Chapter 20: A Destiny of Dragons

 

 

I OPENED my eyes.

Through a canopy of trees, I saw a sea of stars.

I sat up.

I was in the middle of a forest. The air was warm. The grass was cool.

Randomly, on my feet were a pair of pink shoes, the tips of which curled up.

I pushed myself up slowly.

In the distance, through the trees, I saw what looked like the lights of fairies.

I remembered everything.

The way Ryan had fallen, lungs made of stone. How I’d torn right down the middle.

The lives I’d taken after. Caleb and Ruv.

I’d felt them die.

And for a moment, hadn’t I relished it? Hadn’t I wished that it’d been all the Darks?

I had. I’d been more powerful in that moment than I’d ever been before.

I pushed through the trees.

Morgan had told me once that every person, whether a wizard or not, had the propensity for darkness inside of them. That it all came down to choice. “You are,” he’d told me once, “who you choose to be. It’s as simple as that, little one. And I am here to help you make the right choice, because I believe in you more than I’ve ever believed in anyone before.”

I’d been too young—too naïve—to understand what he’d meant.

I did now.

Because being a force for good was so much harder than being one for evil.

I came upon a large clearing where the fairy lights burned bright.

Except—they weren’t fairies, were they?

There was a red light, flitting about. As I stepped into the clearing, it buzzed around me quickly, warm and safe, and I could hear a voice saying, Gods, this is so lame. Sam, if you die, I will never forgive you, and when I wake up again in a hundred years, I will find your grave and then chew on your bones.

The blue lights were bright and kind as they settled on either shoulder. The one on the left said, You’re dreaming, Sam. You’re dreaming, except this is as real as it will ever get. Whatever happens here will be in the real world. You can get hurt here, Sam. You can die here.

The light on the right said, But you better not let that happen. Leslie will be sorely disappointed if it does. She has grown rather fond of you, in case you couldn’t tell.

You old dyke, the left light said sweetly. You love him just as much as I do. He belongs to us. We belong to him. It is the way of things.

The black light, so dark it seemed to swallow up all other light around it, buzzed round my face. Look at me! it said gleefully. I’m here too! Kevin’s here to save the daaaaaayyyyy! He pressed against my nose, vibrating lightly and causing me to sneeze. I heard him laugh about it, and I didn’t think it was possible to love him more than I did right then.

But these lights fell silent as the final light approached.

He was the brightest of all of them. The white.

He said, Sam of Dragons.

“GW.”

I told you not to call me that.

“Yes, well. That’s probably not going to change, dude. If I’m being honest.”

You’re near.

“To?”

The end. But I fear that it won’t be as simple as you think. Your heart is conflicted. Your soul is fractured.

I swallowed thickly. “I did what I had to. I know you didn’t like the plan, but it still—”

What’s done is done. And I can’t fault you for that. But this is as close as you’ll ever be to losing yourself to the Dark. You have tasted the power. You must let it go.

“I’m not going to—”

He’s here, Leslie said. We brought him here too.

“Who?”

Myrin, Pat said. He is in the dream.

“What about Ryan?” I demanded. “He’s—”

He’s safe, Kevin whispered. For now. But it won’t last long. Myrin is strong, Sam. Stronger than we expected.

So you need to kick his ass, Zero said. Because I’m getting really sick and tired of all you old people fighting over stupid stuff.

“Did you make this?” I asked him quietly. “The forest? It’s… familiar.”

Yeah, Zero said, sounding strangely proud. Pat and Leslie made the dream. I made the forest. Kevin will be your conduit, and the Great White is holding us all together.

We get one shot at this, Kevin said. So, no pressure or anything.

“Asshole,” I muttered.

Dragons, GW snapped. You know what to do. It’s time to fulfill your destinies. The Dark wizard will awaken soon, and we must—

Yeah, yeah, yeah, Kevin said. We know what to do. We’re not idiots.

I wouldn’t go that far, GW muttered.

You’ve got this, Leslie said. I know you do, Sam.

Just don’t mess it up, Pat grumbled. I will kill you myself if you do.

I can’t wait to go to sleep so I can ignore you all for a hundred years, Zero said with a sniff.

Hey, little bro, don’t you worry about that, Kevin said. I’ll be right there when you wake up again.

The lights flitted up around me, spinning in a circle that sped up until they blended together. It was almost like a halo swirling above me, until it shot toward the sky, rising toward the stars. It reached its apex and then fell back toward me. I closed my eyes as they slammed into me and I—

so much energy so much power I could I could I could this could all be mine

—breathed in and breathed out and in again as my scars burned, as my heart raced, as I—

easy it’d be easy keep them here trap them here make them obey

—struggled to find control again. It was more than I expected. We’d never done this in the Dark Woods. Never once had they given me their dragon magic, though we’d talked about it. GW had thought it’d be too much too soon, and I’d agreed.

