As I'm dragged up to the clifftops beside the school, I can't help but think it's ironic that I thought I was safe here, when it’s where they needed me all along. The water from Ariziadia underneath the school having some importance to whatever they are doing here. My long white dress drags in the mud on the ground. I stumble and the rebel dragging me catches me, holding me upright.

“Fucking watch where you're walking,” he growls.

“Maybe if you weren't dragging me so quickly in the freaking dark, I wouldn't keep stumbling!” I snap. “Hell, if you didn't make me wear this ridiculous dress either, that would help,” I add, practically seething. I see Kelly and the rebel dragging her catching up to us. Maybe if I can keep him talking for a moment longer...

“Fucking shut up, and come on already,” he grunts, pushing me forward, and up the cliff. I almost stumble again, but keep my footing this time.

“Fine, no need to shove me,” I mutter, as we continue up the last part of the trek to the clifftops.

When we reach the top, a group of rebels are already waiting there, my father included, and he’s standing in the centre of the semi-circle. They’re all standing around a marked-made pool of water. The edges of the pool are so flat and perfectly rounded, it has to be that someone has used their earth mark to create it and then they’ve filled it with water. I notice both Stella and her parents are also standing around the pool with the other marked rebels. They’re all wearing stupid ceremonial robes, too. Gods I hate those things.

The rebel dragging me releases my arms as we reach them, going to stand next to the others. Looking behind me all I see is the edge of the cliff, and while cuffed and unable to use my marks, jumping off the edge would be extremely dumb. I feel a raindrop hit my face, and then another. As if things weren’t crappy enough, it just had to be raining too.

“We all know why we are here,” Alaric voice calls out, and I cringe.

Is he really going to give a speech? I look around hoping to see signs of the others returning here to help, to rescue me and Kelly before it’s too late, but there’s no sign of them. I bite my lip nervously.

“Today my daughter, Mackenzie Crowe, will open the portal to Ariziadia. We will then use the power from that world, through the opened portal, to push more power into this body of water. Water that came from Ariziadia itself,” he says, pausing as if to add a dramatic flair to his speech. The winning smile on his face showing just how much he is enjoying all of this. “We will then step back into the water, as we did when we were first marked, and we will be blessed again, with enough power to rule this world the way we were meant to,” he finally finishes. I expect cheering, or at least something, but they’re all deadly calm and serious.

I hear Kelly whimpering as the rebel dragging her up here finally reaches the top with her. I look across at her, frowning in confusion as they walk her over to my father. As my eyes follow her, I notice one of the robed rebels is handcuffed like I am. I frown at the figure, but their hood is up.

“Ryan?” I shout, calling across. The figure steps forward, or tries to, but he’s held back by the rebels either side of him. Kelly seems to realise it’s him, and she starts trying to pull towards him, but as weak as she is, she isn’t able to put up much of a fight against the man pulling her towards my father. Two marked rebels move over to me. They remove the cuffs from me, but stay standing close to me so I know it would be dumb to try anything. I rub my sore wrists as I watch Alaric. He’s standing way too close to Kelly for me to try and attack now that I can use my powers again, I can’t risk Kelly getting hurt.

“We will now cause Mackenzie’s twelfth mark to activate. We previously thought this was only achievable by physical pain, but we now know the most effective method to trigger the mark is high levels of emotion,” Alaric says. High levels of emotion, what does he—

“No!” I scream, all thoughts cut off as his hands rest on Kelly, and her body twitches while she screams in agony.

“Let her go!” I shout, as I try to rush forward and get to her, a hand grips my shoulders tightly, holding me back and away from Kelly. I scream with her, for her, as he continues to use the pain mark on her. She collapses down in a heap on the floor in front of him. Tears are running down my face, but I don’t feel my twelfth mark activating.

“Nothing, Mackenzie?” he asks, and I shake my head. If it isn’t working, maybe he’ll stop? “Do you not care for your friend at all?” he drawls, crouching down, and pulling out a knife.

“Get the fuck away from her, you monster!” I screech. I try to call on my air mark to throw the rebels holding me back off from me, but I’m so panicked I can’t concentrate enough to call it properly.

