Eric stepped back, unable to comprehend what he saw before him. That Laina, the gangly, plain little girl whom he'd cherished so dearly, could be the exotic young woman standing before him. What had happened to her? How had she changed?

"It is you," he said, almost to hear the truth of the words, to confirm what couldn't be denied. Something about her appearance struck him as right - as though part of him had always known Laina's outsides hadn't matched her true self.

"It's me." Her whisper tinged with fear, and his head pain increased, stabbing through his thoughts.

"Maverick?"

"Safe."

Eric didn't know whether he felt better or worse with this knowledge. It felt wrong to be here, to see her standing alongside Roman Treck. He wanted to shove Roman away - to keep her from him, as though he was dangerous to her.

"What are you doing out here? What happened to you?"

Before Laina could answer, Roman grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back, away from Eric. He'd drawn his sword, his dark eyes fixed on Eric's face.

"You know why we're out here, Lee. We're headed the same way you are." He brandished his sword, shifting his weight between his feet. "Where else do the children of people you murdered go?"

Noelle gave a little wave. "He didn't murder my parents."

"Not now," Roman said.

Eric arched a brow. "I didn't kill your mother - nor did I kill hers." His gaze flickered to Laina, but her attention was on Roman, her fear palpable.

Fear for whom?

"Roman, put the sword down," she said, her voice taught.

"I'm done bowing down to him and his Army."

"You're going to get hurt."

"One of us is." Roman advanced, and Eric pulled his sword free.

#

Phoenix's horror rose, colliding with her anger and frustration at the whole ridiculous situation. Eric and Samson were here before her, old friends and new dangers. Roman's hatred for Eric wasn't helping, and as he launched toward Eric, Phoenix knew it wouldn't end well.

"No!" She rushed forward, only to be grabbed by the arm and redirected.

"Don't," Samson said as he dragged her back. "You might get hurt."

"They're going to get hurt!" Phoenix said, jerking away from him.

Samson studied her face, his grey eyes searching, no doubt, for any hint of Laina. She reached out and gripped his arm, staring him straight in the eyes, ignoring the connection it formed - weaker than the one with Eric, but still there.

"Samson, it's me. We have to stop them. You care about Eric, and so do I, but I care about Roman, too. Please help me."

Samson's lips pressed into a firm line, and though his mistrust pulsed from him, he nodded. Phoenix turned and ran at Eric and Roman.

"Stop! Don't. Roman -" She tried to grab hold of him, but he pushed her back.

"Stay out of this!"

"Don't get in the way, Laina," Eric called, warning in his voice.

"You can't tell me what to do!" Phoenix shouted back, anger mounting. "Now both of you stop! You're being ridiculous." She grabbed for Eric this time, distracting him.

He blocked Roman's advance, with his sword arm, but with his right hand, he nabbed a fistful of her sleeveless tunic and hurled her backward out of the way.

Hitting the ground hard, Phoenix rolled, stunned and winded by the force. What the hells?

She glanced up and saw Samson hovering nearby, sword drawn as he searched for a way to intervene. To her horror, she also saw Noelle edging closer to the fight, her hands up as she tried to talk Roman down.

"Roman, please, just listen -"

It happened too fast to see whose blade it was, and Phoenix was already on her feet running forward, but too late.

Steel swiped against Noelle and she cried out, falling backwards.

"No!" Phoenix's screech, loud and piercing, tore Eric and Roman apart as they threw their hands up to block their ears.

She slid to the ground by Noelle, who held her arm close to her chest.

"I'm fine, it's just my arm," she said through gritted teeth.

"Look what you've done!" Phoenix snapped, rising and rounding on the others.

"Phoenix, I'm fine," Noelle said from her feet, but Phoenix wasn't listening.

"This is all your fault!" She pointed from Roman to Eric, both of whom watched her with wide eyed shock. "You couldn't just stop. You were too busy acting like macho idiots! You don't care about anyone but yourselves." She turned to Roman. "You never listen to anything I say. You act like I'm less because I'm a woman, and you!" She rounded on Eric. "After everything we've been through, you abandoned us. We thought you were dead!"

