Chapter 71 Chapter Seventy-One - Amelia
I look up as the eyti surround me. I begin fighting them off once again, when suddenly dark, stormy clouds fill the sky roaring with thunder as bolts of lightning strike like the sky itself has become enraged. At the same time, I feel the earth shake far more intensely than it did before. I look out towards the battling Gods, and as I do I realise something has gone terribly wrong. Two Gods are missing, and the one they call Jartre is staring down Azadou, his eyes completely blacked out with silver and shining with an intense brightness as his entire body radiates a pulsating white energy. He looks completely out of it as he forms a tight fist and to my absolute horror, he punches the side of his fist against the air…shattering it!
“Did he just shatter thin air?!” Zara exclaims in shock.
I can’t even begin to describe what I’m seeing. It’s as though the air…or reality itself has been shattered like a mirror, creating prism-like shards throughout the air where his fist hit.
“JARTRE STOP!” Ezillus shouts, launching themself at him only to be thrown back by a shockwave of energy as Jartre effortlessly lifts his hand in their direction, not sparing them a glance.
Azadou starts throwing bolts of purple lighting at Jartre, only for Jartre to pull his arm back and throw a punch so devastatingly brutal it cracks not only the air in front of him but cracks Azadou’s bolts of lightning. The force of his punch creates a seismic blast so powerful it sends Azadou hurtling into the distance. Jartre reaches his hands out beside him, grabbing a hold of the air as if he were grabbing something invisible. The air buckles and moulds around his fists and as he twists them it’s like reality itself becomes twisted. Suddenly the earth rumbles feeling as though it's been tilted off its axis as several giant fissures open in the ground, stretching across the field and breaking apart as bottomless chasms open between them.
While those of us fighting struggle to keep our balance as the ground violently moves beneath us as if trying to shake all creation off it, I see the edges of the fissures breaking away. I let out a pained howl when several snaps hit me as I feel the loss of several pack members at once.
“People are falling into the chasms!” I hear Tyson shout through the link, his voice just barely reaching out over all the cries for help in my mind.
I look over just as I see a nagata nearby start to fall into the chasm. I spring up, pushing the pain aside and throw myself on their tail, taking a firm grip on it. I dig my feet into the ground and heave, pulling the rest of their body out of the chasm until they’re safe. We fall back on the wet earth, their green reptilian eyes looking at me with fear and gratitude.
“Thank…you,” he pants breathlessly.
“Don’t mention it.”
As I start to get up, their copper tail whips out, wrapping around an eyti who was about to attack me, and hurling it across the field. I take a relieved breath and give them a grateful smile as I get to my feet.
“Now it’s my turn to thank you.”
“Don’t mention it,” he replies with a smile, standing up on his tail.
The earth continues to shake and crumble, and the fractures in the air appear to be getting bigger, distorting the air around it, almost acting like a vacuum trying to suck everything into them. My mind is a chaotic scramble of panicked voices as I look to see Morrtemis attempting to restrain Jartre.
“LISTEN!” I shout through the link, “Find a sirna as fast as you can and have them teleport you to the other side of the barrier. Do it now!” I order, projecting every last drop of my Alpha Spirit in hopes no one is able to shake it off like Jane did. We’re not just fighting eyti anymore. We can’t compete with a God who has completely lost his fucking mind. If I don’t get these people out of here, they’ll be swallowed up by the earth. “Mei,” I call out through our link. “Give the same orders to your people. Have them find a sirna and get them transported as fast as possible. It’s not safe to stay here anymore!”
“I’m on it!”
I look around, flashes of glittering gold passing my vision as the irshiusts fight too fast for me to see. I look around frantically, spotting Yildiz in the fray. I run over to her as quickly as I can.
“Yildiz! We have to get everyone on the other side of the barrier, your sisters included.”
“We were just thinking the same. Start rounding everyone up, and we’ll do the same. I think I can gather up the sanguidae, now go,” she urges, disappearing before my eyes.
I run around the field, no longer fighting my way through eyti, but avoiding them at all costs. I spot Jasper and Lucas on the other side of the chasm, fighting side by side, which is a relief because this will save me time.
“Jasper! Lucas! Order your packs to pull back! Get them to the sirna as fast as you can!” I shout.
Their heads turn to me, glance at each other and nod in perfect synchronicity as they get to work rounding up their pack members.
“Amelia, where are you?” Marcus calls out.
“I’m in the centre of the field, making sure everyone gets to safety.”
“I’ve got everything covered on the east side, just be careful,” he urges.
Some of the eyti are scattering on instinct, running at the barrier only to disperse. Proving the barrier is still in effect. I fight my way through the remaining hoards and as I force my way through, I see my dad standing close by, dispersing the eyti surrounding him. We lock eyes, and as he gives me a relieved wolfish smile, another large tremor hits. The ground moves like a violent wave and I watch with wide, terrified eyes as my dad is thrown off balance and falls off the edge of the fissure.
