He stopped when my horse reared up, trying to deposit me onto the ground. I patted its head, cooing to calm it. I peered down at Knox through my dark lashes as he walked toward the barrier, watching me as he silently approached, turning to glare at Asil at the last moment.
“I see you are aware of the little witch I have with me.” Asil stated, her cold, dead eyes slipping to me as I stared forward and away from Knox, feeling her questioning gaze moving between him and me. “King Karnavious, meet Aria. Isn’t she beautiful? My men think she’s exquisite.”
“That little witch isn’t here to protect you, though. Or is she? No, that’s right. Aria’s still hiding from me. Aren’t you?” His tone was low and deadly as it slithered through me, scratching at my heart.
I looked at Asil, and her eyes narrowed to angry slits. Swallowing past the lump in my throat, I turned in the saddle, peering at Kinvara on the upper battlements. She hid behind another barrier of magic that shielded the witches from sight.
Kinvara shook her head, and I exhaled, righting myself on my horse, studying the army behind Knox. My sisters and Aurora worked the spell, but until I made more sacrifices, it wouldn’t uproot the magic we fought to remove.
A shiver of agitation rushed through me as I considered every way this could go. I mostly envisioned it going sideways and me on my knees as Knox’s plaything before today’s setting sun. That was the best-case scenario if shit went wrong.
My eyes closed, and I struggled to calm the war within me, exhaling the worry before I opened them, finding Knox studying me. He searched my face, lifting his stare to the battlements before settling it back on me.
“Something wrong, Aria?” he asked, and I swallowed, shaking my head.
“You know each other?” Asil asked icily, her eyes sliding between us with a calculating look burning in them.
It was the first flicker of life I’d seen within Asil all week, other than the madness that consumed her when she murdered an innocent soul.
“No. I have never met this man before today. I think I would remember him if I had,” I lied, staring right at Knox, who observed me through heated eyes. “I’m merely nervous, as I’ve never faced off against an army before.”
Knox chose that moment to remind me of how well we knew each other, replaying every wicked thing he’d ever done to my body in vivid detail within his mind.
I swallowed past the heat it created in my core, causing my body to tighten with need while he watched me. Once he was certain he had filled me with angst from his heated stare, he smirked roguishly, then narrowed his eyes to slits before sliding them toward Asil to answer her.
“Indeed, she would remember me. Most women fidget or get nervous when this many men move toward them. She senses defeat thickening in the air and knows soon she’ll be beneath me tonight. After all, battles, more often than naught, do lead to pillaging, and my favorite, plundering. Tell me, Aria, would you enjoy being plundered deeply?”
“Do not answer him, girl. He seeks to bait you with the promise of seduction. He enjoys witches beneath him, but most end up headless when he’s finished using them. State your terms, King Karnavious,” Asil demanded, lifting her nose in the air like Knox was beneath her.
“I want Aria Hecate on her knees with a promise of her surrender, and everyone else here dead,” Knox said without missing a beat.
I blinked at the fluidity of his request before sputtering, “Hell no, asshole.” I shook my head, even as a shiver of fear slid up my spine. His lips tipped into a smile, heat burning in his eyes as he watched me. In his mind, I was on my knees with my hands behind my back, doing devious things with my lips.
Bastard.
“I’m the lady of this keep, and only I can decline his terms, girl.” Her eyes studied the glare in mine while I stared Knox down. “I do, however, find it most curious that you wish for Aria to be on her knees, King Karnavious. She’s been here for an entire week, and yet she hasn’t opened her cunt to a single male within my keep. I’m sure if you wanted it, I could find a witch more willing to service you, if that is what you’ve come seeking.”
“That’s because they’re all weak as shit and basically have vaginas for mouths.” I frowned, realizing no one had spoken to me.
Lore spat out the drink he’d taken and started coughing violently as Brander patted his back. My attention swung to Asil, who glared at me before facing Knox once more. I gave him a warning look, but he didn’t seem to catch it.
“Aria doesn’t put out? That’s strange. I have it on good authority that she’s a rather volatile lover when fucked. In fact, I’m pretty sure Aria fucking purrs when she comes, and rumor has it that the little bitch screams like a banshee when she’s fucked hard enough.”
