Sabertooth Rakshasa Boyfriend (Othet 2-complete)

    “I’ve sent word to every surrounding kingdom,” Kalidas tells us. “Imani has been trying to spread the word as quick as she can as well.”

    “What about overseas?” I ask. “Beyond the Cobra Strait? Didn’t Amit go to that summit because of the concerns of Obresh?”

    “There is only so much we can do at this point,” Foluke grunts. “Even if we did get word overseas there is no guarantee it will reach them in time, even less that help will arrive.”

    “We have hope at least,” Chi replies. “Thanks to Othet, we know what is coming.”

    Nadeem shakes his head. “I still can’t believe she hid this. I mean, I can believe it, but it is a hard thing to swallow,” he growls. 

    “It’s been decades since there was war on our soil,” Kalidas growls low. “We have worked so hard to keep the Gnolls out of the country to protect our people.”

    “The evacuation went smoothly,” Foluke assured him. “We have everyone safely in the catacombs.”

    Not long after we had gotten to Amit’s court, Kalidas took authoritative action and ordered an evacuation of the city. Ages ago, Amit’s grandfather had created an underground network of tunnels and rooms he called the catacombs. He had made this if something were to happen, like now with the threat of war and the dragon. He built them after the last time the Gnolls invaded Rakshasa country. Kalidas, as general of Amit’s army, was now in charge until Amit came back. 

    So far, he was doing what he thought was best for the people, something he felt Amit would try to accomplish. In the meantime, he left Foluke in charge of where to send the troops and how to organize him. I could sense the tension in the air as thick as pudding. I’m not even sure why we are here, but Kalidas insists on keeping us close at hand.

    “I like having her here,” Foluke says with a smile on his face. He turns to me and chuckles. “It feels like Mythri is in the room.”

    I place my hand over my sigil and smile. “Imani said I looked like her,” I force out a laugh. I then glance at Chi who sighs and glances back to the maps.

    “If they have to come up from the Western Sea, we should expect to see them come from the south,” he taps at a point on the map. “But if that have a dragon-” he hesitates and sighs.

    “How do we plan for that?” Kalidas growls and glares angrily down at the map. 

    That evening I am too nervous to fit down for dinner. Instead, I wander the palace halls. My mind drifts between the oncoming battle, Queen Mythri and how she could be my sister. I still feel so out of place, unsure about where I belong and what to do. I know this is where everything has been leading, but it still does nothing to assure me.

    “There you are,” I turn and look up as Othet comes down the hall. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

    I sigh and smile at him. “I wasn’t hungry,” I reply. “I felt better taking a walk around the place.” I glance out the window towards the night sky. “It’s amazing, even here the sky is the same.”

    Othet puts his arms around me, and I suddenly feel at home. It all feels right when Othet holds me. I put my arms around him and nuzzle to his broad chest. He’s so warm and soothing, I finally feel my body and soul relax. I’ve not gotten to spend much time with him, I am either with Chi working on battle strategy, or assisting Kalidas and Foluke. Othet has been serving as an advisor, using his Shamanic gifts and knowledge to help as much as he can. We’ve been like shadows passing in the night to one another.

    He touches my cheek, smoothing his finger across my skin. “Have you been sleeping well?” He asks. 

    “When I can,” I murmur. 

    He sighs and kisses my forehead. “You should go to bed. Really, you should eat then go to bed.” He holds me again and kisses the top of my head. “To be honest, I have not slept well in this place. Too many dreams,” he murmurs.

    I take his paw and kiss the center of it. “Does he still come to you?” I ask.

    He sighs, and we go to sit down on the floor under a great window. He holds my hand and pets it. “I have been trying to keep him at bay, but it is hard. He has influence,” he murmurs. “He’s strong, and he has unencumbered himself from caring. He is stronger than me, but he is also frail because of it.”

    Bithus is the brother of Penu, Othet’s father. He was also a powerful Shaman, but he used his abilities to bend creatures to his will. And while the people of Bastat believed in non-violent means, Bithus was trying to change that. He wanted to warp our little oasis into one for bloodlust. He was swiftly kicked out. How he ended up in the clutches of Empress Bethsabe is beyond me. But now, he has been visiting his nephew through dreams, tormenting him and taunting him while also using him to find where to strike with the dragon.

