by EJ Everette
“My beautiful Gray, it has been the most precious miracle to spend these days with you. Each moment of our time has touched me in ways I never thought possible. I am so proud of you, my precious girl. You are braver than you know, and I am in awe of the woman you have become. I regret that I was taken from you every day. I regret that we lost so many years together. But, my princess, I will never regret you. Having you in my life, even if only for a short time, was the best decision I have ever made. You are going to do so many great things, Gray. Your destiny is full of light, bright, irrefutable, incandescent, light. And, my sweet, most of that will come from you. Your story is not over, only a small chapter of it. I will never truly be gone from you as long as you hold me in your heart. The ring you wear on your finger there,” she brings my hand up to set between us, her thumb stroking over the band on my middle finger. “This ring was given to me by your father ages ago. It is one of love, triumph, and fate. Wear this and remember who you are. Remember me, and I will never be far from your side.”
Words start and fail to come. What do I even say right now? How do I say goodbye when I’m not ready? In some ways, losing Mom all those years ago was so much easier than this. This feels too real, too final, and saying goodbye feels like I have the power to stop it all and am choosing not to.
“Why did you do this? Why come to me like this if it means we can’t see each other anymore?” It is the only question I can really express right now, my mind desperately trying to find some way to counter what she has said so that she can stay with me.
“It is time for you to leave, my sweet. You are not meant to be here, in this darkness. You must find your strength and make your way back home. Your brother needs you. And there is a certain man not far from you who needs you more than he will ever admit. You must get out of here and go to him. He will be ready for you when you arrive, though there will be a change about him you may not expect. The rest of your guardians will come for you two, then. I needed to come to you and make sure you were ready. There is one more thing you must know about your power before you can go.”
Leave? Sure, I am just going to walk out of here, grab Chance who is casually waiting around the corner for me, and stroll on out of wherever the fuck we are. How can I leave?
“What do you mean, leave?”
“Grayelle, you are a goddess. The princess of all the realms, and the most powerful being born in centuries. You can not be bound, hidden away. You needed to learn the truth, find yourself first, but you are ready. It is time for you to rise out of this pit and be every bit the warrior your destiny calls for you to be. Prophecy or no prophecy, you are my daughter and there is a fierceness in you no other can stifle. Now, stand up.”
Mom rises next to me, pulling me to my feet beside her. My knees are shaking but I hold her gaze as she walks us to the center of the room. Mom places her hands on my shoulders, her hair glowing around us. Instantly I feel a force pushing against my mind. It isn’t painful, but the intrusion doesn’t seem to be avoidable so I release my barriers, the ones I learned to create years ago in another cell-like place. Before I can ask Mom what the hell is going on, my body is slammed with power, straight into my chest. Warmth spreads across me, my heart pumping harder and faster than ever before. The impact was intense, but the fire inside of me moving beneath the surface is indescribable.
“Oh good, I was hoping he would get that taken care of before I left. That Rupert. You two are going to have such fun together, my sweet.” Mom is mumbling something, a knowing smile crossing her face, but I am too overwhelmed to ask why she called Rip by his given name or how she knows him well enough to make such assumptions. Suddenly, just by thinking of him, I can feel Rip again. This time, unlike when I first arrived with the bonds strained, there is a pleasant sensation rippling through me from his connection. Almost too quickly to keep track, each of the bonds with the other guardians hits me, the pleasing feeling amplified with each strand. I briefly notice there is no connection with Chance still, but Mom pulls my attention away as she speaks.
“Grayelle, daughter of Keilitara and princess of the realms. You are born of fire, of passion and power. Within you a flame burns so bright even the stars cast envious gazes in your direction. Are you prepared to fulfill your destiny and receive your ascendance?”
No. Nope. Not at all.
“Umm… sure?” I mean, what am I supposed to say? Mom is all glowy, her voice louder than it should be.
“Then take of me, my daughter, my blood. Receive my delight in you as our shared power courses through your veins. Accept this gift, the final one I make, and awake with your supreme authority as is your destiny.”
