LORELEI

West Incendia

Late Rainrise

The earth shook under Lorelei's feet. She struggled to keep her footing and held onto Kane as they continued toward Csilla. Lorelei had known the scream came from her, but she was afraid for what they'd find when they reached her. She'd heard a wail like that once before in her life, back in Port Barlow when a woman had found out her husband didn't survive a storm at sea.

As they got closer, Lorelei could see Csilla, but she was on the ground, holding something in her arms. Someone.

"Oh no," Kane said, as they stumbled to a stop.

Arius was on his knees in front of Csilla, both their gazes on the person in Csilla's arms.

"Flynn..." Tears pricked at Lorelei's eyes. "He's..."

"He's gone," Csilla cried, holding him close.

The ground continued to shake, smoke billowing from the volcano's top. Lorelei glanced around; the fog now completely gone. Seraphina and Rosalina ran toward them. But where was Nara? She finally found her back where they'd started, next to someone hunched over on the ground. She looked past them to the hooded emberbloods lying motionless on the ground.

The ritual must have been successful.

"It's Magnus," Lorelei said. "He's coming."

The ground shook violently, causing them all to fall to the ground. An explosion ripped through the air and the quaking suddenly stopped. Lorelei's gaze went to the volcano. Lava spewed from its top.

"What is that?" Kane asked from the ground next to her.

She looked closer and watched as something flew out of the volcano. It spread its wings, lava flinging off of it in all directions. A roar split the air as it stretched its neck.

"A dragon," Lorelei whispered, half-terrified, half-amazed. Her mother's stories had included ice dragons, but never any born from flame. She only knew they were locked away in Limbo like the rest of creatures.

But now it was free.

What else was slipping through the cracks at that moment?

"We have to go," Kane said, rising to his feet. Lorelei stood up with him "Now."

The dragon's wings completely unfurled as it made an arc, circling around toward them. Arius tried to get Csilla to stand up.

"Csilla," he pleaded. "We have to run. It's coming."

"I'm not leaving him," she said, her face as emotionless as stone.

"You'll die," Arius said, his voice pained.

"I said I'm not leaving him!"

Kane pulled at her arm to run with him, but the moment Lorelei turned, they were greeted with a wall of flame.

"Where do you think you're going?" called a familiar voice.

Lorelei slowly turned around. Jaron stood there; his hand splayed as he spread the wall of fire until it made a complete ring around the entire area. He walked toward them, motioning Rove and others to follow him down.

"You too, little archer," Jaron said with a smirk. Nara followed behind him, her eyes never leaving the back of his head. They descended down the small hill as the dragon flew toward them, steam rising off its massive wings.

Lorelei gripped Kane's arm as the dragon came closer. They were sitting ducks with nowhere to run. She held her breath as the dragon's shadow loomed over them, gusts of wind striking them as it beat its wings. Instead of attacking them, it came to a landing behind Jaron. Rove and the others scuttled out of its way, fear widening their eyes. Nara ran over to them, falling to her knees beside Csilla.

But Jaron only turned and walked toward the dragon.

Its obsidian scales reflected the sunlight, and steam still rose from its body. Eyes the color of flames watched Jaron closely as he neared, his hand reaching forward and resting on the scales.

"Beautiful creature, isn't it?" Jaron asked, looking over his shoulder at them. "Wingspan longer than any ship. Scales tougher than any armor. Flames hotter than any emberblood's."

He turned around completely and clasped his hands behind his back. He still looked like Jaron with his short-cropped hair and his dark eyes. His voice still sounded like Jaron's, even and crisp. But the over-confident smirk that played on his lips was not his own. Lorelei had seen it before in Limbo.

Magnus had been successful in using Jaron as his vessel.

"Welcome to the New Realm," Magnus said. He took a deep breath as if inhaling the scent of his burning flames surrounding them. Everyone remained silent, even Rove who usually had plenty to say. "I am truly honored that you would travel all this way to witness my second-coming."

Magnus's gaze roamed over the area, over everything, stopping over the line of sacrificed emberbloods for a moment. "I knew it would be easy, but I didn't expect it to be this easy. They were all given such a remarkable gift, yet so easily gave it up." He laughed. "All for the glory of serving me. Such simple mortals."

The emberbloods remained unmoving, not even a breath rising out of them. They'd not only given their magic, but their lives.

"And Jaron." Magnus raised his arms at his sides as if he were showing off new armor. "Maybe the easiest of all."

Lorelei thought about the Jaron she knew from their voyage. The one who never treated her cruelly despite their circumstance In another world, in another scenario, would they have been friends?

She glanced over at Nara, who was seething while she sat with her arm around Csilla, watching Magnus parade Jaron's body around.

"He didn't ask for power or riches." Magnus chuckled. "I only had to promise a reunion with his long-lost brother. A brother who has been dead this entire time."

With his last words, Magnus flinched like something had stung him. His face paled and he swallowed, then shook his head like he was trying to get water out of his ears.

Lorelei had seen this same type of reaction from both Rhoda and Jaron when they heard Magnus's whispers. There was a chance that perhaps Jaron was still in there with him. Perhaps after hearing the truth about his brother, he was fighting against him. This, however, would mean that Jaron was trapped inside of him, aware of everything, but unable to move his own body.

Lorelei stood up, unable to listen any longer. "Jaron helped you!" she yelled at Magnus. "He had such faith in his god. Is this how you treat those who serve you?"

