Page 151 of Alastair

His dark eyes focused on me again, and he faintly smiled. “It’s been an honor fighting by your side.”

And then, he dropped to his knees, back arching. A dark shimmering cloud lifted off his chest and flowed into Night Fall. One of the clear stones on the hilt turned black. Kallias’ body fell to the snow. Lifeless.

“Kal!” Gray knelt beside him.

“What is this?” Fear shone in Lucifer’s eyes as he stared at the now black stone.

“This?” With my heart squeezing painfully in my chest, I blocked another hit. Energy hummed along the blade, strengthened by my brother’s soul. “This is the final curtain. For all of us.”

I knew the order in which each of my brothers would fall. But that knowledge didn’t take away the pain of it. Time seemed to slow as I stared at them. Remembering the years we had spent together. As boys, then as men.

Raiden cooking and smiling as we all sat together to eat. Gray cuddling up to each of us when he got sleepy. Castor’s uninhibited mouth that got him into trouble too many times to count, but he never failed to make any situation entertaining. Bellamy and Daman’s bantering. Galen’s fierce protectiveness over us. And Kallias’ soft smiles in the rare instances Melancholy gave him a reprieve from the crushing sadness. We had just gotten him back, only to lose him again.

But we’d all be lost that night.

Galen snarled and slammed into Lucifer’s side before his strength began to wane. He fought against it, confused at first.“Is this it?”he then asked me telepathically.

“Yes.”

Pain. Heartache. It was overwhelming as I saw my brother stumble.

In Galen’s last moments, one of his black eyes shifted back to light gray. He found Simon, who stood beside Clara at the altar. A low whimper left Galen before he slowly sank to the snow. Red mist then flowed from his chest and into Night Fall, coloring one of the clear stones red.

“No!” Simon cried. “Galen!”

Baxter landed beside Simon and held him back. The human fought against his hold, tears pouring down his cheeks as he screamed Galen’s name over and over.

“Stop this!” Lucifer tried to teleport, but his body only flickered before solidifying again. He was too weak.

“I wish I could,” I said, not recognizing my voice. No amount of time could’ve prepared me for that moment. “I’d give anything to spare my brothers and their mates this pain.”

Pride whined from inside me. Was he mourning his brothers too?

“Shit.” Castor rocked forward, losing a bit of color in his cheeks. He’d lost more blood too. It flowed down his torso. His green eyes darted around the battlefield. Looking for Kyo. I knew he’d spotted him when his bottom lip quivered.

“Castor!” Kyo fought against King Tatsuya, trying to approach. “Please don’t leave me!”

“Don’t cry… little…” As Castor fell to his knees, a shimmering gold mist traveled from his body and into one of the stones. The following cry from his mate was gut-wrenching.

I screamed and slashed at Lucifer, tears obscuring my vision. Three of my brothers’ souls had now been absorbed, strengthening Night Fall even more. It clashed with Light Bringer and held strong, forcing Lucifer backward.

When Daman fell, Warrin’s agonized cry was heart shattering. “Kotya! Gods, no. Release me, Lev! I order you to release me.Now.”

“I can’t,” Lev responded, voice shaking. “That’s an order I can’t obey, Commander. He has to do this.”

“No!” Warrin then transformed into a full-sized dragon, knocking back a large group of enemy warriors. And as he roared, he froze all of them solid before breaking them into pieces. Tears welled in his large reptilian eyes.

“All of you will sacrifice your lives, and for what?” Lucifer blocked an attack before shoving against me. “For filthy humans?”

“For a better world. So others can live peaceful, simple lives.” A life I might not ever get to have, but our actions that night would ensure others got that chance. “Humankind has its faults, but it’s worth saving.”

“You’re such a fool,” Lucifer responded. “You have all this power and do nothing with it!”

“You’re wrong.” I ducked beneath his sword before rolling to the side to dodge another swing. “This is what I’m doing with my power! Whatwe’redoing, my brothers and I. We’re standing between you and the end of the world.” Our swords clanked. “If I thought for even a moment you could change, this night would’ve turned out differently. But you never will.”

If this were a bedtime story with a happily ever after, Lucifer would’ve seen the error of his ways and repented. He and I would’ve embraced each other as family instead of clashing as foes. But reality never played out like it did in fairy tales. Some people were beyond redemption.

Clara’s voice rose higher as she continued the spell. Lucifer ordered demons to target her, but Sirena, Baxter, Naida, and King Tatsuya created a barrier around the altar and protected her.