Lost Embers: A Rejected Mates Romance (Fall Mountain Shifters Book 8) Page 2

  She softly smiles. “Arawn would have escaped either way, child. You did not curse the world, and you are far from useless and trapped.”

  She reaches up her hand and places it on the wall, flattening her palm. Her eyes tell me to copy her, and I do, placing my hand directly where hers is. I feel nothing but heat right before her fingers curl around mine and she pulls me straight into the wall of flames. I gasp as they surround me, drown me within them, and when I crash out the other side, I fall in a heap on my knees, shaking from head to toe.

  Mnemosyne comes to stand over me, reaching down and cupping my cheeks. Parts of her are flickering away like embers in the wind, starting with the bottom of her cloak and the ends of her hair. She is disappearing. “I’ve waited so long to do this, to help you in this final moment. Arawn is an evil I should have killed, but he got to me first, and I knew it was coming. The reason why he killed me so easily is that I’d already cast a powerful spell, using all my magic and parts of my soul to let me be here in this moment in the future.”

  Tears fall down my cheeks, and she wipes them away. “I died to free you from this place, so you can go back. Go back and save them all. Save my dragons and be the queen they need. Fight, Serendipity, and kill Arawn. He used you to take the Wolven gods’ power and kill them, but the power is yours, and he only got half. You are a goddess now, and you must embrace this.”

  There isn’t much left of her now, just her arms, chest and face. Embers dance around us both. “Do you understand what you must do?”

  “Yes,” I breathe out. “Thank you. I can never thank you enough.”

  She smiles so brightly. “It is my honour to be here and meet you. Your power is endless, and if you win, your children will rule this world and there will be peace for millions of years. Be careful, and may the flame goddess rule.”

  She leans forward and kisses my forehead, her voice but a whisper. “Take back the witches’ city first. Find the sister who should sit on the throne. It was never your mate who was destined to rule that city. Find your guard second, and finally save the king. Together, you will win.”

  “I will. Thank you,” I whisper, resisting the urge to cry as she is nothing but an ember-filled shadow standing in front of me. “I hope you find peace.”

  “We will meet once more, in many, many years, when it’s your time. Save them all, flame goddess. Fix my mistake.”

  She disappears into nothing but ash, and I watch as the ash floats into the air, swirling around again and again before disappearing into the night sky full of stars. The words leave me as I watch. “We endue the fall and rise in the ashes.”

  I look around at the dusty ruins, the echo of old walls and crumbled buildings, before I realise exactly where she left me and what’s left of my home. I stand up in the ruins like a goddess reborn—because that is what I am now—and let my white flame wings spread out.

  I’m not weak, I’m not trapped, and I’m never giving up.

  I’m the goddess of the flames, and this is my world. Not his.

  Chapter

  Two

  The harsh wind from the storm above rips into what is left of my blood-soaked clothes and into my eyes, making it harder to see where exactly I’m flying and to make sure I don’t smack into a poor unaware bird. I feel every bit of sand, rocks, and grass that blows into me as I look up at the thunderous storms above. A loud rumble echoes from them as I carry on, wondering if I should shift into my wolf and run the rest of the way.

  I continue flying, knowing I’m safer up here as I fly across a small lake, seeing a reflection of myself that makes my heart race. I look like a star of white light shooting across the black sky. My hair almost seems to have a white edge to it, lit up by flames and matching my massive wings. I pull my gaze away and swoop over a small forest, finally seeing the whole city right below a hill. The Fall Mountain Pack.

  My mama’s home. Mine too.

  I sweep and land on the hill, the grass cold under my feet as the storms above grumble once more, threatening to rain down on me. I make my wings disappear as I look at the city, because I don’t need too many questions from whoever’s going to see me first. I just need to get in and see my mum to make a solid plan to save my mates, kill Arawn and bring peace to the world. No pressure.

