Shock

Shock
"You're letting me go?" I asked, shocked.

"We cannot stop what has been set in motion," he said sadly. "But we can prepare you for the journey."

From his robe, he pulled out a small crystal charm shaped like a snowflake. "This will help you control your skills. As a hybrid, your powers are unstable—part ice from your shapeshifter blood, part fire from your vampire blood, part earth from your werewolf blood, and part air from your witch blood."

He put the pendant around my neck. Immediately, I felt my powers settle, the constant burn in my chest easing.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"Raven will go with you," Elder Kota continued. "She knows the way."

Raven looked like she wanted to object but nodded instead. "When do we leave?"

"Tonight," I said. "We don't have much time."

Hours later, Raven and I stood at the opening to the Ice Road—a narrow tunnel carved into the base of the mountain, its walls glittering with frost.

"Are you sure about this?" Raven asked as we prepared our packs. "Once we step onto the Ice Road, there's no turning back."

"I'm sure," I said, though fear knotted my stomach. "The other hybrids need to know the truth before it's too late."

Raven looked unconvinced but followed me into the tunnel. We had walked only a few steps when a weird hum filled the air. The temperature dropped suddenly, making even my half-shapeshifter blood feel cold.

"Something's wrong," Raven whispered, her breath making clouds. "The Ice Road shouldn't be this cold."

A wind picked up from nowhere, bringing whispers that made no sense—fragments of words in a language I didn't recognize.

Then I saw it. At the far end of the tube, a crack had formed in the air itself. Through it shone a light that wasn't light—more like the lack of everything, a nothingness that hurt to look at.

"The Void," I breathed. "It's breaking through here too."

"We need to go back," Raven urged, pulling my arm.

But before we could turn, a figure stepped through the crack. Tall and elegant, with skin like polished obsidian and eyes that held galaxies.

"Kira," it said in a voice that echoed weirdly. "Third of the seven. We've been waiting for you."

"Who are you?" I ordered, trying to hide my fear.

The figure smiled, showing teeth that glowed like stars. "I am what comes before and after. I am what waits beyond the Void."

"Run!" Raven yelled, shifting into her raven form.

But black tentacles shot from the crack, wrapping around her wings. She screamed, a sound no bird should make.

"Your guardian cannot save you," the figure said, moving closer. "None of them can. The shapeshifters have hidden the truth from you, little mix."

"What truth?" I asked, backing away.

"That you're not a key," it said. "You're a sacrifice."

The figure reached out one long, impossible finger and touched my brow. Images filled my mind—the seven hybrids lying dead on seven altars, their blood feeding the thrones. The five towns burning as the barriers between worlds collapsed.

And something huge, ancient, and hungry crawling through the widening cracks.

"That's not true," I gasped, falling to my knees. "We're meant to stop the Void, not feed it."

The figure laughed, a sound like breaking glass. "You were made to die, Kira. All of you. Your blood is the final key."

I clutched the crystal charm Elder Kota had given me, feeling it pulse against my skin. With a surge of desperate force, I pushed back against the visions, clearing my mind.

"No," I said, standing up straight. "I don't believe you."

Something flashed in the figure's star-filled eyes. Fear? Surprise?

"Then see for yourself." It waved a hand, and the tunnel around us changed.

We were suddenly standing in a vast hall I recognized from my visions—the throne room in Ravenshadow City. Six hybrids stood in a circle, hands joined. The seventh throne stayed empty.

"Kira!" called one of them—a woman with dark hair and golden eyes. Elara, the first combination. "Don't trust what it shows you! We need you here!"

The figure grabbed my shoulders, its touch burning cold. "Choose, third blend. Join them and die, or serve me and live."

Behind me, Raven cried out in pain as the tentacles cinched around her.

I had seconds to decide, with no way to know which road led to salvation and which to destruction.

"I choose—" I began, when suddenly the pendant at my neck burst with light.

The figure shrieked, releasing me. The vision of the throne room disappeared. The crack in reality pulsed, spreading with each beat.

And through it stepped a child with eyes like midnight, her small hand stretched toward me.

"Hello, sister," said the seventh mix. "It's time to come home."