Screams filled Abby's ears punctuated by quick, throaty gurgles. Feign's army was assaulting the temple. Heavy footfalls echoed off the stone, the clanking of metal, cries, horrible cries. Then, Abby heard less. Fewer screams, fewer pleas.

Oh no, she thought. No! No!

The temple was ablaze, flames lashing upward and turning wooden pillars to ash. Menna and Fraga were nowhere to be seen. The orbs had disappeared. Abby squinted through the smoke trying to see if anyone remained. Sebbi crouched beside a fallen pillar, Lucy next to him. Rock dust and splinters covered their fur. Abby inhaled, the smoke making her cough.

Lain stood next to Margo, an arm slumped over her shoulder. The small mouse-woman shook, her hand clasped tightly over her shoulder, blood trickling between her bronzed fingertips.

Abby gasped. "Margo!" Her wobbling legs propelled her toward the mouse woman. "Are you alright?"

Margo looked worn, her skin covered in dirt, her eyes a dull shade of their usual vibrant blue. "I'll be okay," she said listlessly, blood streaming down her arm. Judging by the deep gash, almost a hand long, Abby guessed Margo's bleeding wouldn't be stopping anytime soon. Margo must have sensed Abby's worry because she placed her good hand on Abby's shoulder and smiled. "It's a flesh wound," she said. "Nicked by a piece of brick that's all."

Abby nodded. Stone crunched underfoot. The ground was littered in all sorts of blown apart bits of stone and sod. A few paces away, Abby spied a jagged piece of rock covered in Margo's blood.

"We need to leave," the mouse-woman huffed. Her face winced in pain. "Fraga and the others have already fled."

Did they flee? Already?

"They left us here," Lucy said plainly.

His brother hissed. "To die. They left us here to die."

"Let's not then," Margo quipped. "I've been promised cheese if we survive." She winked at Abby. "And I'll do anything for cheese."

As they turned to run, two red eyes appeared through the flames of the still burning temple. Black armor glistened under the moonlight. A large ax was at the creature's side, trailing behind him, making a scratching sound as its blade ran along the stone path.

On the Blood Moon Commander's left stood an Aelurian Abby had never seen before. She had deep brown fur, covered in green paint that seemed to swirl and slither all along her arms and neck. She stared at them with unblinking green eyes, her lips parted in a smile. Two small creatures clad in floor-length white veils stood eclipsed by her shadow.

"The reunion was cut too short," Feign snarled flashing a dangerous smile Abby's way. "So I brought it to you."

Feign moved to the side. Behind him, wearing nothing but shabby robes, was the Queen, her lifeless golden eyes staring at them. Lain hissed and reflexively reached for a sword that was no longer at his side.

"Kamdar zendis," he spat.

Feign smirked. "Lovers brought together at last, how sweet."

"You're a disgrace," Margo shouted, hand clasped around her stone pendant. She looked at it, then at the cat-woman next to Feign, grimacing.

The cat-woman seemed to notice the stone and chuckled. "Not enough life left to use your magick, ratta parasite?"

Margo growled. "At least I'm not some necromancer." She glared at the twin creatures on either side of the cat-woman. "Razing your fellow Aelurians to use their souls to cast your spells. How weak."

The other cat-woman bared her fangs, the tarnished gold bangles that wrapped around her ears jingling. She raised a hand and Margo immediately fell back, fingers trembling across her pendant. The stone had faded even more. How much magick did Margo have left? Enough for a spell? Three?

Abby didn't want the mouse-woman to die, but what could they do against the enemy?

Abby's eyes connected with the Queen's and for a second, they flickered, alive.

My blood, daughter of Celeste Din Wa'anderen. You have my blood. Use it.

Lightning struck the ground beside Abby upending the world. Lain was blown into a pillar that cracked and rained dust on them. Sebbi and Lucy had been blown back. heads cracking off rocks. And Margo— Abby squinted. She couldn't see through the thick blanket of debris.

A hand cut through the haze and Abby reached for it mindlessly. Black fur. Lucy. Or Sebbi. She realized all too late that hand belonged to Commander Feign.

He plucked her off the ground as though she were a sack of gull feathers, smirking all the while. "There's our little hemma guest," he growled.

Hands closed around her neck. She clawed at them as she tried to free herself. Her vision swam, her eyes bulging from her skull. No, she thought. I'm going to die. Feign's cackle rang out in her mind as another bolt of lightning struck down from the sky, blasting a chunk of the Order to orange dust.

My blood, little one. E'tect Vaalsen.