    “Unlike father, he’s not aged well. Time has been harsh to him. He looks like a skeleton with a fur draped over it. His eyes are crazy and distant, they point in different directions. But he’s so powerful,” he whispers. “He terrifies me.” He shivers. “I hear the screaming of children, and he says he will eat the heart of a baby! I can’t stand it-”

    I wrap my arms around him. “Is there anything I can do?”

    He looks at me, and his look of pain melts into a smile. “Knowing you’re here is enough for me. As long as your arrows are pointed to the horizon of our enemies, I will fear nothing.”

    I kiss him, moaning softly as he presses closer to me. He holds me tight and growls softly. He touches his forehead to mine.

    “When we go home,” he murmurs. “I want to marry you.”

    My breath catches in my throat.

    “I want to belong to you. I no longer want us to hide.” He looks at me with those molten gold eyes. “Please, Chiyo,” he squeezes my hand. “Will you take me?”

    I sniffle and nod. “I have been waiting for you to ask me that!” I tackle him, kissing him and pushing him down onto the ground. 

    Othet laughs, holding me tightly and kissing me all over my face. Suddenly, he’s struck with a pained expression, and he cries out. I leap up and watch as he struggles. He growls and grunts, passing for breath before he takes hold of my hands.

    “Othet, what’s wrong?” I cry.

    “I feel him,” he grunts. “Ah!” He wails in pain. “He’s close-” he whimpers. 

    “Bithus?” I whisper.

    I then hear a horn sound in the distance. I go to the window, looking out I see the horizon is aglow with flames. “Oh no,” I whisper.

    Othet grabs the hems of my robes. “You...you have to go…” he growls in agony. “Chiyo,” he pants. “It has to be you. The dragon...is for you.”

    I kneel down beside him again, seeing his eyes have gone blank and white. “Othet,” I whisper in terror. “What does that mean?”

    “The dragon is meant for you,” he murmurs. “The dragon...he’s in pain,” Othet’s nose is starting to bleed. “Chiyo, you have to help him.”

    I wipe at his nose with my sleeve. “I am not a savior,” I whisper. “But I will try.” The horn sounds again, this time much closer to the palace.

    I race to find Chi as more horns sound. I can smell the smoke and the flames now as they all waft through the halls. I find Chi, who is barking orders to men.

    “Thank god you’re here,” he quickly kisses the top of my head. “This is it,” he growls. “Are you ready?”

    I smile up at him. “You trained me, you tell me.”

    He takes my hand and squeezes it. “I feel her,” he places his paw over his chest. “Do you feel her?”

    I nod, placing my palm over my heart. “She is giving me strength, Chi. So are you.” I join the archers on the wall at first, but then I see. It flies high in the clouds and smoke, but with every breath is gives, shooting fire out, I see the jagged outline of the dragon. 

    Chi claps his paw down on my shoulder. “This is it,” he growls.

    I take a deep breath and aim my bow. “Ready!” I shout to all the archers. The symphony of bows straining and bending echoes all around me. “Aim!” Clicking and more straining. I hold my breath and feel the wind on my cheeks. Above me, the sky blazes as the dragon breathes. The wind stings with severe heat and cinders singe my skin. 

    “Fire!” I scream and release the arrow.

Like a sheet, the arrows fall, I have never seen so many in my life. The arrows slice through the smoke and strike the emerging Gnoll horde. I hear yells and panicked laughs from the Gnolls below. This causes them to charge.

“Don’t stop!” I command as I ready my next arrow. “Don’t give them a moment to breathe! Aim!” I scream. “Fire!” Another waterfall of arrows strikes down on the Gnolls.

The dragon is right on top of us. Their fiery breath blazes and their wings cause a mighty wind. Arrows are tossed, and men drop their bows. Some fall to the ground screaming while others turn their arrows to the creature above us.

The dragon lands on the wall above us, knocking men from their posts and roaring in our direction. Its wings stretch out, flapping and blowing us back with a powerful gust. It breathes fire below, lighting the palace gardens on fire and creating a wall between the troops and the palace.

“They’re trying to keep us out!” Chi roars to me as we regain our balance.

I look up at the dragon, seeing it isn’t trying to attack anyone. Instead, it keeps creating walls of fire around the palace.

I shake my head. “No,” I whisper. “They’re trying to keep someone in.” I grab Chi’s wrist and drag him along with me. We race into the castle where every window is ablaze with fire. I heard screaming and panicked wailing from the staff.

“What are you doing?” Chi growls at me.

