First And Last

by Stacey Kennedy

  My brows rose in shock. I couldn’t have heard her right. Never in a million years, when I began this conversation, did I expect to hear anything like this. “How do you know my mother?”

  Her eyes glistened and a confident look crossed her face. “Tyrianna was Fae. Well, part Fae, actually.”

  A loud bark of laughter erupted from my mouth, the only response I could manage. “Now this is a bit farfetched. Tyrianna was a witch who lived in the Otherworld.”

  “You’re right, she was perceived as a witch. That is only a half-truth. It took more years than you could imagine to produce Tyrianna. Fae intermixed with witches, over and over again, to produce the right level of magic within them. Equal parts Witch and Fae.”

  My jaw dropped.

  She either hadn’t seen my shock or just ignored it. Whatever it was, she continued, “Tyrianna had the perfect levels of both kind within her and it provided just the right being to birth you. We sent Tyrianna to live with a witch who held more Fae Magic in her than Elemental—purposely kept her true identify from her. When she was old enough to begin to train as a witch, her memory had been altered, and she believed she was orphaned and because of that was sent to live in the Otherworld.”

  A scowl began to form on my face.

  Aaliya noticed and a worried expression crossed her face as she quickly added, “As much as it may have been wrong to keep the truth from her, it was a necessity to see that there was no interference.” She took a deep breath and smiled. “From there, fate fell into place perfectly and brought your mother, Tyrianna and your father, Drake together. Then, the long-awaited mixed supernatural was born.”

  “Wait…hold on…just wait a friggin’ second.” I squeaked. “Are you telling me I’m part Fae?”

  “You’re as much Fae as you are Guardian and Witch.” She cocked her head, gave me an intrigued look. “Does this surprise you?”

  I pondered that for a moment and looked around to the others who sat before me. For the first time, I recognized the power that came from them. I could feel it emanating off everyone here. I was just like them. This was the source of the light. “Actually, no it doesn’t.”

  She gave a firm nod of acknowledgment. “The levels needed to be exact for you to inherit the Guardian power within you as well. If the Witch power was too strong, it would block the Guardian power from evolving. If the Fae was too weak, then it wouldn’t give the strength for the Guardian power to develop.” She smiled softly. “You see the dilemma we faced.”

  “Geesh, yes, I do.” Still, I felt so lost. What did this all mean? “So what’s the deal with the mixed breed thing? I mean, why was it so important?”

  “It’s a combination of two elements found in the original Supernaturals, Guardians and Witches. The pure essence of White Magic combined in one being, the closest relation to the power that existed in God.”

  I flatly ignored that comparison and moved on. “What about vampires and weres?”

  “Vampires are the undead. Humans turned into immortality, and weres are similar. They’re not inborn abilities and power. It began with a human that had been transformed.”

  “Oh,” was all I could think to say to that.

  “The vision I had spoke of the necessity to see that this youngling was brought into the world because she would complete the final act to ensure the safety of the Earthworld, the job that I had started. To close off the Realm of the Dead and see that no evil ever escaped it.”

  So simply put, but obviously, not so easily done. “Why did you go to all this trouble to produce me, if you could just close off the realm yourself?” She opened her mouth, but the answer came to me right as I voiced the question. “Because the vision told you to produce me, but nothing about closing off the realm, right?”

  She nodded.

  As I processed all this, a realization came to me. “I’m taking it this is why my magic is so strong?”

  “Your Fae magic will work together with the Elements gifted to you. That is why when you ask anything of it, it’s there to protect you. You’re not limited by restrictions, which is how Fae magic works. Whatever you need of it, you only have to ask.”

  Well, guess that made sense as to why I held skills most witches didn’t. We sat in silence as I ran the conversation back through my mind, and after some time, there was only one thing I still questioned. “Do I have family here?”

  “Not anymore, I’m sorry to say. Your grandmother was a Witch, this is true, and your grandfather was Fae. That was one of the repercussions of this process. The mother died after childbirth. It’s just too straining on the body. Your grandmother was willing to sacrifice her life for this cause.”

  I gulped. That took one brave witch to face death right after giving birth. Would I have done the same? I wasn’t so sure.

  “You did for some time have a family line, but Fae only live a short existence of a hundred years or so. Our power grows as we near death. We needed to use powerful Fae to pass on the powers, so since, your grandfather was near his death when he mated with your grandmother, he died shortly after. He was the last in his blood line.”

  “When did he die?” I whispered.

  “Twenty-three years ago.”

  My heart plummeted. To meet another blood relative again, my heart longed for that. I learned long ago, life wasn’t always fair and there was no sense wishing for something different.

  Something didn’t make sense. She said Fae beings died, but she was around since the very beginning. “Why have you lived so long?”

  “It’s only those of royal blood line who are everlasting.”

