From the Embers (The Born in Flames Trilogy)

by Candace Knoebel

  Zordon’s body convulsed as the immortality slowly drained from him, his light dimming and his face aging.

  “What needed to be done, Mother,” Zane spat at her from the other end of the glacier. He stood wiping his hands and turned to face her. “You better leave while you have the chance.”

  Fenn turned too, at a complete loss for words. Here was his mother, someone he had spent his whole life searching for, broken and lost forever.

  When the ice finished forming, Gwenevere ran for Zordon, her feet expertly gliding along the ice. She knelt down, placing her palm against his face and nestling him against her chest.

  Zane and Fenn cringed.

  “How is he to protect himself from The Fates if he is mortal?” she asked in a strange voice. Her eyes met mine, condemning me for taking his immortality.

  “How am I to destroy him if he is immortal?” I asked.

  “Fools,” she cursed. “The Fates are far worse than he could ever be. And now they are free.”

  “You don’t know what you are saying, Gwenevere. You are possessed,” I said, trying to make her see reason. “Look at what he has done to both realms.”

  “I am not possessed any longer,” she said, still petting Zordon’s hair. “That left me the moment he turned mortal. And he didn’t do that to the realms…you did.” She shot me a nasty look.

  “Unbelievable,” Zane cursed. “Let’s go before he wakes, Aurora. You can’t believe a word that comes out of her mouth. She’ll say anything.”

  Gwenevere looked up at Fenn and Zane, her face softening. “I love you, boys. You know that. But your father—” she broke off, looking back down at Zordon.

  “Shut up!” Zane yelled in her face. “I hate you with everything inside of me! You are full of lies.” Spit was flying from his mouth as tears pushed in his eyes. “Look at you!”

  “It’s not her fault,” Lexi said from behind us. Her eyes were puffy and red. I thought of Gabe and feared the worst.

  Gwenevere slowly lifted her head, shock in her eyes. “But you’re—”

  “I’m a Celestian, Mother,” Lexi explained, kneeling before her. She cautiously reached for Gwen’s hand, pulling it to her chest. “And I am very much alive. So please, come with us. We will work everything out later.” Her voice was hoarse and shaking as a tear slid down her cheek.

  “Lex,” Fenn said, putting his hand on her shoulder. She looked up at him, daring him to tell her otherwise. He relinquished his grip, glancing at Zane and shaking his head.

  “I know there is still good in you. I can feel it,” Lexi said, sounding like she was trying to convince herself. “You’re just lost right now because of the transition you had been put through. Because of what Zordon has done to you. You know who you truly love and it is not that man.”

  Gwen looked between Zordon and her children, a bit of her old strength returning to her features. I don’t know if it was seeing Lexi, or Lexi’s words, but she dropped Zordon’s head and backed away as if he were contagious.

  “We have to go,” she said at once.

  Adam ported back in, ready to attack. When his eyes registered the scene, he put his daggers away.

  Lexi smiled weakly at her mother and then wove a portal open. “Let’s go,” she said, carefully pulling her mother up to her feet. Gwen took her hand and followed her through.

  “Gwenevere,” I heard Zordon moan as I stepped up to the portal. I quickly conjured a vial and, while he was still wavering, slit the inside of his palm. He weakly tried to pull away, but I held him, tilting the line of blood to angle into the vial.

  “You will die if it’s the last thing I do,” I said to him when his eyes found mine. “Let’s go.” We jumped through the portal as the sounds of Zordon’s rage followed us.

  Chapter 21

  The Return of a Soldier

  AFTER ALISTER’S INCESSANT PORTAL SPRAYING and cups of healing tea, we found ourselves silent, standing around the Biblium, waiting for any sign that Gabe would pull through.

  My body ached and my mind wanted to shut down, but I knew I couldn’t. Not yet at least. I shifted back to my human form and used the warmth from my fire to heat back up before finding a seat to rest in. I didn’t want to tell them I was near depletion…not when I knew they had to be too.

