"Neraka was more or less the same, if you think about it. We had the Exiled Maras and Shaytan," Blaze replied, pacing the entire platform in a bid to keep himself calm. "Looking back, it all seems so insignificant."
"Our first taste of evil's penchant for grandeur came with Ta'Zan," Kailani said, slowly leaning into Hunter, who gave her a soft smile. "When we understood that he was ready to subjugate an entire universe, we began to think on a cosmic level. We could spend the rest of the night wondering how we got to this point, but we won't get an answer. It just happened. We awakened a greater force to stop Ta'Zan, and now they've turned against us."
I looked at Draven and Serena. "I'm sorry it's working out this way. You've both been so good to Calliope and Eritopia."
"Yeah, and look at us now, useless as we watch our world disappear," Serena murmured. Glancing around, I noticed one couple was missing, though I would've expected to see them here.
"Where are Phoenix and Viola?" I asked.
Draven lowered his gaze, holding Serena's hand in his and squeezing it a little bit tighter. "They're with the other Daughters, forging shelters for the refugees across Eritopia. Phoenix and Viola are in charge of Calliope, and they're waiting for Jovi and the others to reach them with our people. Safira and her sisters are handling the other planets in our system."
"It's our last attempt to keep them all safe," Serena added. "Though I doubt it'll do much if the ritual is completed."
That had been a certainty in my mind for days now. It wouldn't do a thing. Once the ritual was completed, the amount of power unleashed from it would wipe out every living creature on every planet in its path, whether or not its Hermessi were against it. Their affiliation would no longer matter. Neraka, Calliope, Strava, and every other planet in the In-Between and in the Supernatural Dimension would be destroyed, stripped of all life forms. Then, once the silence settled over all that death, the Hermessi would take to the pink waters to rebuild everything from scratch. What cruel creatures…
But at least the Daughters and everyone else in GASP were trying to do something, anything to save as many people as they could.
"What shall we do, then?" Kailani asked. "What of our officers?"
"I'm not sure I understand the question," Lawrence replied, his gaze dark. He had an inkling, but he just didn't want to be the first to say it out loud. I'd thought about it, too.
"Do we stay here and die with everyone else?" Kailani asked. "I'm sorry, but I have to ask. The Shade is still safe."
"It's our last line of defense," I mumbled. "If the ritual is completed, the Hermessi will have enough power to slip through the Earthly Dimension, but I'm not sure how far they'll be able to go."
"Earth will be in their crosshairs, for sure," Serena said, quickly picking up on what Kailani—and, to some extent, even I—was trying to suggest. "With the In-Between and the Supernatural Dimension already under their full control, ours will be next."
Bijarki shook his head. "You can't possibly suggest that we leave Vita and all the others behind."
"That is exactly what Kailani is suggesting, and I happen to agree," I said. "As much as it pains me."
"You're kidding." The incubus was downright astonished. While I sympathized and absolutely understood his turmoil, I had to fall back on my GASP training and personal experiences for this.
"I'm not. Ben wouldn't want me dying here with him. And Vita wouldn't want that for you, either. Your child is already in The Shade. She'll need you, if we survive in the Earthly Dimension, by some force or miracle. We don't know how strong the Hermessi will be out there, after the ritual. We've already learned how deceptive they can be. They might've even overplayed the amount of power the ritual would give them."
"That's just wishful thinking," Blaze said. "We don't know anything for sure."
"But we can hope," Hunter replied. "It's better than giving up and dying out here."
Silence fell heavily over Luceria's platform. The evening breeze rustled through the woods below. I breathed deeply, my lungs swelling, and exhaled slowly to allow clarity to set in. A decision had to be made, as unpopular as it may have been.
I wanted to be up there, in the sanctuary, with my husband and the rest of my family, but, if the worst were to happen, I had to make sure that I'd done everything I could to save as many people as possible.
