Tears streaked down Mara’s face as she reached out to the unseen temple.
Mara felt her consciousness drift, floating from her body, soaring in the clouds before the temple formed around her. She began looking through the empty rooms, calling to Natalie.
When she reached the stone room with the alter, Adara materialized in front of her. “Your friend is not here. She does not possess the magic to enter here. At least, not yet.”
Mara faced the woman whose features were like her own. “You are me.”
Adara inclined her head. “Your soul once belonged to me. This form is an avatar of my former existence. The spell cast long ago allows this representation to guide you and the other druids until they return the temple to your plane.”
“It’s weird talking to myself.”
Adara’s voice held an echo, emphasizing it did not belong to the living. “While we shared a soul. Your body, your heart is yours alone. As are the choices you make.”
Mara took a breath, then realized she felt nothing. While she appeared to breathe. There was no sensation in her lungs. She pushed away the odd feeling. “Can you help me save Natalie?”
Adara tilted her head to the side. “Embrace your power and you will have the ability to save her.”
“And Legion?”
“That choice is yours alone,” Adara said.
Mara frowned. “I thought our mating was destiny.”
Adara inclined her head. “His, yes. No being, not even a dragon as powerful as Legion, can force a druid into a life bond.”
Mara tapped her chest. “But I am just me.”
Adara’s eyes flickered with blue fire. The power that reflected in her own mirror. “You are the seer. The final druid to possess this power. Being the last seer is your destiny.”
Mara looked at her hands. “I just have to give up on my dreams of painting.”
“Why?”
Mara’s head came up. “I thought being the seer meant giving up my old life.”
The light in Adara’s eyes dimmed. “I understand you grew up in a human world, but why the fatalistic attitude? Human psychics have lives, family and dreams. They do not embrace their gift and sacrifice all aspects of their life.”
“I never thought of it like that,” Mara said.
Adara floated toward the alter. “You will see things as the seer no other ever will. You can paint the pictures you want on both canvas and in your mind’s eye. See the future of your friend. See your own. This is the choice you must make.”
Mara looked around the misty temple. “Will I bring back the temple?”
“That will require the power of the six sisters. You are the head of the table. The single force connected to me.”
“But you’re dead.”
“Adara is dead. Her ultimate sacrifice was to save her race and create this avatar for you and your sisters. For me to communicate with those to come. For you.”
“You are the temple?”
Adara’s eyes pulsed. This time her eyes were white. The power behind them was enormous. “Yes. And you are one of my children.”
Mara felt her power surge. Reach for Adara. “I feel it. Our connection. How did the dragons become part of this?”
“Legion is the head of his clan. His species swore allegiance to me. The dragons are powerful and possess immortality. Without Legion, you will age and die. The druids would lose your power for all time. Legion would also perish, resulting in his dragons turning dark and preying on the earth.”
Mara swallowed hard. “That sounds like, we die and it’s the end of the world.”
“It is. Druids and dragons have a symbiotic relationship. We protect the balance of nature. The mages and the dark dragons attempted to destroy that balance once, and it destroyed our race. It forced Adara to give her life and disperse her power among hundreds so it could grow and mature within humanity. You’re the conduit, but every druid who comes before me, started as a spark from Adara.”
Mara’s eyes opened wide. “That’s horrible. Do you know anything about the dark passenger Adara spoke of?”
“A dark mage latched onto Adara as she cast her life force into the human world. I cannot access the human world from this plane, so I cannot tell you who it was, or if he still lives.”
“Mages are human. He would be dead, wouldn’t he?”
“There are ways to extend his life if he’s willing to pay the price.”
“What’s the price for another life.”
“Death of the thing you love.”
Mara’s heart stuttered. “How could anyone do that?”
“You think of Druids and Mages as black and white or dark and light. We once had a symbiotic relationship and worked well together. It took the depravity of the mage leader to annihilate their race. This rings true for human emotions and traits. While you are of the light, you are capable of a dark act if the circumstances call for it.”
Mara nodded. “I get it. I would punch Devlin’s lights out if given the chance.”
“That is why you are the seer. While you are capable of substantial power, you will not use it recklessly. Are you ready to accept your magic? Your heritage?”
Mara nodded. “Yes. Tell me what to do.”
Adara motioned toward the table with the symbols on it. “Touch the table. See the onyx circle that belongs to you. Feel its power. Allow it to call you in your world. When you touch it, it will infuse you with the power of your ancestor. Then you can call out to your sister.”
“She will hear me?”
“All modern druids started from you. All must heed your call.”
“What about the girls at that camp?”
“I called to my children, making sure all were ready for the coming war. Many did not answer my summons. You must find them and protect them. You must call the dragons in question to your cause.”
“What are the dragons in question?”
The temple began to fade and Adara with it. “You will know
