Free Bloodlust by Nicole Zoltack

the contact. A slight gasp escaped her lips, and she pulled away.
    Suddenly, the mist parted and hundreds of souls surrounded her. All of them unfamiliar. All of them sharing hatred in their eyes. Every last one reached out toward her. Although she could not physically feel their blows, her body jostled as if punched, kicked, and bit, bruises and swelling appearing all over her body. Unable to stand, she fell to the ground. She struggled against them, fighting back, but considering she could not touch them, there was nothing she could do to stop the assault.
    A hand — this one surprisingly warm — grabbed her and yanked her to her feet. Her eyes so swollen she couldn't see, she stumbled along for what felt like hours. Her feet ached, and she couldn't walk straight. A few times, she almost fell. At first, the souls continued their attack, but the farther they traveled, the less they made contact. Soon, even their insults and hisses vanished, no longer mentally battering her. Despite the relief, her chest grew tight, and she struggled to swallow enough air. Her vision darkened, and she stumbled once more out of the person's grasp.
    Her face landed in dirt. She was no longer within the confines of the Spirit Realm.
    Now that her mind was somewhat clearer, she gazed at her helper through swollen eyelids. Lukor of course. Her mind had been too addled to recognize him earlier.
    "Thank you," she struggled to say through her split lip.
    "Come on. Let's go on a little farther before stopping to rest." He held out his hand again.
    He had to be jesting. Continue on? In her condition?
    "They nearly killed me!" she protested. "Moreover, it's dark. No one will venture this close to the Realm. We'll be safe here."
    Lukor yanked on her elbow and forced her to march beside them. Her pride refused to allow him to drag her, so she matched his pace. By the time the moon reached its pinnacle, Lukor thrust her past a holly maple tree to a small pond.
    "Go on. Look at yourself."
    Ready to collapse, envious of the elves and their ability to pass on at any moment they felt the urge to, she sank into a puddle. After a long moment in which she battled sleep, she leaned across the aqua water.
    Her reflection was whole and fresh and perfect.
    "I don't understand." She touched her lip, felt its swollenness, the cut. Saw the bruises on her arms and legs, knowing more had to be on her ribs. Her breathing remained hitched. Perhaps her lungs had been punctured.
    "They couldn't touch you." The goliath knelt beside her and cupped water. Some trickled through his thick fingers as he held his joined hands to her mouth.
    She drank the cool, refreshing water, and a shiver traveled down her body. "But the pain. My lip, my ribs, the bruises..."
    "They can't touch you physically," he clarified.
    But mentally, they could.
    The goliath cupped more water but brought it over her head so many times she didn't bother to keep count. With each pass, she felt some of the pain receding, as if washing away. Finally, her aches diminished enough she dared to believe Lukor was right, and instantly, the rest of her pain melted away.
    Unable, or unwilling, to stop touching him, Ivy climbed to her feet while holding his hand and stared at the sky.
    "Two and a half days," he said.
    That short a time? It had felt like years.
    "You should rest."
    Ivy shook her head. "I don't think we should stop. Besides, didn't you just say we should press on?"
    Lukor shook his head. "You're impossible, you do know that."
    "Yes." Ivy swept past him, feeling more and more like her strong self with each step. Over her shoulder, she added, "Thank you."
    Never before would she have expected to feel gratitude toward a goliath, let alone express it. But she did mean it. She wore her scars from battles proudly, but the pain from the spirits had been unlike any she'd experienced from an earthly blade.
    "Thank you," she repeated in the faintest of whispers.

 
     

    A barbarian showing appreciation for