The Warlord (Rise of the Warlords 1)

“Drink them,” Erebus bellowed at his army when Roc circled him. “Drink them all!”

War erupted around them. Astra, harpies and harphantoms swarmed by the enemy.

For a moment, a split second, Roc caught sight of Chaos’s smiling face. His grin had only grown wider.

Bellowing his wrath, Roc advanced on Erebus once again. Flames sizzled over his skin, the fiends who threw themselves into his path evaporating upon contact. Nothing possessed the strength to stop him.

Roc slashed and ducked, locked in hand-to-hand combat until...he stabbed Erebus in the gut. Bits of firstone crumbled into the wound, weakening the god further, preventing him from healing.

Brilliant Taliyah, designing a weapon meant to cause maximum and lasting damage.

“It wasn’t supposed to end this way,” Erebus spit. “The blade showed me the arrival of the curse. You were to refuse to kill her. The two of you were to fight, and she was to kill you. The curse...the others should be cursed. It wasn’t supposed to end this way,” he repeated, swinging his dagger.

“Your daughter is not only smarter than you, she’s better. She bested you.” Roc grinned. “Ruined your plans.”

A new dance ensued, the force of Roc’s blows unleashing one avalanche of pain after another upon Erebus.

“I can see you tiring. Do you sense your own death, Phantom? Know that I plan to make it hurt.”

The male grew paler than usual as Roc herded him into the arms of the other Astra. They shackled his wrists and snaked their arms around his throat. A team worked together. With no hesitation, Roc drove his dagger home—

The blade cut through Chaos rather than Erebus. He struggled to make sense of the mistake. The god had materialized?

Will kill him, too. Roc gave the blade a cruel twist, but Chaos remained in place, seemingly unharmed.

Roc released the hilt and drew back his elbow. Putting all of his strength, all of his might, into his fist, he rammed Chaos’s face. His former mentor bobbled a moment. As he straightened, he wiped a trickle of blood from his mouth.

“Son,” he said, speaking to Erebus while staring at Roc, “the Blade of Destiny reveals exactly what will happen...but it doesn’t account for free will and a goddess’s ability to change her mind, and her destiny, with a single decision. Which Taliyah did today. Quite spectacularly. Leave now, before I give Roc another crack at you.”

“You don’t deserve to be proud of her,” Roc spit at Chaos as Erebus flashed away. Will hunt him, find him, end him. “You will move out of my way. You cannot deny me my right to avenge my woman.”

“What crime did my son commit?” Chaos asked.

“Roc?”

Taliyah’s sweet voice pierced his mind, a whisper from the beyond. His guts twisted as if he’d driven the blade there.

“Roc?” she asked more forcefully.

Taliyah? His heart leaped and he spun, gaze darting. Enemy phantoms evaporated on the ground. The winning team was spread throughout the garden, daring anyone else to appear. The Skyhawk sisters surrounded Taliyah’s body and—

She lived!

He flashed over, shoving everyone out of the way to crouch at her side. She was alive, her eyes open, her chest rising and falling. With a cry, he yanked her into his arms.

38

Seconds after stabbing herself and awakening fully healed, Taliyah found herself in bed with Roc. He’d flashed her out of the garden, away from the action and her concerned family. Not to mention the prying eyes of both Astra and harpy alike.

He eased her onto the foot of the bed and knelt before her, his body between her legs. Gripping her thighs, pouring warmth into her flesh, he issued a one-word demand. “How?”

“I don’t know!” Darkness had come; then consciousness had returned. As if her pilot light had been blown out, then relit...with a hotter flame. Power flowed through her veins, a newly awakened river of lightning.

“How else?” The harsh voice came from across the room, where Chaos appeared. “A true sacrifice is power, and power is life. Had you, Ian or Solar ever earned such devotion from a bride before, you would have returned to your brides, the cycle ended.”

Roc bowed his head with shame. “You told me she would not recover.”

“No. I told you Taliyah would not return, and she hasn’t. She is a new creature.” The god continued, oddly proud. “She made her sacrifice, earning her ninth star. As the current harpy General, she has now fought herself and won, earning her tenth. She has ascended. Death won’t come so easily for her.”

She glanced down at her wrist and gasped. He was right. Ten stars!

Chaos shifted his gaze to Roc. “You made your sacrifice, as well, by placing another’s well-being above your own. But you will not ascend until and unless your men complete their coming tasks, as well. You entered the cycle of blessing and cursing together, and you’ll leave it together. Just know the tasks and the order are...twisting. Prepare your men.”