SAGE
My real self was... breathtaking.
The thought didn’t co from vanity so much as quiet disbelief as I stared into the tall mirror—the sa mirror I had stood before countless tis while wearing Dora’s face, Dora’s skin, Dora’s careful lies.
I stepped closer slowly, almost cautiously, as if the woman in the glass might vanish if I moved too fast.
She didn’t.
White silk hair cascaded down my back in a luminous fall, soft as moonlight, threaded through with fine strands of molten gold that shone under light. It flowed past my shoulders, past my waist, a living river of pale fire that no illusion could ever truly contain.
I lifted a hand, letting the strands slip through my fingers. They felt like ho. Like truth.
My eyes were worse.
Or better.
Pure gold stared back at , but not the flat, simple gold most people expected. Mine were alive with depth as it had been before... but now it was flecked with shifting colors that I didn’t even understand. Indigo glimred near the outer ring. Hints of amber. A whisper of sothing older, sothing ancient and watching.
Power lived there. It always had.
Without the dampening illusion, my body looked different too, firr, fully settled into the strength my heritage had carved into . The sweatshirt, boyfriend jeans, and combat boots I had chosen molded cleanly to my fra, practical and familiar, but now they carried a quiet authority they never had before.
No hiding anymore. This was . Fully. I inhaled slowly, deeply, steadying myself. Ti was not on my side.
I turned away from the mirror and moved for the door, my steps already quickening as purpose settled back into my bones. There was too much to do. Too much already in motion. If the war broke out fully—if the queen succeeded—then the vision that had haunted would co to pass.
And I refused to let that future breathe. I would do anything to prevent the devastation I had seen. The hunger. The loss. The hollow, broken world left in the aftermath.
And Adam—
My chest tightened. I couldn’t even let my mind linger on the image of him falling, of that bond between us snapping into silence. No. Absolutely not. That possibility didn’t exist. Not in any future I was willing to accept.
Not today. Not ever.
By the ti I returned to the center hut, my resolve had hardened into sothing unyielding.
Makeh stood exactly where I had left her. Her gaze swept over once, slow and assessing, and then she gave a single approving nod. "You’re ready."
Before I could respond, she extended a bowl toward .
I blinked. I hadn’t seen her prepare anything. When I first arrived, the kitchen space had been cold. And yet the mont the bowl ca into view, recognition hit instantly.
Of course. This again.
Makeh’s strange, restorative concoction, the one she always seed to have ready whenever our paths crossed... or whenever I found myself dragged into one of her pocket realms.
I didn’t question it this ti, nor did I hesitate. I took the bowl and drank greedily.
Warmth spread through almost imdiately, liquid energy sinking deep into my bones, into my blood, into the tired places the last few days had worn thin. My muscles loosened and my lungs filled easier. Even the lingering ache from the stake wound softened under the wash of renewal.
Relief exhaled out of in a slow breath. "Thank you."
Makeh inclined her head. "You needed it." She stepped back slightly, her expression turning more serious. "Take care of the quafars too..."
And then, she vanished. Just like that.
I stared at the empty space for half a second before sighing under my breath. Of course she did.
I turned toward the quafar currently wearing Diana’s face. "She always does that to you guys too?"
The quafar shrugged, but a small smile tugged at his—her—mouth.
Honestly, the transformation was still unsettling.
Up close, the resemblance to Diana was nearly perfect. Voice. Build. Even the small habitual tilt of the head. If I didn’t know better, I might have been fooled myself.
I studied them a mont longer, thoughtful. Would the queen notice? Would she sense sothing off about my... reinforcents?
Well... There was only one way to find out.
"Let’s go," I said. And the group fell into step behind .
—
By the ti I approached the largest hall in the witches’ community, my mind was already moving three steps ahead of my feet.
Angles. Openings. Reactions. Where to start. What to say first. Who to neutralize before things spiraled. Every possible outco spun through my thoughts in rapid succession.
But as the hall ca into view, sothing else struck . It was too quiet outside the main path. Too empty.
My gaze swept the surroundings. Deserted. Every ho. Every walkway. Every courtyard.
The realization settled heavy in my chest. Everyone was there. The queen hadn’t held back.
She had gathered the entire community—n, won... even children. All packed into one space, prid and ready to be weaponized in her na.
My jaw tightened. She really intended to burn the world down if it gave her what she wanted.
I slowed near the outer gate, voices finally reaching —hundreds of them, layered and restless. So inside the hall. Many more gathered outside, spilling across the surrounding grounds.
I reached out instinctively, letting my ancient sight slip through the tal barrier. The image resolved imdiately. A sea of people.
The hall itself was already overflowing, bodies packed tight wall to wall. Outside, even more citizens crowded the open space, standing on raised edges, climbing structures, doing whatever they could to witness whatever the queen was about to unleash. Citizens from the other surrounding communities too...
I drew in a slow breath, trying to steady myself. A hand touched my shoulder.
I turned slightly.
The quafar wearing Laura’s face offered a quiet, reassuring look. "You can do this," she said softly. "You have the backing of the good forces of the universe. No one truly wants this war—not even the ones who’ve been misled."
"Thank you," I murmured.
Her hand squeezed once, then fell away.
Before I opened the gate, I reached through the mate bond.
The connection answered imdiately.
I gave him a quick rundown of what I was about to do, keeping it precise. Then I added instructions: co to the community, but stay at Laura’s compound. Bring only a few ancients—the prince, his second, and a small werewolf unit.
If a treaty happened today... We would need witnesses. Backup. Hope.
After I broke away from the link, I reached out to a second I had established with Raul and Rachel at one ti, when I was still their friend.
It didn’t take much effort to slip past their ntal defenses and plant the truth directly into their minds. Their real parentage. The truth about Ruelle’s death.
The intrusion was quick. Clean. Disorienting enough to shake them when the mont ca.
Good.
Then, I opened the gate.
The reaction was imdiate.
Conversation outside the mighty hall died mid-word, mid-breath, mid-motion—as if the entire space had felt before they fully saw .
Gasps followed. Whispers. A ripple of stunned silence. But I kept walking.
Their eyes widened as they took in—really took in. I could almost hear the thoughts forming in real ti.
Who is she?
That hair—
Those eyes—
The resemblance—
Understanding dawned slowly across face after face.
The first queen, who had created the communities centuries ago.
Murmurs swelled. Then, one by one, they started to bow.
Not just the civilians. Even the guards behind .
It seed Makeh was right. Bearing the goddess’s mark, reinforced the illusion beautifully. Reverence spread like wildfire through the crowd.
Many of them clearly believed the goddess herself had sent . That she had co to bless their coming war.
I didn’t correct them. Not yet. Soon enough... They would understand the truth.
The crowd parted without being asked, forming a clear path straight toward the great hall doors.
Silence followed my steps. Heavy... electric. And without slowing, I crossed the threshold into the great hall.
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