"One human life is worth more than all the treasures of the earth." – Seth Adam Smith
"What are we doing here again?"
"Not now."
"I know that I'm supposed to help you, but, what am I supposed to help you with?"
Ignoring her, Athena walked towards the headmaster's quarters and pounded on the door; for a good few minutes, she had rained fists upon the wooden door, until a nearly groggy woman in her purple night gown opened the door slightly. There was anger in the air coming from the room as Athena merely stood there indifferent to her vex; the woman with red piercing eyes and dishevelled hair from beyond the door stood tall and eyed them curiously as to what they wanted at this ungodly hour.
"Young Master Harding," Hyde addressed her visitors as she slowly opened the door to face them, "I'm sorry to be rude, but do you know what time it is?"
Athena ignored her then walked past her into the room, "Yes, I do and frankly, there isn't enough of it."
"On what, might I ask?" Hyde replied as she watched Cecilia walk in as well, completely ignoring her privacy; she closed the door and watched as Athena snapped her fingers that closed the curtains, submersing them in complete darkness. Only the colours of their eyes – Hyde's red and Athena's gold – lit up in the darkness.
"Yeah, she's a little lacking in giving right now," Cecilia replied the headmaster in a bit of annoyance in her tone, still unsure what exactly was happening.
Athena kept the indifference in her gaze and began; "A prophecy is upon us and it will happen soon. Lives are endangered and the first ones to be decimated are currently in their dorms sleeping, and I don't want them to die tonight."
Alerted by her words, Hyde asked; "What are you talking about?"
"Is this related to Jesslyn's death?" Cecilia questioned with a raised brow, concern written in her eyes as much as Athena could hear the worry of her beating heart.
"The mortal instructor is dead?" Hyde turned to her with a raised brow, wondering if what she had uttered were true; she has not heard of that teacher in a while and all gym classes had been suspended since the pit's near travesty.
Cecilia did not reply and looked away, unsure what to make of the statement she had said; it had taken her by surprise as well, but now was not the time for grieving. Once the world is once again in order, then there will be a lot of time to shed tears and say their farewells, but for now, they had a lot of things to do should what Athena said bore true. Even then, she could not understand how she can stay calm in such a situation, knowing full well that the inevitable is about to occur.
Athena ignored Hyde as she responded to Cecilia, "Yes, the spirit realm is in disarray and now," she walked towards the end of the room as Hyde walked over to her wardrobe to dress without a second thought before she listened to Athena say; "Repulsive spirits of revenge have assaulted the other world, trying to get here."
"Here?" Cecilia repeated as she crossed her arms, "In our realm? That fast? How is that possible?"
Hyde grunted as she zipped her clothes, "The key that opens the door to both worlds," she explained as Cecilia's eyes widened, "These spirits must have finally found it after all these years of endless searching."
"Then we really don't have much time," Cecilia agreed, aware of what it meant; even she knew what that meant – a destruction of not only this realm but the other, an irreparable event that could very well destroy life as they knew it. She proceeded towards the door as she turned to Athena and said; "If you had told me earlier, I would have understood the gravity of the situation. I warned you of this, Athena."
"I'm sorry," Athena apologised as she opened her palm and closed her eyes, mentally chanting words as she said; "I had my own doubts before but when I saw Jesslyn's corpse, it triggered my memory of the prophecy Thesa told me," she explained, "Right now both of you need to get all the students in the pit and tell Ford to keep them safe," then a whirl of light spun in her hand as her eyes turned to the bright, yet palest colour of blue, "I trust their life in your hands, Hyde."
Both nodding, Hyde sprinted out of the room as much as Cecilia vanished to get Ford to assemble his men. On the other hand, Athena stayed in the room and resumed her chant as the ground underneath her shook; the other realm had been sending tremors all over the world and she felt stupid that she did not notice it earlier. She only hoped that it was not too late; she did not wish for the world to end just as her children had just entered this beautiful realm. They are the reasons she had to leave them for a moment; even her own love, Thesalia.
Whilst Athena was chanting, Ford saw Cecilia appear in front of him just as he was about to enter the control room; it took him by surprise at her sudden appearance, but the look on her face told him that she was not there for pleasantries. The young mage approached him with a near grim look on her face that told him that she was about to tell him something that he did not wish to even hear.