  Lexi knelt down next to her mother who cradled Gabe in her arms. “I’ve tried everything,” Lexi said as she pressed her hands against his chest, her healing light surrounding him. Sparkling tears fell down her cheeks and dissipated into little bits of light. “He’s lost to us,” she whimpered, looking up at me for help. A scattered mess of wavy hair matted against her forehead from sweat and tears.

  I walked over to her, kneeling down by her side. “No, he’s not,” I said calmly. I rubbed soothing circles on her back. I didn’t want to believe that Gabe was gone. Not after the victory we had just achieved.

  Gwen sniffled and then leaned down to kiss his lips. She lingered there for a moment, her eyes squeezed shut as silent tears fell. It was the first time she had ever openly displayed her feelings for him in front of us.

  I bit my lip, holding back the need to join in with my own tears. Zordon could not have broken someone like Gabe. He was too pure…too honest.

  Gwen pulled her lips away from his, brushing a lock of his hair out of his eyes. “I love you,” she professed, her tears openly streaming. “You have to wake up now.”

  “I don’t know if I can undo this damage,” Lexi said, clutching on to his ragged shirt as her magic steadily poured into him. She lifted a shaking hand to catch her falling tears.

  “I know you can,” Zane said. He pulled a chair over to us and sat between Lexi and me, careful to avoid his mother. Lexi offered him a weak smile of gratitude.

  “You aren’t alone in this,” Fenn said, dropping to a knee in front of Lexi. He plunged a heavy hand through his damp hair, his nervous tick in full swing. “We will help you.”

  We all linked hands and gave what we had left to her. She closed her eyes, digging deeper into her powers. The power of her magic hummed through the air. The white light surrounding Gabe grew until it was blinding, and then it ceased. She watched Gabe, waiting for any sign of life.

  “All we can do is wait,” she said, a smidgen of hope in her voice. Her hands shook when she pulled back.

  “Fenn,” I said, wavering. He caught me before I fell over and helped me balance. I had no energy left after helping Lexi.

  “We all need to rest,” he said, looking from me to Zane, Lexi, and Adam.

  Zane used his chair to keep himself upright and steady, the fatigue obvious in the droop of his eyelids. “I second that notion,” he said with a feeble laugh.

  Gabe shifted ever so slightly, his pallid face wrinkled with sleep. “Gwenevere?” His raspy voice was barely audible. His lips were blistered and bruised. Cuts and dried blood covered his entire body. His eyes were dull and lifeless. Bones protruded from underneath his skin, which was covered in black and blue marks.

  Bile stirred in my stomach. I looked away, blinking back the moisture stinging my eyes. He didn’t deserve this. No one did.

  “I’m here, my love,” Gwenevere cooed, rubbing his hair. “I’m here.” He reached his frail arm up and used what little strength he had to pull her down to his mouth. Their kiss was desperate and full of hunger.

  Lexi looked up at Fenn with a huge, conquering smile and then back down at Gabe. Fenn squeezed my shoulder. I looked up at him, glad to see the brightness returned to his blue eyes.

  “How do you feel?” Gwen crooned. She brushed the hair that fell into her face back and continued to smile at him.

  He pulled his eyes from Gwen’s and gazed down at his own battered body, perking a blonde brow up at her. “Like hell,” he choked out and then started coughing. Fenn and I backed up to give them
room while Gwen helped him sit up. “How did I get here?”

  “We rescued you,” Fenn said, the pride in his voice melting my heart. “I can’t tell you how good it is to see you alive and well,” he continued, extending his hand to him.

  Gabe chuckled and took his hand, pulling him into a hug. He squeezed his eyes shut, cringing, and then patted Fenn on the back. “Thank you,” he said, looking over at me. “Thank all of you.”

  When Gabe turned toward Lexi, she threw herself into his arms. A light burst of air rushed out of him from the impact. “It’s good to see you too,” he said, cupping the back of her head.

  He was like a father to them. Someone full of goodness and light…and love for their mother. He was the last good thing about their mother.

