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A wash of feelings rushed over Damian. Nausea, dizziness, fever, and a strange empty feeling came in and out like ocean waves flowing through her body. She heard her own voice moan as if from far away, and then it came closer. Her stomach settled as feeling began to tingle through her body. It seemed like a very long time had passed since she had last moved.

She heard sounds, but couldn't make out what they were. Then, a voice nearby called her name. Opening her eyes, she found someone leaning over her, features all a blur. As her vision focused, she began to make out auburn hair and green eyes. Her eyes widened when she realized who crouched over her, and only one feeling came to mind with his appearance.

Anger.

"Are you alright?" Garrick asked, smiling casually.

Damian hardly realized her own actions. Anger at Garrick fueled her to raise her arm and slap him across the face with as much strength as she could muster.

"You jerk!" she yelled out as she sat up, glaring at him. "You just abandoned us when we needed you most and now you come back as if nothing happened?"

A hand laid on her shoulder. Spinning, she prepared to vent her rage at this next target, but when she found Domino kneeling beside her, her expression softened.

"Domino," she uttered gratefully and wrapped her arms around him. His arms encircling her had never felt so comforting. She glanced over her shoulder at Garrick.

"I thought you were a better man than that," she snapped. "I can't believe how childish you acted."

"Damian," Domino cut in. Facing him, she found his expression stoic as usual. "He saved both our lives in the fields that night." Her eyes widened curiously. "He returned during the battle and guided me out, as well as recovered our horses. We wouldn't have survived without his help." Surprised, Damian looked over at Garrick again. He sent her an apologetic smile as he rubbed his face. Calming, she let out a sigh.

"I'm sorry," she stated. Her hand tingled from the force of her blow. She thought Garrick must be feeling decidedly more uncomfortable.

"No, no," Garrick replied, "I deserved that." Sighing, he rose to his feet, though a hint of a smile played at his lips. "I'm sorry for running off the way I did. You're right, it was immature of me."

"It's alright," Damian responded, her anger abated. Truthfully, she was glad that he had returned, though she still wondered why he had changed recently.

"Are you okay?" Garrick asked. She still felt strangely empty inside, but she nodded. For the first time, she glanced around at their surroundings. They sat between the horses and a cliff wall that curved down to the ground on one side and rose to a plateau on the other. Beyond the horses, the plains were scorched.

"Where are we?" she asked. "How long was I asleep?"

"About three days," Domino answered. She glanced at him, surprised.

"That's all?" she wondered. He nodded. "It felt like I was asleep for weeks."

"We were afraid you weren't going to wake up," Domino continued. Garrick nodded in agreement.

"Nothing we did could help you," he added. Blinking, Damian looked out at the blackened plain again.

"What happened?" she wondered. The knight's expression grew grave.

"Nephrita was released," he answered. Damian felt her breath come up short, yet she didn't feel as surprised as she expected to be. Although she couldn't feel it at the time, she knew that had happened when she lost control of her magic use in the fields. She let out a sigh.

"I failed," she uttered. First she had caused Aether's destruction, then an attack on Trent. Now, her recklessness had doomed the whole world to another Dark Age. The thought made her heart feel small and empty.

"No," Garrick replied. "You did your best. And besides, I think you may still be able to help." She glanced at him.

"Nephrita cast a spell that hit you," he explained. "It woke you up and it did something to her." Damian shook her head.

"I don't understand," she stated. The knight knelt before her.

"You still hold a connection to her," he told. "She forged a spirit bond while she was in your body. It's the only way she could escape, but it's not entirely broken now. I don't know what exactly it means, but it's obvious that she can't cast any magic on you without it affecting herself." Damian paused, taking in his words. She was surprised to learn that she was still connected to the dark goddess that had inhabited her body all her life. The thought that she might yet be able to stop Nephrita instilled her with hope. Garrick's statement had answered few questions for her, however, and she didn't understand what the connection she held meant.