It all bubbled up, everything she'd stuffed down, blazing as she stared at Eric Lee. "You're the reason my parents are dead - because you were born, they had to die. You stabbed Maverick and then he left me! He left me all alone while he ran off because he couldn't stand the thought of losing anyone else. It's all your fault!"

All of it. Every hurt, every frustration, every bit of sadness and anger flooded out. She felt like her insides were burning up, a molten lava within her and she couldn't stop.

Samson stepped up at her side, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Laina -"

"No!" She screeched again, but this time a burst of flames radiated from within her, spreading out in a ring of fire, hot and intense.

It hit Samson right across his torso, knocking him off his feet. Roman turned away and Eric threw up his arms, but both were knocked to the ground as well. The fire ring continued, spreading out until it hit the mountains, burning up anything in its path.

Phoenix's hands flew to her mouth as tears sprang to her eyes. Heart pounding, she stared around at the destruction she'd caused.

Her eye caught sight of the blackened tree, still popping every so often as it cooled in the wintery air. The juxtaposition flashed her back to her dream with Altair - the world Eric sees.

This earth - scorched by fire. Black, dead, destroyed. That's you, that's who you are to Eric.

That's who I am.

Samson, who'd been right next to her, had fallen at her feet, scorch marks covering his torso, his uniform burned away. With a cry of remorse, Phoenix dropped down to her knees, leaning over him as the tears dropped down to his chest.

The healing was instantaneous, and Samson groaned as he focused his attention on her.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, placing her hand against his cheek. "I'm so so sorry."

Samson's eyes fluttered closed, and Phoenix glanced over her shoulder to see if Eric and Roman had been spared. Roman lay on his side, his face scrunched up in pain, but Eric was on his feet, rushing right toward her.

"Get away from him."

Before she could react, Eric had her by the arm, his grip like an iron vice. He jerked her up, his frosty gaze murderous as he bared his teeth at her.

"I'm healing him," she said, trying to pull away. "I can heal you too if you just -" She glanced down, seeing the faintest burn marks on Eric's hands, barely more than a heat rash. His grip on her arm tightened, and she cried out in pain.

When he let go of her, Phoenix glanced down. Her skin was red as though he had burned her, but it wasn't hot. Eric hadn't wasted his time after releasing her, retrieving his sword.

"Wait!" Phoenix pulled her own sword free, bringing it up to defend herself as Eric advanced. "Eric, don't!"

Eric wasn't one to explode with rage. He didn't fight with blind anger. If anything, the rage that pulsed from him was cold, simmering, calculated. His moves were as sharp and focused as ever, keeping Phoenix on her toes as she tried to keep him at bay.

She'd known he was strong, that his gifting meant he was a skilled fighter, capable of surviving any attack - but this was beyond anything she'd ever seen.

He knocked her sword free, sending it sailing across the path as he advanced toward her.

"You killed my friend because I stabbed your brother," Eric said with cold conviction. "You act as though I'm the monster - that I'm the one who doesn't understand, but I do. I saved Maverick's life. I saved yours as well. I did everything I could to keep you safe - including staying away from you when I returned to Treywick - and for what? For you to join my enemy, burn me, and murder -"

Something - no someone - as large as a boulder crashed into Eric, sending them both to the ground. Phoenix let out a yelp of shock as she watched them go down. Eric hit first, his whole body jarred. He lost his grip on his sword, his attention turning to the giant above him.

The newcomer, large, with a blond curly mane, gritted his teeth as he struggled to pin Eric to the ground.

"I won't let you hurt her!" he said, punching Eric across the jaw. Eric retaliated with an elbow to the giant's nose.

As the giant pulled back, his hand flew to his face, and Phoenix sucked in a sharp breath. He had markings on his hands - black, swirling around his fingers and heading along his wrist and beyond what she could see. The giant reached out, retrieving Eric's sword and bringing the blade to Eric's neck.

"Ares!" Phoenix called, taking a few steps forward. "Don't!"

He paused, and so did Eric, both of them turning toward her, surprise on Eric's face, and confusion on Ares'.

