I floated suspended in this blissful darkness for what felt like hours. Nothing could touch me here. Not the weight of exhaustion pulling me down or the agony squeezing at my muscles and bones.

It was a reprieve, but one thing about reprieves is that they never last too long.

At first, it started in small flashes. An explosion of light here and there, a flicker of pain, a whisper of voices just outside my minds reach.

Eventually, those flashes became longer and more drawn out. The light became blinding, tinted with colors and shapes that moved. Voices took form, names flashing in my memory as I began to recognize them.

Each time I gathered the strength to open my eyes, it was sucked away by some intangible force. With each sensation that returned, my least favorite was my dry throat.

I couldn’t seem to keep my eyes open for long enough to drink anything, but what I wanted most was some damn blood. A few times I swore I saw the outline of Asher’s face, always hovering over me, silently