Part 23:

Serena walked into her house and gasped. On the floor lie two limp bodies. She closed her eyes in horror, willing it to go away. She opened them again. Nothing. It was real. All too real. She ran over and reached for a pulse. They were dead. She had failed to protect them. She grabbed a blanket and covered them.

"Let us go. You will awake and not even remember any of this happened." She wiped away the tears that were beginning to fall. Suddenly, she panicked. There were only two bodies. One was missing.

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"She is definitely dead." Rath looked back at Zan's horrified face. Ava lay on the ground in her bloody wedding gown. The glass pieces were all over the floor shimmering with the light of the day. It was a disturbingly peaceful image.

"Something's wrong." Zan grabbed his stomach. He felt sick.

"What?"

"I don't know. But I can feel it. Elena is struggling." He grabbed his head in pain. She seemed to be trying to contact him.

"We have to get them." Rath stood and turned toward the door when he stopped in his tracks.

"No need. They're dead." Zan turned around at the sound of the familiar voice. It was a frightening recollection of a time in his life he wanted to forget. He felt goose bumps rise on his skin. The tall figure stood tall at the doorframe, his green eyes gleaming.

"Kivar!" Rath felt his blood boil. He would kill him once and for all.

"Rath NO!" He charged at him and Zan watched the beam of light hit Rath's chest and knock him down.

"Again?" Kivar put out his left hand and slid Rath across the room and against the wall.

"I'll kill you. "

"I'd like to see you try." Zan stepped forward and was confronted by a green shield. He was trapped. He could not move much in one direction or another. Kivar smiled and another beam of light hit Rath's chest, knocking him down.

"One more thing little brother, Mayala screamed your name before I killed her." He smiled wickedly and Rath lost his mind. He struggled to stand and then charged fearlessly at Kivar. The two fell into the room floor and wrestled. Zan could only watch helplessly as Kivar, scratched and bruised pulled out a shining object.

"WATCH OUT!" Rath turned and felt the cold metal in his stomach. Zan gasped as the blood began to flow. Rath looked up, his eyes pained.

"I'm sorry your highness. I have failed you." He sighed and then with a last whimper of pain closed his eyes.

"Rath! STAY AWAKE! STAY AWAKE!" Zan reached for the green and felt an intense burn. He could not escape. He could feel his anger boiling.

"YOU WANT ME!?? GO AHEAD THEN! KILL ME!" Zan was screaming, his eyes filling with tears.

"Not just yet. I want you to suffer as I did. For prison, for torture, and for Vilandra."

"You HAD Vilandra."

"You turned her against me!"

"But now you have her!"

"That I do. And this woman as well." Kivar stepped into the hallway and tossed in a small brunette.

"ELENA!" Zan ran toward the shield again, his hands and chest feeling the intense heat against his skin. His ears were pounding.

"Zan!" She looked up, her face bruised and her eyes defeated. Her hands and feet were tied and he wanted nothing more than to free her.

"Let her go! She has nothing to do with this! "

"I want you to see her one last time Zan. Once you die, she will be my queen." Elena looked up, her eyes horrified. Her friends were dead. Zan was going to die. She wanted nothing more than to join them.

"What about Vilandra?"

"She too will die, I suppose. Being of the royal household and all. Pity, she would have made a wonderful queen." Zan looked down at Elena and sunk to the floor. There was no longer anything he could do. He'd failed. As a king, as a husband, and more so as a friend. He reached his hand to the shield, his eyes full of tears. She reached up and put her hand against his, the burn of the shield sizzling on her skin. She mouthed the words I love you and began to cry.

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." She mumbled sadly and released her burnt hand. Before anyone knew what was happening Elena reached for the bloody knife near Rath and penetrated it deep into her skin.

"NO!" Zan screamed... his heart shattering into a million pieces. Kivar stood shocked. He had not seen this coming. The shield collapsed and Zan rushed to Elena's side, his hand covering her wound.

"No, no please. Please, not you too." Finally, he allowed the tears to fall, his final sign of defeat.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry Elena. I love you." He kissed her lips one last time and wiped the tear marks off her face. "I'll see you soon."

There was no holding him back now. He would kill Kivar or be killed himself. He reached out his arm sending Kivar to his knees.

"You killed her!" Kivar kneeled, his eyes fixed on Elena. Pure confusion lay in their depths. She killed herself. He could not understand. He offered her the crown of Antar. He offered her life. And still she killed herself. He felt a blow to the head. Zan looked down, a relentless look in his eyes. He went to grab Kivar's neck when a female voice came ringing from the door.

"Zan! "

"Vilandra." Zan tried to remain focused. He looked into her eyes, the big black depths revealing she was not the woman he hoped.

"Leave." He demanded coldly, hoping a part of her was still the sister he remembered and loved.

"LEAVE!" She looked around, a look coming across her face as she saw Rath and then Elena. Something in her eyes began to change. He could feel a sense of hope.

"Alakiah is dead Vilandra. Kivar killed him." He walked away from Kivar hoping to get Vilandra back. He needed her. She was all that was left for him. Kivar looked up silently.

"He doesn't love you Vilandra. Please believe that. I love you. You're my sister." The force was gone. He stood up and grabbed Zan from behind tossing him away from Vilandra.

"No more nonsense!" He reached out to kill Zan, his hand producing a bright blue light. Vilandra stood, her eyes wide.

"Vilandra, I love you!" Zan cried out, his eyes red from tears.

"Quiet!" Kivar gathered the big blue light and threw it with all his might.

"NO!" Vilandra ran in front of Zan, the light hitting her from behind. "No."

She whispered as she lay drained in Zan's arms. He looked down, her eyes soft and familiar.

"I love you too." She smiled weakly and then sighed loudly as she closed her eyes to rest. Zan could no longer take it. He charged at Kivar one last time before he felt his head burst with pain. He looked up, Kivar's eyes glowing with an evil green. The headache grew and finally with a loud scream he gave himself to the pain, for the last time. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Serena ran to the chamber to finalize the project. She had very little time. She knew they were looking to kill her. She typed in the code and looked on as the Granolith came to life. The bright purple and blue colors blurred together as it began to spin.

"Take care. May the gods be with you all."

She walked out as the machine exploded in an array of lights and made its way off the planet.