Page 39 of Rhadan

“Tempest, is something wrong?” Mara asked.

“I understand what we need to do. How we need to stand as we perform the ritual, but we need a power source.”

“We are the power source. We can tap into Legion and the other dragons if needed,” Mara said.

“I understand that, but Adara needs one in the realm she currently inhabits. She has to expend an exorbitant amount of power just to enter the gateway I create. She doesn’t currently have it.”

Mara swallowed hard. “Explain the spell. Tell us what we need to do and maybe we can find a solution.”

Tempest focused on the diagram beneath the spell. “We need to stand in a circle. The same formation as the onyx circles on the table in the temple. I will chant a phrase and you will all repeat it. When the temple forms, we enter and place my circle on the table. Once it’s there, the spell is complete, and the temple is here forever. The problem is creating the gate on her side. The doorway must open from both sides. We can power this side easily, but I do not know where she will draw the power from on her side.”

“Once we start the spell, she could siphon from us, couldn’t she? Can I start a siphoning spell on us?” Alana asked.

Tempest shook her head. “To strengthen the gateway, it is closed before it is breached. When we start the spell, she will be completely cut off, and if we don’t complete the spell in under an hour, then she will be lost to us forever.”

Alana cursed. “Then we all die.”

Tempest nodded. She noticed the other dragons stood close to them, but no one had said anything. She knew they would be scared. For their mates and their unborn children, but they could do nothing to help the women they loved.

They trust you, Tempest. I trust you. Rhadan’s words caressed her mind, and they meant more to her than she could convey, but she wished she had more answers for him and her fellow druids.

“What kind of power does Adara need?” Freya asked.

Tempest ran her finger over six words. “The power to destroy a moon.”

“What? Are you talking wormhole-type action or is that a metaphor?” Alana hissed.

Tempest smoothed the front of her robe. “I don’t think it’s a metaphor. We are ripping the fabric between worlds. I don’t think this is supposed to be easy.”

Mara turned to Alana. “What do we do?”

Tempest recalled her conversation with Ren. She hadn’t brought it up before because she didn’t think what he had told her was relevant at the time. “Ren. He said to call him when Adara needed help. I didn’t understand the significance at the time. He must have a way to boost her power.”

Alana backed away from the group with her hand over her mouth. “No. Anything but that.”

Kell was instantly at his mate’s side. “Alana, what is it? You are trembling. Ren has always had our best interests at heart. You can trust him.”

Alana looked up at her mate with tears in her eyes. “You don’t get it. I trust him, but he warned me. I was trying to avoid this. I never wanted this.”

Kell ran a finger over Alana’s face. “What is it, baby?”

Alana turned toward her druid sisters. “Ren is going to use his life force. He is something more than he was before he was fused with Thorn. He has been building power and strength, but I didn’t understand what for. He plans to sacrifice himself for Adara. For us.”

Legion growled. “There has to be another way. He has already given us everything.”

Alana’s face went white. “Ren loves us. He considers us his pack, but Thorn is more than a son. They were connected for so long Ren would rather die than face a world where Thorn doesn’t exist. Thorn and Ella’s child is...” Her voice broke.

Legion ran a hand through his hair. “There must be another way.”

Tempest recalled all the nights when Thorn had stayed with her and Daisy. When Daisy had felt ill, and Thorn had healed her. She hadn’t known about Ren then, but when she learned of him, she understood Daisy’s fascination with the other wolf they had lived with. “We can’t sacrifice Ren.”

Alana nodded. “I agree. I don’t think Adara would agree to do this. She loves Ren. He has become part of her world.”

Legion turned to glance at the tunnel. “Thorn is coming. Ella is with him.”

Tempest shuddered. “Does he know about Ren?”

Legion shook his head. “I have not communicated with him since the rest of us entered the tunnels. He is angry, though.”

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