Page 144 of Sunsplitter

And when he spotted the aedari in the road, holding Fionamara by the wrist, Antal lunged from the trees, poised to rip this immortal apart with his bare claws.

It turned at the last moment. Antal caught the aedari at the base of its neck, claws carving fabric and flesh, across its chest in a spray of golden blood. The creature snarled.

When it staggered, Ixli was there, fangs bared and spear angling for her quarry’s throat.

The aedari ducked. Evening flashed into day as its wings unfurled in blinding light. A cloak of energy feathers deflected Ixli’s spear, sparking red against gold. She lunged again, a binding cord ready in her fist, aiming to snare the aedari from teleporting. It cut her off with a flap of wings. The scorching plumes billowed heat, forcing her back.

Another flash of light arced from its palm as it materialized a sword—then swung the gold-honed edge at Antal.

The snarl at his side was human.

Fionamara shoved past, brandishing her crimson energy blade. Antal hadn’t even seen her snatch it from the aedari. She parried the blow. An energy capsule glowed in her palm, cracked glass as she crushed it. An uncanny talent for explosions, this human.

The blast sent the aedari backward. Fionamara Shaped a cloak of energy to protect them from the brunt of it. Antal took the rest. He pushed in front, wrapping her in arms and tail, shielding her softer flesh from percussive energy. They both hit the ground with a grunt.

Pain lanced his arms. Burnt flesh, easily healed. Antal ignoredthe sting and pushed to his knees, no time to hesitate with an enemy immortal at his back, but he didn’t care. He hoarded one selfish moment just to look at her.

One shaking breath as he cupped her cheeks in his hands, warm andalive.

Fionamara looked up at him with lips parted, golden light glinting against dark eyes.

Then, she shoved him off with an elbow to his ribs.

“There’s two!” Fionamara shouted. “Ixli, there’stwo of them!”

A chill struck the core of Antal’s ether. Ixli squared off with the aedari, parrying a sword strike, then snapping a startled look across her shoulder.

Another flash of gold struck the clearing.

Then a streak of flame.

Ixli dodged as the blaze lashed toward her. Leaves incinerated beneath the golden fire, the heat sweltering. Moving with unnatural speed. Lines of flame erupted along the road, chasing at Ixli’s heels, at Antal as he pulled Fionamara away.

At the center of the inferno stood a second aedari, wings spread, eyes molten.

“Veshri’s fucking teeth!” Ixli shouted. “A magician!”

The aedari raised its hand. A ripple crossed its skin, a glamor unmasked, revealing a tapestry of black tattoos inked down fingers, swirling up arms, hardly an inch of space unutilized. Aedari didn’t Shape energy, they altered it to new forms with their glyphs.

“Well, shit,” Fi hissed at Antal’s side. “Thoseweren’t there before.”

When the aedari twitched a finger, three glyphs on its arm flared gold. Another lash of flame lit the clearing, embers singeing Ixli’s hair as she evaded, hot on Antal’s cheeks as he and Fionamara dodged the other direction.

Two aedari. The warrior with the sword was dangerous enough, armed with limited glyphs to bolster strength, to hone the metal edge of its blade. Magicians were the deadliest of all aedari. Two arms filled with glyphs to burn, carve, rend daeyari into pieces.

Avroz and Syvr had split off to search more ground. No telling if they’d join in time.

While the magician honed its attention on Ixli, the warrior charged Fionamara, growling something in its airy language.

“Try it, fucker!” she shouted back.

Antal drew the daggers Ixli had given him, Shaping red energy to form the blades—an unfamiliar weight, but deeper strikes than claws. Fionamara was ahead of him, already parrying the warrior’s sword, gold blazing down metal and the tattoos on the aedari’s wrists.

Dread curled in Antal’s stomach, watching her face such a foe. One strike of that sword could end her. One brush of those molten wings would melt human flesh.

Antal intercepted the next blow. His daggers stalled the aedari’s sword. The creature shoved, sending Antal stumbling into Fionamara. She hissed her displeasure and moved to parry.

Just as the aedari’s wings arced down at them.