Page 160 of The Gods Order

My Obliteration comes to my call and the second it leaves my fingertips, the pressure building inside of me becomes unbearable.

The instant my concentration wavers, something snaps.

Not something. Some things…

Every connection I’d painstakingly separated slams back together all at once. Power crashes through my chest hard enough to steal the air from my lungs, and my knees hit the ground.

My fingers fist around the ash my training sword becomes as I desperately gasp for breath.

I rock back and forth, shaking off whoever just laid their hand on me. The sudden rush of every one of those connections snapping leaves my skin buzzing as though every Domain had exploded beneath it.

Silence descends across the Court aside from Yemi’s and my pants. I tilt my head the slightest bit and find her in the exact position on the ground I’m in. Just like my men who are all kneeled around and behind me, so are hers.

The air shifts in front of me, and I don’t have to face forward to know who’s squatting there. I stare down at my white knuckles for a moment before peering at Val.

“You did so good. You both did,” he murmurs as he tucks a stray piece of hair behind my ear.

“What the hell just happened?” I ask.

“That was the last lesson I wanted you to learn,” he says, offering me his hand to help me up.

I take it graciously, then damn near sway into him. He holds my shoulders steady and then glances over at Yemi. Her men already have her hauled up to her feet, making their way over to us.

“You okay?” I ask her as soon as they approach us.

“That was…rough. I don’t understand what happened. Even though I added a different variation of my power, I didn’t change what I was doing,” she says.

I didn’t either. Our gazes slide to Val’s.

“Instinctively, power wants to reach as far and wide as it can. It wants to be recognized and felt, not restricted. When the power of Boundaries separates the realm’s perception of other power being used, you’re limiting its reach and recognition. If it builds and builds in one contained area, it will eventually push past that restriction.”

Understanding dawns on me, and my lips part.

“The pressure I felt and that kept building with every person you called wasn’t just me using too much power. It was everyone else. Their power wasn’t staying still. It was trying to push outward, and I was the one cutting off where it could reach,” I say.

My gaze flicks between Yemi and Val as realization of what this really means settles into place for me.

“The harder they push their power out, the more force it puts against the connections I’m holding separate. That’s what I was feeling. It wasn’t exhaustion but…pressure from all of them trying to break past what I was restricting.”

Val nods and I rub my hand down my face. A small grunt leaves Yemi, and I peek over at her. She just realized the same thing I did.

“There’s no training to overcome that. Once their power reaches a certain peak, it’s going to break through our connections one way or another,” I conclude.

“Correct,” Val says, then his attention shifts to my side as Amick steps forward.

“That means that once we’re in the Abandon, we need to use as little power as possible.”

“If that’s possible, yes.”

A beat of silence stretches between us.

I glance around at everyone. Only Yemi and I seem the slightest bit tired. From what I can tell, the snap of those connections really didn’t affect any of them.

That’s both comforting and annoying.

Comforting because if Yemi and I get put on our asses, everyone else can defend us. That also makes that annoying.

The last thing I want is to be dead weight and a distraction for my men while we sneak through their childhood home.