    “It was something Othet told me,” I pant. “He said Bithus has been coming to him and tormenting him with the screams of children.” I race through the halls, and I hear manic cackling. I turn and see something that looks like a skeleton coming down a staircase. He steps at the bottom, wild-eyed and manic in appearance. His skin is stretched tight over his bones. His fur is sparse, very few patches of it remain on him.

    “Greetings!” he throws his arms up into the air. “Oh my goodness, Chi, is that you?” He points a gnarled and jagged finger in Chi’s direction. “Well, well, well, if time hasn’t been good to you old friend!” He cackles again and claps his paws together. “And you!” He looks to me. “If you aren’t the little raggamuffin who has the heart of nephew. Oh, happy day!” He claps his hands excitedly.

    “Bithus,” Chi steps in front of me. “You aren’t well.”

    Bithus snorts. “No shit!” He spits everywhere, and I feel it fleck on my face. “My own family cast me out! Of course, I’m sick with grief.”

    “This isn’t grief, brother,” Chi growls. 

    Bithus laughs wildly. “It doesn’t matter!” Outside the dragon roars and fire floods through the windows. Chi and I duck to the ground, and he covers me. “Nothing matters because I have a dragon! You can say anything you like to me because it doesn’t fucking matter. Why?” Another wave of flames billows through the windows. “Mother fucking dragon!”

    “You can’t keep it!” Chi roars over the flames. “You are powerful, but you can’t hold him forever! And when you even let one finger slip, he will rear back and take you down!”

    Bithus giggles. “I once thought you were smart, Chi.” He walks towards us and kneels down, tilting his skull this way and that. “Now I just see what a pitiful man you are.” His eyes widen, and they twitch and squirm in the sockets, finally coming forward to point directly at us instead of caty wompoused. “So small. So pitiful.” Fire floods through the windows again. “I am big now, and I will squash you like the ant you are.” He snaps his fingers, and for a moment there is quiet. Then the walls cave in. The dragon smashes through the stone and mortar. I scream, and Chi throws me. He tosses me towards the stairs.

    “Run! Chiyo!” He roars at me.

    I look up as he screams, watching as the dragon takes Chi into his jowls. All I can do is scream, there are no words that could describe my pain, grief, and anger. The man who I considered my father, a man I loved and respected with all my heart, was doomed to such a fate as this. He struggles against the dragon, trying to fight while roaring in pain. 

I then hear Bithus cackling. I turn and look at him, seeing him bent backward as he points and laughs at Chi in the dragon’s mouth. “I told you! I told you!” He squeals with glee. “Pitiful and small! Mighty Chi, oh dear, he cannot flee!” He throws his head back to wail with laughter again.

With all my might I tackle him to the ground. He claws at my face, hissing and spitting in my eyes. Blood rains from above, Chi’s blood. I scream and bash Bithus’ head into the ground. He continues to cackle, and he swipes at me clawing across my face. I fall back onto the ground, and as he stands, he kicks me hard in the ribs.

“Silly ragamuffin!” He giggles with glee. “You aren’t the hero of this story.” He reaches down and grabs me by the scruff of my neck, his sharp claws dig into my skin. “You aren’t even a character in this farce.” He stares at me with his wild, bug eyes. “You are nothing,” he sneers. “So say it.”

I feel as if my throat is being gripped and pulled on. I feel like a puppet with strings attached to me. My mouth opens, and my voice comes out. “I am nothing,” I say, but it isn’t me speaking. It is, but at the same time, it isn’t.

Bithus squeals excitedly. “Good girl! Good! Good!” He shakes and dances about. He drops me to the ground. “Oh for shit’s sake! Stand up!”

I rise in an instant, and it feels like my body is shredding.

“Keep quiet,” he hisses at me. “Straighten up!”

I stand rigid and want to scream from the pain, but I cannot make a sound at all.

Bithus claps and giggles, dancing around excitedly. “Good! Good! You mind so well for such a young thing!” He comes face to face with me. “I do so hate to disappoint my nephew,” he says. “But I don’t care!” He throws his head back and laughs.

Above I hear Chi groaning and crying. “Chiyo!” He coughs. “Chiyo...stop it! Little...little Chi! Listen to me!”

“Shut up, old man!” Bithus yells at him. “She’s my dolly now. You lost your chance to play with her anymore!” He giggles and whips around to me. “Tell him,” he says. “Tell him who you want to play with. Tell him! Tell him! Tell him!”

