Chapter Seventeen: Epilogue

Finally opening my eyes against a bright light, I grimaced at the pain and weakness I felt. Naturally trying to shield my eyes, I realized that I couldn't life my arms from my sides. Looking over, I saw that my arms and legs were tied up to each bed post. Groaning, I laid my head back down again the pillow.

Opening my eyes again, I heard voices floating up from downstairs. Whoever was down there must have heard me stirring. I heard footsteps on the stairs across the room.

"Welcome to my lair," I snapped sarcastically as four figures appeared at the top of the stairs. I chuckled to myself as they appeared in front of me.

The first was Cole, carrying a tray of food. The second was Nicole, tentatively following behind him followed by Samantha and Ryan.

Cole's eyes were narrowed at me but his lips formed a thin line. Ryan put a hand on his shoulder, purposefully not looking at me.

Samantha was the one to speak up first. "We brought you some food," she said, taking the tray from Cole a little forcefully. She turned to me, a sad look on her face as she glanced down at my mangled form lying on the bed.

"Oh don't give me your damn pity," I said, rolling my eyes. My hair flopped into my face as I exaggerated the motion. "I'm fine."

Samantha looked to Nicole who took a cookie off the tray. I recognized her lava lily cookies that she made for me once in a while… a long time ago. She walked over to the bed and bit her lip before deciding to sit at the end of the bed.

"What? You're not gonna say anything to me?" I snapped at her.

"I've been saying a lot to you," she responded. She toyed with the cookie in her hand, picking at the crisper edges with her nail.

"I've been out." I responded bluntly.

"She's been at your side since everything happened," Cole said through gritted teeth. "Don't be so harsh to her."

I scoffed. "You shouldn't give a damn," I said, nodding to her.

"Malorn…." she breathed, but didn't look at me. "The war is over."

"It's not over until I'm dead, remember?" I said, making my body glow a faint red in warning.

"No, she's right," Ryan said, speaking up. "The undead army had no power without you constantly fueling it. And Malistare's minions… we defeated all of them!"

I narrowed my eyes at Ryan. "That's not possible…."

"It is," Cole said sternly, crossing his arms. "You've lost."

I released the red energy from my body. Then I tried to sit up as best I could with the restraints. Nicole reached out to help me, but the glare I shot at her told her to keep her hands to herself, and she pulled back.

"My father's army…. It's just… gone?" I asked cautiously.

"Yes, it's finally over!" Samantha said. "We won!"

I looked back to Nicole who was turning the cookie over and over in her hands. "What about you?" I snapped again. Her gaze jolted back to me as she bit her lip again. "You… You survived? You… defeated my father?"

She nodded slowly, finally stopping with the cookie. "Malorn… you never called him your father before."

I swallowed slightly before pursing my lips. "There's a lot of things I never did before I left you."

She opened her mouth as if to say something but then closed it at her loss for words.

"Why did you leave?" Cole said suddenly. I turned back to him. "You knew we were all here for you and Nicole. Why did you leave us? Why did you betray all of us?"

I took a deep breath before telling my story. I explained to them how Malistare had promised to keep Nicole safe if I agreed to help him take over the Spiral. The harder I worked at being evil, the more convincing he became to me. I told them how amazing it felt to have so much power and to know that I was finally in control of my fate… that I was able to keep Nicole safe with that power. I told them how I had developed a horrible taste for that power and how easy it had become for me to do the unspeakable to so many people.

But most importantly, with every explanation, I told them how it was all for my love of Nicole.

But at the end of my story, I told them how when I finally saw Nicole again, I felt nothing. I felt no swelling emotion when I saw her. I was blank… empty. The powers I had attained and the deeds I had done had drained me of all humanity I had left in me.

"And that was when I realized that I need to be killed. I needed to be destroyed for the monstrosity I had become. And I knew it had to be you, Nicole," I added, turning to face her, finally. I hadn't looked at her the entire time I told the story. She looked up at me, meeting my gaze as she struggled to breathe and to hear of the horrors I caused. "I knew that to end this disease of a legend that the daughter of the Wizard of Fire had to defeat to son of the Wizard of Death. It was the only way to stop Malistare's army and to escape the hell I had created. If I died, the army would fall apart, but if I had just betrayed the army instead, they would have come for you. It was the only way to save you, Nicole."

The tears flowing freely down her face made my stomach lurch. I wished so much that I could feel the pain I had caused her. I wished that I could understand what the emotions she felt now were like to have again. But I knew that it would take a lifetime to feel again… to trust again… to love again.

