The fire crackles between us, casting dancing shadows across her face as we sit in companionable silence. Eventually, exhaustion wins. "You can share my bed tonight," I offer as we head inside. Sleep claims me instantly then suddenly I'm standing upright, bathed in brilliant white light. A woman's voice calls my name, familiar yet impossible to place, and though I turn in every direction, I cannot find its source.

Clashing steel and screams surround me. I lunge forward, but something pierces my ...