  Well, that settled that. All eyes watched me as I sat and processed. A thousand things ran through my mind, moments in time that brought me to this spot. Suddenly, a realization came to mind and one I couldn’t ignore. One face stayed present in my mind.

  The look! An expression of love that passed through violet eyes. It was so obvious.

  Well, now it was. “Ember was the witch who cared for my mother, wasn’t she?”

  Aaliya smiled.

  Then, the air shimmed, a flash of light erupted and Ember stood directly in front of me. “Bah, don’t do that.”

  Ember laughed at my loud outburst and glanced around a moment. Clearly, she was confused if her wide eyes said anything about it. She looked back at me. “Trust me, this surprises me as well. The last thing I remember was being attacked by a whole slew of pissed off witches, and now, I’m here with the Fae.”

  It didn’t matter that Ember wasn’t blood related, she was the one who raised my mother and that made her family. Without a seconds thought, I flung myself at her and gave her a huge hug.

  Instantly, she wrapped her arms around me, so tight. “You’ve obviously told her.” Aaliya answered, “Yes, she knows it all.”

  Just like that, it all began to make sense. All the little unknowns that surrounded this whole event started to fall into place.

  Zia had said Ember knew more than she expected her to. Now I knew it was even more than we thought. She had said it herself, she knew something was happening, but had no way to stop it. I backed away to watch her expression. “It was you, wasn’t it? You’re the one who contacted the Detectives, told them this was happening?”

  “It was my way of helping,” she whispered.

  I lowered my arms, gave her a hard look to grasp all this. “Okay, just so we’re on the same page here. You’re part Witch and Fae, but within you the Fae is stronger. That’s why I’m in the situation and not you, right?”

  She nodded. “Yes, that’s true.”

  “Explain then, why I saw the vision of you banishing the Demon Lords. You obviously attempted to send them back, but what’s been told to me said that you wouldn’t have been able to even if you tried. So, why put yourself in that situation?”

  She dropped her head, ashamed. “When the Demon Lords came back through, I was left with no choice but to try. I was a part of the Otherworld and m
y loyalty to them needed me to act. I couldn’t ignore the danger.”

  “So, you acted on your own accord?”

  “I did,” she replied with a nod. “Being part Fae gave me the ability to draw runes just as it does you.”

  Well that explains why I held the ability. It’s a gift given to the Fae. Which told me how little we really knew about them and they did a damn good job at keeping their existence a secret.

  Ember continued, drew me from my thoughts, “Aaliya never came to me with a vision of the future, but it was because there wasn’t any danger. I thought I was strong enough to do it. I thought…”

  Aaliya reached out to her, placed a hand on her shoulder. “You did well, Ember. You sent them back to the Realm of the Dead. The Otherworld was safe because of you.”

  Ember sighed quietly. “I wish I could’ve done more, then, this situation you find yourself in wouldn’t be happening. But because I didn’t have the magic that was needed, I couldn’t succeed in fighting against Satan’s draw.”

  She looked completely brokenhearted, not just that she failed but because of her inability to close the realm, I now found myself facing.

  My heartstrings tugged.

  I grabbed her hand, flooded her with every memory I had in my life. Every event and little piece, even things she probably had no business seeing, but I needed her to understand and this was the best way to show her.

  When the memories stopped, her eyes opened with clarity and hope. “You see, there was nothing you could have done to stop this moment because it was meant for me. I realize that now. It wasn’t yours to stop. It is mine.”

  “Not you alone,” a deep voice said behind me.

  I glanced over my shoulder to see a stealth-looking man vastly approaching. His hair was a tint of blue, his eyes a deep silver with ears slightly pointed at the ends. Nothing of him resembled a human. He was as mythical of a creature as I’d ever seen. And I knew why that was. He wasn’t disguising his appearance.

  When I looked back to Aaliya, she had chosen to reveal herself as well. She looked similar to before, but now her eyes were a little bigger, filled most of her face, and her ears had a similar point.

  My gaze swung to Ember, even she had changed, but her features still looked more human than Fae, even with the glow and points to her ears.

  “This is Noeth,” Aaliya introduced. “He is my son.”

  He bowed respectively.

  “Well, I have to say, I like this look of you all better.” They were the most beautiful creatures I’d ever seen, including the handsome Noeth beside me. “You’re all so pretty.” It was their eyes really. They were so big and mesmerizing.

  A thought surfaced that sent a wave of worry to pool in my gut. “I’m going to still look like me, right?”

  The crowd laughed and it sang across the wind.

  “Yes, you will. You’re only part Fae,” Aaliya explained. “Just the power lies within you.”

  Phew! I realized then how my words must have sounded. Not wanting to insult them, I added, “Not that I wouldn’t mind, but I’ve kinda grown used to my look.”

