A/N: FINAL CHAPTER!! Image found on Pinterest, art by Karol Bak. Beautifully sums up how I feel the scene in this chapter appears!

The guards hauled me out, and the wind rushed me, causing my legs to give way. Embarrassed, I tried to pick myself off the rough floor, but my bindings limited my movement severely. I wobbled, requiring the guards to grab my skin again to steady me. Then, I saw where I was.

We weren't on a platform; we were on a spiked ledge, jutting out over the edge of the island. The spike itself held a viewing area, on which a comfortable array of benches and chairs held a group of important people. Officials and such, I imagined, until I caught sight of Reia.

She was dressed regally, in robes of mourning black and a shawl of black feathers to hide her golden ones. Her hair was bright in the morning sunlight, a golden glimmer of curls that outshone even the large, golden crown atop her head, dripping diamonds along her temples and on her glabella. 

Her mouth was perfectly posed in an expression of sorrow, her lips large and painted red. Her high cheekbones was blushed with rouge, contrasting sharply to her pale white face and big, green eyes. Next to her, like a loyal dog, sat the Commander.

He looked much more suited to mourning, with his dark hair framing his perfectly dark eyes. Daedoran's beady eyes glinted in mirth when he caught sight of me, struggling to stand. A haphazard grin spread along his face, and I watched him slide an inch closer to Reia, as if to show off his high standing. His own shirt was black but half open, making him look more like an escort than a man attending an execution. His wings, though silver, were nowhere near as beautiful as Fabian's, I noticed with my own smirk. His smile faded, and he looked at me in contempt.

The guards saluted to their princess. Was she their Queen already, or did I have to die for that to happen? I didn't get time to think. Reia's lapdog stood and gestured me to stand before them. Daedoran happily forced me to my knees, addressing what could only be the crowds below. A strange headpiece was fitted beneath his horns, circling his ear and extending towards his mouth. When he spoke, his voice boomed.

'Ladies and gentlemen of the Diamond City!' he called, and I realised that he was about to make a speech. 'We have gathered here to witness the trial of a traitor who murdered your king at his own party last night!'

Had it only been last night? 

'This girl is supposed to be a Candidate for the throne, and in her greed, she slew the King and turned upon his daughter, but was vanquished and captured!'

No I didn't! I wanted to protest. Reia made me! She created an illusion, an illusion to make me kill the king, fearing for my sister's life!

How was I ever going to explain that? Then again, I knew already that the justice system of Angelica was crude. There was no way this trial would end with me walking free; the juror's panel appeared to be all of Reia's close informants. All of their eyes flitted from me, to the drop below, and back to their Queen, occasionally glancing at the Commander. Would they even consider me innocent? 

'The sentence for crimes against the crown in Angelica is death,' Daedoran droned on. I shivered, head still craning so that I didn't bow to the people in front of me. I would die with my head raised, I was determined of it.

'This Candidate shows no regard for Angelica, or its customs. She attempted to assassinate its one true Queen, Freya Dulcina, who has been preparing to rule all of her life.'

The Commander froze in his speech. Reia-- no, Freya-- had risen, indicating she wanted to speak. Her own earpiece was looped towards her mouth. She strode past me without even looking at me.

'My good people,' she called, and I recognised that she was trying to be inspiring. However, the illusion had faded rapidly; where I once considered her invincible, I now heard the fragility in her voice, the wavering of her attempt to win a crowd. 'This girl did have a rightful claim to this throne, which I acknowledged of her. Instead of facing me straight on, she chose to hide away on Earth for eighteen years, until her plan to assassinate the king brought about her return. She intended to assassinate me too. This is not how Angelica elects a ruler.'

To my relief, there was no outright cheer. The attendants on the ledge all clapped raucously of course, but I could hear only mutterings from the crowd. I shut my eyes, trying to hear them. If this is what they wanted-- if they wanted Freya as their Queen-- then a part of me didn't mind having to die.

Is this how it feels to be a queen? I wondered at last. Have I finally developed a love for this country, enough to sacrifice myself for its wishes?

'I am this kingdom's best chance. My father made mistakes, but I have learned from them. I am a Queen that has lived with his rule, and knows better than any how difficult decisions are to make. But difficult decisions are what makes a ruler.'

Or was I standing down because I admitted defeat? As I turned my head, I could make out Freya's speech to her country, but I could also see the imperfections the previous illusion had made me forget. The disdainful tilt of her head when she looked towards the less privileged. Her dismissal of the Commander. Her blatant lies only reinforced by a power she no longer had over me, enabling me to see right through them.

No, I'm innocent, I thought with pride. Emotion bloomed within my chest. I would die, yes. But knowing I did the right thing, til the very end.

Mother would have been proud. The thought crossed my mind before I could question it, before I could remind myself that I had never known a mother.

You have, a whisper told me. You just have to remember.

'Lumina Fawcett, of disgraced Opal House, are found guilty of treason to the crown of Angelica, and are hereby sentenced to death.'

Even though I'd known it was coming, the blow still crushed.

