Chapter 21
Chapter
Twenty-One
SELENE
M y ears were ringing, tiny rivulets of golden blood trailing down and dripping off my chin as the deafening symphony of battle collided with a toppling volcano. Full-blown pandemonium had broken out. Between cutting down Atrium’s guards, using my power of the Divine to expel Medies from a dragon named Belindo, and Mags’ soldiers advancing from both sides, we were in the midst of chaos.
Then to add insult to injury, the entire mountain began collapsing from the inside out. Some High Fae asshole’s lightning magic had struck one of the walls of molten rock, blasting it into tapered fragments. Walls and ceilings began to fall and cave in, floors and bridges crashing beneath our feet as we ran through clouded tunnel after tunnel, searching for the lowest pit of the mountain.
Channeling my earth magic wasn’t a daunting task, it came just as easily as my Godsfire now. But there was no controlling the plunging boulders, not all of them at once, throughout the entire volcano. No matter how swift and agile my power may have been, it wasn’t enough for my powers alone.
We needed to unleash the Gods, their Divine forces strong enough to withhold this entire volcano from obliterating. Elric ran just one step behind me, one inked hand raised above his head to block the ashy air from his eyes.
Thankfully it was just a few breaths until we approached a barricade of dislodged pieces of stone. In the blink of an eye, we crashed into their enclosure, more weapons and merciless magic flying to release the High King’s captives because there was no time for pleasantries, no time for explanations.
There was only time to get the fuck out.
Monstrous leathery black wings fanned out, Haco’s grand body no longer confined but his magic still not restored. Like blood-sucking leeches, the chains of dark, black iron were embedded in his scales. His rich blood continued to seep from the gaping wounds as he tried to shred the chains and bellowed out a soundless cry.
My ears remained sensitive, the roaring of the world around me forcing my eardrums to continue to ooze and throb. The King of Gods bounded forward, no time to free every splinter of vile sorcery still containing his magic. He tucked his enormous wings into the top of his spiked back, dodging the rubble.
Monstrous vibrations rocked the earth, boulder after boulder toppling and spraying the air with soot. My lungs sputtered as I pushed forward before a glaring light burst before my eyes and the floor gave away. I screamed, “Get out NOW!” as I lost my footing, my eyes blowing wide as I watched the departing warriors, dragons, and Gods dash towards freedom.
Fiery pain shot up my back, rocks taking purchase and tearing through my leathers as my hands reached out once more. Blistering agony came next as my talons snapped, the tips of my fingers breaking against the ragged stones. I was moving too swiftly, too fast to grab anything.
It was sweltering, sweat dripping from every skin cell as the stench of sulfur clogged my nose, forcing itself down my throat. The Powers of the Divine surged through my veins as that rotting smell became more potent, more forceful. I was drifting further and further to Fates only knew where, fighting with every beat of my heart.
My body vibrated with the simmering magic, the same bone-stitching pain of transformation breaking out. No wings opened up behind me, grappling onto the earth’s rough edges like I so desperately wished. That heady magic stayed within, boiling in my veins, in my blood, begging to be released.
A hollowing scream left my throat as I descended, the world passing by me in a blur of grays and blacks. The well of powers in my core lit up, a kaleidoscope of colors swirling within the pool. They all called to me anxiously, pleading for me to grab ahold of one of the many lustrous hues. But every time I willed any ounce of magic, it would short out right at my fingertips. It pushed itself back inside of me, making my blood boil with rage.
The rocks were shredding me alive, throat hollowing out as I continued to bellow.
No matter the amount of broken bones and skin, I wouldn’t give up, wouldn’t stop trying. Shards of the broken stones filled my palms as I gripped them and failed to slow down over and over and over. Golden liquid rained down into the endless pit as my clothes and flesh were mangled.
A strong gust of wind pushed up and out the tunnel, my form flailing in the cyclone. Bringing both battered arms to my chest, I curled into myself, jagged minerals still filling both my palms. That wafting draft surged up again, forcefully propelling my body backwards, cracking my skull on the rough stones.
My eardrums popped, excruciating pain shooting across my skull as a blinding white light blurred my vision. My arms shot out again, claws futilely trying to grasp onto anything to keep me from continuously tumbling. Fire and brimstone took over the sweet smell of my blood and for a moment, I felt like I was suspended in midair with no way to control my own body.
