Taming Darkness

~Aleera-

My hand flies to my lips as I gasp in disbelief. Could it be? Am I the cure? I am the key to stopping these plagues all along. Darius may have created the first plague, but I created the cure.

Porter snatches my wrist, his touch weak and cold. "Please, take care of Lycus. Tell him I'm sorry," he whispers through blackened, cracked lips. "I was never the husband his mother deserved or the father I should have been to him." He takes in a pained breath, wincing. More blood spews from his mouth and runs down his chin, and he groans in agony. It's obvious that whatever my mother had done was causing immense suffering. So much blood surrounds him that I can't fathom how he's still alive. Has he clung to life just to give me these vials?

I stare down at the man who has caused so much pain and suffering. But instead of the hatred that usually scorches my insides, I find pity. I hold my hand near his head, offering him comfort.

"I'll take care of him," I promise. Porter lets out a breath and nods his head weakly, closing his eyes.

"I know I don't deserve it, but I'm sorry," Porter mumbles, his hands twitching as his muscles spasm. "He would never forgive me, though," he chokes out, tears mingling with blood.

"Maybe in another lifetime, you can make it up to him," I whisper, acknowledging the fear I see in his eyes as he faces death.

"I don't want Lycus to do it... I don't want it on his soul. I have caused him enough pain. He will feel obligated. I know my son..." he rasps, spraying me with blood as he speaks. I understand his unspoken request; if I walk away and leave him to suffer, Lycus will feel compelled to end his father's agony.

"I understand if you won't. You owe me nothing," Porter continues, his voice barely audible.

I cup his cold, clammy cheek with my hand. "I don't think I can heal you without bonding you to me," I say softly.

"I'm not asking that. I am asking you to kill me," he replies, opening his bloodshot eyes to look at me. "Don't make him do it. He hates me, but I know deep inside, he still loves me. Why else would he come running every time I summoned him?"

He coughs, and I nod. I know Lycus has his reasons, but part of him still longs for his father, despite everything that's happened.

I let out a shaky breath and nod again. "I don't like you, but I forgive you," I tell him, holding up the vials to show him that I have them safely.

"Do you think Lycus may one day forgive me?" he asks with a heaving sigh, the way a condemned man whispers right before their sentence is carried out.

I tilt my head to the side, watching him. "Maybe; perhaps when he forgives himself for not saving her," I whisper, and his tears send blood streaking down his cheek.

"Thank you," he chokes out before closing his eyes.

Before I know what I'm doing, I summon my magic. Despite how much I think he deserves it, I can't let him suffer any longer. But he's Lycus' father, and his remorse is enough for me to end him quickly. Fire spirals from my hand and consumes him, turning him into ash on the spot. I sigh, glancing down at the black spot his body left.

Tucking the vials away into my pocket, I straighten and look away from the charred remains of Lycus' father. Nothing will sway me from my mission to find my mother and put an end to the chaos surrounding me.

On the floor below, the power hunters' screams are being cut off one-by-one. I almost wish I were downstairs to watch the Harmony-Fae taking their revenge on those who have tormented them. From the sound of it, none of the hunters will be making it up the stairs.

Yet, as I take in my surroundings just to be safe, eyes searching, I finally spot her. There is their queen, darting out of another room far down the hall. She is running with a suitcase clutched for dear life in her hand-something I won't allow her to keep. I tear off after her, my footsteps echoing down the hall.

"Lydia!" I scream, almost roaring at her with all the anger and hatred compressed inside.

She freezes in place, and her head jerks as she sees me. "Aleera! Come with me," she offers with a wide grin. "We can rule together!"

She is undoubtedly more insane than I'd ever imagined if she thinks I would fall for this. Me, join her? Never. Even if she somehow brainwashed me, I would end myself before falling prey to her.

"I will never join you, Lydia. You had me not because you wanted me, a child to love, but because you wanted a weapon to exact your revenge and l**t for power. I was just a means to an end for you."

A shadow flits across her face, making her appear even more sinister. "You would pick them over me?" she spits the words out at me. "His kind are the reason the Seraphim are no more! He is the reason the plague killed all the White-Fae! You would still choose him knowing all that?"

"No," the word booms out of me, and for a second, her cocky confidence wavers. What's left is fear. Actual fear. "Darius never started the plague. You and my father used him, just like you used me. All of this-the plague and its consequences-was to settle an age- old score and so you could sit in the ultimate seat of power. All this time, you knew I was the cure, and you wanted to use that and dangle me about like some toy. I will always choose my mates above you, especially Darius."

My words strike her somewhere deep in her soul. Pure hatred flashes in her eyes, and she screams like a possessed banshee before charging straight at me. I stop her mid-lunge, holding her in place with my magic. Her cold eyes widen, clearly not expecting this. As she struggles, I stand resolute, ready to face the woman who has tormented me and so many others. The final confrontation is here, and I will not waver. I have the power, the knowledge, and the resolve to put an end to her reign of terror. The fate of the Harmony-Fae and the world rests on my shoulders, and I will not let them down.