Chapter 26

Rage burned inside me, an all-consuming hatred, and I couldn"t figure out where it had come from. I was fried, every nerve in my body ablaze with agony. There was no room left inside me for anger, not when I couldn"t do anything but sob as lightning hit me again.

Then, I heard it. The ferocious roar that was Callan as he launched between us, doing his best to block the view of my body with his, teeth bared. Tantaii scoffed, her sunken eyes seeming too small for her face now. "I will take great enjoyment in killing you, beast."

He lowered his head menacingly, his back legs bunching, and I knew he was about to charge at her. Before he could, a giant fireball slammed into her side, and she careened off balance, her concentration broken. Oliver, his hands blazing, stood at the ready as he came to join Callan. "Can you get up?" he asked, turning to me.

Everything hurt, but I had no choice. We had to get that ring off her.

Sensing the shift, Tantaii scrabbled toward the goblet. With every ounce of strength I could muster, I pushed myself upright, gritting my teeth against the pain coursing through my body as aftershocks continued to zap me. Oliver gripped my elbow, helping me the rest of the way off, but I shook him off. "We have to stop her!" I said through my clenched teeth, already moving toward her. "If we can get the ring off her, we can kill her."

Tantaii scrambled desperately, almost to the goblet, knowing we were hot on her heels. She reached it first, wasting no time as she twisted it into both hands, chugging the remaining contents with no hesitation. Roxy's prone form lay near it, and whether she was unconscious or dead I didn't know. I struck a hand out, lightning bursting from me and connecting directly with Tantaii's hand, knocking the cup away, but it was already too late.

A loud, thundering boom sounded overhead and we all looked up to see red pierce the sky like a blazing inferno. Queen Tantaii cackled, a self-satisfied sound as she stood up, no longer trying to run from us.

"You"re too late," she taunted, her arms spread wide as she stepped back into the center of the room. As she said it, a streak of fire shot down from the sky, landing directly on top of her, and she screamed, her arms opening wide as pure, raw power poured into her. Her screams turned into cries of pain, and I watched as the skin of her arms began to peel back.

"It's too strong, she can't channel it," Oliver shouted above the noise. Tantaii was killing herself, unable to take the amount of power the in-between was giving her.

Oberon's ring began burning brightly on her finger, the ruby red surface going white with power. Her arms began to repair themselves, the ring helping her channel all the power. She was going to do it.

Without thinking, I ran forward, shouts and growls behind me as I went, but I didn"t stop. If I did, I knew it would be too late, and the Queen would still get what she wanted.

I slammed into her, the sheer force of the impact sending shockwaves reverberating through my body. I"d expected us to fall over, out of the raw magic blasting into her, but instead we both stood caught in it. My head jerked back, my entire body filling with so much power I couldn"t tell which way was up. The only thing I could still feel was a presence in my soul, a cool, midnight blue energy that spread strength throughout my entire being, steadying me.

A searing pain consumed every nerve, but I didn"t break apart into a million pieces like it felt like I was going to. I shook my head, forcing my eyes to open, to see. Reaching out, I gripped Tantaii, who was caught in just as much power as I was, her eyes closed as she relished in the power.

My hand tightened on the wrist that wore the ring, until her other hand came up to grip, her nails sinking straight into the flesh of my side like they were knives. I would have screamed if I had any voice left, but instead I reached out, my fingers closing around the ring. Energy surged through me, heeding my call immediately as I channeled every ounce of magic I could find into the small, fiery object. I gave it all my power, which felt endless as I stood in the power of the in-between, filling my cup the second a single drop left.

The ring trembled under my hand, but I held strong, pouring even more energy into it. I looked down at my arms, horror settling over me as my skin began to split, raw power pouring from the open wounds instead of blood. There was no ring to regulate me.

Still, I held on, until I felt like I couldn't possible hold any more power without bursting. With a roar, I brought my free hand to Tantaii"s throat, her eyes widening as she met mine, and I gave one last push, energy pouring out of both of my hands with as much force as I could manage.

With a deafening crack, the ring shattered into a thousand fragments, scattering like shards of glass across the chamber floor. Tantaii screamed this time. The red beam from the heavens disappeared as soon as it had come, but still I kept fighting. My hand tightened even more around my mother"s throat as she gaped at me, her eyes open wide and full of panic as electricity blazed down my arms and straight into her. Screaming harder, I powered up higher and emptied all I had into her, not letting up until she was smoking and limp in my arms.

With a terrified gasp at what I"d done, I dropped her dead body to the floor with a loud thud.

And then suddenly, all the energy died, the world going completely and utterly silent as the battlefield ceased.

My breathing came in ragged gasps as I stood there, my body trembling from exhaustion as I looked out at everyone. Relief poured through me as my eyes landed on Lily, bloodied and bruised but safe, Nia right by her side, looking as regal as I"d ever seen her. Wolfe was shifting back to his human form, as were all of the shifters that I could see, but his light gray eyes warmed my soul. Pagu flew above, and I tilted my head up, then down at myself, gasping when I looked at my arms.

There was more open wound than skin, my flesh bursting open in more places than I could count, blood running everywhere. "Rowan...," Callan began, his voice soft with concern as he gently approached me. I tried to form words, but my mouth wouldn"t cooperate, filling with the taste of blood as it dripped down my face from the wounds I knew must be there. He lunged forward to catch me as I fell backward, no longer able to support my own weight.

"I'm so tired," I somehow managed to murmur.

"Easy now," he murmured, his voice soothing as he lifted me into his strong arms. If he cared that he was buck naked in front of all these people, he certainly didn"t show it. "You did it. It"s over."

Over.

Finally over.

Satisfied with that, I laid my head against his chest and let sleep take me.