The whole world thundered as the Emperor's soul departed. The last of his power shattered across the sky, turning the otherwise peaceful day into a storm filled with black lightning. The castle walls trembled. The city became dwarfed in shadow. It seemed the whole world paused as the dark energy burned off and disappeared.
Alie slowly rose. Michael had appeared beside her; she leaned on him as he helped her to her feet. He spoke something into her ear, but the words were unintelligible. A thick fog of grief and sorrow blocked all sound, turning every noise around her into a dull moan.
Michael pulled her away. Away from the emperor's body; away from the grieving commander; away from what she had done. Away from what she had needed to do.
She thought she had understood the cost. After reading so many novels, after spending so many hours lost to the fantastical worlds of fantasy, she thought she had understood what would have to be done. She had walked into the throne room knowing that the emperor would have to die. And by her hand.
The novels hadn't prepared her for this.
She stumbled over her own feet. She couldn't see straight. Her stomach flipped inside out. What had she done? What had she become? Why had she deemed his death so necessary?
Darrel tackled her. She nearly fell over, completely unprepared. He seemed... happy? Was that joy on his face? She couldn't tell anymore, not when the fog had seen fit to shield her vision as well.
A soft touch brushed into her hair. Instantly, the fog began to fade. A sense of peace and joy and hope washed away the guilt and shame. You did well, the butterfly she'd freed from the crystal promised her. It had to be the butterfly. Its magic felt so familiar as it washed across her skin, taking away the remnants of the emperor's power that had managed to cling to her and fill her with such dread. You did well, but you are not finished.
It was right. Its emotions flooded over her, uniting with her own until they were nearly one and the same. She gently pushed away Michael and Darrel's attention as she lifted her hand up to brush the edge of its paper-thin wing in greeting and in thanks. The butterfly arched into her touch.
A wave of her hand caused the Ultimate to come sliding back to her.
She spun the blade over her head. Magic stirred once again around her feet. With a wide swing, she slammed the blade deep into the throne room floor.
Dark power fled from the blade's impact as magic spread throughout the room. It called up the dark chasm where the emperor had stored the stolen magic. The throne room carpet transformed into the chasm's entrance, opening up into a gaping hole. Magic kept her and her friends afloat, supporting them with simmering golden disks.
The Ultimate sank deep into the heart of the dark power that sealed the chasm. As it did so, the seal cracked like shattering glass.
As the dark power broke, a million sets of golden wings took to the air.
The butterflies rose up like a flock of birds. The glow of their wings shimmered into a blur of glistening magic, drifting past her in a flood. They swept past her toward the blown-out windows, taking happily to the skies. Their glorious power hummed a song of joyous freedom.
She could do nothing until they all made it past the window. Their power was too great to withstand. It stole the breath from her chest. She clung tight to the Ultimate as best she could, riding out the flood, until every last butterfly was gone.
While the emperor's power had turned the world dark, the freed magic turned everything to gold. Cloud cover was replaced by shimmering light. Dark alleys brightened with the light of day. The entire castle shimmered in magic's beautiful reflection.
But, most importantly, the sky filled with twinkling lights as magic traveled back to the worlds where it belonged.
The throne room floor returned to normal as she removed the Ultimate from the chasm seal. Alie heaved a heavy breath as she returned the sword to her side. As the sky beyond twinkled like a hundred exploding fireworks, the light of magic cloaking her gradually faded away. She hadn't realized how heavy its mantle was until it lifted from her shoulders, and she felt she could breathe normally again.
It was done. Magic was restored. The threat to the realm had been vanquished. She had fulfilled her promise to save the realm.
But the butterfly tugged at her scalp. Its little feet urged her across the throne room floor. Frowning, she turned to where it directed, back toward the fallen emperor and Commander Sole.
Through its thoughts linked to hers, she understood.
Michael tried to approach, but she waved a hand at him to stay back. Then, taking a deep breath to steady her returning nerves, she walked back across the length of the room toward the commander.
He looked like a broken man. He sat on his legs, his back sagging in a hunch. His head hung bowed low. His heavy hand clutched the emperor's shoulder, unwilling to let go.