I tried to explain all of this to her but it was so difficult to see the pain I was further causing in her eyes that I couldn't keep going. I was so engrossed in power that I had lost myself and the reason I sacrificed myself in the first place.

"I lost you." I finished.

Breaking me from my thoughts, I was suddenly grasped tightly in Nicole's arms. I winced at the pain from my bandaged torso but breathed in her familiar ashy scent as if for the first time. Her hair fell in waves into my face and her tears danced onto my cheeks as we collided. Her embrace was so warm… something warmer than anything I remembered. My breath caught, realizing what had been gone from my life for so long.

And I started to cry.

"Nicole…" I muttered into her shoulder. "I'm so sorry…." My shoulders shook with the sobs as they came fast and hard, shaking my body.

She was crying too as she held me closer, more gently now. "I thought… I thought… I… I lost you," she said between sobs.

We cried into each other for a long time. At some point, the others had left the room so we had some time to calm down.

Finally, she pulled back from me and wiped the tears off of her face. She giggled a bit as she looked at me, wiping the tears off my face with her thumb.

"Can't undo my restraints, can you?"

At that, Nicole averted her gaze and looked to the floor in thought. After I moment, she replied, "I don't know what they're going to do with you."

I chuckled darkly for a moment, making her jump. "Sorry… bad habit…. I'm pretty much wanted to murder across the Spiral, so I get it."

She sighed deeply before looking back to me. "When you're better, they might banish you from the Spiral."

"It's better than being dead, isn't it?"

"I'm trying to convince the Council of Light that you can be rehabilitated. But even that can take years… and I wouldn't see you."

I sighed before asking, "Well… what would make you happy?"

She bit her lip and giggled a bit. "Honestly I'd be happiest if I could rehabilitate you myself… maybe take some time off from missions for a change."

"Then do it," I said with as much of a shrug as I could manage. I winced at the pain and the restraints but shrugged it off.

"Malorn, I can't just convince them of it."

"Nicole…. You just took down the strongest Wizard in the Spiral. Hell, that makes you the strongest Wizard in the Spiral. And you think they won't listen to you if you tell them that you can handle babysitting me for a few years?"

Nicole bit her lip again. Then I realized what the real problem was.

"You want to keep saving the Spiral."

She nodded slowly. "It's what I love to do…."

"Then do it," I said. "Look, I hate letting you go. But if we both need time to do what we have to do, then I'll let you go and I'll take my time getting better."

"But I'll miss you," she argued back with me.

"I'm not going to hold you back again," I said.

Then she cupped my face in her hands and gripped my lips between hers as desperately as she could. After the initial shock, I moaned into her lips and relished in the smoothness of her on me. The taste of her overwhelmed my senses, making me completely lose my nerve. She toyed with my ear between her fingers and pulled my face into hers.

When she let go, I was dizzy with ecstasy. That was the feeling I had been lacking. The passion and love I felt for her was still there… it was just difficult to resurface and would take some time fully returning.

"I'll come back for you," she whispered. "I promise."

"I know you will."

*Five years later*

"She comes back today!" Samantha was practically jumping up and down in Headmaster Ambrose's office. Cole was holding her hand to keep her from flying into the ceiling from excitement.

"I'm so excited to tell her about everything that's happened," Ryan said, mostly to his fiancé, Keira Hawksmith. "She hasn't even met you yet, but I'm sure you'll be great friends, Keira!"

"From everything I've heard about her, she seems like something special," she replied, aiming the response toward me.

"She is," I said simply.

"You've worked quite hard for this, Mr. Ashthorn," Headmaster Ambrose told me. "He flew through his rehabilitation process just so that he would be back in time for Nicole," he told Keira.

"We knew he'd make it in time," Cole said, patting my shoulder. He gave me a small wink.

"I couldn't have made it without all of you supporting me. I can't thank you all enough."

"No need to thank us," Ryan added. "If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't have met Keira," he said, pulling her close.

"The portal's opening!" Samantha exclaimed.

All of us took a step back as the blueish image shimmered slightly as a form began to phase through. Stumbling slightly through the portal, I caught Nicole in my arms.

"Oh gosh, I'm so sorry, I-" she stopped midsentence and gasped. "Malorn!" she cried, gripping me in her arms. I hugged her back, running my hands through her hair, silky smooth as it always had been. "I can't believe it! You're here!" she said, pulling me closer.

