Chapter 24

It became immediately obvious to Traze that the warriors of the Frozen Sands did not train as hard as those in the Living Sands. They did not have the skill or the strength to beat his warriors.

Traze was fighting two Frozen Sands warriors at once. He had disarmed them of both their swords and was ruthlessly pounding their heads with his fists. Even without weapons, the Living Sands warriors were far too powerful for them.

Traze was able to knock one of the warriors out cold and then dove onto the second, landing him in the snow and then pounding his face with fist.

He did not knock the warrior out entirely, but the other man did submit after a few punches to lay limply in the snow.

Traze looked around at his warriors, some still fighting, some just barely defeating their Frozen Sands counterparts. None of them seemed to need his help so Traze turned his attention to Veda.

But she was gone. She was no longer behind them. He truly hated how she was always running off without him, leaving him confused and worried.

Though perhaps this time, she ran off to safety. Maybe she was back with Najol and the other warriors patiently waiting for Traze to arrive.

But, no, even as he thought it, Traze knew that did not sound like Veda at all. She was not one to give up and run to safety. She was the kind of person to fight, to stand in the middle of the action.

So if she was not here, where would she be?

Then it hit Traze. He knew exactly where she would go. She would be doing the only thing she possibly could to help the Living Sands Aterans.

And she likely wouldn't know how dangerous it was to do so.

Traze left his warriors and sprinted to the dam as fast as he possibly could, praying he would not be too late. Veda had never seen what that river looked like without the dam. She would not know about the rapids and how easily they could whisk a body under the water, never to be seen again.

To Traze's relief, he found her leaned over the water, some of the dam still intact. Though she appeared to have destroyed much of it, there was no way it would last now with the rushing water.

"Veda!" Traze yelled out, trying to get her attention.

But she couldn't hear him over the sound of the river.

Traze started rushing toward her, but right before he could reach her, she was pulled suddenly underneath the water.

"No!" Traze screamed, louder then he'd ever yelled before.

He dropped his jacket as he prepared to go into the rapids after her. Traze knew the danger of the rapids, understood that if he jumped in, he may never come back out again, but that was a risk he had to take.

If he lost Veda, nothing mattered to him anymore. He wouldn't care about the healing sands or protecting his tribe. The only way he had been able to restore the healing sands was through Veda. She was his answer to everything.

He would not lose her.

He jumped into the rapids, and immediately with the rushing white water, it became hard for Traze to see. But he let the water sting his eyes as he looked for Veda.

He didn't see her for an entire minute, and with each passing second, Traze became more panicked. When he got a glimpse of her pale arm reaching toward the surface, he started swimming over to her, catching her by the hand and then pulling her closely to him.

At that point Veda's body seemed to go limp, and she was no longer reaching toward the surface. Traze knew he had no time left. He had to get her out of the water now.

But this was easier said than done. He tried to push her body up to the surface, willing her to breathe, but he could not get to the surface either. The water kept pulling him back down, Veda along with him.

Traze tried to push upward with all his strength, but it was difficult while he was holding her. He wished he could let go of her for a mere second to power upward and then grab her again, but he knew if he let go at all, she'd be taken downstream.

Time was running out, and Traze was even running out of air as well. But he would not let go, not even to save himself. He would die with Veda if it came to that. He had no desire to live without her.

He had almost given up hope when he felt something tugging on his shirt. He turned around to find Batair had jumped in after him and was pulling both him and Veda to the surface. Traze took a deep breath as soon as his head came out of the water. With Batair's help, he pulled himself and Veda to the edge of stream and out of it.

This was hardly a relief for Traze, though. As he laid Veda down before him, she was still not moving. Tears filled his eyes as he started shaking Veda.

"Breathe, my kode, breathe!" Traze shouted.

But he saw no reaction from her. He had failed. He was too late. He promised he would never let anything happen to her, yet he had failed again. How could he let this happen? How could he lose Eana's greatest gift to him?

Traze began to sob into her wet shirt when he was suddenly pulled away by Aldohr.

This infuriated Traze. Aldohr had been nothing but disrespectful to Veda and now he dared to interrupt his grieving?

"Don't touch me!" Traze yelled at him.

"I am trying to help!" Aldohr yelled back.

Traze looked on in confusion as Aldohr knelt down by Veda and started pumping on her chest. Then he leaned down and put his lips on Veda, and Traze was filled with jealousy. He was the only one who was to kiss Veda.

But Traze realized quickly Aldohr wasn't kissing Veda at all. He was pumping her full of sharp breaths.

"Will this work?" Traze asked frantically.

"It is our only shot!" Aldohr replied as he continued to pump on her chest.

Veda began to suddenly cough, and Traze rushed down to her.

"My kode, my kode, you are alive!"

Veda could barely answer. She was so weak, but she wrapped her arms around him all the same.

"Quick, build a fire!" Traze yelled out to his warriors.

Traze stripped her out of her wet clothes and wrapped her in her nearby coat. She was shivering horribly, but at least it appeared she would now be okay.

"I'm so sorry," Traze whispered in her ear.

"I'm, f-fine," she stuttered out.

"Just rest, my kode. I will make sure you are okay. I will take us home. Just get some rest."

Traze kissed the top of her head and, for the second time, was overwhelmed with the joy of not having lost his kode forever.

As soon as he got her back home, he would never allow her on a trip like this again. He would keep her safe in the Living Sands for all of their days. Veda may protest, but now that he had claimed her with words, he was responsible for her. And he would make sure she was forever safe.