The stench of blood grounded me after two successive teleportations.

I battled against the demons contracted by the Flatlander alongside Nash and Val. Our strategy over this last year had been to immediately reclaim any lost land, no matter how much it cost us. This unyielding approach had been enough to convince some Prophets not to stage any attacks, though our spies constantly sent reports of their plans to do just that.

The loss the villagers suffered from the demon attack would distract me if I let it. I had to force it from my mind as I fought the demons. It was strange that I often went to war without Leif and Wren now when they'd been my battle companions for so long. Even now, their absence in this fight gave me an empty feeling. If Nash hadn't been impossible to leave behind, I would have fought without him too. The man was relentless, though. Last year, when we'd fended off the first few waves of invasion efforts, Nash had convinced Piercey to fight with him like they had against the Prophet the first time. There had been no going back after that.

Nash would not let his lack of power keep him from the front lines of this war, especially not when I would be here fighting.

I'd been incredibly skeptical of the tactic being worthwhile. But I had to admit now that I was wrong. Piercey and Nash had become so skilled at fighting together that they worked as efficiently as if they shared a neural connection. They were the solutions to each other's problems. Nash had no power and Piercey was no warrior. Together, they made an incredible team.

My friend guarded Nash and strengthened each thrust of his blade instantly, as if Nash used the power himself. This solution to their problems had seemed perfect a year ago, only I'd watched it wear on my old friend one battle at a time. A graduate of the Sacred School trained now to take Piercey's place as Nash's battle companion, but she was not as skilled yet. It wasn't a lack of power, but knowledge. Piercey had come to know Nash's fighting style too well.

I also still felt nervous for Nash to fight demons when he lacked power. What if they pursued him for vengeance when he wasn't near one of us? How would he defend himself against one of them? These concerns, of course, could not sway Nash. I couldn't blame him either. Nothing would stop me from fighting this war.

We no longer bothered arguing about it, not just because I wouldn't dishonor Nash by telling him not to battle, but also because the rare times I did ask him to stay behind, he quickly reminded me that we'd killed the Prophet together. Nash refused to let me carry the responsibility and guilt alone.

Despite my worry for Nash and the heaviness of our duty to the Valley, I did love fighting at his side. We had become as great of a team as Nash and Piercey had.

A demon hurled a wave of energy at us that I blocked with my shield. Nash, trusting me implicitly to defend against the attack, never hesitated, but instead rushed forward. With the strength of Piercey's power enhancing his attack, Nash slashed his blades across the demon's chest. I followed-up with an arrow right into his heart.

The problem I'd encountered lately was not so much the skill of my enemies or my own lack of progress. I'd continued to hone my power, constantly surpassing what I previously knew to be possible. The issue was that no matter how strong I became, I had my limits. I could only expend so much energy before becoming too fatigued to continue using it. This battle would have been over by now if I had enough strength left to teleport around the field to take my enemies by surprise.

It took so much power to teleport anywhere, even a few feet away. I needed to reserve enough for emergency transport. That meant fighting the old fashion way, with sword against sword, or my arrows flying through the air.

Truthfully, the most effective war we fought right now was not the spilling of blood. The political battle would end this war before force did. We needed leadership in the valley so that as we fought off those who tried to invade our land, the people could gain independence and be able to defend themselves. Piercey somehow kept his optimism for creating a better system of governance. I simply wanted to avoid another Eskel the Ruthless. No matter what we tried, the valley seemed to always fall to one head. We needed someone we trusted to take that place and we needed it soon. Because right now, I stood in the vacuum of power, and I had no interest in taking the Prophet of the Valley's place.

I could not leave behind the battlefield to lead the people into peace. It made me cringe each time the people called for Eclipse to reign over the Valley.

Just because I'd become the guardian of our lands didn't mean that I needed to be appointed as some Prophet or ruler. I didn't have time for politics between training and war. I'd thought that Piercey would have been a good candidate, except he insisted that he couldn't do the job either. It also was not him the people asked for. It seemed that for every enemy I'd made–and there were numerous–I'd also gained steadfast followers.

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The frustration churned inside of me as I fought. I felt pulled toward a life I didn't want and truly believed I would not be suited for.

