Sera's POV
The stone cracked beneath her feet as she fell for the third time.
"Stop fighting it," Kael called from across the training ground. His voice was patient but firm. "You're resisting the power instead of moving with it."
Sera pushed herself up off the ground, frustrated. Her body was already bruised from the first two falls. Her pride was bruised more. A week ago she was barely alive in a cave. Now she had the power of a god flowing through her veins and she couldn't even stand for more than a few seconds without her own strength betraying her.
"Show me again," she said, dusting off her hands.
Kael moved across the stone platform like he was dancing with something invisible. His body flowed from one position to the next without any wasted movement. No tension. No fighting. He was so completely in control that it looked effortless. His dark eyes met hers for a moment and she felt that familiar skip in her heartbeat.
"Feel the power instead of thinking about it," he said. "Don't decide where you're going to move. Let the energy decide for you. Work with it like you're dancing with a partner instead of wrestling with an enemy."
It sounded simple when he said it. Everything sounded simple when he said it. She tried again.
The power surged through her and she moved fast. Too fast. The world blurred around her and she lost her bearings. Her feet tangled and suddenly she was falling again. She braced herself for impact with stone but it never came.
Kael caught her.
His arms wrapped around her waist and pulled her against his chest before she could hit the ground. She was pressed against him, her hands finding his shoulders for balance. This close she could feel his heartbeat. Could sense through the bond between them that he was far more affected by holding her than he wanted her to know.
"I've got you," he said quietly. His voice was right above her ear and it made her shiver.
She pulled back and looked at his face. Really looked at it. The sharp angles of his jaw. The silver eyes that seemed to hold the weight of three thousand years. The way he looked at her like she was the only real thing that had ever existed.
He was beautiful. Not in a soft way. In a dangerous way. In a way that made her realize why the other gods were afraid of him. Why ancient laws had been put in place to keep gods from bonding with mortals. Because if you let yourself care about someone this much, you could burn the world down for them.
She realized he was watching her watching him. She felt him sense her thoughts through their bond. Her heart started racing.
"Again," she said, pulling away. "We need to keep training."
For the next hour they worked through different movements. Kael taught her how to move with the power instead of controlling it. How to let it guide her body instead of forcing it to obey. Every time she fell, which happened frequently, he was there to catch her. His hands on her arms. Around her waist. Against her back.
Every time it got harder to focus on the training.
By midday the power started burning too hot through her veins.
Sera felt it happening. The energy that had been flowing smoothly started churning inside her like a storm. She gasped and stumbled and Kael was immediately there, pulling her toward the edge of the platform where they could sit.
"It's too much," she managed to say. Sweat was pouring down her face and her hands were glowing so bright she could barely see through the light.
Kael sat beside her and pulled her into his arms. His back was against the stone wall and he positioned her so she was leaning against his chest. His heartbeat was steady and strong and real.
"Breathe with me," he said. His voice was a calm anchor in the chaos. "In through your nose. Hold it. Out through your mouth."
She followed his rhythm. In. Hold. Out. In. Hold. Out. Gradually the burning sensation started to ease. The light from her hands dimmed. She found herself focusing entirely on his heartbeat and his voice and the feeling of his arms around her keeping her safe.
"That's it," he whispered. "You're doing it."
They sat like that for a long time after the burning faded. She stayed in his arms even though she could have moved away. He didn't release her even though he probably should have.
"Why did you choose me," she asked quietly. "Out of all the mortals in the world, why did you bind yourself to a dying girl on a mountain."
Kael was silent for a long moment. She could feel him struggling with the answer through their bond. Like he was trying to decide how much to tell her.
"Because you didn't ask for power to hurt people," he finally said. "Because you were willing to burn yourself alive to save people you couldn't even save. Because something inside me that had been dead for three thousand years suddenly woke up when I looked at your face."
Her breath caught. She turned to face him and his silver eyes were so close she could see her own reflection in them. His hand came up and touched her cheek gently.
"You're going to have to be strong," he said. His voice was rough. "Stronger than you've ever been. Because what I've done by binding us together is put a target on your back. The factions are divided now. Some of them want to kill you to hurt me. Others want to capture you and use you as a weapon. And I can't protect you from all of them."
"Then don't protect me," Sera said. "Teach me to protect myself."
She watched his expression shift. Saw the moment he realized that she wasn't asking for his protection. She was asking him to make her strong enough to stand beside him. To be a partner instead of someone to be guarded.
He leaned forward and for one second she thought he was going to kiss her. Her heart was racing so hard she thought it might break. She could feel his conflict through the bond. The desire mixed with the awareness that it was dangerous for a god to be this attached to a mortal.
Then a sound cut through the moment.
Footsteps on stone. Many of them. Coming from the cave entrance behind them.
Kael and Sera both stood instantly. He pushed her behind him in a protective stance. A group of people emerged from the darkness. Not gods. Mortals. But they were armed and they moved with military precision.
At the front was a man Sera recognized with a jolt of terror.
Darius. The general who had destroyed her village. The scarred face she would recognize in her nightmares. He smiled when he saw her and it was the cruelest smile she'd ever seen.
"Kael," he said casually, like they were old friends greeting each other. "I had hoped you would take refuge here. Makes this much easier. I've come to collect what belongs to me."
His soldiers stepped forward and Sera felt Kael's power beginning to build. The air around them was getting colder. The stone beneath their feet was beginning to shake.
"She doesn't belong to you," Kael said. His voice had become something that didn't sound fully human anymore. Something that sounded like the god of war about to go to battle.
Darius looked amused. "She destroyed my army once. Now I know she's capable of that. So I'm here to make her an offer. Join me willingly or I'll burn the cave where her refugees are hiding with her friend inside it."
Sera's entire body went cold.
The survivors. Mira. They were still alive somewhere and Darius knew exactly where they were.