  My chest feels tight at even the thought of my mates, and I push them to the back of my mind just so I don’t fall to my knees. I need to make sure Arawn doesn’t know I’m back, and I can’t stand out here all day. Mnemosyne told me to go to the witches’ city first to find Devika, and I trust the goddess. After all, she saved me. I look over at the dark city and freeze, realising there’s a shimmery protection of magic all around it. Even now, I can’t quite see it unless I focus, but I know it’s there, and it stretches around the edges of the city to make a giant dome. It isn’t the only thing guarding the city. Angels fly in formations around the dome, and the ground is littered with patrols of wolves, both shifted and not, their armour glittering in the night. Lightning flashes above me as I watch them, and I wonder for a second about how I’m going to get past them.

  Fuck it.

  I’m walking in. I walk across the ground towards the wolves, a group of five of them passing nearby and, as my scent carries in the wind, they swiftly turn their eyes to me. I brace myself, knowing they’re not just going to trust me and let me in, and none of them will recognise me. The wolves charge at me, one massive brown wolf in the front taking the lead and growling at me as I flash a wall of fire between us in warning. The wolf snarls, digging its paws in the ground as the others circle around me.

  I growl right back and get ready to shift right before an angel swoops down and lands in front of me with a spear aimed at my throat. Three more land around me, their sharp spears inches away from my ribs on either side of me. The wolves continue to circle me as the brown wolf shifts into a handsome male with curly brown hair and blue eyes.

  I slowly hold my hands up in the air. “I’m not here to harm anyone. My name is Serendipity Fall, and your alpha will want to see me.”

  “Liar. She’s dead!” the male wolf snarls at me. “She has been for a long time. How dare you come here and pretend to be our princess? You will die, pretender.”

  “I am her,” I snap with a low, threatening growl. “And you will not speak to me like that.”

  He pauses for a minute as I let that deeper part of me take over, that alpha part of me that will not let a weak wolf shout at me and threaten my life. His eyes widen and a whimper escapes his throat as he backs away. The other wolves run away from me altogether. The angel, fully in amour, doesn’t move or say a word.

  I look at the angel in front of me, only able to see his blue eyes inside his helmet. “I’m a wolf and I make fire. Who else does that other than Serendipity Fall? Aka, me.”

  “It could be a trick from the witches,” another angel replies, poking me a little with the spear.

  “They’re always playing tricks to try to get past our defences.”

  The wolf, who is still whining, croaks, “She’s an alpha born. Let the alphas see her.”

  “Not if she is a threat,” the angel in front of me states.

  “Lower your weapons. NOW!” The command comes from a deep voice that, for some reason, sounds familiar, like I’ve heard it in my dreams but don’t really know it. The angels immediately lower their weapons and step away as I watch an angel stalk through them to me. He’s older than me, his wings are pitch black and tightly tucked behind him, and he is tall. I eye his shoulders with the strange, fleeting memory of someone holding me on their shoulders, running across a beach to catch a ball.

  His dark eyes are wide and filled with so much emotion that I don’t know what to say as he blinks a few times, tears filling his eyes. He slowly comes to stand in front of me and places his shaky hands on my shoulders. “Is that really you, Dip?”

  “Yes. Who are you?” I question.

  “My name’s Niall, and I looked after you for a while for your mother. You
were just a baby back then, toddler when you left, and I’ve always wanted to see you again. I thought you were dead,” he tightly grumbles, and I remember him now. He sent me a few letters over the years, and mama always said he was a father to her.

  “It’s good to finally put a face to the name,” I softly say. “But we don’t have time for a catch-up right now. I need to see my mum and the alphas. Immediately.”

  And hopefully Nakoa. He was thrown back through the portal, and he might be here still.

  I have a sinking feeling he is not, and I can’t sense him near me, anyway. None of my mates are nearby.

  “Of course,” he quickly replies. “Mai...well, she needs to see you too. She never stopped believing you were alive. None of us did.”

  My heart tightens, and I reach out, taking his hand. “I’m glad to be back.”

  He smiles at that. “Do you mind if I fly you into the city? It will be quicker.”

  “I can fly myself. I was worried about flying into that magical shield,” I admit, looking over his shoulder at it.