It was almost too much now.

Because these thoughts I had, these dark thoughts, were spinning through me. How I could take the dragons and keep them here. In me. That their magic would always be mine. That nothing could stand in my way. No villain could ever hurt my family again. The people who had turned against me would bow at my feet.

Myrin had gone about it all wrong. Like all the villains who had come before him, he’d thought too small. He didn’t have the scope that I did. The vision. No one would ever think of crossing me again, because I was Sam of Dragons, and I had five different dragon souls within me. I could trap them here, and they wouldn’t—

A groan from the other side of the clearing.

I looked up.

Myrin sat up, clutching his head as if he was in pain. The rage I’d felt at the sight of my cornerstone crumpled on the dirty ground of an alleyway in the slums returned full force. I stalked toward him.

He looked up at me as I approached, a dazed expression on his face. “What is this?” he demanded. “Where are we?”

I didn’t answer. I lashed out, kicking him upside the head. He shouted as he fell back, rolling in the grass toward the edge of the clearing. I grasped on to Zero’s magic as Myrin came to a stop, and imagined a tree taking root just underneath the Dark wizard. I wanted it, so it came to be. The ground shook and split apart and an actual tree burst through the dirt and grass underneath Myrin. He cried out as the tree sprouted, throwing him sideways. He landed with a crash back on the ground, hugging his sides, curling up into a ball.

I ignored him for the moment and looked around the clearing. Trees sprouted along the edges, growing far higher than what should have been possible. It only took seconds before we were completely surrounded and caged in. Myrin wouldn’t be able to escape.

I turned back toward him even as the dragons called out in my head. I ignored them. I had what I needed. This was what the gods had made me into. This was what my destiny had called upon me for. Nothing could stop me now.

Myrin pushed himself off the ground. He stood on shaky legs, one arm wrapped around his side. He was panting lightly, hair hanging down around his face. “The dragons,” he said, spitting out a thick wad of blood. “This is the power of the dragons.”

I shrugged. “Sure looks that way.”

He chuckled. It sounded pained. “I should have known. You—you surprise me, Sam. I don’t know why. You just… do.”

“Because you weren’t expecting someone like me.”

“No. I don’t suppose I was. But then, you weren’t expecting me.” And he quickly clapped his hands together out in front of him. Large columns of rock shot out of the ground at steep angles, racing toward me. I jumped to the right, rolled on the ground, and ended up crouched on my feet. “Because, Sam, if this is a dream, it means I’m dreaming too. So I have control and—”

“Oh my gods, dude, shut up, for fuck’s sake!” I ran toward him, zigzagging back and forth, avoiding the columns of stone that shot up, dirt and grass raining around me. There came a quick warning, bright as a meteor in my head—underneath, underneath, SAM UNDERNEATH—but I wasn’t quick enough and rock hit my left leg, knocking me off course. I skidded along the ground as the dragons roared. Myrin was laughing again, a savage mockery that sounded so much like Morgan.

I picked myself up as I latched on to Kevin, focusing my magic with pinpoint accuracy. My heart burst and lightning arced from my hands, striking Myrin in the chest. He seized, the cords in his neck standing out as his head rocked back, jaw dropped, lightning shooting from his mouth and cracking in the air above him. I rode the electrical current that came from me, one moment halfway across the clearing from him and the next right in front of him. My fist was electrified as I brought it back before slamming it into his chest. There was an explosion of bright blue energy as he flew back and landed with a devastating crash. The lightning skittered away from him through the grass, leaving burn marks that scarred the earth like the marks on my chest.

“Clever,” he managed to say, body still trembling. “Very… clever.”

I was already exhausted but determined not to let it show. I moved slowly until I stood above him. His eyes were bright as he looked up at me. “You’ve lost,” I told him. “After everything, after all you’ve done, you’ve lost.”

He smiled weakly. “So it appears. And will you kill me now? Like you killed your cornerstone?”

I stared down at him.

“The look on his face, Sam. Oh, it was planned. I can see that now. But did you see the look on the knight’s face? He tried to hide it. He really did. But there was such betrayal there. Like he couldn’t believe it was actually happening. You killed your beloved. The bond with your cornerstone broke. Even if it was for a small amount of time, it broke. And you caused that. We’re not so different after all, Sam. Because you did what you had to in order to gain the upper hand. Just as I did.”

“I am nothing like you,” I growled.

