I wanted to go to him but stopped myself. He needed time to think, and I would give him that time, for I was sure he had just come to the same conclusion I had.
Our time was up. We had to move against Baladon now, before it was too late.
I glared across the room at the severed, twitching hand of Baladon, wishing we’d taken his head instead. He’d regenerate quick enough, but until then, at least he’d be the one in pain for once.
Our army of witches and sorcerers were now reduced down to men and women who had the knowledge, but no true way of using their magic. We had shifters and dragons who couldn’t shift, demons who could not go into their rage state. And six— destined to kill Baladon—who were also currently powerless. Oh yes, this war just kept getting better by the day.
Harold’s words repeated themselves over and over in my head; Baladon was too strong, he could not be defeated.
Deep down, I knew that was not true. He would be, the question was, were we ready to die to ensure a victory?
9
Forrest
I gazed up at the night sky, having been out here for the last couple of hours. Seeing what Baladon had done so easily gave me the answer I had not wanted. Not yet. But there was no more trying to fight destiny.
Whatever plans we’d made, we had to start acting on them, now.
My gut told me as soon as Mori and I went through with the ceremony, our time here would come to an end. There would be no time to rest. No time to enjoy our lives, not that we were truly enjoying them now. I had told her when we had no other options, I would finally agree to a wedding. That time it seemed had come, far too fast in my opinion.
“You won’t find what you’re looking for up there.”
I whirled around. Abby stood on the front porch, also staring at the stars.
“You know what must be done, Forrest.”
“I can’t be hesitant to go through with it?” I asked. “Knowing what’s going to happen?”
“No one knows for certain what will or won’t be.”
“But Sabella’s visions, the riddle and the damned prophecy.”
“They can all be changed,” she said with a shrug. “I never imagined myself being powerless but look at me now. I’m an old woman with no magic, but do you see me running away? Nothing is set in stone. Every seer knows that her visions do not always mean what they appear to at first, just as I know how quickly life can change. These deaths you worry about, they may never come to pass.”
“Or they will, and this will be solidifying our futures, or at least Mori’s future.”
“One life cannot be more important than the realms,” she told me sadly. “No matter how much we love that one person. Mori’s accepted this, and it’s time you did, too.”
I didn’t want to agree with her, but she was right. I was a king, and my people came first. Mori and I were meant to be together, and I wanted more than anything to believe our relationship would have lasted more than just these few weeks we’d had together. That we would spend centuries together, grow old together, maybe even start a family one day. I smiled sadly, wondering if any of that would come to pass or if this was it.
“War is never easy on anyone,” she mused. “It takes so much from all involved. Sometimes it feels as though we cannot lose any more or we’ll break, fall apart completely. Never find the will to get back up and fight, but fight on we must.”
If I’d been facing these odds without Mori by my side, I would not feel as determined as I was at this moment to find a way to stop Baladon and to save her life. To live until the end of this war so we could be with one another. She gave me the strength I needed to finally accept what the logical next step had to be.
I thanked Abby for her words then walked past her toward the door.
“And where are you going?” she asked with a crooked grin.
“To make a plan to kill a god,” I told her. “And plan a wedding.”
For two straight days, I locked myself away with Craig, Tristan, and the other leaders of our small army. We finetuned our options for attacking Baladon once we returned to the realms. Before disappearing with them into one of the many added rooms to the house, I set Kate and Sabella the task of getting the house—as well as Mori—ready for a wedding. They’d both nodded enthusiastically and set to work to see to all the details.
By the end of the second day, our plan was sound, though none of us were ready to assume we could pull it off, having no idea if the orb would work and get us back to the realms, and what we’d even be walking into. The base idea was to get Baladon separated from his army of minions, and while our army took them on, the six of us would attack the god of monsters, using whatever means necessary to kill him. It was basic, as far as plans went, but it was all we had.
We had a stash of weapons and potions that could cause some serious damage, a few that—with any luck—would render Baladon powerless for vital seconds, give us some advantage.
“I’m calling it a night,” Tristan announced, rolling up the only map of the realms we had.
“I think we need to go through a few more scenarios,” I said, not ready to turn in yet. “I want to make a run at getting into Mori’s realm and making a base there. We might be able to seal it off, keep Baladon unaware that we even made it back.”
“We can worry about that later, but tonight, we have something more important to celebrate.” Craig walked over to the far wall and picked up a crate with bottles that clinked as he carried it. “It’s your last night before becoming one of us.”
“Part of the worried husband club?” I laughed. “I guess it is.”
“And don’t worry, the girls are taking good care of Mori tonight, too because you two are not staying in the same room.”
“You’re getting hitched tomorrow.” Tristan and Craig passed around bottles of ale until everyone had one and we lifted them in a toast. “To another one of us finding his soulmate. May you two be forever happy.”
