I scramble up, fingers slipping against stone as I haul myself onto the clock’s base. The edge scrapes my skin and I notice the tiny cut doesn’t heal.
No Blood Magic left, I realize in horror. It must’ve spent itself mending the wounds I didn’t feel or notice in the frenzy below.
No healing. No second chances. It’s now or never.
The leech shudders, its maw gaping, thick saliva threading from its spiraled teeth. It coils back, gathering itself for another strike, slower now, but still deadly.
I need it closer.
I’d just have to move away fast enough. And if it won’t break the glass, at least it’ll weaken it enough for me to finish the job.
My hands shake as I drag my palm along the sharp edge again. Pain flashes white. I grind my teeth—not from pain, but from fury. For having to mutilate myself again and again under the kingdom’s gaze while the other Champions stand safely behind their Sanctum borders.
Why do I have to be the only one who cares?
With a burst of hot anger, this time turned on myself for ever choosing this path, I press my bleeding palm harder, forcing more fresh blood to rise before smearing it across my skin.
I want to quit, I realize. To stop this endless, torturous fight and let someone else play the hero.
But then my gaze drifts to the row of Sanctums on the far side of the arena, to the other Champions within, calm and untouched. All except Seraphina, who stands in front of her Sanctum, poised as if ready to defend those few behind her if it comes to that.
And I’m struck by the truth that if not me, there would be no one. No one to care. No one to stand for those with even less.
Still trembling, nerves frayed and fury burning low in my chest, I smear more blood over my skin, shaking my head at my own relentless stubbornness. The leech sniffs the air. Its maw twitches, teeth clicking in anticipation.
I press myself against the glass.
It screeches. Its body coils, then surges.
Everything slows. I see the spiral of teeth, the abyss inside its throat, the glint of hunger in its black, soulless eyes.
At the last second, I throw myself aside. The impact shudders through the clock. A fissure spiderwebs across the glass. Still not enough. Panic claws at my chest.
One more hit. Just one.
But the leech doesn’t lunge again. It waits, watching. I circle the clock, my legs trembling and exhaustion dragging at every step. The leech mirrors me.
But the clock has already shifted. Two direct strikes have loosened it from its crooked base. It’s teetering now, hovering on the edge. One more push.
I move. A scream tears from my throat as I shove with everything I have left. The clock groans. Tilts. Then it gives.
The structure slams down, the leech’s screech cut short as it’s crushed beneath the falling glass, sliding down the hill's edged slope.
A deafening crash reverberates as the hourglass collapses, splintering into the ground below. I crawl forward, gasping, following the guttural wail of a dying monster.
Shattered glass juts from the leech’s convulsing body. It thrashes once, twice, then goes still beneath the weight.
Silence.
I won.
My breath comes in ragged bursts. My body trembles. My fingers go numb. Slowly, I push myself upright. My gaze lifts and finds Kaelzar. He stands beside my Sanctum, guarding the people we saved.Isaved.
Relief crashes over me, fierce and wild. I don’t hide my smile. Let him see it. Let him see me alive. But his expression isn't a relief. It’s horror. Desperation.
Even from here, I see the color drain from his face. His mouth moves—shouting? No. Warning.
His arm cuts through the air, gesturing frantically for me to lookback.