"What should I do?" she asked. Garrick laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Right now, you just need to rest," he replied. "We should still have a healer look at you, but it's too late to make it to another town tonight. Let's just set up camp." Damian nodded. That was a concept she could grasp. She gazed into Domino's eyes as he helped her to her feet. Twitches of emotion played across his face, but he kept his expression blank.

"Thank you," she stated, leaning forward and wrapping the mercenary in her arms. He grasped her firmly, relief clear in his hold. "Both of you," she added as she glanced over her shoulder at Garrick. A snort sounded from nearby. Smiling, she turned to find Brenadier and Singer standing close, with Hope nearest to her.

"All of you," she amended. Reaching out her arm, she laid a hand on the mare's nose. Garrick began unstrapping his equipment from his chestnut destrier's tack. Damian stepped back as Domino released her to take his satchel from the knight. A moment of uncertain silence followed as Domino and Garrick gazed knowingly at each other. Damian tensed, but there was no malice in either of them. Instead, she saw a far stranger look in the knight's eyes. Is that... respect?

Finally, Garrick stated questioningly, "You saved my life." Damian's eyes widened at the assertion, but Domino only shrugged.

"My instinct is to protect," he replied simply. Garrick hesitated a moment longer, then turned to face her.

"I'll take first watch," he announced. She nodded and turned with Domino to help set up a fire.

After gathering what little wood they could find, Domino knelt before the small arrangement of sticks and branches and retrieved his tinder box. Gazing at his hands, the empty feeling grew large within Damian. She gasped.

"What is it?" Garrick asked, concerned. Damian turned to glance at her own hands.

"My magic," she stated. Facing the unlit fire, she held her hand out. Her eyes squinted in concentration, but she felt nothing. Clenching her teeth, she tried to delve into that well of power inside her, but it simply wasn't there. The rush of energy flowing through her body, the warmth and sensation that made her feel every fiber of her being had left her.

She settled back on her knees, feeling even more empty than before.

"It's gone."

Garrick reached out and laid a hand on her shoulder with a frown. Damian looked away. All her life, her unique magic ability had caused her nothing but grief, and as little as a week ago, she wanted nothing more than for it to be gone. Now that it finally was, she felt incomplete. And now was the time that she needed it most.

"We'll find out what happened when we get to Windermere," Garrick remarked. Damian raised her head.

"Windermere?" she asked. She had been to the duke's city numerous times on her father's trade routes. It was a meager town, smaller than Dresdin and only slightly larger than Trent with a small castle and little commerce. It was also along the edge of her father's route and had taken them half the summer to reach it each year. Garrick nodded.

"If we ride hard, we might make it tomorrow night," he stated. "It shouldn't take us longer than two days."

"Oh," Damian answered. She hadn't realized that she had traveled so far. She was a very long way from home and nearly on the edge of the world she knew. And almost a season had passed since the fateful night when krolmins invaded Aether and cast her out into the world. It was a humbling thought.

Glancing up, a smile came unexpectedly to her face. Despite everything that had happened, she had found good company and true friends in two faithful guardians and now had more to her name than possibly she had before the attack.

"Look, Damian," Garrick began, "now that Nephrita is gone, you're not part of this any more. Nobody's going to come after you now. You're free to do whatever and go wherever you wish." Even before he finished speaking, Damian shook her head.

"No," she replied. "I'm as much a part of this now as I ever was. Nephrita is still a part of me, and that means I have to do whatever it takes to stop her." Gazing into the growing fire, she felt strength seep into her heart. She grasped the marble hilt of her dagger, feeling the comfort it had provided her when she first used it. "I will not let my father's death be in vain. It's her fault he died, and I intend to see that she pays for it." Blinking back tears, she cast a slow glance around the fire at Garrick, Domino, and the horses. "I've invested too much in this to give up now." Her eyes settled on Domino's. A glimmer of pride alighted in his topaz blue eyes as he nodded. When she turned back to Garrick, a smile tinged with sadness and uncertainty marked his face.

"Then let's get some dinner and rest," he offered. Smiling, she nodded.