“DAD!” I scream, running at top speed and throwing myself over the edge. I manage to grab a hold of his hand, but in the process am unable to counter my weight and become pulled over the edge with him.
I quickly reach out, grasping onto a tree root with my free hand as I hold onto my dad with the other. I groan as I look up and see the root start to give away, but I keep a tight grip on my dad and the root. I look down at my dad who has shifted back into his human form as he looks up at me.
“Hold on, I’ve got you!” I cry. “MARCUS! HELP! Dad and I have fallen into the chasm. I don’t know how long I can hold on!” I shout out to Marcus.
“I’m coming! Just keep holding on!” I can feel his terror and his panic, and in that moment, Zara pulls back our partial shift, moving back into my mind and lending me all her remaining strength so I can keep holding on.
“Little Alpha?” I look down only to see my dad looking up at me with a fatherly smile. “You have to let me go,” he says gently.
I look at him in horror, “Are you insane? No! I’m not letting you go, don’t even think about it.” As I say that the root gives way a little more and I have to quickly readjust to secure my grip.
“Amelia, listen to me! That root can’t support us both, if you continue trying to hold onto me we’ll both die.”
“No, we won’t! We just have to hang on until Marcus gets here,” I say stubbornly. “MARCUS HURRY!”
“Sweetheart, I am so proud of everything you have accomplished. You are twice the Alpha I ever was and have done more than I ever dreamed for you,” he gently says.
My lips tremble as tears begin to fall from my eyes as I shake my head furiously, “Dad, stop it. I am not letting go of you, do you understand me?” I say defiantly.
“You have to. You’re carrying my grandchild. You are carrying the future of this pack. You have to put them first. It’s okay to let me go,” he says with a kind smile.
The tears pour from my eyes uncontrollably as I tighten my hold on my dad’s hand. I look down at him through blurry eyes, shaking my head. “I can’t. I love you, Dad, I’m not losing you.”
“I love you so much. You were the best thing I ever did,” he says with a proud smile.
“Shut up! Don’t talk like that! You just need to hold on a little longer,” I say through gritted teeth as I feel my hold on the root starting to slip.
“Amelia! Don’t let go! Do you hear me?! I’m almost there! Don’t let go!” My mother starts frantically shouting in my mind.
“It’s okay, sweetheart. You’re going to be okay,” he says with a loving smile. “I’ll always be with you.”
I watch in horror as he grabs a hold of my wrist with his other hand and yanks himself free of my hold, letting go and plummeting into the chasm with a soft smile on his face.
“DADDY!” I scream, wailing uncontrollably as he falls out of sight, Zara howling in despair in my mind. I scream even louder, my tears feeling like acid in my eyes and my lungs burning when I feel my link to him snap, and at that same moment, the devastated, broken-hearted howl of my mother’s wolf can be heard in the distance.
I cry hysterically, grabbing hold of the root with both hands as I struggle to take in air, the empty feeling of not being able to feel his link shattering me more and more with each passing second. The sound of snapping breaks me from my despair as I look up to see the root breaking a little more, no longer able to support my weight. I stare at the root, panic rising as it finally snaps completely, and I feel that horrible falling sensation in my gut.
Just as the root gives out on me, Marcus dives to the edge of the chasm, throwing his hand out and catching me just as I start to fall.
“I got you!” he cries, currents of electricity bursting through my hand.
I look up at him in relief, grabbing a hold of him as he pulls me back up out of the chasm. Once I’m out I wrap my arms around him, breaking into a fit of sobs, burying my face in his neck as the loss hits me once again.
“I tried…” I sob.
He wraps his arms tightly around me, cradling me to his chest, his hands gently caressing my hair. “I know. I know you did everything you could.” He kisses my temple as he slowly rocks me back and forth, the sobs wreaking havoc on my body. I can feel his sorrow, his pain and his panic, but it all pales in comparison to the pain I feel having just lost my father.
Marcus gently pulls back, cupping my face in his hands, allowing me to see the tears in his forest eyes. “I’m so sorry, baby. I know you’re hurting, and it hurts me too. But this isn’t over. I’m sorry, but you need to push those feelings aside and get up and do what needs to be done. Can you do that? You need to be strong just a little bit longer and then I promise you can break apart and I will be there to put you back together.”
I look into his eyes, taking shuddering breaths as the tears fall uncontrollably from my eyes. I focus on controlling my breath and bringing my tears to a stop. I would give anything to break down and scream from the pain I’m feeling, but Marcus is right. If I give in to the pain now then my dad died for nothing. He gave up his life so I could take care of his pack, and that’s what I’m going to do.
I swallow hard, giving him a shaky nod. He places a kiss on my forehead and helps me to my feet, holding me steady as I gather myself.
“You’re right. Let’s get everyone to safety,” I say breathlessly, putting all my strength into focusing on the task at hand.
He gives me an encouraging smile, but quickly we’re shielding our eyes as a burst of blinding light radiates across the field.