Exchanging a quick glance, the panther and I weaved through the mayhem, our eyes locked on our ultimate target—Mila. She rose from her throne, her expression twisted into a mask of fury as she witnessed her carefully constructed facade crumbling around her. “Fools!” she screeched, her shrill voi

Nina Darkness enveloped me, replacing the inferno of flames and smoke that had taken over the lush jungle. The last thing I saw before everything went black was the swirling array of portals, out of which poured a plethora of armored troops. My father’s reinforcements had arrived. But were they

“Your foolish quest has cost us dearly,” he began without preamble, his words biting. “The forest, our home—all of it, reduced to ash and ruin because of your reckless actions.” A flicker of sadness flickered inside of me because I knew that Kai was right. But before I could muster a response, the

Nina Despite the refugee camp’s chaos, it was a shockingly lively place with a lot of laughter. Now that so many families had been reunited and we had made our way to an untouched swath of forest, things seemed to be looking up. Over the next couple of days, the camp grew more and more lively. T

“You can tell me,” I finally choked out. “I just want to know if he…” “He was alive, last I saw him,” he cut me off, giving my hand a firm squeeze. “But… there was so much happening, Nina.” Despite the hope in his words, I could see the true emotion in his eyes: uncertainty. Hot tears began to p