Resurrection

The stone warriors Overlord sent after Cole and Sage were gaining ground. There had to be at least twenty of them, though it was difficult to tell in the narrow hall. Just a little further, Cole thought. We're almost to the doors. We'll stand a better chance aboveground.

Cole might have been tempted to stop and fight the stone men- he was invincible and had a Blade- but he had to keep one arm around Nephilim to keep her from running. She struggled incessantly, and Cole found himself almost giving in to his bloodlust and killing her then.

But Sage wouldn't like that. So he restrained himself.

"You don't believe my father," Nephilim said in the Dark Tongue, digging her heels into the floor, forcing Cole to drag her as they ran. "You don't think that he has a plan. That he won't let you escape."

"I think that as long as we have you, Overlord won't actually threaten us," Cole answered in the same language.

"Then what do you call this army on our tail?" asked Sage, breathless.

"A distraction," Cole said. "To keep us from seeing the real danger. And he knows that I know, which is why he sent them, because he knows if you were in real danger I would have killed Nephilim already."

"That made no sense!" Sage cried. Her face was red from exertion and fear, and she held Chedva close to her chest. The baby's whining was as constant as Nephilim's struggles.

"I know. I'm sorry," Cole said. "My mind isn't functioning right."

"I will forgive you when we are safe."

"Fair enough." Cole slowed as they reached the front door, which was guarded by five men instead of the regular two. Either Overlord underestimates my fighting ability, or he wants us to escape.

This was a frustrating conundrum. If Overlord wanted them to escape, didn't that mean Cole should stay put and defy him? But if he stayed put, Overlord would eventually reclaim Nephilim and kill Sage and Chedva.

Either way, Overlord would win.

Well, Cole would rather face uncertainty out there than definite failure in here.

"Hold onto Nephilim's hair," Cole said to Sage, and he let go of the girl. He charged into the line of waiting men, thrusting Raindancer into the first man's shoulder. Incapacitate, not kill. They're innocent.

Two other stone warriors swung their swords. One at his head, one at his heart. Each cut his clothing but bounced off his hard skin.

The stone warriors were amazed. They backed away fearfully, eyes drifting between the wounded man and Cole, who had survived their attacks.

"Gurrah-kah," one murmured, eyes wide as he saw the shining gem on Cole's Blade.

Cole wasn't sure why they had such a fear of things that could possibly hurt them. It was their only real weakness, and it was much too easy to use against them.

Holding his Blade high, Cole asked it to make some more light. It obeyed eagerly, its brilliant rays basking every surface in the hall like a miniature white sun. The stone warriors screamed as the light hit them.

Cole screamed too, almost dropping his Blade. The light was like a white-hot fire, burning every fleshy surface it touched. His hands, his face. It also seeped through parts of his clothing which had been cut by swords.

Stop it! Cole told the Blade. Extinguish! Now!

Raindancer did.

The five stone warriors were dazed and trembling, but Cole wasn't much better. And that platoon of men behind him had almost caught up. The stone warriors would have been here already, had they not been walking. It was one of their quirks, which had confused Kai while they were being chased by stone warriors the morning after Cole had kidnapped him and Zane.They run when you run, and walk when you walk.

They were weird and, Cole was forced to admit, a little brainless. Not that Cole felt much better himself at the moment, his body- especially his exposed skin- throbbing like it had been burnt by a branding iron. The pain was slowly receding, and he turned, meeting Sage's eyes.

Sage nodded back. She had a fistful of Nephilim's hair in her hand, which kept the obnoxious girl from struggling too much. It was an awkward grip, though, because she was forced to hold Chedva with her broken arm.

Cole approached her on shaky legs. "L-Let's go," he said, eyeing the advancing platoon of stone warriors. There was no doubt about it: Overlord wanted Cole outside for whatever horrors awaited them there. He was deliberately holding back the stone warriors, telling them not to attack.

Cole knew this now because, as the thrill of his fight receded, he was able to feel Overlord whispering in his head, urging him to join the group.

"Are you okay?" Sage asked.

Cole swallowed, pushing Overlord out with some effort. "Fine," he said. Dare I take Sage aboveground? What if there is something terrible up there?

And what about Kai? Where was he? He said he'd catch up.

Kai can take care of himself, Cole told himself. Focus on saving Sage.

