"She's not breathing."
Elena's voice came from very far away, muffled and distant. I heard Kael screaming, heard Arianna crying, heard chaos erupting around my body.
But I felt strangely detached from it all. Felt like I was floating above the scene, watching from somewhere that didn't quite connect to the physical world.
Was I dead? Was this what dying felt like? Peaceful and quiet and strangely disappointing after all the dramatic buildup?
"Clear!" Elena shouted, and I felt my body convulse on the floor below me. Magic surged through my physical form, trying to restart my heart, trying to pull me back from wherever I'd gone.
It didn't work. I remained floating, detached, watching but not participating.
"Again!" More magic. More convulsions. More desperate attempts to bring me back.
And still nothing. I was too far gone, had sacrificed too much. There was no coming back from this.
