Eternal Conflict - Book 7 (The Ruby Ring Saga)

by Chrissy Peebles

  “Victor!” a commander shouted. “We need to talk!”

  Victor quickly relayed his new plan to his commanders and generals, discussing quick ways to outwit the enemy and counterstrikes.

  “It is a brilliant plan,” the commander told Victor. “Unfortunately, we haven’t the manpower to initiate it.”

  Suddenly, a vision struck me. Thick, black smoke billowed high into the sky. A few dragons lay dead, and slain knights covered the ground for miles.

  “Have mercy,” a knight on his knees pleaded.

  “There is no mercy for any loathsome insect who so foolishly sides with Victor,” Ethano said, then cut his head off in a clean swipe.

  Ethano’s men slaughtered the last few survivors, sparing no one. Ethano laughed as he kicked Victor’s dead body that was clinging to my own corpse. “Aw. How sweet. He died trying to save his witch of a queen,” he said. “How did he ever think he’d stand a chance against me?”

  “At least you know the location of the child, Highness,” one of his knights said.

  “Yes. My warlock took it straight from Sarah’s mind. She didn’t even fight it.”

  “I don’t think she believed she could lose. She was in shock, babbling on about her unborn child.”

  “I almost spared her,” Ethano said, “but she was much too difficult to deal with. I can find a pretty face anywhere, and none of them have the audacity to question me.”

  Suddenly, I snapped back to the present. “Victor, we’re going to lose! I had a vision, and I… You… Oh my gosh! We’re all going to die!”

  Chapter 28

  “We will not be defeated,” Victor said sternly, kicking a knight to the ground.

  “But my vision said otherwise,” I argued. “Liz and your knight were right. We need to retreat now, while we still have a chance.”

  “We’re surrounded. There is no turning back.”

  “He’s going to kill us. I saw it! His warlock is going to steal Alexander’s location from my mind.”

  “We can change the outcome,” Victor said. “You should know that by now. Nothing is set in stone. We shall come at them from the north and—”

  “I fear for our son,” I whispered, “for the life he’ll be forced to live without us.”

  He gazed at me with sad eyes, knowing the truth but unable to admit it. “We’ve come too far, my love. We cannot stop now.”

  “You’re a brilliant military leader, loved and admired by your men, but we’ve come to the end of the road, the end of our journey. You know that as well as I do.”

  “Our only choice is to fight harder,” he said, “for Alexander, for our unborn daughter.”

  “My visions don’t lie.”

  “Yes, I know, but we’ve changed them before. The dungeon seemed hopeless as well, but we managed to escape then, just as we will this time.”

  I blew out a long breath, feeling defeated and exasperated. I desperately wanted to believe him, to hope, but I feared there was no point in fooling myself.

  “There is always hope,” a woman behind me said, as if reading my thoughts. “You are not yet doomed. We must only stop the vision from happening.”

  I turned, and the woman put down her hood. I recognized her immediately.

  “Helena!” Victor said.

  “Hello, Majesties.”

  “You shouldn’t be out here!” Victor said, fearful for her safety.

  “I will escort her to a safe place, Highness,” a knight said.

  Helena pulled back. “Unhand me, young man. You will do no such thing. I am a grown woman and shall go where I please. I am here because I have a very important message to deliver to Sarah. I did not brave the journey for nothing, only to be forced to go back.”

  “We’re losing the battle, Helena,” I said, “and hope with it.”

  She motioned to the fighting armies. “It does look quite grim, dear.”

  “Victor has a plan,” I said. “He thinks if we—”

  She shook her head. “It is too late for military strategies. You’ve already been defeated.”

  “What? Is that the message you came to deliver? You’re supposed to be on my side, but you’re talking in riddles. You said I’m not doomed, but now you’re saying we’re defeated. Which is it?”

  “This is what I see at this moment. You cannot fight so many, even with Taggert. Even the greatest of warriors would fail at such an unfortunate conquest. Ethano is coming at you like an angry hornet, stinging with all he has. At this point, it is hopeless to fight.”

  “No! I’ve given up everything, left my world, tried my best.”

  “Your parents and your son will mourn for your death if you continue on this path.”

  “Why are you delivering me such morbid news?”

  “Because it is only a shadow, a possibility. There is another way. You must stop the end of the world, as I have foreseen it.”

  I cocked a brow. “But you just said it’s too late. How can I live with such a dark fate?”

  “Do you not know that stars only shine in the darkness?”

  “What does that mean?” I asked.

  “If you accept my help and your destiny, you can win.”

  “You had a vision, one that will help us?”

  “You need to know the truth,” she said.

  “The truth?”

  “About who you really are.”

  “We really haven’t time for these games, Helena. I need to help the warriors, and—”

  “This is far more important and will help to secure your victory. In fact, it may be your only chance.”

  I had no idea what she was talking about, but I knew I needed to hear her out.

  “Go with her,” Victor said, “but be careful.”

  I cupped his face. “I know this isn’t the time for this, but I love you.” I kissed his lips in case it was the last chance I would ever have, and I savored every second of our touch.

  “I love you too.”

