Page 108 of Pet: Torment
I slowly place mine in hers, both of us squeezing as we accept that this is our end. There is no miracle waiting, no other course of action. We are once again caught in the crosshairs of gods. Except this time, there is no surviving it.
Chapter Forty-Seven
Iris
The destruction of a planet is eerily beautiful. Every element that exists swarms together as Remus calls upon it to destroy. Lightning and thunder continually crackle across the sky, and now that the sun has begun its ascent, a red trail of streaks splits through the clouds. It’s frightening and beautiful all at once.
The air is still, but so heavy. With each passing hour, I can feel Remus’s control settling over it all, making the air thick with his presence—his terrifying presence.
“Ngh!” I groan in pain as I crawl to the top of the hillside. The wound that we burned shut has torn in places, causing me to bleed on what’s left of this dress. I’m pouring sweat, my eyes burning from how dehydrated I am. But no matter how helpless we felt near the shore, we couldn’t remain there. The water was beginning to rise much higher than usual, likely the result of Remus’s path of destruction.
“Let’s stop here,” Sky says as we both remove the makeshift ropes fashioned from our dresses. It was the only way we could drag Ezra up the hill along with us. Since last night, he’s been mostly unconscious. The few seconds that he is conscious always end in him convulsing. Whatever their mother did to save his life must have been a quick fix. He needs more. He needs medical attention.
I collapse as my legs finally give way. I am exhausted. If not for the small bit of adrenaline fueling me at the idea of Remus destroying an entire planet, I’m sure I’d have passed out ten times over by now. Neither Sky nor I know what to do. All we can do at this point is try to survive for as long as we can.
I flinch as another crack of lightning strikes through the sky. It stretches for miles, disappearing over the horizon.
I laugh bitterly to myself, and Sky notices.
“Should I work on a backup plan in case you check out sooner rather than later?” she asks. I shake my head, my attention remaining on the insane elements surrounding us.
“It’s just funny, is all. I never imagined Remus would destroy this place.” I shift my attention to Ezra. “But I guess he did.”
Ezra and Xion were cautious about the situation, knowing that the possibility of Remus retaliating was on the table. I feel stupid now for ever thinking it was out of touch that Remus coulddo something like this. Xion and Ezra obviously know a side of him that I ignored because of our more recent days before their mother interfered. I figured that Remus knows this place is important to his siblings, and I guess until now was important to him.
“Why would he do something like this, is my question. What’s happened since the celebration that’s resulting in the destruction of a planet they conquered worlds in the name of?” I ask.
Sky shrugs, sitting next to me.
“Your guess is as good as mine,” she says, taking a deep breath. “I guess Earth was taken for no grand purpose in the long run.”
I don’t respond as the world around physically begins to shift so much, that words are lost on me. Although the sun is rising, the sky slowly begins to darken. The air grows chilly, and I shiver as fear coils in my belly. It takes thirty seconds total for the entire sky to grow pitch black…until there is nothing.
“Sky?” I whisper, my hand shakily looking for hers in the dark. Her touch is as frightened as mine as we find each other, squeezing in terror.
We both jump as the air crackles, and bright blue beams of light streak across the sky. They grow, and I tense when I realize they are descending to the ground. Tears form in my eyes, and I lean against Sky’s shoulder, trembling as the ground shakes. As I close my eyes, my tears spill down my cheeks, and I try to hide my sobs as memories of my family appear in my mind.
They’re brief, which makes me sad. I barely remember them. I can’t even imagine their faces any longer. With Cypress, however, all I see is his hate-filled expression. And as the shake of the ground turns into a violent crack of it breaking beneath us, Remus’s face appears in my mind.
His soft smiles, his breathy laughs, even his serious expressions.
“Ah!” Sky and I scream in unison as trees rip from their roots near us.
But I still think of Remus. The comfort his quiet presence brought, the warmth and certainty of his touch, and his way of seeing the world through my eyes towards the end. I can’t say whether what I feel for him is love. But it isn’t hate. Not any longer. Even now, as we fall victim to his power, I don’t feel hatred. I don’t know if this is his doing or a result of more control by the people he trusted most. It doesn’t matter now. My battle for him has ended. Maybe someone else will take up the sword in the future.
I only hope that he will no longer be a slave to his mother.
We scream as the loud thunder of rock and debris surrounds us. It drowns us out, the violent crash making our bodies shake with the ground. My heart pounds wildly in my chest, my ears ringing.
This is it. This is how I die.
Suddenly, everything stops.
I no longer feel Sky’s touch in my hand, and I can hear my sobs again. I flinch when I feel a warm touch on my cheek, like a caress. I jump, opening my eyes to see that I am face to face with an ethereal set of purple and blue eyes.
It’s Remus.
My breathing hitches in my throat as I look at him, not knowing whether to feel fear or relief. He looks different, but somewhat the same. There’s no blood, no wounds; he’s completely healed as if his battle with theCelestivinenever happened. His eyes have changed drastically. They glitter like jewels, the calm now replaced with chaos. If not for the tears in them, I wouldn’t know if he recognized me in this moment. His hair, usually flowing down his back has shortened significantly, coming to his shoulders.