Cast A Spell (Mages and Mates #4)

29. Otto

Otto

W hite light enveloped me and I floated untethered from my physical form. It was a comforting blanket of nothingness. If this was the afterlife, it wasn’t as frightening as I’d imagined. It was peaceful, but I wasn’t at peace. Where was my mate?

I searched for Thal, but there were no shapes, no sounds. Just white. Surely even in death we’d be together. Wasn’t that how mate bonds worked?

Of course, no one knew what happened after we died, so that was just the projection of the living, hoping for more after death. Gods help me, I was cynical even after I died.

Still, we saved countless lives when we destroyed the Demon Sword. Didn’t that earn us the right to spend time together after death?

Something tugged at the edges of my consciousness. A voice, familiar and distraught, called out to me.

“Thal?” I replied, though I had no voice.

"Otto!” the voice repeated.

“Thal!” a second voice cried out.

“Please, wake up!" the first voice shouted.

Those were Owen and Lysandor’s voices. How could I hear them if I was dead?

The peaceful void began to dissolve, replaced by a growing awareness. I struggled to make sense of my surroundings, to reconnect with my body. Slowly, sensations began to filter through: a dull ache that touched every muscle, the hard stone floor, and the damp chill of the cave all argued that I wasn’t dead.

Painfully, I forced my eyes open. At first, everything was a blur. Gradually, shapes swam into focus, dimly lit by the glow of mage stones. Owen and Lysandor knelt beside us, their faces streaked with tears and dust. And there, standing a few feet away, were Percy and Gio, their expressions a mix of concern and joy.

“Thank the gods,” Owen choked out. “I thought we'd lost you.”

Owen knelt to my right, and there was nothing or more importantly no one behind him. I turned my head to the right and Thal was lying on the ground with Lysandor propping up his head. His eyes fluttered open and our gazes met.

The surge of joy and relief soothed the ache deep in my soul. We were alive. Against all belief, we’d survived.

“How?” I struggled to sit up and Owen helped to steady me.

“Here, drink this,” Percy said, offering me a flask of water. I sipped gratefully, the cool liquid reviving me further.

The fog clouding my brain lifted and I remembered where we were. The Demon Sword was gone, and with it, the foul corruption it had imprinted on the land. Even the stone it had been stuck in had returned to its natural state.

Gio handed Thal a water bottle and hovered like a doting parent. I had so many questions, but they weren’t important enough to ask until I knew Thal was okay.

“I didn’t think the afterlife would be so painful,” Thal said. “Or that everyone would be here clucking over us like mother hens.”

As jokes went, that wasn’t very funny, but to beings on the edge of a breakdown, it was the perfect medicine to reel us back.

“What happened?” I asked. “The amount of magic we channeled should have killed us.”

“An excellent question,” Percy said. He and Gio both looked younger and more vibrant than when we first met them. “You should have died, but the earth has other plans for you and Thal.”

“I felt our bodies dissipate,” Thal said. “How could it change that?”

“That’s where you’re mistaken,” Percy said. “You weren't just channeling the earth magic, you became one with it. The power you thought was burning you up worked to preserve you.”

"Like a protective cocoon," Gio added. "The magic sustained you so you could finish your task.”

I didn’t know which was harder to accept—that it was or wasn’t possible for the earth to protect us. Looking at my hands, however, my skin still had a faint golden glow. Thal had the same ethereal light emanating from him.

“So they were never in danger?” Owen asked.

“They were in grave danger,” Percy said. “Had they not fully embraced the earth magic, they would have perished.”

“Meaning, if they tried to do it halfway, they’d have really burned up their bodies,” Lysandor said.

“Exactly,” Percy said. “By giving up everything, they allowed the earth to preserve them.”

“That’s messed up,” Thal said. “We had to agree to die to be saved?”

“Not exactly, nephew,” Gio said. “If you held back because you feared it would kill you, the magic wouldn’t have been able to fully envelope you. It was your willingness to do whatever was necessary that saved your lives.”

