Gale Force

color of a gas flame.

She said nothing. She didn't try to help either one of us, not even David, whom I knew she

loved. She loved Ashan more.

No help was coming.

The Sentinels can't keep this up, not at this level of power, I told myself, trembling. Only maybe

they could. The assault continued on the aetheric, furious and unrelenting, and it required every

bit of concentration I possessed to keep myself from folding. Power was counteracting power,

and the resulting forces were out of control; I couldn't do anything to reduce the damage, or I'd

be instantly dead.

Around us, sparks began to crawl on every available metallic surface, zipping and popping.

Lightbulbs blew out. The Sentinels-if that was indeed who was behind this-pressed me

harder, and I had to respond.

Windows shattered. I heard the plate glass patio door break with a catastrophic crash. One of the

curtains caught fire from the constant sparking. It burned slowly, but it burned, giving off acrid

black smoke.

''Stop this! They'll destroy her!'' David screamed, and writhed to get free. Ashan held him, but

just barely. Ve

across the flame on the curtains and transferred it to her palm, then rubbed it contemplatively

between her fingers, frowning, and looked at Ashan. Something passed between the two of them,

something I couldn't understand.

The whole world was narrowing, darkness closing in on me. I could feel it all around me, eating

away, sinking into every nerve, every muscle.

And the hand around my heart tightened, and every labored thump seemed likely to be my last

on this earth.

David's face was taut, pallid, and desperate. He was still trying to twist free, but his strength, like

mine, wasn't up to the task.

The odds were too high this time.

''Ashan, give me your leave,'' Ve

Ve

even spare the breath to curse, or to cry out. The pressure was throbbing in every nerve of my

body, a constant, grinding pain that grew sharper with every heartbeat. The Sentinels weren't

going to let up. They were going to slaughter me one inexorable inch at a time, and the Dji

the Old Dji

And they were going to make David watch, to make it that much more horrible.

I felt something new in the attack-a tremor. Just a flicker, but somewhere, someone was

weakening. If it was a combined attack, and I thought it must be, then at least one and maybe

more were faltering, ru

chin onto my shirt front. A little longer.

It was an eerie way to face the end of your life. If it had just been the Old Dji

impassively, that would have been bad enough, but David– the dread and anguish in his eyes

was too much. I squeezed my eyes shut and concentrated harder.

Hold. You have to hold.

I felt another element of the attacking force weaken and drop away, leaving a purer signature to

it. If I could only outlast the rest, I might be able to trace it back to one source . . . at least get the

name of the bus that was going to run me down.

Even that cold comfort didn't seem too likely. I felt myself shaking harder now, as I pulled all

the power out of my muscles, out of my flesh, pouring my last vital resources into defending the

stronghold of my heart. I couldn't hold out for long; my reserves had gone shockingly fast, and

without David's help, even Imara's contributions weren't going to be enough. . . .

I felt something in me give way, and my next breath felt wet and labored. Pain flared through

me. I tasted blood, coughed, and felt warmth spray out of my mouth.

''No,'' David whispered. ''Ashan . . . please . . .''

Ashan didn't speak, not even to refuse.

Another element of the attack against me broke with an almost physical shock. I could count

them now: three. Three of them left, but one was unbelievably strong, much stronger than I was.

Stronger than I could ever hope to be.

My legs gave out. I fell to my knees, hardly felt the impact. Part of the carpet was on fire now,

and none of the Dji

going off, and knew that I was on the verge of creating yet another disaster, one that could claim

the lives of the i

I closed my eyes and found one last tiny pool of strength. With that last drop of power, I pushed

back. Two of the three attackers dropped away, surprised by my sudden aggression, and I saw

the last one clearly.

On the aetheric, he burned a brilliant white, less a person than a star bound in human form. I

couldn't see his features, but I could see where he was, in the instant before he cut off his attack

and disappeared into the boiling mass of confusion stirred up by the attack like the smoke in the

apartment.

I'd won.

I pitched forward to my hands and knees, gasping in thick, tainted breaths, coughing and

wheezing. My mouth was full of blood, and my coughs brought up more of it. I was

hemorrhaging from my lungs, too weak to save myself, too weak to control the fire taking hold

around me, or cleanse the air I was breathing. No. You can't die now. You won!

Wi

very definition of a Pyrrhic victory.

I realized that I was staring at David, still on his knees, held pi

face was the color of ashes, and his eyes an unholy, almost demonic red, consumed with pain

and pent-up fury.

''She survived,'' Ashan said, and I heard a note of pure surprise in his voice. I felt a surge of

power move through the apartment. The siren cut off; the air turned sweet again. No more

sparks. Before my watering eyes, the curtain knitted itself into its original unburned form, and

the carpet healed itself.

That wasn't David's doing. I could tell that he was blocked by Ashan here, completely cut off.

Helpless. The bodyguards wouldn't have dared take that kind of initiative, which left only the

last person I'd have ever expected to do me a kindness.

Ashan was staring at me with half-closed, thoughtful eyes. I couldn't read his expression. I was

too tired to even try.

''Go on and finish me off,'' I said hoarsely. ''I can't stop you.''

''I know,'' he said. It was the first time I'd heard him speak with such a level tone, no trace of

hate or contempt. ''You fought well. Almost like a Dji

you never will be again.'' After another pause, I thought I heard him say, very quietly, ''Pity.''

He let David go and stepped back. David didn't hesitate. Ashan ceased to exist for him the

instant the barriers fell, and he lunged to me and gathered me in his arms. I felt healing power

cascade through me in burning, almost painful urgency, and I shuddered and buried my face

against his neck.

''Jo?'' He whispered it with his lips against my skin. His hands were everywhere on me, frantic,

protective. ''I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.''

I felt tears welling up, and whether they were shock or relief or the delayed effects of fear, I

couldn't tell. I didn't have any defenses left, not even against myself. I wanted to lie down on my

side, curl up, and weep myself into unconsciousness in his embrace, but instead, I lifted my