The gagging scent of burning flesh came next as the sound of fire cracking and an incessant tapping against the stones filled my ears. Almost like hooves dancing along to the beat of crackling flames. My vision was flooded as I tried to catch my breath but all that came up was that aching and burning sensation of bile rising.
I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t see or smell anything besides death and chaos and pain.
Endless fucking pain.
Screaming out in agony, my cry didn’t filter through the air, and my mutilated skin burned with every movement I made. Putting up my claws, I shielded my eyes but it didn’t stop the brightness from burning them as an angelic voice spoke out of the luminous haze. So sweet like a melody, easing my agony and suffering with a single note.
There was no more falling, no more pain and shredding torment. That voice was intoxicating and hypnotizing as my eyelids fluttered shut, absorbing it in my soul.
Like a harmonization of pure love and light.
No.
Pure Divinity, a message that could only be from the Fates themselves, just as the Sibyl had promised.
“ The stars and Fates have spoken:
A God with the power of the moon, broken.
Chaos ends only where it begins,
All will ultimately answer for their sins.
Blood of fire, soul of shadow,
Power to gain will only end in sorrow.
Two must become one beneath the darkened sun
Before the realm is rendered undone.”
I used to love the winter.
I loved the lush snow littering the ground and how it softened the world’s noise. I loved how the days were shorter and the cool nights longer. I loved the peaceful crackling of the wood as it burned in a hearth, loved the constant boiling pot of tea above it. And most of all, I loved the perfect excuse of chilled weather to curl up in a woolen blanket with a novel, spending my day in another world.
It was my favorite season and even though Radha had convinced me that my birthday was in the summer, I’d always had this profound connection to the coldest season of the year. Like deep within my soul, I knew that I was born on the shortest day of the year, that I was blessed by the Moons of the Divine themselves.
But now all that wintry landscape provided me with was bitterness and hopelessness. Every drop of snow hitting the dirt represented another minute passing without Emrys. Every wilt of a flower was just another day closer to Bruma—the Winter Solstice—and solar eclipse when the High King planned to bind himself to the Crown of Daemonium.
Our time was running out and with every passing day, I could feel the pressure within me building larger, confining my soul, making me ache with every breath. My pain was evident and those around me were clearly suffering too, but there was no moment of relief for any of us.
According to Minka, it had taken a week to transport the people from that seaside camp in Atrium to Jindera’s safe borders. The Gods and their children were more than willing to use their magic and bodies to transport all the survivors that were waiting out the winter to come to Ladon. It was still too unsafe for them to stay within that cursed Western Continent but we had hope that they could eventually return to their home.
I, on the other hand, had been knocked out for the entirety of the voyage. My body needed time to recover after the Fates revealed their prophetic destiny and bestowed upon me the necklace of warriors. I had woken up in Gambriel, Minka and Ric waiting to explain everything in rapt detail before I sprinted into the forest, amulet clutched to my chest.
The Bellator Amulet held a harsh weight despite it being nothing but a small iron pebble dangling from an iron chain, the metal rusted and tarnished. It wasn’t heavy, per se, but the responsibility of the artifact and the truths it held were burdensome. No magic emanated off of it, nor called to my blood, but I couldn’t deny its importance.
It was the answer to our prayers, the key to getting the final piece of information on how to destroy the High King and his Infernal Crown, freeing Emrys in the process. Even so, that concern still remained, like a slithering snake of suspicion working its way up my spine, whispering into my mind that this was not going to work.
But standing before the Sibyl—who was dressed in a large furry winter coat, woolen gloves, and matching leather boots that I’d just gifted her—somehow alleviated that hindrance, hope spiking in my system.
Within the palm of her cronelike hand, she held the rest of the answers that we sought and I waited with rapt attention for her to say anything . Anything at all besides the words that left her gnarled lips, “Blue really isn't my color.” She looked down at the cerulean gloves with her milky white eyes, the heavy snow soaking her ivory hair. “But these are lovely.”
“I’m glad you like them. I can get you and the other Sibyls some more supplies, or cloaks and firewood.” She eyed me with curiosity as if my mention of others like her was a foreign concept. All I had read with Wesley was that her kind had been hunted down years ago by others to collect knowledge about the future. There were far fewer of them now, but surely she had others to go back to. “Anything that your people may need, we can provide.”
