Consciousness erupted back into me, fooling me into thinking for a moment I'd found my strength. I opened my eyes and tried to rise, only to find myself completely limp. I couldn't move.

  Elsie knelt in front of where I lay on the ground with her bow drawn, prepared to shoot.

  The room shook and the sound of explosions erupted from the right. Several seconds passed and then the wall not far from us exploded with a crash. Two forms barreled through the wall and slammed onto the ground.

  "Max!" Nash's booming voice knocked me into like a fist, making me dizzy. "Elsie!"

  I caught sight of Nash's curls first, quickly seeing the lethal carved into his hard expression. He landed on top of a man and with black energy burning around his hand, he slammed his fist into the man's temple. The skull crushed beneath the power of his hit, caving in the warrior's face in a smattering of blood and bones. Beside me, Elsie squeezed me and gasped, her body stiffening.

  "Don't look," I commanded, trying to draw her closer to me.

  Nash ripped his head up, looking at Elsie, and then finding me. His stare lingered, terror gripping him first and then quickly sharpening into deadly rage. He whipped around and unleashed a scream as he sent a wave of energy flying through the wall. Cries erupted from the other room.

  My vision waned and darkened as I watched Nash twist just in time to catch a flaming ball of energy with his bare hands. He extinguished it immediately, not even reacting to the pain as the fire sizzled against his skin.

  Nash drew his twin blades and flew so fast through the hole in the wall, I barely saw him move.

  Sleep captured me in wakes and starts, trying to hold me down beneath its waters as I struggled to break free of the surface. I came to with panic throbbing hot in my chest and watched Nash through the shield surrounding us. I needed to warn him about the arrows that stole my power, but I couldn't speak. My lips moved and nothing escaped.

  Elsie clutched me tightly with a sword drawn over me, my poor girl resorting to defending me.

  Bodies littered the hall. Blood rushed like a river and pooled at the shield protecting us. That wasn't right. I knew it. I wasn't thinking right, but with my life draining, my world breaking into pieces, Nash's battle against our enemies looked more like the grandiose stories painted in powder across the sky during the festival. Elsie didn't close her eyes like I instructed. She watched her father's swords unleash against those trying to kill us, exposed for the first time to how swiftly they stole life.

  Darkness consumed my view of Nash and then I lost feel of Elsie beside me. Only pain remained, relentless and without mercy, battering my body, cutting me to shreds.

  Strong arms lifted me, breaking beneath the icy waters that drowned me. The feeling of being in Nash's arms was so familiar and so comforting, peace prickled the pain consuming me. The slightest buzz of energy warmed my skin, but it didn't enter me and give me strength. It felt like it bounced off me. Nash was trying to connect with me, but I couldn't.

  My eyes fluttered open as Nash shifted and jostled me. I barely made out the image of Elsie climbing onto his back. She clasped her arms around his neck while he held me tenderly and then lifted us into the air. We flew over dozens of dead warriors and puddles of blood that once looked like a rushing river to me.

  "Can you hold on?" he asked Elsie.

  "Yes. Just get Ma out of here."

  I tried to reach for Nash's chest. My fingers twitched. He used his power to break the windows and then swept us out of the tower into the freezing air.

  As he flew through the air, so fast the pain hooked into my wounds, he looked down at me. Tears coated his furious, terrified eyes. "Hang on, baby."

  "Finn…"

  "Piercey and Wren have him. They already portalled to King Tyroin's land."

  My heavy eyes closed. I needed to ask about everyone else. What about Leif and Markus? Their families? What about all our people? I couldn't hold on anymore, though. I barely heard Nash's soothing voice flowing over me like honey. His warmth burning through the cold.

  I couldn't leave my people.

  I couldn't leave my family.

  Deep, throbbing pain dragged me to consciousness.

  I tried to speak but only a moan slipped out. Nash carefully brushed my hair back with one hand and held my face with the other. "Easy," he said. "Don't try to move."

  My eyes fluttered open. The bright sun pouring through the windows seared my vision. Winter approached. There shouldn't be this much daylight.

