“I’ll carry her,” he said.
“Perhaps you should sheath yourself for a well-deserved rest after all your hard work, Mr. Gryphon,” Nali suggested.
“Don’t mind if I do,” the lion said with a huge yawn. “Saving the universe is quite tiring.”
Asahi shook his head and held his arm away from his side until Mr. Gryphon, clutching the hilt of the dagger, slid the blade into the sheath. Once he secured the dagger, Asahi swept Aminta into his arms. She held onto his neck and laid her head against his shoulder. He was shocked that this beautiful entity had survived, much less could stand, after everything she had been through. It boggled his mind how anyone could have survived after enduring such destructive evil.
“How far is it?” he asked.
Nali glanced over her shoulder and smiled. “Not far. I’m glad the alien didn’t realize how close it was to the Gateway. If it had, we might never have been able to stop it,” she confessed.
He silently agreed when they stepped out of the woods into a small clearing no more than a hundred yards from where they had destroyed the alien. In the center of the clearing stood a magnificent willow tree.
He had never seen one this large before. The branches of the giant willow draped to the ground. It stood nearly five stories high and probably measured a half-acre or more in circumference . Brilliant purple flowers, twinkling like fairy lights in the early morning light, were mixed in with the pale green leaves. In front of the willow stood the unicorn from the river.
Nali smiled and rushed forward, wrapping her arms around Xyrie’s neck. A sense of peace swept over him at the sight. He couldn’t imagine being anywhere but here, on this alien world, surrounded by mythical creatures, holding a Goddess, and following the most beautiful woman in all the kingdoms.
“I can stand,” Aminta murmured near his ear.
“Of course. My apologies,” he said, gently placing her feet on the ground.
“No apologies necessary, human. You have done everything I hoped you would,” Aminta said gleefully.
Asahi frowned, looking down at the face so close to his own, and noticed black swirls mixed with Aminta’s golden pupils. He attempted to let her go and move away, but thick golden bands wrapped around his arm.
“Nali!” he shouted in warning.
Nali turned and gasped. Asahi grunted when the golden bands wrapped around his chest and up his neck. He struggled to break free. It felt like he was being eaten alive.
“Release him, alien,” Xyrie’s voice commanded.
Aminta scoffed and shook her head. “Why don’t you show them your natural form, sister. It is time, don’t you think?” she mocked.
Asahi focused on slowing his breathing as the bands moved up to his jaw. He slid his hand down to his side, trying to reach Mr. Gryphon. Pain shot through him when the alien bent him backward.
“I can make this painful, or I can make it excruciating. Either way, I will enjoy it, human,” the alien murmured near his ear.
“Kill it,” he choked out.
“Release him,” Xyrie ordered.
The quick breath Asahi inhaled was knocked out of him when the unicorn suddenly transformed. In its place stood an elegant woman made of gold.
“You cannot harm one of your own kind, Xyrie. It is forbidden,” Aminta smugly replied.
“You are no longer one of us. The alien has contaminated the power that once belonged to you. I can kill it,” Xyrie stated, taking a step closer to them.
Aminta raised an eyebrow. “Yes, you can, but are you willing to kill the human?” she asked.
Asahi felt the alien sinking into his skin. He knew what it was doing—and what it would do, not only to him, but to the worlds. One life or countless billions? There was no choice.
“Destroy it, Nali,” he ordered in a strained voice.
“NO!” Nali pleaded, reaching for him.
He stiffened as a chill seeped over him. Mentally, he fought to retain control, detaching part of his mind behind a protective wall. The real Aminta within—the tiny ember that was left of her—sought to shield him from the pain as he was consumed.
“Stand aside, Xyrie,” the alien ordered.
Asahi internally winced when he heard the words coming from his mouth. The sensation of being disconnected from his body was bewildering. Afraid of losing what little remained of himself, he focused on Nali.
“Release him,” Nali ordered, her voice dropping to a growl in her fury.
She raised Ashure’s sword and walked toward him. Tears glistened in her beautiful eyes. Asahi desperately wanted to erase the pain he saw there. For a brief second, he regained control of his body.
“Remember your promise, Nali. If I become a danger to you or your people…,” he reminded her.
“Asahi…,” she choked out in a raw voice.
The sword in her hands dipped, and he desperately wanted to touch her one last time. Instead, he curled his fingers into a fist of frustration. The alien was using his emotions—and Nali’s—to manipulate them.
“I will always love you, Empress, but now it is time for you to save our worlds,” he said in a gentle voice.
Tears coursed down Nali’s cheeks. “I love you, Asahi,” she whispered.
He didn’t look away when she lifted the sword above her head. Her choked sob tore at his heart even as the alien tried to wrest control of his body to stop her from killing it once and for all. He lifted his chin.
The Gateway!
Asahi heard Aminta’s faint voice but didn’t process what she meant until he noticed that an area near the giant willow was beginning to glow. Nali must have felt the energy shift in the air because she paused. Xyrie’s startled reaction to the forming gateway made him think the alien was responsible for what was occurring.
“Nali, kill the alien now!” he harshly ordered. With stark terror, he saw the blackness of space through the portal.
Nali swung the sword at his fierce command. Time slowed, stretching into nanoseconds. The alien howled with fury and desperately attempted to withdraw from his body. Aminta, equally desperate, clung to
