Kayla screamed as she toppled to the ground, arrows flying. The raptors were on her in an instant, their talons sinking deep into her flesh. Their jagged little teeth sinking into her arms. Dagger in hand, she jabbed blindly at whatever reptilian flesh she could find. One raptor lost an eye, another his hand, another a lot of blood.

Their talons incessantly dug at her flesh, and Kayla could feel herself weakening. She’d lost a lot of blood already. It wouldn’t be long before she perished here.

All of a sudden, the raptors stopped. But the pain still dragged on. Kayla gasped, each breath cramping her lungs and sending more blood gushing out the wounds. She managed to feel her raw abdomen and retched.

The raptors were not paying attention to her. Kayla could barely hear a clicking sound through the ringing in her ears. Her breath seemed way too loud. Too rough and jagged. She wondered if she’d ever move again.

The raptors screeched and fled, leaving Kayla alone in the darkness. Alone with her dying thoughts. Never before had she felt such vicious, gnawing pain. It washed over her body in waves, and yet it still kept coming. No end in sight.

Tears puddled in Kayla’s eyes. She was a fool. To think she could retrieve the Jewel of Laridal for her people and set them free. To think she could atone for the mistakes she made. Because if she was deeply honest, they were banished because of her. The Hermit had spread the rumor of the increasing might and power of her people, but she knew it wasn’t true. She had willfully broken the law, and her people had followed the example of their princess.

A flame illuminated the darkness, and Kayla could barely make out the face of her brother.

Emotion choked her voice as she struggled to breathe. “Kevin, I-I…”

Kevin put a finger to her lips, silencing her excuses. With grim determination, he knelt down by her side and retrieved a dark bottle from his satchel. Taking her dagger, he shredded strips of his shirt and carefully wound them around each gash, pouring a little bit from the bottle on each gash. Whatever medicine he had burned like hell, and Kayla gritted her teeth against the nausea worming its way upward.

“Relax,” Kevin spoke for the first time. “It works better when calm.”

With great effort, Kayla forced herself to slowly loosen up. Each new breath became a little bit easier, and she found the pain subsiding a little.

“What is it?” Kayla asked.

“The juice of the Bulrock fruit,” Kevin replied. “When concentrated, its healing properties are beyond compare. Your wounds will be nothing but scars soon. Physically, you’ll be fine.”

Kayla read between the lines. “But what is it?”

Kevin smiled, a hint of sadness. “Don’t you worry. You’ll regain all that lost blood.”

It took a moment for his words to take effect. “NO! Kevin, wait! There’s another way around. We can fix this!”

Kevin held two needles and a transfusion tube. “Kayla, this you can’t fix. We are far from any doctor.”

The tears streamed down her cheeks, and she clutched his hand in both of hers. “I just got you back!! Please don’t do this.”

Kevin smiled sadly. “I love you, Kay.” Before she could speak, he slammed a rock against her head, and her world dissolved into darkness.

When Kayla awoke, she stared into the darkness for a long time. Unwilling to face the truth. Unable to bear the grief. She reached with her hand and felt a needle protruding from her arm. Then the transfusion tube. Then, her brother’s arm, cold, unmoving.

Chest quivering, she sat up and grabbed her brother’s body, clutching him close. The dead weight told her everything, and her eyes burned. Kevin had replaced her blood with his.

“Kevin…” Kayla whispered. “Please, come back, Kev.” But she knew all too well how futile her words were. She wept in the darkness, clinging to her brother’s lifeless body.

Chirping sounded in the distance, and Kayla’s grief morphed into rancorous hatred. Raptors. The Challenges. The exile. The king. The Hermit. The prince. She hated all of them. If it wasn’t for them, her brother would still be alive. Kayla laid her brother back down and kissed him on the forehead.

“I will avenge you,” Kayla muttered. “Your death will not go unpunished.”

Rising to her feet, she felt her strength return to her. Her blood and her brother’s churned inside of her, and all that remained of her wounds were scars. But the emotional wounds would never heal. Kayla struck a match and held it aloft until she found her sword. The glittering, four-foot, double-edged, razor-sharp weapon of peril. Her fingers curled around the familiar hilt, and she held it aloft. She would retrieve the Jewel of Laridal. For her people. For her brother. To prove to the king she could best his murderous Challenges.

The raptors charged closer, the smell of mammalian blood enticing them back for a second try. Kayla unleashed all her anger in one defiant yell and took the raptors by surprise. Moments later, all three raptors lay decapitated, their bodies still twitching. Kayla scooped up her brother’s satchel and strode off into the darkness. One Challenge down. One step closer to the Jewel of Laridal. One step closer to shaking the red dust of this barbaric planet off her feet and leaving it behind once and for all.