“Your kindness does not go unnoticed,” the Sibyl only nodded but didn’t give any information about the others and if they even existed. If I were in her position, I wouldn’t say anything either, so I understood.
Her gaze lingered on my palm—still bleeding from her offering, the cut oozing out golden liquid onto the powdery snow—and what was dangling between my fingertips, a heady weight of iron and light metal. The Bellator Amulet.
Another beat of silence passed, my warm breath fogging the chilly air before she stated with a smile, “You’ve proven yourself worthy in Atrium.”
Her words went over my head because I didn’t feel like I had proven myself in any way. We had freed our Gods and their children, brought back an entire fleet of people to Ladon, and learned another portion of the Fates’ prophecy, but that still wasn't enough.
I wasn’t enough and I knew that to the core of my being.
“You do not see what I see, little moonlight,” her gloved hand came down on my shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “The scales are still tipping, but not as quickly. There is still time, still hope for you.”
I didn’t even realize I was crying until a tear trailed down my cheek and fell onto her hand. “You are not lost, but not yet found. There is still more to do, more to prove—but not to me.” Her palm was warm against my skin, its heat seeping through the wool and into my soul. “It was not about the lives you've already taken but the ones you’ve saved, the ones you grant mercy to.”
The scent of brimstone and decay filled my nostrils, the bitter memories of me ravaging town after town and tearing enemy limb from limb, demanding answers. There was no mercy, only death, and those lives I stole would forever bear a mark on my battered soul because they were gone… because of me .
“But there’s no bringing them back…” my voice was barely above a whisper, the words mostly meant for myself. “Some were innocent and didn’t deserve to die.”
“A lot happens to those that do not deserve it,” she took a step back and I longed for her comforting touch once more. “That is how free will works. The choices you make with that free will affects others, and that is the price you pay.”
“But they paid my price with their lives.”
“And you haven’t paid with your life, time and time again?” she tilted her head, moonlight-colored hair flowing in the wintry breeze. “Sacrifice after sacrifice?”
“It’s not the same,” I ground out, my fist clenching in anger. I couldn’t truly die. Not now, not ever. “And you know it.”
“Perhaps I do, perhaps I do not,” she gave me another cunning smile, her yellow teeth looking darker against the white fur trim on her cloak. “I had promised to help if you did as instructed and I am a woman of my word.”
She had already helped us immensely but I knew she had more answers for us. Knew that there had to be another missing puzzle piece that she had stowed away for us, and with her help, we could get Emrys back and stop the High King once and for all.
She looked up at the cloud-covered moon and the twinkling stars around it as I said the last part I’d heard in that hellscape.
“Two must become one beneath the darkened sun
Before the realm is rendered undone.”
The last word lingered longer than the rest, making my stomach churn with nausea… undone . The Gods created this world, albeit unknowingly, so wouldn’t they have to be the ones to take it apart?
And could an entire realm really be undone? Would the world just cease to exist?
Chills moved up my arms that were definitely not from the cold but from the fear that was also causing my voice to shake. The Sibyl looked at me with horror, her wrinkled hand on her chest. She shook her head slowly, trying to clear her mind as she muttered, “The Fates work faster than I do.”
That struck a cold fire in my bones, my spine going straight. “So that was the Fates that came to me?” I held up the iron necklace, the iron chain rusted. “And then I woke up with the amulet.”
She looked aghast for a second, like she was truly surprised. “They do not speak to mortals in such a manner but their intervention may have been necessary.” Her white hair nodded, like she was trying to convince both herself and me. Her milky eyes looked up at the night sky glittering with stars and she gave a final nod before I asked.
“Could a realm truly be undone?”
“That is up to your interpretation,” she shrugged her shoulders and fiddled with her new cerulean gloves. “The words are from the Fates, from the stars themselves, and can mean nothing and everything all at once.”
That wasn’t confusing and cryptic at all.
She took the Bellator Amulet from my hand and held it up to the moonlight. No magical essence filtered off of the mythical necklace, even in the hands of a seasoned witch. “What does it do?”
“Nothing,” the Sibyl answered, her voice light with a hint of mirth.
Scrunching my eyebrows, I shifted my weight to my other leg. “It does nothing?” A laugh punched out of me, disbelief bubbling up.
