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LUCIAN
Natalie's pain was like a sting, and from above, I watched as she cried over Hydum’s body. I hadn't seen what happened, but Sif lowered us to the ground when Natalie’s powers went berserk.
I’d seen her lose control enough times to know when it was happening.
“Natalie!” I shouted, jumping from Sif’s back.
Her chaos had covered her completely, like a cocoon. The power radiating through the air was stifling as if all the air had been sucked into her.
“Stop.” Morana grabbed my arm when I tried to approach Natalie. “You can’t help her.”
Two pairs of legs each burst from Natalie’s side, sinking into the blood-soaked ground, and propelling Natalie in the air. Only her eyes—large, slanted, and red with vertical pupils—were visible, with the rest of her face hidden under the smooth armor her chaos had made.
She looked more like an animal than a person, but her eyes resembled Hydum’s. Had she made him a part of her?
Her arms elongated into spears and her legs transformed, matching the ones that had pierced from her side. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. But I could feel Natalie, somewhere inside whatever she was becoming, and she was angry.
"We have to stop this," I said, but Morana held me back.
"Try, and she might hurt you," she said. Before I could do anything, a Mudland Berserker, a native animal to this realm, came charging toward Natalie. Their breeding grounds were a few miles from the city but despite their size, they were usually fearful of souls and gods.
This one, clearly infected, was anything but fearful. A few feet away from it, I saw another one, dead, its body rotted.
“It killed Hydum,” Morana explained. One second, Natalie was standing there, and in the next, she was gone. "She’s still learning of what she’s capable of, and I’m not surprised to learn she can change her form. She has primordial power—the power of the original creators—so she can become anything she wants. She knows that now. But this is a triggered reaction."
She charged at the Berserker and passed it. I was confused for a second until a line appeared from the creature’s head down its middle, and it split open. Natalie kept going, her body twisting as she cut down every infected in sight.
Her hands and feet were like blades, and Morana and I lost track of her when she teleported.
“Where’d she go? Why did she consume Hydum?" I asked, as Natalie reappeared above another Berserker and fell on it.
Her feet impaled the creature, and she severed its head with a wave of a hand. I felt helpless. I didn't know what to do, although I could feel her rage.
“That was perhaps Tedara,” Morana answered. “She spoke through Natalie. She only said Hydum’s name, but it was obvious that it was her. Hydum was Tedara’s last remaining follower and he loved her dearly.”
That was undoubtedly a significant loss for Tedara, and for Natalie as well. Although we’d only met Hydum once, he and Natalie had developed a connection. Natalie had been chosen by Tedara, and because of that, Hydum had cared for her, too.
The last Berserker, fueled up by the death of the others, was at the city's far end. Like Natalie, it stood above everyone, and they locked stares. The beast roared, crushing everything in its path, but Natalie only kept walking.
She sliced through infected creatures and blocked their attacks, but she didn't take her eyes off the beast coming her way.
The Goddess and I were pulled into the fight, unable to remain bystanders as we witnessed Natalie's path of destruction, but I tried to keep an eye on my mate. She might not need me in this fight, but I was ready to be there for her if it looked like she might lose herself.
When an infected goddess moved into her path, Natalie cut her in half and charged at the Berserker. She leaped over its head, and using her arms like double swords, her hands made an x and took its head off.
Its body hit the ground, and fifteen or more infected witches surrounded Natalie. They attacked her with flames, but Natalie consumed them. The fire settled into her chest, glowing beneath her skin, and her right hand transformed from a blade to fingers.
Natalie tore away the armor covering her mouth, and the flames she absorbed moved up and out, pouring from her mouth like a furious dragon, burning the witches.
In the distance, there was a loud boom—like a speed barrier being broken—and I heard the whistle of something approaching in the sky. It was coming from the south, and when it got closer, I saw that it was aimed at Natalie. I sent shards of ice in Natalie’s direction, creating a wall in front of her just in time.
The object slammed into it, breaking through and tackling Natalie, sending her flying back.
It was a man, at least eight feet tall, dressed in golden armor. His face was hidden, but he didn't look like a native creature or any supernatural I’d ever seen.
Was it Cedric?
When Morana moved behind the newcomer, coming in close enough to attack him, a set of wings burst from the man’s back—familiar wings. They were green and gold, and I suddenly realized who I was looking at. I assumed Natalie had noticed as well, since even in her state, she staggered back, and her already large eyes widened.