  "We're here. Elsie, Finn, Piercey, Wren, and Leif. All the kids."

  "Markus?"

  "He's with Gael strategizing."

  I let my head fall into Nash's hands. "Is… Is anyone hurt?"

  "No." His soft lips pressed against my forehead. "You need to rest. Try not to worry."

  Tears pinched my eyes. "How many?"

  He quieted, surely knowing what I asked.

  "Nash."

  "We don't know yet. The attacks happened all over the valley. Their weapons stripped away the power of some of our best warriors. Any enemies we didn't kill or capture escaped. The war parties were small, probably only as large as they could manage without giving themselves away. But the hits seemed targeted."

  Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  "We're in Gael's kingdom, aren't we?"

  "Yes."

  I tested my strength to try to sit but I barely budged.

  "I told you not to move," Nash said. "Power isn't working on you. They couldn't heal you." Pleading filled his tone. "Please, Max. You have to rest."

  He caught the tears that broke free. "They need me. I can't stay here."

  Nash carefully shifted to lie down beside me. I accepted the pain, desperate for his nearness. He held me against himself and stroked his thumb along my jaw. "They need you alive. Markus and Piercey have been traveling between here and the villages. The people know you're alive."

  "They'll be terrified…"

  "You can't change that, Max. What happened was terrifying. We're all suffering right now. You cannot save us from that. Just lie here with me and let your body rest."

  How could I? "Have they seen you?"

  "Yes. Now, stop. We are taking care of everyone. Trust us."

  It hurt so bad. I nodded, not because I actually accepted the situation, but because I truly could do nothing else. Nash kissed the side of my face and whispered to me as I lost my hold on the world once again.

  The next time I awoke, I refused to remain here while my people were waiting for me. I almost passed out when Nash lifted me into a sitting position on the edge of the bed.

  "This is crazy." Piercey rarely raised his voice, but he did so now. "You're in no condition to be out of bed, much less traveling."

  "It's been too long already. The people need to see me." I froze on the edge of the bed to catch my breath. Sweat gathered along my hairline. Nash slid an arm under my leg and carefully lifted me. The movement hurt more than I wanted the others to see. I settled my head against Nash's chest, hoping to hide how badly it hurt.

  "He's right," Nash said gently as he held me. "This is too much on you."

  "We're too reliant on our healers. I can manage."

  Nash closed his eyes for a moment and then nodded. "I'll help you do what you want but be reasonable once we get there."

  Piercey huffed and ran his hands through his hair. "Okay, we need to keep it short. I'm not backing down on that and you're in no shape to fight anyone on this, Max."

  I let him continue, too exhausted to argue with him. It only mattered that I saw my people.

  Nash carried me to the other room where Gael talked with Markus. "She's ready."

  Gael looked uncertain. "She doesn't look ready."

  "Well, I am." I snapped more harshly than I intended.

  They all looked at one another before Wren spoke. "This is what Max needs, so don't waste any time while she's up. Let's get her before the people. There's a gathering at the tower. Gael, will you please take her there. Your skills with the portal will make for the safest travel."

  I bit my cheek, so thankful for Wren always supporting me, even when maybe she shouldn't. It didn't matter. I could count on her not to fight me.

  Gael opened a portal as my advisors talked in hushed tones.

  Nash held me securely. "You ready?" he asked.

  "I am. I want to sit up when we get there."

  "Of course."

  He carried me through the portal. While ordinarily I didn't feel anything unusual when traveling, I felt a heaviness this time that bore down on my wounds. When we walked through the other side, fatigue weighed me down even more than before.

  "At least… I can travel through a portal…" Whatever poison ran through my system had its limitations then.

  I could tell by Nash's tone that he was worried about me. "You don't remember traveling to Gael's kingdom."

  "No. I know I did, I just didn't think about it until now."

  Nash settled me down in my usual chair at the table. "Piercey, can you ask someone to bring her pillows?" The back of his hand came to my forehead. "Blankets too."

