Chapter 78 THE COVENANT RISES
CHAPTER 078: THE COVENANT RISES
Alaric does not wait for me to respond. He steps into my space and cups my face with his hands. Then he kisses me like it is the last time we will ever kiss.
"Remember me beloved " he whispers against my lips.
Then he starts to shimmer. His form shifts, becoming solid less real. Light starts to bleed through the cracks in his existence.
"Alaric wait—" I try to say.
He says "No more waiting. We have waited fifty years. That is enough."
He is dissolving. I can see through him now.
"I love you " he says one time.
Then he becomes silver light and flows into my chest. The impact drops me to my knees.
Alaric settles inside my soul. I feel everything. Two hundred years of loneliness searching for something he could not name. The desperation of finding me over and over only to lose me to death. The relief of having me for real.
His memories flood through me his abilities, strength, speed, eternal patience.. Most of all his love, overwhelming and absolute and mine.
I am sobbing I can not breathe through it.
"Thalira " Cassians voice says, gentle. "Look at me."
I do. He is smiling that grin. "My turn, firefly."
"Cassian please—" I try to say.
He says "No please no more begging, just acceptance." His hands ignite, golden flames dancing across his skin. "I have died one hundred twenty seven times this is one more."
"It is not the same " I say.
"You are right this time it matters " he says.
He becomes fire, phoenix flames that rush toward me like a tidal wave. I try to back but there is nowhere to go.
He crashes into me. I scream. Cassian burns into my soul. I feel his one hundred twenty seven deaths, every single one, the pain the fear, the desperate hope that this time he would stay dead and get peace.
His warmth floods through me his transformation ability, his resilience, his light.. Underneath it all his love, warm and bright and refusing to be extinguished.
I am on my hands and knees now barely upright.
"Two " Zev says quietly. "One more."
I look up at him amber eyes that have seen much.
"I am sorry " I gasp. "I am so sorry."
"Do not be this is mercy " he says. "I have carried a thousand nightmares, Thalira, peoples fears and horrors it is exhausting this is rest."
"Zev—" I try to say.
He says "Shh let me do this."
He presses his forehead to mine. Becomes starlight and shadow. The transition is gentler than the others he flows into me like water, like air like something
Zev settles into my soul. I understand, two hundred years walking other peoples dreams seeing their worst moments, their deepest fears carrying all of it until he could not tell his nightmares from theirs.
His abilities merge with mine, dream-walking, boundary-crossing seeing through dimensions.. Mostly his understanding, deep and profound and tired.. His love, quiet and steady and finally at peace.
Three fragments returned I can barely stand, the weight of them inside me is crushing, three lifetimes, three personalities, three loves, all pressing against my consciousness.
Kieran grabs my shoulders holds me upright. "One " he says. "The wolf."
"Are you ready?" I ask.
"No, but let us do it anyway " he says.
He does not dissolve willingly like the others the fragment tears out of him violently. Kieran screams, drops to his knees beside me his body convulses as the wolf rips free.
I can see it silver light shaped like a wolf it has been part of him since birth losing it is like losing a limb, a lung, his heart.
"Kieran!" I try to reach for him. The wolf is already moving.
It looks at him once something like love in its eyes then it launches itself at me.
The impact is brutal the wolf fragment tears into my chest. I scream along with Kieran.
It is not gentle, not willing it is being forced home. Fighting every step.. Eventually it settles, the wolfs strength floods through me its protection, its fierce loyalty, its bond to Kieran that transcends the fragment.
Four pieces returned I am whole and I am dying the power is too much four souls in one body four lifetimes, four loves, four essences that were never meant to merge.
I am burning from the inside out silver fire erupts from my skin not painful just overwhelming.
I can feel them inside me Alarics voice, "beloved you can do this " Cassians warmth, "Come on firefly, transform," Zevs wisdom, "Accept us let us in completely " the wolfs howl, protection, always protection.
I stop fighting let them in fully the transformation completes I rise from the ground lifted by power I do not understand silver fire surrounds me phoenix wings erupt from my back gold and silver feathers mixing.
My eyes shift between colors, silver to crimson to amber to gold and back I am WHOLE the Complete Phoenix and I can feel everything every supernatural being in a hundred mile radius every crack in reality every weakness in the Covenants prison.
