Sabele silently sat in the warm mist, not all bothered by the sweat forming on her skin. She almost finished a chapter when her shield went down. Her dome completely shattered leaving her blind to what was around her home. Her head throbbed in pain as if the impact had physically hit her and shadows danced around her vision.

It took a minute, but she found her strength to stand. Sabele headed back to the storage room to see if anything had entered. Nothing had just yet. Patiently, she waited to see what eventually would.

Footsteps crunched on the snow just outside sending her heart into a frenzy. The curtains moved and in stepped a large man with life-like tattoos of beasts and fierce scars, he scanned the area as if looking for her.

Gulping, she hurried back into the spring when he turned to address whoever had come with him. There were two small holes that were wide enough for Sabele to see into the main section of the cave, right next to the curtain blocking her bedroom.

The chief and his men along with the mystery man, looked around the cave, swords poking at the scattered books and the brightly lit fire.

"Not here? She couldn't be picking herbs, it's too late in the night," one of the men said as he examined a book off her shelf.

"Perhaps with her protector in town. I've seen her occasionally go through the gate when the people cannot go to her," another one voiced his opinion.

"Maybe that 'protector' of hers is really a lover. They could be hanky panky in the woods right now," he wiggled his eyebrows causing his other comrades to laugh. Sabele blushed at the thought.

"No. She is here. She is hiding. I can smell her fear," the mercenary quieted the other men.

His words sent a chill down her spine. She mentally called for Evåinic, trying to bottle her panic. The mercenary continued to look around the place. He turned suddenly and it looked as if he was staring right at her like he knew she was watching him somehow.

Gasping, she scooched back until she hit something behind her. Covering her mouth to not scream, she looked up. Expelling the breath she was holding, she smiled at her armored demigod.

Ev, in his armor and with his helmet blocking most of his face, seemed even deadlier than when she had first met him. But then, he bent down to wrap her in his arms and smiled at her. The scary aura that surrounded him dispersed.

"You okay, Sabele?" He whispered in her ear.

"Yeah," she kept her voice low so the men wouldn't hear her echo. "They have a mercenary. I think he broke through my dome. I don't know how though." Evåinic nodded.

He knew who this guy was. A mercenary who only hunted supernatural beings. Mostly, these guys stayed away from priestesses but this one must have been paid well enough to risk it.

He looked her over once, making sure she remained unscathed by the mental attack against her. She appeared physically fine and didn’t seem to be in any pain.

"Stay here. I'll take care of it, okay?" He gently rubbed her cheek with his thumb before he stood and moved out of the spring.

Crawling behind him, Sabele kept quiet while he stood before the men. They didn't say a word, they just drew their swords and begun battle. Evåinic easily sliced and diced his way through. Despite being outnumbered, he managed to hold his ground and take two out before he kicked back a third one.

The mercenary had yet to join the battle. He watched from the sidelines. Eztil-Catl only had five guys left when the mercenary jumped in. He knocked Ev's feet from under him and almost stabbed him in the gut.

Instead, Evåinic dodged and flipped back to his feet. Surrounded, Sabele lost sight of him but she heard the metal clash fiercely from where he was at.

When Ev finally broke their barrier around him, he backed up towards the storage room. He wouldn't let them get past him to her. They charged as a whole and Ev slashed one across the chest and kicked another back. He was going to be overwhelmed soon, or so she thought.

With a war cry, Evåinic spun to catch one guy across the stomach before he threw him into two others who tried to attack him while his back was turned.

Then, the mercenary pulled a glowing blue sword from his bag and caught Ev right in the side where his armor didn't cover his skin. Gasping, he stumbled away and hit a wall.

"You see? He is just a demigod. Anything that bleeds can be killed," he pointed the bloody sword towards Evåinic who was regaining his balance.

The mercenary had a thick accent, unrecognizable to Sabele.

"That includes you too, asshole," Ev gritted his teeth and stood straight.

The sword must have had some magical qualities from the way it glowed and how his wound seemed to fester unnaturally. Sabele had never even heard of such a weapon, much less encountered one.

The mercenary laughed before raising the sword for another strike. Dodging, Ev pulled his own sword up for a blindside strike. He succeeded in creating a huge gash on the bigger man's arm.

Right when the head chief lifted his sword to strike at Ev's back, only now joining the battle, too busy blocking a blow from the other man, an arrow came soaring through and caught him dead between the eyes. Looking back in astonishment, he found Sabele calmly holding her bow with another arrow cocked and ready. The mercenary tried to make a grab at her but Evåinic flashed himself between them and kicked the man back.

The remaining chief's men took off back into the night, most limping, scared of what would happen to them. The mercenary, however, wasn't afraid. He stood calmly back up and readied himself.

"I've come to kill you, priestess. I will succeed. First, I'll kill your lover then I'll kill you," he grinned at the thought. He could almost taste the screams he would elect from them.

