Page 13
T en years later:
Or’Ang's sigh of regret carried with it the salty tang of the ocean and the receding view of the familiar coastline, slowly fading into the distance. The conflict between the shifters and humans had escalated, consuming every corner of the known world in a maelstrom of violence.
The human population was being decimated, leaving only the few who had escaped to his kingdom alive, their faces drawn with fear and exhaustion.
He could only hope that any humans who remained found a place to hide now that his kingdom had fallen under the deluge of shifter armies, their roars overwhelming the once peaceful streets, demanding he surrender the humans he protected.
They will find nothing but empty walls echoing their hatred back at them.
His focus drifted from the shore, lingering on the sight of dozens of well provisioned ships following in his wake, their sails billowing in the wind.
Oliver's message, sent a year prior, spoke of a haven – a place of peace and refuge – that was ready to welcome them.
The siege of his castle had dragged on far longer than planned, stretching his resources thin, but Polar and the Guardians' escape plan had gone remarkably smoothly. The damp, sound deadening tunnels beneath the palace provided a clandestine route to the bustling shipyard docks, where the fleet of sleek, swift ships he’d commissioned awaited them.
These vessels were intended to carry them across the vast ocean to the newly discovered world.
He felt a gentle pressure against his side as a slender hand slid under his coat and wrapped around his waist. Pulling Elizabeth into his embrace, he held her close, attempting to block the icy wind that nipped at their skin.
The wind brushed her face, a gentle touch that made her smile as she rested her hand on the swell of her stomach.
“How are you feeling?” he asked.
Her light laughter carried on the breeze and she looked up with eyes shining with excitement and mirth.
His chuckles blended with hers, carrying the same excitement.
He had thought he would be filled with dread and worry for his people and a sadness at leaving his home.
Instead, he felt a growing sense of excitement after the past decade of uncertainty.
“You ask me that at least three times a day. I feel big, clumsy, and beautiful,” she teased.
“You are all three,” he laughed, kissing the tip of her nose before his expression softened. “I’m excited.”
“As am I. I think everyone else is as well. We’ll build a new home better than before—in a place where everyone will be safe,” she said.
His glance encompassed the ships following them before he turned to face the stars glittering up in the heavens.
The magic that had been given to him now belonged to all who sailed with them.
It had been Elizabeth’s idea that every person, human and shifter, be given the gift.
They would need it if they were to survive.
There were few sailors in the world today who realized that the world was not flat and that the oceans did not fall off the edges of the horizon. One day, everyone would know. Until that day, they needed all the time they could manage to build a place where they would remain hidden.
“Dada.”
They turned at the excited cry of their young son. Harry squirmed, trying to escape the protective hold of his grandfather. Harold held onto the boy until they reached the top of the steps before he released him. Or’Ang scooped his son up into his arms.
“Stars, Dada.”
“Yes, there are millions of stars and they will guide us to our new home,” he murmured.
“I fly?”
Elizabeth chuckled and tickled Harry’s leg. “No, you can’t fly, but you can do so many other things.”
Together, they stood on the bow of the ship, four generations of human-shifters who found a way past the hatred.
Or’Ang wrapped his arm back around Elizabeth as he looked up at the stars guiding their way.
They were on a magical adventure filled with danger.
They would not only survive, but thrive because they held a magic more powerful than anything in the book the ancient red panda gave him centuries before.
We have each other.
To Be Continued…