Blood Runner: Book Three of the Empress Saga

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Ban twisted in his saddle to watch her pass. "Waves," he murmured. "Waves take me. This is bad."

Jin pulled in a shaky breath. "Negotiation is no longer an option, Ban. We need to... Enfri!"

She was already climbing onto Spider's back. Her horse was saddled and ready after Jin rode him from the palace. Enfri gave him her heels and shot out onto the street, following Deebee's roars.

"This is very bad!" Ban shouted as he spurred his mount after her.

Altieri chargers were usually faster than Gaulatian steeds like Spider. However, Ban's horse carried a large man in heavy armor, while Spider only carried a sky woman. Experienced and sure-footed, Spider had no difficulty whatsoever in weaving his way down the streets of Ecclesia through panicked goodfolk running the opposite direction. Ban fell further behind her.

Enfri trusted Spider to take her where she wanted to go. Her eyes were locked on the scene ahead. Varn at last noticed the younger silver shooting towards him at breakneck speed. His head drew back as if confused, then Enfri saw his eyes widen with recognition.

Terrified for her mother of the heart, Enfri didn't know what else she could do. Just before Deebee reached Varn, Enfri pushed as much of her strength and ether through the bond as she dared. She swayed in the saddle, keeping just enough vitality to remain upright.

Ahead, Deebee struck Varn in the chest. The impact exploded through the air. Goodfolk on the streets fell to the cobblestones screaming and clutching their ears. A shockwave blasted against the walls, throwing loose stones and debris back into the city. Enfri could only guess how the shantytown had fared beneath that. She prayed to the winds that no one had been killed.

Dauntless, Spider rode on.

The impact launched Varn backwards from the city gates and through the columns of smoke rising from his fires. Deebee, a quarter his size, clung to his chest. Her hind legs raked at him, and her jaws were latched onto his throat. She shook her head from side to side, savaging Varn's flesh. Great splashes of his blood fell like rain.

Glorious, Shoen whispered. Flames take me. I've never seen the like. The size of that creature. The Librarian has grown enormously powerful since my wed-daughter was bonded to him.

That didn't encourage Enfri in the slightest. As far as she was concerned, this was as far from glorious as she could imagine. She'd known as soon as Varn spoke his name how Deebee would react to seeing him. Deebee's anger towards the elder dragons was immense, for their deceit when they decided to hide the truth of Shan Alee from the new generation of dragons.

Deebee considered it a personal wound, as she'd been the one tasked with telling the fabricated stories given to her in her youth. She blamed herself for so much, because Varn had used the Storyteller to spread his lies. Deebee considered those tales of a brilliant and golden empire to be the ultimate cause of every hurt she'd experienced in her five hundred years. Up to and including the death of Yora Page.

Enfri's view of Deebee and Varn battling across the fields outside the city became obscured as the walls rose ahead of her. She saw the closed gates and reined in Spider as she came up to them. Enfri heard frantic voices on the other side. Refugees trapped outside the walls beat their hands against the gates, pleading to be let in.

She found a Romov armsman crouched by the guard post. The young man covered his head as if fearing the wall would collapse on top of him. Looking at it again, the wall nearly had when that shockwave hit.

"What are you waiting for?" Enfri shouted at him. "People are trapped out there. Open the gates!"

The boy shook his head. "The dragons..." he cried.