Gray POV

"You could have given me a little more time," I said to Else as we walked through the woods.

"Gray, I can't believe this is a conversation. Your father is taking the castle. That should be the most important thing."

"But I could have had at least one more moment with her."

"Stop. Do you even hear yourself? Do you value Churchwell? This is your home, and you should defend it. You need to sort out your priorities."

However, I think I already sorted out my priorities. Stella was my number one priority. I don't think it would ever be Churchwell.

Else waved her hand, and a car appeared in front of us.

"Where are you going?"

"The right question is where are we going? You wanted to be a part of the fight, now here we are. After all your training, you are going to fight alongside me."

I should have been excited for this moment, but I couldn't help but feel distracted. Stella still occupied my mind.

Silently I followed Else into the car, and she sped off to a location I did not know.

In the short drive, Else dove into details about how Forest Witches and Shifters had already broken down the outer wall. They were the ones leading the Darklings into the city, killing everyone that stood in their way.

"And my father?"

"He is nowhere to be seen. But we think he is letting the Forest Witches, Shifters, and Darklings are taking the brunt of the damaged before he comes in."

I nodded as she parked the car in front of a small cabin.

"Come on, Grayson. We don't have time for this," Else said as she got out of the car and started walking to the cabin.

I followed her into the cabin to see it full of official looking people. They all stopped as we entered, but then quickly turned their attention back to the map in the middle of the room.

"Good, you came with him," one person said, not looking up from the map.

"How do we stand?" Else asked as she walked up to the map, which flashed with lights of different colors. For a moment, she stared at the map with a frown on her face. I saw concern in her eyes as she switched her gaze to an official-looking man.

I walked closer to the map as images of monsters and people jumped off the map and moved in the light. I recognized Egrick as one. He moved from one street to another as he closed in on the castle.

"Where is Graywick?" Else asked as she turned back to map.

"He is here, surrounded by Darklings," a woman said as she pointed to a red mass by the wall of the city. "We have been holding him off the best we could, but the Darklings keep popping up to shield him from any attacks on him."

"How many people have we lost so far?"

"15% of ours and an estimated 30% of theirs, but they keep replenishing their losses. We think a Forest Witch is duplicating fighters. We get the Forest Witch to stop and we have the upper hand again."

Else nodded as she changed her heeled boots to sneakers.

"Else, we need to get you both to the castle. We don't have time to give any more of a heavy debrief. Take the boy, lead him to where he needs to go. Find Egrick. He knows the details."

I figured I was the boy in this conversation and figured it was the best time to pipe up. "Where am I going?"

"I'll fill you in," Else said as she changed her snow coat to protective vest. She handed me one. "Put this on."

I nodded as I zipped up the vest.

"This will lead you to Egrick," one man said as he handed Else a gem looking item.

She slipped it into her pocket, then grabbed two daggers. "We, we should go."

"Be safe," a woman said as she drew a circle in the ground.

Else stepped into the circle, and I followed her lead. Everything was happening so fast. There was no plan shared with me, but I had a feeling that I was an important part of it. I wanted to ask questions, but I felt like this wasn't the time for that.

The woman looked up at the ceiling, then snapped her fingers. In a blink of an eye, we were in an alleyway.

I stood in an alleyway beside Else as the smell of fire and rust filled my nostrils. The stench made me instantly feel sick to my stomach. The damage to this town was already done. For a moment I had flashbacks to when my father stormed the school just two months ago. The sight here reminded me of that.

My heart raced in my chest as I heard someone scream. My father was a killer. He didn't care who he had to stop in order to get his goals. I should have been here sooner. I shouldn't have gone to Jackson when I did. I should have been here, fighting.

"Gray, we need to go!" Else shouted at me, already a street ahead of me.

Without wasting a moment, I ran up to her.

"Ok, what you need to know is that your father is trying to take the castle, but we cannot let him take it. If he takes the royal throne room, he will crown himself as king. If he does that, it will be almost impossible to stop him from changing Churchwell as we know it."

"And the Forest Witch duplicating fighters?"

