Free Sunburst (Starbright Series) by Rachel Higginson

band.
                  Blood ran from my mouth now, too. I wondered idly if my teeth would fall out, and if so, would they grow back like my bones? Or would I be toothless forever?
                  A hot stream of blood spewed from the back of my head, down my neck, soaking my shirt. He- Saul, I recognized Saul- lifted his boot again to wind it back for another swing. I tried to block it with my hand or at least soften the blow to my face, but my right arm was completely out of socket; I couldn’t even drag it around on the ground it rested on. It hung next to me, completely useless.
                  Before I could even contemplate checking out my other arm, his foot connected with my neck this time. I felt my trachea compress in my throat. I couldn’t breathe for long, gasping moments as I struggled to retain consciousness and to breathe again.
                  I discovered that my left arm worked well enough to claw at my throat, encouraging it to work again, fighting for it to open up and send air in and out of my lungs. Finally, after what felt like forever, I started to receive oxygen; they were painful, burning breaths, but there was no better feeling. 
                  Saul stood before me and unsheathed the sword he kept strapped to his side. The afternoon sun glinted off the silver blade, blinding me momentarily. He moved slightly so I could see his face as the sun lit up the horizon behind him, like a brilliant spotlight on all his evil deeds. He studied me in a detached, curious kind of way. And if I wasn’t already delirious with pain or half-unconscious, I probably would have had something very snarky to say.
                  As it were, I focused on my scarily raspy breaths and not passing out. I, at least, wanted to see this- see what he was going to do with me.
                  Vaguely I realized I wouldn’t be able to get up, to even have my honor, when he beheaded me. My hip, or pelvic bone or something sitting at my waist was absolutely shattered, not giving my legs any kind of ability to move. I was trapped.
                  And he was determined to kill me.
                  There wasn’t even anything I could do about it. My body was beyond the ability to turn back into its natural state, and my mind was too confused by the searing pain, to figure out a defensive strategy.
                  Saul took a step forward and raised his sword. He crossed it over his body with two hands and didn’t even offer any wise goodbye words. I expected something from him, at least an acknowledgment that he was about to kill me.
                  Instead, his face contorted into a mask of hatred. He screamed out a battle cry so fierce and raging, spittle dotted his mouth and cheeks, and a long strand of drool hung from his bottom lip.
                  I tensed, anticipating the impact; my eyes shut naturally. Then the pain became unbearable; behind the dark shades of my eyelids, a blinding light burst into life. I began to hallucinate.
                  I felt like my eyes opened and instead of meeting Saul’s sword across my throat, I saw Seth instead. He landed on his feet with the force of a semi-truck and a sword already in action. Before Saul could even turn to his attacker, Seth had sliced his body in half with one fluid motion. Blood exploded from the clean cut like a geyser coating my body and Seth’s beautiful face.
                  He wasn’t finished though.
                  He leapt into the air and spun around. Raising his sword again he brought it down with staggering power against Saul’s neck, detaching his head before the top of his body ever hit the ground.
                  All three pieces of my enemy’s body landed in separate piles at the same time. Seth landed too, right in front of me. He sheathed his sword with another