Page 171 of The Gods Order

A silent second passes as he studies her like he’s weighing every version of what those two words can mean. He finally decides against saying anything. He gives her a tender smile.

Then…he disappears.

Her fingers flex at her sides as she stares at where he was just standing, then at the sky, followed by the dirt at her feet. It’s as if she’s waiting to see whether the ground is going to split open beneath us.

“It’s time, little goddess,” Kyzen says.

She ducks her head for a fleeting second, then steps back beside Yemi.

“Right. Yemi, you ready?”

“Yeah,” she breathes.

“Everyone else?” Thayla asks.

An echoing of yeses responds to her.

“V? Sense anything?”

“Nope. You girls are doing perfect. Now, hold steady and don’t release that grip.”

The power coating me intensifies and Thayla clenches her fists.

“Drop and go, V. I’m not kidding.”

“Yes, yes, I know. Everyone, prepare yourselves,” he says. “Three, two…one.”

The sight of Thayla is stolen from me as his power swarms us.

It lasts no longer than a couple of seconds and I wish it had lasted a few moments longer.

My throat tightens and my soul swells as my father’s house comes into view. The tainted air engulfs my senses and my power stirs through my blood.

I put a furious leash around it as V reluctantly starshoots away again, taking his comforting power with him.

On both sides of me, my brothers flinch.

No matter how much we prepared for this, you can’t truly prepare yourself for how you’ll feel gazing at your childhood prison for the first time in twenty years.

The massive black, gray, and white layered stone monstrosity branches out to the left and to the right. The spires reaching from the towers in the corners seem shaper than ever. The three distinct entrances to each wing are surrounded by gardens too beautiful for such a place.

Appearance-wise, nothing has changed. Yet everything has.

Dark essence floats atop the ground that was never visible before.

Countless Dark Gods and Oblirians mull around the space, but they’re none the wiser that we’re here. Their lack of attention to us has my soul relaxing a fraction in my chest.

“Shit,” Thayla and Yemi breathe.

“What’s wrong?” Amicks asks.

They glance at each other rather than answer him immediately.

“You feel what I feel?” Thayla asks. “That pull?”

“Yeah,” Yemi says, nodding. “It’s much stronger than I thought it was going to be.”

“What’s going on?” Amick asks with less patience in his tone.