Elena
*****Late Afternoon — The Burning Clearing*****
The sky was still on fire.
Not the kind of fire you could put out with water or magic. This was the kind that lived inside the clouds, inside the air itself. Everything glowed red and black, and ash kept drifting down, sticking to my hair and my skin like the world was slowly burying us alive.
Seraphina’s army was still pouring in from every direction.
Shadow-beasts ripped through our lines. Winged monsters circled overhead, dropping burning creatures onto our soldiers. The screams never stopped.
I looked at my children.
Finn and Fia stood close together, both of them glowing faintly, their faces pale and scared but also filled with something new.
Power.
Seraphina had awakened them.
And I was done running.
I turned to the war