“Yes, and I know what you’re thinking.” Her yellow teeth pulled into a grin, “Just because there is no magic, does not mean it is not powerful.”
I smiled, shaking my head like the fool I was. “It’s the symbolism.” I nodded at the plain necklace, “It’s for fighting for what you believe in, for the hope of others. That’s what a true warrior does.”
She tossed the Bellator Amulet at me and I swiftly caught it and held it close to my chest. “Use what you do know, little moonlight.”
I nodded, a thank you on the tip of my tongue before she gave me a thoughtful look and spoke once more, “The High King will sacrifice one of his sons on Bruma, when the sun is at its darkest. It ends where it begins—in the Temple of Haco.”
She pulled her fur-lined hood up over her features, readying herself to walk back into the wintry forest of Gambriel. Even though we already had an idea of when and where it was happening, now we knew for certain. I stuffed the necklace back in my pocket, glad that she wasn’t taking it as I had assumed; I could give it back to Elric.
“Thank you for that information and for, well, everything .” The Sibyl was already turning away, her cloak tightly held around her as the words finally registered and I shouted out, “Wait! One of the High King’s sons?”
“You did not know?” that withered voice didn’t echo, the lush snow silencing the world. She turned and her jagged smile grew large, like she was sharing a secret between us and not the universe. “The High King has two sons. Both carry his blood and a semblance of his power.”
Another son?
Sweat beaded down my back despite the chilly air and my mouth went dry at the possibilities.
Worst came to worst, we could make a false trade with the High King. A life for a life was simple enough, they just needed to share the same blood as Durreos Seraphim, so any life besides Emrys’ should be enough for him.
My heart slowed in its crazed tempo as that familiar feeling of hope flooded my veins. I was going to get my Mate back but first, we needed his replacement. We didn’t need to give this other stranger over to the High King, but it could be a way in.
This other son could be the bait that brought Emrys back to us.
My eyebrows shot up as determination was written across my features. My plan was already beginning to formulate in my brain. “Who is his other son?”
“One by the name of Emrys,” her words went over my head as my thoughts flooded my mind louder than the storm outside.
Who the hell was this other person?
Did the High King already have him in his hands and ready as a backup sacrifice in case Emrys didn’t work?
Either way, I needed him.
I was so close to the answer, so fucking close that I could taste Emrys’ freedom on my tongue. “And the other’s name?”
The Sibyl turned away but not before giving me a look full of disappointment that made my heart ache.
She could see the slightly crazed look of bloodlust swirling in my eyes and how my claws rapidly elongated without my command. I couldn’t stop the new deep need from seeping into my bones now that there was a way to get Emrys back. I needed to find this other person immediately.
Walking through the muddy snow, she began to ruin the tail of her new fur cloak, and panic riddled through me. With every step she made, it was like watching my future walk away from me. She was my final hope for Emrys. If I could just have that male’s name then I could save my Mate and possibly the world.
Undone.
Like a whisper on the wind, that word reentered my mind once more and pulled my crazed state to a full stop. That one simple word had left my mind reeling, my bloodlust quieting as the Sibyl stepped over a large log, her body getting smaller with the distance between us.
“Please,” I begged, my hope withering away the further she went. Maybe she misread me, thinking me of ill intent. She wouldn’t give me the name if I was going to sacrifice him exactly like Durreos would.
If the High King followed through, even with his replacement, then the realm would be undone and there would be no more world for Emrys and me. No world for Minka and Ric and Jude. Or Cordelia and Keva or any of my loved ones. “I need to know. Not to exchange but to stop the High King from getting to him first.”
She looked over her shoulder with a smirk and her voice echoed that time, “It seems the monster hasn’t completely overtaken you, Selene.”
“I am a Choryrth,” I squared my shoulders and let the soft snow fall upon my face, blending the useless tears in. I wouldn’t sacrifice another person to save Emrys, but also wouldn’t let him die. “I will do what I must, but I will not sacrifice my Mate.”
“Blood will pay the price of the Fates.” Lightning flashed and thunder rolled before the snow fell in a heavier downpour of sleet and ice. Her words were clear, along with her intentions.
I could barely see her through the storm nor believe the words leaving her frail lips. My knees buckled and I fell onto the snow-filled ground as she stated, “And the other son of the High King goes by the name of Elric.”