"Sorry to suddenly come here, Ford," she spoke as she looked away for a moment, "But I need you and your men to assist the students into the pit now."
Ford nodded, "Understood," he saluted as he raised his wrist to his lips and radioed his men to mobilise, "I won't ask why," he spoke as Cecilia walked on over to the row of monitors that showed most of the school, "But at least tell me what's going on."
"The prophecy," Cecilia spoke under her breath as she watched the screens and saw how Ford's men had the students walk out in orderly fashion, "They found the key to unleashing the hungry spirits on earth."
Ford crossed his arms as he watched the screen too, "I don't know if I should ask this," he hesitated, "But," then took a deep breath before asking; "What is this prophecy?"
"No time to explain," Cecilia replied almost immediately as she spun around and headed for the door, "Get all your men geared up and ready for anything," she instructed him whilst he just stood there and followed her with his eye, "Something evil is a foot."
Nodding, Ford watched as Cecilia vanished before him; he still does not understand what was the reason for them to be fully deployed, but from the urgency of her actions, he knew that there was no time to waste. Hastily, he paced out of the room and saw his men jogging out to carry his order; he radioed once more to tell them to arm themselves for whatever battle that was coming.
"There are some who are non-compliant, sir. What are our orders?"
"Most of the east pit has been evacuated, sir."
"West dorm is now proceeding to the pit, sir."
"Affirmative," Ford responded as he brought his wrist to mouth level, "Give some light 'encouragement' to those who don't comply, force is not necessary," he instructed as he made his way to his own quarters, "Our objective is to get them safely to the pit one way or another. Understood?"
"Sir, yes, sir!" his men replied in chorus.
Walking into his room, Ford raised the volume of the radio in his ear as he opened his wardrobe to take out his gear; he took two holsters for his guns as he shrugged it on, over his trench coat, then took a belt of knives for his waist before he finally reached out to take his rifle. He could hear the chatter in the radio as the ground once again began to shake that made him hold onto his wardrobe at the intensity of the tremor; he could faintly hear the squeals of the students in the background that told him that time was truly not on their side.
For a few minutes, the tremor continued and intensified; the walls around him were on the verge of cracking. The radio chatter loudened as a few squeals erupted from the background which almost made him remove the earpiece, but endured the screech in his ears; making his way to the door, he tried to make sense of the situation as the reports from every corner of the land came rushing in.
What is going on this earth?
Ford thought as the tremors intensified further, but as he got closer to the door, a passing wave of golden light ceased the tremors and silenced the radio; his eye widened for a moment as he placed two fingers on his earpiece, trying to listen in the background for what was truly happening. There was silence for a minute as a few gasps erupted which told him that it was not just him who saw that wave of light.
"Students of the institution," a familiar voice resounded in his mind as he stiffened his body at the sound of her voice, "I ask of you to calm down," the voice continued as he partially ignored the voice and walked out of his room, "You may be wondering why we woke you from your slumber and have forced you to make your way to the pit."
Athena exhaled softly as the light emitting from her palm dissolved into the air after one last pulse of the faintest colour of gold; she snapped her fingers and allowed the moonlight to enter the room, where Cecilia had been standing by the door as though awaiting her orders. From the view off the north window, the master mage could see the barrier of light that held them and also protect them from the attack that could happen; even as they stood there in the light of the moon, neither of them knew the extent of the army that was brazenly forcing their way to the realm they were in.
"My sincerest apologise for the lack of explanation," she spoke as she opened the door, nodding at Cecilia to follow before she proceeded out the door, "But for now, I want all of you to follow the guards and keep yourselves safe," she instructed them as she walked down the spirals steps, then into the central courtyard, "If you feel threatened, hide behind the guards – they will protect you to the fullest extent of their abilities."
Damn right they should.
Cecilia thought as she walked behind Athena whilst she watched the tall blonde stand in the middle of the courtyard, then looked up at the moon just as the wind carried a message for her; the somewhat strong breeze blew Athena's hair to one side as she slowly looked over her shoulder, at Cecilia, whose eyes widened at her gaze. There was sadness in the blonde's gaze as much she was holding back a frown on her tightly sealed lips.
"If you ever feel afraid," Athena spoke as she looked up at the full moon again, "Look up at the sky and listen to the beat of your heart," she continued, "And to my brethren of the shroud – my fellow assassins – I raise my blade to you; defend these lives as though they were your own."
