Lianne felt her blood boil as if a storm brewed inside her body. Blood pounded in her ears as her heartbeat rapidly increased and her senses heightened. She couldn't hold back the uncontrollable power within her, bubbling over. It was too late to go back now, she had crossed over.

Lianne felt herself lose control as if her body wasn't her own. All self-control vanished as she saw the killing begin. She knew only fragments of it stayed at the forefront of her mind later, the rest diminishing to distant memories.

Desperation overwhelmed Lianne. The feeling was so intense, it physically pained her. It was a mixture of both deep sorrow and anger at once. A burning desire for blood. Lust. Revenge.

"Lianne, no!" Amra yelled, but it was already too late.

Lianne lifted her hands and pointed them at Thorad. All her energy started to gather in her hands, making them hot. The tips of her fingers tingled, wanting to release everything she had. Her every nerve overwhelmed with the anticipation of blood. Lianne whispered in a language she didn't understand. Her voice seemed almost lifeless as she turned her now dark eyes to Thorad.

Thorad's expression changed to pure fear as the blood started leaving his body. Lianne was pulling everything out of him, the blood oozing from every possible place. From Thorad's nose, eyes, mouth, even from the pores of his skin. It soaked through his clothes, colouring everything red.

"How can she do that!?" A man from the crowd yelled horrified and started running as fast as he could. He scrambled and fell, but immediately got back up and continued running away. The others stood petrified, unable to act in the unexpected situation. They didn't understand or believe what was happening in front of them.

Amra stepped to the side. She had no way of stopping Lianne now. The best she could do was to stay away from her, to witness this horror. She couldn't get in Lianne's way, or she could lose her life too.

Thorad squealed and trembled, trying to move away from Lianne's sight. His complexion was getting pale. He was getting frail, his entire body turning to the colour of ash. The blood poured out, flowing like a red river as Lianne whispered under her breath, calling the blood to her.

"Please...stop..." Thorad was barely able to say. His words drowned under the strange sloshing and creaking that his body made as the blood left him.

That's when a young man stepped forward. "Stop that!" he yelled and started conjuring magic to his hands, ready to attack. The others stayed paralyzed, but he had the courage to act, wanting to stop Lianne.

Lianne immediately moved her other hand toward the young man, the lust for blood growing inside her. Before the man was able to attack Lianne, he stopped. He couldn't move his body anymore, the flame of magic dying out in his hands. His eyes still tried looking around in panic, but he wasn't in control of his body anymore.

"Please..." Thorad still wheezed before the life escaped his body completely. The dark red blood burst in the air and splashed down on the ground, splattering everywhere. On Thorad, on Amra, and on Lianne. The smell of iron filled the air as Thorad fell to the ground, crashing down in a heap of bones.

When Thorad was dead, Lianne focused on the young man she had bound. The older woman quickly ran to Thorad's body, wailing loudly. She took the empty shell to her hands and embraced it.

Lianne raised her hands and the young man lift from the ground, above everyone's heads. Lianne started whispering under her breath again, the foul words rolling down her tongue like they were poison. All the blood started oozing out from the man like he was squeezed dry. His clothes got wet, the blood sticking to every fiber until it seeped through the fabric. His blood flowed down to the ground as if it was raining. The drops splashed down with hollow sounds, colouring the earth deep red.

The man cursed and yelled as his pale skin started to turn into the shade of ash, his breaths getting more shallow. He tried to conjure magic into his hands once more but had no energy left. His yell turned into a horrid shriek as the last bits of life got pulled out of him.

Then the man quieted down. As Lianne dropped him on the ground, he collapsed like an empty doll. The strange hollow sound he made as he fell down seemed to echo in the silence to follow.

Amra looked at the sight horrified, her eyes wide and blank. It was clear that Lianne was getting crueler every time this happened. When Lianne did this the first time, she had merely killed the people, stopping the flow of their blood. Now it was as if she was toying with them.

"Leave now! Or you're next!" Amra tried calling out to the people, but they stood there petrified, not knowing what to do.

A little further away, an elf quickly got off his horse. He was calm, despite the rain of blood and a hollow thud that followed as the empty man dropped down on the ground. The elf scouted the surroundings and then turned his attention to Lianne.

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The elf walked closer, took out his bow and an arrow from the quiver. He stopped a short distance from Lianne and drew the string, aiming the arrow straight at her. He breathed slowly, concentrating with every exhale. He whispered inaudible words at his arrow and then shot it straight at Lianne. The arrow shone brightly with a blinding light as it flew through the air.

Lianne turned from her victims, sensing danger nearby. She saw the arrow flying toward her but wasn't fast enough to avoid the shot. A flash of light exploded and the arrow hit its mark, piercing her heart, disappearing inside her.

