Cion roared and moved forward.

I moved to stand shoulder to shoulder with Cion. We became a whirl of blades. One of us would advance while the other tried to move a little to the side to get around Rodric, to force his blows farther apart by having to turn more to defend himself.

But Rodric’s attacks never faltered. Each blow against my sword radiated down my arm. My bones hurt. My muscles groaned. I was used to having a shield to absorb those hits.

Then it happened.

He hit me with so much force it ripped my sword from my hand. I faltered forward.

Miraculously, Cion was there to stop the blow that would’ve cut down my arm, but it cost him.

He’d left his entire side exposed.

He inhaled sharply as Rodric’s blade sliced across his ribs.

“No!” I screamed.

Too late.

Cion fell to his knees. His sword splashed against the rocky channel.

Rodric pulled his blade back once more.

I scrambled forward, reaching for Cion’s sword. Before my hand got there, a crack sounded through the cavern.

All eyes went to the dam towering above us. Spouts of water burst through the clay. Several beams bent outward.

I spotted Dimic’s shadowy figure under the falling water. “Get out of there!” I screamed, but the sound was cut off by the splintering of wood and a roar unlike anything I’d ever heard.

I dove toward Cion, wrapping my arms around his neck. I barely had time to take a breath before the wave hit us. Then we were tumbling, being tossed in too many directions. I felt like I was in the shifting hills.

I smashed into rock. The force of it stole my air. I lost my grip on Cion and tumbled underwater. When my head broke the surface, I spotted him ahead of me.

He was flapping one arm in the water, but the effort read across his face.

I let the current take me closer to him.

“Hang on,” I cried, catching hold of his arm.

We were at the front of a wave racing down one of the tunnels, and the current had a firm grip on us. I prayed that it was a tunnel that led to a well. Otherwise, we’d drown when the water collided with a dead end.

Cion winced every time the tossing waves pulled us apart, forcing me to tug on his arm. We choked and gagged as water sprayed us. I couldn’t even feel the chill of the water because I was too focused on searching for any hint we were headed toward one of the wells. My free arm scraped along the edge as I fought to stay afloat. Ahead, the tunnel brightened just enough to become visible.

“The well,” I shouted between blasts of water hitting my face. It had to be. It was that or Cion was growing paler by the minute. Maybe both.

One final push shoved us forward. We swirled upward.

Light.