I clinked my ale against theirs and drank half of it down. There was truly nothing left to figure out. Nothing left to plan for. All that remained now was fulfilling the prophecy and facing down Baladon. I finished my first ale and drank a second, sensing nothing but happiness coming from Mori somewhere else in the house.
After an hour or so, when Keanu and Bear broke out into song, I snuck from the room and went in search of my wife to be. Butterflies flooded my stomach as I snuck through the house, smiling to myself at what was going to happen tomorrow. I was beyond thrilled, and though I knew the guys would track me down at some point, in order to keep us apart tonight, I had to see her. For two days, I’d been distant, and I expected her to be upset. But instead, she’d spent her time with Abby and the other witches, working on plans of their own. She understood my need to think and come to grips with what we were all about to do, and that just made me love her even more.
I covered the whole first floor and was about to start climbing the stairs to the second when I came face to face with Mori. She beamed at me and threw herself right into my arms. I caught her easily, kissing her soundly as she giggled.
“I take it you’re having a good time?” I asked, admiring the fake tiara and bright pink veil and sash someone had thrown on her. “What is all of this?”
“According to Kate, it’s what normal women do the night before they get married.” She laughed as she removed the veil and sash, tossing them over the railing. “Do I get to know what you all have been planning for the last two days?”
“Just getting everyone as prepped as we can be,” I told her. “Can’t make anything definite until we return and right now… right now I don’t even want to think about it.”
“Good. Me either,” she murmured, then kissed me again.
I turned so she was pressed against the wall, running my hands through her loose, black hair, and wondering if we could just move up the wedding to tonight. But in the back of my mind, I didn’t want to ruin these last few war-free moments. I held her waist fir
mly as she pulled me even closer to her, kissing me as if this was our last time together. For the night, it would be, and I prayed to whatever gods might still be listening that we would make it through this alive.
“I want you to know,” she whispered, “no matter what happens next you are the best thing that’s ever been in my life.”
“And I would be lost if I hadn’t found you that day,” I replied. “I’d have no purpose.”
“You’re a king, you’ll always have a purpose.”
“And you, love, are about to become a queen. Are you ready for it?”
She puffed out her cheeks, but smiled as she said, “I’m ready to go and save our people and finish this war once and for all.”
A sudden need to hold onto her forever struck me, and we kissed again, more frantic than before. I was considering sneaking off to a quieter, less out in the open part of the house when I heard squeals of laughter sound from the top of the stairs.
“There you are,” Kate announced as she bounded toward us. “Alright, that’s it, the party’s over. You can see her tomorrow.” She shooed at me until I let Mori slip from my arms and be pulled away. “Good night, Forrest.”
I shook my head, but as I turned to head back to the other chamber, Craig and Tristan had apparently finally noticed I’d gone missing and had come to collect me.
“I told you he snuck out,” Craig said loudly. “Come on, there’s more ale to drink.”
“And more songs to be sung, sadly,” Tristan muttered, digging his finger into his ear and wiggling it. “Someone should tell them they can’t carry a tune.”
“Good luck with that,” I replied and let them pull me away.
I shot off the couch with a snarl, glaring into the darkness of the living room I’d crashed in for the night. Snoring echoed around me from the others—all passed out. None of them woke as I climbed off the couch, stretching and grumbling about sore muscles from sleeping in such an awkward position. But the aches hadn’t been what woke me.
Mori.
I’d been with her somewhere in Gregornath. There’d been a crown on her head, and she’d been smiling in the sunshine, but then everything changed. Darkness rolled across the land and swept her up in its grasp. I’d raced after her, trying to save her, but Baladon was there. He made me watch as he slowly killed her then approached to kill me.
I wiped a hand down my tired face, looking at my reflection in the bathroom mirror. The cold water did little to help soothe my racing pulse, and I walked silently through the house, heading upstairs, searching for Mori. I had to see her, make sure she was truly alive. I checked our room first, but it was empty, and went on to Sabella’s and Kate’s next.
I found the three of them in Kate’s, all sound asleep on the floor with blankets and a whole lot of pillows. Mori was near the window, awash in pure moonlight. Her chest rose and fell, and I sighed in relief, backing out of the room and shut the door quietly behind me.
It was only a nightmare, but any day now, that nightmare would become real. There was no time to back out of our plans now. If Baladon came for her, I would die fighting to keep her alive.
10
Mori
I couldn’t stop fidgeting with my bouquet, and Kate finally reached over and just took it from me. “Thanks.”
“Welcome. It might be a thrown together ceremony, but you’re not going to walk downstairs with nothing, but thorny stems in your hands,” she remarked with a warm smile. “You can’t tell me you’re actually nervous.”
“I am,” I said, my laughter shaky.
Finally, Forrest had given into reason, and we were binding ourselves to one another. The small army we gathered was as prepared as they could be and though we had a theory on how to destroy Baladon, we wouldn’t know if it was viable until we actually faced him down. We would wed today. Tomorrow we would work on repairing the orb with renewed hope and cross our fingers it would work well enough to get us all back home.
