REONE
"Mickey," Lyrian whispered, fear threading her voice at Nova's panicked shout.
Everyone else froze, color draining from their faces.
"Where is he?" Reone demanded, already moving toward the jet.
The others followed without hesitation, urgency propelling them forward.
"Still in the cockpit," Nova said, her voice trembling as she led the way.
She stepped aside, eyes wide and unsteady, as they reached him.
Reone leaned in. Mickey was slumped in his seat, a bruise darkening his forehead, blood streaking down his cheek.
Reone's chest tightened.
"No…" Lyrian muttered under her breath, heart tightening.
Nova swallowed hard. "I—I was afraid to check. Is he… is he dead?"
Reone's hand hovered over Mickey's shoulder before he pressed gently to feel a pulse at the neck.
Diamond spoke then,voice nervous.
"Reone, let the diviners should handle this… heal him," she suggested.
Reone straightened, looking at all of them gravely.
"That...that wont be necessary," he said finally.
Nova drew a sharp breath, panic lacing every word. "No… Don't tell me...please.Mickey can't be—"
"I'm afraid he has, Nova," Reone said, letting the weight of the silence settle over them. Then, in a deliberately understated, almost teasing tone, he added gently, "He has fainted."
Nova's face stilled.
"Wait, what now?" Lyrian asked as she processed his words.
Reone just laughed. "Mickey's fine. He just fainted."
Hearing his words, the tension broke instantly. Sire let out an impressed smile while the rest just continued staring at Reone, stunned.
"Fainted?" Lyrian asked Reone, her voice a mix of relief and fury.
He nodded, smirking at their flabbergasted faces. "He's fine."
"He is?" Nova asked hesitantly. "And you're sure,Reone?"
"Yeah, just wake him and see for yourself," Reone told her.
Nova didn't need to be told twice. She rushed over to Mickey,practically pushing Reone aside, enthusiasm replacing panic. Reone let her, smiling.
"Mickey?" Nova said, gently patting his cheek. "Are you okay? Wake up."
Everyone watched expectant, still nervous despite Reone's reassuring words.
Mickey stirred with a groan. Everyone froze.
He opened his eyes. "Hey, guys… W-what's happening?"
Nova let out a relieved sigh, laughing lightly. "I just...I thought you were dead for a moment."
"So nothing much,"Mickey said, looking at her,sitting up.
Nova smiles at him before kissing him on the lips.
"Did I land the jet? Is everyone okay?" Mickey then asks anxiously.
Lyrian smiles at him.
"You did land the jet, Mickey—great job, by the way. As for whether or not we're fine, you should definitely worry about your jerk friend Reone. I'm about to kill him," she growled, giving Reone a pissed-off look.
Looking at her, Reone could barely hold in a chuckle, finding her expression hilarious.
"Not funny, Reone," she told him in a stern look.
"Yeah," Mia agreed with her reluctantly.
"It is a little funny. You should've seen your faces," Reone said, still smirking.
Lyrian sighed angrily, wanting to kill him.
Nova, on the other hand, focused only on Mickey.
"Are you hurt anywhere? Do you feel any pain?" she asked him.
He shook his head. "No, but I do feel like I need some air. I'm feeling a bit...claustrophobic."
"Of course," Nova said. "Let's get you up. Reone, do you mind giving me a hand?"
Reone didn't answer, just stepped next to Mickey for support. Together, they helped him out of the plane, the others following behind.
Mickey shivered as he stepped into the cold. "It freezing out here! Where are we?" he asked, looking around.
"We were hoping you could tell us," Seren said.
"You haven't checked the scanners?"
"They're down. Damaged in the attack," Reone said. "Although the rest of the jet is intact."
"But what good is a functional jet if we don't know where to go?" Lyrian said. "Or don't we? Mickey, got anything?"
Mickey let out a frozen breath. He looked at Nova and Reone. "I'm good now, guys. I can stand on my own."
Reone nodded and stepped away. He looked at Nova.
"What? Unlike you, I am not good yet," she said.
Mickey just smiled at her, then looked at the others. "If I had to guess, I'd say we're in the northern mountains of Volaria, close to where the temple is supposed to be."
"But you don't know exactly where that is?" Anika asked.
Mickey shook his head. "No, I don't."
"Great," Sire said. "What do we do now? Damon and the Sisterhood are in the lead and we're just stuck here."
"Maybe if we get in the jet, keep heading north, we can locate the temple in time to stop them from getting the Trident of Axis," Mia suggested.
"I don't know, Mia. That seems like a long shot," Lyrian said.
"I'm sorry. Do you have a better idea?" Mia asked, but with a challenge in her tone.
Lyrian almost forgot that the other girl was displeased with her. She pursed her lips, wondering how to speak her mind without deteriorating their relationship. "No, Mia. I was just…"
She then paused, detecting a strange sensation with her sound powers.
"Just what?" Mia asked.
Reone studied her expression, wondering if she was okay. "Everything alright, Lyrian?"
"Do you guys hear that?" Lyrian asked.
"What?" Reone said.
At that moment, the ground trembled violently, legs and bodies thrown off balance. Primi tripped, nearly falling.
"Whoa!" he exclaimed, unsteady.
"What's going on?" Diamond asked, alarmed.
No one could answer.
Lyrian looked up the mountain and gasped. "Guys… look."
A massive wall of snow was hurtling down the mountainside, trees and powder rumbling fast.
"Avalanche," Seren whispered,as the rumbling continued.
"Run!" Reone shouted. He grabbed Lyrian's hand, sprinting with her as the others followed.