His voice is grating. I feel it in my bones, scraping against them like a knife on a stone. It makes my teeth hurt, and my body feels covered in needles. My mouth opens, but instead of the words, he wants to hear I let out a scream.

“What?” Bithus snarls. 

I take a step forward. 

“Don’t come near me!” Bithus roars.

I take a step backward.

Bithus giggles. “What is this? You think you’re stronger than me?” He stares at me with those wild, ever moving eyes. “Little nephew! You’ve come to play?”

I take another step forward, and Bithus takes a step back. I open my mouth and scream again. I feel warm as if I am wrapped in Othet’s arms.

“Now, now, now,” Bithus’ laughs is starting to sound nervous. “One shouldn’t be so willful against their elders! Young man!” He screeches. “Young man!”

I feel Bithus grip on me fall, and all I feel is Othet with him. I lunge forward and knock Bithus down to the ground, so I’m sitting on his chest. He starts laughing, his claws digging into my hands as I grab either side of his head. I smash my thumbs into his eye sockets, and his laughter only gets louder. I scream and slam his head into the ground. I bash his head over and over into the stone until the laughter stops.

    I gasp and pant as I fall away from his body. I feel burning cold all over, and I start to shake and shiver. I look at my hands, seeing them covered in blood and viscera. I heave and choke, I feel my insides retch and churn forward. I vomit violently onto the ground and tremble as I crawl away from the remains of Bithus. I hear groaning, and I look up, seeing tears falling from the eyes of the dragon. He roars in agony and relief, and he turns to me. He lays Chi on the ground, and I scramble to get to his side. I take Chi’s broken body into my arms. I’m sobbing painfully, and I feel his paw on my cheek.

    “I see her...Little Chi…” he whispers. His voice is hoarse and shallow. He takes breaths that are far too short and far between.

    “Mama?” I whimper as I look at him. How he’s still alive, I do not know. But somehow, he is hanging by a thread. 

    “She’s so beautiful,” he whispers. His eyes look vacant and far off, but his smile is pure and blissful. “She’s crying though.”

“Of course she is,” I sputter. I sniffle and try to clear my throat, but only sobs come out. “Chi...Chi, I love you so much.”

    He looks at me, eyes glazed over and full of blood. “You are my child, Little Chi...always…” he gasps softly. “Oh...Tali...you’re here.”

    His paw slips from my cheek, and I am frozen with grief. I sit there with Chi in my arms, and the world is silent. The violence of the battle below is deafened. I hear a ringing in my ears and my own shallow breathing. My chest feels tight and squeezed and yet empty all at the same time.

    “Girl,” the word breaks through the silence and the ringing. “Girl,” the dragon growls for me. “Answer me, girl.”

    I look up, seeing him watching over me. “Oh,” is the only word that escapes my lips.

    The dragon is bright gold, his scales make him look like an opened treasure chest. He is massive and daunting. But unlike before, his eyes look gentle. They are a dark brown and reminds me of Chi’s gaze, powerful yet kind. He lowers his head towards me and lays it on the ground. 

“You killed him.” He grabs Bithus in his fist and forces him into his mouth. I watch as he angrily chews and swallows the corpse of he captor. His throat ripples and he makes a disgusted face and smacks his tongue. 

He then lowers his head to me again. “What can I do to repay you for returning my will to me?” He asks with a low, gentle voice.

    I tremble as tears continue to cascade down my face. “Destroy the Gnolls,” I snarl. “Burn them alive. Keep them from reaching the palace.”

    He rubs his muzzle to my cheek, and my blood smears on his face. He then gives me a look, and I notice his scales change into a dusky color. “As you wish.” He flaps his wings, flying up into the air and roaring. Golden flames light the sky.

    I look back to Chi and hold him fast. I lay him down and wipe the blood from my eyes. I take his sword and bow, and I head to the stairs. I take two at a time, racing up them. I can feel Othet, I know he is above. My goal is to find the royal children and keep them out of harm’s way. I can only hope that I am not too late.

    I race down the hall, hearing screaming. I hear the wails of a baby.

    “Please no! Take me! Take me!” A woman screams.

    “Mama!” I hear a little boy cry. “Mama!”

    “Daddy! Please!” Another little boy screams in terror. “I want my Daddy!”

    “Every fucking one of you needs to shut up!” A horrible voice growls. “Or you’ll end up like that other kitty cat!”

    A second Gnoll cackles wildly. “Stand back! They’re just kids! It doesn’t matter what happens to ‘em!”

