39. Thayla #3
Their emotions have brushed my soul since the moment pieces of me became attached to theirs.
But this…
This is different. This isn’t a whisper. Not a thread. Not an echo.
It’s everything.
Their souls no longer feel distant or fractured or guarded by something I never realized was there. Every piece of them—their love, fears, memories, scars, every moment that shaped them, thrums within me.
And they feel me. Not the fragments they carried. All of me.
My breath shudders as the connection settles. Not like something new forming, but like something ancient finally returning home.
The ache I never knew existed disappears.
My shoulders rise and fall as tears fill my eyes.
“Your souls are whole.”
They smile softly, then a small hiss passes through each of us. Our attention snaps to our wrists, and my mouth falls open. The swirling C branded on my wrist since the Veiling Day shifts, reshaping into a stunning…O.
My watery gaze meets theirs as my fingers trail over the new mark.
“If it wasn’t clear enough that you all were mine, now you have my mark to show the realm.”
My teasing chuckle morphs into a grunt as four strands pierce my heart.
“Oh, we’re yours, my endling. No doubt about that.”
My gaze jerks to Creed’s blazing white irises.
Kyzen, Amick, and Riven clench their fingers at their sides, still smiling.
My breath rushes out and I sway forward. Creed catches me easily, holding me as pieces of their souls settle and seal themselves to mine.
“I promised them that as soon as I figured out how to heal our souls, I’d attach them to yours. I wasn’t wasting a second,” he says, smiling down at me.
Everything I just felt intensifies tenfold.
I don’t know where my being begins and theirs ends.
We are…one.
A few tearful laughs leave me as they hold and caress me. Riven’s highly inappropriate praises keep me from dissolving into a full sobbing mess.
“Do you all—are you…”
I can’t get the words out, but their softened eyes tell me they know.
“We feel Verlet and…we aren’t experiencing what V experienced,” Amick says.
Relief colors his voice, then the energy around us shifts.
“Their experiences were not the same.”
We all go still.
“The Vedarya’s soul was damaged when it attempted to leave the realm.
He was whole when he perished. He possessed memories, identity, understanding of himself.
When his soul was separated, the journey fractured what already existed.
The damaged pieces remained because a new, untouched vessel waited. ”
Creed flinches, and my arms tighten around him.
“Your souls suffered differently. They did not leave the realm. They were entering it. They possessed no memories, no understanding of who they were, no sense of self to anchor them. They were not damaged by losing who they were. They were damaged before having the opportunity to become who they were meant to be.”
A chill races through me. The reminder of what happened to them before birth hurts all over again.
“Over time, they changed. The souls you possess now are not the same souls that entered this realm. Kirabaddon’s corruption was attached to those early fragments.
The pieces forced upon you before you understood yourselves.
Those pieces were never truly you. Your memories remain, the pain remains, but the corruption is no longer woven into who you are. ”
“You knew when we stepped in here you could fix us,” Amick says.
His tone holds no accusation.
“Yes.”
“You didn’t say anything because you didn’t want to influence our choice,” Kyzen says.
“Correct. Whether you chose to guide the realm or return to it, I would have restored your souls. You were harmed before you understood the cost. That burden was never yours to carry, and you will carry it no more.”
My fingers tighten in Creed’s shirt as I close my eyes and let the words settle. I thought I knew what it meant to love them. I thought I knew what connection meant.
I was wrong.
This is knowing them without anything between us. Feeling every heartbeat, fear, devotion.
This is home.
A quiet laugh leaves Riven.
“You all know what I just thought about…”
My eyes open. His glitter with mischief.
“Please don’t say it,” Kyzen warns.
“I kinda forgot we were made in here and now we just got remade in here.”
Kyzen releases a breath that resembles a laugh. Amick stares. Creed glares. I die laughing.
It’s kind of true…
As the amusement fades, a long sigh replaces it. I look toward the endless light.
“We need to get back,” I say softly. “They’re probably losing their minds, and we’ve got a lot to clean up.”
