtar motioned them to give her room.

  Ahassunu was laying on her side, panting harshly. Gryphons could heal quickly. The consort might yet survive, but the four small flickering sparks of life within their mother’s womb would not.

  Those tiny lives were in distress. They would soon flick out of existence if Ishtar didn’t intervene.

  The Queen of the Night looked around, taking in the bodies, her ravaged temple, and the one ship still in the harbor, the injured consort, and lastly, the grief-stricken Burrukan. He, too, had an assortment of injuries but was still whole. He and the four remaining Shadows might be enough to get Ahassunu on the boat and away if Iltani stayed and fought off the humans still coming from the south side of the island.

  “Go,” Burrukan ordered her. “Take Kuwari and leave. You can’t save us all.”

  Ah, noble self-sacrifice. Burrukan was loyal to the gryphon line, and she respected that, but no one gave orders to Ishtar.

  “No, not all can be saved,” Ishtar agreed, “but I can save four tiny lives.”

  Burrukan seemed to understand, but Iltani wasn’t sure if she did.

  Then Ishtar showed her.

  Yes, the consort was already aborting the unborn cubs—her body gave her no choice. It was abort the cubs or die with them. However, Ishtar knew of another way to save the unborn cubs and honor her pact with the gryphon kings.

  Unfortunately, it would weaken her Blade, and there would be no more glorious battle this day.

  This battle was lost, anyway.

  But the war could be won another day.

  “Save them, my goddess,” the consort whispered. “If I know my remaining cubs are alive in the world, I will fight to live, fight to rejoin them. Only give them a chance at life.”

  What did that mean?

  Iltani wondered as she felt herself nod as Ishtar made a decision.

  Reaching down, Ishtar curved her fingers around the consort’s blood covered lower belly.

  She could sense the tiny lives through her blood link to Ditanu. Then Ishtar reached into the consort with tendrils of power and scooped up each of those tiny lives and suddenly, Iltani found herself squinting to see with her eyes what her mind told her was clasped in her cupped hands. Looking down, she discerned a ball of bright light.

  Four souls. Four tiny lives pulsed between her fingers and Iltani was humbled by the power of the Queen of the Night.

  Iltani’s sense of awe changed to surprised shock and then pain as those same hands pressed the ball of light against the bare skin of her abdomen. Iltani gaspe
d. That was all the freedom Ishtar granted her. Had the goddess not maintained Iltani’s steely posture, she’d likely have collapsed, so great was that heat and power and pain.

  It faded quickly, though, her body grew strangely numb. A familiar lethargy settled into her bones, similar to the times her body had assimilated Ditanu’s blood.

  “Your body must rest, or it will reject the new life I’ve planted there,” Ishtar said in Iltani’s own voice.

  Iltani’s vision was blurring, narrowing dangerously. She’d never fainted in her life, but this must be how it felt to do so. Ishtar, still guiding her body, tightened her hold on Kuwari and then she stumbled toward the boat. A thick fog had begun to roll in from the ocean.

  To Iltani’s new senses it tasted not of a natural origin, so this was a more subtle version of the Queen of the Night’s power and Iltani was reminded Ishtar was also the goddess of storms.

  “The cubs you now harbor will not survive the ravages of my battle magic, so we will need to find a new way to defeat our enemies. But not this day—the last enemy ship will escape for now, and we must let it. Your new duty is to survive and protect the new life you shelter.” Iltani swayed as she stepped into the boat, but Ishtar kept her from falling over the edge.

  As she sank down into the bottom, Kuwari hugged close to her breast, she saw Burrukan and the other Shadows holding back more humans, preventing them from rushing Iltani’s boat.

  It hurt to leave them behind, the sense of betrayal sharp, but Burrukan and Ishtar were both correct. Her first duty was to Ditanu and now Kuwari and the unborn cubs. She couldn’t shelter or protect any of them if she were dead, she knew that. Yet, still, it hurt her heart to leave her father behind.