"We need to take all our GASP members out of Eritopia and into The Shade," I said after a while, prompting Lawrence and Bijarki to gawk at me as if I'd just insulted them. "If the ritual is completed, they will be of no use here. We'll have to focus what resources we have on protecting Earth. Our planet's Hermessi alone won't be enough to stop these fiends if they come through."
The blood drained from Lawrence's face as he realized the implications. "Oh. I didn't think of that."
"None of us did," Bijarki muttered, his shoulders dropping. "Just because the ritual strengthens them here and in the Supernatural Dimension, it doesn't necessarily mean they'll be undefeatable against Earth."
"The odds won't be in our favor, but at least we'll have a chance to fight them on a more advantageous ground. Tebir and the other Hermessi of Earth will put everything they have into the defense," I said. "If… If we lose this war here… The Shade will be all that's left."
Shadows fluttered across Draven's face. His dilemma was the worst, as ruler of Calliope and a GASP officer. He was stuck between worlds. "What will I do?"
"Whatever you decide, I'll be with you the whole way," Serena replied, her voice breaking as she, too, began to contemplate her options. Eritopia had become her home the moment she'd married Draven and chosen to stay here and rule. Abandoning those whom she now called "her people" would be frowned upon. Leaders did not leave their folk behind, but what choices were left?
"I agree with Serena," I said to Draven. "Regardless of your decision, we will respect it. If you choose to stay here, and Serena joins you, I… Neither I nor Derek and Sofia, or Rose and Caleb, even, will be able to stop you. But if you come with us to The Shade… We could use a couple of fighters like you, should the worst come to happen."
Judging by the expressions around me, I knew I'd hit the nail on the head so hard, it hurt them all. But this was war, and difficult decisions had to be made. I didn't like it any better than anyone else. My husband, my family were out there. It pained me beyond anything else to leave them behind like this.
However, our worst-case scenario was beginning to look more and more like an impending reality. If we succumbed to our emotions, we'd all be dead by tomorrow night.
Harper
Despair reigned supreme on Neraka, as the evacuation procedures had already begun. All of the civilians had been moved far away from the fae sanctuary—the general assumption still was that, whatever end-of-days method the Hermessi would use against us, it would start from up there. Otherwise, what was the point of that whole display?
River's suggestion to have all GASP officers evacuate into The Shade had spread quickly after she'd first voiced it. Less than an hour after her voice had come through the comms line and Derek and Sofia had approved, most of our Neraka-based officers were already moving back into The Shade.
It broke me into little pieces to have to do this, but both Caspian and I had agreed that Earth needed our protection in case the ritual was completed. There was nothing left for us to do here, other than wait for our own demise. I'd almost begged Pheng-Pheng to come with us, but she'd chosen to stay with her mother and Manticore siblings. "If Neraka dies tomorrow, we'll die with it. I doubt the Earth will stand a better chance," she'd said, bitterness tinting her voice.
I understood her. The decision made sense, though I loathed the mere thought of losing her and every other Nerakian to the Hermessi. Yet we were here, saying goodbye to our GASP base, as the last of our lieutenants made their way to the portal.
Zane and Fiona were present, with little Sophia cradled in her mother's arms, sleeping soundly, as if everything was fine and peachy in the world. For a moment, I wished I was a kid again—my world as tiny and as precious as hers, with no fear for my safety, thanks to my parents.
"You haven't packed anything," I said, noticing that, unlike most of Neraka's GASP officers, Zane and Fiona had come along with nothing but the clothes on their backs. My stomach churned, likely because somewhere, deep in my mind, I already knew what they were going to say.
"We're not coming," Zane replied, his red eyes darkened to the shade of sour cherries. "I'm staying here, with my people. I've led them until now. I cannot bring myself to leave. But maybe you can convince my beloved wife here not to join me, for the sake of her and our daughter."
I was surprised I hadn't noticed it before, but Fiona's eyes were all puffy. I'd been so busy overseeing the evacuation procedures that I'd paid little to no attention to everything else around me. Fiona had been crying.