"Why the hesitation?" Nephilim taunted. "Have you finally come to your senses? Oh, that's right. You're a stone warrior. You don't have any sense."

How does Overlord put up with this? Cole wondered. He held his Blade up- the light was off, of course- and pushed it against her chest as he took her back from Sage. This both quieted Nephilim and made the five soldiers at the gate shy away, letting Cole's little group pass into the open air.

Cole gasped at the sight. For months he'd either been underground- in Cyrus' and Overlord's fortresses- or fighting bad Ninjagian weather. The sudden burst of fresh air, moist and earthy because of the rain, filled his lungs and slowed his racing heart.

A pink, blue, and orange sunset streaked across the horizon, and a few clouds hung suspended in the sky, drawn with silver and crimson. Even Cole, in his jumbled state of mind, found the sight breathtaking.

It was like something out of a storybook, Cole realized. The romantic couple escape impossible odds and defeat the antagonist, then run off into the sunset together.

Except they hadn't escaped impossible odds. They were playing right into Overlord's hand, even now, and Cole hated it. He hadn't defeated the Overlord. He had no idea how to! He'd killed Overlord's body once before, but to no end. He always came back.

"All right," Nephilim said. "You're out. Now let me go."

"Not a chance," Cole said. "Not until I'm sure we're safe."

"Fine! Just hurry it up. I've got things to do."

"I am sorry that being kidnapped has put a damper on your royal day, Your Highness," Sage said, miffed that Nephilim had interrupted such a breathtaking moment.

Cole pocketed his Blade. He set a hand on Sage's shoulder, then pulled her and Nephilim forward. "I'll release you when we reach the river," he said to the girl. "If you could shut your mouth and stop struggling until then, I'll consider not slitting your throat and dumping your body in the water."

Nephilim's only response was an ugly curse in the Dark Tongue.

"Where are we going?" Besai asked, running fast to avoid being dragged as Kai pulled her forward. It was difficult to catch her breath; she'd never had good stamina anyways, and Kai was pushing her along like their lives depended on it.

They probably did, actually.

"We're getting out," Kai said.

"Out?" Besai repeated. "But the door is the other way, Kai! You turned right instead of left."

"I know," Kai answered. "The other way was blocked by stone warriors. We're going around." He paused. "There are seven parallel halls that go west to east, right?"

"Right," Besai answered. "Do you even know where we are?"

"Yes, I do. Okay. So we're in the northern horizontal hall in the back of the fortress...right? Yeah. So...right up here..." He made a sharp turn to the right, setting them on a southerly course. "If we go this way, we'll get to the southern horizontal hall at the other end of the fortress. Right?"

"I would tell you," Besai said, winded, "if I knew what the word horizontal means."

"How do you not... Okay. This way leads to the southern hall that runs perpendicular to the seven east-west halls?"

"Please stop using big words!" Besai cried. "I don't understand!" I don't understand your words, I don't understand how you are here…!

"We're in one of the halls that leads directly to the exit?" Kai asked impatiently.

"Umm…yes."

"Good." Kai gripped her hand a little tighter as they passed door after door, leading to storages and stone warrior bunks. His face was flushed from the run, but his eyes were bright with determination.

What happened? Besai wondered. Only a little while ago he was unresponsive, not caring that Overlord was hurting me, or that he was about to die. And now he's...alive. Besai was relieved, to be sure, but the change was so sudden it was almost disturbing.

"What happened, Kai?" she asked.

"Not now," Kai said. "Sorry. Ask me when we're safe."

He sounds like himself, Besai thought, overcome by relief. Is he possibly returning to normal?

Cole stopped a good distance from the water, feeling his heart accelerate. Stone warrior or not, the water made him queasy. Perhaps even more so now, because of his recent memory of the Transformation.

After he and Sage caught their breath, Cole decided there was no immediate danger. He released Nephilim, and she stepped to the side, smoothing her dress. "This blood will never come out," she grumbled. "Thanks a lot."

"You're very welcome," Cole said. "Now scram." He turned his attention to Sage, taking Chedva from her so she could stretch her arms. "How do you feel?" he asked.

Sage rubbed the cast on her arm and winced. "It has been a while since my last run through the woods with a heavy baby in my arms," she said, taking Chedva back. "But I am fine. You?"

