Chapter Thirty-Nine WITCHING MOON

Chapter Thirty-Nine

WITCHING MOON

Week Three, Day One

Year 3000

Cool hands on her cheeks coaxed Zanya from the shadows.

She didn't want to leave. It was safe in the darkness. Her body didn't hurt in the darkness. Battle raged around her, a terrible song made of steel and flesh and cries of pain, but there was no death in the darkness.

Or maybe there was only death.

Was she dead?

She couldn't be. Because bit by bit, those cool fingers stroked away her protective cocoon, luring her back to a world that stank of blood and fire.

Her body returned first. Aching, but whole again. She flexed her fingers and groaned, and a familiar voice whispered her name. "That's it, Zanya. Almost there."

Soft power washed through her, like a cool breeze on a hot day, pushing those aches ahead of it until they seemed to tumble past her toes. She had toes again, and she wiggled them in her boots.

Her body wasn't broken.

So she opened her eyes.

Inga stared down at her, her dark braids tangled around her blood-streaked face. Her eyes flared pink, a sure sign her magic had returned. But Zanya's newly healed body was proof enough of that.

Zanya lifted herself on one elbow with a groan. "What's happening?"

"We're being overrun." Inga helped Zanya sit. The clash of steel was so close she flinched. "They bought me time to heal you, because we're hoping you can take us out of here."

Zanya reached instinctively for the shadows as she rose to her knees. Directly behind Inga, the familiar form of the Lover loomed, a sword gripped expertly in one hand. But there was nothing familiar about the way he moved—no courtly swordplay or controlled grace. He moved like a feral creature, grabbing one opponent by the hair as his sword sliced effortlessly through his neck. The body dropped, and Aleksi flung the decapitated head at an oncoming opponent with a force that snapped the soldier's neck. He didn't even wait to see him fall, just spun to take on the next fighter as a massive wolf surged to hamstring someone approaching his back.

Elevia and the Raven Guard stood their ground to the north. The twins protected Naia, who stood with both hands above her head and a look of pained concentration on her face as waves crashed down on the back lines, washing away dozens of soldiers at a time. The Kraken closed the circle, raising his trident in time to stab the man Aleksi flung toward him. A flick of his wrist sent the body smashing into the oncoming mob, scattering their line again.

Even with their full power, the numbers would have been impossible. But they weren't fighting at full strength—Zanya could see wounds bleeding sluggishly when they should have been closing. Enough of those would slow down even a god.

Shadows consumed her, and she tried to move. But though the Dreamweaver had died, the webs remained. Zanya battered against them, trying to flood them with her power the way she had created the Terror.

Her power slipped between the webs. But she couldn't.

Frustrated, she let the shadows fade and shook her head. Inga squeezed her eyes shut. "Then we fight—"

A monstrous roar shattered the sky, and a furious dragon dove perilously close. Fire exploded from his jaws, burning a path through the screaming soldiers. The main line shrank back, affording Elevia time to drag Ulric away after a particularly bad hit. Earth surged up in a circle around them, throwing their attackers aside as Ash swooped down to burn another screaming trail through them.

Inga forced herself to her feet, her hands trembling. "Ash is the only reason we're still alive. But even he can't hold them off forever."

Zanya's blood ran cold. "What about Sachi?" Her gaze shot to the top of the tower, but all she could see from this angle was the edge of the wall. "Has anyone seen her?"

"It looked like the Betrayer was killing you," Inga whispered. "Sachi climbed onto the wall—"

"No," Zanya rasped. Not again. Not again . "No."

"She jumped," Inga said in a rush, but her hands flew to Zanya's face. "She didn't land. She vanished halfway down. Nobody knows where she is, but we can guess, because the Betrayer disappeared a moment later. She must have pulled him into the Dream."

The clash of swords sounded behind them. Elevia's shout of warning rose as someone broke through the Raven Guard's line. Zanya snatched up the nearest fallen sword and raced to back them up.

Sachi had disappeared, not fallen. Wherever she was, she was still fighting her battle. Zanya had to believe it, because she was the only one left with a chance of winning.

The Dragon and the High Court would fight as long as they could to give her time. But only the Everlasting Dream had the power to end this.

Fortunately, Zanya was used to having faith in Sachi.