Every inch of my skin, every nerve ending, every muscle suddenly feels the full force of my Mom’s words, her power. Flames dance around us, honest to gods flames much bigger than the small see-through version I have experienced before.For a second I am back in the fire searching for Charlie and Grams before the fear is ripped away with the staggering amount of peace that overtakes us both. The fire on my skin doesn’t burn, not even my thin clothing singes, as it covers me. Mom and I stand there in the middle of the cell, completely coated in orange and blue flames, both of us glowing now. Where her hands rest on my shoulders, strength I have never experienced before seeps into me. My arms and legs feel firmer, stronger. My mind clears while my lungs breathe in full deep breaths. The ratty hair piled all around my head falls loose in waves of deep browns and amber. Mom’s eyes are so incredibly blue they glisten as she smiles at me. I can even feel the deep caverns within me, the ones that have left me so ruined, fill with all encompassing love. They may never disappear, but right now I can feel them being changed inside of me, their hold weakened as I grow stronger.
“Go now, my Gray. Conquer the world, love fiercely and without apology, and embrace your true self. I love you, my princess. I love you.”
With those words, Mom begins to shine so intensely I have to look away. I feel her leave before my eyes recover. When I can open them again, she is gone and her absence sends me to my knees in anguish. Even as I fall, as my body convulses in tears from what I’ve lost, I can feel the power she left behind for me. I can feel my strength increasing, feel my body pulling power from the world around me.
“I love you, too, Mom,” I whisper to the space where she held me just moments ago. “I love you and I promise I will make you proud. I will fulfill my destiny. I am strong, I am a mother fucking princess, and those who have hurt me will pay for the pain of so much loss. They will pay for taking you from me. They will meet destruction from my own hands. From the hands of your daughter, a goddess, the prophecy girl.”
26
Chance
“Wake up you pathetic being. We have news for you.” My eyes strain to open around the swelling as I bring my head up to take in the newest intrusion. It’s been far too many days without any contact from Dean and constant beatings from the damn brutes. My body may be able to endure great amounts of pain, but the brief window between beatings is interfering with my ability to heal. As I do every time one of the slimy fuckers enters my cage, I ask about Gray.
“Where is she? Bring her to me and we can make some sort of arrangement.” My voice is harsh, rougher than usual from the lack of water, but still menacing, thank fuck. The small pittance demon, puss dripping from the sores that cover almost every inch of it’s rolled up skin, cackles at my offer. I know I am not in a position to negotiate, but these idiots are easy to manipulate and I keep hoping they will take the bait eventually. My only priority is to get to Gray. If that means getting them to put us in the same cell, then even that is a step in the right direction.
The pittance demon forces liquid down my throat, the only way they have been able to get anything into me as I refuse to eat or drink whatever they bring me. I spit some back into its face but it continues to waterboard me with the stuff until it is satisfied with my intake. I shake, the chains bound to my hands and feet making clunking sounds throughout the small spa
ce. After what must have been days of using the chains attached to the cuffs around my hands to bang into the cell door in hopes of doing some damage, the assholes had strung me up like a puppet.
“Oh, you should not worry. Today you get your wish. Today, the girl will join you.” I perk up a bit at this, the anticipation of seeing Gray strong enough that I miss the cackling of the minion, ignoring the alarm the noise should have sounded in my mind. Gray is alive. They are going to bring her to me. If she is with me, we can get through this. I just need to see her. I need to know she is okay. Then we can get the hell out of here. I know the guys are planning something, I just have been unable to get to Dean again to figure out what it is.
“When?” I ask, too hopeful. The demon notices, a smirk inching up its face. It says nothing else, but a moment later a shade demon enters the cell and my stomach falls. Shade demons are a few steps above the pittance demons I have been dealing with . They are craftier and more desirable than a brute demon, despite their smaller stature. They had brought a shade in when I first arrived to try to possess me and get information, but I had been too strong then. Now I am much weaker, weak enough they might succeed. I throw my mental barriers up, desperate to lock out any attempt to my mind, but the lack of nutrients in my body prevent me from doing much more than blacking out at the use of energy.
