Wings of Shadows ~ Book 1 ~ Beginnings ~

Dragon's blood

Without the aid of a shadowling, the magic a Mystic had at their disposal paled compared to a Draycent, but Ki could see in her brother's eyes, he wasn't going down without a fight.

In that split second before their foes could make a move, Lirr connected with the smoke-laden air in their immediate vicinity.

"Run!" he shouted at his little sister as he hurled needles of concentrated smoke into the guards that barred their way to the gate.

Like loosed arrows, the dark vapor spikes ripped through their targets with lethal accuracy, but in the same instant, Raze struck.

Catching the regal blade with just his dagger, Lirr swiftly parried into a counter strike, grazing the Draycent's arm.

Ki stumbled aside, barely avoiding the clash. She wanted to obey her brother, but she couldn't leave him to fight alone.

Summoning all of his meager young magic, she hurled a chunk of loose rubble rock at the Draycent, exploding it apart at the last second.

Lirr didn't let the distraction go to waste and plunged his dagger into Raze's chest.

Without access to the shadows, however, the dagger would do little harm.

Throwing up a cloud of smoke and dust to cover their escape, he grabbed Ki's hand. "Come on!" he barked.

But they barely made it more than a few paces when an explosion of blinding light sent them crashing to the ground.

"That was a good try," the Draycent laughed.

Through tear-blurred vision, Ki watched as Raze stepped through the haze, wings made of blazing light arching over his back and racing down his blade.

"Lirr..." she choked and tried to get up, but her body refused to obey.

The Draycent peered down at her, eyes gleaming with a feral darkness.

"Leave her alone, you monster!" her brother snarled, fresh blood matting his brown locks, and despite the shock, he managed to stagger to his feet. "She's just a child."

A cruel smile crossed the King's lips, and he turned to face the Mystic. "I guess someone needs to be left alive to deliver my warning..."

He glanced back at Ki. "Tell you Mystic friends, little girl, this is what happens when you dare defy the Draycent."

The burning light swelled, engulfing the Draycent King and glimmered savagely in those inhuman eyes. Then, with nothing more than a wave of his sword, he unleashed the vicious storm of light upon the Mystic.

One instant her brother was there, the next, there was nothing but ash...

Raze sheathed his weapon and the light around him faded. Numbly, Ki noticed the wounds his brother had inflicted had already healed, leaving no trace.

It wasn't fair.

Pain and rage, like she had never known before, rushed through her.

They were so powerful... They didn't care at all about lives like her's or her brother's... human lives...

They were just like the dragons whose blood ran through their veins...

"You..." she choked behind tears, struggling to sit up, her body ringing with pain and shaking with uncontainable grief and rage.

The Draycent King paused.

"You... will pay for this," she panted, glaring murderously into her enemy's eyes as they met her own.

With inhuman speed, Raze lounged and grabbed her by the throat.

"No, I won't," he snarled, effortlessly lifting her off her feet. "Because you pathetic little humans and your mystic arts are weak. You should be grateful we not only protect your worthless hides but also allow you to live, even though you exploit the suffering of others to gain your power."

Ki struggled feebly in the Draycent's grasp, but the defiance did not leave her eyes.

Disgusted, Raze cast her aside and turned away.

Coughing, Ki glared after him. "Death to the dragon blood..." she whispered.

But grief eclipsed the rage and pain she was feeling as she crawled over to the pile of ash where he brother once stood... a breeze already scattering the only evidence left that he had existed at all...