“Why, it almost sounds as if you speak from experience, King Karnavious. We all know you like to fuck weak-minded witches, but Aria’s not weak, is she? So, why her? Why not one of the other Hecate witches?”
My eyes slipped back to Kinvara, who held up her two fingers, indicating they were close to completing the spell. My heart raced painfully against my ribs, and sweat coated my palms from the death grip I held on the horse’s leather reins. My attention moved back to Knox as he opened his mouth to speak.
“You’re worried about something, aren’t you?” He slid his eyes up to the battlements, finding nothing there.
“Answer the question, King Karnavious,” Asil demanded vehemently.
“She’s a powerful Hecate witch. Who wouldn’t want her? She’s also beautiful, and I do enjoy fucking my witches, after all.”
“They’re all here. So why would you only ask for Aria specifically, why not any of the others?” Asil growled, and my eyes closed as she announced my family presence.
“That’s what’s wrong,” he chuckled, sliding his eyes to the battlements, searching it for any sign of my family. “Oh, Aria. You’re all in one place? That’s rather convenient for me and thoughtful of you.”
“You’ll never reach them, Knox,” I whispered, grabbing onto the sidesaddle to withdraw a raincoat. Pulling it free, I slipped my arms into it, adjusting the hood, lifting my eyes to peer through the barrier at him. “It looks like it’s about to rain, don’t you agree, King Karnavious?” I smirked, placing a facade of bravado I didn’t feel over the panic rushing through me.
“Is that a dick on your head?” Asil asked. Her eyes were mere slits as she studied my raincoat. “There’s not a cloud in the entire sky,” she snorted, peering up as everyone else did the same, all except for Knox, who stared at me victoriously.
The second wave of magic rushed through us, and I studied Knox with an angry frown as he peered up at the battlement. I swung around, seeing everything before I turned back, frowning at the barrier. If one had come down already, it was only a matter of time before the other followed.
“That thing upon your head isn’t right,” Asil said, fixated on my horn.
“It’s not a dick. It’s a unicorn horn.” I looked from her to Knox, who fought the twitching of his lips while he took in the rainbow-colored raincoat and unicorn horn hood I wore. “Terms?” I asked, shaking off the way he made my breath catch when he smiled. I was so going to smack Kinvara upside her head for the fashion statement gear she’d chosen to pack for me.
“They are the same as previously stated, Aria.” Knox grinned, sensing my unease as the barrier weakened. “Come to me, and I will let your family live for now. Fight me, and they die while you watch. You have one chance to take this offer, or you will watch their demise from beside me, on your knees.”
“We don’t accept your terms, King Karnavious,” Asil announced sharply, turning her horse. “Come, Aria, we prepare for battle while your family feeds us their power.” I winked at Knox, who glared murderously at me.
Breathe in and out, Aria.
He can’t reach them if you stay his hand and hold the barrier.
Everything’s going to plan.
“Seize her!” Asil yelled. “Give the signal to the men ab
ove to kill the Hecate witches on the battlements, along with their pet dog.” She chuckled, looking me up and down as she shook her head, “If I had a man like that waiting for me, I wouldn’t want the peasants here either, traitor. Seize her and secure her to the pole. Once we’ve killed King Karnavious and his army, we’ll have some fun with her. Would you like that? I bet the men would love to eat the flesh from your thighs. Tell me, Aria. Have you ever had the flesh removed from your body while still alive?” she cackled, her skin pulling taut against her bones, blackness moving beneath its surface as if poison rushed through her veins.
Well, shit! So, that didn’t work out!
Chapter Twenty-Nine
I jumped from the horse quickly, slapping it on its hindquarter to send it away. One of Asil’s warrior witches rushed toward me, and I paused, turning to face him. My foot kicked out as I dropped to the ground, slicing my hands upward as my razor-sharp claws removed his head, sending it flying toward Knox and his army.
Magic rippled through the clearing, and I hissed, realizing I was its target, igniting my magic barely in time to deflect the attack as her entire army of witches turned on me with the sole intent to murder.
