“Sisters,” one of the women shouts. “The war has come here.”
They tip their heads back, hold up their hands and brace their feet. I stay glued to the side of the wall, trying to make myself as small as possible. Whatever is about to go down, I want no part of it at all—none.
Then it happens.
The roof suddenly becomes a blaze. Fire comes on as quickly as it disappears and it is opened up to the sky. I open my mouth to scream as a dragon appears. The same dragon that brought my sisters to Savona.
The women murmur some words that I don’t understand in an effort to ward him off, but it doesn’t work. I don’t know if he’s immune to their powers or what, but he just swoops into the building and lands in front of them.
Do not worry, Drucilla. I am here to take you to your warrior. These women cannot harm me, my mulier has placed a protection spell around me.
His growly voice just pops into my head and I gasp. You can hear me, but you cannot talk to me telepathically. Only Liv can do that. Sit tight and I will get you out of here soon.
Just as his words are spoken, there is a gasp from the room and I watch as the four women disappear before my eyes.
I must get you back. Diaboli has already called them in to help him.
“What is going to happen? How did he get them out?” I ask.
He is the God of the Underworld. He can override what a king and maga has already done.
“Wow,” I breathe.
We must leave, climb on, are you ready?
I don’t verbally answer him, instead I run toward him and climb onto his back. I hold on for dear life as he leaps into the air and flies, freaking flies, through the air, over the ocean and toward my family.
Chapter Thirty-Six
TIBERIUS
Just when I think that things cannot get worse, Diaboli brings in his other venefica. They appear next to him. I hear Aeliana growl at their sudden appearance. I can’t help but think that their showing up here was somehow expected, at least eventually.
“We need Drucilla,” Aeliana mutters. “She will strengthen the powers, unite the sisters, and the prophecy.”
“Where is she?” I demand.
Aeliana turns to look at me. “I know not.”
“I have sent Quest to find her,” Liv calls out.
Diaboli clears his throat, all of our attention turns toward him and I watch him hold his hands up. Fire comes from his fingertips and he tilts back his head in laughter.
“Maga, you have taken one of my daughters, but you will not get the other four. The time has come. The war is at your feet, what shall you do?” he asks.
“Fight,” Elias shouts.
“Fight,” Aaric growls.
“Fight,” Colt drawls.
“Win,” I finish.
“Nice,” Birdie whispers.
There is a moment of silence, then Diaboli laughs. It’s almost all-consuming, his evil laughter. It sends a chill down my spine. Drawing my gladius, I know that it is fruitless against fighting him, but I do it anyway, even if just to make me feel better.
“Fight if you must, Diaboli. Even with the four of your venefica, you will not best us.”
Diaboli lowers his hands, his fire shoots out directly at us, and we all have to lower our heads as to not get burned. The wolves howl again and start to charge.
One of his daughters hisses in their direction and pushes her hands out, sending the wolves flying backward, whimpering and crying.
I take the opportunity to slip around the side and try to come up from behind, but one of the other women sees me. I am sent flying backward and land hard on my back. The move takes all of the breath from my body and I am forced to stay down for a moment.
Then, as if my desires come true, the dragon appears. He doesn’t fly down to where we are. Shifting my attention to the fight, I watch as Drucilla’s sisters try everything they can to ward Diaboli away from them. Sybilla holds up her hands and shifts the fire back to him, protecting herself with a ball of light.
Fire lights up the night sky again, except this time it does not come from Diaboli. It comes from the dragon.
“He’s here. She’s here,” Liv cries.
The bears roar from behind me and I turn to them. Come. I call out. Come and attack these trespassers. The wolves begin to charge again. They growl and snarl as they come in closer, having already licked their wounds they’re ready for more.
The dragon lands, his fire having cleared a way for him with the venefica. Drucilla slides off of him and I watch as she begins to run toward her sisters and brothers-in-law. Standing, I make my way toward them as well, but pause when Diaboli lets out a roar of anger.
He reaches his arms out and ribbons of red light come from his fingertips. Drucilla’s back straightens and arches.
“No,” I bark as my feet become unstuck.
I don’t know what happens when you cross in front of the streaming light from a powerful being’s hands, but it matters not. He will not have my mulier. He will not harm her, not for one moment longer.
Running, I throw myself between Diaboli and Drucilla. The light burns me from the inside out. Turning my head toward Drucilla, I shout to her.
“Run.”
Thankfully, she does. She runs past Aeliana and huddles behind her for safety. My body doesn’t fall to the ground as I expect, instead I’m lifted in the air by the burning light and then thrown against the wall of the building.
Everything cracks, hurts, and burns. I let out a grunt, not willing to make another sound. He will not get the satisfaction.
“Tiberius,” Drucilla cries.
I open my eyes, looking for her, and smile when I see that she is safely on our side. I feel weak and useless as I sit against the wall, willing my body to move.
“Come here, Dru,” Sybilla calls out.
Drucilla looks from her sister to me, then back to her sister, then me again. I nod my head, giving her my go-ahead. Not that she needed it for even a moment. Drucilla is her own woman, and she needs to fight for her life right now.
