Hassan stumbled to his feet, still dizzy from the impact, and raised his sword as he launched himself back into the fray. He ducked under another Witness’s attack and parried a blow from a Sentry before skidding to a stop in front of Jude and Hector, who had finally reached the sisters.

“Hector, what are you doing here?” the god-girl demanded as Hector rushed toward them, letting Hassan and Jude take point against the Witnesses still closing in.

“Rescuing you, what does it look like?”

“We didn’t need you to rescue us,” said the god-girl’s sister, Ephyra. “We have a plan.”

Hector glared. “Yeah, and how’s that going?”

“We need to move,” Hassan cut in tersely. “We’re exposed here, and the flash bomb has already worn off. They’ll be sending in reinforcements.”

The Paladin in the amphitheater wouldn’t be far behind.

“Flash bomb?” Ephyra demanded. “That was you?”

“We had a plan,” Hector said.

“We had a plan,” Ephyra spat. “And you messed it up.”

“Stop it, both of you,” the god-girl chided. “We still have a way out.”

“If someone will get this stupid thing off me!” Ephyra cried, shaking a metal cuff on her wrist.

Hassan glanced at Jude, and Jude gave a slight nod before lunging to drive back another Witness. Hassan retreated toward the girls, and Hector wordlessly took up a wider perimeter, buying them time. Hassan seized Ephyra’s wrist, turning the cuff over.

“It needs a key,” Ephyra said, gritting her teeth, “which we don’t have. You’re going to have to break my thumb.”

Hassan blanched at the prospect. “Maybe if we—”

“Ephyra,” the god-girl said in a concerned tone.

“There’s no time—just do it!” Ephyra demanded hurriedly. “I can heal. Get it off me, and we can get out of here.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Hassan spotted more Paladin choking the entrances of the courtyard. They were surrounded by enemies, and escape was seeming a more and more distant prospect. Ephyra gripped her sister’s hand with her uncuffed one and held the other out to Hassan.

“Do it!” Ephyra yelled, panic making her voice brittle.

Hassan seized her thumb and wrenched it toward her palm.

Ephyra let out a shriek of pure agony that rattled Hassan’s bones. Cringing, he tugged the cuff off as quickly as he could. Ephyra shouted a very long expletive as the cuff pulled free. She stumbled, as if she was about to collapse, and her sister caught her around the waist.

“I’m fine,” Ephyra wheezed, sounding very much not fine. She breathed out hard, eyes still closed, and went still, her uninjured hand curling into a fist.

Hassan glanced at her sister. “Is she all right?”

Her sister shushed him. “Give her a moment. She needs to concentrate to revive him.”