Damian listened intently to Garrick's retelling of the events since the battle in the field. Domino rarely spoke, often nodding at the knight's words. The pieces began to come together in her mind as he repeated what the fox woman Niabi had told them, though she still knew too little to understand its implications. None of them could guess what the mysterious spirit bond Damian seemed to hold to Nephrita meant. The only way they could find out for certain, it seemed, was for Damian to face the dark goddess herself. She frowned uneasily at the thought.

Hesitantly, Damian lied down near Domino to sleep that night, but when she glanced over her shoulder at Garrick, he only gave her a wry smile and looked away. Her eyes widened when she noticed a pall of sadness fall over his eyes. She wished she could speak with him privately. Turning around, she settled in beside Domino and closed her eyes.

The morning dawned bright and warm. Summer was drawing near. Damian could feel it in the dry breeze that blew over the plains. After traveling all the way south to Dresdin on the coast, she had come back further north than Aether, and the climate was already obviously warmer. With the recollection of the stifling warmth that usually occupied her days in Windermere, she was glad that they would be arriving only at the onset of summer. Normally, her father's trade route had brought them to the duke's city in the heat of the season.

Garrick encouraged them to move quickly so they could reach Windermere by nightfall. After a quick breakfast, they set out, and as often as not rode at a trot or canter down the road. Damian scanned the plains as they rode, afraid and yet anxious to find some sign that Nephrita had passed that way. It was strange to find herself so immediately out of the farms that had filled her days before the battle in the field, though the scenery was far more interesting to her eyes. Little blemish marred the open land they traveled and Damian found herself admiring the landscape more than she watched for danger.

Domino was the first to sight what they had all dreaded, early that afternoon with a clear sun hanging above.

"Look," he stated suddenly at the top of a hill. Damian and Garrick followed his eyes. Down the road about a mile, a caravan of wagons cluttered the path. None of them were moving and one was overturned. Small, dark shapes swarmed over the scene.

"Krolmins," Damian gasped. She was surprised at how easily the word rolled off her tongue. She made to flick Hope's reins.

"Wait," Garrick cut in, scanning the scene. Surprised, Damian glanced at him. His eyes were on the road ahead. "If the krolmins are attacking people, and in broad daylight, Nephrita must be near." Damian's eyes widened as she turned back to the battle taking place below. She knew she would have to face Nephrita, but without having any clue what she was to do to stop the dark goddess, she was afraid she wouldn't be able to think fast enough to do anything, or save herself. Damian wasn't certain she was ready to challenge Nephrita. The knight shook his head.

"Only one way to find out," he remarked and spurred Brenadier off. Damian and Domino followed after him, racing down the hill towards the scene.

Halfway to the caravan, a strange feeling came over Damian. The air felt thin, as if she stood high on a mountain, yet she could feel her blood flowing warmer through her body. She pulled Hope to a stop. Soon, she caught her breath and the feeling passed. Now, however, she could feel the energizing tingle of magic, though it was faint.

Domino called to her as he reined in Singer some paces ahead. Garrick hadn't noticed her fall back and continued riding towards the wagons, now only a stone's throw ahead of his mount.

Damian clutched her mare's mane as the sensation flowed through her. It seemed not to come from within her, but from somewhere nearby. Raising her head, she glanced off to the side of the road at a cluster of trees standing alone against the grassy plains. A patch of air shimmered and glowed within the trees, distorting her view of them. She could feel a great well of energy and life emanating from the spot with a sense she didn't realize she had. Suddenly, the form of a head came out of the vision and turned to face her. Her head tossed back as violet eyes appeared before her for but a brief moment.

Shaking her head, she lead Hope off the road and cantered toward the trees. Domino followed behind her.

A woman faded into view before the trees as Damian rode closer, short black hair and sharp silver spines adorning her head. Her body was clothed in a dark, silken robe that exposed her bare shoulders, upper arms, and feet. The cloth hung parted in the center, revealing long, softly curved legs beneath. Damian tried to gather her courage as she neared the woman, hoping she could still her shaking hands.

The woman smiled darkly when Damian pulled the golden brown and white mare to a stop ten paces away. She had never before seen this woman, but she knew that the dark goddess Nephrita stood before her. Damian could feel magic flowing through her blood again, though much weaker than before. The power didn't ebb from within her heart, but from the woman she faced.

