As the gap widened the spasms grew fainter. When the gap was big enough for her to fit through, she slowly climbed to her feet, her body glowing with magic armor.
The dragon lay dead in a pool of blood and bile. She stepped from its steaming carcass onto the stone floor, her eyes focused right on Lucius. A mix of draconic stomach acid and blood hissed along Excalibur’s flaming blade as she leveled it at the Drake and the two remaining dragons who crouched behind him.
She arched an eyebrow. “Which one of you fuckers is next?”
“Impressive,” said the Drake. “No one but the Darkling could have survived that.”
His eyes burned with cold fury, but with Excalibur’s magical armor surrounding her, they seemed to have lost their ability to command her. She needed to block out everything—everything now—but the Drake.
She took another step closer. “Now tell me where my friend Bael is.”
“No.”
It was then that Ursula noticed Zee standing next to him, Lucius’s sword pressed to her throat.
“You will put down that infernal weapon.” His voice was pure ice, and his sword twitched. Zee yelped in pain.
Zee stared at Ursula, her jaw clenched with determination, a few drops of blood stained the steel blade.
Pure, molten fury burned in Ursula. She wanted more than anything to carve Lucius’s skin from his bones, but there was no way she’d be able to do that with Zee as his hostage.
“Drop the sword,” said the Drake.
Slowly, she lowered her blade, dropping it on the stone. Sorrow and regret threatened to crush her chest as she let go. Was this it? As soon as her fingers left the sword’s hilt, her magic armor vanished from her skin in wisps of pearly smoke.
The Drake grinned, kicking away her sword. “That was far too easy. You should really take care not to let your emotional attachments get the better of you. You just lost a battle that you could have won, if only you hadn’t been hampered by human weakness.”
He flicked his sword away from Zee, pointed it at Ursula.
Ursula folded her arms. “Well. You have your Darkling. Let my friends go.”
“I cannot do that.”
Emerazel’s fire licked at her ribs. She might not have the sword, but she still had hellfire in her veins. Fire began to ignite her torso, blazing down her forearms.
The Drake shook his head. “Oh, dear. Without Excalibur you cannot hurt us.” He nodded at one of his dragons, who crossed to her. The monster snatched her up in his hand, claws piercing her ribs. Hellfire erupted from her, but the dragon ignored it. The beast lifted her into the air, then turned and presented her to Lucius.
The Drake stood only a few feet from her now. He’d dropped his own weapon. Now, he leveled Excalibur at her head. “This is a fine weapon. I can see what all the fuss is about.”
Anger ignited. “It’s not meant for you.”
“Is that right?” Lucius sliced the sword sharply through the air. There was no hitch in his stroke. He conducted the blade like it was an extension of his body.
“How—“ Ursula started to say, but Lucius interrupted with a disdainful laugh.
“You don’t know who I am do you?”
A total knob-end? Ursula studied him. There was something familiar about him. Her eyes were draw to his shock of red hair. Was that it? No, she would have remembered meeting a man with hair that color—that glowing, coppery red. Still there was a niggling sense of familiarity. The color of his hair was almost identical to the red scales of the dragon that had attacked Avalon.
Her eyes must have widened in recognition because Lucius grinned. “Sometimes it’s more convenient to assume a human form.”
He inclined his head and the dragon dropped her on the ground. Lucius kept Excalibur trained on her while the dragon began to transform, its neck shortening and its scales retracting into its skin. A moment later, a man stood in its place. He looked exactly like the guard who had led the gaggle of models down to the drake’s lair.
“Stop toying with her, Lucius,” said the guard. “She has killed some of our own. She is the Darkling. She must be destroyed.”
Lucius shook his head. “King Midac said were are to bring to her to Acidale alive. Lock her up. We will deliver her to the king in the morning.”
Lucius turned back to the captive, and Ursula could feel the fear ripple through the room. “Now, my beauties. Who would like to be my personal guest this evening?”
Ursula couldn’t see his face, but she was pretty sure his eyes were glowing with that cruel, commanding magic.