Ears all over heard Athena's speech to raise morale; Ford's men found courage in her presence alone as though it was a blessing. All of them owe their lives to her after the Edinburgh incident and would gladly lay their lives following her orders; with guns held against their chest, the soldiers accompanied the students towards the pit, without so much as breaking their formation at each side of the walking crowd, making sure nothing gets past them.
A smirk etched itself on Ford's lips as he stood in front of the central command room, where the CCTV cameras followed the students; his eyes were on the central square, looking at his leader – his former subordinate – and friend. There was a flame inside his chest, a fire of loyalty burning within as he watched his men carry her words to the heart; he was aware that Athena had a lot of impact on them and it was something they needed for whatever it was that was coming.
Cecilia crossed her arms as she watched the barrier that surrounded the land of the institution by approximately three hundred kilometres in each direction, pulsate at the light of the moon passing through its invisible thin veil – like a piece of plastic that only a few people of high calibre can actually see. Slowly, her lips slowly curved up in amusement at the power Athena had; it was not long ago that she was still teaching her how to use her powers, but to see its fruits only made her proud – enough to want to keep protecting her.
A light enveloped Athena that made the master mage lower her gaze upon her; the light eventually vanished and clothed Athena in her armour of clad black. Her long flowing trench coat swayed along the wind's direction as much as her hands bore gloves of the darkest black and her legs bore slacks of the same saturation; her long, wavy, blonde hair was tied up into a single tail by a lace made from the colour of her eyes – blue as the morning sky.
"Remember this, children of the night. Remember that all of you are blessed by the moon's light."
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Sky blackened beyond reach; the ground rattled endlessly as thunder stroke around the chasm. Loud cries of restlessness continued as they all watched the chasm spew streaks of black towards the sky as though merging with it; a faint light seeped out of the chasms and slowly lit up the whole of stretch, which further fuelled the loud chants the dark winged spirits have been screaming.
Katherine bit her tongue as she watched power resonate underneath Hailey's feet; wind gathered around her and swirled all over the faerie's body, which told her that what the darkness has been whispering in her head all the while her body was not under her control were true. At first, she did not believe the lies the darkness was telling – that Hailey was the key to opening the spirit realm; how could she have believed the words the darkness spewed, when she distrusted it after it took over her body.
Will you be able to kill her?
Seeing it now, Vivian's words resounded in her ears as she recalled the warning the former countess have uttered in her ears; even then, she did not believe that Hailey would have the key to the end of the world as they have spoken. At the time, she thought that Vivian was being a little too cautious for her own taste, but now, there was a regret in the young wolf's heart; she would not be able to bear the guilt if she were to let the world end.
Filled with guilt as this may be, there is a much greater regret in Katherine – a remorse even she does not wish to acknowledge just yet. She knew better than to surrender to that emotion of helplessness, not now when she had a power that can kill anything – save one perhaps. But as the door to the other side opens before her, there was little doubt of doing that; her heart was torn between the two – will she kill Hailey, or will she allow the world to perish?
It cannot be both.
A crack of thunder released Katherine from her thoughts as the chasm was finally engulfed in a blinding light; the masked man raised both his arms as he laughed maniacally at the victory that was before them. The restlessness subsided as an itch to move forward filled the air; there was anxiety writhing in their veins as all of them held their scythes tight, ready to consume the souls of the living.
"The gate is open, my brothers!" the masked man exclaimed, "Just as I have promised to you," he continued as Katherine growled at him, "The world is ours!"
"The hell it is!" Katherine seethed as the masked man turned to her, unamused by her interruption, "I'll never let you walk into that gate!"
Lips in a line, the masked man dismissed her outburst as he walked on over to Hailey, who was still within her circle of power; there was distinct lack of colour in her skin as much as physical fatigue could be seen from the increase in her breathing. Katherine roared and struggled under their hold as she watched the masked man hold Hailey by the wrists and turned the immobile teen to her.
"Don't touch her!" Katherine growled her eyes out into gold, "Get your filthy hands off her!"
The man mused, "I have in my hands the key to the other realm," he chuckled, "And now that she has opened it," he continued as she took his spear and raised the blade to Hailey's neck, "Her life is nothing more than forfeit."
"Stop!" Katherine growled as she lost her patience and tried to shape into half, but could not as though something was barring her powers from coming forth; she could not understand why, but there was an even greater power holding her as though she was nothing but a servant for someone, waiting for their command to be given. Was it the darkness over them? She could only guess.
