Page 31 of Only Cold Depths
Siya shook her head. “I can’t do that, Arrow.”
She lifted her hammer into an attack position. I lifted my sword in response and stepped forward, putting myself between Vesper and Siya.
Once again, that cold, contemplative silence dropped over the dome, and the only sounds were the crackles of fire spewing out of Vesper’s stormsword and the bits of ice spitting out of mine.
“Attack!” Siya yelled.
I was already moving before the word left her lips. I charged straight at the Hammer and swung my sword at her as hard as I could.
Perhapsitwasaquirk of my imagination or a surge of Vesper’s seer power, but for an instant, time slowed down, even as everything around me came into super-sharp focus. Siya narrowing her eyes. The green glow of her psion power intensifying on her war hammer. Her weapon rising to meet mine . . .
Without warning, time snapped back to its normal flow. Siya blocked my attack, and my sword glanced off the side of her hammer.
I whirled around for another strike, but Siya was already moving to attack. I dodged her vicious blow, and then, before she could recover, I snapped up my hand and used my telekinesis to throw her back into two other Hammers. All three of them tumbled to the floor.
A bright glow flickered at the corner of my vision, and I spun in that direction. Vesper stabbed out with her sword, making one Hammer scramble back to avoid getting his guts sliced open, but she didn’t see another warrior coming up on her blind side.
Vesper! Behind you!
I called out a warning with my telepathy, but she didn’t respond.
Vesper! Vesper, behind you!
She kept attacking the man in front of her instead of turning to deal with the other warrior. I called out for a third time, but all I heard was my own frantic voice, and the velvety ribbon of Vesper went cold and dark, like a candle flame abruptly snuffed out by a winter wind.
Frustration and dread shot through me. Why couldn’t I feel her anymore? Was something wrong with our bond?
Siya scrambled to her feet, darted forward, and raised her hammer for another strike. I could block her blow, or I could protect Vesper.
I chose Vesper.
I lowered my sword, leaving myself open to an attack, and rushed toward Vesper. Siya growled, leaped toward me, and slammed her war hammer into my right shoulder.
Pain exploded in my joint. Shards of ice spewed out of the lunarium weapon and pelted my body, and my entire arm went cold and numb. My stormsword slipped from my nerveless fingers and skittered across the floor, but I staggered forward, gritted my teeth, and kept going.
The man on Vesper’s blind side lifted his hammer to hit her. I put on another burst of speed and slammed into the man, knocking him away from Vesper before he could strike her.
The two of us crashed into a booth at the end of one of the aisles. Wood broke, glass shattered, and bits of metal pinged across the floor as our combined weight destroyed the booth and the goods inside.
The Hammer cursed and tried to extricate himself from all the antiques we had just smashed. I jabbed my left elbow into his throat, making him wheeze.
Vesper whirled around, her eyes going wide. “Kyr! Look out!”
Siya was once again storming in my direction. Her lunarium hammer was glowing an even brighter green, and more ice was spewing out of the weapon, along with sharp crackles of wind.
I scrambled to my feet, but the wheezing warrior grabbed my ankle, throwing me off-balance. Siya snarled and raised her weapon high.
But Vesper darted forward, put her shoulder down, and rammed into Siya, and both women toppled to the floor, sliding across the slick stone.
My right arm was still numb and useless, so I snapped my left hand out and reached for my telekinesis. My stormsword zipped up off the floor and flew past two more Hammers, making the warriors yelp and lurch out of the way.
My sword settled in my palm. I wasn’t as skilled with my left hand, but I slashed the weapon down. The still-wheezing Hammer released my ankle and rolled out of the way of the whistling blade.
Vesper and Siya both surged to their feet and snapped up their weapons, circling each other. I hobbled forward and once again put myself between Vesper and the other warrior—
“Enough!” a voice yelled. “That isenough!”
A woman darted into the open space between me and Siya. I pulled up short to keep from hitting her, as did Siya.
