“How sad,” he whispers, his grin spreading into a manic smile. “How very, very sad.” He turns his head over his shoulder, shooting me a taunting wink as he prepares to deliver the killing blow. “Say goodbye, Malice and friends.”

Years ago, I heard a story about one of the creatures that lives in the human realm—one with a survival instinct so strong, it would chew its own limbs off to get free of a trap. Even though the poor animal would inevitably die from its injuries, it didn’t care—all that mattered were those few moments of life that followed, the brief solace of freedom. I remember how shocked I was at the time, how I couldn’t quite wrap my mind around it. To be so singularly minded in one aspect, to willingly defy the fates in such a way, to damn the consequences for a few more minutes of survival… It was astonishing. Miraculous.

I look up, and my eyes find Dagny’s across the distance, that simple glance filling my veins with waves of charged electricity and adding kindling to the fire blazing across my skin.

And suddenly, I understand.

A thunderous roar explodes in the base of my stomach, billowing up my throat and erupting from my open mouth as I press forward, fighting through the searing, all-consuming agony spreading from my shoulder blades. My claws extend, piercing deep into the ice for added leverage as I lunge one last time, muscle and tendon shredding as I yank against the powerful force, the pain filling my ears with an intense ringing and causing my vision to tunnel, then disappear entirely. A cacophony of squelches, pops, and splatters rings out through the silence, causing my stomach to flip and my vision to shatter as agony spreads through my body, consuming me and clearing my mind of any thought other than that growing, devastating flame.

It’s a pain I could have never imagined, an agony so excruciating, it ripples to the tips of my fingers and toes, bathing every inch of my body in boiling acid and searing the flesh from my bones. But it doesn’t matter.

Before darkness consumes me, I lunge across the distance, watching Slaine’s fist come down on Dagny in slow motion. Just before he makes contact, I slip through the space between them, curling my body around Dagny’s and shielding her from the devastating attack.

A squelch breaks the air, followed by Dagny’s horrified gasp, and she gazes up with wide eyes, her lips moving with no sound coming out.

Gods, she’s so beautiful. So utterly, indescribably magnificent…

The blood drains from her face as she reaches up, cupping her palms around my face with her lips still forming those wordless sounds.