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She was halfway across when the ground beneath her numb, burning toes shook.

Something plunked into the water. She turned in time to see another crystal peel from the cave wall falling one after another into the icy water—sealing off her only exit.

Thicket ran. It felt like walking underneath the wolf’s control. Like running in a dream. Still, she forced her waterlogged legs forward. A crystal above her head plummeted. She dove out of the way, gasping as cold water rushed across her chest and onto the ends of her hair. But she didn’t stop moving, scrambling for purchase on the slick stone floor beneath.

She was almost there.

Out of the corner of her eye, something shifted.

Cowering in the corner was a small animal. It was about the size of a cat and had sleek brown fur. An otter. Only this one had fins protruding from its back, legs, and tail—which was trapped beneath a chunk of crystal.

She had no idea what it was doing here. Had no idea if it was a poor animal who had gotten up in whatever tests the Numyna had planned for her or something meant to distract her. But she couldn’t rip her eyes from the look of terror in its wide eyes.

She should keep running. If this was a test and she failed by not making it to the next tunnel, both she and her kingdom would be doomed. She had no way of knowing what was a part of the test and what was real. Thicket had never been good at distinguishing the two. She could only go off what she knew and that was she couldn’t sacrifice the possibility of saving an innocent life.

Too many had already suffered because of Thicket’s family. She refused to get her happy end at the cost of someone else’s.

It was time to stop thinking in right and wrong. In what she was and was not supposed to do.

It was time to just start being herself.

Thicket changed course, cutting through the thick water towards the otter. It recoiled as she neared, as though it feared her as much as the crystals.

“It’s okay little one,” she said, doing her best to sound soothing, but her breath was ragged, the words coming out in a rushed huff. “Just hold still.”

Crystals crashed around her. Her shoulders shot up to her head as one shattered right beside her. Thicket lifted the crystal trapping the otter’s tail but her feet slipped. She landed hard on the rocky edge, slicing her palms on the rough stone.

One of the crystals above her teetered.

Panic raced through her veins. Thicket scrambled up, leveraging her leg on the side of the cavern as she yanked.

A sharp clink reverberated through Thicket’s eardrums as the crystal directly overhead plummeted.

She tossed the crystal trapping the otter to the side, grabbed the creature into her arms, and hurled herself back into the water. She fell, bubbles and light and her curls dancing above her as she sank. The crystal shot into the water. Thicket hugged the otter tight, closing her eyes as she waited for it to cut through her center. The crystal stopped inches from her face, drifting down slowly and giving her enough time to maneuver out of the way and crash through the surface.

The crystals had stopped falling. The tunnel at the end of the cavern was nowhere to be seen.

Thicket closed her eyes as the weight of her decisions settled over her.

But there wasn’t any regret.

She waded across the pool and set the otter down on the stone ledge. The fins on its tail were scratched and bleeding, but other than the gash from where the crystal landed, it didn’t seem to have any massive injuries.

Thicket held her hands over the otter. “Gayrir.”

She waited for the skin to knit together, but nothing happened. She tried again. Nothing. She didn’t even feel the stir of energy circulating inside her.

Like her phoenix, even her magic seemed to sleep.

“I am sorry I can’t do more for you,” she said.

The otter blinked at her. Then it dove into the water and disappeared.

A heaviness settled into her gut as she looked around the dull, empty cavern. The crystals glow had dampened, leaving her surrounded by soft, ghostly blue and shadows.

She shook her head, taking in a deep breath. If she had failed, Menheir would claim her soul. She didn’t know if that meant she would die on the spot, or would be doomed to wander these tunnels until her body gave out, but as long as she was still here, she would continue to fight.

Thicket climbed out of the water onto the stone ledge lining the side of the cavern. There was no breeze, but she was well aware of the air pressing against her damp skin and clothes. Her body trembled uncontrollably as she felt around the cave, searching for any hint of a secret entrance like the tunnel in the Desert Kingdom.