Page 59 of Devastation
Serenity's boot heels clack against the ground as she brushes into the room with her hands full of food plates. "Sit, and we'll work on this portal while we eat."
Doing as she says, I sink into the corner of the couch, and she sits on my left, dropping the food plates onto the ottoman in front of us. For some reason, I'm hit with the memory of our encounter in the dark fae castle.
She was crying, if my memory serves correctly. Queen Witch Bitch was crying over little ole' me. Anal.
The depth of her connection to me, means more to me than I can ever put into words. Serenity is exactly the reason I hadn't been worried about the fae realm—I knew she would never have left my people in shambles.
However, as I pull a plate into my lap and observe the chicken tacos topped with cheese, lettuce, and sour cream, I ask her, "How was the state of the fae realm when you and Reese left?"
I need to know so when I visit there, hopefully within the next twenty-four hours, I'm not going in blind. She answers while I stuff a taco into my mouth, munching happily as the flavors explode in my mouth.
"I popped back and forth between their realm and my own for three days until I knew they would be okay until a new queen was appointed. The dark fae guards were given one choice: dungeon or death," she ends nonchalantly before digging into her own food.
I can't help the inappropriate giggle that bubbles out of me as I swallow my mouthful of food. "The way you so nonchalantly said that is just...so fitting for you, Witch Bitch."
She grins a bit maniacally at that observation as I continue, "I'm assuming Raven took charge of the repairs and getting people settled?"
"Actualllyyyyyy," she draws out the word dramatically, "Raven seems to only feel comfortable with the tactical side of things. Noreen actually seemed to rise to the occasion and, alongside Grammie, they made the majority of the plans to get the people settled and rebuild."
A part of me isn't surprised by this information, as I'd had the pleasure of seeing how kind and giving Noreen truly is during my time with them. Perhaps she'll be the new queen that I'm drawn to.
I smile at the thought, remembering how she had begged her sister and my best friend Mika for stories of me as queen when she was little. It would be her childhood dreams come true to have the opportunity to have stories of her own in that position.
I polish off the remaining two tacos while I'm lost in thought. Wiping my hands against my pants, I cock my head at Serenity, who has also finished her food, "So, what do we do to get into the demon realm?"
She scooches a few inches closer to me on the couch and holds out her hands, "We'll amplify each other's powers and try to break whatever the barrier is together. Go ahead and try to pull the portal up."
Per her instructions, I pull the scenery of the demon realm to the forefront of my mind and allow myself to reach for the connection to the edge of their world. Once again, it feels just out of reach, like I'm grasping at the air just an inch away from the door to a room.
"Hold the connection just a bit longer," Serenity instructs as I strain to do so.
It's as if I feel her hands patting around the invisible door as I hold it in place. A grunt comes from her before she sighs and I feel her fall back into the couch as it shifts next to me.
"You can let it go."
I relax as I let go of the unstable connection and glance over at her questioningly with a raised brow.
Her face is perplexed as she nibbles on her lower lip in thought. "I need to consult my spellbooks. It's been so long since I've needed to open them, but this is a very complex and powerful spell at play. I might need to gather some ingredients for a proper counterspell."
"Fuck," I breathe out, closing my eyes tightly, frustrated at being blocked from going to the demon realm when they are likely in trouble.
"You said you needed to go back to the fae realm still, right?"
Rubbing my eyes with my palms, I nod. "Yes, I need to establish a queen and get them brought up to speed on this war. As soon as I've finished with them, I have a feeling I'm going to need you to head through all of the realms and rally them to move immediately into the demon realm. I just have a gut feeling about this."
Her solemn expression tells me all I need to know. She agrees.
"It's time to finish this," she laments while pushing to her feet.
Following suit, I stand up and pull her into a tight embrace. "I'll come back here as soon as we're done in the fae realm, and then the battle will begin."
I feel the bubble of dread surface in me at the thought that I'm leading the realms to their deaths, but Mar's words echo in my mind and I let the strength of all of those who support me imbue me.
Serenity squeezes me before pulling back and pinning me with a serious look. It's like she's staring into my soul as she says, "This will not be a repeat of your first life. You know that. You are not that same person. You are not Oslana."
Breathing in deeply, my shoulders shake as I repeat her words aloud, needing to say them myself.
"I am not Oslana and the past will not repeat itself."
