But how was she to achieve this goal? He thought he needed to die by her hand—or teeth—to win. And if he was right?
There were many ways to die, and not all of them permanent. She didn’t wish to kill him. However, she had demanded this Astra take one for the team time and time again. It’s my turn now.
Decision made. Ophelia would murder her consort-entwine. His name would grace the top of her kill list. The terms of the battle would be met, and Halo would revive on his own, no mystical resurrection required. A loophole.
Too easy? Maybe. But he’d mended and regrown organs on the battlefield before. And he hadn’t expected Erebus’s natural abilities to be negated at the end. So why would Halo’s be negated?
If she were wrong about this? Had it been a viable option, Halo would have suggested it, yes? Would only a true and final death count?
Trepidation perforated her calm, but she shook it off. Instinct said: You can have it all. She had to take a leap of faith—in herself. Either she believed in herself and her abilities or she gave up and accepted whatever happened.
I will never give up!
A monster of indescribable power, Ophelia repositioned her bulky body. No using her firstone teeth. She needed to stop his heart another, less permanent way. And there was only one way available to her right now...
With a snarl, she lunged at Halo. He made no move against her as she swiped a paw at him, shredding his chest with her claws. Blood rained.
“That’s my good girl.” He smiled tenderly, so proud and pleased. Blood wet his perfect pearly whites. “Don’t stop now, sweetheart.”
Her mind screamed and her insides churned, the sight gut-wrenching. Another slash, and bone no longer blocked her path to his beating heart. Beat. Beat. Beat. She whimpered. The moment of truth.
No going back.
“Good girl.” He winced but still he smiled. “Now bite me, love.” Pain coated his broken voice, but so did affection, and it nearly broke her. “Bite me hard.”
With a roar, she severed the organ with a claw, ending his life. For a moment, only a moment.
Please be only a moment.
Death was death, and the blare of the trumpet proved it. The match was over. Why hadn’t Halo awakened? She huffed her breaths as she peered down at her consort. He lay in the sand, still and bloody. His wound hadn’t closed. His heart hadn’t yet regenerated.
The crowd remained silent, everyone poised at the edge of their seat, waiting. Erebus stood at the rail of the royal box, seemingly disappointed. Because playtime was over?
Come on, Halo!
Ophelia bellowed his name, demanding he awaken. Or she tried. One head howled. Another whimpered and the third snarled. She slammed her paw onto the Astra’s chest, pumping his heart for him. Wham, wham. Wham, wham, wham.
She bent a head and licked his face.
Halo sucked in a breath, his heart and ribs healing as the flesh wove back together. Ophelia nearly collapsed with relief. We won, and we live! Then she remembered. The god.
Slowly she turned toward the royal box. Toward him. The pale-haired one. Erebus. Enemy. The time had come for a reckoning. She had an impenetrable hide, the ability to regenerate limbs in spades, an assortment of venoms and antivenoms at her disposal. The beasts had slipped free of their cages, yes, but she held their leashes. Ophelia was super everything, and she would have her revenge.
Attack! She shot into a warp speed run.
He shouted a demand at the male beside him. “The task is over, Chaos. Allow me to leave.”
That male—Chaos—grinned and clapped, watching her. “Magnificent. Simply magnificent.”
She leaped and snagged different parts of Erebus between different sets of her teeth. Firstone pierced his muscle. No matter what he attempted, he failed to escape her jaws of death.
Erebus shook—until he didn’t. Ophelia dropped him at his father’s feet.
Chaos peered at his son’s bloody remains. “He’ll only return to life stronger.”
Ophelia didn’t care. Dark gray lines spread over the god’s skin, the firstone affecting him as strongly as it affected the Astra. Pieces of him crumbled. Were her friends seeing this?
Ophelia had made two kills in one day. An Astra and a god. This must be a record. Surely all of harpykind would sing tales of her feats.
Look at me! Look at me! Oh! She bet Halo would love to praise her right this second. Ophelia snatched off Erebus’s head and zoomed back to the battlefield, then ran circles around the Astra. He sat on the ground, fully healed, watching her with an adoring expression. She spit the stone head at his feet. An offering.
The head rolled a little, reminding her of a ball. Oh! Oh! She really, really, really, probably should follow it.
Focus! She panted, her tongues hanging out of her mouths.