I refocused on what I did best and knocked a demon back with a kick to the chest. Raising my hand, I drove him back even further with the force of my power. He threw two daggers at me as he flew back, but Nash knocked them from the air with his swords. It took only one second for my bow to materialize and then for the glowing arrow to pierce the man's left eye.

Careful to reserve my energy, I fought strategically with my comrades until we'd neutralized all the demons. Two were dead and the rest wounded. I left them to Piercey to deal with, as he handled the captives better than I did.

Nash leaned against his knees now that the battle was over. Neither one of us had slept in almost twenty-four hours.

"Are you hurt?" I asked.

"No. Just winded. You?"

"Same." The wailing of the villagers returned to me. "We lost one," I said, voice as hollow as my chest felt as I turned my eyes to the night sky.

"I could tell." Nash straightened and drew me to his side. "Let's go home. The others can handle the rest."

I nodded but didn't transport us yet. "If you could do it again, would you?"

Even though I hadn't said it, Nash knew what I was asking. He didn't hesitate. "Yes."

Once the pain might have wet my eyes with tears but I'd traveled long past the point of crying. I didn't even have to try to keep my voice strong. "I would too. I just didn't know what all it would cost to kill Flare and the Prophet. I suppose that was mercy at the time."

Dr. Drake's knowing eyes stared back at me in my memory. She'd said she'd been here before. In my fury, I'd refused to listen to her in the slightest, thinking she'd evolved too far beyond the chaos of my vengeance to understand what I needed to do.

Perhaps it had not been disappointment so much as anticipatory grief she'd felt for me. Because she must have known what kind of war I'd been walking into.

I needed to leave it behind on the battlefield so that I could take some kind of peace for myself at home. The energy it took to teleport both of us back to the Sacred School left me feeling hollow. My arms trembled with weakness as I unstrapped my armor in our living room. Too exhausted to actually put it away, I let it fall to the ground. Nash did the same.

I glanced at the bedroom, but then slid down the wall and settled onto the ground, holding my side. My entire body ached, but sharp pain gnawed at my ribs. We had been fighting for so long that I often didn't know where the pain had come from. There were too many hits to keep track of injuries unless they were severe. How long had it been since I'd gone a full day with no battle?

Nash looked as exhausted as I felt as he eyed me on the ground. I thought he might tell me that it was ridiculous to not simply walk into the bedroom, but then he settled beside me. I couldn't have taken another step.

"You know how a week ago we said we wouldn't make it without a break?" Nash's voice was low and quiet from fatigue. "We're past that breaking point."

"I know."

"How close are others to learning to teleport?"

I shook my head, disheartened to even think about it. "There's one guy who can sometimes make it across the room. Not very often, though."

"Damn it."

Nash always traveled with me when I received an alert from a villager, unless he was already in battle. "You should start staying home, sometimes. At least one of us–"

"I'm not discussing this with you again." Nash opened his eyes only long enough to shoot a glare at me. "We fight together. If I'm not already in battle, I'm going with you."

"Elsie needs more time with you."

Guilt darkened his expression.

"It could be years of this, Nash."

"I see her every day."

"Not quality time."

He clasped my hand and drew it onto his lap. "Let's fight after we sleep."

I managed to smile. "You really want to sleep here?"

But he was already drifting off. He mumbled, his voice hardly audible. "Just rest…"

Something needed to change. We were only human, after all. Like the village chief had said, I was not a god. For now, this was all I could do, though. When I wasn't in battle, I had to train, and that left little time for rest. Maybe once we found leadership for the valley and helped the people to become stronger on their own, we could step back from war long enough to really rest.

I closed my eyes but couldn't fall asleep because I felt so unsettled. It wasn't the death in the village, as tragic as it was, or the long stretch of battles without break. No, it was that flicker I'd seen after teleporting back to my comrades.

"I saw something strange today," I said, not even sure if Nash was awake to hear me. "I told myself it was my eyes playing tricks on me. But that's not true." He was definitely asleep. I heard his breathing deepen. "I could feel his power. It looked and felt like Piercey."

My eyes slid closed again.

I didn't know what it meant. Even though I wanted to brush it off because it was such a small thing, I couldn't. I couldn't afford to ignore any threats.