Page 142 of The Star's Sword

“Much good he’s going to do us, like that,” Os said. “Look, I hate to do this, but drop him off on the platform. I’m sure he can defend himself, but we need your jaws and claws free.”

“Os is right,” Ara said. “We can’t fight with him on your back. It’s a liability. Card would agree.”

Griffin frowned but did as requested, flying down over to the edge of the seventh realm platform, and gently pushing Simon onto it. Griffin took off, flying back to us, and my heart hurt seeing Simon unmoving like that.

But there was nothing I could do.

“I heard his heartbeat when he was on my back,” Griffin said, reassuring me. “He will be fine, Cleo. We need to go.”

We rose through a layer of the darkest clouds yet, and trepidation tightened my muscles.

The eighth realm. So high up we were nearly at the realm most considered heaven.

The forbidden, never-entered ninth realm.

I stared at the cloud layer above us, wondering what had kept everyone from coming up here for this long. It hadn’t been so hard. It’d been more scary than anything.

But I didn’t want to underestimate what was coming.

In the eighth realm, there were marble buildings again, and gardens, and angels began spilling out, spreading their wings and yelling as they pointed at us. But in the next moment, the whole image flashed, and I saw for a split second a burned, abandoned stone platform, large enough to hold a city but completely bare.

Then it flashed back to the image of the city, and the angels waving their swords.

“The eighth realm,” I said numbly. “I think it’s an illusion.” What the hell was going on?

“It makes sense if you think about it,” Griffin muttered. “Why would the ninth-realmers even let there be an eighth or seventh realm? That’s too close to them. With their power, they probably cut everyone down and installed that illusion in their place.” He shook his head. “With those dark buildings, I bet the seventh realm is some kind of prison.”

“I’ll have my work cut out for me,” Ara said. “Turning this place around. It’s nothing like it was rumored to be.”

“That’s what happens when too much power gathers at the top,” Zadis said carefully. “Everything becomes about keeping that power rather than ensuring a healthy society.”

“I will change it,” Ara said. “For Mila.” Her mate.

“I’ll clear the way for you,” I said. “We all will.”

I wondered how Vasara had ended up surviving, if the eighth realm celestials were all destroyed.

Or perhaps they’d left a few alive to use for their own purposes.

After all, if the ninth realm fell, a lot of celestials probably feared losing their privileges.

“Are we ready to ascend?” I asked, looking at the thick, black, foreboding clouds above us. “Bring the night,” I said, pulling my sword from my sheath.

Ara looked below. “Should we wait for the others?”

I swallowed, thinking of the things Samael’s father was capable of. He had my love. “I can’t.” I flapped my wings, rising higher, moving into the dark clouds. I stopped, watching my friends as they flew up with me.

I loved them all so much. Zadis, Mor, Griffin, Os and Ara. And Cayne and Mark with the vampires below.

It had been easier than we could have imagined, but from here on out it would be much worse.

The most powerful beings to exist in our world, other than me.

And we had no idea if my power could even go head-to-head with them.

But there was only one way to find out.

My friends had all helped with my rise, and they could keep it from becoming more difficult.

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