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Tye snarled and snapped, blocking Jaiel and me with his body.

No!It couldn't end like this.

Another bond pressed against my mind, thrumming strangely. It wasn't Tye or Jaiel … but it thrummed with that same strange warmth and power…

Who —

"That is a HORRIBLE plan," laughed the soldier behind Frexin, voice obscured by his helmet. He shook his head and made a thumbs down motion. "I give it a zero out of ten."

Frexin froze, looking as confused as I felt.

Gods, was he mad?

"But do you know what Iwouldlike to see?" he asked. "What I'd risk my very life to watch?" He paused, as if for emphasis, and removed his mask. "I'd give itallaway, for the chance to crush you into dust … you stone heartedbitch!"

LIAM!?

Frexin's face twisted into a mask of shock and blind rage as she spun on the man who was very muchnother soldier.

"Rien?" he called up at the airship, confident expression faltering. "That was your cue!"

Stone magic swept across the ground towards the reckless fool, and he yelped, retreating from the deadly force at a sprint.

"Rien," he screamed. "Where the hells are —"

A massive green vine shot down from the airship,smashing Frexin into the ground so hard it shook the ground, sending up an enormous plume of dust and debris.

The stone magic stopped chasing Liam and instead started racing up the vine.

I held my breath, heart pounding in my ears as the massive vine fell away just in time. It crashed to the ground just as another giant vine slammed into the dust cloud, sending more rocks and dust into the air.

"Holy hells!" I gasped.

The stone magic moved up the new vine slower than before. And after a moment, it too fell away.

A third vine smashed into Frexin, hidden in the dust cloud, but the stone magic did not attempt to move up the massive vine this time.

No one could have survived impacts like those …

Normal vines reached down from the airship into the dust cloud, lifting a very bloody and twisted Frexin off the ground, and I let out a sigh of relief.

Gods, let her be dead!But as I looked at her in the Korra realm, I found her somehow still alive …

Chapter 63

Kaiya

Liam cheered as he removed his soldier's cap. Then he ran to us, wrapping me in a hug that lifted me from the ground.

My eyes watered as I squeezed him back.

Next to us, Tye let out a warning growl.

Liam's smile faltered as he noticed the wolf's eyes on him.

"Is that thing … safe?" he whispered, squeezing me tighter.

"Don't worry," I said, cheeks warm. "It's just Tye."