"What did you say?" the blond man asked, a tremor in his voice.

Before Phoenix could respond, someone pulled her from behind, his arm wrapping around her waist as a dagger pressed against her throat.

"Step away from him," Samson's voice was calm, as though he was asking for the giant to pass him the sugar. His arm around Phoenix's waist tightened, though the dagger remained still, no pressure on her neck.

Phoenix felt Eric's relief and shock at the sight of Samson, unharmed.

"What are you doing?" Phoenix asked, her voice low.

She felt Samson's lips brush by her ear. "Trust me." To the giant, he spoke again in the same steady voice. "You touch him again and I will spill her blood faster than you can blink."

Phoenix sensed the lie, but didn't react. The blond pulled Eric's blade away from the Commander's neck, pushing to his feet.

"Drop the sword."

The man did as Samson directed, tossing Eric's sword down. Samson released Phoenix, backing away from her, his gaze fixed on the giant, his dagger pointed in the stranger's direction.

"Ares." Samson said it with some sort of assurance, perhaps believing Phoenix knew him. His repetition, though, only darkened the glower on the giant's face.

Eric, Phoenix realized, had fled, disappearing into the pass without his sword. Samson, too, had noticed. He dropped down, scooping up Eric's sword before backing away from them all, his stern countenance unchanging as he disappeared around the bend.

Letting out a long breath, Phoenix finally turned her attention to Roman and Noelle, the latter having moved to the former's side. Phoenix rushed over to them, dropping down and screwing up her eyes to try and force tears as fast as she could.

Noelle held her forearm, the cut not very deep, though blood now covered her tunic. Roman's shoulder had been burned far more severely than Eric, despite them standing side by side.

Once her tears flowed, Phoenix swiped at them with both hands, placing one on each of their wounds. Roman sucked in a hissing breath as his healed, but Noelle groaned in relief.

"Thank you," she said, examining her arm. "You really do come in handy. Are you all right?"

Phoenix shook her head, unable to find the words to express how she felt.

"Why'd you save him?" Roman asked, his face screwed up in disbelief. "Why would you save Samson Steele?"

Phoenix ignored the question, glancing back over her shoulder to address the giant.

Only he wasn't there.

"Where'd he go?" Phoenix leapt to her feet, staring around the path. "He's gone." Her heart sank, but Noelle cleared her throat.

"I've seen him before." When Phoenix glanced down at her, Noelle pushed to her feet. "He was with Maverick in Groschen."

Roman spoke before Phoenix could respond. "You healed him, but you left me and Noelle."

"We weren't in danger of dying," Noelle replied, shooting him a sour look. "He could have -"

"Died? Yeah, and how would that be a bad thing?" Roman shook his head.

"Enough." Phoenix crossed to the mountain, pulling their bags out of the hiding place Roman and Noelle had vacated. Phoenix tossed him his bag, ignoring his wince as he caught it - she didn't buy it for one second that he was still in pain. She handed Noelle's off to her, throwing her own over her shoulder.

"Where are you going?" Noelle asked. "Do we really want to go the exact same way we just saw Eric go?"

"My brother is this way - maybe both of them." She glanced back at them. "If you don't want to follow, don't, but I haven't come this far to quit now."

She turned, continuing on the path marked out for her, her head pounding with everything she'd just seen.

Ares.

Whoa.

Did it happen as you expected?

Probably not. But maybe. What about Youlden's entrance? He took Eric DOWN!
And then Samson did the whole "Don't you dare" thing...what the heck? At least he's super loyal to his bestie boss.

Roman's mad, Noelle is confused, and Phoenix is feeling more abandoned than ever.

Speak now. I want your thoughts.

Also for all the Stolen Royals fans - there's now a Goodreads page where you can ask me ANYTHING about the books (including a spoilers thread). It's lonely right now, just me and one of my writer besties.  Come join us and make us feel cool! 

Click on the comment I left here to see this link and go to the Goodreads group! (https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/207552-q-a-with-kelsey-keating?ref=nav_bar_discussions_pane_group)