Page 153 of Queen of Legends and Lies
There’s no way she could’ve survived my phoenix fire. I knew there’d be casualties in this war. It was unavoidable. But an innocent little girl with so much life ahead of her?
“Where’s Rose?” I almost hope they don’t answer.
Agnar’s eyes widen, and that’s when I finally see her. “Right here.”
Rose is cradled tightly against his chest, wrapped in a cloak. Her small face is pale and drawn, but she’s breathing. Her chest rises and falls in a steady rhythm.
Hope flares in my chest. “Is she…”
“She’s alive.” Agnar’s blue eyes shine with emotion. “Weak and a little disoriented, but she’s going to be just fine. Did you find her down there?”
“Yes. I don’t know how or why.” I stare at him, hardly daring to believe in the miracle before me. “But how did she survive? My phoenix fire…” Had my protective shield stayed intact?
“Your what?” Agnar shifts Rose’s weight in his arms. “Whatever you did worked on all the corrupted. Most woke up after an hour or so. They weren’t actually dead. My sister was among them. She’s going to be fine. We have wagons, alicorns, and some ships working to get everyone back to their homes.”
“The soldiers we brought are helping all the survivors get out of the pit.” Bastian gestures behind him. “It’s going to take a while, but they’re in good hands.”
Relief crashes over me in waves.
Rose is alive. We’re all alive. And somehow, against all odds, we’ve won.
I lean back against Sterling’s chest. There are still so many questions left unanswered, so many mysteries yet to be unraveled.
Silent tears stream down my face as I gaze up at the sky, whispering a fervent prayer of thanks to the gods.
They were listening. They cared. They heeded my call. I saved Rose, defeated Narc, and ended this war once and for all.
The dragons cluster around us, their scales shimmering like polished gemstones in the firelight. They chuff and trill with quiet joy, a soothing melody that relaxes me further.
For the first time in a very long time, the world seems perfect.
Flawless.
Leesa kneels before me, wisps of feisty, dark golden blond hair that escaped her braid falling around her soot-smudged face. She holds out a waterskin. “Tea, my sister.” She whispers as if she’s afraid to shatter the fragile peace. “It’s not hot or fresh, but it will help you recover. It helped everyone else.”
I reach out and accept the drink, cradling it between my shaking hands. “Thank you. I’m all right. Just a little tired.”
My voice is still rough, like I’ve swallowed a mouthful of gravel. My mind is a little hazy, still struggling to comprehend everything that’s happened.
But here, nestled in Sterling’s arms with the love of family, friends, and the dragons washing over me, none of it matters. I sip the tea, letting the liquid soothe my throat and settle my churning stomach.
As daylight fully breaks, we talk in hushed tones, piecing together the events of the past few hours. They tell me what happened above ground while I battled Narc. How theystuck to the plan, leading the drachen in slow circles around Flighthaven, keeping them distracted.
Sterling’s arms tighten around me as he recounts the story, his voice low and fierce. “We didn’t know what was happening down there. But we trusted you, Lark. We knew you’d find a way.”
“It only took an hour or so for the drachen to disappear. We knew then that you must’ve succeeded, like we’d expected. But when you didn’t call out to the dragons or come out of the tunnel…” Leesa shakes her head, her eyes shadowed with worry.
With a shudder, I recall the eerie silence of that dark place. “You came looking for me.”
“We followed the destruction and found a shattered, melted altar.” Bastian chews his lower lip, brow furrowed. “But there was no sign of you.”
I shiver at the memory, my skin prickling with goose bumps. “That’s where Narc’s bones were.” The words stick in my throat as the horror of it all comes rushing back. “He was…coming back to life when I incinerated him.”
A collective gasp ripples through the group.
“That’s fucked up.” Agnar strokes the hair of a sleeping Rose. “But you killed him. And then what? Where were you?”
“Yeah, where’d you go? It wasn’t until we came back up to the surface that we found you here.” Leesa smiles softly.
