Page 29 of The Ember and the Emerald

A blur of molten rage, it launched forward.

Gerald shoved his son behind him. Others scrambled to flee from the arena. Arrows flew at it, bouncing off its scales.

Hot tears continued to rain down my cheeks. The creature’s chain snapped taut, flinging it into the sand. Upon impact, the links weakened, the gaps between them spreading wider, soon to break altogether. Another couple of yanks, and the monstra would gain its freedom.

I would die, and everyone else would fall with me. And still, I didn’t move. I just stood there, crying, knowing what I had to do.

“Oracle,” Gerald shouted, as chaos rippled through the crowd.

Words burst from me. “Kill it, Jasher. Kill it now,” I whispered, hating myself.

Finally, he moved. In one flawless motion, he flung his axe. The blade flipped over itself as it soared…then slammed into the creature’s skull with unnatural strength, cutting through the steel-hard scales.

The monstra shrieked and thrashed, tail whipping with such power it caught Jasher across the chest and sent him flying. He hit the sand, a lash of crimson wetting his shirt. I gasped, a hand flying to my mouth.

No! No, no, no. I made to run down to him, but Gerald caught my wrist, stopping me.

The axe remained buried deep in the monstra, but the creature didn’t die. Not yet. It stumbled toward Jasher, betrayal burning in its eyes, drool sizzling where it fell.

Jasher rolled up ready, blood leaking from his mouth.

“Jasher!” I screamed, half warning, half prayer. “Survive, whatever you have to do.”

The monstra lunged in his direction. Jasher ducked the strike and slammed his fist into the creature’s jaw.

That moment, the real battle began. Two beasts fought with brutal determination. They bit and clawed and grappled with expert precision, supernatural speed, and a savagery no mere mortal could have withstood.

I hugged myself. Jasher would forever hate me for this. I might forever hate myself. But at least he would live.

My Tinman landed a nasty blow. The monstra teetered, attempting to gain its bearings. Climbing up its back, Jasher ripped the axe from its skull with a wet, tearing sound. Blood sprayed in a steaming arc. Without pause, he drove the blade home again. And again. Until the metal came out the other side.

The monstra staggered, choking on its own fiery blood. Its wings flared once, then its whole body collapsed, the light dimming in its eyes as smoke leaked from its nostrils.

Two beats of silence.

Cheers erupted, deafening and endless. Those jubilant cries soon coalesced into a song of deliverance. “Tonight we feast!”

I squeezed my eyes tight for one second, two. Then I faced the consequences of my actions.

Jasher stood over the carcass, chest heaving, hair plastered to his temples. He lifted his gaze to me, expression half triumph, half accusation, all malice. The look said: You did this.

I withered. I’d forced him to slay one of his own. A being he’d considered a brother. If he’d dared make me kill my mother or my father…

“I’m sorry,” I mouthed. Useless words. Not good enough. Nothing would be. What if there’d been another way, and I’d missed it?

He spit blood into the gurgling crimson spewing from the dead monstra.

The scent of iron filled my nostrils, drawing my attention to the crimson pool. Beneath the metallic stench of death, I detected a sweet pulse of life. The same one I’d encountered with the water in the hut. Despite my ragged state, that bloody water yanked at me, dragging me through the air.

Suddenly, I was standing beside Jasher. Confusion rocked me on my feet. How…why…?

The executioner’s eyes widened, then narrowed to slits. He raised his weapon, as if to strike me down.

Our audience went chillingly quiet again.

“No!” Gerald shouted. “Not our oracle!”

Knowing time was of the essence, my next moves critical, I buried every thought but that of survival. “Work with me to save us both.” I threw the commands at Jasher. “Retrieve the serpens-rosa dangling from the leader’s neck. Meet me in the largest hut as quickly as possible.” Where I’d left the backpack. “And give me the serpens-rosa, intact,” I added, covering all my bases. “Do what you must to survive.”