We stayed like that for a long time, out in the greenhouse, holding onto each other tightly.
The second we left this greenhouse, we would be faced with the harsh reality of what would be needed to kill Baladon once and for all. To end the darkness and save the realms. If Mori was going to die in the end, then I was going down with her. I would not face this world without her. We lost our chance to be together once because of evil sweeping over the lands.
I’d be damned if I let it keep us apart a second time.
I glanced skyward, admiring the stars and full moon through the glass roof of the greenhouse, wondering what our chances were of having the gods return to their full strength in time to assist us. I asked Mori, and she stiffened in my arms.
“What?”
“Thorne left me with one final message from the gods before he sent me back to you,” she said quietly. “A message for even the gods themselves.”
“And?” I asked, not liking the sorrow filling her eyes.
“The era of the gods is coming to an end. They will not be able to help us, not anymore.”
My arms tightened around her more, fearing she would suddenly disappear with the rest of them. “They’re leaving us with this mess?”
“So many are dead and wounded, they’re weak. Their time in the realms is over.”
“And we’re truly on our own then,” I sighed. “Can this day get any worse?”
She exhaled, hugging me to her. No stars shown in her hair or her eyes, and I was about to tell her she should try and lay down and sleep when a scream came from inside the house. We ran inside in time to see Craig disappear into the sitting room and Kate thundering downstairs to join us. Tristan was on the floor holding Sabella in his arms. Her eyes were glassed over, and she was muttering incoherently.
“What happened?” Kate asked, sinking down beside them and took Sabella’s other hand.
“We were sleeping and then she just screamed,” Tristan replied worriedly. “Come on, Red. Snap out of it!”
But she continued on, muttering louder, then screamed again, making all of us jump. Tristan held onto her firmly, whispering in her ear. Mori knelt on her other side and reached out, resting her palm on Sabella’s forehead just as I’d seen Ashan do back in Silver Valley. Her eyes closed, and her head fell back as she gasped.
“Mori?”
But Mori didn’t answer and a few seconds later was thrown back as Sabella shot upright. She gasped for air and Tristan was asking her questions, making sure she knew who she was.
“What did you see?” I asked Mori as I helped her back to her feet. But it wasn’t she who answered.
“The end,” Sabella breathed. “The end of everything.”
“What?” Kate asked. “No, it can’t be.”
“I saw it, the realms… they were burning and we… we failed.”
“Not yet we haven’t,” Mori said, and I squeezed her hand in support. “We fight until the end, no matter what that end is.”
“Agreed,” Kate said, and Craig nodded along with her.
Tristan and Sabella exchanged a look that said so much before they bobbed their heads, too.
“Right then, let’s figure out how to kill a god and end this war.”
No gods, no real magic, and a broken orb. Baladon had the upper hand, but we weren’t going to stop. That was going to be his biggest mistake, letting us get away. Because now we weren’t going down unless we took him down with us. Here’s to the end of the world then, was what I thought to myself.
It was going to be one hell of a ride.
I hope you enjoyed Stars! I can’t wait to bring you the next book in this series!
Realms!
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Copyright © 2018 by Kit Bladegrave
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Stars (Dragon Reign Book 8) Page 16