My boots sank in the sand.

“Whoa,” I said, staring at the sea.

Just three feet from me, the dark water glowed with millions of bright blue spots.

“Long ago, humans proved those shining spots were simply science,” Victor said, standing beside me. “Phytoplanktons capable of bioluminescence. To a certain extent, they were right. But this was always Maho’s doing.”

“Whenever he stays a little while in a single location, the place absorbs his magic,” Ceris added. “That’s why many places believed in magic. Like the Ashikaga Flower Park in Japan, the Red Sea beach in China, the Zhangye Danxia Landform, also in China, and the Turquoise Ice in Russia.”

“It’s beautiful,” I whispered.

“It was even more so before,” Ceris said, her voice solemn as if she were mourning the loss of beauty, the loss of anything beautiful in this world.

Victor cleared his throat. “Let’s keep going.” He marched on and Keisha followed. Ceris trailed after them, but I stayed for a moment longer. I had never seen a place like this before.

The waves rolled, creating white foam and bringing in more blue dots. I knelt down and sank my fingertips in the water. As if pulled by a magnet, the blue spots gathered around my fingers, dancing in an uncoordinated choreography. I moved my index finger to the side until it touched one of the dots.

“Ouch.” I pulled back as a shock ran from my finger up my shoulder.

Energy. The blue dots were pure energy.

Magic.

“Nadine, are you coming?” The breeze carried Victor’s voice.

I turned on my heels and sprinted to catch up with them.

We walked toward the center of the island for about five minutes while Victor and Ceris told us this place used to be an expensive vacation destination thirty years ago.

“The hotel on the other side of the island closed a decade or so ago, after the darkness spread,” Ceris said.

The world changed a lot when the dark became permanent. Sometimes I wondered how there had been any order at all. Now, however, the world was spiraling down at a much faster rate. With Imha’s attacks, everything had been thrown into chaos. The few world leaders who had survived the attacks were lost, not sure what to do or who to attack. Ceris told us about their theories: Russians attacking the United States, North Korea attacking South Korea and all neighboring countries, Cuba deciding to act. Secret organizations rising up to take over the world. Aliens. And more rarely, magic and even gods.

I guess the mind accepted a more rational answer before accepting the impossible ones, like magic and gods.

Our group discussed that topic from time to time. We wondered if Imha would reveal herself to the world, her powers and their creed, or if she would let the world assume it was something else entirely and retaliate against invisible threats. She had already let millions see her and Omi on several occasions. What went through the mind of the people who had seen her and survived?

My opinion was that, for now, Imha would let people think whatever they wanted. If the president of the United States wanted to believe all the attacks were terrorists or Russia, she would let them, because they would turn on each other and destroy themselves. But at some point, she would reveal herself—more than she already had. The few times I had seen her, that I had been in her presence, she gave me the impression she loved being stared at, being loved, and being worshiped. And that was exactly what she wanted. To be worshiped. By everyone who survived the end.

“Maho should be here.” Ceris’s voice broke through the haze of my mind, and I shook my head to clear my thoughts.

We were in a clearing among bushes and low, thin trees. White stones formed a circle with one crystal stone in the center. Ceris and Victor stood beside the crystal while Keisha walked the perimeter, her hand on the hilt of her sword.

Ceris pointed to the map. “This is where you saw his symbol, right?”

I took two steps to her and looked at the map in her hands. “I still see it.” Maho’s symbol, with its curled lines, was still strong and immobile in the exact spot we stood.

“Then where is he?” Victor asked, his tone curious, as if he wanted to solve a riddle.

“Do you see anything?” Ceris asked. “His symbol anywhere around here?”

I scanned the area. Dried grass, splotches of sand, bushes, and stones. Twelve white ones and one crystal one.

A crystal one.

I knelt in front of the crystal stone and squinted at it, as if there was something hidden inside. I leaned forward, placing my palm on it for support, and that was when the world spun.

“Whoa,” Keisha cried, pulling her sword from its sheath.

The dark sky gained bright stars, the sand and grass became fog, and the stones glowed—the white ones shone white, but the crystal one radiated orange. Maho’s color.

I stood, reaching for my weapon.

“I sense him now,” Victor said.

“Me too.” Ceris pointed somewhere amid the fog. “Right there.”

