Abrax stood in a tall stone hall, resting against an oak table, arms folded. Starlight glittered through arched windows. Wisteria and honeysuckle climbed the stones, their sweet scents filling the air, and grass carpeted the ground. It was a beautiful, idyllic scene—a stark contrast to the slaughter that was probably about to unfold.

Abrax looked at his nails, seemingly bored. “I don’t have time for this.”

Bael pointed his sword at Abrax, his rage almost palpable. “Where are my wings?”

“Someplace safe.”

“Return them to me.”

“Mortal,” Abrax spat, “you and Nyxobas have no dominion over me. Not anymore.”

Bael lunged, his sword on a lethal trajectory. But the incubus slipped away, and the blade cut through the air. Like a toreador dodging a charging bull, Abrax directed Bael’s momentum into the table. Bael was an astounding fighter, but weakened without his wings. Ursula’s mouth went dry. We might not make it out of this.

Bael spun, his sword slashing ferociously, but the incubus slipped away again in a blur of black smoke. He emerged in solid form, hands clamped around Bael’s throat. Ursula’s heart skipped a beat. This is it.

Black smoke swirled off Abrax. “I never understood your allegiance to Nyxobas. The things he’s done to you. To me. He’s not a god—he’s a tyrant.” Something crunched as he squeezed Bael’s neck. “A tyrant that understands only strength and power, and depends on you to enforce it. This is why I will bring him your wings.” Bones crunched in Bael’s neck, and Ursula’s stomach swooped. “And your head.” Shadows gathered around him, midnight tendrils reaching hungrily around Bael.

Time to get involved. Ursula readied Honjo, but as she stepped forward, Abrax casually flicked a finger at her. Dark filaments raced across the room, tightening around her chest. They squeezed the breath from her lungs. Agony gripped her chest, her body shaking. Air. I need air.

Abrax’s grey eyes flashed. “I will create a new realm of the night without you.”

Air. Please, let me breathe.

Bael clutched Abrax’s arm, straining to break the grip, but his eyes were locked on Ursula, almost pleading as the light in them faded. His eyelids closed.

Air before I die… Ursula thrashed against the magical bonds, desperate for release. I can’t die yet, not before I’ve done something. Something simmered within her, and the fire began to simmer, her veins blazing. The air around her crackled with infernal magic.

Abrax dropped Bael, spinning to face her. “Don’t even think—”

Her scream cut him short, as the fire poured from her like an exploding star, burning through the filaments.

Right now, only one thought screamed in her mind: kill Abrax. He’d torn her legs to shreds, stolen Zee’s soul. He’d thrown Kester to his death—and right now, it looked like he’d killed Bael.