She shook her head, tightening her grip on him.
“You can do it, Lucenna. Use your magic or you will drown, and so will I!”
“Not without you!”
“I can swim. I’ll make it.”
Arrogant mercenary. The riptide would eventually overpower him, and she wasn’t leaving him behind.
Lucenna wrapped her arms around his neck and shut her eyes. She ignored the fact that she had no real training in water magic, because it was life or death, and she wasn’t going to die here.
Her magic surged at her call, and she threw out her hand with a scream. A purple Essence Blast hurtled them from the water, throwing them up against the boulders lining the shore. Pain throbbed all over her body. She couldn’t move. Klyde dragged himself out, then hauled her up onto the bank. They fell back, wheezing.
“You did it,” Klyde rasped. He pulled her to him, holding her so tightly against his chest she could hear his heartbeat racing. Lucenna shut her eyes, her breath trembling. “I knew you could…”
Klyde laid there for a long moment. He stared blankly at the canopy of trees above them, probably contemplating how close they had come to death … or the last moment he saw Tavin.
“He’s alive,” she whispered.
“The flood hit him head on…”
“Yes, but he lives.”
“How do you know that?”
Lucenna hesitated before sitting up. “When I realized who Tavin’s father was, I was curious to see if he had any magic in his blood.” She looked away from the force of Klyde’s stare.
“And?”
She flinched at his harsh question. “It’s dormant … but it’s there.”
Klyde didn’t speak. She listened to his breaths as his chest expanded with each one until she felt his anger subside. “Can you sense him now?”
“Only that his presence is on this plane, as I know Dyna’s is.”
“Can you track him?”
“Perhaps once I gather my bearings.”
Klyde roughly rubbed his face. “He’s probably alone out there. Who knows where the current took him.”
“You trained Tavin to survive. He traveled across Urn on his own to find us. Have more faith in him.”
Klyde nodded. “Aye, you’re right. We won’t be of any use until we sort ourselves first.” He looked her over. “I need to get you warm. Your lips are blue.”
Lucenna trembled uncontrollably. They were soaked through, and the temperature had dropped, but she wasn’t aware of being cold. Likely due to the adrenaline.
“Are you wounded?” she said, spotting the many red stains on his shirt. She tried to stand but cried out at the sharp pain shooting through her arm.
“I’m fine.” Klyde made her sit down again. “Your shoulder is dislocated.”
Lucenna whimpered at the sight of her arm hanging at an odd angle. It was suddenly hurting now that she noticed it.
“I need to push it back into the socket.”
“Is that going to hurt?”
His mouth curled in bemusement.
