Page 176 of Elemental Becoming

His grip tightens hard enough to bruise. His eyes scan over me desperately, searching for something. Reassurance. An answer. Proof that I’m still here.

“Fuck, Amara. You almost burned yourself out,” he shouts. “You shouldn’t have—”

“It worked,” I cut in, breathless, exhausted.

His jaw tightens. I can see the frustration in his eyes. Thane must see it on my face because his grip doesn’t loosen.

“You can’t do that again,” he says, low, firm.

“We didn’t have a choice,” I shoot back.

“Then next time, we find another way,” he growls. “Because I won’t watch you burn yourself out like that again.”

His voice is quiet, but unshakable.

“There wasn’t another way,” I argue, even though I can barely stand, even though I can still feel the way the Elements inside me refuse to settle.

“Then we make another way,” he snaps.

I flinch. Not because of his tone, but because of what I see in his eyes. He’s furious. But beneath it, beneath the fire and the frustration, there’s something else. Something I’ve never seen in him before. Fear.

Thane Caelum, the unshakable Warlord, is afraid.

“That was reckless.” Valen’s voice cuts through the tension like a blade.

I turn, my body still weak, still not entirely mine, and find him standing a few steps away. His gray-streaked hair is disheveled, bruises shadow his face, and his clothes are streaked with dried blood and gore.

But his piercing gaze is fixed entirely on me.

I bristle. “I won.”

“You survived,” he corrects.

His eyes flick briefly toward Thane before returning to me. He sees everything.

“Do you even realize what you just did?” Valen asks, stepping closer. “The kind of power you just pulled through yourself?”

I exhale sharply, trying to shake off the crushing exhaustion. “I’ve wielded all four elements before, Valen.”

“Not like that.” His voice is too even. Too knowing.

I try to straighten, but the tremble in my hands betrays me.

Beside me, Thane’s fingers twitch against my arms like he’s fighting the urge to pull me closer. He knows I’m still on the verge of collapse.

Valen exhales, dragging a hand through his hair.

“You weren’t just channeling, Amara. You were burning through yourself.” His words land like a blow. “You don’t even know how much you just lost. Your eyes are bloodshot. You’re pale as snow. Blood is running from your eyes and ears.”

“I’m okay,” I insist, though the words sound weaker now.

“You are not okay, Amara.” His silver-blue eyes pin me in place. “You’re still running on the aftermath. When it fades, you’ll understand.”

Thane stiffens beside me.

Valen looks at him briefly before turning back toward me. “You need to be careful. Power like that—it has consequences.”

A heavy silence settles between us. Thane’s grip still hasn’tloosened. His breathing is still too controlled, too sharp, too measured.