Dragon Unleashed (Book 1 of the Dragon Mage Saga)

The Devils of Shadow

            “Run!”

            Charles grabbed Darla’s hand, urging the rest to follow. Her heart thundered ravenously within her chest, making her blood freeze over with thin ice. Darla’s mind was surprisingly blank. Only one word sounded: Run. They needed to get out of this forest, away from the slithering shadowy beasts with their inky tentacles, threatening to squeeze the life out of each and every one of them, drain them of everything that made them alive.

            Devils. Arabelle’s murderer. She had to fight them. But how? Darla’s shoes skidded on the crumbling dirt floor.

            “What are you doing?” Ruby spat, her brilliant teal eyes wide with fear. The Wreckers were inching towards them slowly, as if they had all the time in the world to turn them into oblivion.

            “Go make sure Audessa and Hugo are okay. Protect Slate at all costs.”

            Before anyone could protest, she raced into the open arms of the devil. The Wreckers were humongous, towering far above her. They appeared to be a whirlwind of murky black. Their scent made Darla cringe. They reeked of evil, death, cruelty, and an overpowering urge to obliterate her.

            She watched as a sleek black tendril curled around her, tightening around her waist. Her insides became frigid, icing over. It was crawling through her, writhing like something rancid and rotten as curdled milk.

            “Didn’t think you’d give in so easy to Death,” a voice sounded in her mind, as if the Wrecker was telepathically communicating with her.

            “I’m not.”

            Golden fire erupted, sending the Wrecker tumbling back in a flurry of extraordinary light-pure, righteous dragon magic.

            With that, Darla bolted forward, watching as the Wrecker darted towards her. Branches sliced through her bruised skin, and she didn’t even bother to wince. Where was Slate? If the Wreckers killed him…all hope would be lost. They wouldn’t stand a chance against the Shadow Master.

            At the campsite, all hell had broken free. Anarchy ruled, a fierce and deadly overlord to the monsters as they surrounded the mighty predators. Two of them, the loathsome Wreckers-and three once the one trailing Darla caught up.

            Hugo was shooting flaming red balls of fire at the Wreckers, and Ruby and Cecily were cornering another, wielding their magic. But where were they hiding Slate?

            “Darla!” someone screamed.

            The Wrecker leaped onto her, its suffocating darkness entangling her being, making her shrivel up inside.

            An explosion of blinding silver light, and the Wrecker was off her, scurrying away like a frightened mouse.

            Charles stared at Darla with his intense green eyes, not cracking a smile. Darla knew what thoughts were circling in his head. He was the prince of Pharix and knew better than anyone what a threat the Wreckers were. Magic could only repel them for so long before they got what they wanted-the final essence, Slate.

 “Alfred and Wren are hiding Slate in  nearby cave. Go.”

            Darla took off, flinging two more balls of raging golden fire at a Wrecker which loomed over Audessa. The fair-haired beauty was holding up her scythe over her shoulder, a wildfire blooming in her eyes. The fire erupted onto the Wrecker, shoving it to the ground. Audessa swung her scythe, filled with ancient Pegasi magic, into the beast with more ferocity than anything Darla had ever seen. There was anger in that lovely, demure princess. Something had made her so violent.