CHAPTER 26
T he guard lead her down a dark, rocky tunnel toward a metallic door, its border suffused with a golden glow. Ursula gulped. She’d seen a door like that before. When she’d first arrived in New York, Bael’s room had been protected by a similar magical barrier—nearly impenetrable.
As they approached, the guard spoke in Angelic—too softly for Ursula to hear the words. At the last word, the barrier around the door shimmered, then disappeared, enshrouding them in darkness.
The sound of an unsheathing sword pierced the quiet, followed by the guard’s footsteps. “Open the door.”
Ursula cautiously stepped closer, her pulse racing. Whatever monstrous creature lurked behind the door seemed to have the guard on edge. Slowly, she pulled open the door to a dark interior, and the tip of the guard’s sword pressed into her back. She took a step forward into the blackness, and the door clicked shut behind her.
Instantly, a body slammed into her, nearly knocking her to the ground. A pair of powerful arms surrounded her. She struggled against them, but they pinned her arms to her sides—until she heard the deep inhale of breath.
“Ursula.” It was Bael’s voice, and his seductive sandalwood scent enveloped her. He’s alive. He’s here.
His grip loosened but he kept his arms around her, and he leaned down, whispering in her hair. “I’m sorry. I thought you were a guard. I didn’t recognize you right away. You smell different. You smell like death.” Warmth from his body radiated against hers.
“I ended up inside a dragon for a few moments.”
His body tensed, and he released her. “What?”
“I got out.”
He loosed a breath. “Thank the gods you’re okay. They trapped me behind that gods-damned door. If anything had happened to you, Ursula...” He trailed off.
“What?”
“I would have had a lot of dragons to kill.” He flicked a match, lighting a candle on a rough wooden table. Amber light flickered over a surprisingly large room, the floor covered in Persian rugs.
Ursula took a deep breath. This wasn’t what she’d been expecting. “Where are we?”
Bael lit a candle in a silver sconce, and its light danced over the stone walls, some of them hung with paintings. An enormous, low bed stood in one corner of the room. “I think this was one of the dragon’s quarters. They don’t seem to have proper cells. I don’t think they tend to leave their prisoners alive very often.”
In the dim candlelight Ursula surveyed the paintings on the walls. The one closest looked strangely familiar—a vibrant vase of yellow poppies in a post-impressionist style. She narrowed her eyes. “Is that a Van Gogh?”
Bael cocked his head. “Yes.”
Next to the yellow poppies hung another painting, this one encrusted with gold leaf. Ursula strained her eyes in the dim light. It looked something she’d seen in the Tate Britain on a school trip. “I’ve seen that, too.”
“Klimt. Dragons are obsessed with material wealth and beauty.” He pointed at a far wall. “There’s a Caravaggio over there.”
Ursula plucked a candle from the table, and crossed to the other side of the room, her breath catching in her throat. Even in the light of the guttering candle, the painting was hauntingly beautiful—an androgynous man, draped in sheets and vine leaves, drinking wine. Dionysus, probably.
Ursula frowned at it. “I’m surprised the dragons aren’t affiliated with Emer
azel. She seems to have an endless supply of gold bullion.”
“They were once, a long time ago, but Emerazel betrayed them. They’ve been mortal enemies ever since.”
“What happened?”
“I don’t know.” The air seemed to thin. “Emerazel makes many enemies.”
“So which god do the dragons serve?”
“None. Dragons roamed the earth before the gods fell. Like the fae, they have no divine affiliation.”
Ursula turned away from the painting. Her body ached with fatigue, muscles burning, but despite the opulent furnishings the dragons hadn’t bothered to include any seating. She crossed to the bed, sitting on the edge. “We need a plan to get out of here.”
Bael crossed his arms. “You could create a sigil. We could return to the Plaza.”
Ursula shook her head. “The dragons have Zee and Cera. I can’t leave them behind.
Bael’s arms tightened across his broad chest. “Then we wait until morning.”