I should’ve been thrilled, but my gut had been in knots since I woke up this morning. I half-expected to be attacked during the night if word got out what we were doing, for Baladon to send another of his personal guard after me, but nothing. The house had been silent. I’d wanted to stay with Forrest last night, but our friends had kept us apart in true mortal tradition. Or so they told me.
The house was already filled with our small army, but the atmosphere was so different now. There was a cheer going up every now and then as music was played and food and drinks were passed around. Everything about this day should have made me excited beyond reason.
So why did my knees feel locked in place at the notion of going downstairs?
“Nothing’s going to happen today,” Sabella promised.
“You don’t know that. None of us do,” I admitted quietly. “Baladon, he knows everything we know.”
“But he’s not here yet, remember? Just his arm which we’ve already burned,” she added as an afterthought. “We have time. This, what you and Forrest are doing right now? This is the last piece to the puzzle.” She hugged me close as she whispered, “That asshole would be a fool to think he could stop this ceremony from happening.”
I didn’t agree. Baladon was stronger now that he had the realms to himself, leeching all the power he could from them. Even more, since he attacked the witches and sorcerers. It was luck Abby managed to close off the portal before the last of what she had was stolen away. There’d been no one in his way. We’d all been walking on pins and needles, waiting for when he finally made his move since we tried to spy on the realms.
It was coming, I felt it like a nightmare creeping in, and the tiny pep talk did nothing to console me now. The final battle would be here before we knew it, and though I did my best to stay positive, my heart told me we were far from ready. Our army was not ready.
The orb, the orb wasn’t even fixed yet.
We could put on brave faces all day long and give speeches, but the truth was, if Baladon attacked us now, I feared we were dead. All of us dead, and Sabella’s vision would come true.
The voices on the first floor quieted, allowing soft string music to flow upstairs and reach us.
“I think that’s our cue.” Kate handed back the small bouquet of roses she’d cut for me that morning. “Don’t fall down the stairs.”
“Thanks, really helpful,” I replied and watched as she and Sabella proceeded down the steps.
As Sabella’s red hair disappeared around the corner, I started down myself.
The ceremony was taking place outside in the garden, but there were so many people here, they’d started lining up inside. I was greeted with happy smiles and several hugs on my way down the makeshift aisle through Lucy’s home. Briefly, I wondered if she ever expected to have a wedding here and whether or not she’d be disappointed it was mine and not Kate’s.
Then, I was at the doorway leading into the garden, and my feet came to a sudden halt.
Forrest stood near the greenhouse, and the moment our eyes locked, his shoulders stiffened, and he lowered his head, wiping at his eyes quickly.
Craig patted him on the shoulder.
Tears burned in my own eyes. We’d waited far too many lifetimes for this moment to finally happen. I started moving again, and before I knew it, I stood across from him, with Harold between us, beaming with happiness.
“Breathe,” Forrest whispered as he took my hand.
“Working on it,” I replied.
“You’re trembling.”
“It’s good trembling, promise.” I wanted to hurry up and get it over with, as much as I wished the moment would never end.
Harold held up his right hand and the crowd that gathered outside silenced. “Today, we are here bind together two souls whose love has brought them far in this life. And will yet take them further. Mori and Forrest, with this cord, you will become one, now and until the end of time.” He wrapped a silver cord around our hands and tied a simple knot at the top. He held our hands in his. “I ask fo
r the blessings of the gods and all the realms and races, and those gathered here today, to sanctify this union and make it whole.”
The cord warmed against my skin as it gave off a faint glow, surprising me. It appeared there was a little magic left in us after all.
“Now then, Mori, if you would speak your intentions?” Harold asked.
“Right.” I smiled as Forrest nodded at me with a grin of his own. “Well, what more is there to say aside from, you saved my life more than once. You are my strength where I am weak. My compass when I’m going off course, and I have loved you for more years than I can count. You and I, we’re meant to be together, and I will forever stay by your side, from now, until the end of our days.”
I didn’t say anything about how limited those days might be, but I knew he sensed the unspoken words from the way his smile faltered just a hint.
“And Forrest? Your turn.”
He cleared his throat roughly. “I dreamt of you for many nights before I met you. A star shining in the heavens. You called to me. I cannot imagine my life without you in it now. You are my light, even in the darkest of times. I love you more than words could ever describe, and I will be your rock, your protection, and by your side through whatever life throws our way. I will be here, Mori, for you, forever. I swear it upon my life.”
I sniffed hard, wiping more tears. Even Harold had to take a moment to use his handkerchief before he was able to continue.
“Now then, on this day you are made one being, one soul. May your souls be bound together forever by your love and give you the strength you need to carry on.” He closed his hands around ours again, and this time, the cord glowed brighter, then it turned into tattoos, marking our skin for all time.
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