Ryan manages to wriggle free from the other rebels, his hood falling down, and showing that it’s him. His mouth is covered with duct tape, and his face is covered in bruises, meaning he still hasn’t seen a healer. Alaric stands and turns towards Ryan.

“What do you want?” he asks, as he rips the duct tape off from Ry’s mouth.

“Use me,” Ryan blurts out desperately.

“No way!” I shout.

“What do you mean?” Alaric asks, looking at Ryan, paying no attention to me whatsoever as I scream.

“Use me instead of Kelly. Clearly Kenzie’s powers aren’t activating for Kelly being hurt. Use me instead,” he pleads, his eyes looking down at Kelly sadly. “She can’t take anymore. If you use the pain mark on her again or cut her with that knife, she’ll die. I can take this, but not watching her die,” he says. My whole body shakes with quiet sobs as I realise Ryan is trying to protect Kelly, even if it means him being tortured instead of her.

“That could work,” he says, and then a loud bang comes from down below in the school. “But unfortunately, we are out of time. We’re switching to plan b.”

“Plan b?” Ryan echoes in a confused tone.

“There isn’t enough time for torture,” he answers plainly, and then he shoves the knife into Ryan’s stomach. He rips it back out and then plunges it straight back in, and I scream as Ryan falls to the floor next to Kelly. I feel something in me snap, something uncontrollable taking over me. The ground beneath me shakes, and my neck burns so much that I can’t help but scream. Bright, blue light shines from behind me, and I turn to face it. I gape at the plane of light shimmering into existence. All the marks on my body burn hot as I stare, watching as the light becomes deeper and more corporal. It’s just off the edge of the cliff, and it stretches out, getting bigger and bigger, both across and up and down. Pieces of rock fall off the cliff, floating into the air and then the cliff shakes, making us all sway as we stare. I fall to the floor, landing on my hands and knees, as I feel the power flow not just from me, but through me. It’s like I’m not the creator of the power, I’m not in control, I’m just the conductor for the current. And it’s painful, so much pain.

Turning my head, I see the rebels rushing forward, and Kelly is dragged with them. I feel drowsy, but shouldn’t I be dead? I thought using the twelfth mark kills you, and the portal is right there, I should be dead… Dead…Ryan! I have to help him!

I pull myself into a standing position, and push through the marked that are staring at the portal with wide eyes. Once I reach my brother, I fall to my knees next to him, throwing my hands over the wound in his stomach trying to stop the blood. It slips through my fingers and runs down onto my dress. The rain pours down even heavier than before, and I can feel my wet hair sticking to the sides of my face and the back of my neck, but I don’t care.

“Please be okay, please,” I whisper, tears streaming down my face.

“Forgive me,” he whispers, and I realise I’ve seen this all before. Kelly’s vision. Gods, please no.

“There's nothing to forgive, just don't die, okay? I love you, so you can’t die,” I reply. My hands glow as I call on my healing, putting all my strength into it. My healing mark burns on my skin, so fucking hot I scream. I can hear shouts, familiar voices, but I fall back as all the marks on my body begin to burn. I stare down at the marks on my wrists, gaping in disbelief as they begin to fade, leaving my skin bare. I’m no longer marked.

The cliff shakes once more, a massive quake, and I stare down at Ryan as his head falls to the side.

“NO!” I scream, shaking him and begging for my healing mark to come back, for anyone to help. But no one comes. Everything in me just breaks as I fall backwards collapsing, my eyes closing but the image of my brother dying never leaves my mind.

* * *

“She’s coming around,” I hear Kelly sob, “I won’t lose her too, I’d die first,” she says. I sit up with a gasp, feeling every part of me hurting a little but it’s not too bad. Kelly is sitting next to me, tears pouring down her face as she sobs into her hands. I look in front of me to see my mum holding Ryan close to her and I can’t seem to look away as she turns to me but is silent.

“Who?” I ask, standing up shaky with Kelly’s help and the sight in front of me is madness.

