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“Mierna!”he yelled, but she didn’t look back and kept running. He could feel his heart breaking, a surprising feeling considering that he’d barely been able to feel anything at all for so many years.
All he knew was that her absence would be felt heavily, and that he didn’t want to be the reason that she was running away. He didn’t want her to be away from him.
In the cold snow, he chased after her with worry. She trudged quickly through the thick snow on the ground, the gray foreign cloak dragging her back. He couldn’t understand what would compel her to go back on her word, on a blood agreement, but he knew her well enough to believe that there was a good enough reason.
“Mierna, stop!” he cried out and picked up pace, kicking away snow to close the distance between them. She was too small to get away easily, and he caught up to her. Grabbing her arm, he halted her forcibly and pulled her close. “What’s gotten into you?!”
Her shocked and vulnerable eyes caught him by surprise, so he softened his grip and tone, heaving forbreath and filling his lungs with icy air. There was an odd look in her eyes, as if she was intoxicated. Her pupils were so wide that the blue of her eyes were nothing but thin rings. The paleness of her skin was tinged with a strange dullness, as if something was sucking the life out of her.
“You’ll get sicker,” he said gently. “Come on. Let’s go back.”
“No, I-I have to–”
“Have to what?” he pressed as kindly as he could despite his patience wearing thin. “You’re already sick, Mier–”
“Stopcallingme that!” She snapped and finally snatched herself out of his grasp and began running again, letting her cloak fall away as she picked up pace.
Suddenly, she jumped away, and he watched as the ice on the surface of the piled snow turned to water, freezing under her feet as she slid away from him at great speed. Her slippers scraped the ice, sending up a glittering spray that caught the sunlight. He was shell-shocked and in awe, unaware that Nymphs could do such a thing.
“Mierna”he cried out, finding the strength to tear through the snow. Filled with a desperate need for answers, he focused his connection on the border walls of the castle, stretching the limits of his mind as he bent the brick and mortar to his will. The wall rose higher and higher, theground shaking with a rumble as he did so until it was so high, it blocked the moon.
Travus knew he couldn’t keep it up for too long but hoped he’d bought himself time. He watched as Mierna slid at nearly the speed of sound, making her way to the base of the wall and ricocheting off the ground on a burst of water that shot her upward. He didn’t slow his pace, yet watched in awe as she rose high in the air, covering half the height of the wall in mere seconds.
There was no way he could contain her if she was so skilled, and he almost gave up hope until, suddenly, the water disappeared.
Travus’s heart lurched with genuine, agonizing fear as he ran faster through the snow, fueled with something that gave him the kind of strength he’d never felt before. No longer was he angry or confused or betrayed.
All he cared about was reaching Mierna before she met the ground.
Time slowed down as he pierced through the snow quite literally, arms outstretched with desperation fueling his limbs. He watched her flail through the air, grappling at hope that wouldn’t materialize. She wouldn’t survive the fall, and Travus knew deep down that this might be a loss that even he, as an immortal, would not survive.
Something fluttered at her back, only momentarily, but it was more than enough to slow her down just enough for Travus to lunge forward and tackle her midair when she fell again. He landed on a knee, scraping into the ground from the force of his jump. He worried that he might’ve hurt Mierna, but even that would be much better than death, or at most an injury that could never be fully healed.
His heart was pounding in his chest so hard that he thought he’d pass out. Never before had he felt a worry like this. Not since his mate died.
Mierna tried to clutch at his chest as she trembled, only finding armor to press her palms against. He grabbed her cold hands within his palm as he cradled her with his other arm. She felt weak, even weaker than the night before when he carried her back to his room. It made no sense how someone could lose so much strength in a few mere hours.
“Mierna,” he said, his tongue feeling slightly bitter as he said it. “What is the meaning of this? Why would you leave? This is unlike you.”
She said nothing as she curled into him, still trembling. He became aware of just how small and fragile she was in his arms, a large contrast to the woman defending Arthur in his courtyard against his best knight.
Despite the mixed feelings, he felt protective of her and decided to get up and turn back for the castle.
The healer and Arthur were at the back door when he reached it, and he scowled at the both of them. “You two will leave now,” he growled. “Consider yourselves fortunate that I have decided not to slay you where you stand for your negligence.”
He shoved past them and climbed up the stairs to his bedchambers, closing the door behind him for privacy as he set Mierna down. She was still trembling and looked even paler than she already was. The worry in his heart trumped every other emotion, and he cradled her cheek helplessly.
“What’s happening to you?” he demanded softly. “How can I help?”
“There’s no helping with this,” she muttered helplessly as she turned away from him, cocooning herself in the sheets. “Nothing can be done. I must pray that I die instead. It would be better.”
Worried, he perched on the edge of the bed and reached out for her shoulder, but she snatched herself away. “Will you please explain what is happening? Why did you try to leave? Why put yourself and your people’s freedom in jeopardy?”
She said nothing, but only started to sob. This was unlike her as well, and it was then that he decided there was no other way to understand except to call his own healer for an assessment. He didn’t trust who Arthur had brought,and walked to the door to call out for any conscious guards who would bring him the castle medic.
“I’m fine, Travus,” she grunted from the bed. “Just…leave me alone.”
“I will not,” he shot back somewhat aggressively. “Either you tell me what’s the matter with you, or I’ll lock you up here until the answer presents itself.”
