Page 163 of Magical Mission
I stood at the center, surrounded by pieces of my soul, and suddenly I didn’t know who I was supposed to be anymore.
Celeste beckoned again, her voice warm. “You’ve done enough, Mom. Come back to the life you loved. Be with me. Let this go.”
Keegan said nothing, but I could feel his steadiness behind me, like a sheltering wall that had waited long enough.
Gideon tilted his head. “You think strength is in pushing through. But sometimes, strength is knowing the shape of what you’re fighting. Let me show you.”
The Academy shimmered, as if hearing everything but responding in silence.
I closed my eyes.
The calling pressed against my skin.
Each path called to something different inside me.
Celeste, the daughter I loved beyond words. The life I had put on pause, the softness I missed with every breath.
Keegan, the man who saw the worst parts of me and didn’t flinch. The quiet, powerful gravity that kept me rooted when my soul wanted to run.
Gideon, the reflection of questions I had buried. The dark edge of my knowing, tempting, cruel, and honest.
And the Academy, the legacy that had chosen me and believed in me when I didn’t believe in myself. The home I hadn’t sought but now couldn't imagine leaving.
I let the ache rise.
Let the fear settle in.
And then I whispered, “Why can’t I want more than one?”
But none of them answered.
Not really.
Because this wasn’t a test of loyalty.
It was a revelation of need.
And every version of me stood somewhere down one of those paths.
I stepped toward Celeste first—because, of course, I did.
My daughter. My beginning. My heart. Her arms wrapped around me in imagined warmth, and for a moment, I wanted nothing more than to stay there. To forget the calling and to forget the weight, so Icould be justher mother.
But the moment lengthened… and the shimmer tugged.
Not away.
Justforward.
I turned to Keegan.
His eyes didn’t plead. Theytrusted.I wanted to stay with him, too. To let the journey end here, before it broke me more than it already had. But something inside me whispered,He would walk with you to the end. But he isn’t your ending.
And that truth stung.
I faced Gideon.
His gaze didn’t waver.
