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I’d been so distracted I hadn’t realized another had entered the dream until Clawdia screamed as she was suddenly dragged away from me.
She struggled in the arms of another shadow, her screams stifled by his hand against her mouth. I stumbled when her grip on me failed. A strike at my lower back made me hiss in pain as skin and muscle were sliced through. I could afford no more distractions.
My eyes narrowed, the smell of my blood and the pain echoing across my body sharpening my senses.
These shadows will die.
"Clawdia, you still hold all the power in a dream that you do in real life. Escape!" I shouted. I saw the acknowledgment in her eyes, and she nodded.
Gripping my sword, I swung around and lashed out at the unprepared shadow. It was foolish if it thought one blow would kill me.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Clawdia’s body shake as she shut her eyes and she concentrated on turning into her familiar form. As our weapons continued to clash and my fury raged inside me, I noticed that the other shadow struggled to hold on to the squiggling furred beast. When she finally broke free, she ran off into the forest to hide.
The shadow didn’t follow her, which I was grateful for. Instead, he tried to attack me from behind while the shadow in front distracted me with powerful continuous slashes.
In pain and worried about Clawdia getting lost in the dreamscape, I decided enough was enough. If they weren't going to tell me what they were doing here, I'd just kill them.
My fangs dropped, and I growled threateningly. The shadows didn't flinch. In fact, they seemed to grin. My eyes shifted to see their blood threads to manipulate them and destroy them from the inside out. But I saw nothing. I blinked, confused. And then I realized.
They are shadows. They have no blood.
I cursed myself for being so arrogant. Mother always told me not to be reliant on my titan gifts. I would need to finish this the old-fashioned way. I caught my breath as I got into stance and prepared.
This time, when they attacked, I wasn’t protecting anyone else. I wasn’t deflecting, and despite the pain, I was focused and lethal. My strikes were powerful and quick, but they were equally skilled. When one finally made a mistake, I managed to thrust my sword, impaling it. But instead of killing the shadow, my sword slid right through and out, as if I’d stabbed fog.
I cursed.If I can’t kill them, they will kill me. But how do you kill a shadow?
With my mind spinning, I continued to defend myself, but I was distracted. Their blades cut across my skin, making long gashes across my chest, legs, and arms. With more and more blood loss, I stopped being able to heal as quickly, and I knew I was in danger of dying here if I didn’t figure out how to kill these invaders. As I deflected another stab to my chest, an idea suddenly hit me.
A shadow cannot exist in darkness. It needs light.
I didn’t know if the people of the shadow realm were the same as shadows or if my thought process was suffering from blood loss, but I had no other ideas, and it wouldn’t be long until I made a mistake and they could end me.
Concentrating on the landscape of the dream, I forced it to change from the daylight of Tartarus to the starless, moonless night of Akar, letting total darkness settle across the lands. My eyes adapted, and I blinked.
They are gone.
I sagged in relief, closing my eyes for a moment and allowing the disappointment of my defeat and the pain of my injuries to wash over me.
But I couldn’t pause for long. Clawdia was in the forest somewhere, frightened, alone, and lost. And being lost in a dreamscape was extremely dangerous.
Limping toward the trees, I shouted, “Clawdia!” The leaves crunched under my feet as I walked farther into the wood until I heard the strange call of an animal, one I hadn't ever heard before.
I looked up, and in the tree was a golden-haired creature with purple eyes, four legs, and a long furry tail. It opened its mouth again and made the same call. She was just as beautiful as she was in her human form. "We are safe now, Sunlight. Come down."
She lifted her front leg to show that she was stuck. "Jump to me. I will catch you."
I dropped my sword and reached up, and she hopped from her branch and fell into my arms. I quickly lowered her to the ground, not wanting to get blood on her coat, and fell to my knees, suddenly dizzy. I recovered quickly enough to sit back against the tree trunk before Clawdia noticed me struggling. I didn’t want her to know of my shameful defeat.
She called again, which I took to be thanks, and rubbed herself along my knees. "You are beautiful," I muttered and ran my hand over her soft fur.
She stilled when she saw the blood, and her body shook. Suddenly, she was a very naked, very stunning female, pawing at me with concern in her eyes.
“You’re bleeding. Where are you hurt? You shouldn’t be sitting in the mud if you’ve got cuts. Maybe I can help fix it.” Delicate hands hovered over me, looking for the source of my bleeding.
“I’m fine, Sunlight.” I waved her off, but that only seemed to annoy her.
She crossed her arms, drawing my attention to her beautiful breasts, a scowl marring her lovely face. “Don’t be stubborn. Let me help.”
