44. Kael

44

KAEL

I see Laia hanging from the pole, and a rage I've never known ignites within me. How could Eryndor do this to her? The sound of my heart sounds like thunder in my ears as each beat echoe with hatred for the dark elf who dared to take her—who dared to hurt my Laia.

"Stay back!" I snarl at Eryndor, my voice dripping with venom. “You shouldn’t have crossed us.”

For the first time, I let my emotions take over. All the careful strategies, the measured actions—I abandon them. My vision narrows, tunneling in on Laia and Eryndor. I charge forward, my axe swinging with reckless abandon. Dark elves fall around me, their blood splattering across my armor. Their screams are distant echoes; all I hear is the pounding of my heart and Laia’s faint cries.

An enemy blade slices through my armor, grazing my side. Pain flares, but it’s a distant thing, secondary to the fire burning within me. I stumble but refuse to fall.

Before the dark elf can land a fatal blow, Thalos’s axe crashes down, cleaving through the enemy with brutal precision. I barely acknowledge the rescue; my focus remains on the fight ahead.

With each step closer to Laia, my determination hardens. I won't let her suffer another moment under Eryndor's cruelty. I won't let him take anything more from us.

I charge again, swinging my axe with all the strength and fury I possess, cutting a path through the dark elves that stand between me and Eryndor.

Eryndor tries to stop us, screaming, “I will kill your brother!”

But Irix just laughs uncontrollably, not caring about his injuries and climbing out of the pit. All the soldiers he sent below die with brutal efficiency.

“Do you think you can take us down?” Thalos sneers, moving like a torrent of fury.

“I’ll kill the woman!” Eryndor picks up a sword, aiming for Laia, but I throw a knife, hitting him at the feet, so he stops moving. He stops, staring at it, then screams like a baby.

“Help!” Eryndor’s face twists in agony. I can kill him now, but it will be too easy. He should watch how his world crumbles.

Eryndor’s face pales even more, fear flashing in his eyes as I advance on him. His soldiers are falling, their numbers dwindling with each passing second. He knows he’s losing. The realization paints his features with a desperation I’ve never seen before. Good.

I grip my axe tighter, feeling the weight of it and the familiar roughness of the handle against my calloused palms. This is for Laia. For every moment she suffered under his cruelty. I roar, the sound tearing from my throat as I swing my axe with all the fury pent up inside me.

Eryndor stumbles back, barely managing to deflect the blow with his sword. The force of it sends him reeling, his eyes wide with panic. He’s not used to facing someone who can match him in strength and surpass him in rage.

“Kael!” Thalos’s voice cuts through the chaos, and out of the corner of my eye, I see him and Irix reaching Laia. They’re cutting her down from the pole, their movements frantic but precise.

I force Eryndor back with another swing, but before I can land a killing blow, my focus shifts. Laia’s weak cry reaches my ears, tugging at something deep inside me. She needs me.

I abandon Eryndor without a second thought, turning my back on him as I rush to Laia’s side. My heart hammers in my chest as I drop to my knees beside her, my hands trembling as they reach out to touch her bruised face.

“Laia,” I whisper, my voice breaking. “We’re here.”

Her eyes flutter open, and for a moment, they lock onto mine. There’s pain there—so much pain—but also relief. She tries to speak, but all that comes out is a faint croak.

Thalos and Irix hover close by, their faces grim but determined. We’re not done yet—not by a long shot—but we have her now. That’s all that matters.

The world around us fades as I focus on Laia, on keeping her conscious and safe until we can get her out of this nightmare once and for all.

Irix tilts a flask to Laia’s lips, offering her water as his hands shake with relief. She drinks slowly, agonizingly, as if the act of drinking pains her even more. Maybe because her throat is swollen.

Thalos and I glance at each other, our eyes mirroring hatred and pain.

My chest tightens even more. Her skin is pale, bruises marring the delicate surface. I reach out, my hand trembling as it brushes against her cheek. “Laia…”

Her eyes flutter open again, barely a sliver of green visible through the swollen lids. She looks at me, her gaze unfocused but filled with recognition. “You came for me,” she whispers, her voice so weak it’s almost lost in the chaos around us.

Emotion swells within me, threatening to break free. I pull her close, my arms wrapping around her fragile body as if I can shield her from all the pain she’s endured. “Always,” I murmur into her hair, my voice thick with emotion.

She sags against me, the last of her strength fading. I hold her tighter, feeling the rise and fall of her shallow breaths against my chest. My brothers are close, their presence a silent vow that we will protect her with our lives.

“Stay with us, Laia,” I whisper, my voice cracking under the overwhelming fear and love inside me. “We’re not losing you.”

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