The fight intensifies. One of the men manages to grab Eira while she fights off two other assailants, pulling her back by the arm. I rush toward her, my sword raised, but more of them close in, cutting me off. I blast two of them with fire, the flames roaring as they scream in pain. Two more take their place.
The sounds of clashing steel and the thuds of feet on the forest floor pulse through the air as Eira and I fight back-to-back. My breath is ragged, my side burning from where I took the hit. And I’ll take a thousand more if it keeps her safe. They will not touch her. Not while I can still stand.
More attackers close in, surrounding us in a tightening circle. Three of them break off, their eyes locked on me, weapons raised.
“Rylan!” Eira’s voice rings out from behind me, and before I can react, I hear the roar of water. A massive wave surges from her, as she pulls the river up and over our heads, ready to crash over the men in front of me like a tidal force. They stop in their movements, necks cricked upward watching at the force they’re unable to stop.
I stagger back, watching in awe as Eira stands with her arms raised, her entire focus locked on the wave she’s manoeuvring.Her power is immense. Terrifying in its fury, beautiful in her control.
And in that moment, I see her for all that she is.
She is force.
She is nature.
She is limitless.
Her face frozen in steely focus, she swings her arms down in one movement and, as if she had heard my own thoughts, screams, “I am limitless!”
The wave hangs in the air for a split second, and then crashes down on the attackers, a tsunami scattering them like leaves, as they wash away into the forest, the sound of their shouts gurgling in the whitewash.
The power she wields is breathtaking, but I see the concentration it’s taking—the strain it’s putting on her.
“Eirabella! Let go, you need to let go!” I shout, urging her not to drain herself.
I’m busy focusing on her, making sure she doesn’t drain herself when I see him, out of the corner of my eye.
“Eira!” I shout, but she’s too focused on controlling the wave. The man lunges at her from behind, his blade gleaming in the dappled light of the forest, and before she can turn, he slashes his sword down the length of her back.
The sound of her cry rips through the chaos, and I feel my world tilt. She stumbles, her control faltering, and the wave dissipates. Blood blooms down her body as another cry is ripped from her lips.
Three men close in on her, knocking the staff from her hands. She’s trapped. And injured.
She falls, and everything inside me goes cold.
I don’t remember what happens next. All I know is the rage. It burns hotter than the fire in my veins, blinding me, driving me forward. I’m on them in an instant,my sword cutting through the air with lethal precision. Flames explode from my blade, consuming everything in their path. I don’t stop. I can’t stop. Not until they’re all dead.
In blinding arcs and slashing strikes, I take each and every life I come across. Fire blazes throughout the forest floor, drying the entire wave she crashed there in mere seconds, turning every last soul to nothing but silent screams.
By the time the last man falls, I’m standing in a field of char and cinder, blood soaking the earth beneath me. All except one.
The final attacker stumbles backward, his eyes wide with terror as I approach. He tries to retreat, but I’m faster. Grabbing him by the throat, I slam him against a tree, my sword pressed against his neck.
“You’re the last one,” I growl, my voice trembling with barely contained rage. “Go back to your leader. Tell him that all your men are dead. And every person you send after this will die. I’m letting you live so you can deliver the message.”
The man chokes out a laugh, blood trickling from his lips. “Our leader’s not afraid of you,” he spits, his voice dripping with disdain. “I think you’ve got more to be afraid of than us. Maybe you should check your people. Someone’s got loose lips.”
Before I can process his words, he twists free of my grip, stumbling away into the forest. I let him go, my mind too focused on what’s behind me—on her.
“Eira…” I rush to her side, dropping to my knees in the blood-soaked dirt. She’s on the ground, bleeding from a deep wound down her back. Her eyes are half-closed, her breath shallow.
“Stay with me,” I whisper, panic creeping into my voice. She tries to speak, but the effort is too much. Her hand falls limply against the ground, blood pooling beneath her.
Frantic, I press my hands to the wound, trying to stop thebleeding, but it’s too much. She’s slipping away, and I can’t lose her. Not like this. Not now. I just found her.
My heart pounds in my chest, fear gripping me like a vice. I’ve never felt so helpless. I’ve fought battles, led armies, faced down death itself, but this—this is different. I can’t fix this with a sword or fire.
“I can’t lose you,” I murmur, my voice cracking. I should have told her this when she asked about my past relationships, should’ve told her there was never anyone nor will there be anyone who means what she does to me. I should’ve pulled her to me and never let her go and whispered these words, until there was no doubt left in her mind. “I don’t know who I am without you!”