Cole nodded. "I'll be all right. Let's get out of here before-"

Behind him, Nephilim giggled. It was a soft, tinkling laugh. The kind that usually made people want to smile. But from her lips, it sounded sinister.

"Father told me this was a possibility," she said, stepping toward Cole. "He accounted for every scenario." She lunged for him, and a sharp, hot pain dug into his chest.

Cole gasped, stumbling back. Sage screamed his name.

Nephilim smiled and twisted the knife, ripping it from Cole's body.

Cole forgot how to breathe. He didn't want to breathe. He just wanted to die. Why was the pain so terrible? The only thing he could compare it to would probably be lightning. A thousand bolts of lightning fueled by Overlord's rage, drilled into that one spot in his chest. Had it hit his heart?

No, some lucid part of his brain said. She stabbed your right shoulder. It won't be fatal as long as you treat it soon.

But why did it hurt so much? He'd been stabbed many times before, and it had never felt this terrible. This agonizing.

"There were a hundred easier ways to get me back if you took me," Nephilim continued, shoving Cole onto his back in the sand with her free hand. "But I wanted to kill you all by myself." She leaned over him, her young face twisted by demonic pleasure. "It's nothing personal, of course. I just wanted to prove that I could. Maybe once I carry your corpses back, Father will finally stop treating me with such condescension."

She thrust her knife down toward Cole's face. He swung his arm wildly, deflecting her move, the pain in his chest flaring. Getting his feet under her, he put all of his weight into a solid kick, sending her flying back.

She regained her balance in less than a heartbeat and was on top of him again, pinning his arms above his head. This took both hands, however, and she had to hold the Blade- a simple, unadorned thing with no gem, Cole noticed- between her teeth as they struggled. His right arm almost crumpled because of his wound.

She is strong, Cole thought as he wrested one arm free. He punched her neck with a firm fist, and she fell back with a surprised squeak, winded. Standing, he set a foot on her chest and reached for her Blade, which had fallen beside her.

Nephilim was faster. She flung sand into his face, throwing him off balance, and grabbed her Blade, slashing at his feet.

Cole leaped almost too late, feeling her hand brush his boot. He landed and took Raindancer from his pocket, telling it to grow as long as it could; he needed to keep the maniacal girl as far away as possible.

Raindancer obliged, growing to a ginormous size- at least two feet wide near the handle, and possibly seven feet long. Despite this, the Blade stayed the same weight, and was easy to swing. He did so, causing a very surprised Nephilim to scuttle toward the river, out of Raindancer's reach.

Cole advanced, his confidence stronger with every step. His chest still stung terribly, but he found that he was able to ignore it as long as he focused on the-

Oh, no...

Cole could feel it coming on like a rising storm, filling his mind, making him want- no, making him need- Nephilim defeated in the most gruesome way possible.

Bloodlust.

The realization brought him a little clarity, and he focused on calming himself. But with that calm, his focus waned and his Blade slowed.

Nephilim saw her chance and took it. She came up under Raindancer, crouched low, and made a move to stab Cole's heart. Cole barely got away in time. He lost his balance and fell, losing his Blade in the process.

"Cole!" Sage screamed.

Where has she been the whole time? Cole wondered. "I could really use some help!" he said, rolling as Nephilim aimed a kick at his side. She came close and kicked again. Cole caught her foot and tried to twist her leg, but she jumped and, with amazing speed and balance, spun, slipping out of his grip.

And then she landed on his face. Cole screamed.

Mena-cursed fool. She can't hurt you like that, he reminded himself when he realized his nose wasn't broken. This would take some getting used to.

Cole tried to recover from the shock and get his head back in the game, but the damage had been done. Nephilim had her opening, and she crouched, pinning him down, aiming her knife for the kill.

And it happens again, Cole thought, watching in slow motion as the knife, gleaming in the crimson light of sunset, plummeted toward his neck. I love you, Sage, but I'm angry that you aren't intervening like last time! Where are you?

And then Nephilim froze, grunting. She coughed, blood and spittle painting Cole's face.

She slumped on top of Cole, bleeding from a gaping hole in her breast, and exhaled a final gurgling breath.

Cole pushed her off and shakily sat up, expecting to see Sage with a sharp stick or something.