“Hey, Creature! Now would be an ideal time for you to come out and eat some faces. Like now, before we die,” I encouraged while I dodged blades. Somehow, I managed to recall a tactical spell used in hand-to-hand combat.
Whispering it quickly, I was able to see every move the witch would make before she’d swing her deadly sword toward my body, in skilled, precise movements.
“Anybody home? Look, Knox has his dick out!”
The blade sliced the air beside me as I side-stepped, spinning out of her reach as she lunged, swinging wildly defined moves. Magic controlled my body, noting each signal her arms gave to foretell her lunges and parries.
We danced together as her arm rose, and my claws shot forward, slicing through the artery in her throat as death entered her stare. Her head tilted oddly to the side, and I swung my body, adding weight to the move, sending her head sailing toward Knox, accumulating a pile of heads at his feet.
He watched intently as I fought in a manner in which I was ill-prepared. I wasn’t a fighter, but I didn’t have time to pull more magic to me as Asil’s army attacked in mass, pushing me back to the male who waited for me on the other side of the failing barrier. Maybe if I threw myself at Knox, he’d leave without hunting down my sisters. But that wouldn’t get them safely out of this murderous witch’s grasp.
Asil was slowly backing toward the others, pulling power to her, which was a huge problem. She was a lot stronger than the other witches I’d fought. She could draw power from the High Queen of Witches, who apparently was fond of the murderous whore.
One of Asil’s warriors stepped forward, and I jumped, using my feet against his shoulders as my nails rounded his neck, pulling his head from his body with his spine still attached.
I gagged as I held it, dropping the useless appendage, gagging several more times. War was so gross and hard on the fingernails. I turned as magic shot forward, and I fell flat against the ground, seeing magic rush toward the barrier. The spell slammed against it, and I whimpered as a tremor of pain went through me.
Something large and round sailed from the other side of the barrier, and I watched, covering my face with my hands as it, too, struck the barrier, before then crumbling to the earth. Kicking off the ground, I glared at Knox’s back as he issued orders to the men loading the trebuchets.
His men packed large wooden arrows with metal tips into the machines, releasing them. I stared as they struck the barrier, one after another, and I flinched each time as Knox’s sea-colored depths observed with intrigue.
His eyes narrowed as I dropped to the ground, rolling away from the attacks, pelting the land where I had lain. The deflection spell finally kicked in, throwing me around like a rag doll. I hissed in pain, flying over sharp rocks and branches protruding through the ground while arrows peppered my trail, never catching up to me.
Peering up at the battlement, I watched my sisters combine their magic to attack the archers, shooting them backward toward the edge of the wall. Launching myself to my feet, I rushed toward the smiling witch, whose raised hands were covered with thick, black lines running through her veins.
Asil aimed magic at me, and I frowned, noting the others surrounding her had gathered power as I’d fought the witches wielding weapons. The moment she let loose of her hold, I dropped backward, bending my legs as my body went flat against the ground, seconds before her power swept over me. Pain sliced through me, but I hopped up, leveling her with a cold look. I whispered a spell, calling fire as her dress caught and those around her bellowed in pain.
The witches behind Asil called upon their magic, and one of the more powerful witches moved to stand in front of Asil’s burning form as she began to chant. Power entered her body, and she smirked, staring at me through blackened eyes while the others echoed her.
I felt my teeth elongating, and I opened my mouth, screaming as power sliced through the witches, their bodies shredding into tiny slices as if sent through a paper shredder. My arms moved as I turned, slamming my power where they’d stood, and blood splashed from the ground. My coat was splattered in it, painted red from the bloodied, disintegrating bodies.
So, maybe I had needed the raincoat after all. Since my last debacle, when slaughtering the nymphs, I hadn’t wanted to run around bathed in blood. It was sticky and not particularly good for the complexion.
My breathing came out in labored breaths, and I fought to gain control of it. I bent, resting my hands on my knees until the sound of heavy footfalls echoed from the other side of the castle wall. Righting myself, I paused as the largest male warrior rounded the corner with a broadsword held in his hands. He shouted, the sound coming out in a high-pitched tone that made me quake with laughter.
