Chapter 21I sat down in front of the tree and cast a circle. Without tools, this was seemingly difficult. I just had to trust that calling the quarters and putting my intention out there was going to be enough. I knew I didn’t have magic, and I knew The Ancestors were not wanting to hear my plea… But the fact that I came all the way to the other side, and found the twisted tree had to count for something… Right? I was really hoping that The Ancestors would see how far I've come and decide to hear me out. Once my circle was cast I tried to call The Ancestors again. My heart flipped in my chest when I felt them respond to my call. “Please, hear me out. Let me in, I need to at least try to plead my case.” I begged. I could tell they were weary, but everything I had done must have made some sort of impression because a portal appeared at the base of the twisted tree. It was oblong, swirling with black matter and intertwined with purples and blues. I closed the circle. “Thank you.” I s

Chapter 23I sat there on the bed while silent tears streamed down my face. I racked my brain thinking of any possible way we could save Ramses. We could make another deal… We could send someone else down there to take his place. I could go back and exchange myself for him. There had to be a way. Maybe we could break him out, somehow bring him back with us? My attempts were futile though, nothing seemed like an actual feasible option. I stood from the bed and just then realized that Rowen was still in there with me. He had been deathly silent and I hadn’t even noticed him there while I wept silently. I looked at Rowen and I was thankful that he was still there, actually. It was better than being alone. He stood and walked over to me. I looked up and met his gaze. I could see understanding in his rose gold eyes. He touched the side of my face, much like he had when I was still dead and in between realms. His touch made me shudder involuntarily. “We are going to get through this, howe

Chapter 25(Ramses) I turned to The Ancestors who had just sent Katrina back to her body and pretended I didn’t just feel my entire soul shatter. “What is it you would like me to do now?” I asked snarkily. “We will call you when you are needed. For now make yourself at home, Reaver.” She spat, and within seconds they were gone and a portal opened up. I assumed that was my queue to step inside. It transported me back to the base of the twisted tree. "Great, back out here again." I huffed to Titan. "It could be worse, we could be dead." Titan howled. "Oh, too soon? Haha." He cackled. I couldn’t help but burst out laughing too, what a fucked up situation we were in. Well, one thing was for sure, I would never be bored here. I decided to try and materialize to my house. I figured there wouldn't be anyone there so I wouldn't be bothered. I closed my eyes and materialized, but when I opened them I was at Katrina's house. "Ugh, my magic works so strange here." I exclaimed to Titan. It wa

Chapter 27Ok good, that should help her out. Now back to my quest at hand! I thought. “Shit.” I said out loud. Bree ran off, and I was going to ask her to help me. I know she’s a Witch, and I know she is pissed about the hybrid transition not working. She would be perfect with a vendetta against The Ancestors to help me open a portal. Now to just find her. I headed in the direction she ran towards, and attempted to follow her steps. But I had no idea where she would have gone. Tracking on The Otherside was next to impossible due to the amount of dirt rising from the ground on a consistent basis. I couldn’t smell her or hear her when I tried. I could just hear the slithering of The Shadows in the distance. Even though they just helped me, I still felt weird about them. I probably always would. I will never understand how my brother, Raziel, calls them so often. They are like his pets. The thought made me shudder. Maybe he was a lot closer to the darkness than I would ever be... I g

Chapter 29(Katrina)I sat up from bed as Rowen walked into my room and softly shut the door behind him. I had changed into a pair of shorts and just a tank top for bed. My hair was up in a bun, out of my way, and I’m sure I looked like I hadn’t slept in days. That was true. The ritual had to happen as soon as possible, but looks like I wasn’t the only one running on no sleep. “Hey.” Rowen said softly. “Hi.” I replied. He came and sat on the foot of the bed. I watched as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. He seemed a little nervous. “Are you ok?” I asked him and I put my hand on his arm. He looked at me with those rose gold orbs and I just melted. I hated the way I felt around Ramses’ brothers. I worked so hard to be faithful to Ramses, even though he didn’t reciprocate it, and that was fine! I have literally never been tempted by anyone else. They can all fuck themselves, for all I care. But when it comes to Ramses’ brothers, it’s like they are a drug to me, and I can’t