Cursing pulls our attention to the furthest end of the training ground.
Mina has Harald floating five feet off the ground, while Luna travels in blips, disorientating Freya. Well, there’s something at least. We’re not completely out of practice.
Mina slams Harald to the ground. The ground shakes with the force.
He stands swiftly, turning to find her, but she’s too quick.
She runs at him. Her left foot lands on the top of his thigh while her right foot is already pressed against his stomach, propelling her up his body.
In one graceful movement she has literally climbed him like a tree. Her legs wrap around his neck, and she swings herself around his throat and leans back.
They fall together. A leaf attached to a felled tree.
Mathilda chuckles beside me and my eyes bulge.
She did it. She fucking climbed him like a tree.
But as soon as the thought whizzes through my mind, Freya rips Mina off where sits on Harald’s neck, raining blows to his unguarded face, and throws her, sending her hurtling through the air. She bounces on her butt several times before she skids to a halt.
Luna, sensing the change in the tide, stays still long enough for Harald to launch to his feet and send a well-timed punch to her face.
Fuck.
Bright red blood spurts from her nose before running down her chin and splattering onto the dirt. The color snares my attention, a vision bursts behind my eyes.
A red petal floating alone on the floor.
A voice calling for help.
Deeper and deeper I sink.
Fog hangs heavy in the air. The weight of it is so thick I struggle to breathe. But the scent is of the ocean.
Brine, and something else—something ancient.
I hold my hand up in front of me and take a step forward, trying to find a way out of it. But my fingers brush against solid stone. I rip my hand away.
Tentatively, I take another step forward. A black stone wall materializes out of the fog.
Moisture beads on the ends of my hair.
A scream rents the air. My head swivels side to side, trying to discern where it is coming from. But to no avail. The sound tapers away, and I’m met with eerie silence.
My body wobbles as the ground beneath me trembles.
No—not the ground.
Me.
“KEY!” Lachlan yells. His voice tugs me out of the fog. “Breathe!”
I follow the sound of his voice and turn back to see a figure emerging from the fog. Sandy blonde hair and a leering smile.
My eyes blink open.
The brilliant rays of the sun blind me. Ouch. Everything hurts. Like I’ve been dropped from the sky. My wings that were vanished away, rest beneath me cushioning the hard ground.
“What happened?” I croak out.