“Do you think you can fight the dragons?”
“I’ve killed one before.” Bael cocked an eyebrow. “And I understand you killed one this evening.”
“More than one.”
“Tell me.”
“Well, Zee glamoured us to look like the captives. And one of the guards—” She bit her lip. “Did you know that the dragons can take on human forms? Well, one of the guards led us down in their warren—that’s what they call this place—and Lucius was there.”
Bael stiffened at the mention of the Drake’s name. “Lucius? The Drake is here?”
Ursula nodded. “Yes. He was the red dragon in Avalon.”
Bael growled, the sound sending a ripple of primal fear up Ursula’s spine.
“What’s the matter? Who the hell is he?”
“Do you know who Lucius is?”
“He was Viviane’s lover, once. He helped Oberon forge Excalibur.”
Ursula’s stomach dropped. “So that’s why he could wield it. He seemed pretty certain I was the Darkling, you know. ”
Bael’s body completely stiffened, his hands clenching into fists.
“What do you mean ‘he can wield it’?”
“I had to give him the sword. He was going to hurt Zee.”
His expression darkened. “The sword will allow him to channel dragonfire again. With Excalibur in his hand, he could raze the earth to the ground. I don’t believe he thinks you are the Darkling, but I think he could be the Darkling.”
Dread bloomed in my chest. I’d brought Excalibur right to the Darkling.
Bael paced. “No single person will be able to defeat Lucius while he possesses Excalibur. We have only one option. We must go to the fae. They are our only hope. You must call on Emerazel’s fire so we can escape.”
“What about Zee and Cera?”
“Every war has casualties,” he snarled.
Ursula rose. “I can’t leave them behind. They’ve both saved my life more than once. They’ve saved your life too—”
“When they forced me to drink from your veins.”
“You would have died if they didn’t.”
“Maybe I should have died.” He said it so softly Ursula nearly didn’t hear him. “Do you honestly think I want Cera to die? She’s been practically the only person I’ve spoken to for centuries, but we have very few options now.”
“Back up.” Ursula glared at him. “What do you mean you should have died? Does this have anything to do with your tendencey to charge into fights? You were the Sword of Nyxobas once, the leader of his army, yet you throw yourself into danger with no regard for your personal safety.”
Shadows whispered in his eyes. “Sometimes there is no time for calculation. One must act whatever the consequences.“
“That is your explanation for your death wish?” Ursula shook her head. “I don’t believe you. There’s more to it. Nyxobas wouldn’t have put you in charge of his legions if you were simply rash and headstrong. Something happened. In the Shadow Realm, everyone says you are broken. Why?” Her mind raced. She had almost put it together. Having just cut her way out of a dragon’s belly, Ursula was feeling a little rash herself. It was time to ask him for the truth. “What happened to Elissa? Why did you kill your wife?”
Bael turned from her, unable to meet her eyes, and she grabbed his arm.
“Tell me,” she said softly.
He stared at the ground for a long time, and she could practically feel the emotions whirling off him. At last, without meeting her eyes, he spoke, his voice ragged. “It was a long time ago. Not long after I’d become immortal. I had been away, checking on our vineyards.”
The vision of the ruddy, flower-dappled fields burned in Ursula’s mind. “You were coming home—there was a fire.”
Bael’s pale eyes slid to her, and the pain etched on his features nearly broke her heart.
“How?”
“I saw a vision from your memory when you drank from me. It looked like an ancient city.”
His entire body was rigid with tension. “It was Emerazel’s vengeance.”
A cold, dreadful understanding began to bloom in my mind. “What was?”
“I chose Nyxobas over her. When you deny the gods, it doesn’t end well. She burned half the city of Gubla. When I ran home to save my wife, Emerazel was waiting for me. I wasn’t strong enough to fight her. I let her take over my mind, let her draw my sword, with my hand. And I watched myself drive it into Elissa’s heart. She was screaming for mercy. She didn’t understand why I wanted to kill her—the terror in her eyes, the betrayal...” And then, so softly she nearly couldn’t hear him: “She’d been carrying our child.”