The explanation sounded a lot like agreeing to die for the cause. I levered myself to my feet with some help from Owen and went to Thal’s side. “Whatever the explanation, the most important thing is you’re safe.”

“That we’re safe,” Thal said.

Minutes ago, we’d said our goodbyes and wondered if we’d have an afterlife together. Now, we’d have the future together we both wanted. All the hopes and dreams we'd reluctantly set aside could now be a reality.

“I can't believe it, dragi ,” Thal whispered, his voice thick with emotion. “We made it."

I reached for him and he leaned into my embrace. Burying my face in the crook of his neck, I breathed in his scent and finally relaxed. "We did. And I'm never letting you go."

We hugged as if we were the only two in the cave. Eventually, we reluctantly pulled apart, though our hands remained entwined. I looked at Percy and Gio. “What happens now? The Demon Sword is destroyed, and the corruption is gone.”

“Unfortunately, this was but a part of the greater threat,” Gio said. “We must turn our attention to whatever is trying to destroy the Great Ward.”

“But not today,” Percy said. “The land has been freed from a terrible blight. The people who fled the corruption can return and reclaim their homes. I think that calls for a celebration.”

“We’re up for a party.” Owen exchanged a smile with Lysandor.

I laughed at how some things didn’t change even when everything else did. Lysandor reached for Owen’s hand, and I was still so proud of how much they’d matured in so few days. Seeing them so connected reminded me of what had started this whole adventure.

“Now that we’ve ended the Demon Sword’s threat, what happens to our mate bonds?”

Percy cocked his head. “Nothing. Why do you ask?”

“Only two of us will be Southern Guardians,” I said. “How will we know who that is and what happens to the other two?”

“You and Thalion will be the next Southern Guardians,” Gio said. “That was never in doubt. As for your brothers, we have no greater insight than anyone else.”

We looked at Owen but his brow furrowed in concentration. Lysandor wore a similar expression, as if they were both listening to something only they could hear. After a few moments, matching looks of wonder spread across their faces. They blinked and “returned” from wherever they’d been.

“The earth,” Lysandor said softly. “It spoke to us. Gave us a choice.”

Percy and Gio exchanged surprised glances. "A choice?" Gio prompted gently.

Owen nodded, his eyes still wide. "We could dissolve our mate bond, and go back to our separate lives. Or we could keep it, knowing it might mean a different path than we'd imagined."

I had a firm idea what they’d chosen. “And?”

My brother's face broke into a radiant smile. “We chose to keep it, of course. I mean, I’d be a fool to let someone like Lysandor slip away.”

“No way.” Lysandor shook his head. “I’m the lucky one. Did you see what he did during that fight?”

“How about we all agree you’re both lucky?” Thal asked, “Otherwise, we all might get sick listening to you praise each other.”

“Chew a hoof clipping,” Lysandor said, casting major shade at his brother. “No one said anything when you two mooned over each other.”

It was a fair point, but I wasn’t taking his side over Thal’s. “So does that mean there will be two sets of Southern Guardians?”

“No,” Percy said emphatically. “Their bond serves a different purpose. The world needs more than just guardians. Their path will become clear in time.”

Now that all the loose ends had been tied up, a mixture of exhaustion and exhilaration washed over me. We'd saved the world, discovered our destinies, and somehow managed to survive against impossible odds.

Gio clapped his hands together, the sound echoing in the cave. “I’ve had enough of the dusty cave, and we’ve got a long ride to get back to the village. I think it’s time we left.”

I craned my neck and took one last look around the cave. This place had nearly been our tomb, but instead, it became the birthplace of a new chapter in our lives. It would never be home, but we wouldn’t need to avoid it, either.

“Agreed,” I said. “I could use a week's worth of sleep and a proper meal.”

Thal squeezed my hand. “A week in the bedroom would be nice, but you might need a separate room if you plan to sleep all the time.”

This was a side of Thal I hadn’t had a chance to fully experience. My distance caused tension at first, and then we had little time to do more than plan once I stopped being stupid. Now we had the chance to be ourselves. I had a feeling life with Thal was going to upend my staid existence.

I grinned at the prospect of such change. “Bring it.”