#Chapter 186: The Escape

Richard The fortress groaned above us like a living thing in its death throes, stone and steel buckling in protest as fire licked the support beams and smoke twisted through every crack and seam. The walls vibrated with tension, and the air carried the scent of ash and blood. I shifted Amelia in my arms, tightening my hold on her limp frame as I ducked beneath a crumbling archway. Her skin was warm against mine, flushed from the heat or from the exertion, I couldn't tell which. Her hair clung to her damp face, and every few seconds she whimpered, her body twitching as if caught in some invisible struggle. Behind us, the corridor flared with light and a sharp crack echoed through the stone as a ceiling beam gave way. The noise rattled in my skull like a shot, and I turned just in time to see Eldric draw his blade and pivot on his heel. "Go," he barked, not sparing me another glance. His coat was torn at the shoulder, soaked with someone else's blood, and his left hand had gon