“Aren’t you? Or are you more? Sam, the loss of life since I took over has been minimal. I imprisoned the people of Verania. I didn’t slaughter them. Not like you wanted to do to the Darks. I felt it. How close it was. How you wanted to snuff the life out of all of them. You almost killed more people than I ever have. What does that make you? And don’t even get me started on Ruv and Caleb.”

“Shut up! You don’t know what you’re—”

He coughed as he rose slowly. “You didn’t see what I did. You didn’t hear them die like I did, Sam. In those last seconds, they knew what was coming. They felt it. Sam, they screamed when your lightning rolled over them. When their bodies began to burn to nothing but ash. I watched as they died. And you did it. No one else. You did this, Sam. They took a different path than you, and you made them suffer for it. You killed Caleb’s mother, and then you killed him. And Ruv. Oh, poor, sweet little Ruv, a lost boy until I found him and gave him what he wished for more than anything in the world. To matter. Doesn’t that sound familiar? After all, you wished for the same. And my brother came for you, much like I did for Ruv.”

“No, no, no, you don’t get to say that, you don’t get to—”

“Truth hurts, doesn’t it?” he said. “To know that you’re capable of as much darkness as I am, that you—”

Sam.

No, Sam.

Don’t listen to him!

It’s not true.

You are better than this. Than him.

You are more.

The dragons. Sounding so far away.

“—and I know, Sam, I really do, that you could be so much worse than I ever was. All that magic in you. All that power. Don’t you see? It’s just easier to… let go. The darkness won’t judge you. It won’t restrict you. It won’t—”

“Shut up,” I screamed at him. “You don’t get to—”

His eyes flashed. “The gods got it wrong. You were never meant to be the hero of this story. Sam, can’t you see?” He reached for me, fingers shaking. “You were always going to be the villain.”

He looked surprised when I closed my hand around his throat, like he hadn’t expected me to move so quickly. The dragons were roaring in my head—please sam please sam stop this don’t do this you are better you are more you are good and and and—but I ignored them. Wind started to whip around us, and the stars above dimmed.

His hands came to my forearms, wrapping around them tightly. “Do you… know my… wizarding name?”

“Myrin the Bright Star,” I snapped at him, feeling the green and gold mounting furiously within me.

“Yes,” he gasped. “Do you know why?”

“It doesn’t matter. You’ve—”

“Because I flash brightly… like the stars.”

I brought his face close to mine. “Even stars burn out.”

He grimaced as his infected yellow magic pushed against mine, but it wasn’t enough. I was mired in the green and gold. It was everything. I was everything.

The dragons were barely there, buried underneath the storm.

“I told you I read your Grimoire.”

“Yes.”

“That I saw who you were. Who you became.”

“Yes.”

“I even read the end pages.”

His eyes widened.

“I saw how you did it. How you figured out how to consume magic.”

He started to thrash.

And it was easy, wasn’t it? Giving in. Because here, here, here I was a god. I was the most powerful being who ever existed. I had the dragons. I had Myrin the Bright Star, and he had Morgan of Shadows buried within him. But it mattered not. Because it would all be mine.

“You wouldn’t,” he whispered.

I grinned at him. “Oh, Myrin. That’s where you’re wrong. Because I would. And I will.”

Some fleeting part of me knew that what I was doing was wrong. This wasn’t who I was. But it was gone by way of the wind. It didn’t matter who I used to be. The gods had made me this way. They’d wanted someone to pin the fate of the world on, and they’d chosen me. But they’d never expected what I could become. Vadoma hadn’t seen it. David’s Dragon certainly hadn’t seen it. None of them had. They forced me here, filled me with enough magic for a thousand wizards to have, and they expected what. That I would just give it all up? That I would let this all go? That I would stand here with Myrin in my grasp, this man who had taken so much from me, and not make him suffer? That I wouldn’t take everything from him, leaving him nothing but a shell, skin cooling and eyes blank like he’d done to Morgan?

And the people of Verania. They hadn’t trusted me. They hadn’t believed in me. They’d turned their backs on me, telling me I wasn’t good enough, that the color of my skin wasn’t right, that I’d come from the slums and I was worth nothing. And only when they didn’t have any other choice, they begged me to save them.

I would show them. I would show them all. I would consume Myrin’s magic, and then I would return to Verania and show her people exactly what I was capable of.

There would be a new world order.

My world order.

Deep within me, two blue pulses rose, entwined as they spun together. They were trying to defy me and—

No, Sam.

Not defy. Save.

We’re trying to save you.

And I—

“Sam?”

I turned my head.

Knight Commander Ryan Foxheart stood in the clearing, just out of arm’s reach. His eyes were wide and fearful as he watched me.