Clicking her tongue, Katherine tried to break free from her captors as she turned to Hailey, who had lost the colour in her eyes as though all the hope had been sucked out of her and was filled with a regret insurmountable; she can smell the overwhelming need inside the faerie to cry, but could not do so out loud. The young wolf wanted nothing more than to be by her side and comfort her in her time of disparity, hoping to bring her back to her cheerfulness and the kind smile back on her now pale, pink lips.
"Tell me, wolf," the man spoke as he dipped the sharp edge nearer to Hailey's neck, "What is an open door without a key?"
Eyes widening, Katherine caught on quickly to what he was trying to say; without Hailey, she can neither open nor close the gate for she alone can do such a thing. Should he dispose of Hailey, it would be impossible to prevent these souls from storming into the realm of the living; there would be nothing else to prevent them from taking over the world.
"Say your goodbyes, wolf."
In the blink of an eye, the masked man slit Hailey's throat and allowed her body to fall into the chasm first; as though in slow motion, Katherine watched Hailey fall into the chasm. She could hear her heart echo as the one she loved fell without a fight; there was sadness inside her heart that brought a lot of anger out as her voice called out to Hailey to snap out of it, but fell into nothing but deaf ears. Tears were threatening to spill within her as Hailey's body was finally engulfed by the blinding light, but her anger outweighed the sadness.
I was supposed to save you, she uttered in her heart as she tried to remember all the things they had done together; sadness filled her heart as she remembered the last moments she had with her – of the days that she had not spent enough time with her as oblivion grew closer day by day. She regret that she did not talked to her more, hugged her more, kissed her more, but above all, she regret that she could not tell her how deep her love was for her; the three simple words that was always trying to escape her sealed lips.
Regret ate away at her heart as she heard the man chuckle as much as the crowd have. It vexed her to the core as her eyes burned gold as much as the veins on her skin popped out, trying to unleash the power that she has held inside of her. I will not let your death go in vain! she roared internally as she mustered every strength she had in her as the anger inside her chest erupted wildly and replaced the regret within her.
Heart consumed by fury, the young wolf roared out loud she pulled both her arms and stepped backward which made the two who held her arm hit each other head on. Once her arms were free, she held the blade of the scythe in front of her and pulled it forward then punched the spirit holding it just as it came towards her; it took almost everyone by surprise, except for the masked man, who does not seem to be bothered by her escape.
Roaring, she lunged towards the masked man in anger, unable to control the fury in her vexed veins; she had her left arm reared, ready to punch him, but the masked man merely tapped the lower end of his spear against the ground that made Katherine stop. A pulse emanated from the bottom of his spear that halted Katherine in her tracks as a throbbing pain once again emerged at the back of her head, making her hold it and fall on her knees; her mind was burning as a heavy pounding grinded the back of her head as though telling her not to attack the person in front of her.
"You truly are foolish, wolf," the masked man chuckled as he approached Katherine, who slowly tried to raise her gaze up at him, "Do you not know who your master is?"
"I," Katherine tried to speak as she gritted her teeth, "What are you... talking... about?"
"Even now, you still do not know?" he questioned, amused by her stupidity, "Perhaps, there is no harm in telling you now," he continued as he snapped his fingers and signalled his men to start marching forward, "We first thought you were the key, Katherine Eunice Wilson. The moment we saw you pass through this realm for but a moment, carrying that faerie with you made us think that you were the bearer of the prophecy."
When did I...ever pass through here?
"But then the second time you came through the same place," he continued as his men flew into chasm and vanished into the other side, "We figured, we should try to reach out to you and you gullibly fell into our trap."
Trap? I would never...
"Do you recall the night you and that faerie ran into that gardener for the second time?" he questioned.
Gardener...? Who...? Scott...?
"That was the night you have succeeded in being a possible candidate of opening the gate – an alternative key, if you will – and we just had to keep an eye over you. I had sent some of my brethren to capture you, hoping to make you the full-fledged key."
So, others can be a key...?
The masked man turned his back at her as Katherine roared at the throbbing pain in her head; she could still not understand why. It was as if she was under a chant that had bound her to somebody, but she was certain she has never bound herself to anyone – not yet at the very least. She tried to endure the pain as she tried to get up and assault the masked man, but at every attempt to stand, she could feel gravity forcing her to drop onto the earth.