“He died to save me, didn’t he?” Kelly whispers, and I give her a shaky nod, not trusting my words.

“Go, I have your brother and will keep him safe. Help them destroy Alaric,” my mum finally says, holding him close, and I know it’s pointless to point out she can’t keep him safe now. He is dead but one look at my mum, just makes me realise that she is right. Ryan can’t die for nothing.

“Oh god Ry,” she says, covering her face with her hands as she cries. I hold her to me, trying not to cry myself as I look around. Rebels and marked are fighting each other, the portal is open, showing a land full of massive trees and what looks like a rain forest. The cliff is falling apart, slowly bits of it are flying into the portal from the pressure. I slam us both to the floor as a giant wave of fire shoots through the sky above our heads. Kelly rolls next to me, looking around like I am.

“It’s madness, I can’t see a thing,” I tell her.

“Them,” Kelly points to my left, where right on the edge of the cliff is Mr Daniels, East, and the twins fighting my father and ten other rebels. They are being pushed back with every attack against them, and not landing any hits on my father at all by the looks of it. I run towards them, only to get hit by a wave of air that sends me flying. I bounce across the floor, trying to call my marks as I roll to stop and remember I don’t have them anymore.

“Kenzie!” I hear shouted through the fighting, and I pull myself up, and then duck as a large rock floats above my head and towards the portal. I turn around in a circle, not seeing anyone I know and then I spot my guys again, this time Kelly is with them, leaning on the floor and healing someone I can’t see. Someone has put a ward up around them all, and the rebels are throwing fire and water at it constantly, making it impossible to really see them. I watch as my father leans down on the ground, placing his hands in the ground and the ground cracks. I run towards them, but I’m too late as my father uses his earth mark to throw the ground, that Kelly and the guys are on, straight into the portal. I hear them shout, Kelly scream, and then there’s an eerie silence.

“No!” I shout, running straight at my father and he turns, smiling at me. He lifts his hand, using his air mark to control my body, and pull it towards him. I fight, struggling against him but it’s no use. I’m basically human now.

“My daughter, how very useful you are, but we have a problem. I can’t trust you, I wish I could,” he says, pulling me closer to him, and then turning us around.

“Have fun in Ariziadia, I’m sure the marked people there will be welcoming to you,” he says and then lets me go over the cliff. I scream, stretching my hands out and catching anything I can, and finally grabbing something.

My fingers scrape across the ledge, holding on as the portal behind me pulls me to it. I glance down, only regretting doing so as I see the swirling blue portal and my grip on the edge of the stone slips. I hold in a scream as I try to get a better grip, only the blood on my hands is making it impossible to hold on. The stupid white dress I’m wearing only makes it harder for me to use my feet to climb up.

“Kenzie!” I hear Enzo shouting my name. I try to look up, only to have to use my hand to push a piece of rock that flies at my head away from me. I know Enzo won’t stop looking for me, even in all the madness of the flying pieces of rocks that are being pulled into the portal, and the chance he could die before he finds me.

“Enzo, here!” I shout back, and I see him look over the edge of the cliff I fell down. Enzo jumps, landing right in front of me on the ledge and reaches down, pulling me up into his arms.

“I’ve got you, it’s okay,” he says and gently kisses my forehead.

“No, it’s too late, Ryan is dead, the portal is open, and everyone fell in the portal to god knows where,” I mumble, shaking my head and Enzo squeezes me tighter.

“You couldn’t have changed anything about what happened,” I hear Enzo say, but I’m too distracted to tell him he is wrong as someone jumps down, and lands next to us. Enzo turns us so he is slightly in front of me as we face my father. He stands there, with his long coat blowing in the wind and a happy expression. He won.

“It’s your fault,” I spit out and he laughs.

“Good bye, Mackenzie. Thank you for everything you have done for this world, but I’m afraid we don’t need you anymore,” he says in a cruel, emotionless voice. I’m too late to try and stop him when he shoots a blast of air at me and Enzo, sending us flying off the edge of the ledge, and down into the portal. The last thing I see is Enzo pulling me to his chest and his dark eyes as he looks down at me.