“So, how are we supposed to do this?” Drayce asked as he stood to one side with Eno and Rayne while Caelan was across from them, his arms folded over his chest. “God or not, I don’t feel comfortable shooting at him.”
Caelan snorted. “Yeah, me neither.”
“How about I kick this off?” Eno stepped forward, pulling his large broad sword from his holster on his back.
“Right behind you,” Rayne added. He slipped his collapsed staff from its holster as well and extended it with the spear-point glinting in the fading rays of the evening sun.
Drayce retreated a step, his stomach knotting and his heart picking up its pace, even while his mind stridently reminded him that Eno and Rayne were family; they would never do anything to hurt Caelan.
He crossed his arms, his hands tightly gripping his elbows, as Eno and Rayne slowly approached Caelan, circling him. Eno raised his sword first and Caelan grinned. With a flick of his hand, his sword appeared in a flash of white light. He easily blocked Eno’s blow in a shower of white sparks and then spun to parry Rayne’s thrust.
Caelan had always been stunning to watch, but Drayce had to admit it looked different now. Easier. Sure, Rayne and Eno weren’t actually trying to hit Caelan. That was clear enough. But it was as if Caelan wasn’t exerting himself in any way. He was faster and his movements were even more fluid, as if he were dancing rather than fighting.
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
The low drawl rolled through the open field and sent a biting chill through Drayce. He knew that voice. He didn’t want to know that voice. He really shouldn’t, but he did.
The Dead God walked past Drayce as if he’d been standing on the sidelines with him the entire time. Maybe he had. Drayce didn’t want to think about that.
As he approached Eno and Rayne, he threw out his hands to his sides, and both men were tossed aside as if they were leaves caught on the wind. “Stand aside, kids. Let Daddy have some fun.”
A long, black-and-purple staff appeared in Nyx’s hand a second before he tried to bring it crashing down on Caelan’s head. His lover barely managed to block it, creating a burst of purple and white sparks. Caelan snarled, muscles straining and arms trembling to hold Nyx back.
The gloves had come off. Both Eno and Rayne wordlessly retreated to Drayce’s side as they watched the fight between their friend and the God of Time. Drayce could clearly see the difference now. Caelan’s movements were still crisp and clean, but there was a new quaver to them, as if he were struggling to keep up with the Dead God. Both of them had expressions of fierce concentration, but Caelan had lost his smile, while Nyx’s seemed to grow wider by the minute.
Caelan’s heel caught on a rock as he retreated and he fell. Drayce’s heart stopped. He watched Cael roll out of the way of Nyx’s staff as it came down hard. He wanted to shout at the Dead God. What was the point of putting Caelan through all of this if he was just going to kill him in the middle of this stupid field in Ilon?
Rayne grabbed his shoulder, squeezing as if to restrain him, but he didn’t miss the tremble that ran through the man. He was worried too.
“Come on!” Nyx taunted. “There’s got to be more to you than this! You’re holding on to the old you too much. You’re not fucking human anymore. You’re not Caelan Talos!”
“I will always be Caelan Talos,” Caelan snarled as he shoved to his feet. Something inside of Drayce grew wings and took flight at those angry words. God or not, he wasn’t ready to lose his Cael. Not now. Not yet.
Caelan fought back with a new fury, forcing the Dead God to retreat. Nyx’s grin faded slightly, but it only turned into a more calculating look, which did not feel like an improvement.
The Dead God suddenly moved in a blur, putting several feet of distance between him and Caelan. “Fine. You don’t seem to respond to attacks on yourself. How about attacks on your family?”
“No!” Caelan shouted as Nyx threw out his hand toward Eno.
Drayce didn’t have time to react. None of the humans did.
But they didn’t need to. A bright-white shield that appeared to be made of crystal snapped in front of them. Purple-and-black smoke smashed into the shield and curled off to crawl across the dirt to the God of Time.
That was fucking new!
It wasn’t the green protective dome Caelan usually conjured to protect them. It was white, just like the sparks that flew when they fought and the light that rose from him when he summoned his sword.
When Drayce’s heart began working again, he tore his eyes to his lover to find that he’d also taken on a sort of white shimmer. His appearance hadn’t changed, but he somehow seemed more. There was a new light to his blue eyes, making them appear paler, and his skin shone in the fading light.