Josef slammed open the door to the observation room and stopped cold.
“—in,” Eli finished, coming to a stop beside him.
Josef said nothing. He just stared.
“I did all I could,” Eli said softly. “But I’m not a doctor, and I couldn’t get the actual doctors near her without her coat going on the defensive. I don’t even know what happened in that fight. I’ve seen a lot of bloodied people, mostly you, but I’ve never seen injuries like—”
His voice dropped off as Josef moved away. Josef crossed the room and fell to his knees beside the small, black bundle lying on the floor against the wall.
Nico was completely wrapped in her coat, cocooned like a caterpillar. That much was normal after a big fight. What wasn’t normal was the dark pool of thick black liquid seeping into the floor beneath her. Josef swallowed. Slowly, gently, he reached out, brushing the wet cloth with his fingers. The coat twisted away from his touch with a sound that reminded him of hissing, but the sound stopped as Nico’s small, pale hand emerged from the coat’s folds, her thin fingers reaching for his.
Josef gripped her hand, sucking in a breath when he saw the black stains on her nails. Her pale skin was mottled black and purple, and he could see the beginnings of larger wounds on her arm before it disappeared into her coat. A long, burning stab of guilt cut through him, and Josef winced, opening his mouth before he realized he had no idea what to say. He sat there a moment, clutching her fingers as he searched for the words.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered at last.
“Don’t be.” Nico’s voice was thin and muffled by the coat. “I kept my promise.”
“You shouldn’t have had to,” Josef said. “This is my war.”
“Your war is my war,” she whispered. “You should know that by now.”
“Well, you won’t have to fight it anymore,” Josef said, folding his hands over hers. “Rest, Nico. I’ll win it from here.”
“I know you will,” she said, her fingers going slack.
Josef raised her hand to his lips for a moment and then carefully tucked her arm back into the coat. The cloth rustled, pulling Nico back into its protective swaddle. Josef stood and turned to see Eli hovering in the doorway.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I couldn’t help her.”
“You brought her here,” Josef said bitterly. “That was more than I could do.” He met his friend’s eyes. “I’m going to win the war, Eli. No matter what, I’m going to win.”
“I know you are,” Eli said with a grin. “Why do you think I’m still here?”
Josef shook his head. “Come on,” he said, starting for the door. “We’re not done yet.”
“Yes, your majesty,” Eli said, his smile widening at Josef’s murderous look as they jogged down the stairs.
Nara frowned at the gap left in the line of her palace ships, and her scowl only deepened as she turned to the man kneeling at her feet, his forehead pressed against the tile floor of her balcony.
“Well?” she said. “Did you crush those buzzing gnats holding up our assault? I would like to get close enough to launch the war spirits before we lose the entire front to whatever idiocy is going on at the front.”
“The Oserans have retreated, Empress,” the general said, pressing his head harder against the ground. “But we must pull back as well. The tide is going out. Your fleet will be stranded on the rocks if we do not retreat.”
Nara looked away with a sniff. “I do not retreat.”
“But, Empress,” the general’s voice trembled. “We’ve already lost three ships. If we do not retreat now, we could lose the rest of the first wave.”
“General,” Nara said, glaring down. “Do you know who I am?”
“You are the Immortal Empress,” the man said, crouching lower. “Queen of all the world.”
Nara lifted her chin. “And do you think that the queen of the world fears something as trivial as the tide?”
The general swallowed. “No, Empress.”
“You must have faith, General,” Nara said, opening her spirit.
The general shook visibly as the enormous pressure landed on him. “I believe,” he whispered.
The Empress began to smile as she opened her spirit wider. When her power was roaring in her ears, she reached out, plunging herself into the current that was still waiting below her ships. The mob of water spirits screamed and thrashed as she grabbed it, but her will was absolute.
“The fleet moves forward,” she said, her voice thick and resonant with power. “I don’t care how many troops it takes. Beach the ships if you have to. We conquer the island by nightfall.”