The monsters are gone.
Cheyun falls gracefully to her ass, her twin blades still gripped in her hands, and Jihun plants his long sword in the ground to prop himself up.
I weave on my feet, and Ethan appears at my side. He wraps an arm around my waist, and I press a grateful kiss on his cheek.
He smiles down at me, then cranes his neck to check on our friends. “Is everyone okay?”
“Defineokay,” Taeyoung says, limping toward us. He didn’t have a weapon for me to juice up, but he battled brilliantly with his nerdy magic.
“Don’t be a baby.” Bora elbows him gently in the side. “You’ll be fine.”
The Queen of Sky floats down from above, lightning retreating into her fingertips. “I could use a moment to catch my breath, but I am otherwise unharmed.”
“Please forgive me, Your Majesty,” Minju says, “but we might not have a mo—”
An enormous dark hand rips past the barrier to the Kingdom of Sky and grabs the historian, cutting off her words. The fist of darkness tightens around her, and she screams in pain.
“Minju!” Jaeseok races toward her.
Her eyes flare red and silver, drawing on the magic of both her life sources, and her lips move with a silent incantation. Her small body burns with silver-and-red fire, and she raises her dagger and brings it down on a dark finger. The hand twitches and drops her, and Jaeseok catches her in the air.
I fly over the hand of the Amheuk and strike its wrist with the Shin’gwangdo. I hear a keening scream from beyond the kingdom, and the darkness swallows my sword and creeps up my arms.
Ethan leaps from the ground and slashes his axes across the black hand. The darkness suddenly releases me, and I’m flung into the air. He doesn’t reach me in time to catch me, but he maneuvers himself beneath me and takes the brunt of the impact.
His skull hits the ground with a crack, and his body goes limp. I scramble off him and cup his face in my hands. The fall knocked him unconscious, but hisgipulses with power and strength.
I raise my head as a shadow passes over us. The hand of darkness mends itself and rises to the sky. Then it falls to the ground so swiftly that I only have time to flinch.
Jaeseok’s scream of anguish rends the air.
“No, no, no,” I breathe. Ethan moans next to me, his eyelids flickering. “You’ll be okay, Ethan. Let me check on Minju. I’ll be right back.”
I push up to my hands and knees, but my legs give out when I try to stand. I have to get to Minju. Gritting my teeth, I stagger to a stand and run toward her. When I get closer, I see her lying limply in Jaeseok’s arms as he rocks her back and forth.
No. Please, no.
“Minju.” I stumble the last few feet and fall at her side. “Please open your eyes.”
To my utter relief, her eyes flutter open, but her gaze is faraway. And when she speaks, her voice is faint as a soft breeze. “I need ...”
“What is it? What do you need?” I swallow my sob. She’ll be okay. There’s no reason to cry. “Anything, Minju. I’ll do anything.”
“I need to tell you ... The true heart of the r-righteous ...” She finally looks at me. “Sunny, the prophecy ... You have it all ...”
“I don’t care about the prophecy.” I angrily swipe a hand over my eyes.Don’t fucking cry.She will be okay. “Just tell me how to help you.”
“You have it all wrong ...” she breathes.
“Don’t talk, my love.” Jaeseok tenderly smooths her hair off her forehead. “Save your strength.”
“You’re so handsome and kind. And terribly funny.” She cups his cheek with a shaky hand and smiles up at him. “Did I ever tell you that, Jaeseok?”
“You haven’t, as a matter of fact,” he says, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “Now you have to tell me that every day to make up for lost time. And don’t forget about what a great dancer I am.”
“I love you, Jaeseok.” A single tear rolls down her temple. “I will find you in the next life.”
“No. Please, Minju,” he cries, anguish twisting his face. “I love you so much.”
