After I use it for this one bad thing first. “Hey, Edevane, guess what time it is.”

“You bi⁠—”

“Time to kill a king.”

I snap my fingers and flames of neon violet instantly engulf the Light King, giving him no warning or time to counter.

He screams as he’s consumed by the inferno of the Dragon’s Breath, the magic he used to trap me and Finn with the intention of drowning us.

Then I whisper the command and throw Lugh’s legendary weapon, adding insult to the already fatal injury as it buries itself in Edevane’s chest.

I don’t bother calling it back to me. Instead, I let it suffer the same fate, so that neither can hurt anyone ever again.

I wait the few minutes until there’s nothing left but ashes scattering in the wind. Then I release time to march forward once again.

As the world snaps back to the moment before it all went wrong, I watch as those I love blink back to life, confusion and relief mingling on their faces. Finn, Dmitri, Conall, Connor, and my mother all look around, their eyes widening as they realize the horrors of the past few minutes have been erased.

“Taryn…” Finn’s gaze locks onto mine. I’ve never been so glad to see those golden pools as I am in this moment. We crash together, my arms wrapping around his neck as his band around my waist and lift me against him. “How?” he asks, his voice a mixture of awe and disbelief.

“I finally believed in myself,” I whisper, my voice trembling with the enormity of what I’ve just accomplished.

“I’m so fucking in awe of you, you know that?” Setting me down, he gives me a brief kiss, then glances past me. “I think your brother might punch me if I don’t let him talk to you. Go on, little sun, then hurry back,” he says with a grin.

I spin around and launch myself at Dmitri. “Thank Brigid, you’re okay.”

“No, moy sever, thank you. I did not like leaving you,” he says, his voice thick with emotion.

Stepping out of his embrace, I give him a watery smile. “Me either. What do you say we never go through that again, okay?”

He sniffs and pulls his shoulders back, composing himself. “I say it is a good plan.”

A cold nose on my arm brings me around to face Connor and Conall. “Man, am I glad to see you guys are okay. Mission’s over. Aren’t you going to shift back?”

They both sit on their haunches, their gigantic heads still level with my chest. Finn steps in at my side. “They’ll be too weak to shift from all the exertion of the battle and then running as far as they did. Once they rest and get something to eat, they’ll be good as new. Right, furballs?”

Twin sets of golden eyes narrow at their friend as they bare their teeth and growl. “Don’t listen to him, he’s just jealous,” I say. I start to reach out my hands but stop. “Is it insulting to pet you? I’m not sure what the— Oh!”

Both wolves stand and rub the tops of their heads against my palms. Laughing, I get into it and start scratching them behind the ears, ignoring the gross reason their fur is matted and darker than normal. They nuzzle against me, their silent gratitude palpable.

“All right, that’s enough. Go jump in a lake, both of you,” Finn says, pulling me away from them. “No, seriously. Either you go wash off in a lake or we give you baths, your choice.”

I don’t know if wolves have the ability to look offended, but Connor and Conall manage to pull it off. Then they take off in a lope, presumably to take care of their own bathing needs.

“Taryn.”

The regal tone snap my back straight, as though I’m an adolescent all over again. Turning, I face my mother as she approaches, so gracefully she appears to float even without using her wings. She stops in front of me and pauses, a well of emotions between us that neither of us know how to breach.

“Mother,” I say, my voice unsteady.

Finally, she takes the final step to close the gap and folds me into her embrace. I’m frozen briefly, stunned by the rare show of affection from the female who was more often my queen than a doting mother.

But then the shock wears off, and I wrap my arms around her, leaning into her embrace and this moment for as long as they last.

The weight of centuries of unspoken words and unresolved feelings begins to lift. There’s a hint of reverence in her words as she speaks to me in Faerish. “You saved us. You saved Faerie. I have never been prouder. Thank you, daughter.”

She pulls back, her hands dropping to clasp in her usual pose, but the emotion in her gaze remains and mirrors my own—a mixture of pride, love, and a shared understanding of the burden I now carry.

The magnitude of possessing the One True Power no longer frightens me, but as my gaze returns to the ashes of Edevane and the spear scattering in the wind, the weight of responsibility that comes with it settles heavily on my shoulders.

I don’t regret what I did—that bastard deserved every moment of his fiery end—but I don’t want to use the Power as a weapon. I want to use it as a tool to help faekind.

Finn wraps his arms around me, pulling me close.

“I love you so much,” I say, finally able to voice the words. “I should have said it sooner, but I love you, Finn. You’re my everything, too.”

“I knew how you felt even without the words, love. And now that it’s officially after…” He tilts my chin up to meet his gaze, his eyes soft and filled with unspoken promises. “Can I finally ask you to marry me?”

I laugh, my happiness causing a fresh wave of moisture to gather on my lash lines. “Damn all this crying lately.”

He smiles wide, his twin dimples creasing beneath the short beard on his cheeks. “Is that a yes, solnyshko? Will you be my mate?”

“Yes, sire,” I say, grinning at the way his pupils blow out at the use of his Dom title. “I will absolutely be your mate.”

FORTY-ONETARYN

The grand hall of the Summer Palace is a vision of elegance tonight. The long table is set with shimmering Ember dinnerware and draped with delicate vines of blooming flowers that seem to glow in the soft candlelight.

The air hums with the faint notes of a light melody created by the Ember Pixies flying high above, and the scent of fresh, summer air wafts through the open windows, mixing with the aroma of the feast laid out before us.

I sit beside Finn, his hand warm in mine under the table. On the other side of him is Caiden and Bryn, who is positively glowing in the last weeks of her pregnancy.

Across from them are the Woulfe brothers, and Fiona and Tiernan are seated across from us. Dmitri is stationed at the foot of the table, with Aine opposite him as the hostess of this gathering.

A week ago, the battle with Edevane seemed like it might be the end of this world. It almost was. There was a lot of damage done, both structurally and in lives lost. But in the aftermath of a tragedy is when people come together to aid those in need, and it was no different here.

Flora Fae of the Spring Court, Frost Fae of the Winter Court, and Fauna Fae of the Fall Court all came out to help the Fire Fae clean up, rebuild, and honor their dead.

I was prepared to use the Power to fix it all, but Aine advised me against it. “Just because you can does not mean you should,” she said to me. “If you snap your fingers and resolve everything for them, the Elemental Courts would not be forging these bonds. I suggest you help in smaller ways that will continue to foster goodwill among our people.”

It had been good advice, and it made me realize I have a lot to learn from her experiences, both good and bad. However, I did make it a priority to lift the exile on the Celestial Courts as well as the subsequent curses.

Darks and Lights will soon be able to choose whether they want to live where they are or return to their home regions in Faerie. They’ll also be able to travel back and forth without losing time when they go back to the mortal world.

The blood curse on the royal lines is gone, so Caiden and Bryn no longer have to worry about their proximity to each other—though I’m fairly certain they don’t need a threat of death to be attached at the hip.

The lifespan curse won’t take them around the age of 500 anymore, so they’ll live as long as is normal for us. And finally, the court-born powers and wings have been returned to those who once lived in Faerie and future generations will inherit their magic and be born with wings as well.

Sadly, I was only able to return things to what they were, not create magic where it never was. Specialty powers had never been taken, so Finn still has his seer powers now that they’re no longer muted. But for fae born in the human realm, they’ll never have their court-born magic or wings. I felt awful about that, but Finn reassured me they won’t miss things they never had, and I hope that’s true.