Swords were clashing all around. Screams and shouts pierced the air as blood ran thick on the battlefield. The soldier stood over her as she lay on the ground. He had an evil grin on his face as he raised the sword over head and plunged it into her stomach...
Lis woke in a cold sweat as she heard her cell phone ring on the night stand. She sat up and grabbed it, breathing hard. "Hello?" she answered, the nightmare memory of her first death still prevalent in her mind.
"Lis?" the voice asked, sounding very worried.
"Nick?" she asked, recognizing the voice and even more important, the fear in it.
"I need your help," he said breathlessly.
"Where are you?" Lis asked.
"I'm at my apartment," came the answer.
"I'll be there in ten minutes," she said as she jumped out of bed and threw on her clothes, her nightmare all but forgotten.
Nick tried to calm himself as he waited for Lis to come. He hated to admit that she was right when she said he had to learn to use a sword, but he knew there was no other way he could live. He also knew that if she didn't get to his apartment before... His thought was interrupted when he felt a Presence. "Lis?" he called, hoping it was her. He slowly walked toward the door, dread of who it may be encompassing his thoughts. "Lis? Is that you?" he called out, trying to keep the fear from his voice. As he neared the door, it suddenly came smashing open.
"Hello there," said the man that had kicked in the door. "We meet again," he said mockingly as he pulled out his sword. Before Nick could answer, the man lunged forward and buried his sword up to the hilt in Nick's stomach. Nick's eyes widened in shock as he realized that this was it. He was going to die again, but this time he wouldn't come back to life. This man was going to take his head. Held up only by the sword in his stomach and the man holding it, Nick felt darkness overtake him as he died. The man withdrew the sword, and Nick's dead body dropped to the floor. The man raised the sword, ready to take Nick's head. Suddenly, he felt a Presence. He knew that if he took Nick's head, then he would be unable to fight after the quickening and the other immortal would be free to take his head. Cursing, he crashed through the window into the night.
As Lis burst through Nick's open door, she could no longer feel the Presence of the other immortal. She took in the splintered doorframe and the shattered window, and knew that Nick was in way over his head. She knelt down beside Nick's body and waited for him to come back to life.
"What have you gotten yourself into this time?" Nick heard as he came back to life. He looked up and saw Lis leaning over him, looking half-worried and half-amused. He sat up and looked around at his broken door and window, surprised that he was alive. "Are you ready to learn yet?" Lis asked him pointedly. Taking one more look at the shattered window, Nick turned to her and gave a determined nod.