𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭 // 𝐧𝐢𝐤𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐢 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬𝐨𝐯

𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐲. 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞

CHAPTER THIRTY

Breathe

Estelle dropped to the ground, covering her head with her bound hands. Bodies fell all around her as gunfire came in a rapid patter, ringing out in the silence. Grisha and oprichniki slumped down to avoid getting shot.

Someone shouted, "Return fire!" Shots from the skiff rang out, but they didn't appear to hit any targets. Some of the Darkling's nichevo'ya beat their wings and hovered in the air, searching for their quarry. Inferni struck flints, shooting fire down into the sand below. Fire was shot back, their Inferni still cloaked from sight.

Then there was silence. On the deck, wounded people moaned. The General aboard shouted orders, walking back and forth with a shotgun in his hands. The Darkling pointed to a Heartrender and shouted his own orders, unharmed. His nichevo'ya did their job well.

A wave of sand was sent up onto the skiff. The Squallers scrambled to respond quickly. They sent sand around, but it appeared that they didn't find its intended mark.

Silence again. Everyone was on edge. The oprichniki were white-faced, jumping at every real or imaginary sound. "Maleni," they whispered. Ghosts.

Estelle's breathing was shallow, afraid that if it was too loud, their guns would be trained on her instead.

Then one of them yelled, "Get down!"

Everyone on the deck dove towards the ground and the air exploded with gunfire. Two other glass skiffs plowed into view. Only two. The others must not have made it. The skiffs ignited with the violet flame of the lumiya when they came into contact with the light.

"Did you think I would come to meet you unprepared, Alina?" the Darkling called over the chaos. "Did you think I would not sacrifice an entire fleet of skiffs to this cause?"

The appearance of the skiffs turned the tide of the fight. Screams tore through the air as gunfire was exchanged. Estelle noticed a red stain in the sand. Someone had been shot.

A voice cried out right near Estelle and she jumped from where she had been crouching on the ground. No one was there. But someone had been, or the noise was merely her imagination.

A figure flickered in and out of sight a few paces away. Estelle thought she recognized Tolya, but he was gone too soon. People climbed down the railing, bloodthirsty nichevo'ya joining in the fight.

Another scream. A nichevo'ya had its claws clamped around Tamar's back, digging in. Estelle pulled against her bonds chaining her to the ground, wishing to help. She couldn't just stand there and watch.

A figure dove down from the sky in front of Estelle. It took a moment before she realized what it was—or rather, who. Nikolai, wings spread and fangs bared.