Page 138 of Lady of the Drowned Empire

“NOW!” Rhyan screamed.

I released his hand and ran to the left, my boots fighting against the shifting sand. But the nahashim didn’t break apart. All nine snakes remained twisted together in one oversized scaly body and went after Rhyan, their tails leaving tracks in the sand.

I turned immediately, nearly sliding through the dune, racing as fast as I could to get to him.

They were separating and starting to circle around Rhyan. Both of his hands were on his sword, which was raised above his head, as he turned slowly, a pained expression in his eyes. He was exhausted from all the back-to-back jumps. He looked close to burning through his entire store of power and fainting. I’d seen him do it before. He’d once jumped from Elyria to Bamaria to return to me. He’d been up the entire night hunting akadim, and had already traveled across both countries. He’d fallen flat on his face from exhaustion.

I ran faster, desperate to reach him. My hands were at my sides, as I willed my legs to move quicker. Each of the nine snakes rose on its tail, their heads bobbing before they all snapped forward at once—just as I reached Rhyan.

Our hands clutched together, and we sprinted out from the center of the snakes.

In our absence, the snakes’ nine heads crashed into each other, their fangs piercing each other’s faces.

“You can’t keep jumping,” I cried, as the snakes quickly recovered from their collision and resumed chasing us. “You’re going to pass out.”

“Lyr, we have no choice. We can’t stop!”

His hand was shaking in mine, and to my horror, I realized I was the one leading us away—I was the one running faster. Rhyan had always been the stronger one, the faster one.

Except once—in the arena when he’d been bound and tied up, and the only thing standing between him and an akadim had been me. That instinct to protect him, to kill anyone who dared to harm him, was rising through me again just as it had in the arena that day, like a fire in my soul.

You’re the fire.

The snakes picked up speed, and I ran faster, my grip tightening on Rhyan, nearly dragging him ahead.

“Where can we hide?” I asked.

He was stumbling, but he had a determined look on his face. His protectiveness over me was starting to overpower his exhaustion. I could see his mind turning, trying to figure out how to guard me against the threat. But he’d already used up so much of his strength.

“Rhyan! We need a place to hide so you can recover.”

A shadow loomed over us of a giant body with nine heads.

He surged forward.

“Rhyan!”

He lifted me in his arms, and the beach faded away. We were on the side of a mountain again, a fresh crop of snow on the ground. Rhyan sank to his knees.

I knew instinctively this had been the farthest jump yet. The snow and the mountains gave me a sinking feeling, as did a distant flag of a silver wolf howling. We were in Korteria. In Ka Kormac’s land.

And the nahashim had still tracked us here. Already, they were surrounding us, slithering closer, their bodies expanding and retracting. When Imperator Hart had said he’d bred them to be large, he hadn’t been exaggerating. The largest rose up on its tail, towering over Rhyan as he stumbled to his feet, his face red and covered with a sheen of sweat. The rest of the snakes were slithering away from the leader, spreading out and trapping us in a circle.

I turned around and pressed my back to Rhyan’s. “We’re surrounded.”

His hand reached behind his back and clasped mine. His palm was so damp. I had no idea how far we’d traveled or how many times.

The nine nahashim were undulating their scaly bodies, towering over us.

“All things have balance,” Rhyan gasped. “They have to tire, too. If I have one jump left in me, so do they!”

He leaned forward, reaching for his second sword. I unsheathed my dagger.

“Stay close to me,” he said.

There was a hiss. A nahashim before me darted forward, its fangs bared. I lunged away from it, as the next nahashim struck, his teeth hitting the armor over my shoulder.

I elbowed it, throwing the snake back. It landed on top of another, and their bodies twisted together into a two-headed beast that charged forward.