I flew faster than I'd ever flown in my life.

I couldn't be late.

I had to get there in time to warn him, to stop these people, blinded by their own despair and bitterness, from achieving their goal. I didn't let doubt enter my mind—not at first.

I just flew as fast as my wings could carry me, feeling the burn in my muscles and tendons, but not slowing even when it became an ache that let me know I was starting to do damage. Flying this quickly for a long distance was not recommended for the fine muscles and ligaments in the wings, but I didn't have time to worry about that. If I injured myself, I'd recover. It was more important that I squeeze out every ounce of speed I could right now.

Even in that headlong rush to make it back to the capital, I had too much time to think. I should have replied to Sven sooner. I should have told him how I felt. Maybe he knew. Maybe he knew that the fact that I had put everything on the line for him meant I cared much more than I was willing to let on.

Maybe. But I still wished I had told him in words. Words were important sometimes. They mattered.

I wished I had stayed and talked about things rather than just leaving, no matter how necessary it felt. All my reasons had been valid, but a big chunk of my motivation had also been avoidance of the issue. There was no denying that.

And now, there was a distinct possibility I might not get the chance to... I felt my heart start to sink.

No!

No.

I couldn't think like that. I had to be positive.

I pushed a little bit more speed out of my body.

I wasn't able check the time in my phoenix form, but I knew a significant amount had passed by the time the capital came into view. I didn't know how much time I had left. But the sight of the city gave me another burst of energy. Almost there.

My wings were a burning pain at this point, but I ignored them as I jetted right past the main part of the city and straight to the palace.

Normally, I flew at a deliberately slow pace when I approached the palace, giving the guards time to recognize me. Time to realize that I didn't need to be tackled and brought down in midair. But I didn't have time for that. If they attacked, then I'd deal with it.

As I neared the palace, lit up like a Christmas tree for the occasion, I saw the main courtyard had been set up with a feast large enough to feed the entire city. Shit. It was already in full swing.

I saw one of the flying guards take note of me and adjust his trajectory. He needed to build up speed. He'd be too late. So I ignored him.

My desperate eyes scanned the multitude of people milling around and seated, looking for that distinctive bright blond head of hair.

I spotted Sven at the head table, which was where I would have looked first had I not been so pumped up on adrenaline. My heart skipped a beat as I drank him in.

I wasn't too late.

The table he was seated at was on a raised platform, centered and nearest to the palace. From this far away, I couldn't quite see the expression on his face, but I could tell by his body language, the way he was sitting, that he wasn't enjoying himself. He tended to like small groups better than crowds. On that we could agree.

My eyes were locked on him, but movement caught my eye a few seconds later. When I looked, I saw two men rise from one of the tables farther away from the head table platform. They turned towards it and started walking, purpose in their steps.

There was no way I could know if they were the ones who were plotting to carry out the assassination. But I didn't like how focused they were on that table, how they didn't look around or dawdle when there was so much going on that should have caught their attention.

The closer they got to Sven, the more certain I became of their intentions. And the method they were going to use. They weren't going to bother trying to do this quietly.

They were going to brazenly attempt this in front of everyone. And that plan might actually work.

Just like coming up to someone and shooting them in the head with a gun would most likely work. Part of what protected all of us was a killer’s desire to stay hidden. But that desire didn't seem to plague either of these men.

The slight calm that had come over me after spotting Sven alive dissolved.

I squeezed out another bit of energy from my tired body, powered completely by adrenaline at this point, hoping I was wrong. Hoping that I'd read these two people wrong. Hoping that Geo had gotten everything wrong and there wasn't going to be an attempt at all.

But then I saw them stop in the open space in front of the head table.

Sven was still talking to whoever was next to him and only half paying attention to what was going on in front of him, though I could see he was aware of the two men. As of yet, he wasn't worried.

The two men didn't broadcast their intentions by taking off their clothes. That would have given everyone too much warning.

Instead, they simply changed, their human-sized bodies quickly replaced with their much larger phoenix forms, suddenly diminishing much of the space that had been surrounding them.

I watched it happen, fear coursing through me in an ugly wave.

No.

No, I wasn't letting this happen. I refused to let it.

Tucking my wings close to my body, I shot down towards the ground, aiming for the space directly in front of Sven. I didn't moderate my speed even as the ground rushed up at me. I didn't have time for safety.

Come on.

I watch the two phoenixes burst into flame.

Come on.

And then the ground was suddenly there, right under my feet.

I landed hard, the impact jarring my entire body.

I was going way too fast to make a proper landing.

I felt one of my legs buckle under the impact and a sharp pain shoot up into my body.

But I made it, which was all that mattered.

Just as they deliberately flared their flames to an intensity level reserved only for combat, sometimes not even then, the light blue color indicating the heat level before the wall of hot air hit anyone around them.

They aimed the flare directly at Sven, the combination of the fire they both created together enough to incinerate anything within a certain radius of their burning bodies.

Only, Sven wasn't there.

I was.

I met Sven's horrified eyes just as the tendrils of flame hit me.

We were built to resist heat.

But even we weren't immune to it.

I knew as I looked into his eyes that this was it.

This was the end for me.

My only regret was not telling Sven how I felt.

Not being able to live my life with him. Laugh and cry with him. I mourned that life.

But I didn't regret saving his.

"Adara!" Sven yelled as he jumped over the table.

Or at least that was what it looked like he yelled. I couldn't really hear anything anymore.

Everything seemed to be moving at a snail's pace. Sven's leap appeared to last forever.

He couldn't do anything now. It was already too late.

Between one heartbeat and the next, I just...

Wasn't.