The Crow King's Wife (The Elder Blood Chronicles #5)(99)
A dark form blurred past him and Shade barely managed a glimpse of Caleb slamming into Grace before fresh pain tore through him. Waves of agony nearly blinded him as he gazed stupidly down at the sword point sticking through his stomach. He blinked once as the blade withdrew and managed a staggering turn to stare incredulously at the guard who had backstabbed him.
“You son of a bitch, I gave you the option to run.” Shade hissed. His stomach felt like white fire, but he could already feel his regeneration taking effect and healing the wound.
The guard hastily back stepped and looked ready to bolt but Shade shook his head grimly in response. “I don’t think so.” He snarled as he closed on the man. Behind him he could still hear the battle raging, but the sword through his gut had been a gentle reminder that if the guards weren’t going to run, they needed to die. He had lost the focus for his venom with the sword blow and at the moment it seemed too much work to summon it back. That meant the man would have to suffer a messy death, but perhaps it would give him something to contemplate in the Darklands. Such as why you never stab an Elder Blood in the back unless it is a killing blow.
Shade was barely a step from the guard when the ground behind him trembled followed by a crash that sounded as if one of the buildings was being ripped apart. The guard forgotten Shade whirled and stared in mute horror at the dragon barely eight feet from him and the collapsed wall of the shop he had left Syrah on top of. The dust from the fallen stone was still settling, but even through the thick cloud Shade could make out the battered form of Caleb crumpled in the rubble. Still intent on her quarry the dragon stalked forward several feet then drew her head back to inhale.
“Mother No!” Shade screamed. There was no way either Syrah or Caleb would survive dragonfire at that close of range. Even if the child had the sense to move to one of the adjoining buildings she would still be caught in the blaze. His hand dropped to his pocket and settled around the cool stone hidden within as he sprinted toward his mother. Don’t think about it just do it. He ordered himself as he launched himself straight toward the dragon’s gaping mouth. His free hand latched firmly between two of the massive ivory teeth and pain seared through him as his flesh was sliced cleanly by the razor edge of one. He could already feel the heat bubbling in her throat as he pulled himself up high enough to cast the stone into her open mouth and down her throat.
With a cry of anguish that had nothing to do with his injuries he released his hold and dispelled the magic on the storage stone he had thrown. The dragon staggered and her neck bulged horribly as his Spell Hawk lodged in her throat then tore through flesh and bone alike. White hot fire gushed through the rents in her flesh and Shade barely managed to scramble out of the way as the dragon’s body collapsed to the ground in a tangle of thrashing limbs. The ship twisted horribly in the wound with the sound of tearing metal and bile rose in his throat as the combination of her thrashing and the destruction of his ship severed her head from her body. The dragon form faded from her as death claimed her and Shade stared mutely down at his mother’s head. He couldn’t bring himself to move at all, not toward her fallen form or toward Caleb. He felt sick and numb and couldn’t drag his gaze from her sightless eyes or the blood pooling around the stump of her neck.
“By all of the Divine what have I done?” Shade whispered as he contemplated his actions. He had repaid Caleb for saving his life, and at the same time he had killed a pure blooded Changeling, and a female at that. Not to mention his own mother. His life wasn’t worth a bent copper now and he knew it.
“You saved my Daddy’s life.” A tiny voice answered from somewhere behind him
Turning slowly Shade gazed down at the little girl and nodded dumbly. “Yes I did.” Shade agreed quietly. “If she didn’t kill him when she threw him through the wall.” He added bitterly.
“He lives…barely.” Syrah informed him in a voice that seemed far too practical for such a small child. She brushed a strand of her dark blue hair back from her face and gazed toward his ship with wide grey eyes. “Will that be able to fly now? She says we shouldn’t stay here much longer. It’s dangerous here and others will be coming.”
Shade followed her eyes to the blood streaked ship. One of the wings was nearly torn off and the hull was badly dented. Slowly he shook his head and swallowed heavily. “Not like it is now, but I can fix it enough to manage quickly enough.” All I have to do is bring myself to go near my mother’s body. He added silently.
Syrah nodded once at him and then gazed upward at the empty air beside her and nodded once more. “Fix it then, and I will do what I can for Daddy. Hurry though, it cost Momma a lot of strength to finish those guards and it is already hard for her to stay here. She needs to go, Ryven needs her.” Syrah’s voice was barely over a whisper and filled with a sadness that mirrored the ache in his own chest.
Shade nodded slowly once more and realized the remaining guards were crumpled on the ground. He snorted in contempt for himself and shook his head slowly. That should have been the first thing he looked for once Grace had fallen. He should have looked for further danger rather than mourning the death of an enemy. “Tell your Mother thank you please. I’m not really sure how spirits work or if she can hear me when I speak to her, but I’m sure I owe her my life for killing the guards.” At some point in his life he was sure he would have scoffed at a child claiming the spirit of her mother was near her, or at the very least he would have pitied the child for her fancies. Now however it didn’t seem the slightest bit odd. He had seen too much in the past few months to dismiss anything as a possibility.