Fated Triad: Shadows of the Forbidden Moon

Chapter 8: Gambit of the Shadow



Amara Lyall's POV

As the fight waged on, each second stretched into an eternity and the room was a whirl of anarchy and intensity. Long, flickering shadows of the dazzling light from the sphere of energy sweep across the walls, each shadow seeming to whisper secrets of the past and warnings of the future. The metallic flavor of magic, a stifling reminder of the current stakes, permeated the air along with the smell of ozone.

Locked in battle with Marcus, their estranged brother whose unexpected arrival had brought us all into chaos, Lucian, Kaelan, and Darius were His eyes reflected the anarchy he meant to unleash, a terrible mix of ambition and hate. Every hit, every parry felt like a dance on the brink of a knife, every action loaded with lethal meaning.

The weight of the prophecy was falling on us, the cryptic warnings and fractured images whirling in my head. The light of the orb pulsed in time with the pounding of my heart, a silent countdown to some future end. My eyes strayed between the fighting brothers and the orb, the weight of prophecy against reality poised just about here.

We were all stopped in our tracks when a cold voice suddenly filled the auditorium. "You have only touched the surface; you believe you grasp the prophecy." Marcus's friend Myra, the dark sorceress, moved forward, her presence a chilly shadow amid the anarchy. Her wicked joy glowed in her eyes, as though she knew secrets none of us could imagine.

Marcus smiled, a tortured look that made me shudder down my back. Myra is correct. The prophecy is for power, not for atonement. The darkness you dread is a gift, a tool to help us to change the planet in our picture not a curse. Lucian's voice carried desperation and rage. You're crazy, Marcus! This is not about authority. It's about saving our people, about stopping devastation!

Marcus simply laughed, though, a cold sound resonating off the chamber walls. Your innocence will bring you down, brother. The packs-they have kept us weak and split. The Council. It is time for a new arrangement in which we might shape our fate.

The light of the sphere started to pulse more quickly, its energy unstable. I became terrified; if the energy burst, it might wipe off all of us. I had to move and figure out how to end this craziness.

Drawing on every bit of bravery, I moved forward and my voice sliced through the suspense. Marcus, Myra, pay close attention to me. The prophecy did not call for this. This is a warning, not a call to grab authority. You are intervening with forces outside of your reach!

Myra stared at me, her face inscrutable. And you, small Omega, what then do you suggest? To embrace your role, to let the Council decide our fate? If you believe they value your type, you are a moron.

Her comments really connected with me since they brought back memories of my life on the margins, of being an outsider in a society that hardly noticed my presence. I resisted letting her plant uncertainty in my head though. I stood there, the light of the orb shining back in my eyes. "This is not about position or authority. It pertains to choosing. The prophecy is not set in stone; we can pick another road free from historical mistakes.

It appeared for a minute as though Myra paused, a flutter of something-doubt, curiosity-crossing her cheeks. Marcus then approached, his eyes ablaze with a fierce glow. "Enough of this!," he yelled, pointing his palm toward the globe. "We should start claiming our fate.

Marcus focused his energy into the ball, and the chamber trembled as the light inside flamed with a terrible intensity. Panic struck me; the orb was responding to Marcus's activities, its energy approaching a crucial point.

Stop him! Kaelan yelled, running for Marcus, but Myra stepped in to create a barrier of evil magic between them. Kaelan flew from her spell, and Lucian and Darius hurried to his side, their faces marked with both terror and resolve. I felt desperation biting at me. I couldn't let this pass. Pulling every bit of will and determination, I concentrated on the ball and extended my thoughts, my magic. The energy of the orb connected with my hand. I could sense the turbulent power inside, a tempest of options and results.

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When Myra understood what I was doing, her eyes grew wide. What are you?

But it came too late. I threw my all into the sphere, guiding the wild force inside, forming it, bending it to my will. The chamber trembled, the strain of the power being released rippling in the very air. Then, with a last, blinding flash, the orb's light burst outward to surround all of us.

Everything was white for a minute, an unbounded nothingness of sound and light. I felt myself floating, unbound, like though I were hanging between realms. That moment let me see the veracity of the prophecy, the many avenues it had pointed me to.

We were left standing in a world changed as the light faded. The evil force vanished, and a silence almost holy took its place. Marcus lay comatose on the floor, his face one of amazement and incredulity. Knelt next to him, Myra's eyes widened with both terror and wonder.

Standing around me were Lucian, Kaelan, and Darius; their expressions mixed relief with confusion. The orb had disappeared, its energy lost into the atmosphere and only a weak echo of its existence remained.

"What happened"? Darius asked, his voice subdued, as though he were reluctant to disturb the fragile quiet.Còntens bel0ngs to Nô(v)elDr/a/ma.Org

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My heart was still beating, I inhaled deeply. "The prophecy had nothing of destruction or force." It has to do with balance and with choosing to shape the future. Marcus and Myra's scheme would have resulted in anarchy; but, for now we have avoided that.

Lucian fixed a sharp eye on my face looking for responses. And in terms of the future? Surely the prophecy is still in process.

I nodded as the weight of the occasion sank over me. Indeed, but we have chosen something else. We have started the road toward a time when the past will not define us.

Standing there, the enormity of what we had done started to sink in. The triplets' togetherness had created a fresh road for our people; the Council's hold had been broken. The path was far from finished, though. The actual goal of the prophecy remained unknown, and the route ahead was unknown as well.

But I felt a flutter of hope as I studied the triplets, at the strength and will in their eyes. We had emerged from the darkness together stronger for it. Whatever difficulties were ahead, I knew we would meet them together, bonded by the links we had created in the furnace of fate and prophecy.

I sensed a fresh chapter of our life opening out, full of opportunity and promise as the echoes of the conflict vanished into quiet. The prophecy had drawn us together, and now it was our responsibility to help to define our own fate. The stifling atmosphere of the room lifted to be replaced with peace and clarity. Though the future was yet blank with countless opportunities and challenges, we had overcome our biggest worries and came out on top.

And I realized our trip was only starting as we emerged from the darkness into the brightness of a fresh dawn. Though the road ahead remained unknown, collectively we would create a new future whereby the actual meaning of the prophecy would be exposed and the ghosts of the past would at last rest.


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