Epilogue
DREW
“It’snice to see you’re all healed up from the battle now,” I say to Soren as I approach him from behind. He stands on the edge of the forest, taking his shift guarding the bridge.
“Yeah, I’m feeling back to normal. Did you get back from Nighthold?” he asks.
“Yes, I decided to stay for a couple of weeks after the ceremony. I promised Colton I would check in on the Dream Forest and make sure things were settling alright without him,” I tell him, stepping around the gaping hole in the ground that is the bridge to Zomea and over to the cliffside.
It’s a blue moon tonight, full and magical. I look out across the sea at the reflection and think about him. I don’t bring it up to Soren—I know the boy has feelings for me, so it’s not something I can discuss with him. But knowing Lyra is where she belongs now means my mate might finally be released and find his way back to me.
All these years of waiting...all these years of meddling without actually meddling, careful to push but not interfere enough to alter destiny.
“How did the ceremony go?” Soren asks, coming to stand beside me.
“It went as well as one could imagine for the queen of Hell,” I tell him, and he laughs.
“Hard to believe that innocent, heartbroken girl—lost and unable to properly use magic—is now the queen of the underworld,” he says, and I glance over at him.
“Lyra is a very young queen. She had to face many tribulations in a short amount of time. It was the gods’ way of preparing her for her final role,” I tell him. He nods, kicking a rock off the cliff and watching as it hits the pristinely calm waters below.
So unusual for the water to be so calm on a night like tonight. High tide and a blue moon—I can feel it in the air, almost a static, a light magical hum that something is coming.
“Yeah, Lyra went through a lot for a young girl. No matter what the gods think, I think it was a bit excessive,” he says. I wonder,Who are we to question fate or the gods?
“I imagine Lyra now has a special place in Hell for the ones who did her wrong...and I imagine Colton probably visits those souls often, if you know what I mean.” I give Soren a wicked smile, and we both laugh.
“You’re right. I think Aidan is probably getting everything he deserves and more right about now. Samael too, and Euric, the whole lot of them,” he says, and I couldn’t agree more.
“So after the bonding ceremony, what happened? Did they really vanish into hell?” Soren asks. I think the boy already knows too much for his own good, but I humor him.
“It wasn’t as clean-cut as them just vanishing. They left with a bang, one might say.” I glance over my shoulder and walk back to the bridge.
“A bang, huh? Well, it was certainly felt all over Eguina. I can’t really explain it, but it was like awave of energy hit us all,” he says, bending to look down the hole in front of us. “Things did change rather quickly. After they left this realm, the weather changed, and the destruction that happened during the ceremony magically rebuilt itself.” I think back to how wrecked the terrace was after that scene of chaos.
“How did King Onyx take it?” he asks.
I shrug. “He is doing surprisingly well. In fact, I saw him earlier. He’s here in Cloudrum, overseeing things in the Sorcerer Realm to make sure the people are happy. He may not have been my favorite brother of the two, but he still has a good heart. He makes some poor choices, like us all,” I tell him.
Soren nods. “Yeah, us men, always with the poor decisions, especially when it comes to the women we care about.” He laughs and kneels down lower, like he’s going to see something in the dark hole before us.
“You know, I don’t think you need to guard the bridge anymore. I have a feeling our king and queen of the underworld will have things under control. I’m not worried about anything evil coming out of there,” I say as a small hum starts to emanate from the bridge.
“Do you hear that, or am I losing it from being out here for too long?” he asks, and I shake my head.
“You’re not losing it.”
The ground starts to vibrate, and we both take a step back. A shadow wisp, like one of Lyra’s shadowy ribbons, pops out of the hole and hovers right in front of us like a snake eyeballing its prey. It’s almost as if she can see us through that shadow, but no, that would be crazy. Then again, I’ve seen crazier things.
Another wisp pops out, and another, until an entire cloud of inky blackness oozes out of the bridge. A person materializes, her feet hitting the ground right in front of us.
“Who the hell are you?” Soren says, taking a step back.
I recognize her instantly, her features so similar to Lyra’s,except her hair falls in a mess of strawberry-blonde waves, and her eyes are a deep brown with golden flecks. Otherwise they could pass for sisters— same full lips and small nose dusted in freckles. I never realized it before but how peculiar it is that they would look so similar to one another.
“Z,” I say, studying her for a moment.
“I need to know where to find Nyx,” she says. My smile grows as I tell her exactly where I left him earlier tonight. She disappears in an instant, channeling without another word.
“Who the fuck is Z? What happened?” Soren says beside me, bewildered.
I turn to face him, a knowing smile playing on my lips. “What kind of queen would Lyra be if she didn’t make sure both her kings got their happily ever afters?” I revel in the miraculousness of it all then add with a wink, “After all, every story deserves a perfect ending.”