  “You can see it?” he muses. “Not many can. It’s meant to be invisible, and it will not hurt you. As long as you mean no harm to the alphas, you can get through easily.”

  “Perfect then,” I say as I let my wings out, the fiery ends spreading out behind me and white embers flying past in the wind. The angels and wolves break out into gasps, and one of them falls to his knees, praying to me.

  Niall doesn’t look surprised, and I arch an eyebrow at him. “You have always been the most powerful person I ever met. Even as a kid. Now you simply look the part.”

  I nod. “You can tell me more about that later.”

  Without waiting for him, I shoot up into the sky and immediately relax into the feeling of flying in my fire. How natural and easy it is. He laughs below me, his deep chuckle echoing before he follows me. I sweep into the city, straight through the barrier, within minutes. I feel it pressing against my mind for a second to know my intentions are pure, and it easily lets me through. The city below me seems to come to life, and so many turn their heads up to look at me as I glide over them. To them, I must look like a goddess…and I am one. I’m going to save them and bring peace to this world before I leave it. No matter what it takes. Shouts rise from below, a mixture of “The lost princess is back” and “The Dragon Queen has returned.”

  They all thought I was dead, and I’m not even sure I wasn’t for a while. I need to find out how long exactly I was in that place. Days? Hours?

  I haven’t got a clue, but things feel too different for it to just have been hours. I fly straight towards the castle, following the river before going over the tall gates, then the forest. When the courtyard comes up, I almost sigh in relief as I land in it. The flames in the lights around the courtyard call to me in a whisper, promising me that I am theirs to command if I wish it.

  It’s like the flames themselves answer to me now. Perks of being a flame goddess.

  Niall lands next to me, nodding once. “You’re faster than me. Amazing.”

  I grin just as I hear a door slam open right before I see my mother running out. She looks like she’s lost weight in her tight black clothes, and she looks so tired. But her eyes light up brighter than any star when she sees me, and a sob escapes her throat.

  “Hello, mama,” I softly whisper, my throat tight.

  She falls to her knees and weeps into her hands. I run across the courtyard, my wings disappearing, and I fall to my knees in front of her, wrapping my arms around her as she embraces me back tightly.

  “You’re real. You’re not gone. You’re not dead,” she repeats over and over.

  “I’m here,” I whisper back into her hair, breathing in her scent and trying not to cry. We hold each other for a long time, and I let her, knowing she needs this. She needs me. I feel the presence of her mates nearby, but they don’t interrupt, even as I look over her shoulder at them and see the relief in all of their eyes. And the love.

  They have always been the dads I needed. I hope they see that, because I do.

  Mama kisses the side of my head and then my forehead and then my cheek before looking into my eyes. “You’re different. More powerful...you feel like a—”

  “Goddess,” I finish her sentence, and her eyes widen.

  She still looks at me like she can’t believe I’m here. I can’t imagine what it’s like to lose a child, but seeing her hurting, it’s heartbreaking. “Good. I don’t care how you’re back. Just that you are. You need to tell me everything.”

  “I think you need to tell me a lot, too. Is Nakoa here?” I question, and she shakes her head, my heart sinking. I gulp and she helps me stand up, clinging to my hand. “Where is he?”

  “Right now, you need to tell us where you have been?” Silas interrupts. “Because you vanished and Arawn claimed to have killed you. Reine is off searching the cities for you as she believes you’re out there somewhere. We have wolves in every city, searching.”

  “That bastard certainly tried to kill me,” I bite out. White sparks flicker off me in my anger. “And when I find him, I’m going to fucking kill him.”

  “Good. We will help,” Silas growls in agreement.

  Suddenly a bundle crashes through the alphas, and my brother slams into me, wrapping me up in his huge arms, squeezing me for dear life to the point of hurting. “You’ve grown so much!” I tell him.

  “Training,” he replies with a grumble. “And I knew you weren’t dead. The gods told us you’d come back.”

  “How do you know what the gods say?” I ask, arching an eyebrow at him.

  His cheeks redden. “I wasn’t born powerless, sis.”

