Page 333 of Dawn of Chaos and Fury
She blinked in the bright sunlight, her bare feet in the surf as waves gently rolled to the shore.
“Where are we, little storm?”
Tessa turned, seeing Luka and Theon walking down the beach, and she smiled. Even in her dreams, they found her.
“I don’t know,” she answered, turning back to the endless glittering sea. “It’s beautiful though.”
“Better than the last vision I was pulled into,” Luka muttered, and she sent him a flat look.
“I can’t control them, Luka.”
He shrugged. “Doesn’t change the fact I’ll take this over your other visions of death and destruction.”
She rolled her eyes, feeling the sun’s warmth seep into her soul. For several minutes, the three of them stood there, taking in the tranquility. It didn’t last long, though. It never did.
This time was no different, as several figures appeared. Not on the beach, but on the sea, walking atop the waves and making their way towards them. They all wore robes of varying colors with the hoods up, hiding their features.
Theon and Luka dragged her back, sand sticking to her wet toes, and they made sure there was several feet between them and the newcomers when they stepped onto the shore.
There were five of them, but one stepped forward. Tessa could only assume she was the leader of the group as she pulled back her hood. Honey-colored eyes skimmed over them, her loose ashy-blonde hair flowing in the sea breeze, and the sun highlighted how pale her skin was.
“Tessalyn Ausra,” she said, her voice as smooth as silk.
Tessa tilted her head. “If you know my name, surely I should know yours?”
The woman’s lips curled into a smirk. “Avana,” she answered. “My name is Avana, and I am one of the Fates.”
Tessa lurched back, but Theon had already looped his arm around her waist, dragging her back farther. She could feel Luka fighting a shift into his dragon form as they stood face-to-face with a threat they thought they’d contained.
“What do you want?” Theon demanded.
“We simply wanted to meet her,” Avana said, lifting a hand and gesturing to the four behind her.
“All the Fates came just to meet me?” Tessa deadpanned. “Somehow I doubt that.”
She smiled again, sharp and knowing. “This is not all of us. Only a few,” she replied, clasping her hands before her. “In truth, we wanted to meet all three of you. We were…unable to interfere with you.”
“The genesis bond,” Theon said.
Avana nodded. “That was part of it, yes.”
“And the other part?”
“We are forbidden to interfere with the gods again,” she said. “But we still watch, hoping things unfold in particular ways.” She paused before adding, “Although the addition ofLuka Mors was unexpected. You seem to share an inclination for creating your own fate with your Arius bloodline.”
“I still don’t understand,” Tessa said, her fury starting to creep in. “Are you here to thank me? Because that should be the reason you’re here.”
Luka snickered at her side while Theon tightened his grip on her.
“A born being of Chaos,” Avana said, looking her up and down. “It is interesting, really. Not something we could have foreseen, and it created an issue.”
“Which we have solved,” Theon retorted. “I am her balance.”
“Not just you,” Avana answered. “But the two of you together, yes. We have discussed it at great length and have decided we do not need to interfere here anymore.”
“As if we would have let you,” Theon snarled.
She gave him another knowing smile. “Keep that tenacity, blood of Arius,” she said, pulling her hood back up. “You may have altered your fates once, but that does not mean destiny will not find you again.”