She needs to fight for herself, because at this point, I am not sure I will be around to do it for her. I am not sure that I will survive this battle. For the first time in my existence, I am not confident that I will come out of this battle breathing.
LAURENTIA
The babies cry.
I would too if I were them.
In fact, I am very close to doing it myself.
I hold one, Petronia holds another, and Cassia paces. The warriors surround us, their backs to us and their gladius’ and shields out and ready for battle. I hear the noises from outside in the garden and each time the building shakes, I imagine it toppling down on us.
I hear a man shout and I look behind the warriors to see Marcellus running toward us. “What is happening?” he calls out.
“You should be in your quarters,” Brutus barks.
“Cassia and the rest of my family are here, this is where I shall be as well,” he snaps.
Brutus does not move from his position, but I watch as his spine straightens. “Marcellus, this is not your battle. We are here to protect the babes, and the women are here to care for them. Nothing more. Go back.”
Marcellus’ gaze flicks from Brutus and looks between the bodies. It connects with mine and I see his entire body jerk. Licking my lips, I hold the babe close to me and I try to look away from him, but I can’t.
This is not good. Not good at all. My body wants him, but he is certainly a man that I cannot have for more than a play in bed, if he should choose to use me that way. He takes a few steps closer toward Brutus, then lowers his voice.
“I understand that I am not a fighter, but I am smart. Allow me to help.”
“How?” Brutus asks, his question serious and not at all condescending as most would be with an intellectual like Marcellus.
“I’m not sure yet, but I will be of service.”
Brutus lets out a sigh, then steps to the side and allows Mar
cellus to enter our group before he steps back in place. I don’t know what I expect, but it isn’t another quick glance at me, then to pretend that I do not exist.
Though it is better he thinks that I don’t exist. I am a famulus, I am property. I am to work, to be used, and then when I am no longer of use, I am to be discarded. Nothing more, nothing less.
It is best for me to remember my place, even if Empress Drucilla has tried to convince me that I am worth more—indeed, I am not.
DRUCILLA
Like the coward that I am, I am hiding behind my sisters’ husbands. They are men fighting magic, and I need to try and fight as well.
Sybilla, Liv, and Birdie are doing what they can, but it’s not enough. My heart races, it slams inside of my chest and I know that if we don’t do something else then we will fail and Diaboli will take over.
Biting the corner of my lip, I take a step closer to my sisters. “This isn’t working,” I announce.
There is mass chaos happening around me, but I ignore it all and focus on them. Sybilla’s head snaps over and she looks at me, her eyes wide and wild. I don’t know if she’s as scared as I am, but she does look tired, near exhausted.
“We need to channel our powers. We all have them and there has to be some way that we can use them together.”
“Holding hands, maybe,” Birdie calls out.
Sybilla lowers her hands from holding them up to face and fight Diaboli, then turns to face me. Taking another step closer, Liv and Birdie do the same.
“Here goes nothing,” I whisper.
We lock hands, close our eyes, and basically hope.
Something stirs deep in my belly, that warmth that I usually feel when I’m alone with Tiberius, when I feel that need for him, it begins to form. My eyes pop open and I wonder how in the hell I can be horny right now, but when I look around the circle, I see the same looks of mixed confusion on my sisters’ faces.
Then something happens. That need and desire, it’s replaced by something else. Something I can’t quite place. But it doesn’t matter, because just as it comes, it goes. It doesn’t disappear though, instead a big ball of golden light escapes and forms in the center of our circle.
“Holy shit,” Liv whispers.
We watch it, unsure of what it is going to do next. “It reminds me of the black blob,” Birdie breathes.
I have no clue what she’s talking about, but right now it doesn’t matter. Then, the ball of golden light starts to move.
We watch silently, the fighting still happening around us, but for whatever magical reason, it doesn’t affect us at all. We are focused on the light and we watch as it floats above us, then as suddenly as it formed from the four of us, it splits off into four straight lines and aims directly at our husbands.
“Oh my,” Birdie breathes.
The light fills our husbands. We watch as their backs arch the instant they are filled with the golden light, and then a haze of gold surrounds them. They are full of magic, our magic, and I wonder if this is the prophecy at work or something different?
Tiberius rushes toward us. He stands behind me, his back against my own. The rest of the men do the same, forming a protective wall around us.
“You cannot win, not even with your microscopic amounts of magic,” Diaboli announces with a growl.
He is wrong. I know that he is. No way would the gods put this in motion if we didn’t have a chance of winning. We just have to come together. We have to fight and now that we were somehow able to transfer some power to our men, I feel like we have a better shot.
The wolves growl in the background, the bears roar at the same time the dragon lets out a burst of flames.
“Fight,” Tiberius yells over the loud noise.
The men turn toward Diaboli and his women, and they charge them. Aeliana screams as she comes over to stand in front of us and holds her hands out. A purple spark of light comes from her hands. The four of us hold our hands out and focus as well.
Together we all pummel the witches and Diaboli simultaneously with it. I don’t know how long we’ll be able to do this, I can already feel myself weakening.
I don’t give up though.
I cannot let this person, this devil win. This man who tried to take me from Tiberius. This man who was all set to torture me for life, in turn torturing Tiberius, too.