“Chance? Can you hear me? What is going on, man?”
“Dean? It is about time. They just brought a shade in and I am pretty sure they are going to try to possess me again. Can you keep them out from your end? I do not think I am strong enough right now.”
“None of us can feel you, man. Rip restored the bonds and we can feel Gray, pinpoint her almost exactly, but you, none of us can find anywhere. What have they given you? We need that bond back to get to you.”
“If you can feel Gray, that is all that matters. Get her out of here, Dean! I mean it. I can make it longer than she can. Come back for me but get your asses down here and save her now! I will be fine.”
“We are coming for both of you. Today. Soon. Reid has a plan. The council denied our request for help, so it is just us, man. We are going to get in and out but we only have a few hours to do it before they detect us. You need to be ready, you hear me? We are packing up now to go. I am thankful as fuck I decided to try to reach you one more time. I have not been able to get to you for the past few hours.”
Hours? Damn it had felt like days.
“I have no idea what their plans are so I can not say what state you will find me in, but just make sure you get Gray first. I will keep them distracted. It looks like they are going to try to break me again so I will hold them off and give them hell so you can get in. Whatever it takes, get to her, Dean. I mean it. Get to her and get her out.”
“Yeah, okay man. We are coming for both of you, you stubborn sacrificial ass, but we will make sure she gets out no matter what. Now, stop trying to offer yourself up for slaughter and get the fuck ready so we can rescue you. I plan to hold this shit over your head for at least a few decades and you have to be around to thank me profusely for your gallant rescue.”
“Whatever. You and I know damn well I have saved your ass more times than either of us can count. Do I need to remind you about Yelarrie and her siren powers? Dude, you barely escaped with your life, and manhood, intact. That was all because of me.”
“Shut the hell up and get your head in the game. And we are never EVER to bring up Yelarrie again, especially not around Gray. Now, I have got to go. Be ready, and I will see you soon brother.”
“What do you mean gone?! Impossible! Find out what the hell happened! We will have to move up our plans because of you imbeciles!” Dagnoroth’s annoying ass voice brings me out of my unconscious state. Great, they brought the head douche in for questioning time today. The asshole himself approaches me, a mixture of glee and fear in his eyes, though how I can tell there is anything beneath those dark black orbs, I am not sure.
“Well, good morning sleeping beauty. I heard you awoke asking yet again for your sweet little princess. Well, today is your lucky day. She has proven to be no use to me, obviously not the one we were seeking, so you may have her. I have my minions fetching her now. You may rot together for all I care. Besides, I need the cell space. We have a war to prepare for, afterall.” He sounds like he had recently finished smoking his 23rd pack of cigarettes for the day, coughing between his words. The phlegmy quality makes my stomach roll a bit, something that seems weirdly ironic to me since I can handle blood, gore, and death but mucousy sounds make me want to barf.
“If you have hurt her, even the tiniest of a scratch, I will end you.” My seemingly empty threat makes Dagnoroth laugh a heavy boisterous sort of laugh. It reminds me of a dark and twisted Santa Claus sort of guffaw.
“Now why would I have hurt her? I am no monster. I am a king.” He says, evil dripping off of him like the sweat running down his face. He looks way too pleased to be telling the truth. Not that I expected they had left her be, what with the hours and hours of screaming that haunted me day and night. I know they have been torturing her, but I needed him to know just how fucking serious I am about ending him.
“You may feel like you have won, Dagnoroth. You may even feel victorious. But, celebrate wisely you filthy piece of shit, for this celebration will be your last. Some fight for vengeance, others out of grief, but I will come for you with death in my hands and fight you from the love beating beneath my chest. You will have no power to stop me and I will bathe in your destruction the way one coats themselves in aloe after a deep burn. Because that is what your demise will be for me, relief. Do what you must to me now, but I will come for you and your end will be both epic and insignificant.” I spit at him then, before turning my face from his in a blatant show of disrespect. I hear him hiss in anger before he leaves the room in a fury.
