Queen of Light (The Light-Bringer Trilogy, #3)

Twenty-Five

Cal caught him as he began to fall forward. Akaljot heard his son scream-a scream of loss and rage. His daughter held him close, futilely trying to staunch the flow of blood.

Akaljot looked back down at his chest, his teal tunic torn and blood stained. His breaths were wet and raspy.

"You can't go, Dad," she sobbed. "Please, you can't go."

Akaljot coughed and blood dribbled down his chin. He cupped his daughter's cheek and attempted to smile. "It's going to be okay, Cal," he rasped. "You and Lucas are going to be fine. I guess I couldn't defy my fate like Matias did."

"My son."

Akaljot looked away from his daughter. His mother knelt beside him, her pale blonde hair braided up in a crown. Standing just begin Aelina Bjorndottir was Queen Marilyn and Volodomyr Niegeson... and someone else. They were all a translucent pale blue. And happy-so happy.

Akaljot Bjorndottir, son of Baldur, drew one final breath before he walked into his mother's embrace.

-

Cal stared down at her father's corpse, his eyes open and unseeing, her mind racing. She turned her gaze up to Melania, fire dancing in her eyes and at her fingertips.

Matias and Lance engaged Luna in battle. Melania stood up, darkness pooling in her palms.

"I'll just have to deal with you myself," the Queen of Darkness snarled.

Cal set her father's body down and scrambled for Azar. As Melania made her way down the dais, waves of darkness lashed out at her. Cal blocked with her fire, the strain of her magic eating away at her. Blood trickled from her nose.

The darkness kept coming, and Cal kept blocking with her fire.

"Where did your light go, Light-Bringer?" Melania taunted. "Weakened by the eclipse, are we?"

Cal gritted her teeth and pushed. She cried out, the blood coming faster. This had to end now.

"Hey, bitch," Lucas snarled.

Melania turned around. Lucas stood several paces away, Akaljot's sword in hand. Melania lashed out at her brother. Lucas ducked and slid along the floor. He raised his father's sword, thrusting it into Melania's stomach.

"Cal, do it now!" her brother screamed.

She tightened her grip on the sword and bolted. She raised Azar and plunged it between Melania's shoulder blades. She sent her fire through the blade and into Melania. The dark queen screamed. Some colour to her skin came back, her hair lightened to the darkest shade of red. She turned her head to look back at Cal, her eyes a dark golden brown.

"Bloody hell," Lucas gasped. "Melania..."

"Not my name," said Melania, her focus now on her daughter. "My name is Ashlynn. Ashlynn Pyro." A tear slid down her cheek. "I'm so sorry. I have caused so much pain. Kill me now, Light-Bringer. Kill me so I may at least repent one thing for my sins. Kill me, for I deserve it after all the harm I have caused."

Cal rallied the dregs of her magic and shoved it into Melania-Ashlynn. Pain tore at Cal's body. She could faintly hear Lucas screaming, his magic likely tearing away at him as the eclipse reached totality. She could hear Luna screaming-screaming in agony as the influence of her mother's dark magic surely fell away. Ashlynn screamed bloody murder, light and fire burning her from the inside out.

Slowly but surely, the Queen of Darkness disintegrated into ash.

Cal's chest heaved as her sword fell into the pile of ash at her feet. Matias ran up to her.

Exhaustion pulled at Cal's bones as she stumbled towards her husband and fell into unconsciousness.