“It’s a trick,” I snapped. “You’re not here. You’re not real.” I turned back to Myrin. “Is this you? Are you doing this? Because if you think that’ll stop me, you’re wrong. I won’t fall for your games, Myrin. Not now. Not again. You won’t stop me this time.”

“Isn’t me,” Myrin wheezed.

I squeezed his neck tighter.

“Sam, please, listen to me!” Ryan shouted as the wind picked up, whipping around Myrin and me. “This isn’t you! This isn’t who you are.”

I laughed. “And what would you know about who I am? I killed people, Ryan. And I enjoyed it. I wanted them gone from this world. I almost took out all the Darks, but I was weak. I see that now. I’m weak no longer. I will finish them after I deal with—”

He shook his head angrily. “You did it to save Verania. You did it for the King. For Justin. Your parents and Gary and Tiggy and Kevin. For me. We’re the reason you’re who you are. Not what you’ve done. Not Myrin. Not your magic. You are Sam. That’s who you are. Not this. Never this. You can’t give in to it. You can’t. I won’t let you. And do you know why?”

And there was something to his words, wasn’t there?

A little spark in all that darkness.

Even as I pulled Myrin closer to me and opened my mouth, thinking those black words I’d seen in the back of his Grimoire, the darkest of all magics, there was a spark, and it sputtered, wanting to burn—

Myrin’s mouth dropped open as his eyes rolled back in his head, and I could take it. Right here. Right now. His magic, Morgan’s magic, would be mine, and I could—

Ryan slipped, the wind almost too strong for him. He barely held himself upright, his armor reflecting the lightning flashing above.

Myrin’s magic began to leak from him, and I could feel it, that infection spreading down my arms and hands, and I would consume it all—

A hand on my shoulder.

A mouth near my ear.

Ryan Foxheart said, “Because it’s always been you, Sam. I promise. I promise. I promise, because when I look upon these stars, there is nothing I wish for more than you.”

The spark burst brightly, and I…

I let it all go.

The dragons roared forward, swirling red and blue and black and white, so much white that I shook with it.

Myrin gasped as he was flung across the clearing, landing on his back with a jarring crash, dirt and grass piling up around him.

The winds died.

You idiot! Kevin snarled from within me. I am going to kick your fucking ass when we get home, and then I’m going to tell Gary. Oh, are you in for a world of hurt when he finds out what you—

Please, Leslie sniffed. As if there will be enough for Gary to hurt by the time I’m done with him. And you’re welcome for pulling Ryan here, even though you tried to stop us.

You’re in for it now, Pat said. She is scary when she wants to be.

And I thought I was all dark and emo, Zero said, sounding awed. Sam. Sam! You need to paint your fingernails black and dye your hair black and walk around in the shadows, saying things like no one understands me and I could have totally destroyed the world if I wanted to, but it was lame so I changed my mind because of love. Or whatever. This is so romantic! I mean, this is stupid and I hate it and I wish you’d all leave me alone.

Sam, GW said. It’s time to finish this. You must kill Myrin the Bright Star.

“Oh my gods,” I muttered. “Would you guys shut up? You’re ruining a moment here.”

They weren’t too happy about that if their mutterings meant anything.

Ryan was still clutching at me, his forehead resting against my shoulder, his hair tickling my ear. I wrapped my arms around his neck and held on as tightly as I could.

“You okay?” he asked quietly.

“Yeah. You?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. Ryan, I….” But my words died in my throat as the forest began to light up around us.

It wasn’t like the dragon lights. It wasn’t like the fairies. The thousands of small glowing orbs that began to rise from the clearing around us didn’t feel like magic. But they weren’t threatening. Instead, they felt… peaceful. Calm and soothing. I didn’t know if this was another trick. The dragons weren’t talking, so I didn’t think we were in any immediate danger.

“You’re not,” a voice said from behind us.

Ryan and I whirled around.

There, at the opposite end of the clearing, was David’s Dragon.

The constellation was as bright as he’d ever been. His enormous wings stretched out wide, stars twinkling at the tips. His head tipped in my direction as he studied me curiously. He had pinned Myrin below him, his claws digging into the ground around the Dark wizard. Myrin looked dazed, eyes reflecting the dragon starlight above him.

“Great,” I muttered. “Exactly who I wanted to see this very second right after I was about to turn evil. Wonderful.”

“Uh,” Ryan said, dumbfounded. “Is that who I think it is?”

“If you’re thinking it’s David’s Dragon, the god who pretty much started this whole mess and is a stupid fuck-face, then yes. It is who you think it is.”

