"Your necklace could work?" Jade added. "It looks powerful enough to hold our power."
"Wait. Won't you guys be drained because of this?" I questioned in worry.
"Who cares." Alicia shrugged. "Better than our friend being dead."
"Plus, I'm heading back to bed after this," Jade added.
"And we haven't gotten a girl's shopping date, so we can't have you dying and all," Alice added.
"All the above," Silver concluded with a smirk. "Are you ready? This is your only shot."
I took a deep breath and looked to my men across the field. Even in this stilled space, I could see their fear and hopelessness.
This was our once-in-a-lifetime moment, and I wasn't going to let the darkness steal my hope. "Ready," I whispered.
Silver's wings burst into raining flakes of embers as she moved swiftly to stand behind me and placed her hands upon my shoulders.
Alice, Alicia, and Jade moved into a line: Jade in the center with Shadow Jade behind her.
They exchanged one final look with one another as they lifted their hands up to point at me. "Ready!" Jade declared as the others bobbed their heads in agreement. "Three. Two. One!"
"Kill!" Shadow Jade cheered in support as the three of them shot a stream of magic directly to the crystal hanging from my neck, which began to absorb it all.
Their bodies were already beginning to disappear, but it didn't stop them from shooting more and more magic. The streams didn't completely dissolve until they were glittering particles, and I caught onto their goodbyes as their images faded away.
"Good luck, sis!" Alice called out from afar.
"Best of luck," Jade called out which was followed with. "Kill!"
"Prosperous victory, Brianne!" Alicia affirmed.
It was just me and Silver left, and she moved to stand before me. "Star, return home. I'll be there shortly."
"Okay! Bye," she happily stated as she began to disappear.
When it was just us, Silver took a step back and took a deep breath to let it out.
"This is where your final decision lies," she announced. "Name."
"Brianne Marie Harlow," I declared.
"You have a choice, Brianne. Either you pray that the conjured force of magic we've implanted in this crystal will be enough to nullify the bomb's reaction, which will cause a cancellation effect and most likely save this place from being completely destroyed, or we use the energy to teleport ourselves to the highest point in the sky where the bomb will explode."
"Wouldn't that kill us?"
"I won't perish from your universe's weapons," she revealed. "However, you may not survive the strain of the impact."
"So...I'll die, but everyone else will live."
"Yes," she confirmed. "I will be with you and guide you to where you'll be sent off to if you die. You have to make the choice now, Brianne."
I knew there was no more time to debate - as if I hadn't made up my mind the moment I stopped time.
"Let death be the final choice then," I whispered boldly while I tried not to shed the tears threatening to escape.
"Very well," Silver declared as her hands squeezed my shoulders. "Five seconds."
I nodded as my eyes lingered on my Notorious men. Seeing them from afar for one last time made my tears fall as I took a second to admire each of them.
They had all grown, matured, and prospered in their accomplishments, and though this wasn't close to the ending I wished for, their safety was what mattered the most.
At the last second, I allowed myself to close my eyes.
To the Universe, and Marianna. Thanks for everything.
~JAX~
* * *
"Bria-"
When everything seemed to jolt to the present, we watched the glint of a prism crystal along Brianne's neck - a mere second before a wave of energy burst through the stadium that left us all flying back.
When I crashed to the ground, I was already scrambling up and racing to the field as Bri's name left my lips. "BRIANNE!"
I ran right to the middle, only to skid to a stop as the smoke and dust began to clear. I looked around, trying to sense her, but a tremendous boom came from the sky. Everyone's heads moved upward to see the massive explosive force that went off so high in the sky, it looked like a star had burst into tiny flaming ashes.
One look left everyone in silence. You didn't need to be a genius to know what just happened, and yet I stood there just staring as the tiny ember remnants fell until they disintegrated into nothing.
The stadium that had been buzzing with panic was left in complete silence; no one was able to say a single word as it all came together.
My knees buckled as I fell to the grassy surface. The crippling devastation made my ears ring as my blood rushed to pump through my body and drum in acknowledgment of the truth.
"Bri...anne?" I couldn't believe it. No, I didn't want to believe it, but I felt it in my being. Felt a piece of me shatter and leave me feeling hollow. Tears fell down my cheeks as I slowly lowered my gaze to the floor, my eyes catching onto the small black rock.
I reached to pick it up with my trembling hands, lifting it to see the teardrop rock that reminded me of a piece of coal. The size was like the sparkling gem I'd seen for a second on Brianne's neck before she vanished with Enova in tow. The mere reminder made my lip tremble as I fought not to panic.
It felt like I was suffocating, the string of panic, fear, and anger wrapping around my throat in an attempt to consume me. I took deep breaths as I focused just on the item in the palm of my hand, but the longer I stared the angrier I got.
I gritted my teeth to hold back the scream that begged to be heard. I knew if I allowed the mere sound to escape, all the shackles holding me back would shatter and release the dark cyclone of agony to wreak havoc on the world around me.
I could feel the growing fear as black electric sparks began to pulse around me, just as flames of various colors ignited and extinguished just as quickly. I was losing control. I could feel my hands slipping from the rope that fought to contain the beast of mass destruction inside me.
My teeth sank into my bottom lip so hard I could taste my blood, but my eyes were glued on the teardrop rock in my grasp.
The last reminder of the woman I loved.
My tears began to fall into the palm of my hand, drip after drip as it stained the coal surface. I knew this was what the Shadow Kingdom was waiting for.
To watch me let loose and destroy Witchling Academy once again, like I had in the past. They wanted the past to repeat itself, and though my heart clenched in agony and my body burned with so much heat that I could burn the world down even faster than anyone could imagine, I couldn't pull the trigger.
Jaxsin's presence ran through me. The heat that spiked the temperature profusely began to tame itself as it lowered. I continued to coach myself to breathe, my eyes still on the prize in my grasp as the sparks of black stopped and my flames began to tame themselves.
With a few more breaths, I closed my eyes as more tears escaped their safe hold.
"Brianne...I...I won't fail you," I whispered to the air. "I...won't lose control. We promised...we'd never repeat the past. So..."