Protect them. Abby knew those words meant, 'protect them.' But how could she? She was a kid, up against trained killers and witches, what could she do except die?

Protect them. Protect Aelurus' future.

Abby's arms fell limp against her sides. Feign's red eyes burned into her memories. All around them, smoke and screams, and fading scenery.

Abby couldn't help them. I can't. I can't do it.

You have been all this time, the voice said. You loved them with all you had. You gave them the life I could not.

Abby snapped awake, the world returning in sharp focus. Behind Feign stood the Queen. The corners of her lips turned upward.

She's smiling, at me, Abby thought.

The Queen gave Abby a stilted nod and the voice in her head whispered, "Thank you."

Abby returned her gaze on Feign. With the last of her energy, she raised a hand and placed in on his arm. His eyes went wide, and the last of his cackling grew silent. Abby opened her mouth, despite her throbbing head, and said, "E'tect Vaalsen."

Feign cocked his head, hand brushing the hilt of the ax strapped to his back.

"E'tect Vaalsen. I protect, blood of my blood."

Abby's head fell forward, and as it did, white light erupted from her skin. Feign was caught off guard and fell back, releasing the girl. Abby gasped for breath. She could see no one. Feel nothing except the light radiating off her skin- warm and calming. A scream cut through the stillness, and as Abby found her baring, she looked up. Feign and his soldiers were on fire, shrieking to the heavens as boiling metal scorched their skin.

The smell alone sent Abby lurching - a mix of burning hair and boiling flesh. Had she done this? Had this been her? Had this...power been inside her the entire time?

The fur around Feign's chin had been burnt off, his red flesh becoming white as flames seared him. With an ear-splitting screech, he lunged at Abby. Abby braced herself for the impact but a flash of silver rammed itself into Feign's side.

Lain. It was Lain.

Feign's horned helm fell off his head and rolled into a Wanesguard who's charred remains remained propped against a pillar. Lain's fist connected with Feign's cheek. The Blood Moon Commander spat blood across nearby Afen'dal grass as Lain continued his assault. One fist after the other.

Bone crunched as Feign's face became less recognizable. Lain didn't stop. All of his anger, from years spent caged like a beast collected in the fists he slammed into Feign's skull. He screamed over and over and over again, Abby's fire never seeming to burn him.

With a final, sickening crunch, Feign's head caved in, and the creature stilled. Lain remained on top of Feign, catching his breath, his tunic covered in blood and sinewy bits of flesh and bone. Then, he rolled over and stared up at the sky. Abby wanted to scream, but she couldn't. Was Feign, was Rowland, really dead?

Lain looked at her and forced himself to his knees. "Little one," he called, outstretching a bloody hand to her. "We need to leav--"

A flash of green lightning shot from the sky, shattering the ground and sending debris flying. When it settled, Abby saw to her horror, Lain on his side, a smoking hole the size of her head in his chest. He stared at her with empty eyes.

Archmage Calleighdia stepped over his corpse taking a moment to give his head a kick with her foot. She smiled in delight as Feign's skull crunched on contact. "You will not get away from me!" She howled and raised her hand. Lightning gathered at her fingertips, expanding into a ball half her size overhead. Abby scrambled to her feet. The Archmage smiled. "My magick will kill you no matter where you chose to cower and hide."

Margo jumped onto the mage's shoulders and jammed a silver cheese knife into her neck. The Archmage lost her focus, her magick turning to smoke. She reared up, knocking Margo to the ground, and reached up to assess her wound. Blood oozed between her fingertips. She hissed, her eyes a wild, manic green. "I'll kill you all," she wailed. "I'll see this world burned!"

Calleighdia raised her hands again, but the Queen grabbed her, and bit into her neck, deepening the wound Margo had inflicted.

In Abby's mind, she heard that voice again. You've protected them, now it's my turn. They've become such strong fe'rens. My beloved sons. Sel and Lu'en.

Calleighdia whipped back and forth trying to free herself from the queen's grasp. Sebbi ran toward Abby while Lucy ran to help Margo to her feet.

"What's going on?" Sebbi huffed, running his gaze along Abby to check for injury. He grimaced when he eyed the red marks around her neck and the start of a bruise on her cheek. "I thought that thing was dead."

Abby shook her head. "Death can't come for love." She turned toward him. "Your mother loved you, very much." She brushed the cat-man's cheek and smiled. "That's why she left you with me."

Calleighdia's eyes bulged as the Queen's grip tightened around her. She growled, and then, a portal opened up behind her. The Queen was blown back, an arrow of black smoke piercing her through the chest.

