Onyx stood on the edge of the balcony, looking out into the open world in front of her. Ruins from the war stood erect like skyscrapers screaming at the sky. The first light of dawn peeked through, cutting through the dark clouds and glinting across the jagged pieces of wood, broken glass, and shattered bodies littering the streets of Elsavior.

Despite herself, the tears rolled down her face with a command, streaking past the wounds on her face and falling underneath her jaw. Hurried breaths rushed in and out of her chest, her mind a foggy disaster that was distant from the reality in front of her. How did her world become this? This shattered, wasteland that she could not save.

Cool air whipped past her face, dried blood hardening on her fingertips. She looked down at her chest, her hands landing on the ruby necklace around her neck. Even through her dark mind, she could feel him there, trying to comfort her yet failing halfway. She sighed, running her fingers through her hair. The sound of the door opening was barely acknowledged as it opened, and Draco stepped through.

He watched her from a distant, her back turned against him, her head high up in the clouds as she relished in the last few rays of sunshine she would be seeing in a while. Without a word, he walked up to her, reaching out to squeeze her shoulder but hesitating last minute to tuck it away.

"Why did you pull away?" she asked, not turning back to meet his eyes. Draco cleared his throat, tucking his hands in his trench coat pockets. "You seemed to be in deep thought. I didn't want to bother you" he replied. She shook her head, scoffing. "Stop using that excuse. It's not valid" she retorted back, still holding on to the ruby necklace. She turned around to meet his gaze, the faint sunlight illuminating her from behind, a warrior on fire. "I went downstairs to check on the others" she spoke, her voice cracking. "Have you seen Alesandria and Azura? They're in shambles. Azura is barely breathing and God knows if Alesandria is alive. Everyone is broken. Everyone is battered. The whole world is tearing apart and it's all because of me."

Her whole body shook as she got stuck on those last few words. Tears rolled down her face, her cold demeanor melting. "It's all because of me." Draco watched her with torn feelings, his heart screaming to her but his body holding her back. Before he could comprehend what he was doing, Draco ran up and pulled her into his arms. She fought against his pull, her tears shaking her body and bringing her down.

Eventually, she broke and fell into his embrace, her gasp for air and throaty tears filling the dawn. Draco could barely comprehend what was going on, watching her with pain crossing his face. She held onto his shirt, sobbing into his chest. "I can't promise you a happy ending right now, Onyx" he whispered against her hair. "But I can promise you that you will make it out of this. All of you. You can count on that."

She nodded, sniffling as she pulled back and looked up at him. He wiped her tears away, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. His gaze went down to the ruby necklace around her neck, smiling at the jewelry. "Elsavior is falling apart. Hell, the whole Inner Circle is falling apart. Raebar is going to kill us all and we have no defense. We can't keep risking innocent lives just to protect ourselves. We can't."

"I know" he whispered back, pulling himself away from her. "I have resorted to my last option. We must wait and be prepared for Raebar's attack. I can't keep risking innocent lives. It's only us now." He caressed her fingers, letting go of her grasp. "I'm sorry to say but we do have to prepare for the worst. This is just the beginning."

Onyx chewed on her lip, her wide eyes blinking innocently. "There is no escaping this?" she asked. He shook his head, biting his lip. "No. But I have a plan. It's risky, dangerous, and it might gain some enemies and get me killed in the process, but it will put you and everyone else where they belong in the end. I will tell you and the rest of the court later, but you have to trust me on this."

"You're the only person I can trust right now. You and the court. I have only you guys" she uttered back. She looked down, wiping her face. She stepped away from him, looking over her shoulder. "I saw my mother, Draco" she whispered, licking her lips. "In my dreams. I've seen her in my dreams."

"The empress" Draco uttered, watching her as she sighed and nodded. "How is that possible?"

"I don't know. Something about breaking through the realms to reach me. She warned me about this. About all of this. She's been giving me hint after hint, foreshadowing my doom but I didn't heed her advice until now and I regret it. If I had just listened, maybe things would be different."

"What did she tell you?" Draco asked.

"She gave me a riddle. Puppets on strings move without a will. Those that deceive must bow and shrill. A kingdom of ash with an empty throne. Many will fight but only one will be set in stone. A blanket of darkness is coming your way. The road is long so don't be one to sway. The one who wears a silver blade will be as poisonous as nightshade. The Gods will be your friend and enemy. Make it rain fire and hell. But the devils underneath will bleed red and will never tell. Be careful, my love for death surrounds you. But the darkness around will never be undone."