“I’m not a fuck-face,” the Star Dragon said. “You’re a fuck-face.”

Ryan squeaked next to me.

The Star Dragon peered at him. “What was that noise he made?”

I shook my head. “That was his Sam Is Mocking a Higher Being Directly to His Face Again noise.”

“You capitalized that,” Ryan whimpered, eyes bulging as he took in the constellation before us.

“Well yeah. Because it’s true.”

“I assume it happens often, then, if you’ve given it a name?” the Star Dragon asked.

“I tend to be insolent,” I admitted. “It’s something I’m aware of and will strive to be better about in the future.”

“I highly doubt that.”

“Go fuck yourself—I mean, oh gee. I can’t wait to prove you wrong.”

The lights were brighter now, and growing in number. They stopped rising about chest level, until it looked as if the clearing was covered in a sea of them. I reached out and touched one and felt—

thank you thank you thank you for keeping us safe

—something pulse just underneath my fingertips. It was benevolent and sweet, and I was shocked that it was directed toward me.

“What are these?” I asked.

“The hopes of your people,” the Star Dragon said simply.

“I don’t understand.”

“Heroes often don’t,” he said. “And that’s why you are one.”

I looked away from it. “I don’t feel very much like a hero right now.”

“And why is that?”

“I…. Surely you saw what I’m capable of. What I did. What I could have done.”

“The Darks.”

“Yes.”

“Your cornerstone.”

“Yes.”

“And the darkness within yourself.”

“Yes.”

The Star Dragon sighed. “It was always going to come down to this, Sam. No matter what way you spin this, it was always going to be you or them.”

“So I still didn’t have a choice,” I said bitterly, staring down at Myrin still trapped beneath the Star Dragon. His mouth was open in a silent scream.

“You did,” the Star Dragon said. “You could have disregarded all of this. Ignored your destiny. Ignored your dragons. Allowed Verania to fall into shadow.”

“Which it did.”

“But not because of you,” he said lightly. “Sam, you did what was asked of you. In the end, even after everything you’d been through, after losing people you love, you still accepted your destiny.”

I shook my head furiously. “I was running. Like always. I was angry and scared, and I ran.”

“And you came back. You came back to face those you’d left behind. You became the wizard you were always supposed to be.”

“I don’t understand. That’s not choice. That’s—”

“You were given a choice,” the Star Dragon said. “Unlimited power. You stood at the edge of a cliff. And yet you didn’t jump. I think your cornerstone had a little to do with that.”

I glanced at Ryan, who stood stock-still, eyeing the Star Dragon. “Uh,” he said.

I snorted. “Eloquent as always.”

“It’s a god,” he hissed at me. “What the hell am I supposed to say? You know what? No. I don’t need you to tell me. I got this.” He squared his shoulders as he stared up at the Star Dragon. “Hi. Hello. Uh. God. Sir. Star Dragon. Or whatever you are. My name is Knight Commander Ryan Foxheart. And you are very big. And made of stars.”

The Star Dragon squinted down at him. “Is he always like this?”

“He doesn’t do well with authority figures,” I said, patting Ryan on the arm. “He called Mama the Queen of the Fuck Palace when he met her for the first time.”

Ryan moaned. “Why would you tell a god that? He could smite us where we stand!”

“I could,” he said. “But that sounds like too much work.”

“Eep,” Ryan said.

“Why didn’t you take it?” the Star Dragon asked me. “You could have easily consumed Myrin’s magic and taken it for your own. What stopped you?”

I looked at the lights surrounding us. “I… I heard Ryan’s voice. And the promise he made to me once.”

“About what he wished for.”

“Yes.”

“And that pulled you back. From the Dark.”

“He tends to do that.”

“Even after you killed him. I must admit, even we didn’t see that one coming.”

“What can I say? Had to fulfill the prophecy somehow.”

“It kind of sucked,” Ryan said, before slapping a hand over his mouth.

I rolled my eyes.

The Star Dragon shifted his wings. “The Great White doesn’t believe in cornerstones.”

I felt the white light in my head mutter irritably.

“No,” I said slowly. “He doesn’t.”

“But even under his tutelage, you still had faith in the Knight Commander.”

“Always.”

“And that was your choice.”

I frowned. “What does that have to do—”

“It has always been about choice, Sam. You may not have thought so, but it has. You chose to go with Morgan that day in the alley. You chose to become his pupil. You chose to bring Gary and Tiggy back with you unexpectedly. You chose to rescue the Prince, to find a dragon and make him part of your family. You chose to rise up when a prophecy was placed upon your shoulders. You chose to gather the dragons of Verania. You chose to walk away from the Great White, only to choose to return to him. And in the end, you chose to ignore the magic within you and to listen to your cornerstone, to your lightning-struck heart, and let go of the shadows and the darkness that threatened to rise within you. And the others, your friends and family, your mentor and your King, chose to put their faith in you. This was never about a path set in stone, Sam. Because—”

“Stone crumbles,” I whispered.

