Page 32 of Langiappe & Lost Legends

I looked around at our odd group. Six sisters, two protective mates, a Fae lord, a demon hunter, and a tiny but surprisingly badass brownie. Not exactly the team I would have chosen for preventing a magical apocalypse, but somehow, it worked. I’d come close to being the reason the Lost Legends succeeded and it was because of this group I hadn’t.

"Right," I said, already pulling out my phone to text Marie. "But first, someone please tell me why the brownie is the most terrifying one here."

"Trade secret," Puich replied primly. His tennis shoes were somehow still pristinely white despite the chaos. "If you ever need help hiding bodies, I’m your guy," he winked.

Noah just shook his head. "Sunshine, your life is weird."

"Says the man who just fought time-traveling cultists in a morgue," I shot back. But he was right. Our lives were weird. And they were about to get weirder. Because something told me that prophecy had more to say about what was coming. I just hoped we'd be ready for it.

The drive back to Marie's was an exercise in controlled chaos. Phi was video chatting with Kaitlyn, updating her on the morgue attack while simultaneously monitoring her detection equipment. Lia was maneuvering through traffic like she was a NASCAR driver. Dre was still checking everyone for lingering injuries, while Kota conjured a new shirt because hers got torn.

"You know," I said to Noah when he and Lucas joined us on the sidewalk in front of Marie's house, "most couples spend their evenings watching Netflix and complaining about work. We get temporal assassins and prophecies."

"Keeps things interesting," he replied, flashing those dimples that still made my heart skip. "Though I wouldn't mind a boring date night once in a while."

"I'll pencil that in right after we prevent another magical apocalypse," I teased.

Marie was waiting at the door, looking even more frazzled than before. More books had migrated to her study in our absence. They were creating precarious towers that defied both gravity and organizational logic.

"They attacked you," she said as we filed in. It wasn't a question.

"How did you—" I started.

"The prophecy continued while you were gone." She gestured to the glowing book. It displayed new text. "It writes itself and shows current events as they unfold. 'The Lost shall grow desperate, seeking to steal what cannot be given freely.'"

"Well, that's not creepy at all," Kota muttered.

Cyran moved closer to examine the text. "This is old magic. Older than the Fae courts."

"Older than New Orleans itself," Xinar added. His UIS training clearly made him uncomfortable with self-writing prophecies. Join the club, buddy.

"There's more," Marie said, turning pages. "'The six must stand together when the moon is crowned in light. For divided, they shall fall to shadow's touch.'"

"The night before the Light Fae party," Phi translated. "That's when the moon will be full. Although, this could mean the night of. The full moon’s effects could still be in force."

"It's also when we'll have the most magical beings gathered in one place," I pointed out. "Including representatives from all the major Fae courts."

"It’ll be the perfect cover for whatever they're planning," Dre agreed.

The prophecy book suddenly flared brighter, and new words appeared on the page in flowing script. Marie leaned forward to read it. "Beware the false friend who walks in darkness, for he seeks to bind what was meant to be free. The crystal's power cannot be forced, only guided by those who share its ancient song."

"Viktor," Lia spat the name like it tasted bad. "He's not just helping the Lost Legends. He's trying to bind the crystal's power to himself."

"But he can't," I realized. "That's why they need one of us. And he knows it. The crystal only responds to our bloodlines."

"The prophecy confirms it," Marie nodded. "Only those who carry both lines may channel its true power. All others who attempt to force its blessing shall be consumed by their own ambition."

"Like those bodies in the morgue," Xinar said grimly. "They weren't just failed experiments. They were examples of what happens when someone tries to forge an artificial connection to the crystal."

A chill ran down my spine as I remembered how those bodies were caught in an endless cycle of death and undeath. If that was what happened to regular people who tried to connect to thecrystal... "What would happen if they tried to force a connection through one of us?" Dea asked quietly as if she’d read my mind.

The silence that followed was deafening. "The prophecy doesn't say," Marie finally admitted. "But given your natural connection to the crystal, the power feedback would be catastrophic."

"Define catastrophic," Noah demanded as he moved closer to me protectively.

"Think less 'localized temporal disturbance' and more 'reality-breaking chain reaction’," Phi supplied helpfully. "The crystal's power, amplified through one of our corrupted connections, could theoretically create a cascade effect that would?—"

"Tear apart the fabric of space-time?" Lia finished. "That's exactly what we need right now. As if regular old magical explosions weren't exciting enough."

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