Onyx turned back to Draco, biting her lip. "I dismissed those words. I rendered them useless not knowing that they held warnings to the demise ahead. I feel like such a damn fool" she whispered, looking down at her feet. "How can I overtake a kingdom when I can barely solve a riddle?"

"A lot has been on your plate. Don't cut yourself short" Draco whispered, curling a finger under her chin and lifting it so that their eyes could meet. "I'll help you. We all will." Onyx nodded, mustering a smile. "How's Falcon? How is he holding up?"

"He's wrecked. Azura has not awoken and he's been distraught. He hasn't left her side and he's been isolating himself from everyone. I understand. Seeing your mate suffer and not being able to heal them is one of the most heart wrenching things anyone can go through." Draco held back a few tears, clearing his throat. "I want to give him some time. Falcon can be irrational when he's emotional."

"I guess we're in the same boat then" Onyx whispered. "How about the others?"

"Orion is trying to hold everyone together. Castrin is wrecked. Raiyah is torn. Yongui is losing her mind over protecting her niece and nephew while dealing with Rheynoak and Sahara is distraught. She's trying to make sure everyone in the palace is alright while taking care of Seron. He and the other leaders were badly injured. Everyone is spiraling and I don't know what to do about it."

Onyx looked up at Draco, watching his jaw locking and his gaze stray from hers. She watched conflicting emotions cross his expression, his eyes pooling with puddles of tears. One rolled down his cheek, his hair falling in front of his eyes. "And, how are you?"

He took a deep breath, struggling to hold in his words. "Broken" he finally managed to spit out, not meeting her eyes. "I feel so broken and powerless. I can't protect those that I want to. I feel like an absolute failure to my parents, to my friends, and you."

"You're nowhere near failure to anyone" Onyx whispered, cupping his face in her hands. "Not to your friends, not to me, and certainly not to your parents. You've done everything you could, and you continue to do so. Don't say that." Despite her words, he shook his head, more tears rolling down his face. Silent sobs ran down his face, a hand curling around her wrist and holding on tightly.

Without a word, Onyx leaned in and kissed his cheek gently before wrapping her arms around him in a hug. "Thank you for everything you've done so far. We all appreciate it."

She smiled, wiping his tears away just as the door to her room opened again. Orion walked in, a worried look drawn on his face. In his hand, he held a letter tightly in his grip. Draco turned around, looking over to see his third in command and army guard standing in front of him. "Orion? What's going on?"

"It's a letter from Raebar, Draco," he said, passing us a look. "He's not waiting any longer. He's going to strike and we're going down with it."

"Draco, this plan of yours is suicidal!" Yongui slammed her hands against the dungeon floors, pushing herself to her feet to face the emperor. "You'll get all of us killed!" Her eyes were red and enraged, a frown on her face. "We should be preparing more warriors for battle!"

"I can't risk any more innocent lives Yongui! I just can't. This war was never between all of Elsavior and the desert tribes. It was between us and Rheynoak and it spiraled out of control!" Draco ran his fingers through his hair in agony, dragging his large hands down his face. "The rest of the castle staff will be evacuated to the Third Dimension. The population of Elsavior that have evacuated to Navidia will be relocated to the Cakauri Mountains in the Kingdom of Baru."

"That kingdom has been isolated for centuries. It's a wasteland, a desert" Sahara weighed in. Draco nodded, adding on, "and it's perfect for keeping an entire population hidden. The same will be done to the other Inner Circle Kingdoms. We will try to house as many citizens as possible. Offer them support and a place to stay while we fight this. Those that cannot afford to travel so far will be relocated to my estate in Serius. The magic barrier will protect them, and the house's magical properties will provide for them."

"You have this all thought out" Falcon commented, folding his hands over his chest. "Like you've been plotting this for a while. We're supposed to be your court, Draco. The people you trust the most. I understand that you're the emperor, but you cannot leave us in the dark like this. We're suffering too."

Draco looked up, meeting Falcon's eye with a respectful nod. "I know. It's just that a lot of this falls under my responsibility and my number one priority is to keep everyone safe. All of you mean the world to me and it would kill me to see any of you hurt."

