Lienna.
In the midst of the carnage, the shifter kings stood frozen, their eyes locked on me. Oberon’s laughter echoed through the battlefield, amused by their shocked expressions. My heart pounded against my ribcage, fear coursing through my veins like ice. Tears streamed down my cheeks, helpless and unchecked.
“Oh… You think I forgot about our promise?” Oberon sneered, his gaze lingering on the shifter kings. “Make no mistake, I am going to kill her in front of you.” His voice dripped with malice, sending shivers down my spine.
The shifter kings’ faces twisted in rage, their attention snapping back to Oberon. Adonis reverted to his human form, his muscles tensed, ready to spring into action. Caspian grasped his arm, holding him back, but Adonis’s gaze remained fixed on Oberon, burning with fury.
Hermes’s eyes blazed with a wolf’s intensity, his jaw clenched. “You’ll never harm her,” he growled, low and menacing.
Just then, Veronica materialized out of the shadows, her dark aura swirling behind her. Her gaze swept across the battlefield, a sardonic smile spreading across her face.
“Looks like we have the upper hand now,” she announced, her eyes gleaming with malevolence, her shadows growing and billowing like a storm behind her. Her voice dripped with triumph, and Oberon’s smile grew, their sinister alliance palpable.
The battle paused, as if the very fate of the war hung in the balance. Soldiers on both sides hesitated, sensing the shift in power. The air thickened with tension, heavy with the weight of impending doom.
I trembled, my tears falling like rain. Oberon’s promise echoed in my mind, and I knew I was running out of time. The shifter kings’ desperate gazes met mine, their faces etched with determination. In that moment, I knew they would fight to the death to save me.
“Oberon, get her out of here and stop acting like a coward!” Caspian shouted, taking a step forward, his eyes darting between me and Oberon. “This battle is supposed to be fought like the warriors we are. This is just a sneaky method to get us to show weakness in front of you.”
Oberon’s smirk grew, his voice tinged with amusement. “Sneaky or not, it works. And you best believe I’m going to run with it.” He paused, his gaze lingering on Caspian before yelling, “Veronica!”
Veronica’s giggles echoed through the battlefield, sending shivers down my spine. She unleashed more power, her dark aura spreading until it engulfed the entire space. Shadows danced around us, twisting and writhing like living serpents.
“No, please…” I muttered, panic setting in. “Somebody help me!” I screamed as Veronica’s shadows turned toward me.
The shifter kings and their forces launched a desperate attack on Veronica’s powers, but it was futile. They barely made a dent. Her shadows burned a hole through the cage, and she smiled, her eyes gleaming with malevolence.
As her shadows encircled me, I began to struggle, terrified. They tightened, constricting me like a vice. My breath caught in my throat, and my screams were silenced. I couldn’t drag air into my lungs. It felt like a thousand blades was cutting through my body and blood was starting to trickle from my nose.
Adonis, Hermes, and Caspian fought to reach me, but Veronica’s shadows repelled them. Oberon watched, his eyes glinting with triumph.
Veronica laughed, her voice dripping with happiness, as she tightened her shadows even more. I let out a pained whimper, my senses beginning to dull.
“Watching you die has always been my dream,” she taunted, moving closer. Her icy breath sent shivers down my spine as she whispered, “You should have stayed out of this, Lienna. Now, you’ll watch your precious shifter kings fall.”
Tears poured from my eyes, agony washing over me like a tidal wave. When I caught a glimpse of the shifter kings, they were desperately fighting to break me free from Veronica’s deadly hold.
For the first time since I’d known Caspian, he had taken on his majestic dragon form. His fiery roar shook the ground, and he breathed out flames that burned away parts of Veronica’s shadows. It worked, but it wasn’t enough. She simply expelled more power and began to attack them as well.
Adonis and Hermes fought valiantly alongside Caspian, but Veronica’s darkness seemed endless. My vision began to blur, and darkness crept in like a thief. I strained against the shadows, but they wouldn’t yield.
The shifter kings’ desperate roars faded into the distance, and I knew I was running out of time. My body began to shut down, unable to endure the agony. Memories flashed through my mind – laughter, tears, and moments of tenderness with Adonis, Hermes, and Caspian.
This is it. It’s all over now.
In one last, final breath, I muttered the words I’d never get to tell the shifter kings.
“I love you…” I whispered before succumbing to the darkness. My world went black, and silence enveloped me, a stark contrast to the chaos that had surrounded me moments before.
.
