The Dragon Legion Collection(65)

Damien swallowed, then looked her in the eye. “Even with the snakes.”

“There’s no guarantee she’ll survive childbirth, even if I do agree,” Hades observed. “Your son might not even survive. You could be sacrificing yourself for nothing.”

“I don’t care. I want to give her the chance.” Damien was resolute. “She gave me a chance and I didn’t deserve it.”

Hades considered them for a long moment and Petra found herself breathing quickly as the pain rose within her.

“No,” he said flatly. “It would set a precedent. It’s far simpler for both of you to stay.”

“You can’t keep Damien here,” Petra argued. “He’s not dead.”

“It’s only a matter of time before that’s resolved,” Hades said. “And we have nothing but time in this realm.”

Petra felt her womb tighten even as her fury rose. She called to the earth, to the stones, to the rocks and roots of the world. She felt the tumult build even as her own contraction grew. She summoned it and gathered it and drew it unto herself to wield it.

“Petra,” Damien whispered in awe.


“What is this?” Hades demanded, even as the ground underfoot trembled. “Stop this immediately!” he cried.

“No! We will not stay!” Petra opened her mouth and roared, commanding the earth to move just as her womb contracted. “We have sacrificed! We have paid! And we are alive!” She felt her son move and channeled the pain with her powers, compelling the element of earth to respond to her command.

The ground underfoot shook hard. It buckled and rolled, then suddenly cracked wide. A large dark fissure opened between them and the ruler of the realm, and snakes spewed from it to scatter in every direction. Damien muttered an oath, but held fast to Petra’s hand. There was a rumble of moving rock.

Petra summoned her strength and pushed harder, directing her efforts upward. The entire realm shook, like a straw house in the wind. There was a deafening boom and the darkness overhead split wide open.

A ray of sunlight stabbed into the underworld. The dead shouted in mingled dismay and delight, but Petra wasn’t done. Their escape path was clear, but they weren’t through it yet. She called to the earth, she drew upon her powers and the land beneath their feet rippled.

It convulsed.

Another contraction began deep in her body and she used it, clenching her fists to drive the power as she wished. The ground folded and shifted, and shoved them high into the sky. Damien caught her close so she wouldn’t lose her footing, and she held on to him tightly.

“No one leaves this realm!” Hades cried in dismay.

“Try to stop us,” Damien muttered, resolve making his eyes shine. “Come on, Petra. One more good shove.”

“Yes,” she agreed, and mustered her strength again. She was tired, but she had to save Damien and their son. She pushed hard, closing her eyes as she gave her all.

Suddenly, there was a thunderclap. The crack began to close overhead, sealing the underworld once again.

“No!” Damien cried and leapt upward.

He might have called to the shaft of sunlight. It pierced the darkness as if targeting him and struck him like a bolt of lightning. Petra saw the shimmer of blue-green darkfire roll over Damien’s body and feared Hades had claimed his life, after all.

Then Damien shouted with joy and her relief made her tremble.

“Yes!” he bellowed and Petra knew what would happen. She laughed when she saw the pale blue shimmer of light surround his body and squeezed her eyes shut. Damien shifted shape with glorious speed, and she thrilled as always at the beauty of his dragon form. She opened her eyes to find herself securely in his grasp, his scales cool and hard beneath her hands. She could feel his muscled strength and she delighted in the power of his wings and tail.

Without a moment’s hesitation, he soared toward the sky, holding her safely against his chest as his powerful wings beat hard. Petra felt a waft of fresh wind on her face, smelled the green of the hills and dared to hope that they would succeed.

The crack was closing steadily, as if it would cheat them of freedom right at the last. Petra knew that if they were trapped in the underworld, Hades would make them pay for their transgression for all eternity. She could hear him shouting far below and willed the earth to shake violently in the hope of silencing him.

“Faster,” she whispered to her dragon, even though she knew Damien was already testing his limits.

The crack began to close even more quickly. Petra was afraid it was already too narrow for Damien’s width. He surged forward, his wings beating furiously. He leapt through the crack with a final burst of speed, twisting as he flew to work himself through the narrowing gap.

The fissure snapped shut behind them and he shouted as it claimed the tip of his tail.

Against all expectation, they were free.

“Are you all right?” Petra demanded and Damien laughed.

“Never better.” He soared high in the midday sky, clearly reveling in the return of his powers. The sunlight glinted on his scales, making him sparkle like a gem.

“Your scales,” she said with wonder.

Damien looked over himself, then grinned with pride. “Like it?”

The color of his scales had changed, from deep green dipped in gold to gold dipped in green. He was magnificent in the sunlight, like a piece of jewelry designed to dazzle.