Title: The Spiral
Ascended (Spiral Defenders Series: Book Four)
Author: Erin
Danzer
Genre: Young
Adult Scifi/Romance
Publication Date: September
12, 2014
Blurb:
Everything seems perfect now that Ronnie is married. She can
be crowned and finally defeat the evil that infests the Spiral.
Until Rick and the Irradians seize the castle.
Now, Ronnie and Gavin are in hiding. They must amass an army
from those still loyal to them and protect their friends and family—all without
leaving their refuge. When Ronnie ventures out, Gavin is captured. Their bond
is severed. All Ronnie knows is that Gavin is still in her heart.
Until that breaks, too.
Ronnie must find the strength to ascend to her destiny and
defeat Rick or risk losing everything forever.
Excerpt:
The blast came out of nowhere.
Ronnie barely had time to brace herself before the blue energy hit. Her sword
flew from her hand, leaving Ronnie defenseless. She called upon the elements,
concentrating on the gremlins’ spears. The weapons cracked and broke all around
the room. Gremlins screeched as they scrambled for new weapons. Ronnie tried to
reach out to fling a fireball, but nothing happened. Panic flared within her.
Instead of the energy that always tried to escape after a blast, cold numbness
swiftly moved through her.
Gavin!
She screamed in her mind. Instantly, he was there, hacking through the goblins
that blasted her, thinking if they died the paralysis would fade. No such luck.
He got through the last of them, and still, Ronnie couldn’t move. She saw him
glance behind her even as he lifted his sword to deflect the spear of another
gremlin. The wave seemed nonstop. Ronnie desperately tried to move, but her
body wouldn’t listen.
You
need to use my magic, she thought to Gavin.
Are
you sure it will work?
We
have no choice.
Ronnie pushed her powers at him
through their bond. Andi and Shawn huddled against her back as Gavin let loose
a gale-force wind in the room. Gremlins and goblins screamed and grunted as
they flew off their feet. Before they could recover, Gavin threw fire at them.
Screeches and growls filled the room as most of the creatures burned. The ones
left created a portal and jumped through it before Gavin could get to them.
As soon as the last Irradian
disappeared, the paralysis broke. Ronnie stumbled forward with a gasp. Andi and
Shawn reached out to each grab an arm to keep her on her feet. Gavin
immediately took her into his arms, crushing her against his chest. After a
moment, she pushed back to an arm’s length and his hands ran down her body,
looking for injuries. Ronnie pushed his hands away, ignoring the way they made
her feel. She couldn’t think about that right now.
“I’m okay,” she declared when Gavin
continued his perusal of her body. When his eyes wouldn’t stop searching, she
reached up, cupped his face in both hands, and forced him to look at her.
“I’m okay,” she repeated with more
force this time. Relief poured through her as Gavin gathered her into his arms
once more. She only stayed there a moment before turning to her friends. Andi
huddled in Shawn’s arms, her blonde curls bouncing as she shook. Ronnie reached
out and put her hand on Andi’s shoulder.
“Are you guys hurt?” she asked. She
had no idea what to say. How could this even happen? Anger filled her veins as
she thought about Rick trying to take her two best friends from her. How dare
he!
“No,” Andi said, her voice small.
She turned wide blue eyes up to Ronnie. “How did they find us?”
Ronnie clenched her hands into
fists as she struggled with the anger steadily building within her. If she
didn’t calm down, she would teleport again, but she couldn’t let this go
unanswered. Rick needed to pay. They needed to hurt him worse than he almost
hurt her.
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