Else shook her head as she pulled me into a crack between two buildings. She held a finger to her lips, then squeezed into the same crack. Together we watched as a dark cloaked figure walked down the alley.

"What was that?" I whispered.

"A Shifter," Else said as she peaked out, checking to see if the coast was clear. She pushed herself out into the alley, then pulled me out. "Shifters often wear cloaks like that."

"And Forest Witches? What do they wear?"

Else frowned. "They wear what we wear. The difference is that they all have a gold medallion necklace." She paused and looked down the road, pulling me forward.

I stumbled over the cobblestones as I ran behind her.

"We need to get you to the castle."

"And what do you want me to do?"

Else looked down the road and frowned as a Darkling growled at us. She pulled out her dagger and handed one to me. "Get ready," she said as the Darkling sprinted towards us.

It lunged at our feet, but Else stabbed it in its leg. It cried out in pain, allowing me to jab my dagger up into the roof of its mouth. The beast struggled for a moment before crashing to the ground.

Else wiped her hands, then placed her dagger back into her pocket. "To answer your questions, they want you to be a distraction. But I know you can be so much more. That is why you will not listen to anything Egrick says."

"What?"

"I think I mentioned that the school was afraid of someone impersonating an official, but I think it already happened. I think it is Egrick. So we will not meet up with him. We are going straight to your father and stopping him once and for all," Else said as she ran down an alleyway.

I listened to her commends with such precision. She spoke so quickly it was hard to let the information sink in.

"And once we find my father, what is the plan?"

"He will not be alone. He will be around a team of trusted people. But once we show up, he will throw them in front of him as protection. I want you to take on his team as I go for him."

I nodded as I pushed forward, running right beside Else.

We took an alleyway and stopped as we saw a woman with glowing hands waiting for us.

"Hi Else, it's been a long time," she said with a smirk.

Else frowned as she pulled out her dagger. "It has."

"And you brought his boy? Who knew you would be the one that would raise him?" she asked as she snapped her hands.

As the sound echoed the alleyway, the rocks from the buildings around us came flying out towards us.

Rocks hit us with such force that it knocked me off my feet. Wasting no time, Else pulled me off the ground and into a building that had an open door.

I looked at her and wanted to ask her how she knew the Forest Witch, but stopped. This was not the time for that. I would ask at a better time.

"See that road?" Else asked as she pointed down the road. "Take that all the way to the castle. Stay out of sight and do not stop for any person wearing a vest like ours. You shouldn't trust anyone."

"I want to help you."

She shook her head as she placed her hands on my shoulders. "Beth and I go way back. It's time for us to catch up. I'll hold her off. Just go."

I nodded as I looked down the empty road towards the castle.

"What am I going to do once I reach my father?" I asked her, but it was already too late. She was out of the building.

"Beth! Why don't we talk!" Else shouted.

I looked at her and noticed she was already out of the building, walking closer to Beth.

As much as I wanted to stay behind and listen to their conversation or at least help Else, I knew I shouldn't. I needed to go before I missed my chance. With a deep breath, I ran out of the building and down the road.

I passed bodies in the street, all with lifeless looks on their faces. I couldn't stop to look at what side they were on. With that castle standing only a mile away, I pushed onward.

I heard Else scream, but I didn't stop to look back. Her scream only caused me to run faster. She wanted me to get to my dad. Without her, I would have to stop him on my own.

"Gray! Can you help me?" I heard a combat specialist from school ask.

For a second, I slowed down to see a classmate covered in blood with a wooden beam crushing her legs. The words of Else rang in my mind again. I shouldn't stop for anyone from the school. No matter what.

"I can't. I'm sorry," I said to her as I picked up speed, passing her.

I made it to the massive staircase of the castle as I heard a something whiz by my ear. I turned on my heels and saw a man wearing a gold medallion as he levitated daggers in the air beside him.

"Another Churchwell Academy student. I remember my time there well," he said as he threw a dagger at me.

I ducked as I pulled out my dagger. "An alumni, hu? It's not every day you meet one of those," I said as I readied myself.

He threw another dagger as I ran towards him. I plunged my dagger into his leg as he cried out in pain. As he attempted to attack me, he stumbled back and fell down a flight of stairs, allowing me to continue on my path.