"I almost succeeded," the masked man continued as he watched his army run into the gate hastily with hunger riding their lips, "But you and your troublesome friends just had to intervene every time we tried to make you into a full key," he seethed, "It irked me undeniably, thus I had to be the one to watch over you."
You...? When did you...?
"There was only one thing left for you to do for you to be the key," he mumbled as Katherine took note of his words, wondering what it was that she had to do to have become the key, "Hmm, perhaps I have dawdled long enough," he exhaled softly as Katherine wracked her head for an answer to the riddles presented by this masked being; she could not find an answer beyond the unbearable pain at the back of her skull, making it nearly impossible for her to thin clearly as her body refused to turn into full. Even then as she tried to stand straight and force her transformation, she could not seem to fight a force that even she knew not how powerful.
"Had you done that, you could have saved the Faerie," he spoke as he faced the chasm whilst his men flew past him in anxiety, "But even she, had to save you from doing that one last thing," he nearly scoffed as Katherine tried to remember what the hell he was talking about, "For now, my darling wolf," he spoke calmly as he approached her then bent down to her level to mock her further before saying; "Perhaps you should just watch the world end."
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In waves, the forces of black winged spirits sprinted towards the gate with glee upon their faces. Still weighed down by the pain in her skull, Katherine looked at them as they flew past her, eager to wreak havoc to the world beyond the gate. As she watched them, two from the crowd walked towards her and towered over her, before they picked her up on each shoulder then pulled her up; she looked at them and growled weakly, but they merely ignored her.
"Let us be done with her, so we can feast."
"Aye, she is nothing but a nuance to our queen."
The... queen?
Being dragged away on each arm, Katherine tried to break free but the constant pounding at the back of her skull eventually seeped to the rest of her body that almost made it impossible for her focus; it was nearly maddening her to a point, she growled at the pain and watched where they were taking her. Eventually the two who held her, spread their wings and flew her up, flying at least fifty kilometres per hour; after a few minutes, they eventually arrived in some sort of cavern.
Taking a deep breath, Katherine could smell others inside – one of them, she knew from the jittering fear in his scent, and the other, she could only smell the faintest life that was nearly gone. Descending from the sky, the two paced into the cave then dropped Katherine in the pit, where the rest of the obsolete people they do not need, reside. Slowly, they dropped Katherine there and watched her fall into the pit with the rest of the mortals, before they left for the gate.
Grunting at the fall, Katherine tried to calm her breathing as the pain crawled from her head down to her body – almost at her navel; she tried to move her body and slowly managed to sit up. Looking around, she tried to look for an exit, but instead, her eyes landed on a hopeless and broken man, huddling in one corner next to a nearly cold body of a former huntress.
"Ar...t?" Katherine spoke as she managed to get up, then walked over to him despite the pain; slowly, she saw him raise his lowered head and revealed two reddened eyes as much as there were tears streaming down his cheeks. He sniffled just as Katherine got closer, "What are you doing here?
"Oh, chica!" he cried out loud as he wrapped his arms around the wolf, who could only managed to hug him back with one arm, "I'm sorry!" he cried even louder as tears drenched Katherine's shoulder, "I didn't mean to! I didn't think they would-"
"Art, calm down," Katherine assured him as he rubbed his back in an effort to calm, "What's done is done," she nearly whispered her sadness, "The gate is open and there's nothing we can do about it."
"Nothing?" Art questioned with raised brows as he pulled back and wiped his tears alternatively with his wrists before he looked at her, "Why," he breathed as he looked around Katherine before meeting her nearly sullen gaze, "Why is the other chica not with you, Kathie?"
Looking away, Katherine tried to hide her dejection and lowered her gaze; she could not seem to face him, not after everything that had happened. A part of her did not want to say anything as much as she wanted to break down then and there about what had happened not too long ago; she wanted to cry, but now was not truly the time. Their problem is much greater that tears would not solve it at that moment; not when the world is crumbling as they spoke.
"Well?" Art pushed for an answer, but Katherine could only shake her head in reply, which made the escape artist lower his gaze at the news; he knew not how to react to such a thing, aware that it was his betrayal that caused her to die. He clenched his fist and gritted his teeth, angry at himself for doing what he did earlier; if there had been any other way at the time, he would not have surrendered Hailey to their leader.