Amra gasped somewhere, but Lianne had no idea where. All her senses seemed to blur, almost fade away. For a moment she felt like she truly left her body, leaving all the physical sensations behind.

Then her senses seemed to come back to normal. The haze started to disappear and her blood cooled down. The warmth spread back to her heart and desperation moved aside. She regained her body back.

The first thing Lianne saw was all the people watching her with horror in their eyes, and it made her shiver. They were experiencing the purest form of fear, petrifying them to where they stood.

"Go! Now!" Amra yelled and the people seemed to finally come to their senses. Everyone got on the wagon as quickly as possible and rode away, screaming and cursing at what happened. Someone even yelled that Lianne was a monster as they disappeared into the distance.

Lianne turned to look at where the arrow had come from. She saw the figure of a dark-haired elf who lowered his bow. The elf had lines shaped like winding branches going from his chin to his neck. Lianne was barely able to make out the way the elf looked at her before her consciousness faded to black.

Amra saw Lianne fall to the ground. She quickly sprinted to her and turned her around, to see that she was alright. To Amra's surprise, Lianne was breathing calmly, as if she was in a deep sleep. Her expression looked serene as if nothing bad had happened.

Amra inspected Lianne's body, to see if there were any wounds, her hands shaking as they traced Lianne's clothes. There was blood, but nothing that would resemble an arrow shot to the heart.

Amra let out a deep relieved sigh and tried to calm herself while steadying her hands. Her heart pounded loudly and her knees felt weak. She had never seen anything like that, and now she had a hard time trying to stay calm.

Amra turned to look at the elf, who was standing further away. She inspected his behavior, to see if he was going to shoot her too. All her senses were still on alert, her hand inching closer to her knife just in case.

As the elf put away his bow, Amra slightly relaxed her body. She got up, even if her knees still felt weak. "What did you do to her?" she asked firmly.

"Do not worry. I quelled the urge," the elf replied, his voice soft.

"She isn't hurt?"

"It was not meant to hurt, merely stop."

Amra watched the elf for a moment, appraising him, to see if she could believe him. When the elf stood there calmly and made no move toward her or Lianne, Amra whispered, "Thank you."

The elf bowed his head. "My name is Faolin."

"I'm Amra. This is my friend Lianne," Amra introduced them.

Faolin started taking steps toward them and Amra instantly flinched. She grabbed her knife instinctively while following his every move closely.

When Faolin walked to Lianne, Amra quickly sprinted between them, her fingers tightly squeezed around the hilt of her knife. "Hey! Don't touch her!" she yelled.

Faolin stopped and lifted his hands. "Do not worry. I will not harm her."

Amra stared at Faolin's eyes from a close range, trying to read his intentions. His dark eyes looked back calmly and slowly Amra withdrew her knife, putting it back on her belt while taking a step away.

Faolin knelt next to Lianne and inspected her features, his eyes scanning her face as if he was searching for something.

"Why did you help us?" Amra asked, still wondering whether or not to trust him.

"I do not need a reason," Faolin said as he squinted his eyes, looking at Lianne.

Amra weighed his words. She wasn't used to strangers helping them and she still hesitated, but she also needed help. Amra's eyes darted from Lianne to Faolin, and then back again as if she tried to decide what to do. She opened her mouth hesitantly but immediately closed it. After a moment of silence, she finally spoke, "Could you help us once more?"

Faolin raised his eyebrows questioningly and Amra immediately explained. "Could you help her on the horse? We have to find some shelter."

"Of course," Faolin said without hesitation. He glanced toward the horses and then took a hold of Lianne, lifting her up quite easily. With steady steps, Faolin carried her to his horse.

Amra pointed at Luna baffled. "No, that is her horse."

"I know a cave around here. It should provide you with enough shelter. It is not far," Faolin said as he lifted Lianne on the horse. He mounted and sat behind Lianne before leaning in and whispering to his horse, "Steady now. We have a guest."

Amra didn't know what to do, so she bowed her head. "Thank you. I don't know how I'll repay you," she said, dumbfounded by the help Faolin was giving them.

Amra took the reins of Luna and mounted her horse. She followed Faolin as he started riding ahead, keeping Lianne still so she wouldn't fall. Amra still glanced at Faolin every once in a while, trying to decide if she should trust him. But Faolin seemed utterly calm, and for some reason, she felt strangely at ease with him around.

"We need to head west," Faolin said while slowly trotting on ahead.

Amra nodded but kept silent. She glanced at Lianne as she lay on top of the horse, her body limply swaying with the movements. Faolin was keeping Lianne safe and that made her body seemingly relax. Even if she didn't trust him yet, he gave her no implications to think otherwise. She decided to let him lead them to safety.