"It's already too late for that, Draco. Some of us are hurt." Sahara nodded her head towards Azura and Alesandria who were still unconscious. "And there is nothing you can do to prevent any of tragedies that might happen along our way. But we are your court and we would die for this kingdom. It's our home and you are our friend above anything. Don't harbor all your responsibilities. Share it with us."

Draco sucked in a deep breath, looking around at his court. Deep in his chest, he felt a beaming sense of pride settle in his soul. If he were to die right now, he would happily go knowing he would be leaving behind an irreplaceable group of people who would have done everything to keep him alive.

"Thank you. Truly. I know this whole thing has been a mess, but you never once gave up on me and for that, I am grateful." Falcon got up from the ground, going over to throw his arms around the emperor. "No need to thank us. We should be thanking you" he said, patting his back. Draco nodded, holding on to him tightly. "And I am sorry about Azura, Falcon. I promise I'll contact Iredine to help. She'll know what to do" Draco uttered.

Falcon nodded his head, pulling back with a smile. "I know."

"Can you read the letter again, Orion?" Raiyah asked. "Just one more time."

Orion nodded, unraveling the letter once again. "Dear Emperor Draco Vaolcris of Elsavior, I have been kind for too long. While my being has been rotting away in between worlds for god knows how long, you have managed to strip the desert tribes of their great glory and prance around in your castles, forgetting that we were once united. Not anymore. With my soul fully restored into my body, I have made it my quest to destroy the Inner Circle into the wasteland it once was. No longer will your castles stand high. Instead, they will be swallowed underground with the bones of your loved ones. I have also been informed that you have two of my prized possessions and my bastard son who has failed to a legacy for himself. Return Onouxia and Lezandria to me at once along with my son or reap the consequences that will come with those actions if you refuse to do so. This isn't a warning. This is a declaration. I will tear you down along with the rest of the kingdoms. Rest well. It shall be your last. Signed, Raebar Casvionel."

"What a lovely letter" Sahara grunted, rolling her eyes. "He sure has a way with words. Have the other leaders received letters like this?"

"That would be my only guess. It can't only be targeted to me" Draco answered, running his fingers through his hair. He pulled at the ends, grunting and moaning with stress.

"Have you contacted the other leaders about this plan of yours?" Castrin asked, cradling Alesandria's body in his arms. Draco nodded, nibbling on his lip. "I'll be reaching out later today and we will begin to relocate the Inner Circle population to the Kingdom of Baru. It's going to take some time, but I hope that we can do this in about a week. Then we just sit back and let them attack us."

"And are you sure this plan is going to work?" Orion asked. Draco shrugged his shoulders, looking over to Onyx who nodded her head. "That's my hope. I'm pretty sure it will but the sacrifices that will be made to get there will be disheartening. That's the only danger" he said, looking up to his court once again. "I don't know what's going to happen in between all of this. I wish I could, but I don't."

"If you believe it will work, then I am with you" Raiyah spoke, standing up and walking over to her brother's side. She took his hand and squeezed his shoulders. "I'll always be with you."

"And so, will we," Orion answered back, getting up. He patted Draco on the back, smiling. "You've never let us down before and I don't think you'll start doing that now." He squeezed the emperor's shoulder. "So, I trust you. We all do."

"I would say this calls for a group hug, but I hate hugs" Sahara commented. Laughter went around the room, Falcon reaching out and grabbing Sahara's hand. "You called for it. Bring it in" he said, dragging her into an embrace. She groaned but obliged, beckoning the rest of her friends to join in. Draco laughed even through the tragedy, holding his friends close one last time before eternal darkness swallowed them all.

A/N: And that is the end of Chapter Forty Two!

Only a few chapters away until we reach the end! Happiness and sadness!

So as you all know, the coronavirus has been spreading like wildfire so my university has been forced to hold online classes until easter break when we can return on campus (hopefully). Even though I have online classes they don't begin until the 30th so I have a lot of time on my hands to hopefully finish publishing the chapters of this book so I can move on to The Shadow Heirs and the novellas.

As for now, all you be careful out there. Be safe, healthy, stay indoors, and wash your hands thoroughly. If you are sick, stay home and take care of yourself. Don't take this lightly. It can be very detrimental. Even though most healthy people with a good immune system usually bounce back, those with health ailments are struggling to recover! It's important to keep them in your prayers and practice safe hygiene and self-quarantine. For more information, make sure to go to the CDC website to receive daily updates on the coronavirus. Another way to keep yourself informed is to visit the website corona.help for daily updates worldwide!

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With love, May