“Time moves differently here,” Kyzen says, eyes glowing. “To them, we’ve only been gone maybe three minutes.”
“What?”
“The God of Time is correct. But it is time for you to go. I have one more thing to address before you leave.”
The warmth and lights shift above us, spinning faster and faster until they form a perfect sphere of power across from us.
“You have accepted a responsibility once carried through control. You will carry it differently. You will not be given power because you stand above those you guide. You will be given power because you have chosen to stand beside them.”
My breath catches as the air shifts and the entire space begins to glow.
“Remember this. A mantle is not a crown. It is a promise.”
Riven gasps as essence races across his skin.
The rest of us startle when light explodes behind him.
He stumbles forward with a startled laugh as power surges through him.
Then—
His wings unfurl.
I cover my mouth, gawking. Burgundy feathers spread wide, each tipped with brilliant blue.
Chaos and Harmony. Wildness and balance.
Two forces that should never coexist, yet they fit him perfectly.
Before he can do more than smirk, Creed sucks in a breath.
His wings emerge next.
Dark gray feathers push free, deepening into black as they extend, then fading into pure white at the tips.
Pain. Death. Release.
The power he carried for so long no longer looks broken. It looks transformed.
Amick straightens as the light moves to him. Radiance erupts behind him, and a magnificent pair of golden citrine wings burst free.
They match his eyes exactly.
Knowledge. Truth. Understanding.
Everything he’s always sought now reflected in the power he carries.
Kyzen’s appear next.
A breathtaking sweep of blue spreads from his back, blending seamlessly from deep to light shades. Time itself captured in feathers.
Past. Present. Future.
All existing together.
My heart aches as I watch them flex their shoulders, adjusting to wings that look like they’ve always belonged to them.
My men.
I blink away tears as they stare at me.
“What?”
They don’t answer. Their gazes shift behind me. The warm light changes again, and my power stirs uncontrollably. Not one or two…
All of them.
Colors rise beneath my skin before exploding outward.
My wings unfold so fast I lose my breath.
They aren’t one color. They flow into each other like stained glass catching the light. Every piece of me reflected back.
Blue. Green. Burgundy. Gold. Bronze. Black. White.
All shades of my powers. Chaos, Seduction, Accord, Creation, Consequence, Obliteration, Boundaries.
But there’s also…purple.
It weaves through the rest, not overpowering, not replacing.
Uniting.
The Binding’s presence settles around me.
“Purple has long held significance across the realms. Within the Valorian Veil, it represents divine connection and protection. The Angel Aura Amethyst shares this shade.”
The light shifts, making the purple shimmer brighter. Warmth moves through me, tightening my throat.
“You do not possess another power, nor a new force that must be named. The purple represents what happens when power does not seek control, consume, or divide. It represents unity, balance, and order. God of Order is a title given because you understand what power was always meant to be.”
My breath trembles as I stare at my feathers, then at my men, then back at my wings.
I…don’t know what to say.
I can’t think of anything with the way they’re looking at me and what they’re pushing through our bond. A shaky breath escapes as I embrace the overwhelming affection.
That’s going to take some getting used to.
“Gods of the new beginning,” the Binding says, low and purposeful as the light fades. “Return to your family, who, with time, will become who they are meant to be. Return to the realm. Not as who you were created to be, but who you choose to become.”
The warmth remains for one final moment as it guides us back the way we came. We don’t rush, and it doesn’t rush us, as the swirling white essence splits open.
Five souls walked into this place carrying the weight of over a thousand years. We leave carrying something entirely different.
My gaze drifts across my men, lingering on each magnificent pair of wings before settling on their eyes.
“Are we ready for this?” I ask.
Four smiles answer.
Amick inclines his head. “The realm’s been waiting long enough.”
Riven rolls his shoulders, giving his wings an exaggerated stretch. “I can’t wait to race Verlet.”
I laugh.
Together, we step toward the exit.
Toward our family. Our realm.
The future we finally have the freedom to choose.
And side by side…
We walk out of the Gods Binding.