Kai looked back at him instead, eyes wide. His Blade was red with Nephilim's blood.

"Oh!" Kai stuttered, looking around him at all of the stunned faces. "Sorry. I..."

He fainted.

Jay awakened to wet snuffling, and he opened his eyes. Momo squeaked excitedly, nipping Jay's nose with more fervor. The pup was hungry.

Jay grunted and sat up, rubbing his eyes. "Merv," he said, "can you get me some more food for Momo?" He waited for a response, his bleary eyes eventually focusing. "Merv?"

"Shut your trap," Pixal said. She sat on the floor, wrapped in her cloak. "She's sleeping."

It was then that Jay noticed Merv, who slept in a pile of blankets between him and Pixal.

"Her hair is wet," Jay remarked, running his fingers through Merv's darkened, damp ginger curls.

"She washed in the river about an hour ago," Pixal explained. "She's crazy, sleeping with her hair like that. Ugh. I'd never be able to do it."

"Well, you grew up pampered," Jay said, scooping up an irate Momo. "There's a lot of things you can't do."

He cringed and bit his tongue, expecting Pixal to react angrily.

"Yeah," Pixal said. "I guess so." She smiled. For her, this consisted of neutral eyebrows and semi-relaxed lips. She almost looked like she wasn't scowling. Amazing. "How do you feel?" she asked.

Okay, Jay was about to say, when he realized how his body really felt. No fever, no headaches, no random muscle cramps.

"I feel...great," he said. "I haven't felt this good in a long time. What happened?"

"I had Suki fly to Overlord's hospital and steal some medicine," Pixal said. "Merv shot it into your arm."

"Oh…thanks."

"No problem." Pixal shrugged. "It's not like I had to get up and do anything myself. Suki did all the work. And then Merv insisted on being the one to do it." She paused. "Why doesn't Merv like me?"

"Nobody really likes you, Pixal," Jay said with a smile.

"Granted. But Merv seems...especially averted to me. Like, she doesn't want me touching you, or preparing your food... Even if I just space off and happen to be looking in your general direction, she bristles."

"Weird." Jay stroked Momo's back. The pup's eyes seemed to be sealed shut, which Jay found a little strange. Maybe they were like kittens, and they opened their eyes a week after birth?

"Even now," Pixal said, "Merv sleeps between us. Like she's trying to keep you as far away from me as possible."

Jay hadn't noticed that. But it did seem to be that way. "Maybe she's just upset that you aren't as encouraging as you could be," he suggested. "I mean, it seems like every other sentence you speak is Jay-depreciating."

"Jay-depreciating?" Pixal's face softened even more. She seemed dangerously close to a real smile. "You have the strangest mind."

"Aww." Jay pretended to be touched. "That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

Pixal looked away. Jay assumed she was hiding a blush or something, but her voice quickly changed his mind.

"Surely you understand my behavior," she said quietly, standing. "My last friend left me without saying goodbye."

Jay blinked at the sudden change in her demeanor. "Lloyd?" he guessed.

Pixal nodded, opening a jar on the table. She soaked the tip of a waiting rag with white hrymerv milk, then held it over the fire to warm it. "Lloyd was annoying. He got under my skin. But he was so...cute. Like a little kid. I didn't think he'd ever grow up."

Pixal's eyes were dark. "It was confusing," she said. "We were technically cousins, but-"

"Cousins?" Jay repeated.

"My mother is King Garmadon's sister. How did you not know that?"

"I did know, I guess," Jay said. "It just didn't sink in until now. Princess Jadei died eleven years ago, right?"

"Twelve. I was created because Father and Zane were grieving and lonely. I was a replacement for the Princess."

"Why would you say that?" Jay asked.

"Because," Pixal said, handing Jay the wet rag. "I was never created because Father wanted a daughter. Zane never programmed my code because he wanted a little sister. No, I was created to replace a wife and mother I never knew. And I'm expected to live up to impossible standards because of it. Every day I heard cries of My wife would never have done this! and Mother would disapprove of that!."

She sat next to Jay and watched as he offered a corner of the wet rag to Momo. The pup locked his gums around it greedily. "But Lloyd...he saw me. His attitude toward me was just so different from anything else I'd encountered. I was drawn to it. And then..." She slammed her fist down on her palm. "...the First King punishes me by killing him. I'm a miserable excuse for a fake descendant, apparently."

