She would have killed to have lost consciousness that time, but instead it was only her body that gave out on her and Daemon slid down the side of the crater and threw the phoenix off her, instead wrapping his arms around her and pulling her against his chest.
She realised then that the cloud of red was her hair and she frowned, reaching up to pull a clump of the tangled mess in front of her face.
It was all a bright crimson and gold, the black entirely gone.
She grunted her disgust at the change and her eyes drifted up to Daemon, he looked terrified as a woman was screaming and he forced his way between realities and they stepped out into night.
Voices called out and he turned, the world spinning violently as he moved and she found herself looking up at a horrified looking Uzo.
"Why is she covered in blood?" the Fae demanded as he scoured her for injuries.
"She threw it all up," Daemon yelled in a panic, almost throwing her into Uzo's arms and he grabbed her face, forcing her clenched jaw open and examining her teeth and then turning her head to his, searching her eyes.
He swore at top volume and turned, his profanity would have made even her blush had she the energy to do it, and she pondered his anger as Uzo held her, looking just as confused as she felt.
"Daemon, calm down, she's okay," Uzo demanded, but she was left wondering where the others were.
"She's not a damn vampire anymore!" Daemon raged and she watched as he kicked a boulder and the rock exploded outwards in a cloud of projectiles that felled a tree and shredded a few others.
Uzo looked down at her and he frowned but while holding her up he couldn't check her teeth.
"All that blood is yours! She threw it all up!" Daemon had turned back to them, his eyes glowing a bright yellow-gold before he fell to his knees and screaming profanity again.
Lowering himself to his knees, Uzo set her legs and backside down on the grass and he gently lifted her lip, examining her teeth and then her body, frowning at the blood.
She wasn't injured in any way, even when she had crashed down to the ground.
"Kai! Get over here!" Uzo yelled but there was no answer. Uzo looked in the direction of her feet and cursed, hefting her into his arms once more.
"Daemon go check on the vampires," Uzo called as he headed away from the raging demon.
Setting her down in a stream, she jerked as the cold water shocked her body into movement and she frowned, blinking up at the Fae.
"Uzo?" she asked warily. He smiled, cupping water with one hand to rinse of her body while the other remained locked around her.
"You make for a pretty redhead," he quipped and she laughed gently, the laugh suddenly turning to sobbing and he immediately pulled her against his chest, dropping down into the freezing water with her to keep her close.
He hushed her gently, but she gave in to her grief and clung to him, letting all that pain and loss out while she had the chance.
She felt weak, tired and drained but her back had been healed in her transformation and her scars seemed to have melted away, the ears and tail gone, her wings a presence inside her skin that was just waiting to burst free of her.
"Everything is going to be fine," he whispered, rocking her gently in his arms.
She calmed down after twenty minutes or so and she helped listlessly as Uzo finished cleaning her and helped her to her feet.
Her movements were slow, her legs not really wanting to work, and she paused to drink as much water as her stomach would hold, bringing most of it back up again.
Uzo stayed with her the whole time, holding her hair back and stroking her head while she struggled.
Finally straightening up, she went with Uzo back to Daemon, who was standing with the vampires, all of which were lingering by the trees and looking sulky.
She ignored them for the time being and after several more minutes, Daemon approached.
"Etani, look at me," he said and she looked up at the demon and he was gentle as he cupped her face, his lips coming down on hers.
She felt him reaching into her and she shuddered at the intrusion.
He found her soul easily and he stood before her, her instincts sending her down to protect her soul from him. But he was looking at her soul and she glanced back to find it whole and blue, warm and alive with an odd golden glow.
"What you did is gone…" she breathed and he growled, furious.
"Daemon, if I don't succeed all the Gods will be back to their birth state. What does this mean?" she turned to him and he was staring at her, dumbstruck.
"Loki told me," she breathed and he shook his head, unable to process.
"I tried to give you magic, it won't work. I can't give it to you again. But I don't know when the demon inside you vanished. We can only try, and if the dragonkin fades with the giant, then we know you have reached your limit."
He touched her face and she pressed her cheek into it, her eyes closed.
"I'm scared," she finally admitted. He frowned, leaning forward to kiss her forehead.
"I'll keep you safe, I promise," he whispered and she nodded.
He faded from her then, leaving her alone with the wolf, dragon and her soul.
She looked into the round white eyes of her soul, who looked scared for her. She smiled slightly and allowed herself to rise back up, falling back into herself.
Daemon broke the kiss just as she came back to herself and she shivered at the sudden rush his touch gave her and she felt that twinge of need his species brought out of her.
