The Elder Blood Chronicles Book 4 The Blessed Curse by Melissa Myers

the black inky
shapes of Harvesters began to rise from the ground surrounding
Zachary’s charge. Where a single knight had ridden moments before,
an army now ran, and from the bloodthirsty cries echoing across the
field, the damned souls of Oblivion were more than ready for the
fight.
    A snarl from his snow cat brought his
attention fully back to his own problems, and Neph quickly
dispatched the Rivasan that had managed to score a wound across his
cat’s side. The Faydwer battle horns sounded behind him again and
from the pitch they were much closer. “Firym is here, and Oblivion.
By the looks of those storm clouds, Arovan and Glis will arrive at
any moment. Faydwer is closing from behind us. We will make it
through this, Kay.” Neph gasped the words out between sword blows
and edged his cat closer to his Aunt to strengthen their line. He
fought against the desire to gaze across the field. The words of
the Divine had left his gut churning with concern for Jala, but
there was nothing he could do about it yet. The sound of charging
hooves behind him grew louder and he tensed. “A path will be open
soon,” he whispered to himself, wondering how exactly the Faydwer
were going to open a path through the bloody mess before him. Even
with the other allied forces joining the fight, the Rivasans were
still standing strong on the field.
    A light hum hissed through the air beside him
and the earth began to tremble behind them. Two arrows drove into
the Rivasans closest to him, knocking them back savagely. The shots
were well placed and buried to the shaft. Both men were dead before
they hit the ground. “Wisp.” Neph grinned as he spoke the name, his
attention flicking from the purple and white fletching on the
arrows to the trembling ground behind him.
    “What the hell are they doing? We are going
to be trapped between that rise of earth and the damned Rivasans,”
Kay snarled as the ground bucked and rose to form a solid wall
behind them.
    Three more arrows pegged into Rivasans, each
bearing the purple and white fletching and Neph whispered silent
thanks to the Fae, using the moment of peace she had given him to
search the field frantically for Jala. The Merrodin forces had
moved beyond the valley now, and he could see Valor among the
Firym, pushing the Rivasans back, but there was no sign of
Jala.
    The hoof beats grew thunderous behind him and
the ground shook with the force of it as the first of the Faydwer
knights reached the battle. Shadows darkened the ground around him
as a massive white horse launched itself from the newly risen earth
behind him and Neph barely managed to dodge as a slender form
dropped from the back of the warhorse to land beside him. More
horses leaped gracefully over the ledge, their riders striking with
deadly grace as the beasts landed in the Rivasan ranks.
    Wisp stood gracefully from her crouch as she
landed, her bow already thrumming with more arrows as she fired
with perfect accuracy into the Rivasan ranks ahead of them.
Glancing over, she smiled and winked up at Neph. “Sorry I’m late,”
Wisp called cheerfully, her musical voice barely audible over the
pounding hooves.
    The field before them was cleared of Rivasans
as the Faydwer ranks plowed through them scattering their lines.
“Are you going to let the god damned pixies out-fight you?” Neph
bellowed to his own forces as he grinned down at Wisp. “Thank you,”
he said in a voice just loud enough for her ears. “I have to get to
Jala now, Wisp,” he added, his gaze moving once more to the valley
as he pressed his cat forward.
    “We will clear a path then,” Wisp responded
and raised a hand over her head. More shadows darkened the ground
as Faydwer archers moved forward along the earth bank behind him.
Wisp dropped her hand, motioning toward the valley, and the archers
began their deadly rain of arrows without hesitation. Somewhere
beyond their range of fighting, the scream of a dragon rose on the
air and Wisp shook her head at him