Walking past him, Katherine endured the pain her body was succumbing into as she stooped down to the huntress, who was lying face up with her hands clasped together as though ready for a funeral. Upon closer inspection, Alexis's weapons were still with her as though it did not matter to their enemies; she did not question the motives of these people since even she knew that even Art would not be able to wield those weapons – he's too much a coward to even fight.
"What happened to her?" Katherine questioned as she brushed a few strands away from her porcelain face – pale as the moon.
Art shook his head with a frown on his lips, "I don't know, child."
"She looks so," Katherine inhaled as she tried not to think of the rest of the dead, "Peaceful."
Art turned to her, "What happens now?"
"I need," Katherine exhaled as she slowly unclasped Alexis's hands together and pulled one over her shoulder, then eventually pulled the former hunter onto her shoulder, "To close that gate."
Art raised a brow as he watched her struggle to get on her feet, "Are you insane?" he questioned as he stood up with her and watched her approach the wall, then looked up as though she was going to climbed it before he reasoned, "Lola, Alexis is dead; Deckard is god knows where; and Hailey is," he did not continue as Katherine rested a hand on the wall, "Look, we have no chances of winning this war," he hung his head, "The only thing we do now is just wait for the end to come."
"What good would that do?" Katherine nearly spat back as she turned to Art, who raised his eyes to her but there was still defeat in them, "Sitting here and moping won't help anyone," she argued as Art could only frown at her, "I won't stay here and watch our realm fall to chaos," she continued, "Hailey didn't want to open that door, or let the other world burn," she exclaimed, "I won't stay here and do nothing, when I can do something – anything to at least help clean this mess up."
"We may be beat and outnumbered," she continued as she secured Alexis's body with one arm, "But I have faith that we will find a way to stop this," she explained as she placed her hand back on the wall, then pierced through it despite her bodily pain, "That's what Hailey would have done in my place," she whispered as thoughts of the fallen faerie came into mind, "I failed to save her," she exhaled as her tears threatened to spill, "But that doesn't mean I can't save everyone else!"
Hearing the determination in her voice, Art watched Katherine pull herself up and began climbing the wall; he could not understand how she managed to find calm in this pandemonium occurring just outside the cave. He knew well enough that Katherine was often a hot head, and have often been indecisive from what little he observed from her; it was often Hailey who remained headstrong and calm under pressure. Right now, he could not understand how she can keep a levelled head when she had just lost the person she loved most.
How can she keep moving forward?
"Chica," Art spoke as she looked up at her, but Katherine did not stop as she kept climbing up, "Why do you fight when you know that you don't have a chance?"
Halting her climb, Katherine asked herself the same thing; why was she really fighting this war she knew she can never win, a war that could have been prevented, but instead, she was powerless to stop it. Placing her other hand on her breast pocket, she closed her eyes for a moment as she took a deep breath; she was fighting for what was right – for Hailey, for everyone else. There was a lot of regret inside her heart and she knew that no matter what she did, she can never bring her back.
Body in pain; mind in a constant struggle to endure it. Katherine knew not what will become of their struggle, their battle for salvation. The only thing she was certain of was that she had to close the gate; she knew well enough that Hailey would have asked her to close it as much as she would have gone to lengths just to save her. Just like that time before Alexis tried to behead her; even that time at the gym when she saved her from falling – the very first time they met.
Even now as regret fills her chest, she had hope – faith that Hailey would still be alive; she just knew it in her heart that Hailey would not have died just like that. Katherine had thought of possibility of someone saving her from the other side just as her body fell into the other realm; she had hope that both of them would see each other again. It pains her to admit Hailey's death, but she will not believe it until she has hugged her lifeless body; she was certain that it would never happen.
Turning to him, she looked at him with determination in her eyes – now fuelled to gold by her heart's desire. She smiled at him through the pain and through the hurt that she had gone through, aware that Hailey – even at the darkest and grimmest moment – would have done the same; she smiled at him and further confused him, but she can smell that hope has returned to his eyes. Art could sense the hope in her despite the odds against them; he heard the echo of his heart against his ears as he recalled the smile the young faerie had on her lips.
"Because, I want to bring back what was once mine."
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A/N: Without the key, there is nothing that could ever close that gate. How will Katherine save the other realm? Was that truly goodbye to Hailey?
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