.
.
Lienna slumped lifelessly in Veronica’s hold, her limp body swaying like a puppet. Caspian, still in his majestic dragon form, let out a roar that shook the earth. The ground trembled beneath their feet, and the air vibrated with his anguish.
Oberon began to laugh, swiping away an imaginary tear. “She really was your key to winning this war, wasn’t she?” He sneered, decapitating a storming enemy with a swift swing of his sword. His gaze swept across the stunned shifter kings.
“I can’t believe you were seriously betting on someone as weak as her.” Narrowing his eyes, he added, “Pathetic. You three have always been pathetic. Which is why you’ll die here and now!”
He charged forward, his battle cry echoing across the battlefield. The clash of steel and screams of the wounded filled the air as the battle raged anew.
Veronica giggled, preparing to discard Lienna’s lifeless body. But then, she saw Lienna’s long, dark hair starting to turn white, like snowflakes gently falling. Misinterpreting it, Veronica chuckled.
“I must have drained the life out of her. She’s about to be a lifeless corpse.”
Just as Veronica spoke, Lienna’s eyes opened, and shock struck through Veronica. Lienna’s eyes glowed with an ethereal light, like stars bursting in the night sky.
What the hell!? Veronica’s thought echoed in her mind.
The shadows that had bound Lienna began to pull away, releasing her from their deadly grip. Veronica’s eyes widened in horror.
“No… This can’t be!” Veronica’s voice trembled.
Lienna’s gaze locked onto Veronica, her eyes blazing with a power that seemed almost divine. A faint smile played on Lienna’s lips.
“You shouldn’t have underestimated me,” Lienna whispered.
The battlefield fell silent, as if the very fabric of reality had shifted. The shifter kings’ eyes locked onto Lienna, hope and awe etched on their faces.
Oberon’s laughter faltered, and his eyes narrowed. “Impossible…”
Veronica unleashed a flurry of attacks, but they barely landed, repelled by an invisible shield surrounding Lienna. Lienna’s gaze remained fixed on Veronica, her white hair aglow with an ethereal light.
Raising her hands, Lienna unleashed a colossal beam of light, cutting through Veronica’s defenses. The blast struck Veronica squarely, sending her screaming to the ground. Her shadows weakened, losing their dark potency.
Lienna paused, then unleashed another blast, stronger than the first. Veronica’s body jerked, her shadows faltering. Lienna continued to slam Veronica with waves of power, relentless.
The shifter kings recovered from their shock, seizing the opportunity. Hermes attacked Oberon, slicing off his arm with a deadly swing.
“You bastard!” Oberon screamed, staring at his amputated limb, blood gushing from the stump. He narrowly avoided Hermes’s second blow, desperately defending himself.
Their men followed suit, launching their own attacks. Screams and clashes filled the battlefield.
Lienna remained unstoppable, her face etched with fury. Veronica struggled to regain ground, sending a shot of shadows that evade Lienna’s attacks. The darkness landed a critical hit on Lienna.
Lienna’s concentration shattered, her powers seizing. She began falling, but Adonis caught her just in time, cradling her in his arms.
“Lienna, no!” Adonis whispered, panic lacing his voice at her lifeless palor.
“Get her out of here, now!” Hermes yelled, his voice cutting through the chaos.
Adonis reverted to his wolf form, racing through the blood-soaked battlefield with Lienna cradled close to his heart. Her fragile body felt icy against his fur, and her labored breathing sent panic coursing through him.
“Stay with me, Lienna… Stay with me,” Adonis silently pleaded, desperation fueling his every stride.
He dodged clashing soldiers and leapt over bodies, his paws pounding the ground. Finally, he reached a secluded spot, sheltered from the carnage.
Shifting back to his human form, Adonis gently tapped Lienna’s pale face. “Lienna? Can you hear me?”
There was no response.
“Please, Lienna, don’t die like this,” Adonis begged, his voice cracking with emotion. Tears pricked at the corners of his eyes. “You still have so much left to give. Don’t give up. Please.”
He continued to tap her face, his mind racing with possibilities. There had to be something he could do. He was running out of options.
With a surge of instinct, Adonis bared Lienna’s neck and bit into her skin, marking her. The metallic taste of her blood filled his mouth and he infused some of his into hers as well into her body, holding it in there for a while.
As he withdrew, he felt her pulse flicker. So faint he could barely feel it, but it was there. A wave of relief washed over him. She’s alive. Barely, but alive.
Thank heavens.