They are mine to keep, and I will not let them fall. I won’t let them drown.
The Dark Realm shatters, and the Earth Realm pierces through with bright shocking warmth.
“He’s fading!” Kacey’s voice, sharp with urgency, makes me turn to her. “He doesn’t know anything about Raelynn. This is your last chance to speak, Prospero.”
“Lord…” Prospero’s dimmed gaze seeks out Ezekial. “Forgive me…”
Ezekial’s darkness swells again, thick with unbridled rage.
My gaze darts between the dying man and him. “Ezekial, let him pass peacefully.”
“He stole you from us,” he snarls, but when he turns to me, his fury falters.
“No.” I step closer, placing my fingers on his chest. Even with the chest plate, he shudders. “He saved you,” I whisper, he looks away. “He saved all of you, and me. He was a loyal friend until the very end. You’re too infected with rage to see the truth.”
My darkness curls up, grips his jaw, forcing him to meet my gaze. “Give him this,” I murmur. “Let him pass honourably.”
My eyes flick between each of his, light and dark, urging him to listen. His brow softens, his gaze lightens.
I nod gently, encouragingly, before turning back to Prospero. His fading gaze is fixed on Ezekial, and even in death, I feel him, see him. Eyes full of regret, haunted by a lifetime of duty and all the mistakes stitched through it.
“Thank you, Prospero,” Ezekial’s voice is soft, because the words are only meant for the two of them. When he speaks again, the words are louder, filled with decree. “You are forgiven, Lord Prospero Verinent. Your loyalty and service will not be forgotten. May you finally find rest in the realms beyond, my Lord, my Council member, my friend.”
Prospero’s lips pull, trying to form a smile. “An honour… my lord,” he rasps. “My friend.” His closing eyes sweep to mine. “Look after them… for me…”
Tears stream down my face, his emotions so vibrant in his final stages.
His fear and regret are so intense I… I rush towards him before the others can stop me.
I grip his cold hand in mine. “I will.” I swear it with every fibre of my being. Darkness, light, flesh and bone.
Then I whisper an ancient phrase, long forgotten by me, almost a lullaby. His dying gaze widens, lips parting, as the fear slowly leaves him.
His hand drops.
He’s still.
Kacey stumbles back, but Amon is already there, sweeping her into his arms. His voice a low rumble in her ear as her eyes close.
I stare down at the dead man, heart aching, cheeks wet. How I wish I could have known him, thanked him, eased away the pain of his final days.
I exhale slowly, swiping at my face as I turn to find the others—my bonded. But they aren’t looking at me, they’re staring at the dead man whose hand I’d just held.
Amon breaks the silence. “We will remain here. My bonded needs to rest, and I vowed to care for her sister.” His eyes stay fixed on Kacey, whose exhaustion has dragged her into sleep.
The awe in his expression is unmistakable. There’s concern but also wonder, and something deeper. Soul deep.
As Amon steps out of the large cage which once held his dragon form, with the girl who once begged me for my help to feed said dragon, I follow. Without a word, my bonds fall in step behind.
Kacey once told me she often slept overnight in the atrium, and it isn’t long before we’re stepping into her makeshift bedroom holding two single cots nestled between hanging plants and shafts of gentle light. One of them holds the girl I thought I’d never see again.
Raelynn. That’s her name.
In the cells, I simply called her ‘doll’, because that’s what she looked like. Small, fragile. Just like now.
I study her sleeping form, noting the marks across her throat that Kacey hasn’t yet healed. They’re deeper than mine ever were, more scar than skin. And yet... she looks peaceful. It’s strange, seeing her like this, so still and untouched by fear.
I expand the calm. Let the soothing safety curl out from me and wrap around her until it’s all she can feel. Her body relaxes more, and her breaths deepen.
