I roared, letting fire pour from my maw until Dante’s betrayal was but a bitter memory carved into my mind.
The second he found out I was carrying his child, the King of Drahan had no longer seen any value in me. He’d set his witches on me, and using their dark magic, they had ripped my womb to shreds. Then, without so much as a goodbye, he left me to die on his throne room floor, covered in blood.
Dante killed our future, and in return, I took his life. Now, his artifact would be mine, too.
And then, I would be the most powerful of them all.
The Heart of Ithenmyr
AILEANA
The Heart of Ithenmyr was significantly larger than it initially appeared. When Ember had first detailed the “simple” trial we would face, it seemed like we could cross to the other side of the lake in a matter of minutes. An hour, tops. Though I hadn’t dared be excited, I felt relieved at the thought. After that close call with Xander’s dragon, we all needed a rest.
Those hopes were dashed as soon as we began our journey across the dangerously thin, perilous path. As we dangled over the precarious drop into the fire below, I had realized we were going to be here for a long time. Hours had gone by, and we were still here, inching our way along.
Another contributing factor to this already stressful situation was that I had finally learned there was something Xander did not excel at. Unfortunately, any humor that I might have found in watching my enormous dragon shifter struggle to keep his balance on the path was destroyed by the gurgling, churning lake of flames beneath us.
And then there was the heat.
Everythingwas hot. My body felt like someone had put me in an oven and was roasting me for dinner. This was not at all comparable to my mate’s warmth. My clothes stuck to my skin in all the wrong places. My pack was glued to my back. Beads of sweat ran down my face and neck, bringing the unpleasant fact that I hadn’t bathed in several days to the forefront of my mind. The air was thick, and the stifling heat made drawing breath difficult.
The path—although it barely was deserving of the moniker, since it was little more than a thin ridge of stone that ran over the Heart—was rough. We walked single file, the laborious sounds of our breathing a discordant backdrop to the occasional hiss and pop of flames. The trail twisted and turned, and although we had been walking for a long time, the other side was still frustratingly far away.
I was leading the way, with Xander close behind. It had taken a long time to convince the dragon shifter to let me go first, but when I reminded him I could use my earth magic to save myself from falling, he reluctantly agreed. Extremely reluctantly. As in, I practically had to force my way to the front of the line.
But I was here, and that was all that mattered.
The lava below hissed, the waves churned, and I looked at Xander as he cursed. He wobbled, growling when he saw me looking at me.
Eyes ahead, Sunshine, he snapped through our connection.Be careful.
Smirking, I dared another glance over my shoulder. Our friends were lined up behind Xander, with Daegal taking the rear.I’m always careful, dragon boy.
A snarl was my only reply.
If Xander had been able to shift and fly across the Heart, this journey would have been a lot easier. Unfortunately, between the spitting fire, erupting geysers, shooting flames, and spindly crystals dangling from the ceiling, the Heart of Ithenmyr was a death trap.
It took all my focus to move one foot in front of the other. My body was sore and tired in a way that seemed unnatural. Was it the stress? I wasn’t sure. It didn’t matter; I supposed. In this place, the song of my magic was different. Greater. More. Since my Maturation, my power had become a constant melody in my veins, but now it was a beating drum, urging me ahead.
And so I did. Every so often, I pulled ribbons from the well within me, letting them wind around my arms. If I needed them, they would be there.
I hoped it was an unnecessary precaution.
* * *
We had passedthe halfway point across the Heart when the first rumble hit. At first, I thought perhaps the sound was in my head. But then it came again. And again.
The mountain shook beneath us. The fire churned, shifting from a deep red into something angry and bright, like a hot coal that had burned all night long. If the lake of fire had been frightening before, now it was downright nightmarish.
“Get down!” Daegal shouted as the mountain quaked.
Instinct had me dropping to my knees, hugging the slim pathway beneath my feet. The rocks cut into my legs, but I didn’t dare move. Seconds later, the ground shook. My heart thumped rapidly in my chest as popping filled my ears. Flames sizzled and seared. The scent of sulfur grew stronger until it was the only thing I could smell.
And then the waves tripled in size.
“We can’t stay like this!” Maiela yelled. “We’ll get burned.”
Or worse.