  "I don't need–"

  He cut me off. "We need water, and I want medical supplies ready. Let's try more medication for the pain." Nash used the sleeve of his tunic to dab my temples and then took my face in both hands. "Max."

  "Yes?"

  "Please don't waste your energy fighting me."

  I swallowed hard. "Sorry."

  They all worked quickly to get me set up and to bring in a gathering of our top advisors, all the chiefs currently in the village, and as many villagers and warriors as could fit in the room. Seeing everyone brought a rush of comfort and emotion to my chest. A knot caught in my throat.

  "I told you," a little boy said. He tugged a woman's sleeve. "She's alive."

  "I'm sorry it took me some time to see you," I said.

  Fear etched lines into the face of everyone here. Fear and loss. It reminded me of the days after I killed Eskel when I raced from village to village trying to save the innocent from demon attacks.

  "Nothing can ease the suffering of all the people we lost." The thought of their pain helped me to ignore my own, but the weakness was more difficult to overlook. Even my lips felt heavy as I spoke. "The attack on our kingdom will not go unpunished. I will hunt down every person who stepped foot in our homes and in this tower personally. They may have surprised us with this new poison, but we will not be caught off guard again."

  "I fear we underestimated their abilities and perhaps our own. If they want war, it feels like we are starting off behind." One of the older chiefs spoke boldly. "Prophet, we need to think of how to avoid war, not how to seek retribution."

  "These were not the actions of someone open to peace. They attacked us without honor."

  "They almost killed you," she said. "You're by far our strongest warrior. So how can we hope to beat them?"

  I came to see them, but they only saw me as wounded. I gripped the edge of the table and forced myself to stand even though it caused my body to tremble. Nash shifted, but Markus subtly caught his wrist.

  Pain wracked my body. I knew I couldn't speak or even breathe, so I used the seconds I needed to recover in order to look from one person to the next. It wasn't possible to hide my pain. I let them see it. Let them see the exhaustion and dizziness trying to drag me to the ground and the stabbing pain carving through my wounds. A drop of sweat fell from my chin and landed on the table.

  "For how long have I told you all that I'm human?" Gasping from the pain, I straightened and walked away from the table toward them. The sling helped carry the weight of my arm, but the movement cut into me. The room spun slowly. This was war, though, and I couldn't lie down. "I'm not invincible. Do you understand that? I can bleed. I can fall. I can get wounded."

  "Eclipse," another chief said as he reached out a hand for me. "Please, sit down."

  "If I die, it doesn't mean there's no hope. And do I look dead to you?" I raised my voice and slashed my arm through the air despite how badly it hurt. That only hardened my voice. "Do I look like someone who is ready to give up?"

  The first chief who spoke lowered her head. "No."

  I limped forward another step. "We're a kingdom of warriors. Even if I die, you will fight without me. That's an order."

  "Yes, Prophet," one of the warriors shouted. He raised his forearm in the air. Others followed.

  My world slowly spun. "I know you're scared. We're all scared. What you don't know is I've been scared my entire life." The weakness won out and I sank to my knees, unable to stand any longer. This time, no one would stop Nash from coming to me. He bounded over the table and drew me back against him as he knelt beside me.

  "It's enough," he whispered.

  "We fight through the fear. We don't surrender to it. Every drop of my blood and ounce of my power is yours." I bowed forward, voice stifled by a wave of pain. "I…" Darkness hugged the edges of my vision. "I'm yours…"

  "Okay." Nash drew me back into his arms even though I shook my head.

  "We're fighting them," I said. "The alternative is death."

  Once Nash rose with me, he cast his gaze over the people gathered. "Chiefs and warriors," he said. "You will control yourselves. You will show strength. Your Prophet needs you to show some courage."

  It wasn't their fault. The myth of my power grew to unsustainable levels so that this one fall demolished all of their hope and faith. Yesterday, they believed they were safe. That I would protect them no matter what. Today, I was human again. They were human again.

  My consciousness faded and I didn't have the ability to cling to it.