Someone of his size should not have been incapable of moving with such fluidity, and yet, he rose with the grace of a dancer. Regret shone in his eyes as he shook his head, running his hands through his hair. His head hung low, and he moved back. “I’m so sorry,” he said. “I don’t… I just saw the treasure, and my control snapped.”
Aileana stepped towards Xander, but he moved away. “Don’t.”
She flinched as though he had hit her.
His chest heaved and his voice was ragged as he rubbed a hand over his face. “I don’t… I can’t… not yet.”
Xander wrapped his arms around himself as a tremor ran through him.
“Let’s give them some space, Mai,” Kysha whispered, leading her wife to the bows they’d abandoned.
I drew Ryllae against me, the mate bond humming contentedly as I kissed her softly. “You did an amazing job,” I whispered.
Without Ryllae’s ropes, this might have turned out very differently. Aileana wasn’t sure her vines would hold against the heat—or against her mate’s wrath. Ryllae had saved Xander.
She moved in my arms, turning to press her head against my chest. I raised a hand, marveling at the darkness of my skin against her pale blonde hair as I threaded my fingers through her locks, rubbing her scalp gently.
She sighed contentedly, burrowing her face into my tunic. Her aura was vibrant, the silver of our mating brighter than ever. Holding her tight, I sent a prayer of thanks to the gods. Never would I have imagined this would be my path.. Having my bonded mate nearby completed a part of me I had never even known existed. I would never let her go.
My Fortune Elf magic was a brushing, constant presence in my veins. I felt it calling me towards the silver planes, but I ignored it. I refused to leave Ryllae alone in this place where the air burned and the fire churned. The future would have to wait.
Aileana approached Xander again, and now he didn’t warn her off. The pair spoke quietly, their hands intertwined and their auras beating in time with one another, before they walked towards us.
Moving Ryllae to my side, I met Xander’s golden eyes. “How are you feeling?”
“I’ll be fine, brother.” He held out his hand as he moved towards my Death Elf. It hovered in the air as my mate stared at it before sliding her much smaller hand into his.
“Thank you for stopping me, Princess,” Xander said. “If I’d shifted in here…” A shudder ran through my old friend. “Let’s just say it wouldn’t have been pretty.”
They shook hands, and my bonded mate smiled softly. “You’re welcome. I’m glad I could help.”
Pride ran through me, warming my insides almost as much as the fire heating my skin, and I held Ryllae tight against my side. “I knew she could do it.”
“You are… special.” Earth Elf rubbed the green tattoos marking her fingers as she eyed my Death Elf inquisitively.
“She is,” I said.
Ryllae was more than special. She was mine.
Picking up his abandoned weapon, Xander cleared his throat. He shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other. “I apologize for my behavior. That was… the dragon… I won’t lose control again.”
He looked like he had more to say, but the air started shimmering once more. Xander swore, widening his stance as Maiela and Kysha took a step back and raised their bows. Green and red magic sparked, and I armed myself just as a Spirit of the Flames materialized out of thin air. I recognized her immediately as Ember, the smallest of the three Spirits who had greeted us when we first arrived. A golden aura surrounded her, and she smiled at us kindly.
“Welcome to the Heart of Ithenmyr.” Ember’s aura, as gilded as the coins on the other side of the lake, thrummed as she extended a hand in our direction. “Very few have ever made it through the Labyrinth and found their way into this place. Even fewer dragons have survived the temptations of the Heart. The gods have blessed you abundantly.”
“What is this place?” My mate asked.
The Spirit of the Flames smiled. “I’m so glad you asked, Daughter of Kydona.”
Ryllae stiffened at the title, but Ember didn’t seem to notice.
I noticed.
I always noticed when it came to my Death Elf.
“The Heart of Ithenmyr is a place of great power and magic.” Ember spread her arms, her fiery body glowing even brighter as she gestured to the cavernous lake before us. “The very fabric of this land was woven here many years ago. Before any other beings walked the land, before the Four Kingdoms, before the Dynasty of Roses, there were the Spirits.”
“Not just the Spirits of the Flames?” Maiela interjected, her brows raising.