Alie bit her lip. Everyone had just been through so much. How was she going to address this?
The commander's raw, gravelly voice broke the silence. "Are you going to kill me, too?"
She paled. "There's been enough death for one day, don't you think?"
He harrumphed at her. But he didn't move from where he knelt, and he didn't say anything further.
She decided to be direct. Calm, quiet, caring, but direct. "Where," she asked softly, "is the rest of the magic?"
Behind her, she heard one of the boys suck in a surprised breath.
Commander Sole's hand tightened its grip on the emperor's shoulder. "It doesn't matter," he growled. His tone was a warning.
The butterfly atop her head urged her to push harder. It doesn't belong to you, it raged. Give it back!
Alie clenched her jaw. "It does matter," she urged patiently. "Without it, the realm will suffer."
The commander tilted his head. One of his eyes came into his view above his shoulder as he did so, blazing so fiercely with hatred, she took a fearful step back. "Let it suffer," he snarled. "Let it suffer, as I have suffered."
She shook her head. "But--"
"You stole my last chance!" he screamed, as he whirled to face her. "You stole the last chance I had to get Helene back. Emperor Tokala was going to make sure she never disappeared. But now she's lost, forever, because of you!"
Alie flinched. Instinctively, she raised a shield of magic around her, just in case. But she refused to draw her weapon. She had no desire to spill more blood. No matter how much the commander provoked her, she wouldn't raise her blade against him.
He wanted a fight. His fists lay shrouded behind growing balls of his dark power. One move would send them hurtling toward her, starting a battle anew.
Alie lowered her gaze to the floor. Her throat constricted with emotion. "This realm is yours, just as it is mine. What I did will save you, too."
The commander hesitated. His lips pulled back in a sneer. His hands clenched into tighter fists. His power billowed around him, like a circle of black, dancing flames.
But, then, he dropped his shoulders. He turned his face away, and his power snuffed out like a candle. "Get out," he instructed. By his tone, Alie knew he would accept nothing but obedience.
She turned away. If she thought it would have meant something to him, she would have given him an apology. Instead, she looked to Michael, and then to Darrel, where they waited wide eyed. With a small nod of her head, she gestured to the window where the butterflies had all but disappeared.
A flicker of a thought created another paper dragon for them to ride. Surely guards would be waiting for them if they tried to walk out the way they had come. She didn't bother bringing this creature to life as she climbed aboard, however. There would be no need for its lava breath or its powerful flight maneuvers. They just needed a way to get to the nearest portal, so they could continue their search for the stolen magic.
In less than a minute, they were airborne. Alie's magic turned them invisible as the guards on the castle battlements noticed them and decided to take aim. She watched the city shrink beneath her feet as they gained altitude.
Though the butterfly advised her not to, she turned to look back at the castle. It seemed much less threatening from above. Or maybe that was because she had defeated the foe that lay within? Her gaze swept over the spires rising into the sky, brushing against the clouds.
Commander Sole stood watching her. He had stepped to one of the outer wall's missing windows, and glared at her unblinkingly as she flew into the horizon.
Though she was too far away to hear – though the wind swept at her hair and shouts would have been lost to the distance between them – Alie heard him make a promise.
"I will kill you," he swore, his voice filled with heartbreak and rage. "Fly to the farthest reaches of the realm. Scrounge up every last speck of magic you can. Save as many worlds as you are able. But one day, I will find you, and I will slaughter you. Perhaps the realm will live on, but you, Wielder, will learn how it feels to have your future stolen from you. And you will learn it at my hand."
Alie gripped the folds of the dragon beneath her more tightly. And as they left the city far behind them, she tried not to let his haunting words echo in her head.
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Note from the author:
Hi, everyone! I'm so sorry I'm a day late in posting. My whole family got sick and I completely forgot what day it was.
This chapter is a bit on the short side, but I went over it like three times this week and decided that it didn't need lengthening. The next chapter will be longer, though!
Speaking of the next chapter, it's the last one!! Thank you so much for sticking with me throughout this book!! It means so much that you've enjoyed it!!
—Liz