  “Come now, dear,” Helena said, “and you may have a chance to love each other far longer.”

  An arrow flew past her as she jumped out of the way. Helena grabbed my arm and led me to the top of a huge cliff that offered a panoramic view of the armies below, fighting mercilessly.

  “What’s going on?” I asked. “Why did you bring me up here?”

  “So you can win the war for us, child.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes. Only you truly have the power,” she said. “It’s always been about you.”

  I gazed deeply into her eyes, trying to figure out what she meant. “It’s all about my son, Alexander,” I corrected.

  “I have studied all the ancient manuscripts carefully. I let you out of that prison portal because I know something you don’t. Great, unspeakable powers were given to you, Sarah, and you have passed them on to your firstborn.”

  “What are you talking about?” I asked, completely stumped.

  “Your powers were unstable in the beginning. So I wasn’t sure if you were the one. But now I am convinced that you’re the chosen one, the one prophesied to stop the war. At first, we all mistakenly believed it was to stop Victor’s conflict with William, but this was not so. It is about stopping this war, the battle with cruel Ethano, the one we’re facing this very second. You are the key. The prophecy even predicted that you would find a king thought to be long dead.”

  “I never could have found Taggert without the help of Victor and the shape-shifters,” I retorted.

  “Yes, but your role confirmed that you are the one spoken of in the prophecy. Your powers will turn this thing in our favor. Ultimately, it was your visions that led you to King Taggert.”

  I pondered. “I don’t have any extraordinary power. My powers are the same as Victor’s, Liz’s, and Jackson’s. There is really nothing unique about me. I haven’t even mastered all the common powers. I do a worse job with invisibility than Bilbo Baggins.”

  “Who, dear?”

  “Never mind. Different realm,�
� I said, waving the thought away and once again remembering where I was.

  “You have always carried this power, but you could not tap into it till now. You received additional powers at Jackson’s ceremony, something very special. We just have to bring them out into the light, and I can do that with a simple spell. With these powers, you will save all mankind from destruction and lead humanity to victory. You alone will bring Ethano’s downfall by ending this war. The magic inside of you will defeat his armies, no matter the numbers. You need not question it, child. Just embrace it.”

  “With all due respect, Helena, this is crazy talk. I don’t believe any of it. I did not sign up to be any kind of golden child, a chosen one. What if I don’t want this so-called honor?”

  “In your heart, you will do what is right. Deep down, you know fate has chosen you to be this world’s champion.”

  “Is that why fate stole my sister from me when I was only a teenager?”

  “She loved her life here, Sarah. I realize that you went through pain and suffering and missed her, but Liz was happy here.”

  “Was she taken to draw me in?” I asked. “Was that the plan all along?”

  “Circumstances led to the events that have brought you to this point. As I said, it has always been about you.”

  “And Victor too,” I said.

  “He does play a role in all of this, yes, but ultimately it’s you, my dear.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me this before?”

  “I couldn’t.”

  “If it’s true, why couldn’t the powers be activated sooner? Maybe lives could have been spared if—”

  She shook her head and held up a hand to silence me. “As per the prophecy, ‘During the days of the Great War, when the resurrected king returns and dragons screech through the sky, when guardian blood is spilled…’” she recited. “I do believe that time is now. And your powers couldn’t be activated a day sooner.”

  “So you waited until the very last minute?”

  “That was the way it was ordained.”

  “What if you’re wrong?”

  “The prophecy has never been proven wrong. It predicted your marriage to Victor, that you would change his dark heart. It predicted Alexander’s birth and the onset of this vile war, right down to the details. Poor Della hoped she was the chosen one, but it was always you.”

  “I just woke up one day, and everything was different. I became an immortal, yes, but I’m no different than any other immortal. I’m certainly not as powerful as some. I’m not anybody special.”

  “You are, and you must stop trying to revolt against your destiny. No matter what you do, you cannot change what you were born to be. You even overcame the energy that wanted to destroy you from the inside out. No immortal could handle that kind of power, but the prophecy said the chosen one would find a way. Your child was chosen to handle the brunt of the energy so you could live, and that marked him with his own special powers. You were holding power given to you by a goddess, and your child bathed in it for nine months. He will be the most powerful immortal this world has ever seen. It was also no accident that you were sent back to your world. You were destined to meet Jackson and destroy the evil blue-ringed immortals who ruled your world. You were also destined to receive healing from the eternal bloom. White Coyote foresaw it. He knew the great role you’d play in saving both worlds, and that was why he gave you the bloom. He also did something more.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “The eternal bloom healed you, but the high energy would still have killed you within three months.”

  “So I’d have to go back for another fix?”

  She nodded. “Yes, but White Coyote stored the most dangerous energy in your ruby ring.”

  “When did he do that?” I asked flabbergasted.

  “When he connected your bond to Victor.”

  “You should’ve said something,” I said. “I had every right to know.”

  “I couldn’t let Ethano learn who you are, the special role you’ll play. It would have only made him more eager to destroy you.”

  “But you sent me back to my home world.”