“It does,” the Star Dragon said. “All of these choices, from the very beginning, led to this moment. You are as you are now because of them. Because of the people you surround yourself with. Because of the strength that has always resided within you.” He nodded toward the lights that swirled around us. “And the people of Verania have made their choices too. Many of them turned away from you. They berated you. They shunned you. They arguably fought against you. But people often fear what they don’t understand, and Sam, they were scared. But even now, they’re wishing upon the stars for your safe return to them. You are all such complex creatures, capable of the brightest of lights and the darkest of nights. Your Prince said that hope is a weapon. And what you see before you are your people taking up arms in your name. In the name of hope. In the name of Sam of Dragons.”

I stared at the lights in wonder. “I don’t—how can I deserve this?”

The Star Dragon smiled. “No one has ever deserved it more. You may not believe it, but that’s okay. Because they believe it for you. As do I.”

I hung my head. Ryan was there, pressed up against me, whispering words of faith and love in my ear, telling me how proud he was, that no matter what happened, his wish had always been me, and if he had to do it all over again, he’d wish for the same.

“I’m angry,” I admitted. “For what was taken from me.”

“You’re human,” the Star Dragon said. “You’re allowed to be.” He hesitated. Then, “But….”

“But?”

“There is magic everywhere, Sam.”

“I know. Morgan taught me that.”

“And Myrin forgot it. He took something that didn’t belong to him.”

My eyes burned. “And I don’t know that I can ever forgive him for that.”

“Do you remember what you wished for? In the desert?”

Make me mortal. When all is said and done. I will protect my King, this one and the next. I will protect my kingdom. I will do all that you ask, but I want a mortal life for my happy ending. This is my wish.

“Yes.”

“And you did that on your own.”

“Yeah. Sorry about that. I guess I couldn’t wait.”

The Star Dragon chuckled. “If you could have one wish, what would it be?”

My head snapped up. My breath hitched in my chest. “Truly?”

The Star Dragon nodded. “Not all those who are lost are gone forever. Especially when a piece of them remains.”

“Sam?” Ryan asked. “What is he talking about?”

“And him?” I said, nodding at Myrin. “What will become of him?”

The Star Dragon looked down. “For another story to begin, there must first be an ending. I think it’s time for Myrin to end, don’t you?”

He lifted the Dark wizard off the ground. Myrin didn’t struggle. His limbs hung loose between claws made of stars.

The Star Dragon tilted his head back…

…and swallowed Myrin whole.

Ryan gave a shout of surprise as we watched Myrin slide down the Star Dragon’s translucent throat, his singed hair floating around him. When he reached the dragon’s belly, the stars began to shift, alighting on his skin and covering him completely. At the last moment, awareness seeped in and I swore Myrin looked… relieved.

And then he burst brightly.

I shielded my eyes as the clearing lit up around us.

Eventually, it faded.

I dropped my hand as I looked back at the Star Dragon. Two lights burned within him. One a sickly yellow, and another that felt like home.

“You have done us a great service, Sam of Dragons. You have sacrificed much. Your heart is as wild as it was the day Morgan of Shadows found you in the alley. And for that, we will bestow upon you one wish. Choose wisely, child, because once done, it can never be undone.”

I didn’t hesitate. “I wish—”

 

 

I GASPED as I opened my eyes.

The sky above was clear, the storm past. The stars shone brightly, David’s Dragon the brightest of all.

I sat up, groaning at the stiffness in my back. I looked to my left, where Ryan was grunting, blinking rapidly. “Did that really just happen?”

“I… think so? I mean, I feel like I’ve had the shit beaten out of me, so I—”

Myrin.

I looked toward where I’d seen him last in the alley.

He was gone.

I sighed in relief. “Fuck. Dude, I think we won.”

Ryan pushed himself up, his armor dented and scuffed. He picked up his sword and frowned at it. “I just stood in the presence of a god.”

“Yeah. Made a good impression too.”

“Shut up.”

“It was, like, my fourth or fifth time, so that’s why I was so smooth.”

He shook his head. “I don’t know if I’d call you smooth.”

“Bullshit. I’m awesome. I just totally saved the day and stuff.”

He snorted. “And stuff. Maybe you need to be reminded that it was me that stopped you from going all psycho villain.”