"No!" Sebbi screamed, running toward her.

Calleighdia was sucked through the portal alongside Feign's corpse and the clearing stilled.

Abby, Lucy, and Margo ran to join Sebbi. Lucy knelt beside his brother and the mother he'd never known. Her lips curled upward as she raised her hand to caress Sebbi's cheek, then Lucy's. Both brothers' eyes welled with tears. "Mom--" Sebbi whispered. Lucy wrapped an arm around his shoulder.

The queen's gold eyes reflected the stars and the low hanging Blood Moon. A single tear ran down her cheek. "M-my sons—" she croaked. Her hand fell to the ground.

No one spoke until Margo suggested they leave. "Nocturnis will send more Wanesguard," she'd said. "We'll come back for their bodies." She'd assured Lucy and Sebbi who were the most reluctant to leave.

"Their?" Lucy had asked.

Margo had nodded solemnly. "Lain and your mother's. They both deserve to rest."

In a matter of seconds, Margo had peeled the world back on itself and a blue portal had appeared in the tear.

"Where will that take us?" Lucy asked.

"Darkmoore," Margo said. Then, to looks of surprise, she explained that Fraga will have gone there, to meet with other Cloudians. "She'll give the memory to the Dawn Queen and she'll spread the news across Aelurus."

"What'll we do?" Sebbi had snapped.

"We wait. Judging by that shade port that opened up, the Shadow King probably knows he's lost. The throne should be vacant and—" She eyed the cat brothers. "And we'll have succeeded."

Abby looked at the ground strewn with ash and splattered with blood. Even though they had succeeded, it hadn't felt like they had. She eyed Lain's body and the hole Calleighdia's magick and burned through it. Beside him, lay the Queen, finally at rest after sacrificing the last of her life to help her sons.

One by one, they left the ruins of the Order of Kaeldar behind and stepped through the portal. Before Abby could step through, Margo grabbed her wrist and whisked her to the side.

"Miss Abby," she said, looking worried. "Do you know what you did?"

Abby shook her head. "I didn't do anything. I think," she pointed to the Queen. "I think she was working through me."

Margo shook her head. "No, Abby. It was you too. How come you didn't tell me you were blood-bonded with the Queen?"

Abby stepped back. "What? Blood-bonded?"

Margo shook her head. "Yeah, blood-bonded. You know the Crescent Moon bloodline was strong in magick. What you did here was no simple feat. You summoned enough light to rival a sun."

Abby was shocked. She stared at her hands and shifted from foot to foot. "I don't know about all that," she said finally. As Margo was about to protest, Abby continued, "But I did know I had to protect my cats. They're all the family I have left. So I protected them." She shrugged and looked at the sky. "E'tect Vaalsen," she whispered.

As Abby strode toward the portal, she stopped, finally remembering something strange the Queen had said. She turned. "Margo?"

Margo peered up. "What is it?"

"What does Wa'anderen mean?"

"Wanderer," Margo said matter of factly.

Abby nodded slowly. "Why would the Queen call my mother that?"

Margo got excited and ran for Abby. She almost bowled the girl over as she latched on to Abby's shoulders. "Why wouldn't she? Your mother was Celeste right?"

Abby nodded, though greatly confused.

Margo beamed. "Celeste wandered the realms, Abby, searching for a way to unite all the animal kingdoms of the Eridan." She frowned at Abby's open mouth and wide eyes. "Did you not know this?"

Abby shook her head. No, she did not know this. How could she?

Margo released her and thumped a foot against the ground, hand scratching at her chin. She frowned. "Then you don't know where she was from?"

Abby swallowed her surprise. "Mom was from Moffat, north of Triad."

Margo shook her head. "No, no. Abby, Celeste fell into the realms. She was never from Mirea."

"So I'm—" Abby began.

Margo pushed Abby into the portal. "You're the Wanderer's daughter, Miss." The mouse-woman herself glanced up at the sky, where Celeste had fallen from, searching the stars for some indication of where she might have come from.

"And maybe," Margo stepped into the portal. "You'll be able to finish what she started."

With a pop, the portal blinked out of existence.  

Abbernathy Fun Fact 16: The Aelurian language, known as High Tongue, was created specifically for the Wattpad version. It mimics Spanish, in that is has feminine and masculine suffixes for its words. High Tongue is incredibly hard to learn and is only taught to Moonborns. The Queen used an informal version of it where she combined some words in High Tongue with the common language.