I don't even remember deciding to act. One moment I was standing there, fury boiling in my chest, and the next I was shouting before I could stop myself and before I could think.
"Stop this right now!"
Every sound in the market seemed to dip for half a second as eyes turned toward me. The bidder's pleased expression twisted into a sneer, and he pushed through the crowd with anger flashing across his face.
"What is this, huh?" he barked. "You some kind of royal guard, punk?"
Steel flashed as he yanked a sword free, and the crowd erupted with cheers, laughter and shouts urging him on like this was nothing more than a show. My pulse spiked and I stepped back, eyes darting wildly, searching for anything I could use.
My hand closed around a knife resting on a nearby stall.
I didn't aim. I just threw.
The blade spun through the air and sliced cleanly through the rope above. The woman dropped hard, crashing straight into the man charging at me. They hit the ground in a tangled mess of limbs as curses flew around us.
"Ugh—!" she groaned. "You prick. Thanks for the save, but that hurt like a bitch."
The incoming laughter died instantly and the crowd's mood shifted, smiles draining as faces hardened. Hostile gazes locked onto us from every direction. The woman struggled to her feet but her hands were still bound, and looked at me with wide, urgent eyes.
"Run!" she hissed.
I knew I wasn't a warrior. I never had been. But my mother's voice echoed in my head, steady and unyielding as she had always said I carried an instinct to protect, an urge to step in when others couldn't. And I wasn't dying here. Not before I saved Mira.
I moved without hesitation, snatching a fallen sword from the ground and turning to face the approaching crowd, my grip tight despite the tremor in my hands.
"Stay back!" I shouted. "Take another step and I'll turn you to dust!"
For a heartbeat, nothing happened.
Then laughter broke out.
"The boy thinks he's a Skirr."
"Cute."
A greasy-looking man stepped forward, dragging his blade along the stone before licking it clean. "Come here, boy," he said with a grin. "I'll be gentle."
That was enough.
I spun back to the girl, sliced through the rope binding her hands, and grabbed her wrist. "Run."
We took off together as the crowd roared behind us, footsteps pounding as the chase began.
I barely had time to react before someone slammed into me from the side, knocking the sword from my hand. It skidded across the stone floor and vanished beneath a stall. My heart dropped, now that I was unarmed, surrounded, and the crowd was closing in with their faces twisted with excitement.
Panic surged through me, it was hot, choking, unbearable.
I didn't want to die here.
I couldn't.
Not like this. Not without saving Mira.
Before I could react, something snapped inside my chest.
The air around me grew heavy, damp, as if the market itself had taken a sharp breath. A cold pressure built in my veins, rushing outward, and before I could even understand what was happening, water burst from the ground at my feet. It surged forward in a violent wave, slamming into the nearest men and throwing them back like rag dolls.
The market fell silent.
Crates shattered. Stalls toppled. Water pooled across the stone, rippling unnaturally and I stood frozen, staring at my trembling hands as the crowd backed away in fear, murmurs spreading fast.
"A Skirr…"
"No --impossible…"
What was that just now?
Is this from the temple?
I looked at my hands before my legs gave out. The strength drained from me all at once, leaving my body weak and burning. I dropped to my knees, gasping, barely able to stay upright.
The crowd that looked flabbergasted stepped forward with there swords pointed towards me and I braced my weak body for impact.
But before any hit could land, someone stepped in front of me.
A hooded figure with dirty blond hair drew his sword in one smooth motion and faced the crowd.
"Enough," he said calmly.
The girl's eyes widened as she looked past me. "Hey! You're the man who bid on me!"
He glanced back at her and gave a quick wink. "Later, sweetheart."
Then his gaze hardened as he turned back to the market. "If the royals find out you killed a Skirr down here, every last one of you will be dead by morning."
Maybe it was the authority in his voice but everybody looked uncomfortable as they looked at each other and hesitated, then slowly began to scatter, i could feel their fear winning out over greed.
I fought the weakness threatening to pull me back down and forced myself to my feet. A hand appeared in front of me, steady and firm. I took it, letting myself be pulled upright and that was when I caught sight of someone at the edge of my vision.
Henry.
My breath caught.
I started toward him, slow at first, then faster as my legs remembered what they were meant to do.
"Henry!" I called out.
The blond man reacted instantly, sprinting past me and cutting Henry off. "Stop! Right there!"
The girl slipped an arm around my shoulder, supporting my weight as we followed. "Hey," she said quietly, concern cutting through the chaos. "You alright? And what the hell was that just now?"
"I'm fine," I muttered, my eyes never leaving Henry.
She smiled anyway, bright and unguarded despite everything. "I'm Nysera. Thank you for saving me. I owe you my life."
I tried to return the smile, but my focus was already ahead.
By the time we reached them, the blond man had Henry by the collar and shoved him forward, forcing him down at my feet. I stepped closer and grabbed a fistful of his shirt, my fingers trembling - not with fear, but fury.
"Where is the book, Henry?" I shouted.
He looked frantic now, eyes darting to everyone around me with his lips shaking. "Sold t—"
He never finished and foam spilled from his mouth as his body stiffened, his eyes rolling back before he collapsed in a heap at my feet.