The weight of his grief pressed down over the both of them, and Ursula wanted to pull him from this exquisite pain. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close. She had the strongest urge to feel his beating heart, so grateful that he’d survived all this time. She pressed her hand over his chest, feeling his heart thud against her palm, then rested her head against his chest. “It wasn’t your fault, Bael. I know people worshipped you as a god, but you are not one. You couldn’t have stopped it. You couldn’t have fought her. This was Emerazel’s doing, not yours. She did it to break you. Don’t let her win.”
Slowly, his powerful arms wrapped around her, and he touched his forehead to hers. “Ursula,” he said in a whisper. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”
LIGHT BLINDED her as the door to the chamber was flung open, and she pulled away from Bael.
The silhouette of a guard loomed in the doorway, two more behind him. “The Drake will see you now.”
“No,” Bael snarled.
Ursula held out a hand. She needed Excalibur back. Maybe the Drake was the Darkling, but the sword was meant for her. She’d been able to feel it. “I’ll be fine, Bael.” She looked into his eyes, searching them.
Bael’s fists tightened. “You’re not going without me.”
One of the guards nodded at Bael. “Fine. It won’t matter. You’re both unarmed, and the Drake will decide your fates.” He flashed a crooked grin. “And given what you did to his dragons, I can’t wait to see how he kills you. The only question is which of you dies first, and which of you has to watch the other suffer.”
CHAPTER 27
W ith her arms shackled behind her back, Ursula followed the guards back into the amphitheater. Bael walked grimly by her side, and she could almost feel the rage curling off his body. On his golden throne, Lucius sat in the shadows with Excalibur resting on his knees. It looked so wrong there in his lap, and its steel blade called to her, like a child who needed his mother. If her hands weren’t bound behind her back, she’d have snatched the fucking thing from him.
Across from him on the stone benches, the captive women huddled next to each other. Ursula caught Cera’s eye, and she heaved a sigh of relief. But Zee was nowhere to be seen.
Ursula glanced at the central dais. The dragon’s carcass had been removed, and hastily arranged carpets now covered th
e stone. Still, blood and bile from the dragon seeped through the fabric, and the room smelled of death. If she’d come here on her own—if she hadn’t needed to worry about Zee and Cera—perhaps none of this would be happening. If Lucius hadn’t been able to use them as leverage, she’d never have given up the sword. They’d been her weakness.
Lucius quirked a smile. “The Darkling, and the Lord of Abelda. How intriguing.” He crooked a finger. “Come closer.”
Ignoring him, Ursula stood right where she was. Bael didn’t make a move, either.
Lucius’s expression darkened, and he cleared his throat, then frowned at one of the guards. “Gaderian, King Midac is late. Go above and check that he hasn’t gotten lost.”
At the mention of ‘King Midac,’ Ursula had heard a low growl rise from Bael’s throat, nearly imperceptible.
The guard’s footsteps echoed off the room as he crossed to the passage at the other end of the chamber. With a sharp crack of elongating bone and the scrape of burgeoning scales he transformed into a dragon. His green, scaly body disappeared into the tunnel.
Lucius glared at Ursula, his fingertips lazily stroking Excalibur. The gesture was borderline obscene. “The king of Acidale will decide your fate. He has been looking for you for a long time, Darkling.”
A million questions raced through Ursula’s mind. “What does the king of Acidale want from me?”
Lucius shrugged. “I imagine it’s because of the powerful magic that lives within him. But I am only his servant.”
“His servant?”
“It is my sworn duty to protect Mount Acidale and to obey its king.”
“And what about Excalibur?” Ursula stared at the blade, her body aching to snatch it from him. “I thought the one who yielded it was the Darkling, according to the prophecy.” She closed her eyes, recalling Merlin’s words.
“The end starts when magic thickens the air,
Primeval Magic (Demons of Fire and Night Book 3) Page 21