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End of the world? Did someone forget to tell me something?
Chapter16
Fenris
Fenris’s Private Villa
Isla Lobo, Panama
I bid Keziah goodbye and hung up the phone, trying to quash my lingering irritation. It wasn’t the pack alpha’s fault for confirming that she’d be present at the Order of the Stars meeting tomorrow in Florida—quite the contrary, really—but the timing had been foul.
I wrinkled my nose and stared down at the phone’s blank screen. I didn’t want to get ready, but I knew we’d have to depart in a few hours. It was imperative I get to the meeting place early to inspect the area; I couldn’t allow it to be attacked. Faulkner may have been dispatched, yet the chaos he’d caused in the past several weeks was alarming. Someone couldn’t pick up where he’d left off.
Not for the first time, I wished I could shed my responsibilities. If I were just a normal shifter, none of these tasks would matter to me. But I wasn’t one, and it was a waste of my time to consider anything else.
I pocketed my phone and rubbed my face, trying to quiet my wolf before exiting the library. Leaving Celesteagainwas the last thing I wanted, but this needed to be done—and she needed to use every moment she could to train. I wouldn’t interrupt her learning process just because I was antsy.
Pushing myself out of the chair, I decided to head upstairs, but when I got to my room, I found it empty.Odd.I frowned and stepped back into the hall to sniff at the air. Celeste was certainly up here, but…I paced over to the guest room Celeste was staying in and opened the door.
There was a dark expression on her face when she stopped packing and looked up at me. I wanted little more than to kiss her until that frown disappeared, but I suspected she wouldn’t appreciate it after the previous interruption.
“What’s wrong?” I asked instead, letting myself all the way into the room.
Celeste didn’t speak until I closed the door behind me. “What do you expect to happen at the solar eclipse?” she asked, turning to face me. She folded her arms over her chest and looked small. “Not what’s supposed to happen. What do you think willactuallyhappen?”
“We’ve discussed this. While I don’t know the explicit details, we will perform a ritual—well, mostly you will, though I will be present—and our life forces will be bound. We will be—”
“No, that’s whatsupposedto happen,” Celeste said, cutting me off. She made a face. “But now this Solar Sovereign person is around, right? You think they’re awake.”
“I’m certain of it,” I replied, unable to temper the growl in my voice.
“Then what happens if this person attacks us during the eclipse? What do we do? What if we can’t complete the ritual because they’re intervening? Even if they don’t kill us, they could still distract us for just long enough, right? The total eclipse doesn’t exactly last forever.” She swallowed hard. “Or what if they actuallydefeatyou? You said…” She trailed off, breaking eye contact.
I hated to see mykhuyalike this. After everything that had happened, though, I knew platitudes wouldn’t cut it. Celeste needed to know the whole truth. Memories of Antarctica plagued me, but it was a lesson I wouldn’t waste. I wouldn’t throw Celeste into the eclipse underprepared, or worse, let her panic and end up getting hurt.
“The total eclipse over the moon temple,” I sighed, watching her face, “is the only time the Lunar Lord is completely stripped of his power. Even the Handmaidens can’t restore it then, full coven or not. During that brief period when the moon blocks the sun, I will be weak. Vulnerable. If I am killed, I will not be reborn.”
Celeste’s face turned even paler.
“In the past, the Lunar Lord’s enemies have often struck during that period. As it only happens once every four hundred years, this is my first time experiencing it as Lunar Lord. Since the Solar Sovereign is back, I expect they’ll attempt to kill me. It’s no coincidence they’ve decided to step out of the shadowsnow, so close to the eclipse.”
“And what does it mean for them to attack you?” Celeste asked quietly.
“They’ll target us,” I said evenly. “They’ll bring whatever allies they’ve gathered because this is all-or-nothing. If they don’t kill me, then they’ll have to wait another four hundred years. They will bringeverything, and they’ll not just attack us but our loved ones. In the past, they would attack the entire Celestial Pack. Anything to distract the Lunar Lord or his mate from the task they need to complete. That is why we need to gatherourallies, because otherwise, the paranormal world could experience a seismic split.”
Celeste didn’t say anything, but I could feel her acute spike of fear. My wolf, who’d normally gobble up such an intense emotion, recoiled and whined, upset that his mate was afraid.
I strode over, no longer able to stop myself, and wrapped my arms around her, holding her close. “It’ll be okay,” I said.
“How on earth is it going to be okay?!” Celeste argued, pushing weakly against my chest. “You just told me we’d probably be facing magicalwarfare. And not just that, but against some being who is your only rival in power. We don’t even know who or what that being is because they’ve been hiding. If wefail, we’ll die. Our loved ones will be tortured, or worse.”
“Celeste.”
She kept going. “I’mthe one responsible for whether or not we make it out of the solar eclipse! If I fail, it doesn’t matter—you’re stuck with your curse, and…and I feel like your life is in my hands, Fenris, and I don’t know …” She cut herself off with a harsh breath.
I squeezed her tighter. “You won’t be alone,” I said fiercely. “And I’ll protect you. Our allies will protectus. That’s why we’re gathering them.”
“What happens if we fail? What happens if the Solar Sovereign wins? Do they become cursed?”