    “Leave them alone!” Another woman bellows.

    At the end of the hall, I see two Gnolls rip from a room. One holds a baby that is wailing, the other has the two boys under each arm.

    “Mommy!” One screams when he sees me. “Mommy! Mommy!”

    I feel a rage inside me I have never felt before. It is not my anger. This is the anger of Mythri, her pain, and agony. This is what a mother feels like. I take Chi’s bow and ready an arrow.

    One of the Gnolls holds up the baby princess, placing a knife to her throat. “You shoot that, then this little one won’t see the dawn.”

    Behind the Gnoll, I see a woman with dark skin. Her eye is swollen shut, and her lip is bleeding, but she brandishes a knife in her fist.

    “Monster,” I whisper and aim my arrow right as she slits the throat of the Gnoll holding the princess. I then shoot the Gnoll in the head who holds the princes, and I rush forward.

    The woman grabs the princess, and the princes rush for me.

    “I’ve got you little ones,” I hold them tight as they cry. I look to the woman with the knife who is staring at me.

    “I thought you were Mythri,” she whispers as she calms the princess.

    I shake my head. “No. I’m afraid I’m not.”

    They had been hiding inside the library. Othet had tried fighting the Gnolls off but had gotten injured and knocked unconscious. Margo, the librarian, had managed to keep the Gnolls at bay, while Nalini, Foluke’s wife, and Brahmi, Kalidas’ wife, tried to hide the children.

    The princes, Himank and Dhaval, will not leave my side. Since I look so much like their mother, they feel comfortable with me.

    “I need to go back,” I say. “I need to help them.”

    “You’re bleeding horribly,” Brahmi forces me down. “Your beautiful face is sliced to ribbons,” she growls at me. “You saved our lives, you saved the children, you have done enough heroics for this battle.”

    Nalini’s daughter, Esha, is rushing around, helping all she can. Tiny paws handing out cups of water and helping tie bandages.

    Brahmi mends my wounds received from Bithus, and she takes the princes once they’ve cried themselves to sleep. I go to Othet, kneeling by his side and clutching his paw. He stirs, slowly opening his eyes and groaning. He received a knife to his stomach, but thankfully it wasn’t deep. 

    “You’re here,” he looks at me. “Oh no,” he whispers. “Chi,” he whispers.

    I clutch my hands over my chest. “He is with me,” I feel the tears come back fresh. “He is in my heart with my mother now. It is where he always wanted to be.”

    “Chiyo,” he wipes away my tears with a trembling paw. “I am so sorry.”

    I shake my head. 

    “What about the dragon?” He asks.

    I close my eyes as tears continue to spill down my face. 

    “Is he gone?” He asks.

    “I can’t…” my voice chokes off. “Othet,” I lay beside him and cry onto his shoulder.

    “It’s ok,” I hear a small voice murmur. A tiny paw pets my hair. “It’s ok, lady,” little Esha coaxes me. “My papa told me, being scared is ok.”

    I look up at little Esha, who is putting on such a brave face after what she saw. I take the small handkerchief she offers me. “Aren’t you scared, little one?”

    She nods. “But I know that everyone is working hard to protect us. Papa, Uncle Kali, and you.” She takes my hands, and I feel her trembling. “Papa always said, as long as he had Uncle Kali, there wasn’t anything they couldn’t do.”

    I sniffle and squeeze her hands. “I need to go.” I stand up and gather my sword and bow. “I need to get back out there.”

    “Chiyo,” Othet groans as he tries to sit up.

    “I’m going,” I say firmly. “I have to.” I leave the room and return to the hall where Chi was. Outside, I see the fire and chaos. Above, I see the dragon as he breathes fire down before the Gnolls, keeping them at bay.

    “Dragon!” I call out. “Come here!”

    He turns in the sky and comes down. He lands near me and lowers his head to my level. “I have done as you asked.”

    I nod, and I look at him, meeting his dark eyes. “Put me on your back,” I command him. He lowers down, and I crawl onto his neck. I tap the side of his neck. “Fly up again, charge into the Gnolls.” He flaps his wings, flying upwards and into the sky. He then flies down, charging through the Gnoll troops. He tosses them into the sir, chomping down onto them and breathing fire on all sides. 

    I land the dragon and step off his back. I look around, seeing fire and destruction. I stand in the center of what had once been the market outside the palace. 

    “Girl,” the dragon growls at me.