"Everyone helped me while you were gone. I'm not going anywhere," I told her, kissing her head. Over the past few years I had grown to be much taller than her, and when she pulled back and examined me, I bent down to fully kiss her for the first time in years.

After we parted, Nicole hugged each of her old friends.

"Is that a wedding ring?!" Nicole shouted at Samantha.

She nodded in response. "I'm sorry we didn't wait for you to come back! It just sorta… happened…." she said as innocently as she could muster.

Nicole looked to Cole. "I'm so happy for you guys."

Cole smiled at her. "I just wanted her to be happy."

"And Ryan, you're engaged too?" she said, examining Keira's ring now. "I'm Nicole," she said with a big grin. "I'm so happy to meet Ryan's fiancé!"

"I've heard so much about you," she said, smiling in response. "You saved the Spiral and everyone in it. I should be thanking you!"

Nicole blushed and waved her hand in front of her face dismissively. "I had a lot of help," she said as she eyed the rest of the group.

"I mean, taking down Malorn was quite the trip," Ryan said, puffing out his chest. Everyone laughed together.

Nicole finally walked over to the Headmaster. He took her hands in his with Gamma on his shoulder. "Nicole, you've grown into such a fine young wizard. I'm so very proud of you. And you know that if you ever need anything at all, Gamma and I are always here to help you on your journey."

"Coocoo!" Gamma yelped. "A very fine wizard indeed!"

"Thank you both so much…." she said.

"Your father would be so proud of your achievements, Nicole."

She looked up into Ambrose's eyes and wiped away a tear. "Thank you…."

"Nicole?" I said gently, taking her hand. She turned back to me and smiled, hugging me again.

"I've just missed you so much," she said.

I pulled back from her and nodded to the door. "I've missed you too. Come on, I want to show you something."

Taking her hand and guiding her to Gamma's room, I closed the doors behind us. When I turned back to her, she was standing in the middle of the room, looking up at Wizard City in the heart of the Spiral.

"Why did you bring me here?" she asked quietly.

"Because you love the Spiral more than anything else, and you would do anything to save it," I said, giving her pride in her accomplishments. She smiled at me, and I added, "But I want to ask you to love something just the same."

"I… what…?" she stuttered.

Then I saw the realization dawn on her face as I bent down on one knee.

"Me." I said, sheepishly. "I want to ask you to love me again… and show me how to love again…. Will you do that for me, Nicole? I know I don't deserve you after everything I've done…. But I want to go back to us… to love." I took a deep breath. "Will you marry me?" I asked, opening the little ring box.

She jumped into my arms before she could even mutter a response. She starting crying into my shoulder, and I picked her up, swinging her around in the stars of the Spiral around us.

"Yes!" she cried. "I want to fall in love again! I want to learn to love again… with you, Malorn!"

The End

[Author's Note 5/2/16]: Hello everyone! Thank you all again for taking this journey with Malorn and Nicole! It's been a rough one, but so worth it in the end!

Thank you so much to reader Son of Janus for the helpful reviews! We were messaging a lot to talk about the story and his enthusiasm made me smile so much!

I would just like to clarify a few things for the audience here! Son of Janus pointed out some stuff and I noticed some things that should probably be made clear for the universe I created:

I have never seen Star Wars! Son of Janus told me how it had many parallels to the story that I was entirely unaware of, and I actually saw it more closely resembling Harry Potter until the last two chapters!

At the time of the epilogue, Nicole is 19 and Malorn is 24. I don't know how many of you have been keeping track of their ages throughout the time gaps, but I just thought it would be good to clarify. Meaning that at the time of the final battle, Nicole was 14 and Malorn was 19.

Malorn has been called very OOC in my story. But from what very little dialogue he had in the actual game, I created my own NON-CANON character. I loved his voice and look from the game and used that as a model, no more and no less.

Malorn was fully aware of his final actions in the last chapter. He knew that pushing them all away and allowing there to be a final confrontation would quell his army but did not know if it would work. The very unclear part was whether or not he intended to kill Nicole. This was done purposefully. But had Nicole not had that final vision in her attempt to save Malorn, Malorn may not have spared her. But his gut instinct in that moment proved to be his innate love for Nicole. And thus we learn that true love does conquer all. Awww!

I hope you all loved Malorn and Nicole the way I did as well as their friends because I will miss writing about them so much! Please review, and keep an eye out for my other stories as well!

Lots of love, Nikaya