The beginning of time.
Thunder gazed at Bloodstone Mountain. She had climbed it so many times, both for practice and for fun. She had never thought of it as a living thing—the Scorpion king’s flesh and blood.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t let you return. It’s not fair to attack someone when he’s down and incapable of defense. And the prophecy is against me. It says if you wake, I’ll die. So I can’t let you wake.”
She raised her arms, gathered her energy, concentrated, and clapped her hands together.
She knew how to call in thunder strikes. She knew the strength of her power. As an infant, she had eliminated hundreds of spider-wolves with her clapping. It was her usual practice. She had broken stone off this mountain before. But this time, she cranked it up a notch.
Three long, rumbling stri