All I saw was fog. “I don’t see anything.”

Keisha stood closer to the spot. “There’s something here.” She took three careful steps. “Yes, there’s definitely something here.”

Victor, Ceris, and I rushed to her side. With each step we took, the fog dissipated a little and we could see a shape forming in the distance.

A man with red-orange hair and freckles on his cheeks appeared amid the fog. He just stood there, the fog dancing around him, looking at us with big maple eyes. Like in my visions, he was dressed in an elegant white suit.

“By the Everlast,” Ceris whispered.

“Maho!” Victor cried, reaching for him.

“Don’t!” Maho shouted, his voice strained. He waved his hand to the ground. The fog opened up, revealing bright red chains around his ankles. “It’s a trap. They’ve had me here for weeks, hoping you would come for me.”

Victor narrowed his eyes. “They?”

“Edan and Nuri.”

Those names didn’t sound too unfamiliar. I thought hard about the books I read the past few weeks, trying to remember them, but nothing came up.

“Why?” Ceris asked.

“They want more than to live in Imha’s shadows. They thought if they could steal my power, they would be stronger than her.”

Victor’s eyes bugged. “They have your power?”

Maho shook his head. “No, they don’t know how.” He lowered his voice before adding, “And I didn’t tell them.”

Ceris knelt in front of him and reached for the chains. She pulled back with a hiss as if they had burned her. “What kind of magic did they use?”

“Human blood,” Maho said.

“By the Everlast,” Ceris muttered.

“Never mind the chains,” Maho said. “You have to go. Now.”

Victor shook his head. “We won’t leave you here.”

“You must. When they realized they couldn’t use my power, Edan and Nuri decided to use me as bait. They said you would come for me at some point.”

“But … they should be fighting with us,” I said.

Maho tilted his head at me. “Who are you? Never mind. No time to explain. Just leave before they arrive. They will trap you too and use you. They will hand us all over to Imha and Omi.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Ceris said.

“Why?” Victor asked. “Why would they hand us to Imha and Omi?”

As if a fan had turned on above us, the fog pushed back, leaving us in a black hole. Keisha raised her sword and I pulled mine from where it hung at my waist.

“Because we want Imha and Omi to trust us.” A woman with long, curly blond hair and a wicked smile stepped into the clearing from the shadows.

“And if she doesn’t trust us enough to welcome us, we want her to at least leave us alone.” A man appeared by her side. He had short blond curls and the same evil grin as the woman. They both had hazel eyes and wore similar black outfits like old military uniforms.

Edan and Nuri.

Now I remembered them.

Lesser gods under Sol—the god of the sun and day—they were a sick mix of siblings and lovers. If the tales were right, they weren’t alone. I scanned the perimeter of the fog, identifying the shadows of several fire nymphs.

“Crap,” I muttered.

“If you’re not happy with Imha’s and Omi’s rule, why not fight them?” Victor asked.

The couple laughed.

Nuri tsked. “After she took down you and Mitrus, after all the chaos in the world, after all she accomplished, do you think there’s a way to stop her?”

“We have to try,” Ceris said.

“Try you might, but you will fail,” Edan said. “And we prefer standing on the winning side.”

“I can’t believe I’m hearing this,” Ceris said. “Don’t you miss the world before Imha threw it out of balance? We can have that again if we fight her. We’ll be stronger in numbers. Join us and fight her.”

Edan sneered. “We already made our decision. Nothing you say will change our minds.”

Ceris and Victor exchanged a look. They were getting ready to fight; I could feel it.

Nuri raised her hand and outstretched her palm. Fire licked her fingertips. “We sent a messenger to Imha and Omi some time ago. All we have to do is hold you until they get here.”

The nymphs stepped out of the fog. Their long, flowy hair varied from yellow blond to red. Their skin was tanned, as if they spent too much time sunbathing, and their skimpy golden clothes did nothing to hide their lean bodies. Why were all deities so pretty?

The nymphs grinned at us and transformed. Their hair darkened, their skin went gray, their eyes became red, and their nails grew into claws.

“Demons?” I asked in a low voice.

“I’m not sure,” Ceris answered equally low. “I just know they aren’t themselves anymore.”

The nymphs growled at us.

