Gods & Monsters, #2
The Throne of Broken Gods
by Amber V. Nicole
Contents
Chapter 30
Overview
Samkiel confronts Dianna as she holds Imogen hostage, bluffing about poison to free Imogen and destroy the coveted map. Their duel razes the Guild while Dianna slips into the inbetween to strike unseen. Samkiel senses her, breaks through by invoking Gabriella and love, then kisses Dianna, activating Camilla’s sleep spell, and teleports away with her.
Summary
Samkiel arrives to find Dianna, wearing his likeness, gripping Imogen by the throat and demanding the map. He refuses to abandon Dianna, taunts her jealousy by hinting at feelings for Imogen, and lies that the sprinklers are laced with poison. When the alarms trigger and only water falls, Dianna flinches, releasing Imogen long enough for Samkiel to blast them through floors and spirit Imogen to safety.
Sending Imogen away, Samkiel returns and faces Dianna amid rising fire. When Dianna charges for the map, he incinerates it, cutting off her escape and igniting her wrath. Their fight smashes through rooms and floors as the evacuated city catches fire from her missed strikes. Dianna vanishes into the inbetween to attack invisibly, but a memory of Unir’s teachings helps Samkiel still his senses and catch her mid-strike.
Samkiel needles Dianna’s guarded rage, naming Gabriella and the pain beneath Dianna’s cruelty. The pressure cracks her composure; her blows intensify as she disavows the girl she once was. Samkiel offers himself, insisting he would choose her even through rivers of blood. When she hesitates over his heart, he kisses her, pouring his love and memories into it.
The kiss drops Dianna’s sword and breaks her defenses just as Camilla’s embedded sleep spell takes hold through the contact. As Dianna succumbs, Samkiel cradles her, promises to share her burdens, and steps into prepared runes. The sigils flare, pulling them out of the burning Guild to an unknown destination.
Who Appears
- SamkielWorld Ender; confronts Dianna, saves Imogen, destroys the map, senses the inbetween, and subdues Dianna with a kiss triggering Camilla’s spell.
- DiannaAntagonist torn by grief; holds Imogen hostage, seeks the map, wields fire and the inbetween, then falters and succumbs to a sleep spell.
- ImogenQueen of Rashearim; taken hostage to leverage Samkiel, withstands Dianna’s threats, escapes after his bluff.
- CamillaEnchanter; her prearranged sleep spell activates through Samkiel’s kiss, incapacitating Dianna.
- UnirSamkiel’s father; remembered lesson about the inbetween helps Samkiel locate Dianna while unseen.
- Gabriella (Gabby)Dianna’s late sister; evoked by Samkiel to pierce Dianna’s defenses and expose her grief.