Jay adjusted Momo in his hands. The pup whined and readjusted his tiny mouth around a corner of the rag. He continued sucking.

"I..." Jay swallowed. "I'm really sorry that happened to you. You didn't deserve it."

"Eh." Pixal stood, moving for a shelf close by. "Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. I won't ever know. Not having a soul, I can't exactly join the First King in his ethereal kingdom one day and ask him why he decided to take Lloyd away from us." She selected a length of bandages from the shelf and went back to Jay, grabbing a basin of water on the way.

"Since when have we had bandages?" Jay asked as Pixal knelt beside him and peeled back the blankets.

"I had Suki take these from the hospital too."

"You wouldn't happen to have any painkillers to go with that?"

"No." Pixal frowned as she undid the bandages protecting his stump. "I'm no expert, but you probably shouldn't need painkillers anymore. It's been almost a month since the surgery, right?"

"Three weeks, probably," Jay said. "And that's all right. I'll...live without them."

"Aha!" Pixal said.

"What?"

"I was right," Pixal explained. "You're addicted to the painkillers."

Jay winced. Addicted was such a harsh word. The drug had soothed his physical pain as well as his mind. It had helped him tremendously during his recovery.

Until Jay unexpectedly left the island and was unable to get any more pills. Then it turned on him, making him sick and nauseous. Unable to stand without black spots clouding his vision.

"You'll have to get over it," Pixal said. "Sorry. Suki only has two feet. Fever medicine and bandages were all she could carry."

"But would you have done it?" Jay asked as Pixal splashed his stump with the cold water. The skin was mostly healed, and the swelling was minimal. It looked like there wouldn't be any serious problems with infection, as long as he was careful.

"Done what?" Pixal squeezed his knee, 'massaging' the muscles. In all honesty, Pixal was as gentle as a cornered wild animal. Jay felt he might be better off trying to massage it himself, but he did not complain.

"Gotten my drug," Jay explained, wincing. "Knowing what you do about my self-control, would you have given it to me?"

"That's not a fair question, Jay."

"Why not?"

"Well...it's a bit controversial. On the one hand, it helped you cope with the pain. But on the other, you were abusing it, which hurt you in other ways. Like...what, it was narcotic?"

"Yeah," Jay admitted. "It kind of numbed my mind. Made me feel less depressed."

"So you were basically making yourself drunk so you wouldn't have to deal with your problems," Pixal said. "Now, if it were me, I would have just pushed my way through the problem right away and moved on, no fuss. Accept it happened, accept that there was nothing I could do."

Ouch! Jay turned away. Momo was done eating, and he stretched out in Jay's palm, allowing him to rub his belly. That had become routine for them after feeding time.

"Okay, I'm sorry," Pixal sighed. "I'd never make a good therapist. Sure, I should be telling you the truth, but I shouldn't sound like a jerk as I do it."

"Uh-huh." Jay licked his second finger and ran it down from Momo's chin to distended belly. "Condescension seems to be your strongest trait."

"Yeah." Pixal finally stopped wrangling his leg- why she'd felt the need to touch him like that in the first place Jay had no clue- and she reached for the bandages. "One of my fatal flaws. I don't know if you can tell, but I've been trying to be better. Especially around you, since you've had so many problems." She grimaced. "There I go again."

"Foot in mouth." Jay smiled. "Thanks for trying though."

Nephilim lay beside Cole, one arm in the water. Dead eyes staring at the sky.

It was easy to see Nephilim's resemblance to Colvyr, the general Overlord had possessed before Lou. Square face, gray eyes, chestnut-brown hair. And that grin. Even in death she grinned like her father.

Cole shuddered, though the movement was lost in all his other tremblings. Most of his tortures on the Dark Island had been carried out by Colvyr. Through the general's body, Overlord had contracted Cole for a year of service.

That year had turned into two after an incident where Cole had refused to torture a woman in front of her husband.

Nephilim's finally dead, Cole thought. I'm just sorry that I didn't kill her myself.

Sage tentatively approached Cole and set a hand on his shoulder. "Can I...look at your wounds?" she asked shakily. To the side, Besai held Chedva as she tried to revive Kai.

