She froze when a resonantcrackechoed. There was something terrifying and final about that sound. It pulsed through her, making her tremble.
And then, the scent of her mother’s magic disappeared entirely. She couldn’t track it. There was no trace of it at all.
Horror pooled in her gut.No, no, no…
“Prue,look!” Mona cried from a few paces behind her.
Prue followed Mona’s gaze and squinted toward the sky. They were now far enough away from the ghosts to make out slices of pale blue sky, barely visible through the mist. And for a brief moment, Prue caught sight of some kind of creature flying through the air.
No, not flying.Falling.
Prue staggered back a few steps, trying to keep the figure in her sights. It pierced through the mist, careening toward them.
“Mona, get ready!” Prue shouted, spreading her arms and conjuring her magic. A canopy of leaves formed above them, creating a net to catch the figure.
Together, they backed up several steps. Then several more. The figure was racing toward them at breakneck speed, and Prue feared they wouldn’t catch it.
A heavy weight crashed into the leaves. Prue grunted,pain flaring up her arms as she struggled to keep the net upright. Beside her, Mona groaned, sinking to one knee from the force of it.
When the figure went still, they carefully lowered the bed of leaves to the ground and rushed forward. Prue’s heart tripped over itself at the sight of hermotherlying in a crumpled heap. Her arms jutted out at odd angles, and there was something horribly wrong with her spine. It was…
“Goddess no,” Mona breathed, her eyes filling with tears. “Her spine is broken.”
Prue’s heart stopped for a full beat.
No.
No.
Gaia wasn’t dead. The Mother of Earth wasnot dead.She was too powerful for that.
This couldn’t be happening.
“Mona,” Prue said, her voice strangled. Goddess, she was truly going to be sick now. She shook her head, struggling to hold on to a semblance of her sanity.
Gaia wasn’t dead. If she was, Prue would break, and she wouldn’t come back from it. She could not survive another loss. Shecouldn’t.
Swallowing down her despair, she hurried to Gaia’s side, pressing her fingers into her mother’s cool flesh.
It wastoocold. Not the warm softness of someone living.
Prue sucked in sharp, wheezing breaths. She couldn’t get enoughair.Goddess, she was going to die here, right alongside her mother.
Except…
“Mona,” Prue said sharply. “Help me.”
“Prue—” Mona choked on a sob.
“Get over here and help me!” Prue shouted.
Mona stumbled forward, sniffing. She wiped her nose, her breath shuddering.
“We can bring her back,” Prue said.
“Prue, she’s gone,” Mona whispered.
“I know that!” Prue snapped. “But we canbring her back.This—This isn’t over. I sensed her magic just moments ago. It can’t have left her body yet.”
