Unity

by Jessica Wayne

  “You take care of my niece. Keep her safe and make her happy.”

  “I will.”

  Vincent looked past them and smiled wider than she’d ever seen him smile before.

  “Brother,” he whispered. He turned his attention back to them. “It appears my job is complete.” He started to walk toward the wall, but stopped and turned to Anastasia. “Embrace the power, Anastasia, but don’t ever let it rule you.”

  She nodded, unable to speak.

  Vincent looked to Tony. “Take care of my son, Fighter.”

  “I will. Thank you, Vincent.”

  Vincent nodded once, then faded away.

  Dakota turned his attention back to Anastasia, and she smiled, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and hanging on for dear life.

  36

  Luxe

  Dakota

  His mind clear for the first time in weeks, Dakota held onto his wife. He breathed her in as he held her, their hearts beating together as one.

  Thames was gone, completely erased from his mind, but Dakota knew he’d be living with what he’d seen and done for the remainder of his life.

  Which was now longer because of a sacrifice Vincent made.

  He cupped Ana’s face and kissed her deeply, not caring that they weren’t the only two in the room. He’d been ready to die, and his second chance at living was not something he planned on wasting even a moment of.

  The ghost of the man Dakota knew as the late king appeared in front of him and motioned toward the throne where Luxe’s scepter still sat.

  Dakota pulled away, releasing Ana and walking to Thames’ burned corpse. Reaching down, he lifted the golden scepter and closed his eyes.

  Power slipped down his arm, buzzing as it moved through him and into the object. The light grew, forming an orb of energy at the top where there’d once been only a dull stone.

  The light solidified and radiated from the top, spreading through the castle and out to the rest of the world.

  For the first time in ten thousand years, the sun rose, brightening the castle nearly painfully.

  “You’ve ended the reign of darkness,” the king said.

  Ana and Tony spun, having heard the old man’s words.

  “Who the hell are you?” Tony demanded, reaching for his sword.

  “He’s the Luxe king,” Dakota told them. “Thames’ father.”

  The king bowed his head slightly. “I am not the king any longer. You must reign. Make our world whole again, Dakota. Bring Luxe back to its peaceful glory.”

  He disappeared, fading away in the sunlight, and Dakota looked back down at Ana.

  “There are a lot of dead people coming back lately,” Tony commented.

  Dakota laughed. Damn, that feels good.

  Ana’s eyes widened. “Terrenia! What happened when I left?”

  “When I left to find you,” Tony said, “the Sirens held the Luxe at bay and we’d gotten the villagers into the bunkers.”

  She waved her hand, conjuring a portal. “We need to make sure they’re okay.”

  “Let’s go.”

  The three of them stepped through the portal and into Terrenia, where cheers of the victors radiated through the air.

  There was no sight of Thames’ creatures, but there were a hell of a lot more people than Dakota remembered.

  And he didn’t recognize most of them.

  They turned as he approached, bowing their heads as they knelt before him and pressed a fist to their chests.

  “Are those—” Tony started.

  “Those are the Luxe,” Dakota confirmed.

  “Thames must have trapped them between life and death, draining them and polluting them with his darkness,” Ana said.

  “Dakota!”

  He turned just as his mother reached him. “Hey, Mom.”

  “You’re alive.” Eyes full of tears, she reached up and cupped his face. “I’m so sorry.”

  “It’s not your fault.” Dakota wrapped his arms around her, and she sobbed against his shoulder.

  The sun shone brightly, and when he released her, he was surrounded by creatures he’d never seen before.

  “I trust this means the threat is gone?” one of the large half-man, half-horse creatures asked Ana.

  “Yes. Dakota, meet Armes, king of the Centaurs.”

  Armes bowed his head slightly. “I’m glad to see you were able to save your husband.”

  “Only by killing me first,” Dakota joked.

  Armes raised an eyebrow, and Elizabeth gasped.

  “Where is the Sorcerer?” Armes asked, looking behind them.

  Dakota swallowed hard. “He sacrificed himself for me.”

  Armes studied him curiously before nodding. “A gift freely given. You should feel honored.”

  “I do.”

  “Sorceress, we need to return the life core to its resting place as soon as possible.”

  “Can’t she rest for a moment?” Elizabeth asked angrily.

  “It’s okay, Elizabeth, it needs to go back,” Ana said softly. “Gather your men, and we will return it.” The Centaur king turned away and headed toward his people, who’d gathered near the wall.

  Thames’ internal rage when he’d learned she’d taken the life core was enough to give Dakota hope she’d stop him.

  Ana was powerful on her own, but put the strength of an entire world at her back, and she’d been unstoppable.

  Nix walked slowly toward him, and Dakota swallowed hard, the memory of what he’d done to the Guinsow’s wife nearly crippling him.

  “I’m glad to see you’ve returned, Dakota.”

  “Nix, I’m so sorry. If I could’ve stopped him, if I could take it back—”

  “It is not your burden to bear. The actions were not your own, and I know you never would have brought harm to our world.”

  “I’m still so sorry.”

  Nix sighed. “Nallia would be pleased to know her daughter is safe now, that our enemy has been destroyed.”