Cole turned to Sage, glaring. "What was that?" he asked. "I would be dead right now if not for Kai. You just stood there and watched the whole thing, doing nothing!"

Sage recoiled, hand falling to her side. "I am sorry," she said. "I...froze."

Cole sighed and took her hand in his uninjured one. "I froze too, right before she almost killed me," he admitted. "It's all right. I forgive you."

Sage's forehead smoothed as her anxiety fell away. She sat next to him and pulled his shirt over his head. The wound in his shoulder still bled profusely, sending rivulets down his torso.

Sage pursed her lips at the wound. It went straight through his shoulder to the other side. "Mistress," she said, turning to Besai, "do you have any bandages?"

Besai looked up from where she knelt next to Kai. She shook her head, then returned to her work, dabbing his forehead with a sleeve wet from the river.

Sage ripped a long strip from the hem of her dress. She pressed it to Cole's wound, staunching the flow of blood. "I am sorry," she said, even more shakily than before. "It was foolish for me to do nothing. You..." Her grip tightened on the bloodied cloth. "...were about to die, and all I could think to do was scream?"

Cole grimaced as she applied more pressure to the wound. It hurt, but not nearly as bad as it had before. Now, all that remained was a tingling pain. Like hundreds of tiny insects crawling across the surface of his skin and biting him. So this is what a stone warrior feels like when it's been hurt. Not very pleasant. "It's on the other side too," he said through gritted teeth.

"Y-Yes." Sage hesitated, looking at her injured arm. Breathing deeply, she tore another piece from her dress and switched positions so she could press on both his chest and his back at once. An action that probably hurt her a lot.

"How's your arm?" Cole asked.

"Um…better," Sage said. Sweat trickled down her temple as she concentrated on keeping her arms steady. "Mostly healed now. I just have to be careful, because it is weak."

Nearby, Kai began to stir. He opened his eyes and stared at Besai, seeming confused. Then he sat up and looked at his Blade, red with blood in the sand.

"I'm...guessing I did that," he said, noticing Nephilim.

Cole nodded.

"Okay. I'm hoping she was the bad guy?"

"What do you think?" Cole snapped. "Tiny girl with a sadistic smile making sport of a stone warrior while a screaming mother sits on the sidelines with a crying child."

"It's…not as obvious as you seem to think," Kai said.

"I guess not." Cole took a deep breath. "I should warn you, Kai. My mind is a little...messed up. So I'm sorry if everything I say doesn't make sense."

Kai nodded. He seemed less than concerned about Cole's new appearance. His eyes seemed...dim. No living person should have eyes that look that...corpselike, Cole thought. He looks as dead and soulless as Nephilim.

"We must move," Cole said at last, deciding now was not the place to confront Kai. "Overlord will be coming soon, I'm sure." He looked at Nephilim's body. "And he won't be happy with what we've left behind."

"Where will we go?" Sage asked. "To Ninjago?"

Cole paused. "No. We don't have a way to get back. I think for now, our goal should be to just get as far away from here as we can. Hide from Overlord until we're healed, and then come up with a plan."

Sage and Besai nodded, though Kai seemed unsure.

"A plan to do what?" Kai asked. "Come back and attack?"

Cole realized how ridiculous he must have sounded. I'll have to be careful with Kai. He's been through a lot in the past couple weeks. Suggesting that we go back must sound like suicide to him.

It sounds like suicide to me.

"I don't know," Cole said at last. He picked up Nephilim's knife and examined it. His own blood still stained its blade. "We could just plan some way to leave the island. We should find Jay and the others. Maybe Jay's Blade's powers can get us away from here. For now…" He pointed upstream with his good hand. "Let's go around the river. Rest in my cave. It's a day's journey, but I have canned goods, and Overlord hasn't found it yet. We'll be safe there for as long as we need to be."

"Why not go through the river?" Kai asked. "Then we could reach your cave in just a few hours."

"We're going around," Cole growled. "End of discussion. Besai?"

Besai started. "Yes?" she said timidly. Chedva squirmed in her arms.

Cole held out the Blade to her. "Here. It's yours."

"What?" Besai glanced at Sage. "But…wouldn't you want her to have it?"

"No," Cole said. "Her fighting arm is broken. You're stronger. Take it."

