Chapter Thirty-One
“Tannith!” I crawl across the snow to her, picking up her small, tiny body with my hands.
She feels cold to the touch, and her heart is slowing.
She stops convulsing, but blood freely pours from her mouth onto my hands.
Even her blood feels cold instead of warm.
I look back at the heirs. “REED!” I shout at him when he doesn’t move.
Reed doesn’t rise to his feet, and he doesn’t come to help. He must be able to hear her heart slowing down and see the blood. Why isn’t he moving? Why are none of them helping her? Reed can use his healing kiss thing to fix whatever is hurting her. “Please, Reed, you can heal her!”
“I can’t,” Reed whispers, and my heart seems to crack. “My magic doesn’t work on creatures like her. I can’t heal her for you, little human. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t say that nickname while you tell me you can’t help my best friend!
” I shout back, tears streaming down my cheeks.
This can’t be happening. I just made a deal to save the heirs and not a promise of Tannith and I having a normal life.
She would be fine and human already if I didn’t save them.
They aren’t getting up, they are not moving, and even if I didn’t want to see it… they look guilty.
No. This…no. “Blackfire.” I breathlessly pant his name as I try to calm the panic in my chest. There is so much of Tannith’s blood in my lap, pooling in Orion’s shirt.
She is running out of time, and they are not fucking helping me.
“If you can get your uncle through a portal quickly, he can turn her back, and then she’ll—”
Blackfire gulps, and it’s the only time I’ve seen him nervous.
“Hopeless, she can’t be turned back. My uncle lied to you, and I couldn’t tell you anything before.
Something has changed now as I can speak freely, but I was bound to lie to you about Tannith.
My uncle didn’t trust me not to tell you.
I couldn’t tell you, even if I wanted to, Hopeless, and I did want to tell you.
Many times. He bound Reed and Orion too before the Folkland began.
When they’re turned, they stay like this.
Permanently.” The world stills before my eyes, or at least it does for me.
Permanently. “Tannith cannot be changed back into a human. They usually live for at least thirty years. I don’t know why she’s dying so soon, but this was her fate from the moment she was turned.
I am so sorry, Meredith. I cannot help you, and I wish I could. ”
His betrayal strikes like a knife twisting in my ribs, and I’m shaking as I stare at the heirs I now share my soul with.
The heirs who spent months living with me and Tannith, knowing I was fighting in the Folkland to keep her alive and get her turned back into a human.
Months…and I don’t care if they were bound not to tell me.
They could have done something. Anything.
I just gave up the chance for the goddesses to turn her back, to leave the Folkland and the packs.
I gave up everything for them, and my best friend’s going to die because of my selfish choice.
“At least you get to say goodbye.” Orion’s voice is gentle, but something snaps in my chest. How fucking dare he?
They all begin to stand, and I don’t like it.
They should be on their knees, and anger like I’ve never known it takes over, until all I can see is red.
Strings burst into the world around me, the air going still, and I smile as I reach for the dark one that’s always called for me. I know its name now. I remember.
“Oblivion,” I whisper gently. “You are my home.”
I clench the string and pull the magic into my hand, letting the world bow to me.
Black shadows burst out of my body in every direction, dark grey waves wrapping around the heirs and lifting them up into the sky.
Reed screams my name, panic making his voice wild.
Blackfire and Orion shout for me too, but I hold them in the sky as my power slams into the ground.
The mountain top cracks, and pieces of rock fall, shattering around me.
My shadows violently swirl in a tornado around us all, and I embrace the darkness.
It was always my home. I was born from oblivion and it is where I will return. But first…
I hold Tannith in the chaos and destruction, and I don’t let it touch my best friend. I don’t care if the storm washes the world away and takes me with it. It can take the heirs too. They deserve to die for what they’ve done. I will never forgive them for it. Never.
I have lost everything in the Folkland.
Tannith looks at me with all the love in the world, with every bit of our friendship in the depths of her eyes, and I sob.