"It is done " Oracle Mira breathes the chamber goes silent then the mountain shakes, not earthquake something worse reality tears open above us the ceiling disappears, showing sky that is bleeding darkness.
Seven massive tears split the air and through them the Covenant emerges they are worse than I imagined not beings forces, cosmic horrors that hurt to look at directly.
Malachus is void and control darkness that consumes light Syrax is corruption and possession writhing shadows with many limbs, Nethys is entropy and decay everything it touches ages to dust Kalrix is madness and chaos reality fractures in its presence Vorath is consumption and hunger mouths within mouths within mouths Selene is ice and stillness temperature drops until molecules stop moving Azrael is death and ending life itself recoils from its touch.
They float above Duskmoor like stars everyone is screaming, running, trying to escape but there is nowhere to run the Covenant has arrived and they are looking directly at me.
Malachus speaks the sound is nails on realitys chalkboard "There she is, the Complete Phoenix, the weapon we have feared for two millennia."
I rise to meet them phoenix wings carrying me into the air "You are too late I am whole now I can seal you permanently."
"Can you?" Malachus laughs, "You are barely holding yourself together four souls in one body you are fracturing already."
He is right I can feel it the fragments inside me pushing against each other they want to separate want to be individuals I force them to settle "I am stronger than you think."
"Then prove it " he says, he attacks, void energy slams into me I counter with phoenix fire the impact shatters buildings below reality bends we are matched.
I can feel the fragments abilities flowing through me Alarics patience letting me outlast him Cassians transformation adapting to his attacks Zevs dream-walking hitting him across dimensions the wolfs protection shielding me.
But I am one against seven the others join the fight Syrax tries to possess me I burn it out with phoenix fire Nethys touches my wing feathers age and crumble I regenerate them immediately Kalrix fractures reality around me I use Zevs abilities to navigate the chaos Vorath tries to consume my energy I feed it my fire until it chokes Selene freezes the air I burn hotter Azrael reaches for my life force the wolf snarls, inside me protective instinct deflecting death itself.
I am winning, actually winning, the Covenant is being pushed back then Malachus does something I do not expect he stops fighting, stops, floats there watching me "You can not win, Phoenix even
"Tell me " I say.
"Make them a part of the world. Burn them into the stars the sky, everything around us. They will not be destroyed. They will be the world. There, but they will not be able to touch anything."
"What will it cost me?" I ask.
"You will lose all your power. Every single bit of it. You will be human again. You will not be special anymore. No coming back to life no magic. Just life. Then you will die."
I think about this for a moment.
I will lose everything that makes me special. I will be normal.. I will be alive.
I can keep fighting. I will still die.
"What about the pieces of power inside me?" I ask.
"They will be set free when you let go of your power. They will go back to the world. You will not have to carry them."
I will lose either way.
If I do this I will be alive.
The world will be safe.
"I will do it " I say.
"Wait " Kieran says from the ground. He is still weak from losing his power. "If you become human we can be together. We can have a life."
I look down at him.
I can be with Kieran. We can have a normal life.
I can keep my power and be alone forever.
"I choose life " I say.
Lyrae nods. "Then let us finish this."
She shows me what to do. It is an scary technique.
I gather all my power inside me.
The pieces of power do not want to leave.. I make them.
"I am sorry " I whisper to the people I care about. "I am so sorry."
They understand me.
They let go of me.
I let go of all my power at once.
My special fire explodes outward covering the sky.
It catches the people and they are screaming and trying to get away.
My fire is too strong.
It takes them up up up into the air into space into the stars.
I watch them burn. I watch them change.
I watch them become patterns, in the sky. They are beautiful but scary. They will always be there watching,. They will never be able to touch anything.
The bad people are gone forever.
Me...
I am falling down.
My power is going away. I am becoming human again.
Luna tries to catch me with her magic. I am too far away.
I am going to hit the ground. I will probably die.
Then Kieran is there.
He jumps up. Uses the last of his special power to catch me.
We hit the ground hard. We are together.
"Did we win?" I ask, trying to catch my breath.
"Yes you won " Kieran says.
"Good " I say, feeling tired. "I am so tired, Kieran."
"I know, just rest " he says. "I have got you."
I pass out in his arms.
The last thing I feel is his heartbeat. It is steady and human and real.
We are alive.