  I turned away, refusing to let tears fall. “I’m going to contact Kaede and let him know what’s going on,” I whispered to Fenn. Really, I just needed a moment to breathe. He nodded.

  I walked over to the corner, inhaling deeply. It was supposed to help me calm, to relax me, but it didn’t do much of either. One breath wasn’t going to undo all that had happened, and all that still needed to happen.

  I pulled the crystal out from under my armor and connected my energy to it. “New Dawn.”

  Kaede’s voice responded almost instantly. “Progeny?”

  “We have Gabe and Gwen.”

  There was a brief moment of silence.

  “Are they…all right?” Kaede asked, sounding suspicious. They had been held captive for so long by someone so evil that none of us could believe they were okay without still feeling a twinge of doubt.

  “Physically, yes…well, sort of.”

  I heard a sigh and then, “Good. But keep a close eye on them, Aurora.” My thoughts flashed back to Irisi and the way he responded to her. I knew it was in the best interest of everyone to be on the safe side. Especially now that we were so close.

  “I know. I will be sending them your way with Adam. We successfully administered the elixir. Zordon is mortal.”

  Silence. “That’s wonderful, Aurora. You did it. You really did it.” I wasn’t offended by the fact that he sounded surprised. I was still surprised myself.

  “Once we get everything settled, we will begin the last quest. I will contact you then.”

  “We are ready. Lev has pulled through in ways that I didn’t imagine were possible. Our army is at its strongest right now. The Lyceum is filled to the brim with those who want to fight with you.”

  I smiled, feeling a bit of the weight lifting off my shoulders. Our army was growing. Zordon was mortal. “That’s great news, Kaede,” I said, choking back my emotion.

  “Get to work.”

  And then the connection broke. I couldn’t help but think of Astral and how he would feel when he learned that Gabe was alive and well. I felt a pang in my gut, wishing I could tell him myself.

  Fenn’s hand slid onto my shoulder and then squeezed. “Everything went well?” he asked, resting his chin on my head.

  “We just have one last thing to do.” I reached up to clasp his hand and then spun into him. Kissing him lightly, I ran my hands around the back of his head, my fingers devouring his soft hair. He rested his head against mine, inhaling my scent.

  Everything felt right for once. Although the end was near, I felt confident that I might actually survive it. I might see the other side of things.

  “Adam is going to take Gwen and Gabe to the Orient,” I finally said.

  “Why Adam?”

  “He can’t go any further,” Lexi answered for me. “Only our bloodline and Aurora can cross into the Hall. Iliana set the Stone for that. It’s a safety precaution.”

  He palmed his head and yawned. “Right.” I caught his yawn and laughed when he poked me in the mouth, ending my yawn early.

  Zane walked over to us, his hands in the pockets of his leather pants. I had to admit I was glad he was back with us, though I couldn’t say the same for Fenn.

  “Everything going good?” he asked awkwardly. Since we left the Orient Lyceum, there hadn’t been a moment to clear the air. And the air was thick between Fenn and Zane.

  “If you’re coming with us, then I think we should talk,” Fenn said, crossing his arms over his chest.

  Zane looked off to the side, chewing his lip. “About the—”

  “I know what happened,” Fenn said, cutting him off, “and I really don’t want to hear the explanation. I know why it happened. And no, I’m clearly not happy about it, but there’s nothing that can be done about it now. I just need to know that you are through with putting moves on her. That you know who she really wants.”

  “It won’t happen again,” Zane said, barely able to look Fenn in the eyes. He raked his hand through his hair, his shoulders slouching.

  “No, it won’t,” Fenn said. He sighed, relaxing his stance, and then looked over at me. Anger wasn’t an emotion he wore well. “Can I speak to my brother in private?”

  My brows screwed together. “Of course,” I said, backing away from them. I was just glad that they were at least speaking. I didn’t want to go forward with dead weight in the air.

  I walked over to Gabe and Adam. “I spoke with your father. You are taking Gwen and Gabe back. You will stay there and wait for us.”

  Adam nodded, his face wincing as he got up from his chair.