“I’ll kill you!” he squealed, his voice sounding as if he’d inhaled helium.
“Stop talking,” I snorted, holding up my hand as peals of laughter rushed through me. He screamed again, and I laughed harder. “Stop talking, vagina mouth!”
“Stupid bitch!” he shouted, and I laughed once more.
The warrior rushed forward, and I lifted my hand, his body bursting into tiny pieces that slammed into me, proving even further that I’d needed my coat. I flinched from the entrails covering me as I turned to see Kinvara screaming a warning. Knox’s men flooded into the clearing, past the second barrier, only to bounce off the last, and I groaned.
“Seriously?” Frowning, I scrunched up my nose while gathering my strength. Fighting was exhausting, even after being chased around the Nine Realms and forced into shape, I was quickly tiring.
“Drop the fucking barrier, Aria!” Knox shouted, causing my spine to straighten. I lifted an irritated brow, glaring pointedly at him.
Knox’s men moved forward with weapons held ready to dispatch me, but magic rushed toward them as Kinvara and Reign cast on them from above. My sisters held the men in place. I lifted my hands, palms to the sky, summoning my dead army.
I heard my sisters horrified gasps the moment the dead began to crawl their way through the earth, grabbing the legs of the men who thought to attack me.
Reign clapped, and Def Leppard’s Pour Some Sugar on Me started playing in my head as I smiled, peering up at them. I chanced a peek at Knox and his men, all staring at my army of grotesque corpses. I shook my head but knew what the creature inside of me wanted. Eventually, my army backed off, leaving a few men alive.
I captured the arms of these warriors with magic, threading through them as I worked the spell to control their bodies. Lowering their hands, they grabbed at their armor, removing it, tossing it aside as they danced to the catcalls from the girls above. I turned toward Knox, watching the heat fill his eyes. I removed my bloodied raincoat and lifted the hem of the skirt, the last remaining men from Asil’s army, mimicking the moves.
Kinvara clapped, shouting from above,
“Take it off, baby, take it off! Momma needs to see what lies beneath!”
I lost it, laughing as I fought to control the warriors moving to a slow dance that didn’t fit the song playing in my head. My lips moved, singing the lyrics, Knox’s eyes never leaving my body while heat banked in their smoldering depths. I didn’t strip, and the more the men moved behind me, the closer they got.
I felt one of the men breaking from the spell, somehow slipping the thrall as his blade rushed toward me. Reign yelled to duck, and I dodged, bending back, twisting my body at an awkward angle. The sword came down beside my head, and I flipped again, landing on my hands and feet, crouched in a tackle pose.
Wind slid over my scantily clad backside. I watched one of the undead lunging toward the man that had broken free, biting into his throat. Blood squirted from his neck, and a scream tore from his lips as he went down.
I turned, pushing the skirt away from my face to find Knox and his men staring at my backside that was only obscured by lace panties. Standing upright, I stifled a blush as Reign and Kinvara laughed at my expense.
My hand lifted, and slowly dropped as the undead pulled the living into the ground, tearing through their flesh in the process, adding them to my growing numbers.
“Surrender, and I’ll go easy on you, Little Witch,” Knox growled, causing me to turn and smile.
“Hard pass,” I smirked, making my way toward the gate at the front of the castle.
Using my magic to open the gates, I paused, lifting my finger to twist the skulls from the corpses that had remained. Setting them on fire, I sent the flaming skulls sailing through the air toward Knox’s army, as a parting gift for their efforts.
Slipping inside, I closed the gate with magic, sliding the heavy bolt in place as I rushed for the battlements.
Reaching the top, I paused, staring down at Knox as he continued to direct his army to attack the barrier. Somehow, it was managing to remain in place. Moving to the cauldron in the center of the clearing, I smiled with the knowledge that we were about to pull this crazy plan off. Suddenly, blinding light ripped from within the cauldron, slamming into my body, throwing me backward as a scream escaped my lips.
Ashes of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms Book 2) Page 21