  I ruffle his hair, which makes him go even redder, and he pushes me away a little before Ragnar tugs him back, and Mama smiles at me, her eyes confused and full of questions.

  “Maybe we should gather everyone so I only have to explain it all once?” I suggest.

  Mum nods in agreement. “Yes, are you hungry? I’d like to get you a shower, a healer check-over, some food and new clothes before we have a long talk.”

  “I’m starving,” I admit, having not noticed until she said food. “And I’m sure I smell.”

  “I don’t care,” she teases, wrapping her arm around me and leading me into the castle. “You’re still wearing the same clothes I saw you in last over a year ago.”

  I pause mid step, my insides going cold. “It’s been a year?”

  “Yes.” She furrows her brow. “How did you not know that?”

  “It didn’t feel like a year for me...but it might have been,” I whisper. “Gods, a year. My mates have been out there, in danger, for a year.”

  She hugs me tightly to her side. “They are strong, and they can’t be dead. You’d know.”

  “Arawn wouldn’t kill them yet. He’d spend centuries torturing them first,” I whisper in horror. “I need to save them.”

  “And you will. When you’ve eaten and rested,” she firmly tells me with her mama tone that means no isn’t something she will accept. “A few hours isn’t going to make a difference at the moment.”

  My shoulders drop, and I let her take over, leading the way to her bedroom. After eating a month’s worth of delicious food, I shower and Mama brushes my hair before braiding it. I get dressed in the clothes she has left out and clip two magical daggers, no doubt gifts from Valentine, to my thigh straps.

  I stop to look at myself in the mirror, noting the white streaks in my blonde hair, the glow that radiates over my skin, and the tips of my mating marks peeking out of the black leather. I touch my necklace, rubbing my finger over the ruby and thinking about Nakoa giving me this before kissing me. I can almost feel his lips against mine until I look around and see I’m still alone. I straighten my back and head to the door, where my mama is waiting and offers me her hand. Holding my hand, she leads me next door to a private lounge that is full of my family. Phim, Breelyn, Callahan and the alphas take up most of the sofas, and Niall is leaning
against the wall. They all turn to watch me as I walk in and stand in front of the fireplace, my arms crossed. Mama sits in the middle of the alphas, half on Valentine’s lap.

  “The Wolven gods are dead, and Arawn used me to kill them and steal their power,” I start off, and Mama looks pale by the time I tell them all everything. We are all silent as I go and sit next to my aunt Phim, who places her hand on my upper arm and squeezes once.

  “You’re a new goddess. A flame goddess,” Breelyn muses.

  I smile tightly. “Goes well with my other titles. Like the dragon queen.”

  “Can you beat Arawn?” Henderson asks. “It took us many years to train in our powers, and Arawn has had longer than you.”

  “He’s right,” Mama says. “Having power means nothing if you can’t control it.”

  “I can control it,” I tell them. “It’s like the power is part of me and it answers to me.”

  “Maybe it’s different because you are a goddess, whereas we are connected to them by our souls,” Ragnar suggests.

  “I have a feeling that I can connect with the light side of flames, and Arawn took the darker side,” I say, “but we are the same in terms of power. I just need to outsmart him.”

  “How do you plan on doing that?” Silas questions.

  “Tell me what has happened with the world since I’ve been gone,” I ask.

  Henderson clears his throat. “The witches have taken over all of the American lands, turned humans into their slaves, and built one hell of an army pretty much overnight. Their capital city in the north has expanded. Arawn and Sallette have declared themselves the new king and queen of the witches. We’re not at peace with them, but they don’t directly attack us anymore because—”

  Henderson pauses, and Mama continues. “Because of your people being selfless and brave. Arawn was attacking us and we were not prepared. He wanted the dragons, all the dragons in the city, and he would spare thousands of innocent wolves he captured.”

  There is a misery to her voice that lances through my chest like a knife. “So they flew out of the city, even when we told them no. They gave themselves up, every single dragon. Nakoa was the first to leave, followed by Apollon.”