Time slows as I push myself up, ribs screaming in protest. The Aquanite sings to me again, urging me to action. I reach out, commanding the ice beneath the champion's feet to spike upward. Vidar leaps away, but his movement gives Rhyland time to spin clear.
"Would you stop trying to be the hero?" I wheeze, stumbling to his side. "We need a plan."
"The plan is keeping you alive," he growls, eyes blazing.
The champions laughter fills the chamber. "Your light cannot pierce my shadow, Lightborn," it taunts, "And your strength cannot grasp what isn't solid, Son of Nyx."
Wait. Wait. Wait. The way it shifts between solid and shadow... the way it only becomes tangible at certain moments...
"Rhyland," I gasp, clutching my bleeding leg. "It's quantum."
"What?"
"Like Schrödinger's cat—it exists in multiple states simultaneously." My scientist's brain kicks into overdrive. "It's only solid when observed when light hits it. But your power affects it when it's in shadow form."
Understanding dawns in his eyes. "So we need to—"
"Hit it in both states at once." I push myself up, ignoring the stabbing pain. "Think you can time it, right?"
His arm tightens around my waist. "Just tell me when."
The champion charges, his blade leaving trails of darkness through the air. Time warps around us as I gather my power, angel fire blazing in one hand while the Aquanite stone pulses in my crown.
"Now!"
My light erupts just as Rhyland's power strikes. The Einherjar tries to shift forms, but it's caught between states—my radiance forcing it's shadows solid, while Rhyland's telekinesis tears at its now solid form. Ice crystals form in the air, infused with burning light, piercing through both aspects of its being.
Vidar screams, a sound of agony and revelation. Its form begins to dissolve, not into shadow this time but into pure energy—its essence.
"The jar!" I fumble for Baldr's container with blood-slicked hands. "Help me—"
Rhyland's power joins mine as we guide the swirling essence into the jar. As I seal the lid, it pulses with captured energy.
His essence swirls like a liquid shadow. Storm-grey light seeps between my fingers, casting strange patterns across the frozen chamber walls. The cold glass vibrates with power, a reminder of how close we came to joining those frozen warriors in their icy tombs.
"One down," I whisper, watching dark energy writhe within its prison. The essence seems to reach toward me, testing its boundaries before coiling back on itself like a wounded serpent.
My legs give out, the adrenaline crash hitting hard. Rhyland catches me, his face tight with rage and concern.
"That was reckless," he growls, already examining my wounds.
"Says the guy who lost his cool and nearly got skewered." I wince as he probes my ribs. "Besides, I totally solved the quantum physics puzzle. You're welcome."
"Angel." His voice drops lower, dangerous. "You're bleeding from at least four places."
"They're just flesh wounds," I joke, but it becomes more of a groan. "Besides, Viking's dig scars, right?"
"Not funny," he grumbles, but his hands are already gentle as they examine my injuries. "You could have been killed."
"Please," I scoff, wincing as he finds a particularly tender spot. "Death would have to get through you first, and we both know you're way too much of a stubborn ass to let that happen."
A deep grumble vibrates through his chest, his blue eyes darkening to midnight. Without hesitation, Rhyland brings his wrist to his mouth, fangs piercing flesh. Blood wells from the wound—the second time today, he's opened his veins for me.
His hand tangles in my hair, tilting my head back as he presses his bleeding wrist to my lips. "Drink." The command leaves no room for argument.
I meet his gaze, taking in the shadows under his eyes, the strain etched into his features. His own wounds from the battle have barely started healing, yet here he is, offering more of himself. The Atherite stone healing power works too slowly for his liking—it always has. The sight of my blood, my pain, drives him to this every time.
His blood hits my tongue, hot and electric. The effect is immediate—a rush of power that makes my nerve endings sing. I feel my torn flesh knitting together, the deep gash in my thigh sealing itself with a strange tingling sensation. My ribs snap back into place with an audible pop that would make me flinch if the pleasure of his blood wasn't overwhelming everything else.