Dismounting, she stepped forward, but suddenly could think of nothing to say. Nephrita tossed her head back casually.

"Well," she stated, her voice smooth and lilting, "I must say I am surprised. I wasn't expecting you to survive this long."

"I'm not ready to die yet," Damian answered defiantly. She tried to tap into the well of power standing before her, but even as she reached for it, it drew back. Nephrita let out a single laugh.

"How charming," she remarked. "But you can't stop death from coming any more than you can stop the weather." Her eyes glinted ferociously as a rumble of thunder rang across the sky. A shadow passed over the grove. "Have you come to beg for your magic back?"

"I've come to stop you," Damian retaliated, stepping forward. She clenched her fists at her sides, courage and resolution overcoming her uncertainties. It was for this woman that her father had died, and all Damian could think of was vengeance.

Nephrita chuckled, amused. "You really think you can stop me? I am a goddess."

Damian felt a wave of warmth wash over her hand. She curled her fist, trying to grasp the magic tighter. "A mortal goddess." Dashing aside, she threw her arm around, hurling the energy she clutched at Nephrita. The spell was weak and faded almost to nothing by the time it reached the dark goddess. Before Damian could move, Nephrita thrust her arm forward and a blast of energy careened into Damian. The blow lifted her off her feet and threw her backwards with a yelp.

Yet, Damian recovered her balance as she stumbled back. The spell Nephrita had cast throbbed in waves over her body, but with it pulsed the deep power she had known all her life. She felt magic flowing through her blood with every beat of her heart, filling her with a strength that soon overpowered the draining effect of Nephrita's spell.

Lifting her head, Damian found Nephrita stumbling, clutching her chest in a sharp grip as she panted. As she done all through her life, Damian gathered the energy swimming through her body into her hands. Thrusting her arms forward, she flung a searing-hot missile through the air towards the dark goddess. With a cry, Nephrita tried to dodge, but the blast struck an invisible barrier surrounding her. Damian felt a sharp yet brief ache in her heart, but Nephrita staggered in place. The goddess, it seemed, could hardly hold her body off the ground.

Damian grinned.

She began reaching for the well of power again, now seeming as close as it ever had when it was inside her. This time, there was less resistence. Stepping forward, she raised her arms, preparing to take down Nephrita with her own magic. The goddess stepped back shakily as Damian drew closer, an angry scowl marking Nephrita's face. Damian's determination rose with the sight of Nephrita's masked fear and Garrick standing quietly behind her, spear drawn and ready.

Damian raised her hands, her heart growing calm with the thought that Nephrita would soon be gone.

Suddenly, Nephrita glanced off to the side. Taken aback, Damian followed the woman's eyes. Damian had hardly glimpsed the boulder when she was shoved forward from behind. The flying rock smashed into her shoulder and the side of her head, though most its weight was cushioned by Domino's arm around her. Crying out, she fell to the ground, her shoulder throbbing and her head swimming. The surge of power fled her body, leaving behind only dizziness and pain.

Damian's head and shoulders were lifted off the ground. Opening her eyes, she saw Nephrita through flashing stars, now facing Garrick. Damian couldn't make out the words they spoke to each other. Nephrita raised a hand to Garrick's head. With a flash of light, the knight stumbled and fell over on his back. Damian tried to call to him, but she couldn't find her voice. Her jaw felt like putty.

She could feel her body growing weak, but desperately she forced her eyes open, watching the scene before her in a haze. Nephrita stepped back from Garrick's unmoving body and began walking away. No, Damian thought as she tried to reach out and grasp the power she had tapped into within Nephrita. A bubble of energy formed in Damian's heart, faint and fleeting. A few paces away, Nephrita raised her hand. The well of power that Damian reached for began to fade, and inwardly she grasped tighter at it. She could feel the magic within her growing stronger as she drew it back to her. Nephrita glanced over her shoulder at Damian, and in that moment, the bubble popped.

Her strength fled, Damian closed her eyes and leaned her head back until everything faded to silence.