The blindfold was placed, I was paraded before the people. The traitor. My teeth chattered in fear as the crowd stirred below, and I listened, hearing above all, the howling of the wind. 

Almost as if it's crying for me, I thought bitterly. 

Someone led me on, but I barely registered. I was climbing the narrow beam of the sharp spike of diamond I'd seen earlier, the executioner's block where I would walk off the face of existence.

When the guard finally threw away my blindfold, I no longer focused on him. In my head, I was running through all of my best memories. All of my brilliant memories.

Riding with Arianna in a flying machine, and jumping out of that machine into the deepest pool of water I'd ever seen. Meeting Scarlett through the bars of a cell. Bathing in the most luxurious bathtub. Climbing so many stairs to Fabian's aviary that my legs wanted to fall off, but finding the most peaceful atmosphere when I got there that it was all worth it. Discovering my power, and using it to run away. I had needed that break. I had grown in absence of my protective Scarlett and Fabian.

Rescuing Kirsten from the pigheaded Dale seemed so far away now, and meeting Iggy even further. Watching Clae grow from abused to a survivor. Valkyrie's masses of curls, and her invigorating spirit, even when she'd swapped it all to become older. Just so she could join us on our saving-the-world mission. She was the most stubborn person I knew.

Meeting the Exchangers, and dancing with them late into the night. Fabian brushing my hair, and the two of us surrounded by feathers floating on the wind. The room rising for my speech. Planning with a team of people that all wanted to reach the same goal: freedom. Fabian teaching me to read. 

Travelling with the first group of people I could call friends, and befriending Sakura, who was strong and the bravest person in the world. Watching Kitty dance. Fabian faking being drunk and dragging me with him past curfew.  Frederick's energy and enthusiasm.That disgusting drink that I would never, ever forget at the tavern.The exhilarating hunt. Rescuing Scarlett, and fighting alongside her. 

Fabian telling me he loved all of me. Me realising that I felt the same way about him. 

Our hurried kiss, which, in hindsight, would be my only goodbye.

The guard released the bindings on my feet, but it was little help. I could now walk more efficiently to my doom. I could feel the wind die down, as if it knew that I was stepping out across a narrow inlet that was between my balance and my life.

Next, the bindings on my eyes, so I could now face what was about to come. The black material of the bindings danced, roving away on the wind as if to tease me of how light it was. 

Then, I saw the city below. Faces, staring up at me, blurred and distant, and the drop out over the edge of the island. The blue, deep water of the moat around the palace surrounding the marble plaza. The blue roofs of the houses, the strange, respectful silence in the streets. At the edges of my vision, the sprawling lands of Angelica, so familiar now that I could name parts of them. But there were still parts I had yet to see, and I began to think of all the things I regretted.

Not seeing the Opal City restored. Not helping those people out of the slums.

Not kicking Dale somewhere he sorely deserved. Adding to that list, not booting the Commander up the ass either.

Not telling Scarlett, my true sister, how much I loved her. Never getting to know her even an eighth of what I should.

Not forgiving Kirsten, and falling out with her over something as trivial as jealousy. 

Not saying goodbye to Sakura. She was the greatest ally I could have wished for.

Not returning to the orphanage, and helping all those children. 

Not telling Fabian that I loved him back. 

Not thanking Morwena, or the Exchangers. In my head, they flashed before me, and I wondered if by thinking of them, I wouldn't feel quite so alone up here.

I continued to chant names through my head; Valkyrie, Iggy, Clae. Clae. Perhaps I would see her again, in whatever lay beyond this cliff edge.

Fabian. I hope you're not watching, I thought silently. 

When the guard pushing me onward asked for my last words, I had none. Only a silent prayer of love that I sent on the wind.

And then he urged me forwards, and my next steps began to teeter. Hundreds of feet up, the drop really hit me at that moment; dizzying and real. The people were so far away, they might have been dolls in a dollhouse. The grand plaza was no more than a hand's width apart from my angle up here. And the houses were all tiny, constructed boxes that couldn't house anyone, and the water looked so still it might have been blue paving stone. Great black flags had been hung from all over the palace walls, so the beautiful crystal shine was now a mass of foreboding. 

A fall from this height really would kill me.

My toes stumbled along the edge, fumbling in the balance as my weight transferred to match the shift in the thinning of my platform. Both feet were spaced apart, but my front foot now had only the centre fixed on anything solid; my little toes curled in terror over the edge.

I leaned heavily over my back foot, still comfortably on the step a shoulder length wide.

The guard urged me to keep moving, but he was no longer right behind me. I knew why; the ledge was getting too dangerous even for him to keep going. Earlier, I had considered using Clae's power to control these people, but no matter how I thought of it, each ended with my eventual return to capture as I wouldn't be able to spell everyone. However I did seriously consider taking that guard over the ledge with me, just to have some company.

I quelled that dark thought, and shuffled forwards.

A commotion stirred up far below, at the foot of the plaza where the main guests from the Equinox Ball were watching. Some had brought out blankets to sit and spectate on, and servants were bringing around what looked to be liquor. But I wasn't looking at the angels sitting down; I was staring at the steps, where a group were frantically pushing the crowds outwards.