    “That’s enough,” I whisper. “That’s enough.” I look up, seeing the Rakshasa troops surrounding us. 

    Kalidas storms forward and his eyes widen when he sees me. “You?” He comes towards me and looks up at the dragon who lays his head on the ground. “What is this?”

    “The dragon is no longer under Gnoll control,” I murmur. “He’s on our side now.”

    Kalidas puts his arm around me, holding me up. “Come on,” he whispers. “It’s over.”

    I’m not sure when I passed out, but I wake up in a bed. My whole body aches. My hands are bandaged, and my face is wrapped. I also find that Foluke is in the room, tending to the other wounded that have been placed in this room. 

    “There’s the hero,” Foluke comes and leans over the bed. His arm is wrapped up, but other than that he looks in one piece. “You’ve been out a while.”

    “How long?” My voice cracks.

    He smiles sympathetically at me. “Two days.” He helps me sit up and gives me a drink of water. “I don’t blame you though. If I had saved an entire country, I would have been out a week.”

    “What?” I groan.

    “Getting that dragon on our team was one thing,” he says. “But saving the royal children was another.” He eases me back down onto the bed. “I want to thank you too. You saved my Nalini and Esha. I can never repay you that, let alone everything else you did.”

    “Esha helped me,” I reply. “She’s a courageous girl.”

    Foluke smiles. “Nalini told me.” He squeezes my hand. “Do you think you could accept visitors?” He asks. “There have been people begging to see you.”

    “Where’s Othet?” I ask. “I want to see him.”

    “He’ll see you when he can. But right now, there’s someone really important.” He steps back and waves his hand.

    I look up a second later and feel as if I am looking into a mirror. I gaze into Mythri’s eyes as tears start to roll down her face. 

    “I don’t know what to say,” she whispers. “How can I even begin?” She sits on my bedside and takes hold of my hand. “You saved my children. How can I put into words my gratitude to you?”

    Amit comes up behind her like a white mountain. In his arms, he’s clutching the princess. He is wordless too.

    I smile despite the pain. “I felt you,” I tell her. “Your anger.” I touch my chest. “For a moment, we were connected, and it was your love for them that fueled me.”

    He furrows her brows for a moment when she smiles. She brushes my hair from my face and sits with me for a long while. We don’t say anything, she just stays with me.

    Othet comes, and he tries to bow, but his stomach wound causes him great pain.

    “Don’t worry about it,” Amit tells him.

    “Your majesty,” he says to Mythri. He then holds out my sigil to her. “Does this look familiar to you?” Mythri furrows her brow and takes the sigil from him. She then reaches into her robes and pulls out the one around her neck. She compares to two then looks up to Othet.

    “Where did you find this?” She whispers.

    Othet motions to me. “It belongs to her and her mother before.”

    Mythri looks at me. “Your mother?” She whispers. She tilts her head, and a strange sort of smile crosses her face. “Tali?” She whispers. “Is that your mother?”

    I nod. “She was.”

    Mythri gasps and her mouth hangs open. “Oh…” she looks up to Amit as she struggles with herself. “This has been...the most unbelievable time in my life.” She looks at me and tears roll down her face. “My sister…” she whispers.

    Amit gasps softly. “Mythri?”

    Mythri clutches the two sigils to her chest. “My little sister,” she looks at me again. “This is a miracle.”

    Othet come sand sits on the other side of me while I cry. He clutches my hand and smiles at me. “Her mother was found by Chi, the man who died fighting alongside your men,” he starts. “She gave birth to Chiyo, healthy and beautiful. She never quite recovered, but she remained alive for five years. She gave Chiyo the sigil, hoping she would be family one day. In her wildest dreams, she never would have assumed her eldest would become queen of the very country she died in.”

    Mythri nods slowly, and she looks down at me. She takes my sigil and pins it to my chest. Her hand then rests over my heart. I manage to sit up on my own and take her into my arms. As she holds me, I feel at peace. I feel a warmth that once only came from Othet. I feel at home.

    “Sister,” Mythri sobs.

    I choke up and whimper. “Sister.”

    I have never held so tight onto something in my entire life as I do Mythri. With all my might, I will never let her go. Just like Othet, I will not lose her. Mythri and I belong together, and no force in nature will ever rip us apart again. In my heart, I feel my mother sing. I feel her love and happiness, I feel her sadness as well. In this time of loss and misery and pain, I am holding my sister in my arms.