“Edan, Nuri.” Victor stepped in front of Maho. “Think about what you’re doing, please. There is another way.” Behind his back, Victor pointed his fingertips at the chains around Maho’s ankles. A thin strip of white power shot from his fingers.

“Trust the Everlast energy,” Ceris said. She stepped back and did the same as Victor, though the power from her fingertips was pink. Together, the powers ate away the chains. “For millennia, we all trusted the Everlast energy. Why not trust it now?”

“Trust the Everlast energy.” Nuri scoffed. “Where have you been the last thirty years? Have you seen what happened to the world? Where was the Everlast energy then?”

“The world was out of balance because of the goddess you’re trying to make a deal with now,” Victor said. He and Ceris were keeping our enemies occupied until Maho was free. “She threw the Everlast energy aside, but we can bring it back.”

Edan shook his head. “I’m tired of waiting and hoping things will get back on track. A war is coming and we’re choosing the winning side.”

The chains snapped with a loud pop. Everyone froze.

Maho let out a long breath. “Right now, we’re winning,” he said, stepping to stand beside Ceris and Victor.

With a roar, Nuri lunged at Maho. Victor was ready and threw a white bolt at her. Edan engaged Ceris, and Keisha was surrounded by nymphs. Knowing I had more chances with the nymphs than with gods, lesser or not, I rushed to help her.

A nymph came at me and I jumped back, pulling my sword with me.

She was a nymph! I couldn’t kill a nymph! What if we could change her back and she came to work with us?

Another nymph lunged at me, and I worked hard to parry and dodge without harming.

Ceris knelt a few feet from me and created a shield in front of her. “Nadine! They aren’t themselves anymore.” She looked at me, her stare quick but firm. “There’s nothing you can do now to save them.”

A swarm of nymphs rushed her. Ceris raised her shield as she threw bolts at them. A bolt hit the chest of the closest nymph. It exploded, opening a black hole in the nymph’s chest. Her body fell on the ground with a thud, and then it crumbled into ashes.

I gulped, still retreating from the nymphs.

All right, Nadine. Focus! These nymphs are just like Morgan. They can’t be saved. You need to kill them.

I took a deep breath and changed my stance.

Shutting down the part of my brain that told me I was again fighting innocents, I stopped playing and started attacking. I brandished my sword, eliminating as many enemies as I could. In less than five seconds, both nymphs were ashes around me.

More nymphs came at me and I fought on autopilot. Otherwise, I would think too much about what I was doing, who I was killing, and I would be sick. I would freeze again and I would end up dead.

I pulled my sword from the chest of a nymph and it fell on the ground. That was when I saw Edan and a half-dozen nymphs holding an injured Victor.

Nuri stood in front of him, holding a Black Thorn. “I wanted to wait for Imha and Omi to arrive, but seeing as you’re not cooperating, I think she’ll compensate us even if you’re dead.”

Nuri pulled back her arm, gaining momentum.

No!

Desperation gripped me. Victor couldn’t die again. If he did, the war was lost. Even if his soul wasn’t lost and he found a way to be reborn, it would take years for him to grow up and ready for battle again. There wouldn’t be an Earth to fight for.

Something fierce, something strong surged inside me and I reacted. I lunged for the nymphs holding him, raising my arms to use my sword. A shock ran down my free arm and bright white light shot from my palm, sweeping over everyone in front of me. The light hit the nymphs, Edan, and Nuri, and flung them several feet away.

I froze.

Victor froze.

Ceris froze.

Keisha froze.

Everyone froze, watching me with agape mouths and wide eyes.

“What in the Everlast was that?” Ceris asked.

“Magic,” Maho said, his voice low but sure. “Power just like ours.”

“W-what?” I stared at my hand.

Victor stood. He walked to where Edan and Nuri had fallen. He nudged them with the tip of his boot.

“They are alive but unconscious.” He looked at the nymphs around them. “The nymphs too.”

The other nymphs, the ones I hadn’t hit with whatever that had been, stood behind Keisha, looking confused. When Keisha, Victor, Ceris, and Maho turned to them, most of them fled. Only a brave few stayed and were quickly defeated.

Soon after, Victor teleported out with Keisha and Maho. Then Ceris, watching me with wary eyes, extended her hand to me. “Let’s go home.”

I gave her my right hand. She gripped it tightly and took us out of there.