I hang there, my limbs aching from the weight of my large body until a brute enters the space. Preparing for yet another boxing session, where my arms are pinned and I act as punching bag rather than opponent, I am surprised when the brute produces a key for the cuffs on my wrists. It unlocks each side before removing similar metal chains wrapped around my legs. Aside from a few grunts mixed with heavy breathing, the brute makes no effort to address me or speak in any way, leaving me alone in the room with the shade and pittance demons once my cuffs have been retrieved.
“Alright loverboy,” the shade smears, “time for your little reunion.” I straighten up, brushing the dirt and dried blood from my hands onto my joggers the best I can. Not that it will help any, but my natural response is to try to make myself presentable for Gray. Sure enough, within seconds another brute enters the cell with a small figure in his hands. I jump to my feet, desperate to pull her from its arms and take her into my own. The brute looks at me in warning. If I push it, they could take her from me. I stand still, fists clenched at my side, fighting every instinct I have insisting I go to her. Instead, I wait as the brute lays her on the makeshift mat I have sparsely used. The pittance and brute leave the room, but the shade stays, moving off to a corner to observe. I could care less, though. The second she is released, I rush to her side.
She looks so small, frail, and broken. Her beautiful dark hair is plastered to her forehead, covered in dried blood, and tangled in knots. Every inch of her exposed skin is covered in cuts, bruises, and deep wounds. Her shirt is missing, causing me to growl a bit as to why she is barely dressed, but I can see her running shorts and shoes are still on her body, giving me hope she has not been touched in ways I dare not imagine. Her perfect face looks the same, though layers of dirt coat her skin and a deep slash runs across her bottom lip and into her chin. Anger like I have never known boils within me as I take in my beauty. What have I let them do to her? Why did I not protect her?
She stirs, suddenly, beneath my gaze. I move slowly so as not to cause her more pain, bringing her into my arms. A tiny whimper, so soft I barely hear it, escapes her mouth as I press her against my chest. I know s
he is likely hurting, but I sit on the mat, my arms wrapped around her, and breathe in her deeply. Beneath all the layers of sweat, dirt, and blood, I search for the smell of honeysuckle, needing the familiarity of the girl in my arms and how she used to be. It’s absence just angers me more, as despair tries to seep into my soul. Gray. She is alive and here with me. She is hurt, but I can protect her now. We will be okay. I have not failed her completely. I place my lips against her forehead, gently kissing her skin, the touch burning me, sending heat directly to my heart.
I love her. I was never truly against it, more angry at being forced to accept some stranger as my soul mate, but I love her so damn much. The guys said that I would feel it eventually, but the joke is on them. I have felt every bit of it since day one. I knew she was mine when I saw Reid kneeling before her in that hallway. Knew she belonged to me as her cheeks flushed with pink and red tones, signaling her embarrassment. In that moment, all I wanted to do was rush over and place my hands against her skin, feeling the heat. Denial may work for some, but prophecy aside, there is something about this girl that never gave me a chance to run away. I pushed her, shit I even pushed the guys, but her soul sings to mine like a heavenly choir. I will never experience joy like I will with her, I know this as clearly as I know my arms will never seek the presence of another the way they reach for her.
Gray shifts again in my arms, this time opening her eyes to meet mine. Deep blue oceans dance beneath her eyelashes as she stares up at me.
“Chance?” My name on her lips is melodic, a song I could listen to again and again. “Chance is that you?”
“Yes my beauty, it is me. I… I have got you.” I try to smile at her, to show her just how much it means to me to be holding her. To assure her I will protect her now, that she is safe. But the strangest thing happens. Gray’s brow creases, her eyes begin to shift around as if she is seeking something else, someone else. Fear emanates off of her and before I can react, she is pushing away from me to get to her feet.