Page 163 of Blood of Olympus

We must go.

But Velira⁠—

Now, Caelus! The dragon can fend for herself but we are not immune to demon flame!

I risked a glance over my shoulder, confirming my fear. Kronos and his beast were on a direct trajectory for our portal.

“Agh!” I hollered, dropping my arms so that the gateway could shrink. We started bolting towards it, already sure we weren’t going to make it because that beast could fly.

I grabbed a handful of Lykos’ fur and swung myself up into the harness upon his back, like we’d practiced a hundred times in training for moments just like this. Moments that were the difference between life and death. Moments where fuck ups could mean the end of the realms as we knew them.

If Kronos made it through the portal and got to Nyssa, we were all doomed.

And upon realising that, I also realised that I had already made my decision.

Lykos, slow down.

What?! he roared. No!

Yes. We’re not going to make it. But we have to ensure he doesn’t either.

With a snarl as loud as thunder, Lykos pulled up short, swinging around to face the demon beast, and threw his head back to loose an uproarious howl.

I took a steadying breath, summoning my lightning to the surface. A conjured storm rolled in from seemingly nowhere, darkening the harsh glare of Helios’ sun. Unfortunately, this only seemed to serve Kronos — his beast was now almost impossible to spot within the charcoal blanket of storm clouds on the horizon.

The beast screeched again — a bone aching, teeth rattling kind of sound — giving me some idea of its proximity.

Three.

Two.

On—

Get out of here, you stupid boy!

The ferocity of Velira’s order almost eclipsed the fact that she had spoken directly into my mind — a cosmic no-no between the unbonded. She appeared from behind us, having soared over the shadowgate aiming right for Kronos’ creature.

I said go! she roared again, simultaneously breathing a constant jet of violet flame at the nightmare-beast who pulled up in a sharp incline to avoid it.

Lykos nudged me into action, pushing me toward the significantly smaller shadowgate.

We were out of time.

I kept one eye on the battle in the skies, and one on the ground in front of me as we sprinted across it. One misstep could mean the difference between making it… and not.

The skies lit up in a blaze of black and purple, ricocheting off my storm clouds like a light show, as the air was torn asunder by the terrifying shrieks of skyborn creatures. Just as we reached the gate, Lykos tossed up an urgent howl. I twisted as I dove through, just in time to see the glimpse of glittering purple scales divert towards us.

She has to make it. She has to!

I fell through the gateway, landing on my ass yet again, straining against the last vestiges of my unexpected gift of Nyssa’s shadows.

She will, my wolf assured, though he, too, kept his eyes trained on the dissipating darkness before us, ignoring all others demanding things of us.

“Move!” I yelled, hoping that they’d all have the presence of mind to realise why. I certainly didn’t have the capacity to speak it. “Get out of the way!”

And just as I felt the last of that thread of power trickling past my outstretched fingers, Velira appeared. The dragon soared through with wings tucked tight to her body, landing so hard on the dirt field that she created a divot the size of a crater. When the dust settled, I dared approach her, both hands held up in a gesture of surrender.

Velira snarled, snapping her enormous fangs in my direction.