Evåinic said nothing but prepared to strike, never letting his emotions to come to the surface. Never let the enemy know, never give them something to use further against you.

He heard Sabele's breath hitch at the thought of their deaths, reminding him of how close she stood at his back. His aching side seemed distant now. Her breath just barely tickled the fine hairs on the back of his neck and out of the corner of his eye he saw the dying fire and the stools that had been scattered during the attack. A place they sat every night for dinner, talking, laughing...

He rolled his shoulders, feeling even more empowered, more determined. He had one job to do.

At the same time, both men charged with their war cries echoing off the cave walls with tremendous force. Sweeping in for the kill, they hit their targets, letting blood and dirt fly.

Sabele let out a scream as she watched Evåinic fall to one knee. His bloody sword fell from his hands and to the ground with a deafening ring to her ears. The mercenary wobbled on his feet, his chest soaking with his own blood, before falling straight onto his back.

When Sabele crouched by Ev's side, she inspected him for injury but found only one. He took a heavy hit to the side with the magical sword the mercenary had wielded but that was it. The sword had been unable to break through Evåinic's armor and instead left only the slightest dent.

"Evåinic? Are you okay? Hey! Talk to me!" She grabbed his helmet and threw it off to the side before grabbing his face to look him in the eye. He seemed dazed and in a lot of pain.

"Are you okay, priestess?" He smiled at her when his eyes seemed to finally focus.

"Yes! I'm fine! But you! You aren't!! What can I do?" Tears streamed down her face as her hands hovered over him, unsure of what she could do.

"Stay here. Wait for me. If they come back, call. I need to heal first," before she could even protest, he disappeared from her sight.

Covering her mouth, she screamed in agony. It was a sound nobody had heard in a long time from her. Her cry bounded off the cave walls, echoing into the night and descended down the mountain causing deer to scatter. Its trek continued into the city, blowing out the torches and bringing with it a cold mist that sent the few residents out and about fleeing for the safety of their own homes.

The guards that had fled the scene continued on, not stopping at their homes or answering any question from the patrols that were out. They head straight through and back into the forest, attempting to escape what they believed to be Death chasing them.

She sat there for what felt like an eternity, too tired to actually cry, until a white light appeared. It grew bigger and bigger until it faded away altogether. Standing in its place were three equally handsome men, all looking almost identical to each other. They looked around at the carnage, a worried frown adorning their faces before their eyes settled on her.

"Aw, she's been crying!" One of them waved his hands gesturing at her form in panic.

"No, shit!" Another slapped the man over the head, looking equally as panicky.

It took her a while but judging by their golden eyes, they were gods. Perhaps the gods of strength, they were triplets, but there were many triplets and twins that existed among them. Sabele sat quietly, licking her salted, chapped lips and scratching her eyes while they bickered.

"Come on! He'll thank us later!"

"No,” the god wagged his finger in front of the other’s -his brother’s?- face, “I'm pretty sure he'd rather murder us." Again, the god received a slap over the head but this time by a different god. It was confusing to tell who was who but Sabele tried to focus as their conversation bounced from one to the next.

"We can't just leave her here. We'll just have her wait in his room!" Then the god clapped and she was sitting on a silken bed.

The overly sized room had swirling marble floors, large opened windows that let cool breezes blow at royal blue curtains, and even columns, by the large double doors, that were enormously tall that they stopped at the vaulted ceiling.

Waving and blowing her a couple of kisses, the gods ran out the door and closed it behind them. They must have been Evåinic’s younger brothers.

Taking time to look down at herself, Sabele noticed how dirty she was and quickly scooted off the bed. Dirt splotched her skin and sweat still dripped from her brow. She looked around, a bit timid, taking shaky steps towards a set of beautifully carved doors, an elegance she’d never seen before.

Opening it, she found herself staring at an insanely large bathroom. A large hot spring sat off to the side, steam drifting from the waters and cocooning the entire room in a smoldering heat, making the tile floor sweat. Sabele quickly stepped back out, closing the door behind her.

A breeze caused the curtains to bellow out, beckoning her to the different aromas and sounds that it brought with it. Looking out, she found herself greeted with the beautiful sight of meadows and waterfalls. Forests were just a walk away where horses could be heard running about.

Gorgeous buildings stood tall and high in marble and gilded stature. She had been brought to The Heavens and if what she saw wasn’t enough, the Great Hall stood not too far away. Its doors were open and inside roared conversation and laughter. The room she was in was one of several as she looked along the building to find balconies just on the other end.

Sabele sighed and stumbled back to the bed. She felt drained but yet she still had the strength to cry. Tears streamed silently down her face, her throat still sore and burning from earlier. She buried her face deep into her hands.

She didn't know exactly who had brought her here, even though she had a good guess, where Evåinic was or even why she was here. Most importantly, was he even okay? The wound had been so large… there had been so much blood and the room had been in chaos when she left.

Confused and terrified, there was nothing more she could do but lay back down on the bed, gathering the fine sheets in her hand.