  Kaley ran over and rubbed her head against Dakota’s leg. Kneeling, he hugged her tightly, and she buried her face in his chest.

  Her fur was matted with blood, and parts of her skin were injured, but she would survive. He stood and stared out over Terrenia, tears burning in his eyes.

  They’d come so damn close to losing everything.

  He looked down at Ana. I came so damn close to losing everything.

  She threaded her fingers through his and leaned against him.

  Life would never be the same. They were permanently scarred by the past, and the lives Thames took when he’d been in control would haunt Dakota forever, but at least now there was the light of a brand-new day, a chance to live again, without the threat of war looming over them.

  He looked to the Luxe who’d been given a second chance just as he’d been.

  They would survive, thrive even, on their world, and eventually, the nightmare of this war would be nothing but a faded memory for future generations.

  A story told to keep history from repeating itself.

  “Hey, where’d you go?” Ana asked, turning her head up to his.

  Dakota smiled down at her. “Just glad to be back.”

  “We’re ready, Sorceress,” Armes said as he approached with a herd of Centaurs and three women Dakota assumed were Sirens.

  Being this close to the creatures that tied him to Thames sent a sense of dread through him, and he gripped Ana tighter.

  Never again. I will never be someone’s weapon ever again.

  “Let’s go.” Ana waved her hand, and a portal appeared. The Centaurs went through first, followed closely by their king and the Sirens. He and Ana went through next, and Dakota took a deep breath before following her down a narrow cavern.

  He’d spent a long time trapped in the dark; being back—if even for a moment—was enough to send his nerves spiraling.

  “It’s okay,” Ana whispered, picking up on his tension. “Everything is going to be okay from now on.” T
he promise in her words brought a smile to his lips.

  Usually, it was him comforting her.

  They made their way through a labyrinth of caverns until the one they were in opened into a large room, an altar in the center.

  Dakota felt a pull at his magic, almost as if something called out to him.

  Ana released his hand and followed Armes and a Siren to the center of the room.

  “Ready, Sorceress?”

  “Yes.”

  Ana closed her eyes and lifted her hands out to the sides as her skin began to glow. Power poured from her, lighting the room with a bright red glow that swirled around her, a tornado of light. The light gathered and shot up to the ceiling, forming into a large orb.

  It floated softly down, centering itself over the altar.

  “Are you okay?” he asked, but Ana just smiled over at him.

  “I’m fine.”

  He swallowed hard. How much had he missed? “Was that the life core?”

  “It was, and now, it’s home,” Armes told him. “Thank you, Sorceress, for all you’ve done.”

  “You’re welcome. Thank you for your support.”

  “If ever you should need us again, you know where to find us.”

  Ana smiled and shook the large Centaur’s hand. “Thank you, Armes.”

  He turned his green eyes to Dakota. “I do hope your world recovers, King Dakota.”

  Dakota’s eyes widened. King? Is that what I’m supposed to be now? He was just coming around to being alive again, how the hell was he supposed to rule a world he’d only recently learned of?

  “Thank you, for everything.”

  Armes bowed his head, and Ana conjured another portal.

  “Goodbye, Sorceress. May your reign be long and happy.”

  “Thank you, Armes. I hope you get some good rest.”

  The Centaur smiled. “I believe I will.”

  She held out her hand, and Dakota took it. Looking down at their hands, he took a deep breath and stepped through the portal.

  37

  Terrenia

  Anastasia

  Anastasia stood on the watchtower, staring out over the battleground still covered in decaying grass and plants.

  In their short time here, the Luxe had done some serious damage to the area, but even now, just three days later, new tendrils of green grew through the death.

  New life amongst the horror.

  She smiled and closed her eyes against the soft breeze. Terrenia was safe, Luxe was safe, and while they couldn’t bring back the Pickrie, Jaitu, or Guisnow worlds, those remaining would find solace in their new homes.

  Even from where she stood, she could see the tops of the large flowers she’d conjured for Plews and Marney, complete with sweet nectar they could enjoy for years to come. The Jaitu moved deep into the forests, and the Guisnow queen traveled with them.

  The Fawnis returned to their clearing near the mountains, and the Mamsets went with them, the two species having become close friends over the last two years.

  Time was moving forward, life was going on, and the nightmares of the past were becoming easier to handle.

  For some, at least.

  She turned around and looked out over the village. She could barely make out the graveyard, and the man more haunted than the final resting place of the dead.

  Climbing down the ladder, she walked slowly through the village as the sun began to sink lower into the sky.

  Come tomorrow, she, Dakota, Tony, Elizabeth, and Carmen would travel to Luxe to begin preparations for Dakota to take the throne.

  He was going to be king, and he’d make a damn good one. They just had to help him move forward from the memories of the atrocities Thames committed.

  It was going to take time and, luckily, now they had it.

  “Hey,” she said softly, coming to stand beside him.

  He stared down at Shane’s grave, tears slipping down his cheeks. “He fought so hard to stay alive.” Dakota’s voice was weak. “You should have heard the things Thames said to him.”

  “None of that’s your fault.” She wove her fingers through his.

