Terms of Survival

His back slammed into the wall. The momentum whipped his head hard against the surface, and stars exploded across his vision.

Past his ear, the ice blade whipped by and buried itself into the wall, sending out a sharp, resonant ring that cut clean through the silence.

Elora had one hand clamped around his throat, her gaze bearing down on him from above. Her half-smile didn't reach her eyes.

"Comma