River BlackBefore she could render any aid at all, the Dain roared viciously, so loud and horrible it hurt her ears. As River looked up, a great, stinking appendage swung at her. There was no time to dodge or get away. Pain expolded in her midsection as she was sent careening through the air. She landed in the brush, at least ten feet away from where she had been.It knocked all the air out of her and she lay on the ground, dazed. Pain, like fire, spread all over her abdomen. River wasn’t sure if she was seriously hurt or not. She lay still, hoping the Dain would forget about her. She only raised her head a little, vision blurry, head spinning, hoping to spot Tamsin.She couldn’t see him. All she could see is Cinder holding aloft his flaming dagger, shouting at the Dain. He flared brightly until she couldn’t see him at all. He was a pillar of flame, an inferno. For a moment, she could feel a wash of heat.Then, the Dain

River BlackRiver watch Inana work on Tamsin, clean his body, his wounds, pack them with pungent herbs. After she’d finished, she stepped back and frowned, brushing gilded hair from her cat green eyes. She shook her head.“This requires...much more,” she said, her voice low and tired.River looked at him. His skin had lost so much color, his cheeks were sunken. Likely blood loss, she thought. But again there were no hospitals, no doctors. She doubted if she said blood transfusion the witch would understand. She’d probably just think she meant...Aelnith.Reflexively, her fingers went to the bite mark on her neck. She watched as Inana followed with her eyes, looking at the mark.“And that,” the witch said. “Must be dealt with. I assume you don’t want the curse?”River shook her head. “No. No,I don’t want it. He didn’t...really ask.”Inana smil

River BlackEvery time she thought about walking back to Inana’s cabin, she found that she’d gone further from it. It had to be magic, something she still had a hard time believing in all the way. It was hard to deny when it was directly happening, though, and now she tried to fight it.It couldn’t be ‘good’ magic if it controlled her, River reasoned. She would stop walking, resolutely plant her feet on the ground and then in a blink, she’d walked several steps. Well past sunset, she found herself deep in the woods in the dark.For a moment, she had her own will again. River spun in a small half circle, looking for the light of the cottage. It was long gone. She had no idea where she was, what time it was. Five minutes could have passed. Or five days. Disoreintated, she sat down, stubbornly refusing to walk another step. Her legs hurt, her feet ached. Cinder had given her a pair of boots, but they were a coupl

River BlackRiver stared at Aelnith, looking up at him. He seemed like a phantom, pale hand extended, his eyes phosphorent red. It seemed like an unspoken deal, some gamble she didn’t understand the rules of if she took his hand. She felt so weak, so tired, that it was hard to think clearly, and all she wanted to do was go -home-.Time slowed, as if giving her some unspoken mercy, as she tried to remember home, the faces of her parents, the voices of her friends. They were far away things now, watery memories that didn’t seem as sharply in focus as they should have been. Aelnith’s extended hand was sweetly deceptive. River knew better, but found herself taking it anyway.Every touch, the barest brush of his fingers and she could almost feel his lips on her throat. A wave of desire and dizzyness darkened her vision and she gasped, unable to stand. She hated feeling weak and useless, helpless.Before she could topple over,

River Black She couldn't see what Aelnith saw. River couldn't see the creature called 'Dub'. He insisted it was there, a tall, person-shaped skinny shadow lurking by the windows of Inana's cottage. For a moment, she thought she saw -something-, but no. Nothing. Dawn would come soon and Aelnith needed shelter. “I can't leave you here,” he told her. “When the sun rises, Dub will surely be weakened, but I will be...dead. At his weakest, he'd still be able to make short work of you.” Aelnith had taken her in his arms again and though she wanted down, she knew she didn't have the strength. “What about Tamsin? We can't just...leave him there vulnerable,” she said. Aelnith shook his head, moving deeper into the woods. “There's nothing we can do with you weakened and my curse...” He paused. “And neither of us know for sure where Cinder is