  “You say that, but if I’d come to you back when I first started having the nightmares, maybe we could’ve figured out who Rosabel was before it was too late.”

  “We didn’t even know Sirens existed; how could we have known what she was capable of?”

  Dakota shook his head but didn’t answer.

  “You are not responsible for what Thames did, Dakota. No more than Vincent was.”

  “How am I supposed to lead the Luxe? To be their king when that place holds more horrors for me than anywhere?”

  “Horrors that you are going to erase.”

  She stepped in front of him, blocking his view of Shane’s grave, and cupped his cheeks with both hands. “We are going to erase them, together.” Reaching for one of his hands, she pressed it to her abdomen.

  Dakota closed his eyes, and more tears slipped down his cheeks. “I don’t deserve this.”

  “Vincent thought differently. He gave up his second chance for you to have one.”

  “Maybe he should’ve let me die.”

  “How can you say that?” Anastasia asked angrily. “I need you, this baby needs you. You don’t get to check out just because the pain is difficult. You will make it through, and eventually, it will get easier. You have to believe that.”

  He lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to it. “I do, but dammit, Ana, it hurts. Every time I close my eyes, I see Shane and Nallia, and all the others Thames murdered.”

  “I see them, too, and I see my father, my mother, Brady, Sarah, your dad, and now Vincent. But that doesn’t mean I let them haunt me. They’re my reminders.”

  “Reminders of what? Pain?”

  “It used to be that way, but now when I think of them, I remember love. I remember parents who searched for me for twenty-one years. I remember a brother and sister who weren’t blood, but every bit my siblings. I remember an honorable man who stood up for what was right even if it meant sacrificing everything. And I remember a man so desperate for his brother’s love that he sought a magical way to it, a man who, in the end, sacrificed his last chance for life in order to give me back the man I loved.

  “That’s what you need to remember, Dakota. The love, not the pain.”

  She stood on her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his lips.

  “I love you, Ana,” he whispered against her mouth.

  “I love you, too. Now, let’s go home.”

  Linking hands, they turned away from the gravestones and began the short walk home.

  Once inside, she removed her cloak and followed Dakota into the kitchen. He’d lost so much weight when he’d been held captive, and the dark circles beneath his eyes had barely begun to fade.

  Her love was broken, shattered, and it was up to her to begin putting the pieces of him back together.

  “How is anyone going to be able to look past what Thames did as me? How is anyone going to be able to trust me again? I’ve seen the way they watch me, Ana. As if it’s still not really me.” He covered his face with his hands. “Hell, I don’t even see me anymore.”

  She closed the distance between them and placed her hands on his forearms. Slowly pulling them down, she looked into his tear-filled eyes. “I see you, Dakota, only you.” She reached up and brushed a strand of hair from his forehead. “Soon, they will see you, too.”

  Leaning forward, she pressed her lips to his, burying her hands in his thick hair. He groaned slightly and gripped her hips, pulling her hard against his body. He threaded his hands through her hair.

  Anastasia let her fingers trail down to his waist, slowly lifting the shirt from his body, breaking the kiss just long enough to pull the fabric up and over his head.

  Dakota did the same with her shirt, then pulled her against him again and lifted her. She wrapped her legs around his waist and buried her hands in his hair as he kissed her desperately, as if she were the
oxygen filling his lungs.

  There were no words that could fill this void or stop the painful thoughts running through his head, but showing him how much he meant to her, how much she desperately needed him, was the best she could do.

  Walking, Dakota carried her to their bedroom and laid her back gently onto the mattress. He stared down at her with longing, and she reached for him, pulling his body over hers.

  “Only you, Dakota,” she whispered before pulling him back to her mouth. Reaching down with her hands, she undid the buttons of his jeans, before rolling him over onto his back. She slowly slid down his body, kissing his soft skin as she went, before lowering his pants and tossing them to the ground.

  Dakota reached for her, but she only smiled as she stood by the bed, slowly removing the rest of her clothing until she stood before him wearing nothing.

  That’s how it always was with them—no barriers, no walls to climb in order to reach the other. Thames did more damage when he took over Dakota than she’d ever considered, and it was going to take time to move past the damage.

  It was going to take love.

  She walked to him, and his hungry eyes ate up every stride. When she reached the edge of the bed, he pulled her down, rolling over so his body covered hers. His beard scraped the skin of her neck as she arched, giving his lips access to her throat.

  Rough hands palmed her breasts, teasing the nipples gently as he massaged them. Anastasia moaned, arching her hips up against his erection. Breathing heavily, Dakota reached down and adjusted himself before slipping inside where she ached for him.

  Anastasia moaned, arching up again, and Dakota stilled, resting his forehead in the crook of her neck.

  He slowly pulled out before thrusting in again, and again, and her orgasm built inside her, a steady roaring of intimate power that could only come from sex. She gripped his hips as he continued to drive into her. Her release tore through her, and she cried out, digging her fingertips into his hips as he continued to move only a moment longer before his own release took over and he crumpled, trembling on top of her.

  Anastasia wrapped her arms and legs around him and held on, not ready for the intimacy to be over.