Open Skies
The street was blown apart by the impact. People and nightmare creatures who could not get out of the way in time were thrown into the surrounding buildings.
Noble flew free of the impact bringing Sarai with her into the air. Nickel fled in the other direction, unwilling to be lifted like a rag doll by Noble's powers.
He ran toward the coming danger.
"Laundry!" Sarai couldn't see what happened next in the dust, but Noble could. Her extra sight allowed her to track the mysterious librarian.
At the last moment, Nickel leapt onto the falling ball of flesh and scaled the mass like a set of perilous stairs. He cut and stabbed the abominations he passed until he jumped off the other side and onto a rooftop on the opposite side of the street.
Even when the building crumbled, Nickel safely maneuvered himself to the ground.
"He's fine," Noble told Sarai. "I can sense him and he isn't in pain."
The same couldn't be true for the others around them. The collision shook the ground and collapsed yet another part of the cracked earth. Most of the city block lay in ruins with bodies of humans and creatures crushed beneath the white stone.
Some of the falling monsters died in the impact, but the others lifted above the newly formed crater and swarmed.
When they cleared the hole, Noble could sense a lone figure left behind alive. The emotional signature was powerful, human…
And familiar.
The Queen instinctively lowered herself and Sarai to seek cover.
Noble's voice could barely be heard over the chaos. "We have a problem."
"Oh, Brenna!" A sing-song voice echoed loudly through the ruins of the street. "I'm home!"
As the dust settled, a figure climbed out of the crater and stretched his arms. His armor was battered, with a few pieces missing entirely.
The exposed skin was completely covered in inky, dark veins as a crooked smile made its way across the man's face.
Even though Noble was hidden mostly behind rubble, the man's eyes trained on her location with ease. They were filled with darkness. He tilted his head.
"Since when do we hide from each other? Come out and see!"
Ender opened his arms wide, causing the small swarm of flying creatures to speed up their circular motion. The sight was nothing short of harrowing.
Not only had Ender survived his trip to the sky, he had come back stronger.
The power emanating from him was not just due to the bracelets he still wore. Counsel had undergone a fundamental transformation in the sky.
He was now a Master.
After ascending, Ender had not only broken free of the Tyrant's minions, he had subjugated a small swath of them. Was this an extension of his Aspect or a new Ability that he had just gained?
Whatever the source of his power, Counsel suddenly had a small army at his command to fight both Noble and the Lord of the Mountains.
And as long as he could keep stealing from the Lord, the Master did not care how many he lost in his quest.
Noble stepped out from the shelter and leveled her gaze at the man. "I am right here."
A cruel smile crept onto his face. "There you are! Did you miss me?"
The Queen's expression darkened as she lifted her blade.
Counsel's warm smile turned sour.
"No, you didn't miss me did you? You know how I know? This Heart has the power to discern truth. You've never loved me, have you?"
Ender moved toward her with measured steps.
"I was barely more tolerable than a pebble in your shoe. And now…now you hate me."
Noble's blood ran cold. It was like he was reading her mind.
What he said was true. Counsel had manipulated and coerced her into starting a revolution. He had killed Brenna's parents, tried to murder Emira, led Pen to her death, and Kosi…
Yes, she hated Counsel!
Ender's cruel smile returned, but it did not meet his eyes. "Very well. If you will not live and love me, you will die hating me. At least I will know the last strong feeling in your heart was for me alone."
He lunged toward her, and all of the abominations came with him.
The Queen's eyes went wide. She shoved Sarai away from the attack.
"Run!"
Flying away from the crater, Noble led the chaos back toward the palace.
Before she could engage the Master, Noble needed to draw him away from the fighting. If let loose on the world, Counsel and his crew would cause casualties on both sides of this battle.
Coming up on the main square where Theo was in command, Noble tried to warn the general of the incoming danger.
"Theo, watch out for..." But her warning was drowned out by the wings of the Sentinels.
They followed their leader like a canopy of fluttering leaves.
"There's my favorite General!" Ender's voice was full of mirth. "And his little army."
Feeling Counsel's murderous intent, Noble turned around before reaching the palace.
"Don't hurt them," she ordered, picking up and sending a mundane sword flying toward the deranged Master. "It's me you want!"
"How right you are. Leave us!" Ender's voice boomed. "The heaviest fighting is North. You must go there!"
Theo, who had drawn his sword to fight the human enemy, seemed confused for a moment. When his eyes cleared, he lowered his sword and nodded. "We are needed elsewhere. All troops go north!" he ordered.
Under the pressure of the suggestion, Noble saw the army start to disengage. Counsel's minions assisted them by placing their bodies in between the soldiers and the beasts not yet under Ender's influence.
The square drained of humans, leaving just Ender behind.
Sarai and Noble slipped away southward, hoping to put a little more distance between them and the human army.
But they didn't get far.
Lightning crashed at the edge of the city. Noble covered her ears as she hurried.
"The Tyrant!" Sarai yelled when the sounds stopped.
"He's nearly here. I know!" Noble answered over her shoulder. There wasn't much she could do at the moment. They had a more pressing problem.
'Almost there!'
Just as they reached the other side of the once glorious, partially cracked castle, a strange bubble of corrupted beasts formed around them to block their path. The world became even darker than before.
A man strolled leisurely through the swarm with a satisfied grin. "There you are, Your Majesty. Your Grace. You have made it just in time for your funerals..."
Ignoring the taunt, Noble looked past him, making sure that no others had been caught up in his trap of abominations.
Ender seemed to read her thoughts.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty. None of those people will die by my hands until after I have subdued the Lord of the Mountain. I have Crestfall's best interest at heart." Ender tapped his chest as he chuckled.
The Queen looked at Ender with cold fury.
She had decided his fate. Although he had lived many more years in the original timeline, that history would not be repeated. He would die now.
Noble gripped the Ruby Tear and raised it defiantly. "The only thing in your heart is darkness now. But not for long. Do you think the Tyrant will let you keep that power you stole from him? Never!"
As she spoke, Noble tried to relax and get her bearings. She wasn't exactly where she wanted to be, but it would have to do.
Ender's brow furrowed. "Even after all our time together, you still doubt me. I will control the Tyrant, and then Crestfall, and then, with this power, I will create an Empire that will fear and worship me."
Holding out his hand, a ball just like the one he absorbed formed in his hand.
"With this as my key, I will be able to do anything..."
In the ancient past, the man would become a great sorcerer. He would be the one to alter the [Portcullis Key] to incite fear from those around him. Ender would not only lead the people of the Deep but also conquer many lands before inexplicably leaving behind his prized possession for Catphine to find as a recreation in her Nightmare.
Noble held her head high. "Not this time."
Counting down the seconds in her head, Noble waited until the last possible moment before planting the Ruby Tear in the dirt and lifting herself and Sarai from the ground.
Then she activated the main enchantment, [Law of Attraction].
The earth shook as the sky above her ripped apart.