HerAstrid, with Fi’s blood flecking her hands.
And Void, didn’t Fi deserve this?
A roar shook the room.
Antal skidded across the tile, sheaths of crimson magic coating claw tips to fiercer points. The cord still bound his waist. He snarled as a swipe from the Beast raked his chest, spattering Void-black blood across the floor.
A whip of bright scarlet energy caught Antal by the ankle.
“Oyzen!” he shouted as he hit the ground, claws raking stone.
Verne coiled the whip around her arm, her placid facade slipping into a sadistic grin. Fi had thought Antal looked elegant with his Shaping, but Verne’s currents were immaculate, energy singing at her claws. She’d thought the immortals would be better matched, but…
Antal lunged for Verne’s belly. After trading red-laced blows like a pair of spitting cats, Verne lashed another whip around his arm, yanking him off balance. Her Beast sprang, pinning Antal to the ground.
Oh no, he wasbadat this.
Fiwas bad at this, unarmed and unable to look at Astrid without shattering.
They needed to run. Some things never changed.
At Astrid’s next swing, Fi dove and snatched a glowing scarlet energy capsule from her belt.
This is your fault, screamed in Fi’s head as Astrid brought her hilt down, cracking Fi’s elbow with numbing force.
Still a coward, as Fi retreated with her prize. Even through glass, the daeyari magic sank into her palm like a heartbeat from the Void. Pulsing. Foreign. A mere taste threatened to sear her. She didn’t dare tap in without knowing how to wield it properly.
Instead, she hurled it at the Beast.
The glass capsule shattered on impact, erupting in a burst of energy. The Beast yowled as shards of red seared its hide, turning its sleek gait into a retreat of writhing paws. Fi had hoped to see more damage, yet the impossible creature seemed more startled than anything.
Good enough as a distraction. Antal shot a startled look between her and the Beast she’d diverted.
Then he dug at his bindings. Teeth gritted, he sawed with energy-sharpened claws, sparks of ozone singeing the air. Until, at last, the cord snapped.
That bastard was her best way out of here. And she very much wanted to be out of here. Fi ran like she always did, ran like she had from Verne’s shrine ten years ago.
She tackled Antal, arms locked around his waist.
“What are you doing?” he snarled.
“Stop gawking and get us out of here!”
Across the room, the Beast shook sparks of energy from its flesh. Astrid shifted her grip on her sword, ready to charge, then stiffened, when Verne raised a hand to stop her.
The daeyari coiled her whip around slender fingers. Still calm. Still in control.
“Leave, Antal,” Verne said. “And don’t come back.”
But the last sight etched onto Fi’s heart was Astrid, herknuckles white around a sword hilt. Astrid, her ruby gaze trying to scorch Fi alive.
Astrid, standing at Verne’s side—where Fi was supposed to have been.
And Fi, still a coward, left her again. This time in a lurch of black.
10
Don’t make this more awkward than it has to be