  Gabe slowly got to his feet, using Adam and Gwen for support. Alister swooped in behind them with a chair. “I have something for you,” he hooted, handing a small wooden cup to Gabe. He took it and gulped greedily. A stream of amber-colored liquid flowed down the sides of his mouth, dripping onto his shirt.

  “Honeysuckle tea mixed with healing herbs from my garden,” Alister said gleefully with a hoot. He rocked back and forth on his heels, clutching his monocle with one feathered arm.

  “Be careful,” Gwen heeded. “Your stomach is weak.”

  Gabe slowed his furious gulps and with shaky hands, handed the empty cup back to Alister.

  “Would you like more?”

  “Yes, please,” Gabe gasped, nearly out of breath. Already the bruises along his ribcage were beginning to lighten. Alister filled the cup from a carved wooden teapot and handed it back to Gabe. He eagerly took the cup, trying to control his slurps but still managing to slosh some of the liquid down his cheeks. It pained me to see him like this.

  “He should be ready to go after a few more cups of this,” Alister advised me, tilting his head down so he could see over his monocle.

  “I’m already feeling better,” Gabe rushed out above the rim of his cup. He looked directly at me. “It would be an honor to accompany you.”

  “Gabe,” Gwen advised cautiously, “I don’t think—”

  His head tilted in her direction, eyes softening. He reached out and caressed her cheek as they exchanged meaningful looks. “Really,” he repeated, “I’m okay.”

  Her hand stopped his on her cheek. “I am going back to the Orient. I can’t risk being found by Zordon again. Not after what happened to—” She stopped and looked up at me, shock registering in her eyes. “Oh my god, Aurora. Your mother…I’m so—” She broke off again, this time sobbing harder than before.

  Gabe pulled her into him, shushing her.

  I wanted to console her, but I couldn’t because honestly, I hadn’t come to terms with everything that had happened. How could I ever forgive her?

  “You have to come back with me,” she sniveled into Gabe’s chest. He continued rubbing her hair, but he watched me, waiting for my verdict.

  “I’m sorry but she’s right,” I said, “you can’t come with us. The Stone won’t permit it. The choice was taken from our hands by Iliana.”

  I hated saying no to him, but in a way I was relieved that the choice was taken from me. I couldn’t
trust him. Not yet. Not after what happened with Gwenevere. The blur between what had been her choice and what she had been influenced to do was too thin to leave to chance.

  Astral and Kaede would take care of them.

  He scooted forward in his chair, his body desperately trying to resume the strength of a warrior. Intensity ignited his aura, and he pulsed with pride. “I understand.” He forced a smile, but the disappointment shone in his eyes.

  “I guess this is the end of the road for us then,” Adam said, walking around Gabe and Lexi. He stopped in front of Fenn and me.

  Fenn stuck his hand out and Adam shook it. “Take care.”

  “You too, both of you,” Adam said. There was sadness in his eyes. He tugged on his mohawk, straightening it out.

  “We will meet on the battlefield, friend,” Zane said, extending his hand out. Adam shook it, finally smiling.

  “I can’t wait for the day,” he agreed wholeheartedly.

  “I need you to do something for me,” I said to him.

  “Anything,” Adam offered.

  “I need you to tell Astral that he was right. I needed to believe in myself in order for my destiny to be fulfilled. Tell him that I am going to finish this, once and for all.”

  Admiration shone in his eyes. “It is my honor,” he said with a slight bow.

  “Thank you again, Adam,” I said, hugging him rather than shaking his hand. He seemed slightly taken aback but quickly returned the hug.

  He looked at each of us once more and then waited for Gwen and Gabe. They said brief goodbyes, and then followed Adam through the portal. Weight lifted off my shoulders.

  “That was rough, but I’m glad he’s okay,” Fenn said. He inhaled and said, “I’m glad both of them are okay.” He examined my face.

  I nudged him. “I am too,” I said honestly.

  Zane snorted. He was perched against a desk, looking bored while whittling his figurine. It was Fenn. He worked on the face, detailing it.