Total pages in book: 131
Estimated words: 121924 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121924 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 610(@200wpm)___ 488(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
I fired another arrow. And another. And another. I hit my mark each time, just as most of the other archers appearing to be doing.
The catapults were doing an equal amount of damage, as were the balls of ice-cold air and the blasts of elemental energy. Every golden whip of power coming from Talon obliterated a foe, making them burst into ashes.
As one, our side was literally raining down death and destruction. The evening was alive with screams, roars, flames, and the flashes and crackles of power.
But the intruders kept coming.
Several rabid hounds were fast approaching the thick stone wall. I shot more arrows, took more down, watched others fall at the metaphorical hands of other candidates or officiates. Still, some hounds managed to reach the wall. They jumped and clawed at the stone, thankfully unable to traverse it.
That was when officiates began tipping over the bubbling cauldrons, pouring all sorts of things over the beasts. Liquids and fats hissed as they landed with a splat while the rain of hot sand pattered like hailstones. Each time, there were roars and yelps of pain that made my chest squeeze.
More came, as did several of the lamiae. I sent another arrow whizzing through the air, eliminating one of the screeching women. Another of them leapt—
And buried her claws into stone, using them to keep purchase.
As she began to awkwardly scrabble upwards like a spider, my belly rolled. I cursed as yet more of her kind mimicked her move.
Shit, they could climb.
And I was out of arrows.
Cursing, I placed the bow and empty quiver behind me. Reaching forward, I grabbed the long wooden-handle tight of my scythe and held it just right.
Which was when Talon, a large two-handed sword in his grip, fucking jumped.
Jumped over the wall, dragging a climbing lamiae down with him as he did so; landing as easily as if he’d scaled a mere fence.
He wasn’t the only one. Ajax and several officiates did the same, using the lamiae they’d yanked down from the wall to break their fall and lessen its impact. Wings of silk shot out of the backs of the Phoenixians on the battlement, who all took to the air.
I watched as Talon brutally hacked into a lamiae, all but cleaving her in half with a single blow of his sword. Many of the Delphiae changed—their bodies developing armor made of moss-covered wood—and started swinging similar swords at the invaders. Meanwhile, the Nemeans and Lykaons attacked in their animal forms, barreling into their foes with brute force like battering rams.
Still, more of the lamiae kept coming.
Phoenixians, including Khalida, snatched them away from the wall and tossed them pitilessly through the air; all landed hard, bones breaking, spines snapping, skulls cracking.
The shape-shifting officiates fought as savagely as Deimos’ beasts. Both lions and wolves took down enemies, broke up formations, and trampled on those who fell.
The combined force of the officiates and Deimos’ resident beasts was too much for the army. Especially now that the horned panthers had left the sea to battle the enemies on land, lashing their exceptionally long tails; their roars remanent of the sounds of rushing rapids. But none of that stopped invaders from attempting to breach the walls.
Soon, more lamiae were climbing toward the rise, bloodthirst whirling in their red eyes. Taking a shaky breath, I dropped the bow to the floor and angled the curved brutal-looking blade I held just right.
Hearing a frustrated curse, I spared a sideways glance at Bevan. He was holding a sword, having dropped his bow and quiver. I realized then that the other candidates also now held some form of blade.
A gold spark of light immediately drew my attention back to Talon, who was decapacitating one enemy after enemy with both sword and strikes of pure power. A lamiae charged him from behind, but Ajax was there—expertly wielding a mace with metal studs and spikes protruded from its head. He lashed out with the club, viciously caving-in her skull. Damn, the force of his swings were tremendous and—
A female head popped up in front of me, a snarl on her face, red-eyes glittering with thirst.
Fuck that.
I struck with the scythe, cutting right through the skull.
Her eyes going vacant, she fell back without a sound.
Others soon appeared, trying to breach the rise. I wasted no time in attacking, determined to hold them back. I swung the scythe over and over, cutting through flesh and bone as easily as if they were crops.
Eagles and Phoenixians repeatedly appeared to drag the screeching females away, ensuring those of us on the battlements weren’t outnumbered. It meant that we could tackle the enemies in teams of two or three. So Bevan and I occasionally teamed up, both of us using our weapons to slash, stab, crush bones, and leave brutal injuries.
One lamiae leapt onto the battlement and grabbed at me. She sank her teeth into the side of my face and, fuck, it felt like dozens of knives had embedded themselves in my skin.