I can hear the magic humming to me from here. Maybe it’s my imagination that the sword glows at being released from its confines after so long, but I swear I see it sparkle in the sunlight, and Kellyn adjusts his grip at the unexpected weight. It’s only a broadsword, after all, designed with the potential to be held in one hand.

Meanwhile, Petrik looks over his shoulder while he runs from Kellyn, waiting to see what’s about to happen.

“Start swinging!” I shriek. One of the guards slaps me up the side of the head.

“Not another word,” he says.

Kellyn looks around in confusion at the soldiers who haven’t quite reached him. “What, now?” I can only imagine what he must be thinking. How could a sword that reveals secrets be of use to him in his current situation?

“Yes, now!” Temra says.

Perhaps because he simply wants to test the weapon out, or because he wants to try to intimidate the oncoming soldiers, maybe he’s humoring Temra—I don’t know—but Kellyn starts swinging.

The first three soldiers grab at their middles before sinking to the earth, blood dripping from slashes in their stomachs. Kellyn looks at the blade before meeting my eyes. Then I notice his eyes turn inward, as the secrets of the soldiers crowd his mind.

He comes to as another guard reaches him. He holds Secret Eater high in the air and brings it down, cutting the soldier in half from head to toe. The sword continues down, cutting a heavy swath through the earth. Kellyn has to pull it out with a few tugs.

I feel my stomach turn over as I watch the destruction caused by the blade I made.

I want to close my eyes, to pretend I’m anywhere else. But I force myself to watch. I should see this. See what I’ve done.

The rest of Kymora’s soldiers are soon to follow. They fall to Secret Eater in waves, helpless to get anywhere close enough for a fair fight.

The last soldier tries to hold up his bastard sword against the strike that doesn’t even reach him, but his sword splits in two, as if it were made of butter. The strike goes so far that the power of the blade bites into his neck, hitting the major artery. Blood shoots everywhere as he dies.

When Kellyn turns to me, I realize I’m not being held by our enemies any longer. They’ve run. Same with the ones holding Temra. Only the one in charge remains. She’s at her horse, though not mounting.

She fiddles with something before coming up with a loaded crossbow. It fires before I can blink, before I can call out a warning to Kellyn.

And either instinct or something else compels Kellyn to raise the sword high and bring it down. The wave causes the arrow to splinter as it hits an invisible force. The guard tries again, but her second shot is met with the same result. Finally, Temra pulls one of my never-dulling daggers she still had hidden in her tunic and finishes her.