Something warm dripped onto my cheeks. They were tears. “Yes, I saw a number of possible futures and they all ended with the destruction of our world.” I grasped his arms, allowing him to draw me against his hard chest. “But there was the one future where you never gave up on me. The one where you would figure out what needed to be done. Unify all the Orders.”
The terror rushed back to me at having to go through the Reckoning knowing what I would become. The pain I would cause Calan; the destruction that would lay in my wake. But if I didn’t do it, the Stygian would slowly eat away at the walls between our dimensions until they overwhelmed us over time. I did end up sacrificing myself so the Orders could come together against a common enemy and a direct, immediate threat. And Calan led them through it all like I knew he would.
As much as I wanted to rush to tell him would happen in those last few minutes we had together before I had to undergo the Reckoning, I knew it wouldn’t make sense.
If someone had told me that first day I found out I was the Propheros all I would have to endure, I wouldn’t have had the strength to go on. The true light comes from trusting we are in the right place at the right time, no matter how bleak or impossible things seem.
He needed to learn to trust his own strength and instincts and find the way on his own.
I kissed Calan until his breath was my own. I knew he would do it. I had faith in him that he would find the path on his own. Mika was right. We were two wholes, amplifying each other into so much more.
Something slammed into me, almost knocking me to the ground.Krystan. Travis ran and threw his arms around the two of us.
“You’re back,” she hooted. “You should have told me about the dolls. I got rid of them, so there is no excuse to not be a stay the night babysitter. Especially when Travis and I need to take a weekend in the mountains to go bone like any sane parents need to take time to do.” She was babbling and crying at the same time. I hugged her tightly.
Then my mother and father came to me for an embrace.
“Well done, sweetheart,” my mother said into my ear, making my heart swell with pride. I squeezed her tight. She’d woken up. Tears continued to flow as I remembered how I’d locked up her mind to keep her from interfering. But she was here with me now. And if anyone knew the pressure of being the Propheros and trying to choose the right path, it was my mother.
Phillip and Regina hugged each other nearby, watching from nearby. The remaining people in the streets began to sing in the streets together, celebrating their life. We would all bury and mourn the dead soon enough.
I blinked and realized my vision was sharper than it had ever been. I no longer saw people, I could see the energy surrounding them. Calan was surrounded by bright yellow light, my guiding star, while Sophie was surrounded by a playful bright pink aura.
My mom went to kneel by Sophie. “Hello Sophie, can I see Merlin?”
Sophie looked at my mother then down at the bunny. “I can’t keep him, can I?” she asked, starting to tear up.
Diana tucked a strand of Sophie’s hair behind her ear. “No sweetheart. You can’t.”
I swallowed over the lump that formed in my throat. Sophie was just a child who loved her stuffed animal. She’d made her own personal sacrifice too.
Walking up, Astrid regarded the rabbit. “What should we do with it?” Uncertainty and fear crossed her face.
Mika came closer, along with Violetta, leaning against Leonidas for strength. Heelion strode up, he wore a cloak made from I recognized to be skinned demon hides. He’d survived the Stygian somehow, though I saw a sickly green haze surrounding him.
Gatsby hung back. Gatsby’s face hardened but I could see the disappointment and anger he directed at himself for not being able to direct his powers. I wanted to call him over, but I knew he wouldn’t join us. The wound he carried was a slash of bright red to my eyes, and I didn’t have the power to heal it for him. Backing away, Gatsby’s jaw hardened as he flexed it. Then he was gone. I hoped we saw him again, and that he found what he needed to heal.
Calan pulled back, his eyes searching mine. “Did we do it? Did we restore the barrier between our dimensions?”
A soft, dark-skinned hand fell on his shoulder. “I can answer that young man.”
We turned to face the High Priestess. I could now see the remnants of the battle. So many people had died, but the creatures from the Stygian lay in greater numbers.
Following our gaze, the High Priestess said, “Many of the creatures ran off once they knew it was a losing battle.”
I shared a look with Calan in silent agreement. We would spend the rest our days hunting them down. With Krystan and Travis, we would continue to make sure Whack A Ghoul would keep people safe.
“You said you’d know if it worked,” Calan said in earnest, his fingers tightly interlaced with mine.
The older woman breathed in a deep breath, closing her eyes with a serene smile. “Can you feel it Emma?”
Following suit, I took a deep breath, shutting my eyes. There. I could feel it. Something different about the energy of the world. It was like we'd been in a house where all the windows had been open, allowing the elements to sweep through it, wreaking havoc. But now the windows and doors were finally shut up snug and tight.
“It worked,” the High Priestess said, confirming my feelings. “No entity from the Stygian will be crossing over for a long time to come now that the Orders have reunited.”
Her words hit me at the bottom of my stomach before spreading out, warming my limbs. I knew the truth of what she said with the certainty as if it were my own name.
And now I knew to my core it was really done this time. The Stygian was closed. The cost was high, and watching Violetta fall into Leonidas arms where she sobbed, and Mika console her mother, I knew it would take time before we would heal. But we would.
