Anna’s voice fades and her body goes limp as the Shield finally releases her. I lay her gently on the ground and feel for her pulse. Her heartbeat is faint, but it’s there. Her body is unimaginably cold, and I quickly undo my vest, laying it over her. She needs more than that, but the Shield is so weak.

We’re running out of time.

Cracks reach across the Shield’s entire surface now, resembling glass about to shatter. As its glow continues to fade, shapes grow more visible on the other side. Dark, churning images like clouds of black smoke, twisting as if in pain. Animalistic roars mix with screams, the sounds barreling into the Shield and bouncing back, dulled. A dark, shadowy figure reaches out for me, its eyes bright gray.

I face Fin, both knives in hand. Anna’s words echo in my head. Fin’s still in his original body. Unlike his people, who became spirits and possessed new people, his body has survived.

Anna told me that as a warning. But a warning of what?

Fin closes the distance between us. I try to strike but he leaps aside as if pulled by a string. I can’t match his speed. He begins to laugh, the darkness engulfing his eyes. Then he’s before me, wrenching a knife out of my hand with a twist of my injured wrist. I barely register the pain before he drives his fist into my stomach, knocking the air from my lungs.

My knees buckle, hitting the ground hard. I struggle to breathe. Fin looms over me, his eyes completely black. As he reaches for my throat, the ground shudders. Fin jerks his head up just in time to dodge a massive black tail. A harsh bellow follows it, full of pain and anger.

“Max,” I whisper, clutching my stomach. The Jabberwocky’s tail encircles me, holding firm. His fur is wild, splayed in all directions with something wet and dripping. Blood. He’s covered in it, his body peppered with wounds of his own from the wraith battles. Silver light spills through them, dispersing like mist in sunlight, and his chest rises and falls in ragged heaves.

Fin laughs, my view of him blurring as my head begins to feel light. He sounds maniacal, the last remnants of his ancient aura quickly disappearing.

“Your pet Jabberwocky can’t defeat me alone,” he says. “He’s half dead himself.”

Max tenses. When had I started leaning against him so heavily? There’s a scraping sound behind me. Anna moves, her body twitching in her sleep.

“No,” she whispers. “Max, no.” She’s fading fast; I can feel it. I press my hands into the grass for balance. The cold ground is the only thing I can feel besides the dull pain in my stomach. Everything else has gone numb.