The first arrow struck stone.
It shattered, splintering into the clearing like a warning that mercy had ended.
Elion moved before she could think.
He shoved her behind one of the standing stones just as a second arrow cut through the air, embedding itself where her chest had been a heartbeat earlier.
"Stay down," he said.
She grabbed his arm. "You cannot fight them like this."
"I am not fighting," he replied. "I am buying time."
The clearing erupted.
Hunters poured from the trees, circling the stones, eyes sharp and unafraid. They moved like people who had done this too many times to count.
The leader stepped forward, his gaze fixing on her instantly.
"You feel it," he said calmly. "The forest reacting to you. It knows what you are."
Her hands trembled.
"I am not your enemy," she said.
"That is what the city said," he replied.
The words sliced deep.
Elion stepped into view, standing fully between her and the hunters.
"You want her," he said. "You come through me."
A hunter laughed. "There is not much of you left."
He was right.
Elion's vision blurred. His leg shook beneath him. Blood soaked the cloth at his side again.
She felt the fire slam against its binding, furious and alive.
No.
Not like this.
She stepped around him.
"Elion," she said softly. "Do not do this."
He did not look back. "I already did."
The leader raised his hand.
The forest screamed.
Roots burst from the ground, snapping around legs, dragging men screaming into the soil. Trees bent inward, branches cracking like bones.
The hunters froze in shock.
She stared.
"I did not do that," she whispered.
The forest had chosen.
But power always demanded payment.
The fire surged violently, tearing at her chest. Heat flooded her veins, overwhelming her control.
She screamed as the binding shattered.
Flames exploded outward, brighter than anything she had ever released.
The clearing turned white hot.
The stones cracked. The air burned.
Hunters scattered in panic.
Elion cried out her name as the blast threw him backward. He hit the ground hard, breath knocked from his lungs.
"No," she sobbed, crawling toward him through the fire. "Please get up."
He did not move.
The fire raged unchecked, feeding on her fear.
She pressed her hands to the ground, screaming until her throat tore.
"Take it," she begged the world. "Take me instead."
Something answered.
The forest fell silent.
The flames collapsed inward, dragged violently back into her body. The force knocked her to the ground, breath stolen, vision darkening.
When she opened her eyes, the clearing was ruined.
Hunters lay scattered, some unconscious, some fleeing.
Elion lay still.
She crawled to him, shaking, fear choking her.
"Elion," she whispered.
Nothing.
She pressed her ear to his chest.
Silence.
Her scream tore through the forest, raw and broken.
Love had finally bled.
And the world had taken notice.