Page 4 of Heatbound Hearts

"In here!" an orc bellows, his voice bouncing off the stone walls. "I smell her!"

Panic surges through me. I extinguish my light and press myself against the wall, heart pounding. In the darkness, I fumble forward, hands outstretched, searching for any kind of sanctuary.

My fingers brush against something cold and metallic. A door handle? I twist it desperately, relief flooding through me as it gives way. I slip inside, easing the door shut behind me just as the sound of heavy footsteps echoes down the corridor.

I press my back against the cold stone wall, my chest heaving as I try to catch my breath. The room I've stumbled into is pitch black, and I strain my ears for any sound of pursuit. My legs give out, and I slide to the floor, my body shaking uncontrollably.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," I whisper, the words barely audible even to my own ears. The irony of the situation isn't lost on me – it's the winter solstice. A night that used to be celebrated with feasts and bonfires, now reduced to this desperate fight for survival.

The sound of heavy footsteps and guttural voices grows closer. I clamp a hand over my mouth to stifle my ragged breathing, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes. This can't be how it ends. Not after everything I've survived.

"Please," I plead silently, my usual skepticism crumbling in the face of sheer desperation. "If there's anyone out there, anygod who still gives a shit about us humans, I could really use some help right about now."

The words feel hollow, ridiculous even, but I cling to them like a lifeline. I've never been one for prayer – the gods abandoned us long ago, if they ever existed at all. But right now, trapped in this ancient temple with bloodthirsty orcs closing in, I'm willing to try anything.

A crash echoes through the corridors, followed by angry shouts. They're searching room by room. It's only a matter of time before they find me.

"I don't want to die," I whisper, my voice breaking. "Not like this. Not alone in the dark."

My hand brushes against something on the floor – a small, metallic object. I grasp it tightly, not caring what it is. In this moment, it's a talisman, a focal point for my desperate plea.

"A god of people? A god of kindness or faith or humanity?" I'm begging the universe now. The orcs said they want me alive, but I know what will happen to me if they take me.

I won't last long.

"A god of earth?" I hold back a sob. "Please, someone help me."

The footsteps grow louder. A door slams open nearby, and an orc roars in frustration at finding another empty room. I press myself further into the corner, willing myself to become invisible.

My heart pounds so hard I fear it might burst from my chest. The air grows thick, almost electric, as if the very atmosphere is responding to my desperate prayers. But is it just my imagination, fueled by terror and exhaustion?

A strange warmth spreads through my body, starting from the hand clutching the mysterious object. For a moment, the pain in my ankle subsides, and my trembling stills. I holdmy breath, hardly daring to believe that something might be happening.

The door to my hiding place begins to creak open...

But suddenly, the ground beneath me gives way. A gasp tears from my throat as I plummet through empty space, my stomach lurching with the sudden drop. The metallic object slips from my grasp, lost to the void.

I fall through seemingly the ground, my scream of surprise cut short as I'm enveloped by a blinding light. It's so bright it burns, forcing my eyes shut. The air around me crackles with energy, making the hair on my arms stand on end. My body feels weightless, spinning in a dizzying freefall.

The sensation is unlike anything I've ever experienced. It's terrifying and exhilarating all at once. For a moment, I forget about the orcs, about the constant struggle for survival. I'm suspended in this strange in-between, caught between two realities.

My mind races, trying to make sense of what's happening. Is this death? Some strange hallucination brought on by fear and exhaustion? Or have the gods actually answered my desperate plea?

As I tumble through the light, flashes of images assault my senses. Glimpses of a world that looks nothing like the one I just left. Or is it more than one? I can't tell.

My heart pounds with a mixture of fear and wild hope. Whatever's happening, whatever awaits me on the other side of this portal, it has to be better than what I'm leaving behind. Right?

The light intensifies, becoming almost unbearable. My head spins, and I feel consciousness slipping away. My last coherent thought is a jumble of relief and trepidation about what awaits me on the other side.

Then, mercifully, everything fades to black.

3

ZYX

Kairos and Naia scramble to their feet, both eyeing my wings as they do so. Their faces are a canvas of questions, but I decide to take charge of the conversation before we all get overwhelmed.

It's better this way, I think. Let them get their bearings first.

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