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Taloni woke from her sleep with a strange, almost disembodied ache in her left shoulder. A quick check revealed that her shoulder was fine, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something was wrong somewhere.

She brushed her honey-blond hair from her face, closed her eyes, and looked at her bond with Ethan. They'd only bonded three days ago, but it felt like much longer. She could already feel a tiny presence in her mind that hadn't been there before. She knew it was him, but only rarely could she get a sense of what he was feeling.

It was hard to be sure, but it seemed like he was in serious pain. The emotions were so fleeting -- and so hard to feel -- that she almost felt like she was making it up. However, when she thought about that pain in her shoulder...

Something was wrong.

She sat up in her bed looked around. Most of the other unmarried women who didn't have family in the camp were quartered here. Prayla was there too, snoring so loudly a passer-by might have mistaken the so