The witches, Diaboli, they cannot win. “Stay strong,” Aeliana grinds out.
We help as much as we can while the men fight. They fight hard, then the wolves come in for backup and I hear the witches scream. It’s a blood-curdling wail and I can’t help but smirk. Between the wolves, the bears, and the magic, the women are brought down.
Diaboli is next. Except Aaric turns to look over his shoulder at Aeliana. “We must perform the Blood Eagle, it is the only way to ensure that he does not return.”
“It’s true,” Aeliana rasps. “Do you know this ritual?” she asks, her gaze focused on Aaric.
Aaric smirks, it’s cocky as shit and I can see why my sister fell for him without knowing a word of his language. He looks so much like Tiberius, and I shift my gaze to my husband. He looks battered and bruised, he looks defeated, and my heart instantly squeezes at the sight of him.
“I know of this, as does Liv. But it cannot just be the two of us, it must be all eight of us.”
Elias grunts. “My queen will not,” he growls. “That is an animalistic ritual. I cannot allow this.”
Colt snorts. “I’m all for protecting our women, but Elias, I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure Birdie is safe. If this is going to do that, sign us up for the first slice of the knife.”
“It will,” Aeliana says. “It is the only way.”
“How do you know so much and yet, you’ve allowed this to happen and didn’t stop it yourself?” Tiberius asks.
Aeliana smiles, her eyes finding his, then she dips her chin. “I could only aid you and give advice, I cannot fight for you or defend you entirely. The eight of you must do it all on your own.”
“Why?” Sybilla asks.
Aeliana’s smile grows larger. “Because I am not simply, a maga, I am a goddess.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
TIBERIUS
Decima’s charred body is discarded with the remains of the four witches who have been burned, mauled, and eaten by the wolves and bears. I cannot say that I feel sorry for them, as I do not.
Diaboli’s body replaces Decima’s charred remains on the pole. He is still alive, but the longer he lives, the more uneasy that I feel. He almost ruined my life, stole my Drucilla, and destroyed the world as we know it. The sooner he can be done away with, the better.
I have never heard of the Blood Eagle ritual, but even at its most disturbing, I am ready to perform it. It matters not what we have to do, it is what we need to do and that is all I care about.
Looking down at Drucilla, I hold out my hand for her. She slips her palm in mine and I squeeze her fingers as we begin to walk toward the pole where Diaboli is tied. Wordlessly, the eight of us make our way toward the pole.
The wolves sit on their hindquarters, the dragon does as well. The bears are on all fours, ready for battle should they need to pounce. My eyes connect with the one that scarred my face. She dips her chin and I jerk mine toward her.
You were forgiven the moment it happened. I tell her.
I can hear her rumble, though she does not reply back to me. She is here, protecting me, protecting my family. She was forgiven, but now she is treasured. The bears are mine to rule, they are also mine to respect.
The now proclaimed goddess, Aeliana, stands beside Diaboli and I wonder if it is indeed true. Is she a goddess? I dare not question her, if she is one, I don’t think she would be too happy to hear me or anyone else doubt her declaration.
“What do we do?” I ask, turning to look at Aaric who seems to be preparing for what is to come next.
The Blood Eagle.
Aaric takes one of Diaboli’s arms. He jerks his chin toward Colt
. “You hold this one,” he instructs, then shifts his gaze to Birdie. “You hold the other.”
“She will not be able to hold him on her own,” Colt states.
Aeliana laughs softly. “Diaboli is powerless in this position. She will, and if for some reason he gets a burst of strength, I am here to stop him.”
I’m still not sure that Aeliana is on our side. The gods are good, but they can be incredibly selfish and make decisions that are for them and not necessarily anyone else. However, if we can put a stop to Diaboli once, we can do it again.
Aaric holds an ax loosely in his hand. He turns, looking over his shoulder, his gaze flicking between Liv, Sybilla, and Drucilla.
“You three will have to do the ritual,” he announces.
Liv clears her throat. “Seriously, Aaric. Can’t you guys do it?” she asks, wrinkling her nose.
Aaric shakes his head. “I think you women must do it. You are the prophecy, you have been brought here for us, to our world. Tiberius, Elias, and I will help.”
I know not what happens during the Blood Eagle, but I am imagining this is not anything pleasant. And judging by the way Liv is staring Aaric down, I am certain it’s not anything at all that I want Drucilla to participate in.
“It is time, the longer we wait, the more chance we have that he will awake and regain his strength,” Aeliana announces.
Aaric clears his throat and closes the distance to his wife as he extends the handle of the ax to her. “You can do this, Víf,” he says, keeping his voice low.
“I know,” she whispers.
I watch as she inhales a deep breath, then walks around the back of Diaboli and lifts the ax in the air before she slices down his back. He lets out a scream that rivals that of a child wailing for his mother.
“Sybilla, you need to split his ribs,” Liv instructs.
“What?” she breathes.
Liv nods her head, handing the ax to her. “Split his ribs, one by one,” Aaric instructs.
Bride of the Emperor (The Prophecy of Sisters Book 4) Page 25