The end of Valen’s staff beats into the ground, his voice steady. Controlled.
“Again.”
The shadows rise. Fellborn wraiths emerge, twisting intoshape, their hollow eyes locking onto me. I flick my wrist—fire arcs toward the nearest one. The flames strike, but the creature shifts, dodging effortlessly.
Another lunges, fast and vicious. I twist, counter, my blade slicing through its form as Lyra moves in beside me. We fight like we’ve done this a hundred times, knowing each other’s moves before they happen.
But something’s off. Different.
I shift my weight—just beginning to move—but Thane reacts first. He’s meant to be training with the others. But he’s already moving.
The wraith lunges, and my blade swings wide. Thane doesn’t even think. His fire—faster, instinctive—hits before I even react. His blade cuts through the wraith before I can even lift my hand.
I stumble back, breathless, heart hammering. And when I turn—I see the look on Lyra’s face.
“Huh,” she says.
Eyes narrowed. Voice light. Too light. Her gaze flicks between me and Thane.
“Interesting.”
I wipe sweat from my brow. “What?”
Lyra grins. “Oh, nothing. Just pretty sure he moved like he felt you about to get your ass handed to you.”
I open my mouth, then close it. Because . . . I noticed it too. But I try to brush it off. Maybe we both imagined it. We reset, returning to our positions.
The next round, it’s just Thane and me. One-on-one.
Which means I have nowhere to hide. Nowhere to pretend I don’t feel the way his movements shift around me, the way he keeps adjusting—not just fighting me, but protecting me.
I grit my teeth, shoving the thought away.
The fight begins.
He lunges first—fast—his blade sparking against mine. Iblock, sidestep, swing wide—but he sees it coming. Lately, healwayssees it coming.
Fuck!
I barely deflect his next strike, fire flickering in my palms as I twist out of the way. I think I have him. I think I’m fast enough. I think—
But he moves faster. The next thing I know, I’m on my back, my sword out of reach, his forearm pressed against my collarbone, pinning me down.
“You’re reckless.” His voice is sharp, his breath uneven.
I shove against him, scowling. “You’re being dramatic.”
His jaw clenches. “Do you think the Shadow Forces care about your arrogance?” His voice is sharp, biting. “You almost died in the sky, and now you want to act like you don’t need to adjust? That you don’t need to be smarter?”
What the fuck?! He’s coming at me like I haven’t bled for this!
This is a training session. I’mtraining.It’s only been months—months—since I stepped into this world. Since I took on the weight of the Spiritborn.
I’ve been carrying this for months. Fighting every godsdamn day just to keep up. And he wants more?
But I don’t say this to him. Instead, I glare up at him, breath coming fast, heart pounding beneath his weight.
“I don’t need you to save me every damn time, Thane.”
