Ascendance

"Thief!"

The shout echoed from outside the cave.

Fan flinched. Master Liu. And behind him, the heavy tread of iron boots. The Sect Elders.

"They found us," Fan whispered, panic rising in his chest. "Xue, you have to hide. I... I can't fight them."

"Hide?" Xue laughed. It was a sound like wind chimes—beautiful and utterly devoid of warmth.

She turned to the cave entrance.

The boulder blocking the way exploded inward. Master Liu stood there, flanked by two Elders in blue robes.

"There he is!" Liu pointed at Fan’s crumpled form. "The rat who stole the supplies! And... who is that?"

The Elders froze. They sensed the pressure radiating from the woman standing in the shadows.

"Li Xue?" one Elder gasped. "The Frost Sword? You are alive?"

"I am," Xue said.

She raised her hand. The moisture in the air condensed instantly into hundreds of icicles, sharp as needles.

"And I am displeased by the intrusion."

She flicked her wrist.

The icicles launched. There was no battle. There was only slaughter. Master Liu didn't even have time to scream before he was pinned to the limestone wall. The Elders summoned shields, but Xue’s power, refined by the tribulation she had survived, shattered their defenses like glass.

In seconds, the intruders were dead.

Fan watched, wide-eyed. He felt a surge of dark vindication. They were safe. She was powerful enough to defy the sect.

He dragged himself across the floor, his useless legs trailing behind him like dead weight. He reached the hem of her robe.

"You did it," Fan wheezed, smiling through his blackened teeth. "We are free. Take me... take me to the sky now."

Xue looked down. Her pristine white boot was inches from his grasping, blackened hand. She took a step back, avoiding his touch.