Seeming flustered and confused, Besai set Chedva on Kai's lap. She tentatively took the knife from Cole, skin paling as her fingers touched his blood. "Thank you," she said. "Um…I don't know how to use it."

"Kai can teach you," Cole said. "But not right now. We're leaving as soon as I stop bleeding: we can't leave a trail of blood for Overlord to follow."

Besai nodded. "Thank you," she said again, speechless, and went to the river to clean the Blade.

How that must feel, Cole thought, to own a weapon after so many years of servitude. She won't be defenseless any longer. The thought warmed his heart of stone. She'll have some measure of control over her life. She won't have to depend on others. I can relate to that feeling.

He found himself smiling a little as he watched her carefully wipe the now clean Blade's flat side with her thumb. She sucked in a sharp breath as she accidentally cut herself.

I can definitely relate.

Why am I doing this myself?

Overlord ran through the trees, face flushed from exertion. His chest hurt, and there was a terrible stitch in his side. Why didn't I send my stone warriors after them? Why did I hold them back?

Because Nephilim wanted to prove herself a woman, he reminded himself. She assured me she could take care of them. So why am I so... He swallowed, eyes flitting left and right as he checked for any sign of life. ...worried?

Worried was not a word in Overlord's vocabulary. He was never worried. This was his plan, the plan he'd been patiently hatching for centuries. Everything worked for him how he wanted, when he wanted. Like clockwork. It always had, it always would.

...And yet he was worried about one of his pawns? Nephilim was a sweet girl, yes. A hard worker. But Overlord did not feel any emotional attachment to her. At least, that's what he told himself. I'm worried because she is so valuable. That's all.

Well done, Dark Knight. I suppose you've found my only weakness.

Reaching the river, he stopped and looked up and down it. It was difficult to see in the light of the almost-set sun.

"Nephilim!" he called. His voice rose above the roar of the water. "Nephilim!" His feet shuffled in the sand for a moment as he tried to decide which direction to search first. North or south.

Then he caught a whiff of blood on the breeze. His heart seized as he broke into a run. Heartburn. He almost healed himself, but he abstained. He might need that power for Nephilim.

"Nephilim!" Why isn't she answering me? Why hasn't she come back already? He had only waited so long to search for her because he had faith that she would return by herself, dragging the corpses of every escaped captive behind her. That hadn't happened, and so here he was.

There! A small dark figure lay crumpled on the sandy bank. Nephilim. Overlord dropped to his knees next to her and touched her face.

Cold and stiff. There was a crusty, dry gash in her chest from a sword wound.

No.

No! Overlord drew a white Gem out of his pocket and pressed it atop the wound. Heal her! Heal!

White mist swirled above her breast for a moment, then prodded the wound. It seeped in, seeming reluctant, and reknit the skin and undid whatever damage had been done beneath. Her whole body began to glow as the healing occurred.

Then the light fizzled out, and there was darkness. The Gem was completely out of power.

"No..." Overlord whispered, taking the girl's face in his hands. "Neph, come on. Wake up." He closed his eyes, not willing to believe that such a minute problem would spark emotion in him. She was only one girl. I can get another just like her.

Then his eyes were moist, and he took Nephilim's body- now limp, all rigor mortis having been countered by the Gem- in his arms. Get a grip! She meant nothing to you! She was only a pawn. A useless, weak, mortal pawn.

...No.

Overlord reopened his eyes, and they began to glow white. But not like his Gem. No, Overlord's light was a thousand times brighter. A thousand times more brilliant.

A thousand times more pure.

Dare I ask? he wondered. Dare I reveal that I actually do care?

Yes. Anything to get her back from that terrible... He shuddered, then took a deep breath. The air around his body lit up, swirling slightly like mist.

"Revive her," he prayed, his voice soft and melodic as a song. "Bring her back to me, My Lord."

Almost before he finished uttering the words, Nephilim's chest rose in a gentle, sleepy breath. And then another.

He allowed his eyes to return to green, and he kissed Nephilim's forehead. He was relieved, of course. But disturbed as well.

Since when has he actually cared about this girl?

Overlord checked over his shoulder to ensure no one had seen his transformation, then stood, Nephilim cradled in his arms, Gem safely back in his pocket.

"Let's go home," he murmured to her, turning away from the water. "We both need rest."

And tomorrow, I will begin the hunt for the wretches who did this to you.