He jerked back and his grin was suddenly wolfish as he realised.
"Stay away from me, demon," she growled in a weak tone and he laughed.
"My dear Etani, if I wanted you right now the only thing stopping me is your uncle and I think I could take him."
Uzo wrapped his arms around her protectively, baring his teeth.
"I prefer brunettes," the demon quipped and he jumped back, dodging her weak kick.
Kai had begun to approach but he stayed well back from her, eyes taking her in and she frowned her confusion at his change.
"Kai?" she asked, a little hurt by his distance.
Daemon turned to keep an eye on the vampire as Kai fidgeted.
"I think we need to return to Ayathian."
His words cut her like a blade and she stared at him, not understanding.
"Why?" she asked, unable to hide her disappointment.
"We are getting hungry," he said but she knew that wasn't the full truth. He was avoiding her eyes and she looked up at Uzo.
"I think you should try feeding from her," Uzo said and Kai flinched, recoiling.
She felt as though her heart were being crushed and her eyes snapped to Jaia, who was staring at the ground.
"What did I do?" she whispered but Kai only shook his head.
"Go then, worthless vampire," Uzo snarled, turning her away from him and she found Versalis looking at her over Uzo's shoulder, his face pained.
Turning away from him and his pain, she buried her face in Uzo's chest and could do nothing but listen as Daemon unceremoniously threw the three vampires through to Ayathian, returning only a few seconds later.
"Let's go," she said, cutting Daemon off as he opened his mouth to speak. "We need to stop somewhere to get me some clothes."
Daemon nodded and squeezed her shoulder, pulling them through to a small village.
Dropping Uzo's hand immediately, she moved ahead without a word and stole a pair of simple pants and a blouse. Pulling them on, she returned to the two and she noted that they had been talking and left her wondering if they were about to abandon her too.
"Ghatotkacha should at least be agreeable, he's a fairly nice guy. It's the next two I'm worried about. They're both in Winter and the Court is likely to be hunting for us. At least the rest should be in the human world after," Daemon said and she nodded, accepting a stolen water skin and a hunk of bread. She ate and drank quickly, the bread sitting heavy in her stomach but she thanked him.
Taking each man by the hand, she allowed Daemon to pull her through and they stepped out onto a village very similar to the one they had left, though the buildings had a weird slanted roof and had a curious amount of decoration with no glass in the windows.
The first human they came across had her stopping suddenly, just as he did.
His skin was the same tone as Mara's and his eyes had that same shape. He stared back at them and then turned and pointed down the only street.
Daemon nodded and pulled her along but she turned to stare at the human in fascination.
Mara hadn't been lying, there were humans that looked like him and he was quite small, compact and his eyes were dark.
She didn't know how to process the sight of a human that didn't have pale skin and she was left wondering what other types of humans there were. Sure, there were purple mythicals but that was a human.
Led by Daemon, he guided them into a small building with a blacksmith shed attached and another dark skinned man was working on a horseshoe. His eyes were the same as Mara's, hooded and dark.
"Daemon!" the man called out and the demon was yanked bodily into a fierce hug.
She didn't know what to expect, but this massively muscled male was not one of them. The Ghatotkacha was supposed to be a giant, not a six foot nothing man who was almost as wide as he was tall.
His eyes turned on them and he beamed with very white teeth.
"Welcome to my smithy," he boomed and she too was pulled into a hug that had her bones aching, followed by Uzo.
"What brings you here?" he asked.
"We need a bit of your magic," Daemon said and the giant laughed.
"I love you Daemon but I'm not kissing you."
He was such a jolly fellow and she found his mood perked hers up a little.
"Oh damn, well how about you kiss her," he jerked his thumb at her and the blacksmith beamed.
"Her I will, certainly."
She swatted at him, smiling only a hint.
"Don't you even want to know why?" she asked, skirting his rough hands as he smiled at her.
"Daemon asks, I have no reason to doubt him."
He caught her and he planted a sloppy, hot and rough kiss on her lips that made her almost laugh.
His magic was like a weight on her mind, pressing down on her before it recoiled up like a spring to leave her feeling dizzy.
"A big kiss for a pretty girl," the man said as he released her.
Glaring at him, she wiped her mouth and glanced down to find nothing had changed.
After the man had finished his work on the horseshoe, he invited them inside and they sat down at the low table with the cushions instead of seats and he served them a juicy avian meat with a little white grain and a pot of the same red-brown liquid.
She ate eagerly, the fat off the meat satiating her and the white grain filling her up. After she had eaten, she flopped back onto the cushions and had fallen asleep, her belly full and her exhaustion pushing her down.