Page 183 of Warlord's Plaything

This place is bound to my blood.

And I am breaking it.

Tearing it apart.

Undoing everything Kaelith has become.

"NO!"Kaelith’s roar shakes the earth.

He stumbles, his form flickering, his body twisting between solid and shadow.

He is losing control.

And Hira?—

Hira sees her opening.

"Hira—"

My voice is barely a whisper.

But she understands.

She moves.

Faster than she ever has.

Stronger than she should be.

Blade high.

Eyes burning.

And she drives it straight through Kaelith’s heart.

The world erupts.

Kaelith screams?—

A sound that is not a sound at all.

A sound that tears through reality itself.

The temple collapses.

The altar shatters.

And the rift closes.

The last thing I see before everything fades to black is Hira, screaming my name.

58

HIRA

The world is silent.

Like it is holding its breath.

---