My front foot crept forwards another inch, and in my distraction I felt it hit thin air. Losing my balance, I wobbled like a daruma doll, teetering over the edge.

From within the crowd, a form began to grow. Screaming broke out as a man with orange wings suddenly burst beyond his own body, claws raking along his hands and scales erupting from his neck. A beast of black wings, a serpentine head, and a scaled, muscular body roared flames into the air. 

Dragon.

And atop its back-- a rider. Her blonde hair streamed, and her face hidden behind armor. But I knew Sakura from anywhere, and I watched her aim arrow after arrow into the oncoming guards. They fell like matchstick dolls as the crowds tried to flee from the dragon's teeth.

Despite the tears of relief springing into my eyes, I knew I was falling. I hadn't made it; they had come for me, but it was too late. Iggy, my shapeshifter friend, had somehow managed to take the form of a dragon, and my heart seared at the thought of him expending too much power that it might harm him. 

The warmth I felt was not how it was supposed to feel to die, I was sure; the ground surged below me as my face dropped first, leaving my toes slowly leaving the edge. But as my eyes shut, I felt strangely at peace.

I was glad I had come home. For me.

Something warm blossomed in my chest.

'Lumina! LUMINA!'

Oh no. My eyes shot open, knowing that the man that was taking off, silver wings beating frantically, was soon accosted by guards and arrows. I screamed. He couldn't save me. They would kill him too.

My arms began to spiral, my legs flapped to try and regain footing. But no-- I was falling, and my stomach rose so far into my throat it was unbearable. I gained speed as I tumbled, the world spinning as I hurtled in a chaotic cartwheel.

And the warmth in my chest was getting hotter. And hotter. And-- burning--

Flames exploded from the Black Fire Opal that was still hanging around my neck. The flames burrowed around me, and my fear receded. If I was to die, maybe the Opal was sparing me the long fall.

But the flames didn't harm me. Instead, something about my fall was slowing. The flames were circling me, a fireball within the air, causing further screaming from the crowds below. When a shadow burst from the centre of my necklace, I thought I was hallucinating, with death so close.

But then the shadow began to take form, the shadows darting into lines and spirals that glowed like hot embers. Before my eyes, feathers of flame and a beak of sparks grew, and a magnificent firebird held me within its flaming wings.

I couldn't speak. Nestled among flickering flames, I knew I should have died seconds ago, but my descent had stopped. Nestled among burning fire, I should have been burned alive, as my clothes were reduced to cinders. 

The Opal pulsed between my outstretched fingers.

And then the Firebird spoke. 

'I am the Guardian of that gemstone.'

The Firebird's words were not human, but a strange hiss of a language that sounded both foreign and natural to my ears. I understood without question. The words fell over my ears like flames licking wood for kindle.

'A spell was cast upon you, so that you would not remember your former life on Angelica. That worked then. But now you will require both of your pasts to survive this future.'

The flames rose higher, warmth spreading along my naked body. I released a breath, enjoying the experience.

'I have very little time here, but I will restore your memories to you. My gift to you is that Opal, and with it, flames can be yours to command. But be careful. There is no greater downfall than the abuse of those in power.'

Something like a sigh escaped the Firebird. 

'The King was one such example, who had great power but used it to hurt and control even his only daughter. His guardian spirit has left him, and his daughter hopes to summon it back, now that it is hers. My advice to you is to be brave, Lumina. She has grown up with a darkness in her life, and it may be only you that can shed light back upon this ancient land.'

The flames roared along my back, and I felt my wings bursting with warmth and energy. They grew; wings that extended, reaching past my pelvis, feathers elongating. Reaching along my neck and head, the flames blew out, the ball of fire dying and the presence of the Firebird vanishing.

But my wings were arched, ready, and they beat powerfully as I surveyed the land below me, a girl covered in so much cinder ash her body appeared like an omen of destruction. Old Lumina and New were merged, two conflicting personalities that would have to grow into one before I would be worthy of this land.

But for the first time in a long while, I was flying. 

---

A/N: THANK YOU FOR READING THIS FAR, I can't believe that this is my last official chapter for Equinox. There will be an Epilogue, but this is it as far as the main story is concerned...

So watch out for SOLSTICE, which will be Book 2, in which Lumina and Freya return, battles will be fought, an underwater kingdom involved, and of course there will be plenty of Fabian, Sakura, Valkyrie, Iggy, Morwena and Co! 

Have I left any questions left unanswered for you? Let me know, comment your thoughts! I may have missed out an explanation here or there in my desperation to share this with you, and can hopefully add it in the Epilogue (or somewhere in the story). And let me know what you think should happen in the next book, and I can incorporate it!

If you have enjoyed Equinox please vote, comment, add to your personal library or your reading lists, share it on twitter as it's in the Wattys for this year, and I need all your support for anything to happen. 

Again thank YOU all for reading. Without you, me EVER making it to the end of a piece of writing would have been nonexistent. 

Lots of love

Larissa