Chapter 45
Forty-five
Zellie
“You’re out. You’re safe.” Orion’s voice is a balm; his calm presence reassures me.
I stare and stare, trying to ensure this isn’t a trick of Pluto’s, or a hallucination. “Are you really here?” My scratchy voice cracks on the last word.
“Yes, Zi, I’m here. This is real.”
I reach up to touch him, but am distracted by the enchanted bindings restricting my movements still. “We’re going to get these off.”
“They’re forcing my magic down and away.”
“They’re filled with modified starlight, used to repel the magic.” Orion’s head snaps towards the voice, where Leo stands outside of my periphery. He would know that, given his time with the Kosmos.
I try to sit up on the small couch they’ve laid me on, but barely manage to raise myself onto my elbows. “You saved me.”
He leans against a wall—of what looks like dirt—with his hands in his pockets, the picture of nonchalance. He looks down at me, his Adam's apple bobbing. “That’s all I’ve wanted to do, Zell.”
Unspoken emotion lingers between us, something I’m not ready to acknowledge or face.
Is this penance for what he did? We will never be what we were.
Maybe we weren’t ever meant to be. Perhaps he was solely what I needed at the time.
But for this… for his part in rescuing me, I could find some forgiveness in my heart.
I turn away, back to Orion, but Jada now stands beside him.
Hot tears blur my vision, both of us blurting out apologies simultaneously.
She moves instantly to my side, throwing her arms around me.
I flinch—I can’t help it. Noticing instantly, Jada separates herself, looking me over.
“What did they do to you?” she whispers.
I bite down on the fear, the anger, the hopelessness. What do I tell them? How could they understand? Don’t they have enough to deal with? I keep my mouth shut. None of it matters now that I’m out of Pluto’s thralls.
Thankfully, Seb interrupts by joining the room and stating, “These should do the trick.” He holds up a pair of large shears, similar to those I used to use in my time in the Gardens back on Lunara.
“I don’t think they can be cut. They fused them together with magic, almost like they soldered the pieces together.”
“Well, if that’s the case, perhaps fire can undo what it forged.” Orion contemplates.
“Far more likely than trying to cut them.”
He kneels in front of me, hands hovering above the bindings. “I’m not sure how this will feel, but I can’t imagine it will be pleasant.”
I shake my head in disagreement. I’ve faced unimaginable pain already. “Do it. Can’t be worse than what they put me through.”
He pauses, his eyes full of questions. A fireball ignites in his palm as he works to shape and hone the flame into a tool to be wielded.
He brings the flame to my constraints, slowly raising and lowering the flame against a section of thread.
The work is meticulous, requiring his restraint and focus, but ever so slowly, he progresses until the final thread containing my magic and freedom dissolves.
My magic erupts, an explosion of sensation and power filling my veins.
I brace myself, gritting my teeth, as it thrums forcefully through me in celebration.
Closing my eyes, I breathe through the pain, embracing the burn as my magic fuses with my blood.
We are one; we are the same. Never again will we be apart.
I spent too much time being afraid—no longer will I question what I am capable of.
Change starts now. My eyes open, glowing with empowerment.
A missing piece of my soul clicks into place.
I may not be whole; having crumbling, broken parts that require healing—but I am strong, and I am worthy.
And I will never be a victim again.
The others filled me in on how we were in Seb’s underground bunker, Jada’s realization and work with the humans, as well as everything else that had occurred while I was held captive.
Two weeks. Fourteen days of pain, persecution, and wishing for the end.
Orion continued to tend to me like I was a wounded animal, which, I suppose, I am.
I’ve finally shooed him away after he brought me another bowl of soup, with the promise that if he forced me to eat it I’d vomit right on his shoes.
I’m enjoying a moment of solitude, overwhelmed with the events of the past few hours, when a man strolls into the small living area where I’m situated. Not any man, but a fucking Kosmos.
Within seconds, a wall of air shoves him into the wall furthest from me. “What are you doing here?” My magic holds him, ready to force itself down his throat should the need arise.
Elio grunts, attempting to respond despite the pressure against his throat.
“Zellie! Stars, what are you doing?” Jada rushes into the space, running to Elio’s side.
“Why is he here?”
“He’s helping us, Zell! He’s the reason we were able to find you! You’re hurting him, stop!” her cries grow more and more frantic.
I ease the pressure—just a bit—as I take him in.
His cloak has been discarded; in fact, I wouldn’t know he was a Kosmo at all if it weren’t for his memorable eyes.
“Sorry,” I mutter, trying to deny the animalistic urge to tear into him.
He’s not Pluto, I tell myself. Elio scurries away without another word, apprehension oozing from his pores.
Jada joins me on the couch, scratching her cheek. “Are you okay?”
I snort. “No. Are you?”
Her shoulders go up in a shrug. “When everything happened… when you got your powers, I mean. The brightest light blasted Lunara, shaking the units and bathing us in radiance. I think that light awakened something within me, Zell.”
I offer a lopsided smile. “I think it killed who I was.” She clasps my hand in hers in response as my mind reels. What if it did awaken something in her? What if the explosion allowed for magic in other places? What if she has the dawnfire?
“Jay… I think you should take a look at the prophecy.”
“I’ve seen it already.”
“No, I think you should hold it in your hands. What if there’s something within you that will respond to the tome, or maybe you can awaken it?”
“Me?” She laughs. “Why me?”
I’ve had nothing but time to consider this.
I could be wrong, but what if I’m right?
The timing of all the events that have unfolded leading up to this point has me questioning fate’s hand in the matter.
Her justness, her goodness, her eyes—why couldn’t it be her?
And if I’m mistaken, so be it. We’ll be in the exact place we are now.
But I know my girl, and my faith in who she is knows she is meant for me, as surely as the moon rises.
Looking into her midnight eyes, I admit, “Because I think you’re the Libra in the Legacy.”