But then Mickey tripped, somehow taking them all down with him.
Hands in the freezing snow, Reone let out a curse. He was about to stand up to help Lyrian, who was on the icy ground, when the snowstorm hit them,deafening and blinding, quickly drowning out the screams and sweeping over all of them in an unrelenting wave of coldness.
******
AUTHOR POV
"Well," Damon said calmly, hands clasped behind his back as he stood at the crest of the hill, watching the chaos unravel below."That went better than expected."
The forest was half gone—trees snapped and buried beneath white, the avalanche still settling into an eerie, rolling silence. Snow dust hung in the air like fog, swallowing sound.
Beside him, Nivara smiled faintly, her eyes glowing with quiet satisfaction. High above the mountainside, the fading remnants of the energy sphere she'd released still shimmered—barely visible now, like a dying echo of power.
"I know," she replied. "Triggering the avalanche proved efficient in taking them out. But honestly, I was aiming for the jet." Her gaze tracked the destruction below. "This is a bonus."
"What are you two doing here?" Caelynn asked, descending from the air and landing beside them, boots sinking into the snow.
Veyra touched down a moment later, arms crossed, irritation already etched into her face.
"You were supposed to stay at the rendezvous point," Veyra snapped, eyes narrowing at Damon. "Making out or whatever it is you do while Caelynn and I do the real work."
Nivara's jaw tightened. Once, the insult might have slid past her. Now, it stuck—sharp and unwelcome.
Damon didn't even look at Veyra. His gaze remained fixed on the chaos below. "We decided to spring into action," he said, pausing just long enough for his next words to land."Since apparently, taking out Lyrian and Reone's group is too much for you two to handle."
"Excuse me?" Veyra's voice dropped—dangerously still.
"He's right," Nivara added, gesturing down the mountain. "You failed to slow them down like you said we planned."
"We did," Veyra replied, her tone sharp as glass.
"Really?" Nivara shot back. "Because,to me, it looked like they were seconds away from getting back on that plane and taking off. So next time you feel like insulting someone—" she gestured vaguely between them, "—look in a mirror."
Veyra's teeth clenched. The wind around her stirred, restless, responding to her temper.
"You better watch your tone, Nivara," she said quietly. "You know I've killed people for less."
Nivara met her stare without blinking. "IS that a threat, Veyra?"
Caelynn shifted uneasily, eyes flicking between them. Violence and fights never bothered her—but not like this. Not between family.
"Ladies," Damon said smoothly, stepping between them and placing a hand on each of their shoulders. "The enemy is taken care of. Let's not lose focus." He smiled slightly. "The Temple. The Trident. Remember?"
For a moment, the tension held—tight, volatile, ready to snap.
Then Veyra scoffed. "Fine."
"Whatever," Nivara muttered.
Veyra shot her sister a hostile glance before turning it on Damon. She was grateful that his cloak still covered his head, keeping that new, ugly appearance from her sight.
She knew—knew—he was the real reason for the growing rift between her and Nivara. There had been a time when her sister wouldn't have dared speak to her like that.But because of Damon's influence, that was changing.
And she would enjoy killing him, Veyra thought.
Caelynn pressed her lips together, unease settling deep in her chest. Seconds ago, her sisters had been moments away from tearing into each other—and Damon, the real cause of the argument, had been the one to stop it.
How the heck did they get to this point?
Her eyes flicked to Veyra. A silent message passed between the sisters.
After the Trident.
"Alright, since where finally in agreement" Damon said, turning toward the path. "Let's—"
His voice trails away.
Something had caught his eye.
The others followed his gaze, curious.
Down the slope, half-buried in snow, lay a figure—still. Blue skin stark against the white. Long ears. Three fingers visible on one hand.
Damon's breath caught. "Who is that?"
"I don't know but is it me or does she kind of look…" Nivara hesitated, glancing at him. "Like you."
Slowly, Damon reached up and pulled back his hood.
Long ears. Yellow eyes. Brown skin tinged faintly with blue.
"That's impossible," he said, more to himself than anyone else. "Diviners no longer exist."
"Sure looks like they do," Veyra said, her voice sharp like glass.
Something twisted behind Damon's eyes. This wasn't just a problem—it was a threat. To his plans. To his destiny.
He was supposed to be the only one.
He should be the only one, he thought.
Without another word, he started down the mountain.
"Damon," Nivara called after him. "Where are you going?"
" I need to take care of this."
"You can't just go to them," she snapped. "They outnumber you ten to one."
He didn't stop. "Then come with me."
"That's not going to help," Nivara shot back.
Damon exhaled, frustration sharp in the cold air. "What's the worst they can do?" he said over his shoulder. "They're buried under an avalanche."
"You're underestimating them again, Damon," Veyra said, anger flashing in her eyes. "And what about the Temple? You're the one who said—"
"It can wait," he replied as he continued to move.
Veyra froze, feeling disrespected like never before.She gritted her teeth.
That did it.
Her anger spilled over. The air around her vibrated, pressure building as her eyes also flared white.
"What are you doing?" Carleynn asked her, suddenly nervous.
The glow spread to Veyra's hands, power coiling,locking on Damon, sharp and ready to slice—
"Veyra," Nivara warned.
Veyra stopped.
Her eyes closed and the light vanished as quickly as it had appeared. When she finally opened her eyes again, there was a new coldness behind them,steel eyes.
Veyra clenched her first.
She had come too far to ruin everything now by losing control, she told herself. Nor would she let Damon ruin things by getting himself killed him.
She had to do whatever was necessary to claim the Trident—no matter the cost, which meant that she had to follow him, protect him.