Snow flurries around us and mixes with the snakes of shadows and darkness, all of it highlighted by the bright moon above.
“We’ve always loved the snow, haven’t we?
” she asks. “I’m happy it is snowing and I can feel it on my skin one more time.
Winter remakes our imperfect world into something fresh and new. ”
Tears pour out of me like something’s broken open, and I know she is taking part of me with her into death. I can’t save her, and I tried so, so hard. It wasn’t enough. I am not enough.
“Your powers are beautiful, just like you, my sister. Don’t cry for me…I am not in pain. I am just going somewhere new.”
I break down completely and cling to her small drake body.
I will never see her smile at me again, never feel her hug me and never see her dance around the bar like she was a free soul in this awful world.
“No, don’t talk like this is final. I’m going to s-save you.
I’ve got new powers, and I can save you!
I know I can, I just… Please don’t die. Please.
Please, I did all this for you, and…you have to live!
You have to be by my side for all of it!
You have to have a life as well, have kids like you wanted, and… Please,” I beg. I sob.
I plead with the now silent goddesses to save my friend, and I offer them anything.
I scream for anyone to help me save her, but no one comes.
It’s just me and I am not enough. She is and she is nearly gone.
The storm of my magic rages on in destruction, but for me, my world has stopped.
“Please, you’re my sister and my only family.
This is all my fault. I’m sorry. Goddesses, I am sorry. ”
“I’ve been dying for a while, and I knew you would do anything to save me.
I would do the same for you, and it’s okay.
This is not your fault. I should have died on the streets at six years old when I was left alone, and I didn’t.
I had a life of happiness and joy because I met you and I found family again,” she whispers back to me, her voice fading with her life.
I sob helplessly. “I will get to see my sweet parents now. All I have ever wanted is for you to have a family just in case I wasn’t here, and you found it with them.
Don’t give up now; show this world who you are and remake it, and always remember that I love you.
I’ve always loved you, my best friend…m-my sister.
I’ve always wanted to be like y-you, and I thought by not saying that I was dying, that I was being b-brave, just lik-ke you.
I am f-finally like y-ou.” My heart shatters more, and I shake my head in denial.
“I love you, Tannith, and you didn’t need to be like me.
You are so much better than me. Please don’t leave me alone…
” Her heart stops. I scream and wail. I let my power pour out of me endlessly, and I don’t care what it takes.
Take the world. Burn it down. Fuck it all.
I want to die with her, but I can’t. I gave away my soul for them, and I will never see Tannith again.
Her body stays in my hands as I scream in agony as my heart feels beyond broken.
I can’t be here. I don’t want to ever see the heirs again. I won’t.
I am not alone, and I close my eyes to find him. “My monster, I’m yours and I unleash you. Come to me, and take me away from them.”
He appears like a knight of darkness, walking through my storm of shadows, and it parts for him.
His tartan and cloak move in my power, but everything else is still as he closes the space between us.
His wings are pressed in tight to his back, his dark hair softly dropping over his forehead, and his daggers glitter.
Oblivion doesn’t hurt my monster because he’s from oblivion too.
My monster kneels in front of me and bows his head. “I am yours and you are mine.”
“Yes. Take me somewhere they can’t get to me,” I beg of him.
I know I’m making a deal with the devil as he solemnly nods once and comes closer, picking me up into his arms. I hold Tannith’s body, and my chest heaves with shuddering breaths.
She is really gone. I ignore the heirs shouting for me to let them go, to not leave with my monster.
Little do they know, he was never the monster to me. They were.
“I’m sorry she’s gone.” My monster brushes his lips against my forehead.
“My mate, we will have revenge. My name is Zyran Nightward, and I will return you to your true pack, where your brother waits for your return. Oblivion calls you home, and we will answer, and the world will fall to its knees for its new rulers.” He spreads his wings and shoots us both into the night sky, taking my sister back to the stars, in my arms.