"Anan!"
The Queen turned stiffly toward the cubs in Su An'an's arms, her fingertips twitching nervously:
"One drop. Just one drop. It won't have any effect on the cubs."
"Impossible!"
Su An'an retreated with a sharp cry, her butterfly wings flaring open to wrap the cubs in a cocoon of light.
"Stop them!"
The Queen's roar had barely faded when the Forbidden Guard's spears sealed the hall's entrance.
Seville's Golden Wings sliced through the air like a guillotine, the cold glint of his Feather Blades menacing. "Cross this line and die."
Ying Jiuyao's tiger claws tore through the chest plate of the foremost guard, splattering blood across the carved reliefs on the pillars.
"Come and get it if you're not afraid to die!"
Su An'an turned to rush for a side door, but behind her came the Queen's grief-stricken, bloodcurdling cry:
"Are you going to abandon your own mother?!"
She froze, her feet rooted to the spot. The cubs in her arms, held too tightly, let out a soft whimper.