"Ah, it's the Stormblood," Magnus smiled at her. He seemed pleased to see her. She wasn't sure why considering she kicked his ass the last time they'd met. But this time it was different. This time he was in her realm. "I've kept my eye on you. You've made real progress since your time on Crossbones."

"I am stronger now," she said.

His smile stretched even farther. "You are. You've learned how to control the wind and I've witnessed what you can do with lightning. You've hurt people, even killed." He stopped for a moment, eyes narrowing like he was recollecting. "You still have much to learn, but you will be a great asset to my army."

"Army?" she spat out, the very idea leaving a terrible taste in her mouth. "Why would I join your army?"

"Think about how powerful you felt when you learned how to fill the sails with wind," he said, taking a step closer. "Think how strong and useful you felt when you fought those men with magic of your own." He continued walking toward Lorelei, eyes on her, tone convincing. "I know your lightning frightens you, but imagine your power when you learn to fully control it. Imagine what it will feel like to be truly unstoppable. No one to tell you what you can and can't do. Join me and you will feel no greater power. You will never feel useless again."

Kane suddenly stepped in front of her. "This is what he does, Lorelei. You know this. He makes promises so that he can use you as his tool." He moved to withdraw his sword, but gripped at his shoulder instead. He fell to the ground, groaning in pain.

Lorelei knelt down and tried to help him back up to his feet again, but he didn't have the strength. He could barely even lift his head. The black veins crept farther, inching up his cheek to the corner of his eye. Her heart started to race faster as she watched him writhe.

"You could save him," Magnus said, pulling her attention back to him. He gazed down at Kane, eyes lingering on the infected veins. "He doesn't have long. He was poisoned by the sword of a lost soul that escaped Limbo. The poison will soon take over and he will die."

"How?" Lorelei asked frantically. "How can I save him?" She couldn't save Flynn or Jaron from their fates, but if she could save just one person. If she could save Kane...

Kane groaned, saying something in protest, but she ignored him.

"Join me," Magnus said, simply. "Join me and I will save the pirate."

"No." Kane's voice was strained, like he couldn't get enough air. "Don't do it, Lorelei."

Lorelei had once been helpless as she waited under the floorboards while her mother was killed. But now she was the one with the power. She was the one who could change things. Magnus was twisted and evil and his plans for her were still unknown, but they couldn't be good. Carnage and destruction would follow his path and she would play her own role in it. Magnus had manipulated everyone else, but Lorelei was completely aware of the decision she was making. She knew the consequences that would follow.

But it would be worth it.

Her mother was gone. Friends of hers, gone. She glanced at Csilla, still holding Flynn in her arms. The life was gone from her face. Blood smeared on her hands.

Not one more person. She couldn't let one more person die.

"I'm not worth it." Kane looked up at her from the ground, his gunmetal eyes pleading. "I would rather die and have you be free."

"And I would rather watch you live." She straightened her back. "A world without you is not one I want to see. I would rather watch the world burn than know I could have saved you and didn't."

"Lorelei, no!" Nara stepped forward. "Don't do this!"

Csilla snapped out of her stupor for a moment and called her name. Arius and even the twins joined in, but Lorelei drowned them out. The dragon behind Jaron growled in their direction, making them all hush again.

"I'll help you if you save Kane," Lorelei said. "You're a god, right? So, heal him."

"Of course," Magnus replied, a sly smile spreading across his lips.

"And you let all my friends live."

He hesitated. "Anything else?"

Her eyes fell on Flynn. "Bring back Flynn."

Magnus shook his head and made a clicking sound with his mouth. "That is something I cannot do, Stormblood. The boy's soul is already gone from this realm."

"Then allow us to take his body with us," Csilla said, her voice surprisingly even. Her eyes were swollen. "Let us give him a proper burial at sea."

Magnus sighed. "If that would please you, then so be it. Our partnership would be much better off as a mutual arrangement, don't you agree? Consider this a token of good intention, Stormblood."

He turned away from her and looked at Kane, he pulled at the air with one hand. The black veins in Kane's skin started to recede, disappearing completely under the collar of his shirt as color returned to his face. Kane blinked at Lorelei and stood up, fully healed from his wound, and relief flooded through her.

"Lorelei," Kane said, his eyes searching hers with a different kind of concern. "What have you done?"

Rove suddenly started to yell for his men to get in formation. "Grab any weapons and leave the dead behind. Bind the hands of the pirates behind their backs."

Lorelei spun back around on Magnus. "You said they would go free!"

He waved his finger at her. "I said they would leave. We said nothing about freedom." He looked past her toward Rove. "I did agree to them taking their dead friend, though." He pointed to Kane and Arius. "Let those two carry the dead man. But watch them closely in case they try anything."

Kane took one long last look at Lorelei before joining Arius at Csilla's side. Lorelei couldn't watching as they pulled Flynn from Csilla's arm, leaving her looking down at the ground instead.

The entire land was barren, its soil brittle and dry, not a sign of green the entire time she'd been there. She glanced out at the white trees of the forest, no sign of life clinging to their dead bark. The destruction Magnus had left behind when he first was in this realm.

"It's time to go, Stormblood," Magnus said.

But her feet wouldn't move.

She'd done what she had to do, she told herself. Anything to keep her family safe. She took a step forward.

Jaron's question echoed in her mind, just as vivid as the day he'd asked it.

If you were promised everything you ever wanted, would you do what needed to be done?

If it meant protecting those she loved.

She'd watch the world burn.