  “As I was saying,” Noeth interrupted, clearly not fond of small talk, or maybe he just thought my conversation was not worth continuing. “You won’t be alone. Those of your kind are waiting for you to return and I will join you.”

  My brows rose. “You will?”

  “As I told you before, it wasn’t until recently that I discovered just how important you are. A vision has shown me the full truth of the power you hold.” Aaliya replied.

  I waited for her continue. She didn’t. I laughed awkwardly. “Sorry, am I supposed to say something here?”

  She nodded.

  I mulled that over a moment, glanced around at the others, hoping they could give some clarity, since I had no idea what she wanted me to say. After a few agonizing minutes, I gave up trying. “Er…sorry I’ve got nothing.”

  Her large baby blues bore into mine, full of knowledge and wisdom. “You do know. It lies there within you. It’s what you’ve wanted for so long and what you know you’re capable of doing.”

  Minutes passed as I searched for an answer. A reason to give her. Did I know what I wanted? Sure, I wanted this situation over, but could tell that was not what she meant. Was there something more I wanted?

  Slowly, but surely, the answer became crystal clear in my mind. How had I not seen this immediately? I did know exactly what I wanted and the truth was there the entire time. I’d even said it, time and time again.

  I gasped, my eyes wide as a hand went over my mouth. Could it be possible?

  Aaliya smiled, a bright grin that sent the glowing aura around her to erupt into a bright light. “That’s right, Nexi. Now, there are two things you must know before we do this.”

  “What are they?” I asked urgently.

  “I’ll need to stay connected to you to protect our realm. The last and very most important thing you cannot forget…not everyone will be safe. Protect those who need it.”

  I will never forget…

  Chapter Fifteen

  My feet hit the grass of the Underworld. Everything from there happened slowly. Aaliya smiled while she held my hands tight as the world around us erupted back into chaos.

  Screams and magic came from every angle around. The sky was alight with war.

  Kyden’s roar and panic instantly captured me. I slowly turned my head to see him in the state I left him, charging toward me with the Demon Lords rapidly approaching. His expression turned from fierce to one of blatant confusion as he saw Aaliya in front of me.

  Beside me, Noeth drew a bow from his back, which seemed to appear out of thin air, and began blasting the demons with arrows, sending a bright flash to graze through the air.

  Aaliya squeezed my hand. My gaze returned to her and I smiled. It was time.

  I released one of her hands and drew the rune. It only took seconds for me to finish the Alpha-Omega symbol and lock myself into the rune. Time seemed slow even further. The loud screams around me seemed timeless.

  “Primoris quod permaneo,” I chanted, closed my eyes and let the words blend together and draw on the source of power from those words, what they really meant. This was the symbol of God and all that is good. I allowed myself to believe I was speaking to him and allowed his strength to envelope me.

  Suddenly, wind began to stir, but I never opened my eyes. My hair whipped around my face but I never stopped chanting. Then, a bright light that resembled the orange sun flashed behind closed eyes, followed by a loud bang that brought complete quiet.

  My first thought was, holy shit, it worked, and I got the Latin right. Then I thought about the fear of what I was about to face. It was entirely black here. No walls or burning molten lava, just black emptiness. It was far worse than anything I could’ve imagined to be surrounded by nothing, it was cold and downright scary.

  Once I recovered from the horrifying hollowness also came the reminder of who I was about to meet. The Devil.

  Just as that fear came forth, the presence of someone near floated around me. I’d been expecting a being that resembled a human or some scary-ass mythical creature with horns to be standing before me, but there was nothing here. No visible person.

  He was here, though, I could feel him all around me. The darkness closed in. My breath caught and throat tightened, fear stole any sane thought in my mind.

  Then, he spoke. “Who dares to enter my realm?” His voice was everything evil is—rich, deep, and scary as hell.

  I gulped deeply to find even a smidgen of bravery. It did come as a relief that I couldn’t see him. The visual of things could sometimes be far scarier and much more real than not. Not seeing him made him less threatening—less powerful.

  “Nexi Jones,” I responded without a shake to my voice. Pretty impressive, I thought. It seemed the appropriate answer. Saying, Guardian, Spirit Witch and Fae, just seemed a bit long and I really wasn’t up to
small talk with the Devil.

  “Why have you come?” he demanded.

  Hmm, how to put this. “Well, to be honest, I’m not actually quite sure. I know that I’m here to send the Demon Lords back and close off the realm, but the other part just hasn’t presented itself quite yet.”

  He laughed and evil poured around me.

  That was enough of that, thank you very much. I quickly began. “Quondam patefacio.”

  The Devil snickered, stopping my words. “It will not be that easy for you, witch.”

  “First of all, I’m not just a witch. Second, I had to at least try, now didn’t I?” Of course, I wasn’t sure it was going to work. Life was never that easy, but didn’t mean I’d never catch a break.