Page 42 of The Final Battle

“I think that’s the right call, my heart, it doesn’t feed your need for justice, but save that righteous anger for the right time it will have all the more power in it,“ I said, unsure if anything I was saying helped at all.

Cassarah reached out and took my hand, giving it a squeeze before she headed towards Jade to tell him the change in plans. I had to hand it to the man, he could keep his thoughts off his face, but I knew he was pleased she wasn’t going to follow through on her order. Without further ado we mounted our dragons, allowed Jade to cloak us, and headed off into the night. Vasin didn’t set a daunting pace for the dragons like he did on the way here, but they still flew with a sense of urgency. When we made it back to Creisal the sun was low, creating a bright orange glow behind the mountains. This should give us time to catch a few hours of sleep before we had to have lunch with the king.

Chapter twenty-four

Cassarah

The moment I entered my room Cole snapped awake from where he’d been sleeping in a chair by the balcony door. “Everything alright?“ he asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

I didn’t have the energy to answer him and just shook my head, walking past him to the bathing chamber. I wanted to wash the stench of death off my skin before crawling into bed. Jade and Zan followed me, needing to wash up as well. The thought of them dealing with the dead bodies of my parents made me sick to my stomach, but I was glad they asked me to leave so they could handle the situation without putting more nightmares in my brain.

The three of us cleaned up silently, lost in our own thoughts as we scrubbed. I could see bubbles tinged with pink from the blood of those who were killed in my childhood home float by me. Before I lost control over my emotions for the umpteenth time tonight, I steeled myself, closing my mind off, disconnecting from the reality of what I’d witnessed. Right now, all I wanted was to sleep and be surrounded by the family that I still had living and breathing all around me.

My hair—still damp, and only clothed in my bathing robe, I numbly walked to my bedroom. All my men and the girls stood there, watching me with apprehension. I needed to say something to them but I didn’t have the energy to explain it all so I settled for simple and to the point.

“Everyone in the house was killed, there were no survivors.“ I announced my voice cracked as I spoke. Looking at them standing there, alive and breathing, seemed to crack the shield I’d put up and my bottom lip started to quiver no matter how I tried to get it to stop. “As of now, I am without any blood relations. What family I have now consists of the ten of you.“

The air in the room seemed to have been sucked out at my words. Each of my men had lost one or both of their parents recently. Their father’s deaths, having been the result of my guardians protecting me, killed them with their own hands. These people before me had given up so much for the sake of our people and this kingdom I now ruled. It appeared, it was now my turn to have lost something valuable to this battle.

Cole walked up to me, wrapped his arms around my shoulders, holding me tightly to his chest. I could hear the steady beating of his heart, reminding me that he was still alive. I hadn’t lost everything tonight, as much as the Lost King would like me to believe that. Zan had been right, I needed to take this pain, anger, and revenge, using it to bring him to ruin.

Tears dampened Cole’s shirt, but he didn’t seem to care. Instead, he scooped me up and walked over to the bed. “Come on, little mouse, let’s get you into bed. Sleep will help to make things more manageable.“ Izel was already pulling back the sheets as Cole spoke, laying me down in the middle of the large bed.

“Will you all stay?“ I asked, grabbing Cole’s wrist since he was closest. “I don’t want to be alone right now.“

“Little mouse, if that is what we can do for you right now, then of course we will stay. Did you want the girls to get in on this snuggle pile as well?“ Cole questioned looking over at May and Becka.

I turned my head looking at how tired they both looked. “With all of them here, I think I’ll be safe enough. Go get some sleep so someone is fit enough to see an attack coming.“

Becka walked over, crawled on the bed, wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed my cheek. “I love you, Cassarah. You and I have been through hell once, we can survive this, you are and always will be a sister to me. While your parents and I had an odd relationship, I will mourn their passing along with you, especially your father. He always seemed like an uncle to me in an odd way. I pray the fates will grant you peaceful dreams, my dear sweet sister.“

After saying her peace, Becka left with May, the stalwart warrior woman, wrapping her friend in a side hug as they left the room.

Cole wrapped himself around my back as Izel pulled me against his chest letting my ear rest over his heart. “Little warrior, do you want me to help you sleep?“

Izel had once before used his Birthright to block out the pain as they tended to my wounds. He could influence a person’s mind but not in the same way Henry could. Izel didn’t take over your mind, instead it was almost like he could pull you into a dream-like state, where he convinced your brain it was somewhere else.

“Please, I don’t want it to play in my dreams over and over again, like I know it will.“ I mumbled, my hand fisting the fabric of his shirt. “They brutalized him, Izel. There was something they wanted from my father and he wasn’t willing to give it up without a fight. We still don’t know if he gave up his secret or not, let alone what it could be.“

“Shh, little mouse,“ Cole soothed, running his hand through my hair. “Let Izel help you rest and you can tell us later if you feel up to it. Jade and Zan can fill us in too, you don’t have to be the one to share it all, if you don’t want to.“

Nodding, I buried my face in Izel’s chest, pulling the blanket they wrapped me in up under my chin.

“Where do you want to go, little warrior?“ Izel asked, his soft voice already pulling me under his spell. “Tell me and you will be off on your adventure, forgetting all about today.“

“Somewhere across the sea, I want to explore what else might be out there,“ I shared. “Being here is only filled with sadness.“

“Then off across the sea you will go,“ Izel whispered, pressing a soft kiss to my forehead.

The second I closed my eyes, I was on Vasin’s back flying across the open water. It stretched out as far as I could see, our images reflecting back at us off the glassy surface. The others were with me as well. All ten of them spread out joining me on this journey. There was only the sense of peace as the wind blew ruffling my hair as Vasin lowered enough to skim the water with his claws, sending up a spray that ignited the sight of a rainbow.

“One day, my dear Cass, this will be the life we get to live, that is a vow I make to you.“

I could feel Vasin’s consciousness retreating from this dream, but I clung to his words like a lifeline. Once this was over the world would be different—it would be free, and so would we.

“Cassy-Bear,“ Dayson’s voice rumbled along my back. “It’s time for you to get up.“

With a groan, I turned to curl up against him hiding in his bulk, refusing to face the world yet.