"And remember, Your Grace!" Vera's voice, surprisingly strong, sliced through the receding roar of the storm, "Whatever you do, do not kill the High Priestess! At least… not until I arrive and undo the bond she's placed on both her and the Queen!"
Valerian offered no verbal reply, only the visible tensing of his jaw, a momentary tightening that spoke volumes of his barely restrained rage.
Then, with a concussive boom that vibrated through the very ground beneath their feet, he launched himself forward, a streak of white-hot lightning across the night sky, devouring the distance.
Aldric followed, a blazing comet, his flames cutting through the darkness, hot on his brother's heels. Soren, a third, smaller bolt, surged after them.
Then, Valerian was gone, a distant, fading point of light. Aldric and Soren vanished moments later, leaving the forest edge eerily quiet, save for the lingering scent of ozone and burning air.