I grinned at him. “Because of your love for me. You saved me with the power of your love.”

“So dumb,” he muttered, but he was blushing, so I knew he was full of shit. “I don’t… what happened? In the end. I didn’t hear what you wished for.”

Oh fuck. “We gotta get to the castle!”

He blinked. “What? Why? What’s going—”

I stood up quickly, looking skyward. “Kevin!” I bellowed as my magic burst.

I heard the answering roar of a dragon.

“Huh,” I said. “I didn’t think that’d work. Neat. Why are you just standing there? We have to go!”

“I just helped you face down the biggest Dark wizard of all time. I think I’m allowed to stand still for a little bit—and what in the fucking fuck is that!”

I glared at him. “Look, just because you love me so much that you pulled me from the brink does not mean you get to—what in the fucking fuck is that!”

Sometimes in life, you see something so ridiculous that it immediately defies all logic and causes all the synapses in your brain to misfire at the same time. These moments are extraordinarily rare, and once seen, can never be unseen.

This was one of those moments.

Because above us, running on a bridge made of rainbows shooting from his horn, was Gary.

With Randall riding on his back.

And Tiggy.

Riding on Kevin.

“This might be the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen,” I breathed fervently.

The rainbow bridge began to spiral downward toward us, Gary running along it. There was a possibility that he was singing. Randall looked ill and annoyed. Kevin was spouting something undoubtedly overtly sexual toward his husband, and Tiggy was just screaming, “GWAAAAHHH.”

“I love them so hard,” I told Ryan.

“I don’t know why stuff like this still surprises me,” he said with a sigh.

The rainbow slammed into the ground moments before Gary’s hooves hit the stone of the alleyway. “Did you see that shit?” he demanded.

“Well,” I said faintly. “I do have eyes.”

“You’re damn right you have eyes. Not that you are going to have them for very much longer because I am going to stab them out of your face, you little bitch. How dare you have a secret plan behind my back to make me think you’d actually turned evil and then killed Ryan, only to bring him back to life in a plot so ridiculous, your brain should be studied long after you’re dead to figure out why it’s so deranged.” His eyes filled with tears as Randall slid from his back, muttering that he wanted no part of this.

“Oh no,” I said.

“Oh yes!” he wailed. “Do you know how much you’ve aged me in the last four hours? Do you know what wrinkles look like on a unicorn, Sam? Do you? Because if you did, then you would realize the extent of your betrayal.”

“We crying?” Tiggy asked, bottom lip wobbling as he jumped down from Kevin’s back.

“No,” I said, voice breaking. “Okay, maybe.”

And then I burst into tears, because if you can’t have a good cry with your best friends after saving the world, then when can you?

Tiggy wrapped Gary and me up in his arms, holding us close as we blubbered all over each other.

“Ow,” I sobbed at Gary. “Your horn just poked me in the cheek.”

“You deserve it,” he cried. “You know what? I’m going to make a secret plan of my own about something and only tell Tiggy!”

“I’ll tell you,” Tiggy told me, great tears dripping down his cheeks. “I’ll tell you, Sam.”

“What’s going on?” Kevin asked from somewhere behind us. “Why are they crying?”

“You should know by now that it’s better not to ask,” Randall said. “Besides, if we ignore it, it’ll be over quicker.”

“I’m sorry!” I wailed. “I just thought if you knew, you’d never let me go through with it.”

“You’re damn right we wouldn’t have,” Gary snapped, eyes suddenly dry. “Because it was stupid, just like you! What the hell were you thinking?”

“Hey! It worked!”

He blinked. “It did? Oh. Well, then.” He pulled away from Tiggy’s arms. “That’s good. Now that that’s over with, can we please talk about me? Did you see me running on a rainbow?”

“I did,” I assured him, patting Tiggy on the arm as I stepped away. “You’re the most preposterous thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”

Gary preened, puffing his chest out. “Right? I can’t wait to see what else I can do with this rainbow.”

“Like what, my love?” Kevin asked, keenly interested.

“I’m so glad you asked,” Gary said, prancing over to him. “Have you ever been to a bakery that had rainbow sprinkles on their pastries?”

“Ooh,” Kevin growled. “And what pastries would the sprinkles be on?”

“All of them,” Gary purred.

“Gods,” I said, trying hard not to gag. “It didn’t take long for him to ruin his horn for me forever.”

“I blame you for most of this,” Ryan said, looking green.

“Stop! All of you!”

We turned just in time to see a Dark wizard pop out from behind Kevin at the entrance to the alley. He looked a little worse for wear, what with the fact that his eyebrows appeared to have been singed off.