I didn't look back as I ran up the rest of the flight of stairs. Once I reached the top, I found the doors on fire and open. Unsure where my father was, I carefully walked in the front doors.

I looked around at the bodies that laid in the courtyard.

"He's that way," some person gasped.

I turned my attention to the boy that beat me up a few days ago. He lay on the ground with blood gushing through his stomach. He was just as young as me and Churchwell Academy threw these combat specialists into this war. It was one thing to fight for the school, but this was something else. They knew what my father was capable of but yet they still threw these people out into this war.

I thought Churchwell would be better once the Royal Family was gone, but there were still as many problems as before. For a moment, I wondered how bad it would be if my father really took the throne. It couldn't be any worse than this.

"You shouldn't waste any time," he said as he pointed towards a set of doors hanging by its hinges.

I nodded. "Thank you."

"Stop him."

Saying nothing else, I ran towards the doors. As I entered another room, I saw my father standing around a group of cloaked Shifters.

"Aw, Grayson, it's so good to see that you made it," my father said as he turned his attention towards me.

"Stop dad!" I shouted.

He smiled as the cloaked Shifters walked towards me. "And give up when I'm practically already the victor? Not going to happen."

A Shifter moved closer to me. I punched the Shifter, knocking its cloak off its head. The Shifter looked no different from me but in a blink of an eye it turned into Else.

"It's funny how quickly they change. It's their special skill," Graywick explained as he moved closer to a throne which stood in the middle of the room.

"Where is she?" I demanded.

Graywick stopped and turned to me as his blackened hand emitted smoke. "I thought you didn't care about her?"

He was wrong. I might have not liked her a lot of times, but she was family. More than what he was.

He shook his head in disappointment. "Else is a traitor and she will get what she deserves."

Worry filled me, not wanting to hear that. He was wrong. Else was not a traitor. Else was never on his side. She was always with the Royal Family.

Another Shifter came towards me. I pushed him back as I turned my attention back to my father. "You wouldn't dare."

He smiled. "And they thought you could distract me?"

At that moment a Shifter that looked like Else tackled me to the ground, rubbing my face against the rough stone surface.

"I always wanted you to see this. Just not like this," Graywick said as he walked up to the throne and sat down.

Instantly, the throne changed color from gold to black with purple hues. The ground shook as the golden flags in the room turned purple. Around us, everything that showed gold vanished as if it was never been there to begin with.

The Shifter let go of me as it walked towards my father's side.

"It's a little too late to stop me, son," Graywick said as cloaked figures circled around him.

I scurried to my feet as the ground shook again. My heart raced in my chest as I knew something terrible had happened. I failed. Else wanted me to stop him and I wasn't able to. All those deaths were on my hands because I failed.

"Grayson, we have to go!" Egrick's voice rang out behind me. He grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the room.

"What is happening?" I asked as I turned to Egrick.

"It's his coronation."

"We have to go. Make a gate to Churchwell Academy."

"What?"

"Oh for Church's sake. Make a gate. You are the gatekeeper."

"I can only open the gate between Jackson and Churchwell."

"You are dunce, boy. Did Else not teach you anything?" he asked as he pulled me down the stairs. He sighed, then looked down the road. "What do you do when you open the gate to Jackson?"

"I follow instructions."

"And you still do the same instructions here," he said as he pointed towards a door.

I frowned as I looked at the door.

"Grayson, we do not have all day," he warned.

I nodded as I heard a Darkling growl. There wasn't much time, but yet I felt like this important information deserved a moment to soak in. Else only taught me about the gate to Jackson. She never told me that I could open any gate.

"Gray, I can't hold the Darklings off forever," Egrick said as another Darkling came into view.

With a deep breath, I followed the same instructions I used to open the gate to Jackson. I expected it not to work, but when I opened the door and saw the hall of Churchwell Academy on the other side, I felt like I was unlocking a part of me that I never knew existed.

I ran through to the other side as Egrick followed suit. He closed the door behind us and sighed. "Well, look at that. You did it."