  “I had to, so you could receive healing. We had no way to cure you here in this ancient world. You were led to the flower that saved your life. I decided to keep this great secret I discovered through old, dusty scripts and visions. It was far better to allow the prophecy to play out on its own accord, uninterrupted or deterred by human or immortal intervention. If the prophecy was true, you would return, as predicted. When I saw you in the prison portal, I knew it was true. You came back to fulfill the prophecy, to free us all from Ethano’s reign of terror.”

  “Do you really believe that?” I asked.

  “The prophecy speaks of a woman from another world making her mark on this one. That, my dear, can only mean you. Every detail of the predictions leads back to you, and your Alexander will follow in your footsteps if he chooses the path of good. He will do so many wonderful things.”

  “How was I chosen? None of this makes sense.”

  “A goddess named Selena ruled down here for centuries,” she said. “It was decided that no gods or goddesses would rule here any longer, so she had to go. The gods felt humanity would grow on its own, without their influence. She loved the people here and wanted only the best for them. That night, she had a premonition of rulers becoming tyrants and a rebel army fighting them off. She left a cave full of rubies that would give the rebellion great powers, make them immortal, a final gift to her people. From her vision, she knew King Taggert would find the cave and create a new civilization, a new breed of people, the immortals.”

  I listened intently but had no idea what I had to do with any of it. It reminded me of one of those boring history lectures in school, and if there had been a clock there, I would have been pleadingly looking at it, hoping for the bell to ring so I could go.

  “The next night, the goddess had another future premonition,” Helena continued. “She saw the battle between Victor and Ethano. She saw what Ethano planned to do to this world, the apocalypse he would create. Selena was devastated, so she created one special ruby in the cave and destined it to go to the chosen one, the one who would stop the Great War, the one with a pure heart, the one who would pull evil from the pit of darkness and bring him into the light.”

  “Victor?” I whispered.

  “Yes. Your love was meant to be, and it changed him. Out of all those ruby rings, that particular ruby found you.”

  “But that’s impossible. What are the chances? That ring just sat there for all those generations.”

  “When Victor chose the ring, he selected it from hundreds that were locked in the family safe. To him, they all looked the same, but one was different. Anyone could’ve picked that particular ring, a ring fashioned thousands of years ago, but it waited for the right wearer. It waited for you, Sarah. When Victor made his selection, that ring sparkled more than all the others, as if calling out to him. As such, that special ruby found its way to you, just as the goddess predicted. When Victor put it on your finger, you became its rightful owner, and great power was to be bestowed on you and your firstborn. Ethano mistakenly thinks all the power is Alexander’s, but the boy’s mother shares in it too.”

  “Could he have activated me?”

  “Not until today, but yes. His warlocks could tap into your powers and bring them to life. Your powers would allow him to win the war. That is why I had to hold my tongue, even from you, until the time was right. I had to let fate take its course and trust that it would lead you here.”

  “So this goddess chose me thousands of years ago?” I asked.

  “Yes. Your entire life has led up to this moment. Now, child, you must fulfill your destiny.” She placed her hands on my head. “Let me give you the power that you are to receive on this special day.”

  “Isn’t it too dangerous? You said White Coyote encased it in the ring because it is dangerous,” I said, staring down at my red stone that gli
ttered in the sunlight.

  “This is a gift that will help your people, and it is to be given to you on this fateful day. Your immortal body will accept the enchanted gift now. It’s been ordained that way.”

  My mind raced a million miles a minute, and I tried to comprehend what she was telling me. It seemed inconceivable, but somehow, I knew it was true. “Are you sure I won’t die? That nothing will happen to Victor?”

  “My dear, you will both be fine. You will have your extra gift for all of eternity. No one will ever be able to surpass your powers, other than your son, once he grows into a man. You and your child have been blessed with powers from a goddess. You have to accept the gift that has been bestowed on you.”

  Suddenly, I heard a rustling in the bushes and quickly turned, fearing an ambush. “Who’s there?” I demanded.

  “Calm down, sis,” Liz said. “It’s only me.”

  “Liz? Were you eavesdropping.”

  “Yes, and it sounds pretty amazing to me!”

  “I never asked for this,” I said, looking down at the grass.

  She touched my arm. “I know. In some ways, that goddess would’ve been better off giving me the title, but if you have a chance to help us, we need to take it. Otherwise, we’ll lose this world forever, and all immortals will live in eternal conflict, for the rest of their existence.”

  “Then I’ll take the gift,” I said. “If it will end this strife, bring us all together, unite us in peace, and end the death, I really have no choice.”

  Helena reached for a long stick on the ground, then drew a huge circle around me.

  “What are you doing?” Liz asked.

  “Creating a magic circle.” She then uttered a few strange words.

  A column of fire suddenly surrounded me, exploding into leaping flames. I bit my lip hard. I could feel the intensity of the heat on my face, but the fire didn’t touch me or singe a hair on my head. Helena knew what she was doing, and I had to trust her. As quickly as the flames had come, they suddenly died down. I stared down at the scorched earth.

  Helena smiled at me, then touched my shoulder and began to chant again.

  I suddenly felt lightheaded, and my knees wobbled. “It feels like someone is squeezing my mind.”