“Huh,” I said. “One must have escaped. That sucks.”

“Aha!” he cried. “I have bested Sam of Dragons! I will be the supreme Dark wizard. If only my father could see me now. You see, he never respected—”

And that’s when Gary stabbed him in the chest with his horn, pinning him against the wall. “You just bought a one-way ticket to Gore City, bitch,” he snarled.

Everyone clapped except for me. “My catchphrases are so much better,” I muttered. “That was just stupid.”

“Sam.”

As Gary began to bitch and moan about Dark wizard gunk on his horn, I turned to Randall. He looked tense and wary. “I….”

“Is it done?”

I didn’t know quite what to say. “He’s… the Star Dragon. He—consumed him. Myrin was….”

Randall nodded tightly. “And you’re all right?”

“I’m fine.”

And then Randall hugged me.

I was so surprised, I didn’t know quite what to do. My arms were at my sides and I couldn’t even think, much less reciprocate.

“Are you going to make this even more awkward?” he muttered against my shoulder.

“Uh. No. No, I’m not.”

And I brought my arms up and hugged him back.

It was good.

The best, really.

“Thank you,” he whispered. “For doing what you had to. For doing what I could not.”

I swallowed past the lump in my throat. “I’m sorry. For not being able—I couldn’t—”

“I know,” he said. “But it was never about that. He made his choices. I’m just happy that you’re all right. Did he say anything else?”

“The Star Dragon?”

“Yes.”

“Just—” My eyes widened. “Holy shit.” I shoved Randall off me. “Suck me through your hole,” I demanded.

“Now wait a godsdamn minute,” Ryan started.

Randall scowled. “What are you prattling on about now?”

“The castle! We have to get to the castle! Randall! Now!”

He looked uncertain. “I don’t….”

“Trust me,” I pleaded. “I need you to—”

And we were gone.

 

 

I STUMBLED as we reappeared in the throne room.

It was eerily empty. The Darks had been defeated, and soon we’d fill the room and corridors with the sounds of life as it once had been, but for now, it was quiet.

“Why are we here?” Randall asked, looking around. “What has happened?”

“Hello?” I called out.

There was no response.

I shook my head. It was fine. It was fine. We just needed to—

I took off for the rear entrance that led to the gardens. Randall shouted after me, telling me to wait just a godsdamn minute. I ignored him. The dragons were bright in my head, agitated in the way they buzzed, but I pushed them away. Kevin was still with the others in the alley. Zero had joined them. The remaining dragons were nearing the City of Lockes. They’d been successful, I knew, in taking back Meridian City. There were smaller enclaves of Darks left, but soon they’d disperse. Not all of the Darks had been captured, but they’d disappear back into the Dark Woods. If they didn’t, well. We’d deal with them then.

All of us.

I pushed the doors open, the wood groaning underneath my hands. The air was redolent with flora and fauna. The stars were blazing in the sky above, and I called out, “Hello!” again, but there was nothing, there was nothing, and I’d been lied to, I’d been deceived.

I pushed my way through the plants, branches scraping against my hands and cheeks as I made my way toward my mother’s secret garden. My heart thundered in my chest, Randall’s cries ringing in my ears, the dragons rumbling in my head, and I thought, please, please, please.

There, in the secret garden was—

Nothing.

Almost nothing.

Morgan’s obelisk still stood as it had before, during our rescue of the King.

But that was it.

I heard a bird call.

I took a step forward.

“Hello,” I managed to say again.

Nothing.

I sagged.

Then—

It was like I was eleven years old.

It was like I was eleven years old, standing in an alleyway in the slums, just having turned a group of teenage douchebags to stone.

Because he said, “Well, this certainly is a surprise.”

I closed my eyes and breathed and breathed and breathed. “I like your shoes.”

He said, “Thank you, little one. I made them out of the tears of a succubus and a lightning-struck tree stump I found under the Winter Moon. I like your face.”

My tears spilled over. “Thank you, big one. My parents made it when they got married. I was a honeymoon baby, whatever that means.”

There came a deep chuckle that I’d missed very much. “Sam, look at me.”

I shook my head. “I don’t know if I can.”

“Why?”

“I’m scared.”

“Of?”

“This being nothing but a dream.”

A pair of warm hands cupped my face. I squeezed my eyes shut tighter. “It’s real,” he said. “The Star Dragon told me of your wish. That it came from the depths of your heart. And I… I was given a choice.”

I tried to smile, but it trembled and broke. “You were?”

“Yes, little one.”

“And what did you choose?”

“You, Sam. Always you.”

I opened my eyes.

And there, with a quiet smile on his face, was Morgan of Shadows.